lingua franca
lingua franca
Definition
lin·gua franca (liŋ′gwə fraŋ′kə)
noun pl. lin′·gua fran′·cas or lin′·guae fran′·caeliŋ′gwē fran′sē
- a hybrid language based on Italian, with Spanish, French, Greek, and Arabic elements, spoken, esp. formerly, in certain Mediterranean ports
- a language used for communication between different peoples, as English or Swahili; specif., a hybrid language used for this purpose, as pidgin English
- something that is like a common language
Etymology: It, lit., Frankish language
lingua franca
Usage Examples
Converse of object
- become: English is becoming one lingua franca which of us cause to sigh with relief!
- speak: Non-market subsystems in contrast use money terms only as a lingua franca spoken with a foreign accent and some dubious prepositions.
- remain: German is now spoken by up to 100 million people as their mother tongue tho English remains the lingua franca.
- use: A page-description language is the lingua franca used by a print server and a printer.
Adjective modifier
- global: EM uncovers how English is changing and spotlights people, groups and governments as they embrace and fight the global lingua franca.
- international: English operates as an international lingua franca and the great majority of communication in English is between people who come from non-Anglo backgrounds.
- current: Perhaps England's greatest cultural export has been the English language, the current lingua franca of the international community.
- new: English may be the new lingua franca, a competitive advantage for us as a nation, not least in education.
Modifies a noun
- communication: My last research project investigated phonological intelligibility in English lingua franca communication.
Noun used with modifier
- inclusivist: The new Northern Ireland Assembly will need to institutionalize what we might term an inclusivist lingua franca, or common-sense.
Preposition: in
- city: It is a lingua franca in all inner cities where Asians are in majority.
Preposition: of
- world: The argument runs that English is the lingua franca of the technological world in which Nigeria is seeking to operate.
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