working class speech
Blue-collar linguistic patterns
Working class speech refers to the language patterns, vocabulary, and pronunciation associated with manual laborers and those without advanced formal education.
Linguists use the term descriptively, but in popular usage it often carries class judgments—marking speech as rough, uneducated, or authentic depending on the speaker's perspective.
Features vary by region but commonly include nonstandard grammar, local dialect terms, and directness: He don't know nothing about it.
- vernacularEveryday regional speech
- slangInformal in-group vocabulary
- dialectRegional language variety
- cockneyLondon working-class dialect
- accentRegional speech pattern
colloquial · rough · blunt · pub · chip shop · market stall · factory · council estate · back street · street · gritty · honest · earthy · salt of the earth · mate · swearing · informal · plain
working class speechupper class speech
Prestige dialect markers
RP · posh accent · Queen's English · King's English · public school accent
work, works, worked, worker, workers, workings, workable, working, class