Definitions for language
ˈlæŋ gwɪdʒlan·guage

Princeton's WordNetRate this definition:2.9 / 49 votes

1. language, linguistic communicationnoun

   a systematic means of communicating by the use of sounds or conventional symbols

   "he taught foreign languages"; "the language introduced is standard throughout the text"; "the speed with which a program can be executed depends on the language in which it is written"

2. speech, speech communication, spoken communication, spoken language, language, voice communication, oral communicationnoun

   (language) communication by word of mouth

   "his speech was garbled"; "he uttered harsh language"; "he recorded the spoken language of the streets"

3. lyric, words, languagenoun

   the text of a popular song or musical-comedy number

   "his compositions always started with the lyrics"; "he wrote both words and music"; "the song uses colloquial language"

4. linguistic process, languagenoun

   the cognitive processes involved in producing and understanding linguistic communication

   "he didn't have the language to express his feelings"

5. language, speechnoun

   the mental faculty or power of vocal communication

   "language sets homo sapiens apart from all other animals"

6. terminology, nomenclature, languagenoun

   a system of words used to name things in a particular discipline

   "legal terminology"; "biological nomenclature"; "the language of sociology"

GCIDERate this definition:3.5 / 15 votes

1. Languagenoun

   Any system of symbols created for the purpose of communicating ideas, emotions, commands, etc., between sentient agents.

2. Languagenoun

   Specifically: (computers) Any set of symbols and the rules for combining them which are used to specify to a computer the actions that it is to take; also referred to as a computer lanugage or programming language; as, JAVA is a new and flexible high-level language which has achieved popularity very rapidly.

WiktionaryRate this definition:2.8 / 12 votes

1. languagenoun

   A form of communication using words either spoken or gestured with the hands and structured with grammar, often with a writing system.

2. languagenoun

   The ability to communicate using words.

   the gift of language

3. languagenoun

   Nonverbal communication.

   body language

4. languagenoun

   A computer language.

5. languagenoun

   The vocabulary and usage used in a particular specialist field.

   legal language

6. languagenoun

   The particular words used in speech or a passage of text.

7. languagenoun

   Profanity.

8. languagenoun

   Words, written or spoken, in a specific sequence that a person uses to describe, to a another person, the type of thoughts in their mind.

9. languageverb

   To communicate by language; to express in language.

   Others were languaged in such doubtful expressions that they have a double sense. uE0004411uE001 Fuller.

Samuel Johnson's DictionaryRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. Languagenoun

   Etymology: language, French; lingua, Latin.

   1. Human speech.

   We may define language, if we consider it more materially, to be letters, forming and producing words and sentences; but if we consider it according to the design thereof, then language is apt signs for communication of thoughts. William Holder.

   2. The tongue of one nation as distinct from others.

   O! good my lord, no Latin;
   I am not such a truant since my coming,
   As not to know the language I have liv’d in. William Shakespeare.

   He not from Rome alone, but Greece,
   Like Jason, brought the golden fleece;
   To him that language, though to none
   Of th’ others, as his own was known. John Denham.

   3. Stile; manner of expression.

   Though his language should not be refin’d,
   It must not be obscure and impudent. Wentworth Dillon.

   Others for language all their care express,
   And value books, as women, men, for dress:
   Their praise is still —— the stile is excellent;
   The sense, they humbly take upon content. Alexander Pope.

WikipediaRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. Language

   Language is a single by New Zealand singer/songwriter Dave Dobbyn, released in 1994 as the first single from the Twist album. The song reached number 4 on the New Zealand charts.

ChatGPTRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. language

   Language is a system of communication that consists of words, symbols, and rules for combining them, used by a particular community or group of people to express ideas, thoughts, and emotions. It serves as a tool for humans to convey and understand information, and it is constantly evolving and adapting to the needs and culture of its users. Language can be expressed orally, through spoken words, or in written form, through symbols or letters.

Webster DictionaryRate this definition:3.1 / 9 votes

1. Languagenoun

   any means of conveying or communicating ideas; specifically, human speech; the expression of ideas by the voice; sounds, expressive of thought, articulated by the organs of the throat and mouth

2. Languagenoun

   the expression of ideas by writing, or any other instrumentality

3. Languagenoun

   the forms of speech, or the methods of expressing ideas, peculiar to a particular nation

4. Languagenoun

   the characteristic mode of arranging words, peculiar to an individual speaker or writer; manner of expression; style

5. Languagenoun

   the inarticulate sounds by which animals inferior to man express their feelings or their wants

6. Languagenoun

   the suggestion, by objects, actions, or conditions, of ideas associated therewith; as, the language of flowers

7. Languagenoun

   the vocabulary and phraseology belonging to an art or department of knowledge; as, medical language; the language of chemistry or theology

8. Languagenoun

   a race, as distinguished by its speech

9. Languageverb

   to communicate by language; to express in language

10. Etymology: [OE. langage, F. langage, fr. L. lingua the tongue, hence speech, language; akin to E. tongue. See Tongue, cf. Lingual.]

WikidataRate this definition:3.2 / 6 votes

1. Language

   the type of which all languages are instances

Chambers 20th Century DictionaryRate this definition:2.5 / 6 votes

1. Language

   lang′gwāj, n. that which is spoken by the tongue: human speech: speech peculiar to a nation: style or expression peculiar to an individual: diction: any manner of expressing thought.—v.t. to express in language.—adjs. Lang′uaged, skilled in language; Lang′uageless (Shak.), speechless, silent; Lang′ued (her.), furnished with a tongue.—Dead language, one no longer spoken, as opp. to Living language, one still spoken; Flash language (see Flash). [Fr. langage—langue—L. lingua (old form dingua), the tongue, akin to L. lingēre, Gr. leichein.]

The Roycroft DictionaryRate this definition:2.2 / 5 votes

1. language

   The tool of the mind.

U.S. National Library of MedicineRate this definition:2.0 / 1 vote

1. Language

   A verbal or nonverbal means of communicating ideas or feelings.

Editors ContributionRate this definition:2.0 / 2 votes

1. language

   A systematic act, fact and ability to communicate by the use of words, definitions, expression, energy, structure, creativity, rules, sounds, voices, symbols, speech, typing, knowing, understanding or instructions.

   Language differs in each country yet people can communicate even if they do not speak or know a language.

   
   

   Submitted by MaryC on January 12, 2020  

2. ---

   language

   The act, fact and ability to communicate using words.

   We all know what the language feels like as you can see it within a person as they look at you.

   
   

   Submitted by MaryC on January 18, 2020  

3. ---

   language

   A form of communication we intuitively feel, know and understand as intelligent animals and human beings.

   We have various forms of language including speech, written and body language.

   
   

   Submitted by MaryC on November 5, 2020  

4. ---

   languageverb

   The tongue as the organ of speech or to the language the tongue produces. In certain NT passages, scholars differ on whether the term refers to human languages or to ecstatic speech capable only of divine interpretation.

   The planet earth has a record of translating 7,000 different official languages.

   Etymology: Transparent Communication

   
   

   Submitted by Tehorah_Elyon on October 14, 2023  

Suggested ResourcesRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. Language

   Language vs. Dialect -- In this Grammar.com article you will learn the differences between the words Language and Dialect.

Matched Categories

1. • Auditory Communication
   • Communication
   • Faculty
   • Higher Cognitive Process
   • Language
   • Text
   • Word

British National Corpus

1. Spoken Corpus Frequency

   Rank popularity for the word 'language' in Spoken Corpus Frequency: #472

2. Written Corpus Frequency

   Rank popularity for the word 'language' in Written Corpus Frequency: #974

3. Nouns Frequency

   Rank popularity for the word 'language' in Nouns Frequency: #150

Anagrams for language »

1. ganguela

How to pronounce language?

1. Alex

   US English

   David

   US English

   Mark

   US English

   Daniel

   British

   Libby

   British

   Mia

   British

   Karen

   Australian

   Hayley

   Australian

   Natasha

   Australian

   Veena

   Indian

   Priya

   Indian

   Neerja

   Indian

   Zira

   US English

   Oliver

   British

   Wendy

   British

   Fred

   US English

   Tessa

   South African

How to say language in sign language?

Numerology

1. Chaldean Numerology

   The numerical value of language in Chaldean Numerology is: 9

2. Pythagorean Numerology

   The numerical value of language in Pythagorean Numerology is: 5

Examples of language in a Sentence

1. Ellen Gilcrist:

   We live at the level of our language. Whatever we can articulate we can imagine or explore. All you have to do to educate a child is leave him alone and teach him to read. The rest is brainwashing.

2. Lewis Thomas:

   We are a spectacular, splendid manifestation of life. We have language. . . . We have affection We have genes for usefulness, and usefulness is about as close to a 'common goal' of nature as I can guess at. And finally, and perhaps best of all, we have music.

3. Thomas Carlyle:

   Sarcasm I now see to be, in general, the language of the devil; for which reason I have long since as good as renounced it.

4. Beena Ammanath:

   The challenge with new language models is they blend fact and fiction, it spreads misinformation effectively. It cannot understand the content. So it can spout out completely logical sounding content, but incorrect. And it delivers it with complete confidence.

5. Michelle Fiscus:

   A recipient of that memo was upset that, according to Tennessee Supreme Court case law, minors ages 14-17 years are able to receive medical care in Tennessee without parental consent and posted the memo to social media, within days, legislators were contacting TDH( Tennessee Department of Health) asking questions about the memo with some interpreting it as an attempt to undermine parental authority. Let me be clear : this was an informational memo containing language approved by the TDH Office of General Counsel which was sent to medical providers by the medical director of the state's immunization program regarding the guardrails set 34 years ago by Tennessee Supreme Court around providing care to minors.

Popularity rank by frequency of use

References

1. ^ Princeton's WordNet
   http://wordnetweb.princeton.edu/perl/webwn?s=language
2. ^ GCIDE
   https://gcide.gnu.org.ua/?q=language
3. ^ Wiktionary
   https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Language
4. ^ Samuel Johnson's Dictionary
   https://johnsonsdictionaryonline.com/views/search.php?term=language
5. ^ Wikipedia
   https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Language
6. ^ ChatGPT
   https://chat.openai.com
7. ^ Webster Dictionary
   https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/language
8. ^ Wikidata
   https://www.wikidata.org/w/index.php?search=language
9. ^ Chambers 20th Century Dictionary
   https://www.gutenberg.org/files/37683/37683-h/37683-h.htm#:~:text=language
10. ^ The Roycroft Dictionary
    https://www.gutenberg.org/files/36566/36566-h/36566-h.htm#:~:text=language