linguist
3
4.6
- noun
- /ˈlɪŋɡwɪst/
:
políglota
- Any linguist could invent a primitive language, but Els has a fluency that would only come with years of use.
You just bring in a German linguist to sit with you to speak fluent German with them so that you don't have to.
- You just bring in a German linguist to sit with you to speak fluent German with them so that you don't have to.
Examples
-
A linguist is not concerned with learning languages but with the discovery and use of principles by which the workings of any number of languages can be explained.
Academic text (1992) -
Oh, I went to see a linguist, yes.
-
Oh, hey, the linguist guy's here.
-
You know, I'm not too much of a linguist...
-
How's the linguist doing with my accent?
-
This obscure historical footnote was brought to light in a remarkable paper published recently in the journal Anthrozoos by Arnold Arluke and Boria Sax, respectively an anthropologist and a linguist.
Academic text (1993) -
As a talented linguist, she is fluent in five different languages.
-
He became a well-respected linguist after mastering Spanish, French, and Russian.
-
The linguist translated the book into several languages, making it accessible to a wider audience.
Synonyms
2
7.7
A person who knows and can use several languages
Compounds
- Specialized
A person who uses computers to study and process human language
How Multilingual
Surface Forms
Morphology
linguist = linguistics (semi-transparent) = lingu + ist
The suffix '-ist' indicates a person associated with languages, but the specific meaning of speaking multiple languages is not directly derived.
Etymology
The word linguist can also mean a person who speaks several languages; it comes from Latin lingua 'tongue', so a helpful image is someone with many 'tongues' who can speak many languages.