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A1🔤 Letters I & L

Italian word

lingua

language; tongue (body part)

Looks like

lingo

informal for a foreign language or jargon

⚠️ The trap

'Lingua' is the standard, formal word for both language and tongue. In English 'lingo' is informal/slang. Don't use 'lingo' thinking it directly corresponds to 'lingua' — they are etymologically related but register is different.

To say "informal for a foreign language or jargon" in Italian:

lingua (formal word for language)

"lingua" in English means:

language; tongue (body part)

Example

"Parla quattro lingue."

"He speaks four languages."

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