mother tongue
Americannoun
-
the language first learned by a person; native language.
noun
-
the language first learned by a child
-
a language from which another has evolved
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of mother tongue
1350–1400; Middle English moder tonge
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.
But that authenticity was also palpable in Martin’s performance on Sunday — a vindication for all the years his mother tongue was manipulated in the mainstream.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 10, 2026
He dropped his English name, James, and resolved to write only in the language of the Kikuyu people, his mother tongue.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 23, 2025
For Esau, not being able to speak her mother tongue was "a wound".
From Barron's ● Oct. 10, 2025
Rapping in the Irish language, a hip-hop trio from Belfast lead a movement to save their mother tongue.
From BBC ● Feb. 19, 2025
The stranger had learned a great deal of the Incan mother tongue in the year since I had seen him.
From "The Ugly One" by Leanne Statland Ellis
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
