dialect

[ dahy-uh-lekt ]

noun

1. Linguistics. a variety of a language that is distinguished from other varieties of the same language by features of phonology, grammar, and vocabulary, and by its use by a group of speakers who are set off from others geographically or socially.
2. a provincial, rural, or socially distinct variety of a language that differs from the standard language, especially when considered as substandard.

   Synonyms: patois, idiom

3. a special variety of a language:

   The literary dialect is usually taken as the standard language.

4. a language considered as one of a group that have a common ancestor:

   Persian, Latin, and English are Indo-European dialects.

5. jargon or cant.

dialect

/ ˈdaɪəˌlɛkt /

noun

1. 1. a form of a language spoken in a particular geographical area or by members of a particular social class or occupational group, distinguished by its vocabulary, grammar, and pronunciation
   2. a form of a language that is considered inferior

      the farmer spoke dialect and was despised by the merchants

   3. ( as modifier )

      a dialect word

Derived Forms

• ˌdiaˈlectal, adjective

Other Words From

• sub·dia·lect noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of dialect¹

First recorded in 1545–55; from Latin dialectus, from Greek diálektos “discourse, language, dialect,” equivalent to dialég(esthai) “to converse” ( dia- “through, between” + légein “to speak”) + -tos verbal adjective suffix; dia-

Word History and Origins

Origin of dialect¹

C16: from Latin dialectus, from Greek dialektos speech, dialect, discourse, from dialegesthai to converse, from legein to talk, speak

Synonym Study

See language.

Example Sentences

Each has its own language or dialect, some similar, some mutually unintelligible.

From Nautilus

The power portion is pretty straightforward, but the communication, as with human languages, can run into some challenges with dialect, even when they speak the same language.

From Popular-Science

We’ve got a big project right now, which is mapping all of the dialects in Scotland into a gigantic atlas and looking at how they all interrelate to each other and how people use them.

From Nautilus

Or, you may be targeting people who already speak English but use different words based on regional dialects.

From Search Engine Land

The findings fly in the face of previous hypotheses that birdsong dialects don’t change much within local regions.

From Science News

He frequently slips into Neapolitan dialect so thick that is incomprehensible.

From The Daily Beast

Sicilian dialect is filled with Arabic words like mischinu (taken from the Arabic word miskin), which means a poor person.

From The Daily Beast

Dialect, for instance, was not his métier, so like a true devotee of the form he exploited his incompetence for laughs.

From The Daily Beast

I got it, and then I had a different dialect coach who worked with me on the project.

From The Daily Beast

I must apologize for my regional dialect taking over everything.

From The Daily Beast

"No, she don't or'ter," the Colonel thought, involuntarily adopting Jake's dialect; but what to do with her was the question.

From Project Gutenberg

Their speech is a dialect called Chabucano—a mixture of very corrupt Spanish and native tongues.

From Project Gutenberg

The Press is represented by a large number of American, Spanish and dialect newspapers.

From Project Gutenberg

For months the public organs, issued in Spanish and dialect, persistently denounced it as a harbinger of ruin to the Colony.

From Project Gutenberg

In its inception it was a mere attempt to write pleasing, popular verse of a better kind in the dialect of the fireside.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• accent
• idiom
• jargon
• language
• lingo
• patois
• pronunciation
• slang
• terminology
• tongue
• vernacular
• vocabulary