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This is from an exercise in Tobira Grammar Power, you had to explain what
'bilingual' is using the というのは~ということ/という意味だ.

I wrote「バイリンガル」というのは、言葉が2つ話せるといういみです。, But in the answer key it says
_2つの言葉が話せる_. Obviously the answer key is right, however I vaguely remember
seeing Nが[number]つV a long time ago, and it being as correct as the
[number]つのNがV structure.

I'm not sure though, so is 「バイリンガル」というのは、言葉が2つ話せるといういみです。incorrect? If it
isn't, does it sound unnatural compared to 「バイリンガル」というのは、2つの言葉が話せるといういみです。?
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2021-11-03T21:39:58.463
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question
grammar word-choice
Is 言葉が2つ話せる unnatural/incorrect?
Both 2つの言葉が話せる and 言葉が2つ話せる are perfectly correct. 2つの言葉が話せる tends to sound
slightly more technical, but it's natural to use some stiff expressions when
talking about the definition of a word. This has been asked several times on
this site.

  * [How to list numbers of things](https://japanese.stackexchange.com/q/17816/5010)
  * [Questions about counters](https://japanese.stackexchange.com/q/36890/5010)
  * [Positioning of quantities (using counters)](https://japanese.stackexchange.com/q/8136/5010)

And it's perfectly fine to use 言葉 here, too, because it means both _language_
and _word_. If you want to avoid all misunderstandings, you can use 言語
instead, but usually you don't have to worry that much. 2か国語が話せる is also
correct (one may argue "two languages" and "languages of two countries" are
not necessarily the same, but this is a fixed phrase and there is no room for
misunderstanding).
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2021-11-03T23:34:27.670
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answer