dialogue
noun · verb
Simple meaning
A literary composition in the form of a conversation between two people.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
dyuhlawgSay the bold part a little louder.
IPA pronunciation (US)
ˈdaɪəlɔɡ
This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
noun
A literary composition in the form of a conversation between two people
“He has read Plato's Dialogues in the original Greek.”
A conversation between two persons
A conversation or other form of discourse between two or more individuals.
authorship
In a dramatic or literary presentation, the verbal parts of the script or text; the verbalizations of the actors or characters.
verb
informalbusiness
To discuss or negotiate so that all parties can reach an understanding.
transitive
To put into dialogue form.
Word at a Glance
- Difficulty
- B1 · Intermediate
- Frequency
- Common
- Typical Use
- Everyday English
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: A literary composition in the form of a conversation between two people
Used this way, dialogue is a common word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. It turns up most in literature or storytelling contexts.
“He has read Plato's Dialogues in the original Greek.”
- Emotional tone
- Neutral
- Formality
- Neutral
- Intensity
- Not strongly marked
- How common
- Common
- Connotation
- Matter-of-fact
- Usage feel
- Neutral and straightforward
Where it naturally appears
- Literature/storytelling
Usage note
It most often appears in the pattern “dialogue in …”, which is worth copying when you use it.
Nearby words
- duologue , rarer, so it draws attention
Natural pattern: dialogue in …
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
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Common Patterns and Combinations
How this word naturally appears with others.
More about this wordSynonyms, forms, origin
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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.