What linguistic term means switching between two or more languages in a conversation?

The story behind the answer

What linguistic term means switching between two or more languages in a conversation? Code-switching.

Code-switching is the act of shifting between languages or other linguistic varieties during communication. A speaker may switch between sentences, clauses, phrases, words, or even morphemes. The change can be planned or spontaneous and does not necessarily indicate confusion or weak command of either language.

Bilingual and multilingual speakers often code-switch to match a listener, express identity, mark solidarity, quote someone, signal emotion, or fit a particular setting. A Spanish-English speaker might use one language at home and shift to the other at work, or alternate within a single conversation when a particular expression feels more natural.

Code-switching is not the same as a loanword or calque. A loanword becomes part of another language’s vocabulary, while a calque translates an expression piece by piece. Diglossia describes a community’s use of different varieties for different social functions; it is not simply the act of switching during conversation. Linguists sometimes use “code-mixing” differently, so terminology can overlap.

Source: Wikipedia · fact-checked Sept. 2026

Add question to a list

Choose a list to keep this question in: