One language per parent?

Question

Hi, in “Et puis, mes parents m'ont toujours mis une certaine pression pour que je sache parler leurs langues respectives parfaitement.” I was expecting to see “leur langue respective” as each parent has only one native language. Could you say a few words about why this is not the case here please? Thanks, Brian

Cécile Janty-Davies · Accepted Answer

Bonjour Brian, 
This question has been asked many times and please look at the following as it uses the possessive adjective 'leurs' too.
https://french.kwiziq.com/questions/view/plural-or-singular-leurs
 
In this case, it depends on whether you mean each respective language or both languages, and I would argue that the singular or plural would be acceptable.
Other users' comments welcome!

Brian Earl · Answer

It’s worth noting that the text states “respective”, if that helps.