as in languages
the stock of words, pronunciation, and grammar used by a people as their basic means of communication
he spoke in a tongue that I didn't understand
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Recent Examples of tongues
Swift and Styles set tongues wagging after they were spotted by paparazzi strolling together in November 2012, and things seemed even more heated after they were photographed sharing some New Year’s Eve smooches the following month.
—
Lisa Respers France, CNN Money, 1 Oct. 2025
The women of The View have entered the Jimmy Kimmel chat after initially holding their tongues in the wake of his suspension last week.
—Andy Greene, Rolling Stone, 22 Sep. 2025
Such insights would refine our understanding of the world’s roughly 7,000 tongues, clarifying which parts of a language are homegrown and which are the product of outside influence.
—Cody Cottier, Scientific American, 18 Sep. 2025
This matters because chameleons hunt by ballistically launching their tongues like slingshots, using a tapered bone in their throat as a ramp.
—Popular Science Team, Popular Science, 10 Sep. 2025
Launching on 16th October, 2025, the bubblegum pink sculpture features two entwined tongues, forming a surreal, dancing figure at the entrance of the iconic Brutalist gallery.
—Lee Sharrock, Forbes.com, 9 Sep. 2025
Understanding how animals decelerate and reel in their tongues could further shape designs for deployable tools that must return to a starting position without damage or loss of control.
—Kaif Shaikh, Interesting Engineering, 9 Sep. 2025
As possessed people speak in foreign tongues and violence rises, Ahmed fears regaining memory, while the disciple fears his master’s decline may unleash an ancient evil.
—Zac Ntim, Deadline, 28 Aug. 2025
His nephew is old enough to speak both tongues, but Ammon's nieces are still too young.
—Zoey Lyttle, People.com, 26 Aug. 2025
Lisa Respers France, CNN Money, 1 Oct. 2025
The women of The View have entered the Jimmy Kimmel chat after initially holding their tongues in the wake of his suspension last week.
—Andy Greene, Rolling Stone, 22 Sep. 2025
Such insights would refine our understanding of the world’s roughly 7,000 tongues, clarifying which parts of a language are homegrown and which are the product of outside influence.
—Cody Cottier, Scientific American, 18 Sep. 2025
This matters because chameleons hunt by ballistically launching their tongues like slingshots, using a tapered bone in their throat as a ramp.
—Popular Science Team, Popular Science, 10 Sep. 2025
Launching on 16th October, 2025, the bubblegum pink sculpture features two entwined tongues, forming a surreal, dancing figure at the entrance of the iconic Brutalist gallery.
—Lee Sharrock, Forbes.com, 9 Sep. 2025
Understanding how animals decelerate and reel in their tongues could further shape designs for deployable tools that must return to a starting position without damage or loss of control.
—Kaif Shaikh, Interesting Engineering, 9 Sep. 2025
As possessed people speak in foreign tongues and violence rises, Ahmed fears regaining memory, while the disciple fears his master’s decline may unleash an ancient evil.
—Zac Ntim, Deadline, 28 Aug. 2025
His nephew is old enough to speak both tongues, but Ammon's nieces are still too young.
—Zoey Lyttle, People.com, 26 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for tongues
Noun
-
Kids can swing Dora and Boots, cook in the treehouse kitchen, or decorate the casita with stickers, all while hearing familiar voices in two languages.—
Emily Glover,
Parents,
2 Oct. 2025
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The hotline is available 24/7 in more than 170 languages.—
Christine Pelisek,
PEOPLE,
2 Oct. 2025
Noun
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All the tired vocabularies have been thrown out, replaced by a mad, post-minimalist openness and pluralism.—
Jerry Saltz,
Vulture,
19 Sep. 2025
-
Transcripts, grammars, vocabularies, dictionaries, glyph studies, botanical studies, commentaries, articles, editions of codices, correspondence, maps, charts, drawings, photographs, Maya Society materials, genealogies of Maya families, and Mayan glyphs on moveable type.—
The Editors,
JSTOR Daily,
12 Sep. 2025
Noun
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Throughout a career spanning more than three decades, Garg sang in dozens of languages and dialects, becoming a powerhouse in the Assamese, Bengali and Hindi-language film and music industries.—
Angela Yang,
NBC news,
21 Sep. 2025
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Many live in complex social groups, communicate in different dialects, pass on culture through generations, engage in play and even grieve the loss of family and friends as was the case here.—
Adeola Adeosun,
MSNBC Newsweek,
16 Sep. 2025
Noun
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Meanwhile, analytical software has revolutionized linguistic inquiry, enabling greater understanding of the ways language works—when, how, and why words break out; the specific contexts for expressions and idioms.—
Stefan Fatsis,
The Atlantic,
13 Sep. 2025
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These systems can interpret regional slang, idioms and context-specific expressions, hence minimizing both over-censorship and under-enforcement.—
Anees Ali Khan,
Forbes.com,
8 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Tongues.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/tongues. Accessed 7 Oct. 2025.
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