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What could be more lonely than to be enveloped in silence, to be the last of your people to speak your native tongue, to have no way to pass on the wisdom of the elders, to anticipate the promise of the children. This tragic fate is indeed the plight of someone somewhere roughly every two weeks.
Wade Davis

Meaning of "native tongue" in the English dictionary

Dictionary
DICTIONARY
section

PRONUNCIATION OF NATIVE TONGUE

native tongue  [ˈneɪtɪv tʌŋ] play
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GRAMMATICAL CATEGORY OF NATIVE TONGUE

noun
adjective
verb
adverb
pronoun
preposition
conjunction
determiner
exclamation
Native tongue is a noun.
A noun is a type of word the meaning of which determines reality. Nouns provide the names for all things: people, objects, sensations, feelings, etc.

WHAT DOES NATIVE TONGUE MEAN IN ENGLISH?

native tongue

First language

A first language is the language a person has learned from birth or within the critical period, or that a person speaks the best and so is often the basis for sociolinguistic identity. In some countries, the terms native language or mother tongue refer to the language of one's ethnic group rather than one's first language. Children brought up speaking more than one language can have more than one native language, and be bilingual. By contrast, a second language is any language that one speaks other than one's first language.

Definition of native tongue in the English dictionary

The definition of native tongue in the dictionary is the native language of someone; the language of the country that someone is born in or native to.

WORDS THAT RHYME WITH NATIVE TONGUE


beardtongue
ˈbɪədˌtʌŋ
bluetongue
ˌbluːˈtʌŋ
Nantong
ˈnænˈtʌŋ
Nantung
ˈnænˈtʌŋ
out-tongue
ˌaʊtˈtʌŋ
oxtongue
ˈɒksˌtʌŋ
shantung
ˌʃænˈtʌŋ
stung
stʌŋ
tongue
tʌŋ
unstung
ʌnˈstʌŋ

WORDS THAT BEGIN LIKE NATIVE TONGUE

native
Native American
native bear
native bush
native cat
native companion
native country
native dog
native frangipani
native language
native oak
native peach
native speaker
Native States
native-born
natively
nativeness
nativism
nativist
nativistic

WORDS THAT END LIKE NATIVE TONGUE

adder´s-tongue
bull tongue
chaise longue
dog´s-tongue
double-tongue
egg and tongue
hart´s-tongue
hold one´s tongue
hound´s-tongue
lamb´s tongue
langue
mother-in-law´s tongue
mother tongue
on the tip of one´s tongue
sharp tongue
silver tongue
single-tongue
the rough side of one´s tongue
triple-tongue
wooden tongue
woody tongue

Synonyms and antonyms of native tongue in the English dictionary of synonyms

SYNONYMS

Translation of «native tongue» into 25 languages

TRANSLATOR
online translator

TRANSLATION OF NATIVE TONGUE

Find out the translation of native tongue to 25 languages with our English multilingual translator.
The translations of native tongue from English to other languages presented in this section have been obtained through automatic statistical translation; where the essential translation unit is the word «native tongue» in English.

Translator English - Chinese

母语
1,325 millions of speakers

Translator English - Spanish

lengua nativa
570 millions of speakers

English

native tongue
510 millions of speakers

Translator English - Hindi

मातृभाषा
380 millions of speakers
ar

Translator English - Arabic

اللغة الأم
280 millions of speakers

Translator English - Russian

родной язык
278 millions of speakers

Translator English - Portuguese

língua nativa
270 millions of speakers

Translator English - Bengali

সহজাত বাক্য
260 millions of speakers

Translator English - French

langue maternelle
220 millions of speakers

Translator English - Malay

Bahasa ibunda
190 millions of speakers

Translator English - German

Muttersprache
180 millions of speakers

Translator English - Japanese

母語
130 millions of speakers

Translator English - Korean

모국어
85 millions of speakers

Translator English - Javanese

Basa lisan
85 millions of speakers
vi

Translator English - Vietnamese

tiếng mẹ đẻ
80 millions of speakers

Translator English - Tamil

தாய் மொழி
75 millions of speakers

Translator English - Marathi

मातृभाषा
75 millions of speakers

Translator English - Turkish

ana dil
70 millions of speakers

Translator English - Italian

lingua madre
65 millions of speakers

Translator English - Polish

językiem ojczystym
50 millions of speakers

Translator English - Ukrainian

рідну мову
40 millions of speakers

Translator English - Romanian

limba maternă
30 millions of speakers
el

Translator English - Greek

μητρική γλώσσα
15 millions of speakers
af

Translator English - Afrikaans

moedertaal
14 millions of speakers
sv

Translator English - Swedish

modersmål
10 millions of speakers
no

Translator English - Norwegian

morsmål
5 millions of speakers

Trends of use of native tongue

TRENDS

TENDENCIES OF USE OF THE TERM «NATIVE TONGUE»

The term «native tongue» is regularly used and occupies the 90.223 position in our list of most widely used terms in the English dictionary.
0
100%
FREQUENCY
Regularly used
58
/100
The map shown above gives the frequency of use of the term «native tongue» in the different countries.
Principal search tendencies and common uses of native tongue
List of principal searches undertaken by users to access our English online dictionary and most widely used expressions with the word «native tongue».

FREQUENCY OF USE OF THE TERM «NATIVE TONGUE» OVER TIME

The graph expresses the annual evolution of the frequency of use of the word «native tongue» during the past 500 years. Its implementation is based on analysing how often the term «native tongue» appears in digitalised printed sources in English between the year 1500 and the present day.

Examples of use in the English literature, quotes and news about native tongue

EXAMPLES

QUOTES WITH «NATIVE TONGUE»

Famous quotes and sentences with the word native tongue.
1
Wade Davis
What could be more lonely than to be enveloped in silence, to be the last of your people to speak your native tongue, to have no way to pass on the wisdom of the elders, to anticipate the promise of the children. This tragic fate is indeed the plight of someone somewhere roughly every two weeks.

10 ENGLISH BOOKS RELATING TO «NATIVE TONGUE»

Discover the use of native tongue in the following bibliographical selection. Books relating to native tongue and brief extracts from same to provide context of its use in English literature.
1
Native Tongue
A brilliant cult classic of literary science fiction--back in print.
Suzette Haden Elgin, 2013
2
Native Tongue
BONUS: This edition includes an excerpt from Carl Hiaasen's Bad Monkey.
Carl Hiaasen, 2010
3
Native Tongue
Elgin wrote whatshe has called the“thought experiment” ofthe Native Tongue books inorder to testfour hypotheses: 1) thattheweak form of the linguistic relativity hypothesis is true [that human languages structure humanperceptions in  ...
Suzette Haden Elgin, 2013
4
The Specialists: Native Tongue
Computer genius GiGi is paired with Parrot, an expert linguist, on a secret mission to South America, trying to keep a legendary piece of pottery from falling into the wrong hands.
Shannon Greenland, 2008
5
Native Tongue
Book 4 of The Specialists GiGi is back again and on a brand new mission in the fourth book in this original series!
Shannon Greenland, 2008
6
Our Marvelous Native Tongue: The Life and Times of the ...
Traces the history of the English language from its Indo-European roots to contemporary vocabulary and chronicles the lives and times of various English-speaking people
Robert Claiborne, 1983
7
Native Listening: Language Experience and the Recognition of ...
In this book, Anne Cutler argues that listening to speech is a process of native listening because so much of it is exquisitely tailored to the requirements of the native language.
Anne Cutler, 2012
8
How Language Comes to Children: From Birth to Two Years
In thisdelightful, accessible book, psycholinguist Bénédicte de Boysson-Bardies presents a broad picture oflanguage development, from fetal development to the toddler years, and examines a wide range ofpuzzling questions: How do newborns ...
Bénédicte de Boysson-Bardies, 2001
9
The Native Irish, and Their Descendants
Waving, however, all minor considerations, if you are in understanding the most ancient Irish manuscripts as surprised those whose native tongue it was from infancy, but published his grammar, containing some curious observations on the  ...
Christopher Anderson, 1846
10
Brookings Papers on Education Policy 2000
Moreover, the math findings for TBE suggest an important problem: Subject matter is taught in the native tongue, but the student is tested on his or her understanding of that subject in English. For many students the difficulty of having to ...
Diane Ravitch, 2010

10 NEWS ITEMS WHICH INCLUDE THE TERM «NATIVE TONGUE»

Find out what the national and international press are talking about and how the term native tongue is used in the context of the following news items.
1
Here's What We Learned From MTV's 'White People' Documentary
But there's also a word in their native tongue, “wasichu,” which means “he who takes the best meat” and is often used as a derogatory term for ... «atlantadailyworld, Jul 15»
2
The UK's Expanding Banking Sector
The banking and finance comparative advantage has risen due to the nation having major advantages such as the English language being the native tongue, ... «The Market Mogul, Jul 15»
3
Man wins World Championship in French Scrabble without knowing …
Richards has dominated the game in his native tongue too, winning world titles for English Scrabble in 2007 and 2011. He's also captured five ... «Daily Times, Jul 15»
4
French Scrabble champion doesn't speak French
Richards had won five North American Scrabble Championships, and three World Scrabble Championships -- all in English, his native tongue ... «KIONrightnow.com, Jul 15»
5
The Languages of Learning
Her professors back home insisted that English teachers should never speak to their students in their native tongue during class. “Here,” she ... «NIU Newsroom, Jul 15»
6
WATCH: Gwynedd pensioner scuppers telephone scammers...by …
... suspected the whole thing was a scam and devised the perfect way to stop their nuisance calls by speaking to them in her native tongue. «Daily Post North Wales, Jul 15»
7
Find English-Speaking Hotels And Restaurants In Paris With This App
“Yes I speak touriste” helps tourists in Paris find establishments that speak their native tongue. Released by the city's chamber of commerce, the ... «Lifehacker Australia, Jul 15»
8
Impact confirm interest in star striker Didier Drogba
... according to reports Drogba would prefer to join the Impact as French is his native tongue. However, as the Fire hold Drogba's MLS discovery ... «Yahoo Sports, Jul 15»
9
Noel's Straight Hedge: Punk And Hardcore For July Reviewed
Singer Donna's lyrics are more on the 'personal = political' tip, however, and include one in Welsh ('Defaid'), her native tongue. To my ... «The Quietus, Jul 15»
10
5 easy tips for travelling gluten free - think...
... other than English as its first language, I suggest you learn enough of the native tongue in order to accurately explain your dietary restriction. «insideTORONTO.com, Jul 15»

REFERENCE
« EDUCALINGO. Native tongue [online]. Available <https://educalingo.com/en/dic-en/native-tongue>. May 2024 ».
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