Nominalization

Pronunciation varies by accent · noun

Meaning

(linguistics, countable) A noun derived from an adjective, verb, etc., often (in English) by adding a suffix such as -ity, -tion or -ism..

Definitions by Sense

1. (linguistics, countable) A noun derived from an adjective, verb, etc., often (in English) by adding a suffix such as -ity, -tion or -ism.
2. (linguistics, uncountable) The act or process of nominalizing; the use of such a noun.

Example Sentences

Writers who overload their sentences with nominalizations tend to sound pompous and abstract.

The positive use of the feminine noun une rien has been gradually replaced by the nominalization of the pronoun and the adverb that commonly serve as negative auxiliaries, rien, un rien: “The word offers a short version of the evolution of the etymological meaning of chose inverted as néant (c. 1530)” (RT: DHLF)[…]

Nominalization and agentless passives have attracted sustained attention in critical linguistics and Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA), where, it is argued, they ‘mystify’, i.e., reduce reader comprehension of, the role of social actors in depictions of events, particularly in news media discourse.

Nominalization is a common feature of a more scientific style of writing and is used as an additional measure for syntactic complexity.

Synonyms for nominalization

Antonyms for nominalization

Related Words

Word Forms

• nominalizations
• nominalisation

Usage Notes

Choose a synonym only when it preserves the intended meaning, tone, and grammar of the full sentence.

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