colloquial
Everyday spoken language
Colloquial describes language that belongs to everyday conversation rather than formal writing or speech.
A colloquial expression like gonna or kids sounds natural in casual talk but out of place in a legal document or academic paper.
The term is neutral—colloquial isn't the same as incorrect, just informal.
Regional language variety
- regionalismLocal area favoritism
- patoisRegional informal speech
- creoleNativized pidgin tongue
- pidginImprovised contact language
demotic · localism · provincialism · sociolect · mother-tongue · Americanism · Briticism · Australianism
Relaxed and informal
- chattyInclined to converse freely
- breezyMildly windy, or nonchalant
- everydayOccurring each day
- conversationalRelating to informal dialogue
unpretentious · unaffected · natural · folksy · relaxed · easygoing · laid-back · down-to-earth
Informal verbal exchange
- banterPlayful, teasing exchange
- chitchatInformal light conversation
- gabLight, meaningless talk
- talkVerbal exchange between people
gossip · natter · schmooze · confab · palaver · small-talk · chatter · jaw
Specialized professional vocabulary
- argotGroup-specific coded speech
- cantSanctimonious insincerity
- lingoGroup-specific vocabulary
- buzzwordsTrendy technical jargon
slanguage · jive · patter · shoptalk · shibboleth · doubletalk · technobabble
Fixed phrase, opaque meaning
- sayingShort, wise expression
- expressionConveyed thought or feeling
- clichéOverused, unoriginal expression
- catchphraseSignature line of words
phraseology · locution · commonplace · platitude · truism · byword
dialect
Regional language variety
- regionalismLocal area favoritism
- patoisRegional informal speech
- creoleNativized pidgin tongue
pidgin · demotic · localism · provincialism · sociolect · mother-tongue · Americanism · Briticism · Australianism · idiom
casual
Relaxed and informal
conversational · unpretentious · unaffected · natural · folksy · relaxed · easygoing · laid-back · down-to-earth · approachable
chat
Informal verbal exchange
talk · gossip · natter · schmooze · confab · palaver · small-talk · chatter · jaw · rap
jargon
Specialized professional vocabulary
buzzwords · slanguage · jive · patter · shoptalk · shibboleth · doubletalk · technobabble
idiom
Fixed phrase, opaque meaning
- sayingShort, wise expression
- expressionConveyed thought or feeling
- clichéOverused, unoriginal expression
catchphrase · phraseology · locution · commonplace · platitude · truism · byword
- literary stylespastoral, lyrical prose, satirical, poetic prose, lyrical
- Language Wordsverbal, oral, written, spoken, fluent
- literary devicesmetaphor, simile, hyperbole, personification, alliteration
- classical vocabularyverbose, erudite, rhetoric, discourse, oration
- speech registersformal, informal, casual, vernacular, standard
- speech stylesinformal speech, formal speech, vernacular, plain speech, high style
colloquialformal
Following strict protocol
ceremonial · ceremonious · stilted · stiff · dignified
colloquialstandard
Level of quality accepted
proper · correct · grammatical · prescriptive · educated
- colloquial termsInformal everyday expressions
- colloquial languageInformal everyday speech
- colloquial speechInformal everyday language