lingua francas

Variant of lingua franca

lingua franca definition

lin·gua franca (liŋ′gwə fraŋ′kə)

  1. a hybrid language based on Italian, with Spanish, French, Greek, and Arabic elements, spoken, esp. formerly, in certain Mediterranean ports
  2. a language used for communication between different peoples, as English or Swahili; specif., a hybrid language used for this purpose, as pidgin English
  3. something that is like a common language

Etymology: It, lit., Frankish language

Webster's New World College Dictionary Copyright © 2009 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

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