WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026
basic vocabulary, [Ling.]
  1. Linguisticsthe set of lexical items in a language that are most resistant to replacement, referring to the most common and universal elements of human experience, such as parts of the body (foot, eye), universal features of the environment (water, star), common activities (eat, sleep), and the lowest numerals. Also called core vocabulary. 

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