Meanings
- human sciencesThe hypothesis that the structure of a language affects the worldview or cognition of its speakers.
1 more example
Newspeak sets the scene of linguistic determinism, where language is hypothesised to influence or control a people group’s thought processes. In popular terms, this has been referred to as part of the Sapir-Whorf hypothesis, or an aspect of linguistic relativity, where individuals perceive the world based on the structure of their habitually-used language.
2020 August 8, Zui, “Controlled Languages — Newspeak”, in The Language Closet
Origin
Named after two researchers, Edward Sapir and his student Benjamin Lee Whorf, who observed that linguistic differences have consequences in human cognition and behavior.
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Chinese Mandarin 薩丕爾-沃爾夫假說 /萨丕尔-沃尔夫假说
- 薩丕爾-沃爾夫假說 /萨丕尔-沃尔夫假说 (Sàpī'ěr-Wò'ěrfū jiǎshuō)principle that a language's structure affects its speakers' worldview or cognition
Dutch Sapir-Whorfhypothese
- Sapir-Whorfhypotheseprinciple that a language's structure affects its speakers' worldview or cognition
Esperanto hipotezo de Sapir-Whorf
- hipotezo de Sapir-Whorfprinciple that a language's structure affects its speakers' worldview or cognition
French hypothèse de Sapir-Whorf, hypothèse Sapir-Whorf
- hypothèse de Sapir-Whorfprinciple that a language's structure affects its speakers' worldview or cognition
- hypothèse Sapir-Whorfprinciple that a language's structure affects its speakers' worldview or cognition
German Sapir-Whorf-Hypothese
- Sapir-Whorf-Hypotheseprinciple that a language's structure affects its speakers' worldview or cognition
Hungarian Sapir–Whorf-hipotézis
- Sapir–Whorf-hipotézisprinciple that a language's structure affects its speakers' worldview or cognition
Italian ipotesi di Sapir-Whorf
- ipotesi di Sapir-Whorfprinciple that a language's structure affects its speakers' worldview or cognition
Japanese サピア・ウォーフの仮説
- サピア・ウォーフの仮説 (Sapia Wōfu no kasetsu)principle that a language's structure affects its speakers' worldview or cognition
Polish hipoteza Sapira-Whorfa
- hipoteza Sapira-Whorfaprinciple that a language's structure affects its speakers' worldview or cognition
Portuguese hipótese de Sapir-Whorf
- hipótese de Sapir-Whorfprinciple that a language's structure affects its speakers' worldview or cognition
Romanian ipoteza Sapir-Whorf
- ipoteza Sapir-Whorfprinciple that a language's structure affects its speakers' worldview or cognition
Spanish hipótesis de Sapir-Whorf
- hipótesis de Sapir-Whorfprinciple that a language's structure affects its speakers' worldview or cognition
Cite this entry
Sapir-Whorf hypothesis. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Sapir-Whorf%20hypothesis
“Sapir-Whorf hypothesis.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Sapir-Whorf%20hypothesis. Accessed November 5, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “Sapir-Whorf hypothesis,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Sapir-Whorf%20hypothesis.
Source: Sapir-Whorf hypothesis on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.