two-tongued

English

Etymology

From Middle English two-tounged, two tungyd, equivalent to two +‎ tongued. Compare twi-tongued.

Adjective

two-tongued (not comparable)

1. Having two tongues; double-tongued.
2. (by extension) Deceitful; lying; two-faced.
3. (rare) Possessing the ability to speak two languages; synonym of bilingual.
   • 1963, Ralph Maud, Entrances to Dylan Thomas' poetry:

     Thomas had used "the bilingual sea" in "Quite Early One Morning" (1945), so that "two-tongued" was a product of a natural piece of wordplay.

   • 2006, Sherry Simon, Translating Montreal: Episodes in the Life of a Divided City:

     It is through the voice-over (fully bilingual, because, as the narrator announces, this will be an “f...ing Canadian film”) that the narrator demonstrates both the positive and the negative aspects of the two-tongued individual.