colloquial
[ kuh-loh-kwee-uhl ]
/ kəˈloʊ kwi əl /
Save This Word!
adjective
characteristic of or appropriate to ordinary or familiar conversation rather than formal speech or writing; informal.
involving or using conversation.
QUIZZES
QUIZ YOURSELF ON “THEIR,” “THERE,” AND “THEY’RE”
Are you aware how often people swap around “their,” “there,” and “they’re”? Prove you have more than a fair grasp over these commonly confused words.
Question 1 of 7
Which one of these commonly confused words can act as an adverb or a pronoun?
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
Words nearby colloquial
colloid theory of narcosis, collop, collophane, collophore, colloq., colloquial, colloquialism, colloquium, colloquy, collotype, collude
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2021
Example sentences from the Web for colloquial
British Dictionary definitions for colloquial
colloquial
/ (kəˈləʊkwɪəl) /
adjective
of or relating to conversation
denoting or characterized by informal or conversational idiom or vocabularyCompare informal
Derived forms of colloquial
colloquially, adverbcolloquialness, nounCollins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012