idiolect
noun
id·i·o·lect
ˈi-dē-ə-ˌlekt 
: the language or speech pattern of one individual at a particular period of life
Examples of idiolect in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Attackers can mimic the distinct idiolect of the target.
—
Dan Goodin, Ars Technica, 18 Nov. 2023
That’s where idiolect comes into play.
—Erica Sweeney, Men's Health, 8 Feb. 2023
Butler appears to have picked up Elvis’s idiolect, Howell says.
—Erica Sweeney, Men's Health, 8 Feb. 2023
Sherif’s music exists in the space between autobiographical and his own idiolect.
—Jayson Buford, Rolling Stone, 3 June 2022
And then there’s his inborn ear for every shade of human babble, here a transcendent four-hander, there a screwball travelogue, everywhere argot and idiolect and argument.
—New York Times, 23 Apr. 2020
His writing conveys an extraordinary ear for accent, rhythm, and idiolect.
—Maya Jasanoff, The New Republic, 22 Aug. 2019
Kathleen is relentlessly animated and quick-witted, with thick tangerine hair, steely eyes, and an endearing personal idiolect that suggests both an autodidactic reading in philosophy and economics and the gusty crudity of the merchant marine.
—Gideon Lewis-Kraus, WIRED, 18 June 2018
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Dialect coach Erik Singer takes a look at idiolects, better known as the specific way one individual speaks.
—Jason Parham, WIRED, 21 June 2018
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Dan Goodin, Ars Technica, 18 Nov. 2023
That’s where idiolect comes into play.
—Erica Sweeney, Men's Health, 8 Feb. 2023
Butler appears to have picked up Elvis’s idiolect, Howell says.
—Erica Sweeney, Men's Health, 8 Feb. 2023
Sherif’s music exists in the space between autobiographical and his own idiolect.
—Jayson Buford, Rolling Stone, 3 June 2022
And then there’s his inborn ear for every shade of human babble, here a transcendent four-hander, there a screwball travelogue, everywhere argot and idiolect and argument.
—New York Times, 23 Apr. 2020
His writing conveys an extraordinary ear for accent, rhythm, and idiolect.
—Maya Jasanoff, The New Republic, 22 Aug. 2019
Kathleen is relentlessly animated and quick-witted, with thick tangerine hair, steely eyes, and an endearing personal idiolect that suggests both an autodidactic reading in philosophy and economics and the gusty crudity of the merchant marine.
—Gideon Lewis-Kraus, WIRED, 18 June 2018
Sign up for the Backchannel newsletter Movies & TV
Dialect coach Erik Singer takes a look at idiolects, better known as the specific way one individual speaks.
—Jason Parham, WIRED, 21 June 2018
Cite this Entry
“Idiolect.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/idiolect. Accessed 12 Jul. 2025.
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