Definition of 'language'
Word forms: plural languages
1. countable noun
A language is a system of communication which consists of a set of sounds and written symbols which are used by the people
of a particular country or region for talking or writing.
2. uncountable noun
Language is the use of a system of communication which consists of a set of sounds or written
symbols.
3. uncountable noun
You can refer to the words used in connection with a particular subject as the language of that subject.
4. uncountable noun [adjective NOUN]
5. uncountable noun
The language of a piece of writing or speech is the style in which it is written or spoken.
6. variable noun
You can use language to refer to various means of communication involving recognizable symbols, non-verbal
sounds, or actions.
Collins COBUILD Advanced Learner’s Dictionary. Copyright © HarperCollins Publishers
Video: pronunciation of
language
British English pronunciation
American English pronunciation
Word Frequency
language in British English
noun
1.
a system for the expression of thoughts, feelings, etc, by the use of spoken sounds
or conventional symbols
2.
the faculty for the use of such systems, which is a distinguishing characteristic of humans as compared with other animals
3.
the language of a particular nation or people
the French language
4.
the language of love
8. See speak the same language
Collins English Dictionary. Copyright © HarperCollins Publishers
Word origin
C13: from Old French langage, ultimately from Latin lingua tongue
Word Frequency
language in American English
noun
1.
a.
human speech
b. Archaic
the ability to communicate by this means
c.
a system of vocal sounds and combinations of such sounds to which meaning is attributed, used for the expression or communication of thoughts and feelings
d.
the written representation of such a system
2.
a.
any means of expressing or communicating, as gestures, signs, or animal sounds
body language
b.
a special set of symbols, letters, numerals, rules, etc. used for the transmission of information, as in a computer
3.
all the vocal sounds, words, and ways of combining them common to a particular nation, tribe, or other speech community
the French language
4.
the particular form or manner of selecting and combining words characteristic of a person, group, or profession; form or style of expression in words
the language of teenagers
5.
the study of language in general or of some particular language or languages; linguistics
Webster’s New World College Dictionary, 4th Edition. Copyright © 2010 by
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. All rights reserved.
Word origin
ME < OFr langage < langue, tongue < L lingua, tongue, language, altered (by assoc. with lingere, to lick) < OL dingua < IE *dṇhwa > OE tunge, tongueWord Frequency
language in American English
(ˈlæŋɡwɪdʒ)
noun
SYNONYMS 2. See speech. 4, 9. tongue; terminology; lingo, lingua franca. language, dialect, jargon, vernacular refer to patterns of vocabulary, syntax, and usage characteristic of communities
of various sizes and types. language is applied to the general pattern of a people or race: the English language. dialect is applied to certain forms or varieties of a language, often those that provincial
communities or special groups retain (or develop) even after a standard has been established:
Scottish dialect. A jargon is either an artificial pattern used by a particular (usually occupational) group
within a community or a special pattern created for communication in business or trade
between members of the groups speaking different languages: the jargon of the theater; the Chinook jargon. A vernacular is the authentic natural pattern of speech, now usually on the informal level, used
by persons indigenous to a certain community, large or small1.
a body of words and the systems for their use common to a people who are of the same
community or nation, the same geographical area, or the same cultural tradition
the two languages of Belgium
a Bantu language
the French language
the Yiddish language
2.
3.
4.
5.
any system of formalized symbols, signs, sounds, gestures, or the like used or conceived as a means of communicating thought, emotion, etc
the language of mathematics
sign language
6.
the means of communication used by animals
the language of birds
7.
the language of flowers
the language of art
8.
linguistics; the study of language
10.
a particular manner of verbal expression
flowery language
12. Computing
a set of characters and symbols and syntactic rules for their combination and use, by means of which a computer can be given directions
13.
a nation or people considered in terms of their speech
14. archaic
faculty or power of speech
Most material © 2005, 1997, 1991 by Penguin Random House LLC. Modified entries © 2019
by Penguin Random House LLC and HarperCollins Publishers Ltd
Examples of 'language' in a sentence
language
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Quotations
Language is the dress of thoughtLives of the English Poets: Cowley
After all, when you come right down to it, how many people speak the same language even when they speak the same language?The Lion of Boaz-Jachin and Jachin-Boaz
Languages are the pedigrees of nations
We've come intil a gey queer time
Whan scrievin Scots is near a crime
"There's no-one speaks like that", they fleer
But wha the deil spoke like King Lear?Epistle to John Guthrie
Whan scrievin Scots is near a crime
"There's no-one speaks like that", they fleer
But wha the deil spoke like King Lear?Epistle to John Guthrie
One does not inhabit a country; one inhabits a language. That is our country, our fatherland - and no otherAnathemas and Admirations
Everything can change, but not the language that we carry inside us, like a world more exclusive and final than one's mother's wombBy Way of an Autobiography
To God I speak Spanish, to women Italian, to men French, and to my horse - German
In language, the ignorant have prescribed laws to the learnedMaxims
Political language... is designed to make lies sound truthful and murder respectable, and to give an appearance of solidity to pure windShooting an Elephant
Trends of
language
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In other languages
language
British English: language
/ˈlæŋɡwɪdʒ/ NOUN
A language is a system of sounds and written symbols used by the people of a particular country, area, or tribe to communicate with each other.
...a foreign language.
- American English: language /ˈlæŋgwɪdʒ/
- Arabic: لُغَةٌ
- Brazilian Portuguese: língua
- Chinese: 语言
- Croatian: jezik
- Czech: jazyk řeč
- Danish: sprog
- Dutch: taal
- European Spanish: idioma
- Finnish: kieli puhuttu
- French: langue langage
- German: Sprache
- Greek: γλώσσα ομιλία
- Italian: linguaggio
- Japanese: 言葉
- Korean: 언어
- Norwegian: språk
- Polish: język mowa
- European Portuguese: língua
- Romanian: limbă
- Russian: язык система звуков и букв
- Latin American Spanish: lenguaje
- Swedish: språk
- Thai: ภาษา
- Turkish: dil lisan
- Ukrainian: мова
- Vietnamese: ngôn ngữ
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Definition of language from the Collins English Dictionary
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