Nahuatl

noun

Na·​huatl ˈnä-ˌwä-tᵊl How to pronounce Nahuatl (audio)
: a group of closely related Uto-Aztecan languages that includes the speech of several peoples (such as the Aztecs) of central and southern Mexico and Central America
Nahuatlan adjective or noun

Examples of Nahuatl in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
The spa El Capricho Spa occupies its own cliff ledge, 6,000 square feet carved into volcanic rock with treatment rooms named after local flowers in Nahuatl—Citlaxochitl (poinsettia), Texochitl (stone flower). Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 28 Apr. 2026 The cactus appears in the Aztec codices and the name comes from a Nahuatl word that means a pot covered in spines. Eyder Peralta, NPR, 28 Sep. 2025 Matthew Restall, for example, has worked indefatigably as a myth buster for dozens of misconceptions for roughly two decades now, and only recently did another historian, Camilla Townsend, stitch together the history of the Aztecs according to their own statements, as recorded in Nahuatl. Literary Hub, 18 Aug. 2025 Translated languages included Nahuatl, Extremaduran, and Kirundi. Nate Anderson, ArsTechnica, 14 Aug. 2025 During the first half of the 20th century, the poinsettia was popular but true to its Nahuatl name, an easily withering plant. Norman Ellstrand and Nathan Ellstrand / Made By History, TIME, 23 Dec. 2024 Brazilians primarily speak Portuguese, and millions of people in Latin America speak Indigenous languages, such as Nahuatl, K'iche' and Quechua. Gina Lee Castro, Journal Sentinel, 11 Oct. 2024 Picture books teaching Spanish speakers words in Nahuatl and Maya. Gustavo Arellano, Los Angeles Times, 15 May 2024 Like Voynich, many modern scholars suspect that the manuscript’s text is a ciphered form of a familiar language, with their theories of the tome’s latent linguistics flitting from Latin to Nahuatl, the language of the Aztecs and Toltecs of Mexico. Sam Walters, Discover Magazine, 31 Jan. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Spanish náhuatl, from Nahuatl Nāhuatl

First Known Use

1876, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of Nahuatl was in 1876

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Cite this Entry

“Nahuatl.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/Nahuatl. Accessed 4 Jul. 2026.

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