French Conversation · Level 91
60 words
French word
diglossie
Pronunciation
IPA/diglɔsi/
Meaning
- feminine noundiglossia
Example
La diglossie existe quand deux langues coexistent dans une société.
Diglossia exists when two languages coexist in a society.
More examples
La diglossie peut affecter l'apprentissage quand la norme écrite diffère de la parole courante.
Diglossia can affect learning when the written standard differs from everyday speech.
Core concept
A single language community keeps a formal variety and an everyday variety in separate social roles.
Similar words
registre: The degree of formality used according to the situation and the people addressed.
dialecte: A regionally rooted way of speaking with its own words and pronunciation.
variété: A language form characteristic of a particular region or group.
Definition in French
Désigne la coexistence, au sein d'une même langue, de deux variétés stables : une variété « haute » pour les situations formelles et une variété « basse » pour la vie quotidienne.
Word origin
French diglossie is a learned formation built from Greek di- "two" and glōssa "tongue" or "language".
Usage tips
- Diglossie is not simply bilingualism, because it concerns distinct varieties of one language with different social functions.