Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English homepage

Date: 1600-1700
Language: Italian
Origin: 'tongue of the Franks'

lingua franca

 noun
     
Related topics: Linguistics
lin‧gua fran‧ca [countable]
SL a language used between people whose main languages are different:
English is the lingua franca in many countries.
Definition from the Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English
Advanced Learner's Dictionary.

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