local color
noun
: the presentation of the features and peculiarities of a particular locality and its inhabitants in writing
Examples of local color in a Sentence
a writer who uses local color in his stories
Recent Examples on the Web
Loy’s staging, which was first seen in Basel in 2022, has no hint of local color: the sets, by Márton Ágh, evoke a nondescript urban wasteland, with a beat-up telephone booth on one side, a hulking warehouselike structure on the other, and junk strewn about.
—
Alex Ross, New Yorker, 1 Dec. 2025
The concept is not unlike the literary trope of regionalism or local color genre—telling the same core story, just tailoring the language and presentation for new audiences and global regions.
—Alexandra Harrell, Sourcing Journal, 25 Nov. 2025
Both the leading man’s charisma and the setting’s local color shine through immediately, gifting us with a winning hero and an upbeat, lively journey.
—Courtney Howard, Variety, 30 Oct. 2025
It’s also strongly rooted in Tulsa, with local color to spare, and maintains an oddball sense of humor, even in perilous situations.
—Dave Nemetz, TVLine, 23 Sep. 2025
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Alex Ross, New Yorker, 1 Dec. 2025
The concept is not unlike the literary trope of regionalism or local color genre—telling the same core story, just tailoring the language and presentation for new audiences and global regions.
—Alexandra Harrell, Sourcing Journal, 25 Nov. 2025
Both the leading man’s charisma and the setting’s local color shine through immediately, gifting us with a winning hero and an upbeat, lively journey.
—Courtney Howard, Variety, 30 Oct. 2025
It’s also strongly rooted in Tulsa, with local color to spare, and maintains an oddball sense of humor, even in perilous situations.
—Dave Nemetz, TVLine, 23 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for local color
Cite this Entry
“Local color.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/local%20color. Accessed 18 Dec. 2025.
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