polyglot

American  

[pol-ee-glot] / ˈpɒl iˌglɒt /

adjective

1. able to speak or write several languages; multilingual.

2. containing, composed of, or written in several languages.

   a polyglot Bible.

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noun

polyglots plural

1. a mixture or confusion of languages.

2. a person who speaks, writes, or reads a number of languages.

3. a book, especially a Bible, containing the same text in several languages.

polyglot British  

/ ˈpɒlɪˌɡlɒt /

adjective

1. having a command of many languages

2. written in, composed of, or containing many languages

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noun

1. a person with a command of many languages

2. a book, esp a Bible, containing several versions of the same text written in various languages

3. a mixture or confusion of languages

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• polyglotism
  noun

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• polyglots
  plural

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."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

polyglot polyglots

Most of this is described in polyglot, suggesting he felt some shame.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 5, 2026

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

In other words, a significant number of multiracial Americans will “airbrush” their polyglot lineage and instead focus on their European provenance.

From Salon ● Jan. 2, 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

I could hear a lot of words often repeated, queer words, for there were many nationalities in the crowd; so I quietly got my polyglot dictionary from my bag and looked them out.

From "Dracula" by Bram Stoker

Studying polyglots can help researchers learn more about the functions of the language network, and how languages learned later in life might be represented differently than a native language or languages.

From Science Daily ● Mar. 11, 2024

Many polyglots and hyperpolyglots deny any talent for language learning, Fedorenko says.

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

A polyglot costume surely—but this was a city of polyglots.

From The Secret Witness by Gibbs, George

Related Words

• linguist
• wordsmith