Word of the Week: Dialect

A dialect is a variation of a language shared by members of a region, social class, or ethnicity. Dialects can vary from each other in vocabulary, grammar, and pronunciation. Some also have unique conversational rules.

They are often considered to be mutually intelligible: generally, speakers of one dialect can be understood by speakers of another in the same language. However, it is important to note that dialects exist on a continuum, and there is no agreed-upon criteria that distinguishes a dialect from being a separate language. This means that a speaker of one dialect may have trouble understanding a speaker of another dialect, particularly if those dialects are spoken in regions far away from each other.

In the English language, there are hundreds of different dialects. Examples of regional dialects in American English are Southern American English and Metropolitan New York English. Examples of social or ethnic dialects in American English are African American English (AAE), Chicano English, and Cajun English.

Click here to read more about English dialects from around the world on the Duolingo Blog.