Definition of "patois" [pa•tois]

• A regional dialect, especially one without a literary tradition. (noun)
• A creole. (noun)
• Nonstandard speech. (noun)
• The special jargon of a group; cant. See Synonyms at dialect. (noun)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "The posts included a headshot of an African-American teenager and fake “quotes” written in patois rife with words like “dis” and “dat.”"
• "(That this mighty maternal figure speaks a Yiddish patois is an unlooked-for bonus.)"
• "Matt sang bouncy little ditties in Creole patois or Caribbean dialect."