definitions

dead languages

Languages that are no longer spoken.

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Nearby words

dead heat, dead horse, dead in one's tracks, dead in the water, dead key, dead languages, dead leg, dead letter, dead letter box, dead lift, dead load

Note

Some dead languages, such as Latin, ancient Greek, and Sanskrit, may nevertheless be studied by large numbers of people because of their literary or historical importance.
The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.