Browse by letter

English Words Starting With L

5,456 entries — pick a word to see its definition, pronunciation, and usage.

Filter

Parts of speech

Noun Verb Adjective Adverb Plural noun Suffix Combining form Verb (transitive)Verb (intransitive)Verb (ambitransitive)

lingonberry
nounC1/C2
/ˈlɪŋɡənˌbɛri/A small, tart, red berry that grows on low evergreen shrubs (Vaccinium vitis-idaea) in northern forests.
lingua
nounC2
/ˈlɪŋ.ɡwə/An anatomical or technical term for a tongue or tongue-like structure.
lingua franca
nounC1-C2
/ˌlɪŋɡwə ˈfræŋkə/A language or dialect systematically used to make communication possible between groups of people who do not share a native language.
lingua geral
nounVery low
/ˌlɪŋɡwə ʒəˈrɑːl/A historical creole language, based primarily on Tupi, that served as a lingua franca in colonial Brazil.
lingual
adjectivenounC1/C2
/ˈlɪŋɡwəl/Relating to language or the tongue.
lingual brace
nounLow
/ˈlɪŋ.ɡwəl ˈbreɪsɪz/An orthodontic appliance, typically part of a dental braces system, attached to the tongue-facing side of the teeth.
lingual protrusion lisp
nounC2/Professional
/ˌlɪŋ.ɡwəl prəˈtruː.ʒən lɪsp/A speech sound disorder characterized by the tongue pushing forward between the teeth when producing sibilant sounds like /s/ and /z/, resulting in a 'th'-like distortion.
linguaphile
nounLow
/ˈlɪŋ.ɡwə.faɪl/A person who loves languages and words.
linguica
nounVery Low
/lɪŋˈɡwiːsə/A highly seasoned Portuguese or Brazilian pork sausage, typically smoked or cured.
linguine
nounC1
/lɪŋˈɡwiːni/A type of pasta that is long, thin, and elliptical in cross-section (like flattened spaghetti).
linguist
nounB2
/ˈlɪŋ.ɡwɪst/A person who studies languages and their structure (a scholar of linguistics).
linguistic analysis
nounC1+
/lɪŋˈɡwɪstɪk əˈnæləsɪs/The systematic study and examination of language structure, use, and meaning.
linguistic area
nounC1+
/lɪŋˈɡwɪstɪk ˈeəriə/A geographical region where languages from different families share certain linguistic features due to prolonged contact, not from common ancestry.
linguistic atlas
nounC1
/lɪŋˈɡwɪstɪk ˈætləs/A collection of maps showing the geographical distribution of linguistic features of a language or dialect.
linguistic borrowing
nounC1/C2
/lɪŋˌɡwɪstɪk ˈbɒrəʊɪŋ/The process by which a word or phrase is taken from one language and adopted into another.
linguistic form
nounC2
/lɪŋˈɡwɪstɪk fɔːm/Any specific, concrete realisation of language, such as a word, phrase, sound pattern, or grammatical structure, considered in terms of its formal properties.
linguistic geography
nounLow
/lɪŋˌɡwɪs.tɪk dʒiˈɒɡ.rə.fi/The study of the geographical distribution of languages and dialects, focusing on their regional boundaries and spatial patterns.
linguistic philosophy
nounC2
/lɪŋˈɡwɪstɪk fɪˈlɒsəfi/A philosophical movement, particularly associated with mid-20th century thinkers, that sees the primary aim of philosophy as the analysis of ordinary language to resolve or dissolve traditional philosophical problems.
linguistic stock
nounC1
/lɪŋˈɡwɪstɪk stɒk/A group of languages that have developed from a common ancestral language; a language family.
linguistic universal
nounC2 (Advanced)
/lɪŋˌɡwɪstɪk ˌjuːnɪˈvɜːsl/A pattern or trait found universally across all human languages.

Showing 3281–3300 of 5456 words.