The concept of multiliteracies was developed by the New London Group (NLG) who sought to bring attention to ‘the multiplicity of communications channels and media, and the increasing saliency of cultural and linguistic diversity’ which they call on formal education to accommodate (New London Group et al. Harv Educ Rev 66(1):60–92, 1996, p. 63). Although it began as a pedagogy for general education rather than language education in particular, it shares a strong affinity to the field as connected to sociolinguistics, socio-semiotics, and discourse studies. For language education, the expanded notion of meaning making as design has been especially fruitful. With its focus on multiple social contexts, multiple modalities, and multiple textualities, multiliteracies is an inherently inclusive paradigm. It has resonated strongly with concerns towards the digital transformation of language education and aims to empower teachers and learners to not simply replicate established meanings, but to reflect the diverse experiences, voices, and identities that they can bring to learning. Recently, the potential of multiliteracies for fostering digital and multimodal competencies has been widely acknowledged, as it emphasises integrating diverse modes of communication, including visual, audio, and interactive elements, into the learning process.