What is the difference between dialect and accent

The process of forming a dialect from the main language may also lead to the acquisition of a new accent. However, it is possible that when a person speaks in the dialect of a given region, they will likely speak in the accent of that particular region. But when a visitor speaks the same dialect of that particular region, he will most likely do so in a different accent. Therefore a different dialect has a greater impact than a different accent. This also happens to people who have emigrated to a different from their country to another country.

They may develop a dialect from the main language or speak the same language in a different accent. Are accents and dialects the same thing? Sophy Owuor July 24 in Society. All About the "Stan" Countries. Most Dangerous Countries For Women. A dialect accounts for all of the ways that a language is used in a certain region, including vocabulary, grammar, syntax and pronunciation accent.

An accent is the way that a certain group of people pronounces words and phrases. As we pointed out above, an accent is just a smaller factor in a larger dialect. It can sometimes be difficult to recognize your own accent. Sure, you might be painfully aware of it when trying to learn a new language, as you find yourself bumping up against unfamiliar sounds whose mispronunciation gives you away as a non-native.

You employ specific ways of pronouncing things - on top of that, you employ specific ways of patterning grammar and employing vocabulary that probably reflect where you were raised. You speak a dialect. So how can knowing all of this help you with your language-learning goals? But sometimes, depending on the language, you should. Certain dialects can make all the difference in the world. This is because the differences in dialects can be stark.

Swiss German and Hochdeutsch diverge so much in accent and syntax that even native Germans have trouble understanding someone from across the border. Rural Austrian dialects of German, meanwhile, can be completely unintelligible to non-Austrians--and sometimes even to people who live next door and speak similar dialects, as is the case in Tirol.

Moroccan Arabic carries heavy French and Spanish influences, the Emirati dialect contains lots of crossover with Farsi and Urdu, and the Lebanese dialect often mixes French and English due to high rates of trilingualism within the country.

The decision for something to be called a language is tied up with how countries identify their boundaries, how many people speak the language and other political considerations. You can say that Japanese and Swedish are clearly different languages, but some languages are very similar. Languages are just self-important dialects. This imposes a hierarchy on language that is, frankly, elitist. There is no one dialect that is superior to any other.

The good news is that the difference between accents and dialects is much less murky than that between dialects and language.

The bad news is that there are some disagreements on what those differences are. Both words are used pretty liberally in our series The United States Of Accents , as well as in a number of other publications, but they are not the same.

The definition of accents and dialects used most often by people who work with language is that accents are just one part of a dialect.