Skip to main content
Glite Dictionary
🗣️ One language only 📖 A one-language dictionary 👤 A one-language person
unilingual

unilingual

7.7
A dictionary that gives definitions in one language
  • noun
  • /ˌjuːnɪˈlɪŋɡwəl/
translation icon : diccionario unilingüe
  • Many bilingual students find a unilingual dictionary useful for deepening their understanding of vocabulary in their primary language.

Examples

  • A unilingual dictionary is often preferred by learners who want to understand definitions in their native language only.

  • The school provided a unilingual dictionary for students studying French, helping them focus on vocabulary without translations.

  • For example, Gold has used "functional unilingual" in reference to mother-tongue French speakers capable of rudimentary communication in English.

    Academic text (2000)

How Monolingual

unilingual
7.7

Surface Forms

unilingual singular
unilinguals plural

Morphology

unilingual = lingual (transparent) = uni + lingual

The prefix uni- meaning 'one' combines clearly with lingual meaning 'relating to language', yielding 'in only one language'.

Etymology

Unilingual for a dictionary mixes uni- 'one' and lingual 'language', so a unilingual dictionary explains words and meanings in only one language.