linguist

American  

[ling-gwist] / ˈlɪŋ gwɪst /

noun

• linguists
  plural

1. a specialist in linguistics.

2. a person who is skilled in several languages; polyglot.

---

linguist British  

/ ˈlɪŋɡwɪst /

noun

1. a person who has the capacity to learn and speak foreign languages

2. a person who studies linguistics

3. the spokesman for a chief

---

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• linguists
  plural

Etymology

Origin of linguist

First recorded in 1580–90; from Latin lingu(a) “tongue, speech” + -ist

Explanation

A linguist is someone who studies language. Linguists study every aspect of language, including vocabulary, grammar, the sound of language, and how words evolve over time. The study of language is called linguistics, and people who study linguistics are linguists. Being a linguist isn't easy; you usually have to go to graduate school and conduct research about a specific aspect of language. There are computational linguists, forensic linguists, comparative linguists, and many other specialties. If you love language, you'd probably enjoy a career as a linguist.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

linguist linguists

The foreign ministry said the family of linguist and researcher Dennis Coyle had written to the supreme leader of Afghanistan, asking that he be released and pardoned for Eid.

From Barron's ● Mar. 24, 2026

Michael Hahn, a linguist based in Saarbrücken, set out to answer that question with Richard Futrell from the University of California, Irvine.

From Science Daily ● Feb. 20, 2026

In 2020, photographer Caitlin O’Hara snapped linguist Rachid Baligh of Scottsdale, Ariz., and Marrakesh, Morocco, with his family, his 2015 Ural cT motorcycle, and his miniature schnauzer, Lola, in the Arizona desert.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 28, 2025

Watkins was recommended to the “Predator: Badlands” team by Paul Frommer, the linguist who created the Na’vi language for the “Avatar” films.

From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 10, 2025

I see one man, a respected linguist, throw his mug in the lake from sheer frustration.

From "The Bletchley Riddle" by Ruta Sepetys and Steve Sheinkin

By examining bodies of written work, linguists can track the rise of such language quirks, says Kimberly Becker, a linguist and co-host of the “Women Talkin’ ‘Bout AI” podcast.

From Barron's ● Apr. 14, 2026

The show has not officially aired in Japan and South Korea, but dedicated linguists have translated star duo Hudson Williams and Connor Storrie's countless interviews into Korean.

From BBC ● Feb. 26, 2026

But it’s clear that the phenomenon is not just the tweedy concern of linguists.

From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 3, 2025

The team, which comprised musicologists, psychologists, linguists, evolutionary biologists and professional musicians, recorded songs in 55 languages, including Arabic, Balinese, Basque, Cherokee, Maori, Ukrainian and Yoruba.

From New York Times ● May 15, 2024

Some of Greenberg’s subfamilies, and some groupings recognized by more-traditional linguists, may turn out to be legacies of New World population expansions driven in part by food production.

From "Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies" by Jared M. Diamond