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Meaning of Johnsonese | Babel Free

Noun CEFR B2

Definitions

The literary style of Dr. Samuel Johnson; an inflated, stilted, or pompous style, affecting classical words.

Examples

“It is a sort of broken Johnsonese, a barbarous patois, bearing the same relation to the language of Rasselas which the gibberish of the negroes of Jamaica bears to the English of the House of Lords”

CEFR level

B2

Upper Intermediate
This word is part of the CEFR B2 vocabulary — upper intermediate level.

See also

johnsongrass Johnsonian Johnsoniana Johnsonianism Johnsonism Johnsonite