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

d

: a variety of language whose identity is fixed by a factor other than geography (such as social class)

spoke a rough peasant dialect

e

: register sense 4c

f

: a version of a computer programming language

2

: manner or means of expressing oneself : phraseology

dialectal

ˌdī-ə-ˈlek-tᵊl 

adjective

dialectally

ˌdī-ə-ˈlek-tə-lē 

adverb

Synonyms

• argot
• cant
• jargon
• jive
• language
• lingo
• patois
• patter
• shop
• shoptalk
• slang
• terminology
• vocabulary

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

The interview was conducted in a mixture of English and Low German, a dialect widely spoken within the Christian Mennonite community. —Thomas G. Moukawsher, Newsweek, 22 Mar. 2025

While Zubac is from Croatia and Bogdanovic is Serbian, their native Balkan language is the same but spoken with different dialects. —Janis Carr, Orange County Register, 20 Mar. 2025

The film’s stars, Adrien Brody and Felicity Jones, worked with a dialect coach to hone their accents. —Chris C. Palmer, The Conversation, 18 Feb. 2025

There’s certainly a spirit of lively, spontaneous community in the film’s ensemble of screen newcomers, all cast from the region and fluent in its distinctive Henan dialect, who collectively contribute a vital air of careworn, lived-in human texture to proceedings. —Guy Lodge, Variety, 14 Feb. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle French dialecte, from Latin dialectus, from Greek dialektos conversation, dialect, from dialegesthai to converse — more at dialogue

First Known Use

1566, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Phrases Containing dialect

• dialect atlas
• dialect geography
• sub-dialect

Rhymes for dialect

• architect
• circumspect
• deselect
• disconnect
• disinfect
• disrespect
• incorrect
• indirect
• intellect
• interject
• intersect
• pluperfect

Kids 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

dialectal

ˌdī-ə-ˈlek-tᵊl 

adjective

dialectally

-tᵊl-ē 

adverb