markedness constraint
/ˈmɑrkədnəs kənˈstɹeɪnt/
Word Rarity
Very rare
Frequency: Zipf frequency 1.28 in modern English
29
Scrabble Score
20
Letters
4
Syllables
12
Unique Chars
Meaning
noun
In Optimality Theory, universal features that languages prefer to keep unviolated.
Example Sentences
- "the lack of codas is a markedness constraint that English violates, but Samoan keeps intact all the time."
Etymology
From markedness + constraint.
Inflected Forms
Frequently Paired Words
faithfulness constraint