native language

[ ney-tiv lang-gwij ]

noun
  1. a language that a person acquires fully through extensive exposure in childhood: Many Diné children learn Navajo as a native language.

Origin of native language

1
First recorded in 1425–75 as natife langage
  • Often first lan·guage [furst-lang-gwij] /ˈfɜrst ˈlæŋ gwɪdʒ/ .

Words Nearby native language

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use native language in a sentence

  • He wrote verses with elegance in French, Spanish and Italian, and was a polisher of his native language in a barbarous age.

  • Sin Sin Wa's expression underwent a subtle change at the sound of his native language.

    Dope | Sax Rohmer
  • They then both knelt down in the field, while he lifted up his voice, in his native language, in thanks.

    The Indian in his Wigwam | Henry R. Schoolcraft
  • Then she turned to Miela and poured out a torrent of her native language.

    The Fire People | Ray Cummings
  • Inspector Manvers was colonial born and could speak the native language fluently.

    A Frontier Mystery | Bertram Mitford