linguist

UK: ˈlɪŋɡwɪst | US: ˈlɪŋɡwɪst

Definition

  1. n. a person skilled in languages or linguistics

  2. n. a specialist in the scientific study of language

Structure
lingu <language>ist <one who practices>lingu <language>ist <one who practices>
Etymology

The word linguist traces back to Latin lingua ("tongue, language"), reflecting the physical organ (tongue) as the primary tool for speech. The suffix -ist (via Greek -istes) was later added to signify a practitioner or expert. Over time, linguist evolved from broadly describing multilingual individuals to specifically denoting scholars of linguistic science.

Examples

  1. The linguist decoded the ancient manuscript using comparative grammar.

  2. As a linguist, she specializes in Slavic languages.

  3. The conference brought together linguists from over 30 countries.

  4. He became a linguist after studying the evolution of Indo-European verbs.

  5. Modern linguists often use computational tools to analyze speech patterns.