colloquially

C3O1L1L1O1Q10U1I1A1L1L1Y4
UK/kəˈləʊ.kwɪ.ə.li/US/kəˈloʊ.kwi.ə.li/

adverb

In a colloquial manner.

“Cattle, colloquially referred to as cows, are domesticated ungulates.”

Meanings

adverbcolloquially (comparative more colloquially, superlative most colloquially)

comparative more colloquially · superlative most colloquially

  1. In a colloquial manner.

    Cattle, colloquially referred to as cows, are domesticated ungulates.

    2 more examples

    Known colloquially as the "El," the elevated lines constituted the earliest attempt to remove urban passenger traffic from the streets.

    1955 July, “The Last Elevated Line in New York”, in Railway Magazine, page 444

    The technical term for the event is “coupling,” but it is known colloquially as the “Shinkansen kiss.” For Japanese rail fans, it’s a big deal. For foreigners, it is a unique insight into the quintessentially Japanese experience of trainspotting.

    2025 April 8, Joshua Korber Hoffman, “The ‘Shinkansen kiss’: Japan’s little-known rail spectacle that attracts trainspotters from around the world”, in CNN

Synonyms & antonyms

adverbwith the use of colloquial expressions

Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.

Origin

  1. Proto-Indo-European*ḱe?
  2. Proto-Indo-European*ḱóm
  3. Proto-Italic*kom
  4. Proto-Italic*kom-
  5. Latincon-
  6. Proto-Indo-European*telkʷ-
  7. Proto-Indo-European*tlokʷetor
  8. Proto-Italic*tlokʷōr
  9. Latinloquor
  10. Latincolloquor
  11. Latincolloquium
  12. Middle Englishcolloquies
  13. Englishcolloquy
  14. Proto-Indo-European*h₂el-
  15. Proto-Indo-European*h₂élisder.?
  16. Englishcolloquial
  17. Proto-Indo-European*leyg-
  18. Proto-Germanic*līką
  19. Englishcolloquially

From colloquial + -ly.

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Catalan col·loquialment
  • col·loquialmentin a colloquial manner
Czech hovorově
  • hovorověin a colloquial manner
Italian colloquialmente
  • colloquialmentein a colloquial manner
Latin colloquialiter
  • colloquialiterin a colloquial manner
Polish potocznie, kolokwialnie
  • potoczniein a colloquial manner
  • kolokwialniein a colloquial manner
Portuguese coloquialmente
  • coloquialmentein a colloquial manner
Russian разговорно
  • разговорно (razgovorno)in a colloquial manner
Spanish coloquialmente
  • coloquialmentein a colloquial manner
Cite this entry
APA

colloquially. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/colloquially

MLA

“colloquially.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/colloquially. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “colloquially,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/colloquially.

Source: colloquially on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.