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I lived abroad between the ages of 12-17 and due to regular "Could you repeat that?"s, my otherwise broad accent became more posh so that I was understood more easily.

Now people usually still know that I'm from Newcastle, UK, but often comment that my Geordie accent isn't particularly strong.

I'm sure there's a two-word phrase to describe this phenomenon, but I can't put my finger on it. I recall the phrase being armed-force-related since this might often happen to families posted abroad. Something similar to "army accent", but that doesn't sound quite right to me.

What is the short phrase meaning "an accent that has become less pronounced due to living abroad" please?

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"diluted"

A diluted accent would be one that was affected by its linguistic environment.

The diluted accent will be some mix of your practiced British accent and your natural accent …
englishforums.com

Discussion of challenges of keeping one's native accent while living abroad. Cites "diluted accent "

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  • Perhaps not the most authoritative reference ever, but it supports your answer :)
    – Mari-Lou A
    Commented Oct 3, 2015 at 5:18
  • Yes. The support was admittedly weak. In my defense I was answering via my phone. I'll edit.
    – Erin John Levins
    Commented Oct 3, 2015 at 14:39
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I don't think this is the phrase you have in mind, but I think if I said "He has a softened Geordie accent" most people would get the idea?

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