tongue

The soft part inside your mouth that helps you taste, speak, and swallow.

• My tongue feels sore.
• She burned her tongue on the hot soup.
• The doctor asked me to stick out my tongue.

Common phrases: stick your tongue, bite your tongue, tip of tongue

A language, especially the one someone learned as a child.

• English is her mother tongue.
• They spoke to each other in their native tongue.
• He could read several ancient tongues.

Similar words: language

Common phrases: native tongue, mother tongue, foreign tongue

The mouth part of an animal, especially a cow, prepared and eaten as meat.

• We had tongue for lunch.
• She served cold tongue with mustard.
• The butcher sells beef tongue on Fridays.

Common phrases: beef tongue, cold tongue, sliced tongue

The piece of material under the laces of a shoe, covering the top of your foot.

• The shoe’s tongue slipped sideways.
• These boots have thick, padded tongues.
• Straighten the tongue before you tie your laces.

Similar words: flap

Common phrases: shoe tongue, padded tongue, leather tongue

To extend into another area in long, narrow shapes.

• The soil layer tongues into clay.
• A thin deposit tongued into the surrounding rock.
• Several sandy layers tongue through the darker soil.

How to use it: tongue into something (The sandy layer tongues into the clay beneath it.)

Similar words: extend, project

Common phrases: tongue into something, tongue through something

To join pieces of wood using a narrow raised edge that fits into a matching cut.

• The carpenter tongued the boards together.
• We need to tongue these floorboards before fitting them.
• She carefully tongued the edges to make a firm joint.

Common phrases: tongue boards together, tongue the edges