second language
noun
: a language that is learned in addition to the language a person first learned as a young child
Examples of second language in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
There are fewer than 50 first-language Ho-Chunk speakers in the world, but the tribe has had a lot of recent success in teaching it as a second language.
—
Frank Vaisvilas, Journal Sentinel, 21 May 2024
Europeans, obliged to work in English as a second language, are more likely to consider that fluency in only one language may be far rarer than conflict among multiple tongues.
—Madeleine Schwartz Soneela Nankani Tanya Pérez Brian St. Pierre, New York Times, 14 May 2024
The literacy program serves both native English speakers and individuals learning English as a second language, and a number of community residents volunteer as tutors.
—Cathie Anderson, Sacramento Bee, 14 May 2024
Some teacher certification areas — such as English as a second language, health science and special education — are short on teachers from pre-K through the 12th grade.
—Daranee Balachandar, Baltimore Sun, 25 Mar. 2024
Jude Bellingham was leading chants in his second language.
—Rory Smith, New York Times, 19 Apr. 2024
Tuchman spoke English as a second language, and her parents were unaware of all available resources.
—Geri Stengel, Forbes, 27 Mar. 2024
The researchers surmised that while the embedding layer stored information specific to the words used in the language, the deeper levels of the network stored more abstract information about the concepts behind human languages, which then helped the model learn the second language.
—Amos Zeeberg, WIRED, 10 Mar. 2024
Simply wanting the skill of speaking a second language is one many long to have.
—Ashlyn Messier, Fox News, 15 Feb. 2024
Frank Vaisvilas, Journal Sentinel, 21 May 2024
Europeans, obliged to work in English as a second language, are more likely to consider that fluency in only one language may be far rarer than conflict among multiple tongues.
—Madeleine Schwartz Soneela Nankani Tanya Pérez Brian St. Pierre, New York Times, 14 May 2024
The literacy program serves both native English speakers and individuals learning English as a second language, and a number of community residents volunteer as tutors.
—Cathie Anderson, Sacramento Bee, 14 May 2024
Some teacher certification areas — such as English as a second language, health science and special education — are short on teachers from pre-K through the 12th grade.
—Daranee Balachandar, Baltimore Sun, 25 Mar. 2024
Jude Bellingham was leading chants in his second language.
—Rory Smith, New York Times, 19 Apr. 2024
Tuchman spoke English as a second language, and her parents were unaware of all available resources.
—Geri Stengel, Forbes, 27 Mar. 2024
The researchers surmised that while the embedding layer stored information specific to the words used in the language, the deeper levels of the network stored more abstract information about the concepts behind human languages, which then helped the model learn the second language.
—Amos Zeeberg, WIRED, 10 Mar. 2024
Simply wanting the skill of speaking a second language is one many long to have.
—Ashlyn Messier, Fox News, 15 Feb. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'second language.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near second language
Cite this Entry
“Second language.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/second%20language. Accessed 28 May. 2024.
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