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colloquial

[ kuh-loh-kwee-uhl ]
/ kəˈloʊ kwi əl /
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adjective
characteristic of or appropriate to ordinary or familiar conversation rather than formal speech or writing; informal.
involving or using conversation.
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Origin of colloquial

First recorded in 1745–55; colloquy + -al1

synonym study for colloquial

1, 2. Colloquial, conversational, informal refer to types of speech or to usages not on a formal level. Colloquial is often mistakenly used with a connotation of disapproval, as if it meant “vulgar” or “bad” or “incorrect” usage, whereas it is merely a familiar style used in speaking and writing. Conversational refers to a style used in the oral exchange of ideas, opinions, etc.: an easy conversational style. Informal means without formality, without strict attention to set forms, unceremonious: an informal manner of speaking; it describes the ordinary, everyday language of cultivated speakers.

OTHER WORDS FROM colloquial

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use colloquial in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for colloquial

colloquial
/ (kəˈləʊkwÉȘəl) /

adjective
of or relating to conversation
denoting or characterized by informal or conversational idiom or vocabularyCompare informal

Derived forms of colloquial

colloquially, adverbcolloquialness, noun
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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