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formal language

British

noun

a language designed for use in situations in which natural language is unsuitable, as for example in mathematics, logic, or computer programming. The symbols and formulas of such languages stand in precisely specified syntactic and semantic relations to one another
logic a logistic system for which an interpretation is provided: distinguished from formal calculus in that the semantics enable it to be regarded as about some subject matter

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

That is all the more reason that your correspondents may be impressed with the dignity of using formal language.

From Washington Post • Jun. 7, 2022

Draft a script for your review podcast that reflects your personality and use of language, rather than formal language.

From Textbooks • Dec. 21, 2021

“I was thinking very much about finding a formal language about what it means to be trans and nonbinary,” they said in an interview at the gallery.

From New York Times • Oct. 21, 2021

English is the formal language of the military and government - and even with the new requirement, will remain the official language.

From BBC • Dec. 5, 2017

In sixth grade, Miss Perry had insisted we all learn to compose proper letters in formal language.

From "The Old Willis Place" by Mary Downing Hahn

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023