Mesolectal

Part of speech: adjective

Definitions

1. Relating to speech or language that occupies an intermediate or middle position between a standard or prestigious form and a local or nonstandard dialect, often reflecting social or regional variation
2. Describing a variety of language that is neither fully formal nor fully informal but exists as a midpoint between high-status and low-status speech forms within a community
3. Pertaining to linguistic usage that falls between the extreme ends of an official language and a colloquial dialect, capturing a blend of features from both levels in communication

Etymology: "Mesolectal" is built from "mesolect" with the adjective ending "-al". The "mesolect" part is itself a compound of Greek roots: "meso-", meaning "middle", and the "-lect" element taken from "dialect", the word for a regional or social variety of a language. In linguistics, a mesolect is the variety of speech that sits between the most prestigious standard form and the most stigmatized or local form, as in the spectrum of speech found in places such as Jamaica or Singapore, where a continuum runs from creole or pidgin-influenced speech up to standard English. The term is a modern technical coinage from the same family of words as "acrolect" and "basilect", which name the top and bottom ends of such a continuum. The word therefore describes a position on a scale rather than a region or social group, and the three terms were built as a set so that speakers could be placed along one axis.

Synonyms: intermediate dialectal, mesolect

Antonyms: acrolectal, basilectal