dialect
noun
di·a·lect
ˈdī-ə-ˌlekt 
often attributive
1
linguistics
a
: a regional variety of language distinguished by features of vocabulary, grammar, and pronunciation from other regional varieties and constituting together with them a single language
the Doric dialect of ancient Greek
a dialect of Chinese spoken in Hong Kong
b
: one of two or more cognate (see cognate entry 1 sense 3a) languages
French and Italian are Romance dialects
c
: a variety of a language used by the members of a group
such dialects as politics and advertising—
Philip Howard
Philip Howard
d
: a variety of language whose identity is fixed by a factor other than geography (such as social class)
spoke a rough peasant dialect
f
: a version of a computer programming language
2
: manner or means of expressing oneself : phraseology
Examples of dialect in a Sentence
They speak a southern dialect of French.
The author uses dialect in his writing.
The play was hard to understand when the characters spoke in dialect.
Recent Examples on the Web
Coogler wanted to ensure that neither of those characters would turn into caricatures, and had Jordan work with a dialect coach to aid in that and even asked twin filmmakers Logan and Noah Miller to consult on the film, helping him on the screenplay too.
—Randy Myers, Mercury News, 16 Apr. 2025
Currently, African languages and dialects are underrepresented due to a lack of data and there are often biases in training data, such as facial recognition systems that struggle with darker skin tones.
—Nell Lewis, CNN Money, 3 Apr. 2025
Eligible genres include tango, folk, flamenco, and other traditional subgenres, excluding tropical music and its derivatives, and must be in Spanish, Portuguese or in indigenous languages or dialects.
—Thania Garcia, Variety, 19 Mar. 2025
To prepare, Reid worked with a dialect coach and learned the specific physicality associated with Natalia's condition.
—Lee Habeeb, MSNBC Newsweek, 4 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for dialect
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Randy Myers, Mercury News, 16 Apr. 2025
Currently, African languages and dialects are underrepresented due to a lack of data and there are often biases in training data, such as facial recognition systems that struggle with darker skin tones.
—Nell Lewis, CNN Money, 3 Apr. 2025
Eligible genres include tango, folk, flamenco, and other traditional subgenres, excluding tropical music and its derivatives, and must be in Spanish, Portuguese or in indigenous languages or dialects.
—Thania Garcia, Variety, 19 Mar. 2025
To prepare, Reid worked with a dialect coach and learned the specific physicality associated with Natalia's condition.
—Lee Habeeb, MSNBC Newsweek, 4 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for dialect
Cite this Entry
“Dialect.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/dialect. Accessed 27 Apr. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
dialect
noun
di·a·lect
ˈdī-ə-ˌlekt
1
: a regional variety of a language differing from the standard language
2
: a variety of a language used by the members of a particular group or class
peasant dialect
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