as in language
the stock of words, pronunciation, and grammar used by a people as their basic means of communication
although the anthropologist could speak the local language fairly well, she was always glad to find someone who shared her mother tongue
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of mother tongue
Image The theme is the conflict between mother tongues and other tongues.
—
Jesse Green, New York Times, 24 Jan. 2025
Yiddish, the mother tongue of Ashkenazi Jews in Europe for nearly a thousand years, is still spoken by about six hundred thousand ultra-Orthodox Jews mostly concentrated in America, Europe, and Israel.
—Adam Kirsch, The New Yorker, 21 Mar. 2025
So to be able to play in my mother tongue would be an amazing experience because there would be no boundaries whatsoever.
—Todd Gilchrist, Variety, 18 Mar. 2025
So to be able to play in my mother tongue would be an amazing experience because there would be no boundaries whatsoever.
—Todd Gilchrist, Variety, 18 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for mother tongue
Jesse Green, New York Times, 24 Jan. 2025
Yiddish, the mother tongue of Ashkenazi Jews in Europe for nearly a thousand years, is still spoken by about six hundred thousand ultra-Orthodox Jews mostly concentrated in America, Europe, and Israel.
—Adam Kirsch, The New Yorker, 21 Mar. 2025
So to be able to play in my mother tongue would be an amazing experience because there would be no boundaries whatsoever.
—Todd Gilchrist, Variety, 18 Mar. 2025
So to be able to play in my mother tongue would be an amazing experience because there would be no boundaries whatsoever.
—Todd Gilchrist, Variety, 18 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for mother tongue
Recent Examples of Synonyms for mother tongue
Noun
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The hotline is available 24/7 in more than 170 languages.—
Charna Flam,
People.com,
8 Aug. 2025
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As fiduciaries, trustees are charged with managing trust assets, making distributions according to the trust’s terms and adhering strictly to the grantor’s intent and the language in the trust agreement.—
Royce Ramey,
Forbes.com,
7 Aug. 2025
Noun
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The cataclysmic effect of her unexpected arrival suggests that soon her vocabulary will expand to include more such ominous language.—
Jessica Kiang,
Variety,
14 Aug. 2025
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Your specific tone, vocabulary and messaging frameworks—the elements that make your content distinctly yours—can easily get lost.—
Cheryl Ragland,
Forbes.com,
14 Aug. 2025
Noun
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Some of the meats available are bulgogi (marinated beef), flat iron steak, short ribs, beef tongue, pork belly, beef brisket, Korean chorizo and teriyaki beef.—
Carlos Rico,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
7 Aug. 2025
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The swelling and lesions in a raptor’s throat can displace its tongue and sometimes press on its eyes and brain.—
Austin Corona,
AZCentral.com,
6 Aug. 2025
Noun
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Pat picked up Spanish and the local dialect of the region.—
Nell Salzman,
Chicago Tribune,
31 July 2025
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Such expressions of moral clarity are rare, though, in an age of confusion and endlessly contested facts that has been harnessed by the Netanyahu government, which speaks a fluent dialect of the MAGA language of politics.—
Ian Crouch,
New Yorker,
28 July 2025
Noun
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He’s been talking about replacing it with a permanent ballroom for a long time, in his usual Dictator Chic idiom.—
Christopher Bonanos,
Curbed,
1 Aug. 2025
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This could be in Elsbeth’s usual light and fizzy idiom or perhaps a brief foray into Scandi-noir.—
Sophie Brookover,
Vulture,
6 Mar. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Mother tongue.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/mother%20tongue. Accessed 21 Aug. 2025.
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