# Colloquialism: Definition and Fiction Example | NovelOS Studio

> A colloquialism is an informal word or expression associated with ordinary conversation in a community or period. See an original fiction example, why writer...

## Colloquialism in a story

It can locate a speaker socially and make dialogue feel lived rather than formally composed.

## Original fiction example

> Nessa calls an unreliable engine a sometime machine, a phrase everyone at the dock understands.

This example is original to the NovelOS glossary. It illustrates the term without borrowing a passage from a published novel.

## Why writers use it

Use colloquialisms to develop voice, relationship, place, and historical texture.

**A useful revision question:** Where does this device change what the reader understands, expects, or feels? If removing it leaves the passage unchanged, it may need a clearer function.

## A common mistake

Scattered slang from incompatible regions or decades can make a voice incoherent.

## Use colloquialism in NovelOS Studio

Refine clarity, rhythm, tone, repetition, and deliberate prose while preserving your voice. [The Alchemist](/features/the-alchemist/) sits inside the same NovelOS Studio project as your characters, world, timeline, manuscript, goals, tracker, revision tools, and publishing exports.

Record the idea where it affects the book, test it in scenes, and revise it beside the surrounding prose. NovelOS Studio keeps the craft decision attached to the novel instead of leaving it in a separate worksheet.

Category

Prose and Style

Related terms

* [Dialect](/glossary/dialect/)
* [Vernacular](/glossary/vernacular/)

[Browse the full glossary](/glossary/)