Skip to main content
Glite Dictionary
hypernym

hypernym

9.3
A general word for a group of things, like 'flower' for 'rose'
  • noun
  • /ˈhaɪpərnɪm/
  • Specialized
translation icon : hiperónimo
  • In the classification of living things, 'animal' is a hypernym of 'dog'.

Examples

  • The dictionary entry included both the hypernym and its hyponyms for clarity.

  • The dictionary entry included both the hypernym and its hyponyms for clarity.

  • In linguistics, a hypernym helps organize words into a hierarchy.

  • A hypernym is a general term.

  • The word hypernym refers to a general category.

  • In the classification of living things, 'animal' is a hypernym of 'dog'.

  • In linguistics, a hypernym helps organize words into a hierarchy.

Synonyms

superordinate word
vshypernym
  • Specialized
8.0

A general word that includes more specific words like bird for sparrow

is the general relational label for that broader-versus-specific pair
superordinate
vshypernym
  • Specialized
8.2

A broad word that includes more specific words like dog

is the general relational label for that broader-versus-specific pair

How General

hypernym
  • Specialized
9.3
blanket term
1 5.5
hyponym
  • Specialized
9.8

Surface Forms

hypernym singular
hypernyms plural

Morphology

hypernym = hyper + nym

The word contains the prefix hyper- and a bound technical element -nym, but the meaning 'more general term' is not directly recoverable for an average learner.

Etymology

Hypernym comes from Greek parts hyper- meaning 'over' and -nym meaning 'name', the same -nym you see in synonym. So a hypernym is an 'over-name', a general word that sits above more specific words, for example 'flower' is a hypernym of 'rose'.