Parlance
noun
Definition
A particular way of speaking or using words, especially one connected to a specific group, profession, or field.
Context Alive
She was reading a tech article and kept seeing phrases she didn’t recognize. Terms like “bandwidth” and “scalable” were common parlance in the startup world, but they meant nothing to her. She realized every industry has its own little language that outsiders have to learn.
Meanings
1 meaning 1 A Way of Speaking Used by a Particular Group (Noun) Common ▼
This meaning is about the special words and expressions that belong to a certain group or field. Imagine sitting in a meeting with lawyers and they keep using phrases like “due diligence” and “liability” — that’s legal parlance, the language lawyers use every day. This is parlance — the typical way a specific group talks. You might hear “in medical parlance, it’s called a contusion” or “that’s common parlance in the tech industry.” Or picture a football fan explaining what “parking the bus” means — that’s football parlance that makes no sense to someone who doesn’t follow the sport. The word suggests a shared language that belongs to a particular world. ✏️ You’ll almost always hear parlance with a describing word before it — “common parlance,” “legal parlance,” “modern parlance,” “military parlance.”
Vivid ExampleHis friend worked in finance and kept talking about “bull markets” and “hedging.” None of it made sense in everyday parlance, so he finally asked for a simple explanation. His friend laughed and promised to drop the jargon for the rest of dinner.
Examples from the Street
“In medical parlance, that’s called a ‘contusion’ — basically just a bruise.”
In the language doctors use, they have a fancy word for it — but it’s just a bruise
“That’s what’s known in common parlance as a rip-off.”
That’s what ordinary people would simply call a scam
“In internet parlance, he got ‘ratio’d’ — meaning more people disagreed than agreed.”
Using the language of online culture, his post was overwhelmingly rejected
Common Patterns
in … parlance → using the language or terminology of a particular group (the most common pattern by far)
in common/everyday parlance → in ordinary, non-specialist language
in legal/medical/technical/military parlance → using the specialist vocabulary of that profession
in modern parlance → using today’s language to describe something (often something old)
what is known in … parlance as → a formal way of introducing a specialist term
to use the parlance of → to borrow the vocabulary of a particular group or era
Collocations
3 collocationsin common parlance
in everyday language
legal parlance
the specific vocabulary of law
modern parlance
the way people speak today
Example Sentences
12 examples
1
In legal parlance, that’s called “breach of contract” — it just means they broke the agreement
Using the specialist vocabulary of lawyers, there’s a formal term for it — it simply means one side didn’t keep their promise.
2
He’s what you’d call, in common parlance, a complete idiot
He’s what ordinary people would straightforwardly describe as a total fool.
3
She was suffering from what in medical parlance is referred to as “acute anxiety”
She was experiencing what doctors formally label as a sudden, intense episode of extreme worry.
4
In modern parlance, Shakespeare’s Romeo would probably be called a “simp”
Using today’s slang, the famous literary lover would likely be described as someone who tries too hard to impress a woman.
5
That’s what is known in military parlance as “collateral damage”
That’s what the armed forces formally refer to when they mean unintended destruction or civilian casualties.
6
In football parlance, that was a “hospital pass” — a terrible ball that got his teammate hurt
Using the language of the sport, that was the kind of dangerous pass that puts the receiver in serious physical danger.
7
To use the parlance of social media, that post “went viral”
Borrowing the vocabulary of online platforms, that piece of content spread rapidly and was seen by huge numbers of people.
8
In business parlance, they “pivoted” — meaning they completely changed their strategy
Using corporate jargon, the company switched direction — which is to say they abandoned their original plan and tried something entirely different.
9
She’s a “night owl,” in common parlance — she does her best work after midnight
She’s someone who, as ordinary people would put it, naturally prefers staying up late — she’s most productive in the early hours.
10
In technical parlance, the system experienced a “cascading failure” — basically, one thing broke and everything else followed
Using engineering terminology, one component malfunctioned and triggered a chain reaction that brought down the entire system.
Learner Examples
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In teaching parlance, “scaffolding” means giving students temporary support until they can do something on their own
Using the specialist language of education, there’s a term for providing learners with structured help that is gradually removed as they become more independent.
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Students often struggle with technical parlance in academic texts — they know the concept but not the formal term
Learners frequently find specialist vocabulary in scholarly writing difficult — they understand the idea but aren’t familiar with the official word for it.
Phrasal Verbs & Idioms
1 item Idioms & Expressionsin common parlance — in everyday language
In common parlance, that's just called being rude.
Synonyms & Antonyms
4 items
Synonymslanguage
way of speaking
terminology
specialized words
jargon
field-specific language
lingo
informal, specialized talk