second language

American  

noun

1. a language learned by a person after their native language, especially as a resident of an area where their new language is in general use.

2. 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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second language British  

noun

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

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

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Etymology

Origin of second language

First recorded in 1875–80

Example Sentences

Both Zahra and her husband Vasim learned English as a second language - Zahra in France and Vasim in India.

From BBC

The school has coffee mornings for parents and runs English as a second language classes.

From BBC

The boost was largest for scientists who write in English as a second language and face extra hurdles when communicating technical work in a foreign language.

From Science Daily

Similarly, 76% of pupils in Aberdeen had English as their first language, and out of those who spoke English as a second language, 43% were competent or fluent.

From BBC

"I personally don't categorise myself as an immigrant. I didn't come here as an immigrant with a second language, a different culture, family members, ties to a country that I was born in… my culture was erased," she says.

From BBC