The most popular online dictionary and thesaurus for learners of English
shibboleth
noun [C] /ˈʃɪb.əl.eθ/Definition
› formal a belief or custom that is not now considered as important and correct as it was in the past: They still cling to many of the old shibboleths of education.Religious beliefs and atheistic beliefs › a word, phrase, custom, etc. only known to a particular group of people, which you can use to prove to them that you are a real member of that groupForms of languages and specialist dialects
(Definition of shibboleth noun from the Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary & Thesaurus
© Cambridge University Press)
Focus on the pronunciation of shibboleth
Browse related topics
You are looking at an entry to do with Forms of languages & specialist dialects, but you might be interested in these topics from the Language topic area:
- Figurative use of language
- Foreign words & phrases used in English
- Forms of the English language
- Language names
- Letters of alphabets
- Linguistic terms & linguistic style
- Linguistics: both, all, each & every
- Linguistics: connecting words joining words or phrases with similar or related meanings
- Linguistics: connecting words which express a condition
- Linguistics: connecting words which express a contrast
- Linguistics: connecting words which introduce a cause or reason
- Linguistics: expressions telling people to stop doing something
- Linguistics: grammatical terms
- Linguistics: intensifying expressions
- Linguistics: interjections
- Linguistics: morphology & parts of words
- Linguistics: parts of speech
- Linguistics: personal pronouns
- Linguistics: phonology & phonetics
- Linguistics: possessive forms
- Linguistics: question words & expressions
- Linguistics: reflexive forms
- Linguistics: relative forms
- Linguistics: sentences & expressions
- Linguistics: sounds used as interjections
- Linguistics: terminology & vocabulary
- Linguistics: verb forms, tenses & types of verbs
- Linguistics: very & extreme
- Punctuation
- Using other languages
- Ways of speaking
Browse the Dictionary
Browse the Thesaurus
SMART Thesaurus: Forms of languages & specialist dialects
Synonyms and related words:
- -speak suffix
- argot noun
- cant noun
- colloquialism noun
- Creole noun (LANGUAGE)
- dead language noun
- lingo noun
- metalanguage noun
- middle adjective
- newspeak noun
- non-standard adjective (LANGUAGE)
- officialese noun
- old adjective (LANGUAGE)
- oral adjective (SPOKEN)
- plain English noun
- rhyming slang noun
- slang noun
- slangy adjective
- telegramese noun
- tongue noun (LANGUAGE)
You can also find related words, phrases, and synonyms in the topics:
Our dictionaries
Word of the Day
Blog
Read our blog about how the English language behaves.
New Words
Find words and meanings that have just started to be used in English, and let us know what you think of them.
