Present conceptualizations and measures of self-esteem do not account for linguistic self-esteem, an aspect of the self specifically relevant for bilingual students. This study examines the utility of a newly developed measure of linguistic self-esteem. This novel measure is compared with a commonly used self-esteem measure, two standardized language proficiency measures, and student think-aloud interviews to identify the unique contribution of a linguistic dimension of self-esteem for bilinguals. Findings indicate that this linguistic dimension comprises two distinct components, one for each language, and explains variance not previously explained by dimensions contained in an established self-esteem measure. Linguistic self-esteem was not significantly correlated with language proficiency. This study supports the value of this new tool and the validity of a new construct, linguistic self-esteem. (Contains 1 table.)