bilingual
/baɪˈlɪŋɡwəl/bigh-LINGG-wuhl
/baɪˈlɪŋɡwəl/bigh-LINGG-wuhl
Meaningtwo-tongued
Common meaning: speaking two languages
- bitwo
- linguthe tongue; a languageLewis & Short, Latin Dictionary (1879), p. 1068 · scan
- aladjective ending: relating to
‘two’ + ‘the tongue’ → bilingual
Sources & notes
Meaning: “Meaning” is the sense that emerges from the word’s roots; “Common meaning” is today’s everyday sense. Both written by us.
Pronunciation
- UK IPA: converted from the US form by rule (unchecked). Respelling: generated.
- No UK recording; the speaker uses your device’s en-GB voice.
- US IPA: CMUdict (BSD-2), converted to IPA by rule. Respelling: generated.
- No US recording; the speaker uses your device’s en-US voice.
Origin: Built on Latin lingua ‘the tongue; a language’.
Did you know: our wording, based on Lewis & Short, Latin Dictionary (1879), entry lingua, p. 1068 · dictionary scan
Roots
- lingua Latin “the tongue; a language”
Related words
Building blocks are an automatic split · open in app