Dialectalize

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. To transform language or speech into the forms and patterns typical of a particular dialect
2. To give a regional or local character to language by adopting the distinctive features of a specific dialect
3. To convert standard language into the distinctive linguistic forms and expressions of a particular dialect

Etymology: The root of this word is a Greek verb meaning to converse. In ancient Greek, "dialektos" referred to a way of speaking or a manner of conversation, built from "dia-" (through, between) and "legein" (to speak), and it said nothing about regional variety. The sense of a local form of a language came later, as writers noticed that each region spoke differently. Latin took the Greek term as "dialectus," and English borrowed it from there. The verb is English-made. The suffix "-ize," from Greek "-izein," turns a noun into a verb meaning to make or treat something in a certain way, as with "modernize" or "organize." Attaching it to "dialect" gives a verb meaning to make something dialectal, to render speech in a regional form, or to describe something in dialect terms. Because it is a transparent formation, it is easy to build and understand from its parts.

Synonyms: dialectalise