Standard English

American

[stan-derd ing-glish, -lish] / ˈstæn dərd ˈɪŋ glɪʃ, -lɪʃ /

noun

the English language in its most widely accepted form, adhering to fixed academic norms of spelling, grammar, and usage in written and spoken contexts, and neutralizing nonstandard dialectal variation.

Etymology

Origin of Standard English

First recorded in 1870–75

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Standard English punctuation is still alive and well; in the online world, nonstandard punctuation is alive and well.…

From The New Yorker • Dec. 10, 2015

Remember, for many Americans, Standard English is only used in formal settings—business and school, but not home.

From Slate • Oct. 1, 2014

Grammarians push Standard English at the expense of other forms, he asserts.

From BBC • May 13, 2013

Standard English was all very well for Anglophone societies, but out there in the wider world, a non-native "decaffeinated English", declared Nerriere, was becoming the new global phenomenon.

From The Guardian • Mar. 29, 2010

Various editions of separate works; Cranford, in Standard English Classics, etc.

From English Literature Its History and Its Significance for the Life of the English Speaking World by Long, William Joseph

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023