fluent

American  

[floo-uhnt] / ˈflu ənt /

adjective

1. spoken or written with ease.

   fluent French.

2. able to speak or write smoothly, easily, or readily.

   a fluent speaker;

   fluent in six languages.

3. easy; graceful.

   fluent motion;

   fluent curves.

4. flowing, as a stream.

5. capable of flowing; fluid, as liquids or gases.

6. easily changed or adapted; pliant.

---

fluent British  

/ ˈfluːənt /

adjective

1. able to speak or write a specified foreign language with facility

2. spoken or written with facility

   his French is fluent

3. easy and graceful in motion or shape

4. flowing or able to flow freely

---

Related Words

Fluent, glib, voluble may refer to a flow of words. Fluent suggests the easy and ready flow of an accomplished speaker and is usually a term of commendation: a fluent and interesting speech. Glib implies an excessive fluency divorced from sincerity or profundity; it often suggests talking smoothly and hurriedly to cover up or deceive, not giving the hearer a chance to stop and think; it may also imply a plausible, prepared, and well-rehearsed lie: He had a glib answer for everything. Voluble implies the overcopious and often rapid flow of words characteristic of a person who loves to talk: She overwhelmed him with her voluble answer. See also eloquent.

Other Word Forms

• fluency noun
• fluently adverb
• fluentness noun
• nonfluency noun
• nonfluent adjective
• nonfluentness noun
• overfluency noun
• overfluent adjective
• overfluentness noun
• transfluent adjective
• unfluent adjective

Etymology

Origin of fluent

First recorded in 1580–90; from Latin fluent- (stem of fluēns ) “flowing,” present participle of fluere; -ent

Example Sentences

Living abroad while at university allowed me to become almost fluent in two other languages and have experiences that would never have been possible in Scotland.

From BBC

Still, there is profit and occasional jollity in brisk recapitulations of seminal events by a fluent storyteller with an eye for telling detail and apposite quotation.

From The Wall Street Journal

The “inter-titles,” usually ponderous in silent cinema, are fluent and compelling, ensuring a relentless drive that propels the story forward.

From The Wall Street Journal

These Ukrainians are largely indistinguishable from the natives due to their cultural similarities, including fluent Russian.

From The Wall Street Journal

Pupils are recorded as having English as a "first language", or as an "additional language" in a number of other categories - including being "competent" or "fluent".

From BBC

Related Words

• eloquent
• persuasive
• talkative
• vocal