epilanguages

Noun

epilanguage (countable and uncountable, plural epilanguages)

1. A second language used regularly for some purpose or purposes (such as for scholarship and scientific research).
   • Somewhere between archiphonemes/archisemes and metalanguages, which could be considered semi-synonyms, the "epilanguages" are the linguistic realities and results generated by the use of a second language for scholarly and scientific purposes.2006 Pascale Hummel, "Epilanguages: Beyond Idioms and Languages," Call for Participation, 10 May 2006.
2. A more subconscious, self-imposed, form of metalanguage, determining the form in which a message will be uttered.
   • Gombert begins the volume by presenting evidence that in addition to explicit teaching of basic decoding skills, metalinguistic knowledge or epilanguage that children bring into reading is also important.2003, R. Malatesha Joshi et al., Literacy Acquisition: The Role of Phonology, Morphology and Orthography, IOS Press, published 2003, page v