Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

interlanguage

/ɪnˈtɜɹˈlæŋɡwɪd͡ʒ/

Word Rarity Very rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 1.61 in modern English

Syllables: in-ter-lan-guage
IPA: /ɪnˈtɜɹˈlæŋɡwɪd͡ʒ/

15

Scrabble Score

13

Letters

4

Syllables

9

Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

A language generated by a student of a foreign language that incorporates aspects of their native language and the target language.

noun

A lingua franca, a common language used by speakers of different languages

noun

A pidgin or creole

Example Sentences

"Trasyanka and Surzhyk are interlanguages: a Belarusian–Russian and a Ukrainian–Russian mixed language."
"The learner's selection from his/her store of interlanguage rules is not haphazard but systematic and predictable, based as it is on his/her existing rule system in much the same way as the native speaker bases his/her speech on the internalized knowledge of the L1 system."
"Latin used to be the European interlanguage. Currently English widely serves this purpose."
"As [David] Bellos points out, those born as English speakers are now a minority of English speakers: most speak it as a second language. English is the world’s biggest interlanguage."

Etymology

From inter- + language. In the language acquisition sense introduced by Larry Selinker in 1972.

Word Breakdown

Prefix: inter-

Regional Pronunciation

American English: /ɪnˈtɜɹˈlæŋɡwɪd͡ʒ/

Inflected Forms

interlanguages (plural)

Frequently Paired Words

interlinguist

Synonyms

koine lingua franca

Rhymes With

language

Questions

How do you pronounce interlanguage?: The recorded pronunciation is /ɪnˈtɜɹˈlæŋɡwɪd͡ʒ/.
What does interlanguage mean?: A language generated by a student of a foreign language that incorporates aspects of their native language and the target language.
Where does interlanguage come from?: From inter- + language. In the language acquisition sense introduced by Larry Selinker in 1972.

How to pronounce interlanguage

Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “interlanguage”.
Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling (/ɪnˈtɜɹˈlæŋɡwɪd͡ʒ/) so you know which sounds to aim for.
Play the audio — Click Play to hear reference audio for “interlanguage”.
Repeat and practice — Say “interlanguage” aloud, matching stress and vowels until it feels natural.