Lexicalization

In linguistics, lexicalization is the process of adding words, set phrases, or word patterns to a language's lexicon.

Whether word formation and lexicalization refer to the same process is controversial within the field of linguistics. Most linguists agree that there is a distinction, but there are many ideas of what the distinction is.^[1] Lexicalization may be simple, for example borrowing a word from another language, or more involved, as in calque or loan translation, wherein a foreign phrase is translated literally, as in marché aux puces, or in English, flea market.

Other mechanisms include compounding, abbreviation, and blending.^[2] Particularly interesting from the perspective of historical linguistics is the process by which ad hoc phrases become set in the language, and eventually become new words (see lexicon). Lexicalization contrasts with grammaticalization, and the relationship between the two processes is subject to some debate.