vernacular

CEFRC1

/vəˈnækjələ/

noun · adjective

Türkçe translations

Translating…

In plain English

  1. 01

    noun

    The everyday language spoken by people in a place.

  2. 02

    adjective

    Using ordinary local language rather than formal language.

Examples

  • He uttered an incomprehensible oath in the local vernacular before going on his way.

  • I write Berber in its Kabyle vernacular form.

At a glance

Sits at C1 on the CEFR scale

Senses
5
Parts of speech
2
Citations
1
Synonyms
5

Deep Dive

noun

Extra meanings

  1. Everyday speech or dialect, including colloquialisms, as opposed to standard, literary, liturgical, or scientific idiom.

  2. Language unique to a particular group of people.

  3. The language of a people or a national language.

More examples

In context

  • The idea that the Bible should be translated into vernaculars was explosive in medieval society.

  • The principal vernacular of the United States is English.

  • This is a vernacular.

Synonyms

Antonyms

Quick test

Two questions on this entry. Nothing is scored.

Question 1 · Quick check

The book was written in the common blank, not in formal Latin.

Practise this properly in the app, where the word comes back before you forget it.

Nearby

Origin

noun

From Latin vernāculus (“domestic, indigenous, of or pertaining to home-born slaves”), from verna (“a native, a home-born slave (one born in his master's house)”).