lingua

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.

This entails programs to promote standard Chinese as the national lingua franca, instill pride in Chinese cultural heritage and exert stronger central control over regions with large ethnic-minority populations such as Tibet and Xinjiang.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 12, 2026

His Russian has improved in prison, where it is a lingua franca among the inmates.

From Barron's • Jan. 30, 2026

Somalia is to introduce Swahili, the lingua franca of East Africa, to its national curriculum, the president has announced.

From BBC • Oct. 8, 2025

Today I live in Taiwan, where Mandarin Chinese is the lingua franca, and fixtures of the California accent have attached itself to my Chinese.

From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 25, 2023

Few spoke English, and the lingua franca was an amalgam of many tongues known as Fanagalo.

From "Long Walk to Freedom" by Nelson Mandela