Noun: patois 'pa,twaa
- A characteristic language of a particular group
"they don't speak our patois";
- slang, cant, jargon, lingo, argot, vernacular
- A regional dialect of a language (especially French); usually considered substandard
"The locals spoke in a patois that was difficult for outsiders to understand"
Type of: accent, dialect, idiom, non-standard speech
Encyclopedia: Patois