COLLOQUIAL

colloquial, conversational

(adjective) characteristic of informal spoken language or conversation; “wrote her letters in a colloquial style”; “the broken syntax and casual enunciation of conversational English”

Source: WordNet® 3.1


Etymology

Adjective

colloquial (comparative more colloquial, superlative most colloquial)

(linguistics) Denoting a manner of speaking or writing that is characteristic of familiar conversation, of common parlance; informal.

Of or pertaining to a conversation; conversational or chatty.

Usage notes

It is a common misconception that colloquial somehow denotes "local" or a word being "regional". This is not the case; the word root for colloquial is related to locution, not location.

Note that while colloquy and colloquium refer to formal conversation, colloquial refers instead specifically to informal conversation.

Synonyms

• colloq, coll.

Noun

colloquial (plural colloquials)

A colloquial word or phrase, colloquialism

Source: Wiktionary


Col*lo"qui*al, a. Etym: [See Colloqui.]

Definition: Pertaining to, or used in, conversation, esp. common and familiar conversation; conversational; hence, unstudied; informal; as, colloquial intercourse; colloquial phrases; a colloquial style.

– Col*lo"qui*al*ly, adv. His [Johnson's] colloquial talents were, indeed, of the highest order. Macaulay.

Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition



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Word of the Day

5 December 2024

POLE

(noun) one of two divergent or mutually exclusive opinions; “they are at opposite poles”; “they are poles apart”


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Coffee Trivia

Decaffeinated coffee comes from a chemical process that takes out caffeine from the beans. Pharmaceutical and soda companies buy the extracted caffeine.

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