- tongue
- noun1 soft part inside the mouthADJECTIVE▪ long▪ forked▪ loose, sharp (both figurative)▪
Everyone knows now, thanks to Ken's loose tongue (= he could not keep the secret).
▪He has a reputation for having a sharp tongue.
▪She could tear a man to pieces in three minutes with her sharp tongue.
VERB + TONGUE▪ poke out, put out, stick out▪It's very rude to stick your tongue out at people.
▪ run▪He ran his tongue nervously over his lips.
▪ click▪ bite, hold (both figurative)▪She was dying to say something sarcastic to him, but bit her tongue and stayed silent.
▪ free, loosen (both figurative)▪The wine had loosened his tongue.
▪ roll off, slip off, trip off▪It's not a name that exactly trips off the tongue (= is easy to say).
TONGUE + VERB▪ hang out▪The dog lay in a patch of shade with its tongue hanging out.
▪ flick, flicker▪The snake's tongue flicked out of its mouth.
▪ lick sth▪His tongue licked dry lips.
▪ wag (figurative)▪This is a small island and tongues are beginning to wag (= people are beginning to gossip).
▪ find (figurative)▪Before she could find her tongue (= speak) the door had closed behind him.
▪ watch (figurative)▪You just watch your tongue (= be careful what you say)!
TONGUE + NOUN▪ piercing▪I had a tongue piercing, an ear piercing, and a nose ring.
PHRASES▪ a slip of the tongue (figurative)▪He said it was a slip of the tongue (= a mistake in speaking) and apologized.
▪ be on the tip of your tongue (figurative)▪It was on the tip of her tongue to refuse.
▪ get your tongue around sth, get your tongue round sth (BrE, figurative)▪He was having trouble getting his tongue around my name.
▪ a tongue of fire, a tongue of flame▪Tongues of flame licked up the walls.
2 a languageADJECTIVE▪ mother, native▪She speaks English, though her native tongue is German.
▪ common▪ foreign▪ strangeVERB + TONGUE▪ speak▪They were speaking a foreign tongue.
PREPOSITION▪ in a/the tongue▪She could hear the men whispering in a foreign tongue.
PHRASES▪ speak in tongues (= to speak in unknown languages, esp. at a religious ceremony)
Collocations dictionary. 2013.
