language barrier

[ lang-gwij bar-ee-er ]

noun

1. difficulty in communicating due to the lack of a shared language:

   International adoption is not easy, especially when there is a language barrier.

Word History and Origins

Origin of language barrier¹

First recorded in 1885–90

Example Sentences

Desperate and annoyed with the language barrier, Bartiromo begs as Elias translates.

From The Daily Beast

Or, you can adopt my own language-barrier ordering tactic:  point at something on the menu and hope for the best.

From The Daily Beast

But to pull off a successful collaboration, Will.i.am and Yamaji had to overcome a challenging language barrier.

From The Daily Beast

Unfortunately, she seemed to face a bit of a language barrier.

From The Daily Beast

Why not help break the language barrier by volunteering your time to translate at a local hospital?

From The Daily Beast

Breaking the language barrier, with implicit emancipation from literacy, is a practical experience in itself.

From Project Gutenberg