as in colloquial
used in or suitable for speech and not formal writing
writes essays in a very easy-to-read, vernacular style
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in idiom
Related Words
2
as in binomial
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Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
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Recent Examples of vernacular
Jessica Nicholson, Billboard, 27 Feb. 2026
Some authors of quasi-impossible books like Nabokov (Ada, or Ardor), Pynchon (Gravity’s Rainbow) and Wallace (Infinite Jest) nevertheless manage to write unfailingly entertaining sentences that never lose a certain vernacular crackle, and that are often funny.
—Literary Hub, 5 Feb. 2026
Jason P. Frank, Vulture, 14 Mar. 2026
Clase is known to be involved in rooster fighting in his native Dominican Republic, though the prosecution is alleging that the vernacular used in communication between Clase and co-conspirators instead represents pitch-rigging.
—Zack Meisel, New York Times, 7 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for vernacular
Adjective
That was the beginning of it and the Coens have a deep knowledge of American vernacular music.
—Jessica Nicholson, Billboard, 27 Feb. 2026
Some authors of quasi-impossible books like Nabokov (Ada, or Ardor), Pynchon (Gravity’s Rainbow) and Wallace (Infinite Jest) nevertheless manage to write unfailingly entertaining sentences that never lose a certain vernacular crackle, and that are often funny.
—Literary Hub, 5 Feb. 2026
Noun
Those songs could only have been sung by one person in the vernacular of that person.
—Jason P. Frank, Vulture, 14 Mar. 2026
Clase is known to be involved in rooster fighting in his native Dominican Republic, though the prosecution is alleging that the vernacular used in communication between Clase and co-conspirators instead represents pitch-rigging.
—Zack Meisel, New York Times, 7 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for vernacular
Recent Examples of Synonyms for vernacular
Adjective
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Cicada’s disappearing routine Scientists who hunt for unusual Covid-19 variants waited to give this one a colloquial, or common, name.—
Brenda Goodman,
CNN Money,
2 Apr. 2026
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Literary works in colloquial Korean gained popularity, and new forms of cultural expression circulated widely.—
Encyclopedia Britannica,
Encyclopedia Britannica,
23 Mar. 2026
Noun
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The centuries-old pot-kettle idiom points out hypocrisy — as when one person accuses another of a flaw that afflicts himself.—
George Skelton,
Mercury News,
26 Mar. 2026
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If the assignment is to translate something from a foreign language, there are plenty of tools and resources that can do it for you, including by recognizing and figuratively translating idioms.—
Ethan Siegel,
Big Think,
25 Mar. 2026
Noun
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There was no third option in this binomial exercise.—
Chantel Jennings,
The Athletic,
24 Mar. 2025
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She is credited with naming and cataloging hundreds of native plants in the Hudson River Valley using Swedish botanist Carolus Linnaeus’ then-new binomial system of botanical nomenclature.—
Jessica Damiano,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
24 Mar. 2024
Noun
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The exhibit’s title is derived from a Spanish colloquialism.—
Uwa Ede-Osifo,
Dallas Morning News,
13 Feb. 2026
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Her vetting crusades have brought about a new Washington colloquialism.—
Antonia Hitchens,
New Yorker,
10 Nov. 2025
Noun
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Even the name is a misnomer, Mackey said, since the same pain can arise among women who’ve had other procedures, including lumpectomies and lymph node surgeries.—
Brett Kelman,
USA Today,
4 Apr. 2026
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The five-occupant seating designation is a misnomer in sub-compact SUVs, unless second-seat occupants are particularly petite adults or children.—
James Raia,
Mercury News,
8 Feb. 2026
Noun
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But in modern English parlance, mantra has come to mean a person or group’s representative phrase, similar to a slogan or a watchword.—
Encyclopedia Britannica,
Encyclopedia Britannica,
31 Mar. 2026
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In military parlance, this usually translates to one attack on a specific target that might involve multiple weapons.—
Christopher McFadden,
Interesting Engineering,
8 Mar. 2026
Noun
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This isn’t about investing in the big brand name that everybody is talking about at a cocktail party.—
Liz Hoffman,
semafor.com,
24 Mar. 2026
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Luchs would not comment on what that entails or whether the new owners could use the famous brand name to promote the restaurant.—
Richard Guzman,
Daily News,
20 Mar. 2026
Noun
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To qualify as critical regionalism, contemporary architecture had to use traditional tropes and local materials in unfamiliar variations, refuse to treat a site as just another blank slate, and use structure in an expressive way, visibly connected to a building’s purpose.—
Justin Davidson,
Curbed,
28 Jan. 2026
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Just don’t let the deniers know that regionalism and sustainability are essentially one and the same.—
Richard Olsen,
Forbes.com,
24 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Vernacular.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/vernacular. Accessed 6 Apr. 2026.
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