- [countable] the soft part in the mouth that moves around, used for tasting, swallowing, speaking, etc.
- He clicked his tongue to attract their attention.
- She ran her tongue over her lips.
- It's very rude to stick your tongue out at people.
Extra ExamplesTopics Bodyb1- The dog lay in a patch of shade with its tongue hanging out.
- The snake's tongue flicked out of its mouth.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective- long
- forked
- loose
- …
- poke out
- put out
- stick out
- …
- hang out
- flick
- flicker
- …
- piercing
- a slip of the tongue
- be on the tip of your tongue
- get your tongue around something
- …
- [uncountable, countable] the tongue of some animals, cooked and eaten
- a slice of ox tongue
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective- long
- forked
- loose
- …
- poke out
- put out
- stick out
- …
- hang out
- flick
- flicker
- …
- piercing
- a slip of the tongue
- be on the tip of your tongue
- get your tongue around something
- …
- [countable] (formal or literary) a language
- Even when we speak the same tongue we do not always understand one another.
- I tried speaking to her in her native tongue.
Extra Examples- The market place was full of people speaking many strange tongues.
- She could hear men whispering in a foreign tongue.
- She speaks English and Danish, though her native tongue is German.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective- mother
- native
- common
- …
- speak
- in a/the tongue
- speak in tongues
- [singular] a particular way of speaking
- He has a sharp tongue.
- (formal) I'll thank you to keep a civil tongue in your head (= speak politely).
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective- long
- forked
- loose
- …
- poke out
- put out
- stick out
- …
- hang out
- flick
- flicker
- …
- piercing
- a slip of the tongue
- be on the tip of your tongue
- get your tongue around something
- …
- -tongued(in adjectives) speaking in the way mentioned
- sharp-tongued
- [countable] a long, narrow piece of leather under the laces on a shoeTopics Clothes and Fashionc2
- [countable] tongue (of something) (literary) something that is long and narrow and like a tongue in shape
- a tongue of flame
Word OriginOld English tunge, of Germanic origin; related to Dutch tong, German Zunge, and Latin lingua.
Idioms
See tongue in the Oxford Advanced American DictionarySee tongue in the Oxford Learner's Dictionary of Academic Englishbite your tongue
- to stop yourself from saying something that might upset somebody or cause an argument, although you want to speak
- I didn't believe her explanation but I bit my tongue.
(has the) cat got your tongue?
- (informal) said to somebody, especially a child, who stays silent when expected to speak, for example after being asked a question
- What's the matter? Cat got your tongue?
find your voice/tongue
- to be able to speak or express your opinionTopics Opinion and argumentc2
get your tongue around/round something
- to pronounce a difficult word correctly
- He was having trouble getting his tongue around my name.
have a loose tongue
- to talk too much, especially about things that are private
hold your tongue/peace
- (old-fashioned) to say nothing although you would like to give your opinion
loosen somebody’s tongue
- to make somebody talk more freely than usual
- A bottle of wine had loosened Harry's tongue.
on the tip of your tongue
- if a word or name is on the tip of your tongue, you are sure that you know it but you cannot remember it
roll/slip/trip off the tongue
- to be easy to say or pronounce
- It's not a name that exactly trips off the tongue, is it?
set tongues wagging | tongues are wagging
- (informal) to cause people to start talking/people are talking about somebody’s private affairs
- His sudden resignation set tongues wagging.
- This is a small island and tongues are beginning to wag.
a slip of the pen/tongue
- a small mistake in something that you write or say
- Did I call you Richard? Sorry, Robert, just a slip of the tongue.
- I didn't mean to say that—it was just a slip of the tongue.
watch your mouth/tongue
- to be careful what you say in order not to offend somebody or make them angry
with your tongue in your cheek | with tongue in cheek
- if you say something with your tongue in your cheek, you are not being serious and mean it as a joke
Check pronunciation:
tongue