locution
Americannoun
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a particular form of expression; a word, phrase, expression, or idiom, especially as used by a particular person, group, etc.
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a style of speech or verbal expression; phraseology.
noun
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a word, phrase, or expression
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manner or style of speech or expression
Synonym Usage
See phrase.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of locution
First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English, from Latin locūtiōn- (stem of locūtiō ) “speech, style of speech,” equivalent to locūt(us) (past participle of loquī “to speak”) + -iōn- -ion
Explanation
Your southern-born friend's habit of saying "y'all" when she's talking to her family could be described as locution — it's a word she habitually uses in particular situations. A person's style of speech — certain words or phrases she tends to use — is her locution, especially if it's specific to a particular place or group of people, like teenagers or French Canadians. You can also use the noun locution when you're talking about the way a person pronounces words. If someone tends to "beat around the bush," or tell a story in a roundabout way, you can call that circumlocution.
Vocabulary lists containing locution
Quiz yourself on these words spoken by the man at the center of the "Laurel" / "Yanny" craze!
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"The Pit and the Pendulum," Vocabulary from the short story
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"The Pit and the Pendulum" by Edgar Allan Poe
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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.
“I could be wrong but …” is the locution of the democratic citizen.
From Slate ● Jan. 2, 2026
The New Hampshire Democrat, who got elected six years ago by a margin of just 1,017 votes, uses an unmistakably New England locution to describe her state’s voters: “Wicked independent.”
From Washington Post ● Aug. 21, 2022
If the locution “hard-boiled” had not already been coined it would be necessary to coin it now to describe the characters of Dashiell Hammett’s latest detective story.
From New York Times ● Oct. 21, 2021
And how about that use of "thumbing their noses"? With that aged locution, the good governor is, without doubt, speaking directly to his demographic.
From Salon ● Sep. 18, 2021
He would not have enjoyed Joseph Conrad, who uses unblushingly the locution, “except you and I.”
From The So-called Human Race by Bert Leston Taylor
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
