citation form

plural citation forms

1. The basic form of a word or set of words used as a dictionary entry (of any part of speech, but especially of a phrase).

   1 more example

   For English, the citation form of a noun is the singular (and non-possessive) form: mouse rather than mice. For multiword lexemes that contain possessive adjectives or reflexive pronouns, the citation form uses a form of the indefinite pronoun one: do one's best, perjure oneself. In European languages with grammatical gender, the citation form of regular adjectives and nouns is usually the masculine singular.

   Synonyms: canonical form, dictionary form, basic form