Words of Positivity
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Quadrilingual

adj.capable, thoughtfulformal

What it means

Able to use four languages, or presented in four languages.

Reach for it when highlighting exactly four languages rather than broad multilingualism

The quadrilingual guide welcomed visitors in Romanian, English, German, and Hungarian.

Choose between these

5
  • everyday

    four-language

    a document has four parallel versions

    not when Four-language rarely describes personal fluency.

  • professional

    multilingual

    the exact number of languages is unimportant

    not when Multilingual does not specify four.

  • formal

    linguistically versatile

    flexible language use deserves emphasis

    not when Versatility may involve fewer than four languages.

  • formal

    tetralingual

    a technical synonym fits the audience

    not when Tetralingual is rarer and may distract.

  • literary

    polyglot

    a person's command of several languages is praised

    not when Polyglot leaves both number and proficiency open.

Said against

3
  • monolingual
  • untranslated
  • linguistically limited

It naturally appears in

3
  • quadrilingual edition

    The quadrilingual edition places each translation on facing pages.

  • quadrilingual speaker

    A quadrilingual speaker greeted every delegation personally.

  • quadrilingual signage

    Quadrilingual signage made the station easier to navigate.

Where this comes from

The definition and the example on this page are written here. The dictionaries above ground which meaning is being described, not the wording.