Dictionary

equilingual en · ADJ

Etymology

From equi- + lingual.

Meanings

1. (not-comparable) Able to speak two or more languages at the same level of proficiency.

equilingual en · NOUN

Etymology

From equi- + lingual.

Meanings

1. A person who is equilingual.
   • If the equilingual speaks language A or B, the monolingual speakers of that language would recognize that the individual is a speaker of another language. 1998, Hortense García Ramirez Kayser, Assessment and Intervention Resource for Hispanic Children, page 33:
   • An equilingual (von Raffler-Engel, 1961), on the other hand, is either ambilingual if both languages are equally native-like or semilingual (Skutnabb-Kangas, 1980) if both are mastered equally poorly. 2004, Michel Paradis, A Neurolinguistic Theory of Bilingualism, page 3:
   • Unilinguals and bilinguals other than equilinguals mostly consume mass media products in the language they know best. 1979, Alain Desrochers, Richard Clément, The Social Psychology of Inter-ethnic Contact and Cross-cultural Communication, An Annotated Bibliography, page 59:

Forms

Deriveds

equilingualism

Relateds

ambilingual