| analytic language |
| Definition:
A language that uses word order to indicate syntax
Note: As opposed to synthetic languages, which use inflection. |
| Example: English and Chinese are analytic languages; Latin, German, and Russian are synthetic. |
| Oxford English Dictionary: The term's first citation is from 1873: "The Swedish and Danish … have become more analytical than Old Norse." (Farrar Fam. of Speech ii. 74) |