Pronounced: purr-FOR-muh-tiv, adj
Notes: This is a new word to me
Yesterday’s word
The word langue means “language viewed abstractly as a system of forms and conventions used for communication”
First usage
Our word came into English in the early 1900s, as far as I can tell
Background / Comments
Originally, our word came into Middle English (1100s to 1400s) from the French word langue (language), and that’s all it meant in English, but the word fell into disuse. From 1907-1913, a Swiss linguist (Fredinand de Saussure) contrasted “langue” (our word) with “parole” — langue meaning as above — and “parole” meaning the language as actually used by a person. In any event, I don’t recall every running across our word before.
Richard's Vocabulary Word-of-the-Day 