second language

noun

a language learned by a person after his or her native language, especially as a resident of an area where it is in general use.

a language widely used, especially in educational and governmental functions in a region where all or most of its speakers are nonnative, as English in India or Nigeria.

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British Dictionary definitions for second language

second language

noun

a language other than the mother tongue that a person or community uses for public communication, esp in trade, higher education, and administration

a non-native language officially recognized and adopted in a multilingual country as a means of public communication

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