asking meanings of words

[jinksys]

How would I ask the meaning of a word,
for example...

Pretend I dont know the japanese word えいご.
Can I ask, 「えいご」の語義は何ですか。
(えいご word meaning is what?) is what im trying to ask.

[clay]

If you want to ask "What does ... mean?" all you have to do is say "...は何ですか？" (...wa nan desu ka - what is ...?) or if you want to be more complex, "...はどういう意味ですか？" (...wa dou iu imi desu ka? - what is the meaning of ...?)

[sampaguita]

"What is ___ in Japanese (or any language)?" can also be translated as "____ wa Nihongo de nan desu ka?" I don't think this has the same meaning as "What is the meaning of ___?" but it's really useful when translating.

[AmyRhoo]

or....informally...........英語って何？ eigo tte nani?

[ebear215]

(word) wa eigo de nan desu ka
Is how I learned how to ask the meaning