Which statement best distinguishes a dialect from an accent?

Which statement best distinguishes a dialect from an accent?

• A. Dialect encompasses pronunciation, grammar, and vocabulary; an accent is primarily variation in pronunciation.
• B. Dialect is about stage blocking.
• C. Accent accounts for spelling in scripts.
• D. Dialect and accent are interchangeable.

Answer: (A)

Dialects involve the whole system of language used by a community: pronunciation, grammar, and vocabulary. An accent is only about how words are pronounced. So you can have the same dialect spoken with different accents, or different dialects sharing similar pronunciations, but they’re not the same thing. The other ideas don’t fit because stage blocking is about theatre, spelling in scripts is about orthography, and dialect and accent aren’t interchangeable since they describe different linguistic features.

Dialects involve the whole system of language used by a community: pronunciation, grammar, and vocabulary. An accent is only about how words are pronounced. So you can have the same dialect spoken with different accents, or different dialects sharing similar pronunciations, but they’re not the same thing. The other ideas don’t fit because stage blocking is about theatre, spelling in scripts is about orthography, and dialect and accent aren’t interchangeable since they describe different linguistic features.