Colloquialisms

Colloquial language meaning

The term colloquial relates to colloquial language, which means informal language typically used in casual conversation.

Colloquial language is similar to slang. It varies according to the geographical location in which it is used, and the period of history in which it is spoken. For example:

Colloquialism examples - everyday language

There are many different types of colloquial language, as it differs based on your geographical location and your dialect. You've probably heard of or used some or many of the examples below:

Colloquialisms synonym

Synonyms are words that have the same or similar meanings, for example, 'happy' is a synonym of 'joyful'. However, more often than not, synonyms do not have identical meanings.

If you look up the synonyms of 'colloquialisms', you will find the words 'jargon' and 'slang'. However, although colloquialisms can include slang and jargon, they are not the same thing. Let's take a look at the differences:

Jargon describes the technical language associated with a particular profession or workplace. People who do not work in particular industries will find it difficult to decipher jargon particular to these areas.

Slang differs from colloquial language in the way that it places emphasis on language used in friendship groups, or between people who know each other well.

When do we use colloquial language?

• On social media, such as Instagram and Twitter.

• In conversations with friends. It is quicker and easier to communicate on an informal basis with those we are close with.

Colloquial expressions in literature - why do authors use colloquialisms?

Possible reasons authors use colloquial language include:

• To make characters appear authentic and genuine
• To make characters/speakers appear more relatable
• To reflect the setting in text
• To reflect social demographic
• To reveal a time period

To make characters appear authentic and genuine

Colloquial language is influenced by time, culture, and social settings. Because of this, using colloquialisms in literature can make characters appear more authentic, as readers who are familiar with the character's background will be able to identify with the language that is used.

In the following example, the narrator in The Black Flamingo (2019) by Dean Atta uses colloquial language in a monologue. How does the colloquial language help readers to connect with the speaker and understand more about his character?

In this passage:

• Atta uses simpler language than a lot of other poetry which requires reading between the lines, which allows readers to align themselves with the protagonist and tap into his character. The repeated use of 'I come' is easy to digest as a reader and reiterates the fact he is talking about his origins.

• Atta uses well-known symbols like a suitcase, coconut water, passport, and jet fuel, to illustrate the collage of culture that makes up the speaker's character. Through these well-known symbols and colloquial language, readers are able to understand more about the speakers' journey and he appears a more authentic character.

To make characters/speakers appear more relatable

Colloquial language is a technique used to make characters appear more relatable to readers. This is because they use language that a reader may be familiar with.

For example, Wendy Cope in her poem 'Message' (1986) uses colloquial language in a humorous way, discussing a scenario many readers can relate to:

In this passage:

• Similarly to Atta, Cope does not use flowery language. This makes Cope's work more accessible for readers. The speaker's desperation for the person to call her is evident through her instructive tone asking them to 'pick up the phone before it's too late'.

• The accessibility of the text (due to its colloquial tone) means that the reader is more likely to be able to relate to the content, in this case, the humorous familiarity of the speaker's desperation.

To reflect the setting of the text

Whether in descriptions of locations or dialogues between characters, colloquialisms can help to build up the setting of a text in a raw and realistic light, as a place that readers are more likely to be familiar with.

Colloquial language in descriptions

In the following passage from Kayo Chingonyi's poem 'Andrew's Corner'(2017), colloquial language is used to describe an urban environment that many readers could relate to.

In this passage:

• Similar to Atta in The Black Flamingo (2019), Chingonyi's use of colloquial language helps readers to imagine the space by incorporating imagery that readers can easily envision, such as 'condom wrappers', 'kebab meat', 'joggers' and 'a dead pigeon'.

Colloquial language in dialogue

The language characters use can also reflect their physical location if they are speaking in a certain dialect, as this implies that the text is set in the area in which a particular dialect is common.

For example, this conversation between Dan and Malachy in Frank McCourt's Angela's Ashes (1996) indicates that the novel is set in Ireland, suggested by the use of Irish colloquialisms, which are highlighted in bold:

To reflect social demographic

So, we have seen that colloquial language can be used to position a character within a certain location. However, it can also be used to place characters within a particular social demographic, too. Colloquialisms in dialogue can reveal a lot about a character's social demographic, such as age, gender, class, ethnicity, and education level, as well as their physical location.

We can see an example of this in the novel Lara (1997) by Bernadine Evaristo, as the colloquialisms used by the characters reflect Lara's working-class status and young age.

In this passage:

• The word 'fag' (meaning cigarette) demonstrates the girl trying to sound older than her age by smoking a cigarette and using slang associated with the act, but her use of the word 'meanie' exposes her youth as this is a word used typically amongst children.

• The use of the word 'fag' for a cigarette is typically used by more working-class individuals.

• The colloquial phrase 'You'll get preggers' trivialises pregnancy, suggesting the girls are too young to understand the real possibility of getting pregnant and the difficulties this would bring into their lives.

• 'You'll get preggers' similarly demonstrates the speaker trying to talk about something 'grown-up', like smoking a cigarette, but her choice of slang once again reveals her youth.

To reveal a time period

What is considered colloquial changes over time. Because of this, the time period in which a piece is set can be revealed by using colloquial language that would have been commonly used at the time. Colloquial language can also be used to communicate popular ideologies from a particular point in history to the reader.

Fig. 1 - Ruined maid.

For example, in Thomas Hardy's poem 'The Ruined Maid' (1886), he uses colloquial language throughout as the poem is written in a conversational tone. The colloquial language reveals the popular view on women and virginity within society at the time:

In this passage:

• The word 'ruined' in Melia's comment 'didn't you know I'd been ruined?' refers to the loss of her virginity. Her use of this colloquialism exposes the fact that unmarried women who were not virgins were viewed as 'ruined' and of less value to society and men.

Why is colloquial language important?

Colloquial language is an important literary technique as it can be used for many reasons as we have seen in the examples. For example:

It can represent the ideologies of a period of time.

By using certain colloquialisms authors can save time representing the values and beliefs of a place or time period.

It can help the text become more accessible

Colloquial language can make it easier for more readers to engage with the text and relate to the characters.

It can represent the setting of a text

Because colloquial language is so dependent on culture and location, including colloquialisms specific to particular dialects in a text can make it clear where it is set even without directly stating the name of the place.