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Vulgar Latin

American  

noun

  1. popular Latin, as distinguished from literary or standard Latin, especially those spoken forms of Latin from which the Romance languages developed. VL


Vulgar Latin British  

noun

  1. any of the dialects of Latin spoken in the Roman Empire other than classical Latin. The Romance languages developed from them

"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

Etymology

Origin of Vulgar Latin

First recorded in 1810–20

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.

Maybe I could get him interested in Vulgar Latin and Old Irish.

From Time Magazine Archive

Nor were they aware of the existence of Vulgar Latin, which is, to a much greater extent than classical Latin, the parent of the Romance languages.

From The Romance of Words (4th ed.) by Weekley, Ernest

The foundation of French is Vulgar Latin, which differs considerably from that we study at school.

From The Romance of Words (4th ed.) by Weekley, Ernest

To the disappearance of the h from Vulgar Latin is due the fact that the Romance languages have no aspirate.

From The Romance of Words (4th ed.) by Weekley, Ernest

The third great element of our working vocabulary is furnished by Old French, i.e., the language naturally developed from the spoken Latin of the Roman soldiers and colonists, generally called Vulgar Latin.

From The Romance of Words (4th ed.) by Weekley, Ernest