demotic
adjective
Did you know?
You may recognize the root of demotic from words like democracy and demography. The source of these words is the Greek word dēmos, meaning "people." Demotic is often used of everyday forms of language (as opposed to literary or highbrow versions). It entered English in the early 1800s and originally designated a form of ancient Egyptian cursive script which by the 5th century BCE had come into use everywhere in Egypt for business and literary purposes (in contrast to the more complex, hieratic script retained by the clergy). Demotic has a newer specialized sense, as well, referring to a form of Modern Greek that is based on everyday speech and that since 1976 has been the official language of Greece.
Example Sentences
Adam Gopnik, The New Yorker, 21 July 2022 What does her embrace of the Republican base's most demotic superstitions tell us about the character of the contemporary right — and the character of contemporary American politics more generally? Damon Linker, The Week, 29 Mar. 2022 Instead, Baker does trash-and-vaudeville as in his demotic fashion ad Khaite FW21. Armond White, National Review, 29 Dec. 2021 While Urdu education was severely restricted along with its script as well as its high, ultra Persianised register, demotic Urdu along with a substantial part of its Persian loans still lives on in India. Shoaib Daniyal, Quartz, 26 Oct. 2021 Formally commanding, the multicolored suite captures in sprightly imagery and describes in demotic words a host of Black citizens—real lives, really led—in windows of tenements along a city street that’s past due for intersecting with Fifth Avenue. Peter Schjeldahl, The New Yorker, 23 Nov. 2020 The American right has been molded in his anti-elitist, grassroots, demotic, irreverent, patriotic, hard-charging image. Matthew Continetti, National Review, 8 Feb. 2020 Saudi Arabia sponsors demotic Sunni radicalism throughout the Middle East, which has extended human conflict and contributed to the waves of refugees heading into Europe. Michael Brendan Dougherty, National Review, 20 Sep. 2019 Sports have always been a more demotic proposition. Joseph Epstein, WSJ, 12 July 2018 See More Word History
borrowed from Greek dēmotikós "of the people, common, ordinary, of the cursive Egyptian script," from dēmótēs "one of the people, commoner" (from dêmos "people" + -tēs, suffix of persons) + -ikos -ic entry 1 — more at demo-
1822, in the meaning defined at sense 1