Dialect Words in Literature

Level 6

Dialect words in books are notes, not rules.

How It Works

Writers use the speech of their home towns. A reader meets words that the standard does not list.

StandardIn some places
mmanma
NdewoNdeewo

When you meet one, check the notes or ask a speaker. A note names the region only if a source does. Keep standard spelling in your own writing. A song may spell a word the way a singer says it, and a play may mark a character's home town by a few words. Do not copy those spellings into your own writing.

Examples (4)

  1. mma

    good (standard)

    The standard form.

  2. nma

    good (in some places)

    A local form.

  3. Ndewo

    hello

    The standard spelling.

  4. Ndeewo

    hello

    Another spelling.

How It Connects

Tap a pattern to see what it builds on and what it leads to.

Dialect Words in LiteratureLevel 6

Learn This First

Novels carry dialect words, so dialect words come first.