monolingual

[ mon-uh-ling-gwuhl or, Canadian, -ling-gyoo-uhl ]

adjective
  1. knowing or able to use only one language; monoglot.

  2. spoken or written in only one language.

noun
  1. a monolingual person.

Origin of monolingual

1
First recorded in 1950–55; mono- + lingual

Other words from monolingual

  • mon·o·lin·gual·ism, noun

Words Nearby monolingual

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use monolingual in a sentence

  • The time when the intellectual affairs of America could be conducted on a monolingual basis is over.

    Instigations | Ezra Pound

British Dictionary definitions for monolingual

monolingual

/ (ˌmɒnəʊˈlɪŋɡwəl) /


adjective
  1. knowing or expressed in only one language

noun
  1. a monolingual person

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012