Idiomas
/idjomas/from spelling rules
The English phrase "languages" is translated into Spanish as Idiomas.
Idiomas refers to systems of communication used by people of a particular country or community.
Which one should you use?
While Idiomas is the most common word used for spoken languages, the term lenguas is preferred in more formal, academic or linguistic contexts.
How does it change in a sentence?
Idiomas is the plural form. The singular form is idioma.
How do you pronounce it?
/idjomas/
Did you know?
- The word idioma is a false friend to the English word 'idiom'. While an 'idiom' is a figurative phrase in English, idioma is the standard Spanish word for a national language.
- While idioma is common, the word lengua also means 'tongue' in a biological sense. In a linguistic context, it refers to a language, making the term for a system of speech quite literal.
- Using lenguas indígenas instead of idiomas indígenas is often a conscious choice in Latin America to show greater cultural respect for ancestral communication systems.
Examples in context
- Él sabe diez idiomas.He knows ten languages.This sentence shows how to state the number of languages someone knows using Idiomas.Tatoeba #2998408 by hayastan, translation #1595113 by CM
- Me gustan los idiomas.I like languages.This sentence is an example of expressing a preference for certain languages using Idiomas.Tatoeba #454567 by Shishir, translation #239730 by CK
- Él habla diez idiomas.He speaks ten languages.This sentence demonstrates how to say someone speaks a specific number of languages using Idiomas.Tatoeba #1003106 by hayastan, translation #993960 by CK
- 299 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Lucía and Alejandro are talking about their studies at a university cafe.
- LucíaAlejandro, ¿estudias muchos idiomas?Alejandro, do you study many languages?
- AlejandroSí, Lucía, estudio inglés y francés.Yes, Lucía, I study English and French.
- Lucía¡Qué bien! Esos idiomas son muy útiles.That's great! Those languages are very useful.
- AlejandroEs verdad, me encanta aprender.It's true, I love learning.
Sources
- IPA marked “from spelling rules” is derived from standard Spanish spelling, where Wiktionary gives none.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
