dico

Dico is an informal French noun referring to a dictionnaire, i.e., a dictionary. It is commonly used in everyday speech, in informal writing, and among younger speakers and language learners. As a clipping, it follows a common pattern in French of shortening longer words: dictionnaire becomes dico, with masculine gender le dico. The plural form des dicos is possible in casual usage, though singular references are more frequent in speech.

In practice, dico can denote any dictionary, including pocket dictionaries or online glossaries, and it may be used to describe someone who looks up words quickly, as in “Va le chercher dans le dico.” The term coexists with the more formal dictionnaire and is generally avoided in formal writing or editorial contexts.

When capitalized as DICO, the term may serve as an acronym for various organizations, programs, or entities, depending on the domain. Because acronyms are not standardized, the specific meaning should be clarified from context.

Linguistically, dico exemplifies clipping, a productive word-formation process in French that expands efficiency without sacrificing mutual intelligibility. The usage and acceptability of dico vary by region and generation; some formal contexts or style guides may prefer the full dictionnaire, while others accept the slang term in casual communication.