polyglot
Americanadjective
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able to speak or write several languages; multilingual.
-
containing, composed of, or written in several languages.
a polyglot Bible.
noun
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a mixture or confusion of languages.
-
a person who speaks, writes, or reads a number of languages.
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a book, especially a Bible, containing the same text in several languages.
adjective
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having a command of many languages
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written in, composed of, or containing many languages
noun
-
a person with a command of many languages
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a book, esp a Bible, containing several versions of the same text written in various languages
-
a mixture or confusion of languages
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of polyglot
First recorded in 1635–45; from Medieval Latin polyglōttus, from Greek polýglōttos “many-tongued”; see poly-, -glot
Explanation
Ni hao! Comment allez-vous? Estoy bien, gracias. Sayōnara! If you understood everything you just read, you’re probably a polyglot — a person who understands multiple languages. There are thousands of languages spoken in the world, but you don’t need to know them all to be a polyglot. The –glot comes from the Greek word for “tongue,” and the prefix poly- means “more than one,” so if you speak two or more languages, you’re technically a polyglot. Well done! Polyglot can also be used as an adjective, like describing "a polyglot neighborhood" full of people from many different cultures or the "polyglot crowd at the Olympic games."
Vocabulary lists containing polyglot
Dracula
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Ender's Game
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UCPS 6th Grade Roots List #5
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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.
See Examples For:
But the polyglot pope, a former missionary to Peru, initially cultivated a more sober and discreet style that contrasted with the spontaneity of his predecessor pope Francis.
From Barron's ● May 6, 2026
A K-pop act finally got a new artist nod as well, with the polyglot girl group Katseye landing alongside Addison Rae, Lola Young and Sombr.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 7, 2025
Historians say the deprivation contributed to the growing ethnic tensions of the polyglot state, which led to the Bosnian War in the 1990s.
From Salon ● Aug. 19, 2025
That now extends to about 20 countries, including Ireland and Singapore and extending to polyglot Holland and Germany.
From BBC ● Mar. 16, 2025
Along the way, someone substituted the Latin ending pi for the Greek podes and came up with the polyglot octopi.
From "Woe Is I" by Patricia T. O'Conner
In the brains of these polyglots -- people who speak five or more languages -- the same language regions light up when they listen to any of the languages that they speak.
From Science Daily ● Mar. 11, 2024
They scanned the brains of 25 polyglots, 16 of whom were hyperpolyglots, including one who spoke more than 50 different languages.
From Science Magazine ● Feb. 3, 2023
Some polyglots have noted problems with the languages already available.
From BBC ● May 11, 2022
Understanding the importance of languages in a globalized world, many Kenyans speak English, Swahili and a tribal language, and polyglots are common throughout Africa.
From Seattle Times ● Jan. 21, 2018
She belongs to the Genoa contingent, and is one of those European polyglots who speak every continental language and make a fair attempt at English.
From The Ship Dwellers A Story of a Happy Cruise by Paine, Albert Bigelow
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.
