Macrolanguage

Quick meaning: Macrolanguage is a noun meaning (computing) Alternative spelling of macro language (“system for defining and processing macros”).

Meaning

(computing) Alternative spelling of macro language (“system for defining and processing macros”).

More Meanings

1. (linguistics) A "language" by common usage, which is in fact a dialect continuum consisting of widely varying varieties that may be distinct languages by the criterion of mutual intelligibility.
2. (linguistics) A group of mutually intelligible speech varieties that have no traditional name in common, and which may be considered distinct languages by their speakers.
3. (international standards) A book-keeping device where – when a language as defined under the ISO 639-2 standard developed by the US Library of Congress, for the purpose of encoding the languages that published books are written in, does not correspond to a single language under the ISO 639-3 standard developed by the Summer Institute of Linguistics, for the purpose of listing all the world's languages in their publication Ethnologue – the ISO 639-2 language is assigned an ISO 639-3 code as a "macrolanguage".

Example Sentences

Modern Arabic is classified [by the ISO] as a macrolanguage with 27 sub-languages spoken throughout the Arab world.

For languages that are considered to be part of macrolanguages in ISO 639-3, use the most specific code possible. […] In any situation, if you are not able to identify the appropriate specific language code, use the macrolanguage code.

For this reason, the Ethnologue (2009) recognizes Chinese in their list of languages of China not as a language, but as a macrolanguage, i.e. multiple, closely related individual languages that are deemed in some usage contexts to be a […]

Much of the emphasis in spatial decision-support research continues to focus on developing tools, typically using macrolanguage scripting exclusively or scripting linked to compilable programming and commercial geographic information system software, such as workstation Arc/Info and desktop ArcGIS.

Word Forms

• macrolanguages

Related Words

Related dictionary entries include medialect, macaronic, matrilect, macaronicism, macaronism, mesolect.

Related Dictionary Tools