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Synonyms

mother tongue

American  
[muhth-er tuhng, muhth-er tuhng] / ˈmʌð ər ˈtʌŋ, ˈmʌð ər ˌtʌŋ /

noun

  1. the language first learned by a person; native language.

  2. mother language.

mother tongue British  

noun

  1. the language first learned by a child

  2. a language from which another has evolved

"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

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.

Luke Woollen, St Andrews, Great Britain We the Bangalees know the value of language, as we gave blood to establish our right of Mother tongue in 1952.

From BBC • Feb. 5, 2010

La. Then to land dumb, unable to enquire for an English hoast, to remove from City to City, by most chargeable Post-horse, like one that rode in quest of his Mother tongue.

From The Scornful Lady by Fletcher, John

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.