diff --git a/base/docs/basedocs.jl b/base/docs/basedocs.jl
index e03d0db78f29f..7cefa7d2b0ce4 100644
--- a/base/docs/basedocs.jl
+++ b/base/docs/basedocs.jl
@@ -3705,11 +3705,11 @@ unused and delete the entire benchmark code).
     the code is semantically equivalent to `donotdelete(2).`
 
 !!! note
-    This intrinsic does not affect the semantics of code that is dead because it is
+    This function does not affect the semantics of code that is dead because it is
     *unreachable*. For example, the body of the function `f(x) = false && donotdelete(x)`
-    may be deleted in its entirety. The semantics of this intrinsic only guarantee that
-    *if* the intrinsic is semantically executed, then there is some program state at
-    which the value of the arguments of this intrinsic were available (in a register,
+    may be deleted in its entirety. The semantics of this function only guarantee that
+    *if* the function is semantically executed, then there is some program state at
+    which the value of the arguments of this function were available (in a register,
     in memory, etc.).
 
 # Examples
diff --git a/base/essentials.jl b/base/essentials.jl
index 32c44a9571f23..8539d423e9327 100644
--- a/base/essentials.jl
+++ b/base/essentials.jl
@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 # This file is a part of Julia. License is MIT: https://julialang.org/license
 
-using Core: CodeInfo, SimpleVector, donotdelete, compilerbarrier, memoryrefnew, memoryrefget, memoryrefset!
+using Core: CodeInfo, SimpleVector, compilerbarrier, memoryrefnew, memoryrefget, memoryrefset!
 
 const Callable = Union{Function,Type}
 
@@ -1261,3 +1261,5 @@ typename(typeof(function < end)).constprop_heuristic  = Core.SAMETYPE_HEURISTIC
 typename(typeof(function > end)).constprop_heuristic  = Core.SAMETYPE_HEURISTIC
 typename(typeof(function << end)).constprop_heuristic = Core.SAMETYPE_HEURISTIC
 typename(typeof(function >> end)).constprop_heuristic = Core.SAMETYPE_HEURISTIC
+
+donotdelete(args...) = Core.donotdelete(args...)