Definition of dialect Dialect

/dajˈʌlɛˌkt/ - [dayulekt] - di•a•lect

We found 9 definitions of dialect from 7 different sources.

What does dialect mean?

Noun Plural: dialects
dialect - the usage or vocabulary that is characteristic of a specific group of people; "the immigrants spoke an odd dialect of English"; "he has a strong German accent"; "it has been said that a language is a dialect with an army and navy"
		idiom, accent
		non-standard speech speech that differs from the usual accepted, easily recognizable speech of native adult members of a speech community
		eye dialect the use of misspellings to identify a colloquial or uneducated speaker
		patois a regional dialect of a language (especially French); usually considered substandard

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dialect (Noun)
A variety of a language specifically, often a spoken variety that is characteristic of a particular area, community or group, often with relatively minor differences in vocabulary, style, spelling and pronunciation.
dialect (Noun)
A dialect of a language perceived as substandard and wrong.

dialect (n.)
Means or mode of expressing thoughts; language; tongue; form of speech.
dialect (n.)
The form of speech of a limited region or people, as distinguished from ether forms nearly related to it; a variety or subdivision of a language; speech characterized by local peculiarities or specific circumstances; as, the Ionic and Attic were dialects of Greece; the Yorkshire dialect; the dialect of the learned.

dialect
dī′a-lekt, n. a variety or form of a language peculiar to a district: a non-literary vernacular: a peculiar manner of speaking.—adj. Dialect′al.—adv. Dialect′ally.—ns. Dialect′icism; Dialectol′ogist; Dialectol′ogy. [Through Fr. and L. from Gr. dialektos, speech, manner of speech, peculiarity of speech—dia, between, legein, to speak.]

A dialect is a type of language spoken by a group of people. Sometimes people who live in the same place make a dialect. Sometimes people who are similar in some way make a dialect.

There is no agreed difference between a "dialect" and a "language". Some dialects are called "languages". They may spell words differently and be known as a language (for example, English is a Germanic dialect).

Other dialects different types of a language that come from different places or countries (for example, British English and American English are dialects of English).