mother tongue

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Noun

mother tongue (plural mother tongues)

1. The language one first learned; the language one grew up with; one's native language.

   His mother tongue is a relatively conservative dialect of Aramaic.

   Synonyms: first language, mother language, native language, native tongue, L1

2. The language spoken by one’s ancestors.
3. The language spoken by one's mother, when it differs from that spoken by one's father.
4. Informal speech, as opposed to educated language.

Translations

• French: langue maternelle
• German: Muttersprache, Erstsprache
• Italian: madrelingua
• Portuguese: língua materna, língua nativa
• Russian: родно́й язы́к
• Spanish: lengua materna, lengua nativa

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