Fremdsprachlicher

Fremdsprachlicher is a German adjective meaning “foreign-language” and is the attributive form used before nouns to indicate a relation to a language other than the one being referred to. It derives from the combination of fremd (foreign) and sprachlich (linguistic). The form changes with gender, number, and case, for example: der fremdsprachliche Unterricht (masculine nominative), die fremdsprachliche Kompetenz (feminine nominative), die fremdsprachlichen Texte (plural).

In typical usage, fremdsprachlicher describes things connected with foreign languages, such as education, texts, skills, and media. Common collocations include fremdsprachlicher Unterricht, fremdsprachliche Kompetenzen, fremdsprachliche Texte, and fremdsprachliche Fähigkeiten. The term is predominantly employed attributively, preceding the noun; predicative use is possible but less common and may sound somewhat formal or technical.

The concept plays a central role in education and linguistics, where it denotes activities, materials, and goals related to teaching or using foreign languages. It is frequently contrasted with terms like fremdsprachig (often describing a language’s character or a person’s abilities in general) and mit Blick auf Mehrsprachigkeit (multilingualism), which relates to the broader context of using more than one language.

In translation and multilingual discourse, fremdsprachlicher language-analytic framing helps specify content or methods focused on foreign-language knowledge, such as fremdsprachlicher Unterrichtsplan or fremdsprachliche Texte in Lehrmaterialien. The term thus functions as a precise label within German-language discussions of language teaching, learning, and cross-cultural communication.