native tongue
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
In the same way that learning another language helps us understand our native tongue more deeply, travel forms character through lived experience.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 8, 2026
The result is that these Iranian characters, when talking among themselves in their native tongue, sound awfully like Americans having a conversation in the mall or at a nearby table at a restaurant.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 11, 2026
The Welsh Not - or Welsh Stick - was employed across schools in the 19th Century to discourage children from speaking in their native tongue.
From BBC • Dec. 7, 2025
She has no background in instruction, and the only language that she and her pupils share is English, which is not a native tongue for any of them.
From New York Times • Nov. 21, 2024
As if, despite their different accents, they had finally met someone who spoke their native tongue.
From "The Inquisitor's Tale" by Adam Gidwitz
