Main Entry: ¹ver·nac·u·lar

Pronunciation: \və(r)-ˈna-kyə-lər\

Function: adjective

Etymology: Latin vernaculus native, from verna slave born in the master's house, native

Date: 1601

1 a : using a language or dialect native to a region or country rather than a literary, cultured, or foreign language b : of, relating to, or being a nonstandard language or dialect of a place, region, or country c : of, relating to, or being the normal spoken form of a language
2 : applied to a plant or animal in the common native speech as distinguished from the Latin nomenclature of scientific classification <the vernacular name>
3 : of, relating to, or characteristic of a period, place, or group; especially : of, relating to, or being the common building style of a period or place <vernacular architecture>

— ver·nac·u·lar·ly adverb