1
a
: a fleshy movable muscular process of the floor of the mouths of most vertebrates that bears sensory end organs and small glands and functions especially in taking and swallowing food and in humans as a speech organ
b
: a part of various invertebrate animals that is analogous to the tongue
2
: the flesh of a tongue (as of the ox or sheep) used as food
3
a
: language
especially
: a spoken language
b
: manner or quality of utterance with respect to tone or sound, the sense of what is expressed, or the intention of the speaker
she has a clever tongue
a sharp tongue
c
: ecstatic, typically unintelligible utterance occurring especially in a moment of religious excitation
—usually plural
It would be like the miracle described in the Acts of the Apostles, demonstrated with healing, speaking in tongues and other signs and wonders.—
Dan Wakefield
Dan Wakefield… where they can sing and shriek and talk in tongues and testify and have a part.—Jane Kramer
Jane Kramer
d
: the cry of or as if of a hound pursuing or in sight of game
—used especially in the phrase to give tongue
4
: the power of communication through speech
5
: a tapering flame
tongues of fire
6
: something resembling an animal's tongue in being elongated and fastened at one end only: such as
a
: the flap under the lacing or buckles of a shoe at the throat of the vamp
b
: a movable pin in a buckle
c
: a metal ball suspended inside a bell so as to strike against the sides as the bell is swung
d
: the pole (see pole entry 1 sense 1b) of a vehicle (such as a wagon)
7
a
: the rib on one edge of a board that fits into a corresponding groove in an edge of another board to make a flush joint
b
8
: a long narrow strip of land projecting into a body of water
tongued; tonguing
ˈtəŋ-iŋ 
; tongues
; tongues
1
transitive + intransitive
music
: to articulate (notes on a wind instrument) by successively interrupting the stream of wind with the action of the tongue
Playing [the bugle] and tonguing the note and making it come out exactly spot-on, that takes a technique and a skill.—Bethann Dixon
Bethann Dixon2
transitive
: to touch or lick (something) with the tongue
cows tonguing the long grass
3
transitive,
carpentry
a
: to cut a tongue on
tongue a board
b
: to join (parts, such as boards) by means of a tongue and groove
tongue flooring together
4
Synonyms
Examples of tongue in a Sentence
Noun
The cow ran its tongue over its lips.
The taste of the spice was still on her tongue.
The little girl stuck her tongue out at me.
He spoke in a foreign tongue.
English is my native tongue.
They speak the same tongue.
His sharp tongue is going to get him into trouble someday.
Verb
learning how to tongue notes on the clarinet
Recent Examples on the Web
Jonathan Shikes, The Denver Post, 11 Nov. 2024
In the clip, which multiple outlets posted on TikTok, two dogs wander around an enclosure and pant with their tongues out.
—Kirsty Hatcher, People.com, 30 Oct. 2024
Jenelle Riley, Variety, 23 Feb. 2024
No way out of this pit where the sun shatters into shards tongued between teeth.
—Hazlitt, 17 May 2023
See all Example Sentences for tongue 
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
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Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
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Noun
Extra spicy In the United States, many people seek out spicy ramen, but that’s not necessarily the case in Japan, according to Osaka, where ramen wasn’t meant to bind to your tongue and set off pain receptors in your brain.
—Jonathan Shikes, The Denver Post, 11 Nov. 2024
In the clip, which multiple outlets posted on TikTok, two dogs wander around an enclosure and pant with their tongues out.
—Kirsty Hatcher, People.com, 30 Oct. 2024
Verb
His tongued lolled out of his mouth and his eyes remained open.
—Jenelle Riley, Variety, 23 Feb. 2024
No way out of this pit where the sun shatters into shards tongued between teeth.
—Hazlitt, 17 May 2023
See all Example Sentences for tongue
Video
An Abbreviated History of American English Spelling
Soop, wimmen, and headake did not make the cut
Dictionary Entries Near tongue
Cite this Entry
“Tongue.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/tongue. Accessed 22 Nov. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
tongue
1 of 2 noun1
: a fleshy movable muscular part of the floor of the mouth of most vertebrates that has sensory organs (as taste buds) and small glands and functions especially in taking and swallowing food and in human beings as a speech organ
2
: the flesh of a tongue (as of beef) used as food
3
: the power of communication : speech
5
: something resembling a tongue (as in being long and fastened at one end)
tongueless
adjective
-ləs
tongue
2 of 2 verb
tongued; tonguing
ˈtəŋ-iŋ
1
: to touch or lick with or as if with the tongue
2
: to separate individual notes when playing a wind instrument by interrupting the stream of wind with the tongue
Medical Definition
tongue
noun
: a process of the floor of the mouth that is attached basally to the hyoid bone, that consists essentially of a mass of extrinsic muscle attaching its base to other parts, intrinsic muscle by which parts of the structure move in relation to each other, and an epithelial covering rich in sensory end organs and small glands, and that functions especially in taking and swallowing food and as a speech organ
Geographical Definition
Tongue
geographical name
river 246 miles (396 kilometers) long in northern Wyoming and southern Montana flowing north into the Yellowstone River
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