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Linguistics & Grammar vocabulary · Language Acquisition

First language

Meaning in linguistics & grammar, with examples

nounCore term

In linguistics & grammar, first language means: The language a person learns first, from birth or early childhood, usually the one they know best; linguists often shorten it to L1.

In Turkish: ana dili, birinci dil, ilk dil

How it is used

Common in SLA research and teaching, often instead of mother tongue, which some find less precise. Teachers discuss L1 interference and whether, and how much, to use the first language in the classroom.

Example sentences

  1. Many errors can be traced back to the learner's first language.

  2. Children who grow up with two first languages are called simultaneous bilinguals.

Common collocations

  • first language acquisition
  • L1 interference
  • L1 transfer
  • use of the first language
  • native speakerA person who learned a language from early childhood as one of their first languages and uses it naturally, without having studied it formally.
  • second language acquisitionThe process of learning another language after the first one, and the research field that studies how this happens; usually shortened to SLA.
  • language transferThe influence of a learner's first language, or another language they know, on the language being learned; it can help (positive transfer) or cause errors (negative transfer).
  • bilingualismThe ability to use two languages, or the regular use of two languages by a person or a community; using more than two is called multilingualism.
  • language acquisitionThe process by which people come to know and use a language, especially the natural way young children pick up their first language from the speech around them.

More terms: Language Acquisition

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