Definition of semitic Semitic

/sʌmɪˈtɪk/ - [sumitik] - Se•mit•ic

We found 11 definitions of semitic from 6 different sources.

What does semitic mean?

Noun
semitic - a major branch of the Afro-Asiatic language family
		afrasian, afrasian language, afro-asiatic, afroasiatic, afroasiatic language, hamito-semitic a large family of related languages spoken both in Asia and Africa
		akkadian an ancient branch of the Semitic languages
		amharic, ethiopian language the dominant and official language of Ethiopia; a Semitic language much influenced by the Cushitic language with which Amhara have been in close contact
		arabic, arabic language the Semitic language of the Arabs; spoken in a variety of dialects
		aramaic an alphabetical (or perhaps syllabic) script used since the 9th century BC to write the Aramaic language; many other scripts were subsequently derived from it
		maltese language, malti, maltese a term applied indiscriminately in the United States to any short-haired bluish-grey cat
Adjective
semitic - of or relating to the group of Semitic languages; "Semitic tongues have a complicated morphology"
semitic - of or relating to or characteristic of Semites; "Semite peoples"
		Semite, Semitic

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semitic (Adjective)
Of or pertaining to a subdivision of Afro-Asiatic Semitic languages : Amharic, Arabic, Aramaic, Syriac, Akkadian, Hebrew, Maltese, Tigrigna, Phoenician etc.
semitic (Adjective)
Of or pertaining to the Semites: Semitic people.
semitic (Adjective)
Of or pertaining to the descendants of Shem, the eldest of three of sons of Noah .
semitic (Adjective)
In a narrower sense, of or pertaining to the Israeli, Jewish, or Hebrew people.

semitic (a.)
Of or pertaining to Shem or his descendants; belonging to that division of the Caucasian race which includes the Arabs, Jews, and related races.

semitic
sem-it′ik, adj. pertaining to the Semites, or supposed descendants of Shem, or their language, customs, &c.—also Shemit′ic.—ns. Sem′ite; Semitisā′tion.—v.t. Sem′itise, to render Semitic in language or religion.—ns. Sem′itism, a Semitic idiom; Sem′itist, a Hebrew scholar.—Semitic languages, Assyrian, Aramean, Hebrew, Phœnician, together with Arabic and Ethiopic. [Applied by J. G. Eichhorn in 1817 to the closely allied peoples represented in Gen. x. as descended from Shem.]