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mother tongue

[muhth-er tuhng, muhth-er tuhng] / ˈmʌð ər ˈtʌŋ, ˈmʌð ər ˌtʌŋ /


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.

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But that authenticity was also palpable in Martin’s performance on Sunday — a vindication for all the years his mother tongue was manipulated in the mainstream.

From Los Angeles Times Feb. 10, 2026

He dropped his English name, James, and resolved to write only in the language of the Kikuyu people, his mother tongue.

From The Wall Street Journal Dec. 23, 2025

For Esau, not being able to speak her mother tongue was "a wound".

From Barron's Oct. 10, 2025

Rapping in the Irish language, a hip-hop trio from Belfast lead a movement to save their mother tongue.

From BBC Feb. 19, 2025

He had written it in Sanskrit, which was his mother tongue, and he had encoded the even lines in the private cipher of the Emperor Augustus and the odd ones in a Lacedemonian military code.

From "One Hundred Years of Solitude" by Gabriel Garcia Marquez




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