language barrier

American  

[lang-gwij bar-ee-er] / ˈlæŋ gwɪdʒ ˌbær i ər /

noun

• language barriers
  plural

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

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

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• language barriers
  plural

Etymology

Origin of language barrier

First recorded in 1885–90

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

language barrier

“Part of our household is fully fluent in Spanish, part is not. And even despite the language barrier, we’ve really gravitated toward the quality of the Telemundo stream,” Denney said.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 16, 2026

We might have been able to move past the language barrier if Mr. Hernández and Ms. Aikens conveyed the powerful emotion of their words with the requisite ardency.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 12, 2026

He picked up some Spanish from Latino teammates in Japan that he uses to help bridge the language barrier.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 5, 2026

"Cultures are different, not to mention the language barrier," the mayor said, urging "mutual support and consideration".

From Barron's ● Mar. 20, 2026

I wondered then if, without the language barrier, my classmates and I could have done a better job making sense of Christianity, an idea that sounds pretty far-fetched to begin with.

From "Me Talk Pretty One Day" by David Sedaris