ADJ
first, native
His native language is Portuguese, but he speaks English fluently at work.
foreign, second
My brother studied a foreign language in high school and now he speaks Spanish fluently.
original
The book was first published in its original language before being translated into English.
source, target
Learning to translate between the source language and target language requires years of practice.
ancient, classical, dead
Learning ancient language like Sanskrit requires years of dedicated study and practice.
modern | common, shared | indigenous, local
official
The government declared English as the official language of the new nation.
national
English is the national language spoken in many countries around the world.
international
minority
Many children in our town speak a minority language at home with their grandparents.
spoken, written
My son is learning to read and write, so we practice the written language every evening together.
colloquial, everyday, informal | formal | flowery, literary, poetic | racist, sexist
sign
Many tourists find it helpful to learn basic sign language before visiting deaf communities.
body, non-verbal
Her body language showed she was nervous about giving the presentation.
legal, technical, etc. | computer, programming
VERB + LANGUAGE
speak | understand | use | learn, study | master | be couched in, be expressed in
enrich
Learning words from different cultures can enrich the language we speak every day.
LANGUAGE + NOUN
acquisition, learning
Children develop language acquisition skills faster when they interact with native speakers regularly.
course, lesson
PREP
in ~
The teacher explained the difficult concept in simple language so all students could understand.
PHRASES
command/knowledge/mastery of (a) language
After years of living in Japan, he developed an impressive command of the language.
use of language
The teacher praised her students for their careful use of language in their essays.
ADJ
bad, crude, foul, obscene, offensive, strong
The coach was criticized for using offensive language during the match.
VERB + LANGUAGE
use
mind, watch
You should watch your language when you're talking to your grandmother.