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 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
The actor hails from Texas, and according to some sleuths on Reddit, Storrie worked with Russian dialect coach Kate Yablunovsky.
—Lea Veloso, StyleCaster, 2 Dec. 2025
Romansh, which sounds closer to northern-Italian dialects than to the modern language spoken in Florence or Rome, is a battered remnant of spoken Late Latin which escaped standardization mostly by being tucked away in the Alps.
—Simon Akam, New Yorker, 1 Dec. 2025
The period setting, the Southern dialect, the fantastical elements, and above all, the duality of embodying two distinct brothers — all of it pushed Jordan to discover where his limits lie.
—Clayton Davis, Variety, 28 Nov. 2025
My face has been everywhere, my name butchered in multiple dialects.
—Chanté Joseph, Vogue, 14 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for dialect
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Lea Veloso, StyleCaster, 2 Dec. 2025
Romansh, which sounds closer to northern-Italian dialects than to the modern language spoken in Florence or Rome, is a battered remnant of spoken Late Latin which escaped standardization mostly by being tucked away in the Alps.
—Simon Akam, New Yorker, 1 Dec. 2025
The period setting, the Southern dialect, the fantastical elements, and above all, the duality of embodying two distinct brothers — all of it pushed Jordan to discover where his limits lie.
—Clayton Davis, Variety, 28 Nov. 2025
My face has been everywhere, my name butchered in multiple dialects.
—Chanté Joseph, Vogue, 14 Nov. 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 12 Dec. 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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