diction

C2+ Topic:Communication

US /ˈdɪkʃən/ UK /ˈdɪkʃən/ See IPA manual

Meanings

1

noun
the choice and use of words, or clarity of speech

Usage: Diction can describe an author's choice of words or a speaker's clarity of pronunciation. The context tells you whether vocabulary and style or the delivery of speech is being discussed.

The actor's clear diction made every line easy to understand from the back row.

The actor's crisp diction carried to the back of the theatre.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 noun · the choice and use of... enunciation articulation elocution phrasing wording delivery pronunciation

Word family

Derived forms dictional

Related forms dictionary dictate dictator dictum

Etymology

Through Latin dictiō and related French forms, from dīcō, to say or speak, whose infinitive is dīcere.

dictio Latin dicere Latin *deyḱ- Proto-Indo-European

View etymology graph ->

Topics

Communication Theater & Performance Word Formation & Derivatives

External links

# diction

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2+
**Part of speech:** noun
**IPA (US):** /ˈdɪkʃən/
**IPA (UK):** /ˈdɪkʃən/

## Meanings
1. the choice and use of words, or clarity of speech

## Usage Notes
- the choice and use of words, or clarity of speech: Diction can describe an author's choice of words or a speaker's clarity of pronunciation. The context tells you whether vocabulary and style or the delivery of speech is being discussed.

## Examples
- The actor's clear diction made every line easy to understand from the back row.
- The actor's crisp diction carried to the back of the theatre.

## Synonyms
- enunciation
- articulation
- elocution
- phrasing
- wording
- delivery
- pronunciation

## Derived Forms
- dictional

## Related Forms
- dictionary
- dictate
- dictator
- dictum

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: dictio
- Root: dicere - to say
- Root: *deyḱ-

## Etymology
Through Latin dictiō and related French forms, from dīcō, to say or speak, whose infinitive is dīcere.

## AI Etymology
Diction comes from Latin dictio ('a saying, mode of expression'), from the stem of dicere ('to say, speak'); the sense 'choice of words' developed in 18th-century English. The etymological trail includes Latin dictio, Latin dicere, and Proto-Indo-European *deyḱ-. As a noun, diction names the choice and use of words, or clarity of speech. The same family is visible in derived forms such as dictional and related forms such as dictionary, dictate, dictator, and dictum.

## Topics
- Communication
- Theater & Performance
- Word Formation & Derivatives

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