A language variety is any distinct form of a language, defined by a particular combination of linguistic features (phonological, grammatical, lexical). The term is deliberately neutral. It covers dialects, accents, sociolects, idiolects, registers, and styles without implying that any variety is superior or inferior.
| Type | Defined by | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Dialect | Regional/social grammar + vocabulary + pronunciation | Yorkshire English, African American English |
| Accent | Pronunciation only | RP, General American, Australian |
| Sociolect | Social group membership | Working-class English, teenage slang |
| Idiolect | Individual speaker | Each person's unique combination |
| Register | Situational context (field, tenor, mode) | Legal English, academic prose, casual chat |
| Style | Formality level within a speaker's repertoire | Formal lecture vs pub conversation |
See Dialect and Accent, Sociolect, Idiolect, Register for detailed treatment of each type.
No variety is inherently more logical, expressive, or correct than another. "Standard English" is a variety selected for social and political reasons; it is not linguistically superior. What counts as "standard" is determined by power, not by linguistic quality. See Standard Language.
Every speaker commands multiple varieties, shifting between registers, adjusting formality, and code-switching between languages. Monolingual, mono-varietal speakers do not exist. See Style Shifting, Code-Switching.
The boundary between "language" and "dialect" is political, not linguistic. The often-quoted observation attributed to Max Weinreich applies: "A language is a dialect with an army and a navy." Mutual intelligibility is not a reliable criterion. Norwegian and Swedish are mutually intelligible but called separate languages; Cantonese and Mandarin are mutually unintelligible but called dialects of Chinese.