idioma
language
noun ee-DYOH-mah Less Common
Origin: From Greek idioma (peculiarity, dialect).
Usage Note
Idioma specifically means a natural human language as a system — it is more formal than lengua and more specific than lenguaje (which can mean language in the abstract or even style/register). Despite ending in -a, it is masculine: el idioma, los idiomas. A common learner trap is to make it feminine by analogy with other -a nouns.
Examples
"El español es un idioma muy extendido."
Natural Translation
Spanish is a very widely spoken language.
Related Words
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