noun / adjective

vernacular

ver-NAK-yuh-ler/vərˈnækjələr/

The ordinary language of a particular community.

The recorded greeting captures the community's everyday vernacular.

Etymology

The Latin adjective connected belonging to a household with being native to a place. Applied to speech, that idea gives the ordinary local language.

In context

Rabbi Simon Jacobson at Meaningful Life Center2:03

words like oy vey and others have become part of the vernacular and they capture something that's quite difficult to capture in any other language

How to Deal with the Nudnik, Shlemiel and Shlemazel

His dialogue captures the vernacular of teenagers in the city.
The poet favors vernacular expressions over formal language.
The town's vernacular architecture reflects local materials and building traditions.

vernacular · vernaculars

dialect: Emphasizes regional or social differences in vocabulary, grammar, and pronunciation.
idiom: Refers to a group's distinctive way of expressing ideas.