Absence in Different Languages
Discover 'Absence' in 134 Languages: Dive into Translations, Hear Pronunciations, and Uncover Cultural Insights.
Updated on March 6, 2024
The concept of 'absence' is a powerful and universal one, denoting the state or condition of not being present or not occurring. Its significance transcends cultural and linguistic boundaries, making it a crucial term to understand in any language. Absence can manifest in many forms, such as physical absence, emotional absence, or even abstract concepts like the absence of sound or color. The word has a rich cultural history, with various societies attributing different meanings and interpretations to it. For instance, in some cultures, absence is seen as a form of liberation, while in others, it is viewed as a source of sorrow or longing.
Understanding the translation of 'absence' in different languages can provide valuable insights into how other cultures perceive and express this concept. For example, in Spanish, 'absence' translates to 'ausencia,' while in French, it is 'absence' and in German, 'Abwesenheit.' These translations not only reflect linguistic differences but also cultural nuances and values. By exploring the various translations of 'absence,' we can deepen our appreciation for the richness and diversity of human language and culture.
Absence
Absence in Sub-Saharan African Languages
| Afrikaans | afwesigheid | ||
| "Afwesigheid" can also mean "lack" or "unavailability". | |||
| Amharic | መቅረት | ||
| The word "መቅረት" has its roots in the verb "መቋረጥ" and its meaning includes separation, withdrawal, or being far away, both physically and emotionally. | |||
| Hausa | rashi | ||
| The root of 'rashi' may derive from 'rsh', meaning to shake out and spread or to be wide apart. | |||
| Igbo | enweghị | ||
| The Igbo word "enweghị" also means "nonexistence" or "lack." | |||
| Malagasy | tsy fisian'ny | ||
| "tsy fisian'ny" is composed of "tsy" (a negation prefix), "fisy" (to be present) and "-ana" (a suffix indicating an abstract noun), which literally means "the state of not being present." | |||
| Nyanja (Chichewa) | kusapezeka | ||
| The word "kusapezeka" can also mean "to be lost" or "to be missing". | |||
| Shona | kusavapo | ||
| 'Kusavapo' is related to several other Shona terms containing the 'sav' root, which refer to the notions of losing, missing, leaving or running out. | |||
| Somali | maqnaansho | ||
| "Maqnaansho" can also mean "meaninglessness" or "pointlessness" in Somali. | |||
| Sesotho | bosio | ||
| The word "bosio" can also refer to a person who is not present or a place that is empty. | |||
| Swahili | kutokuwepo | ||
| "Kutokuwepo" also means "to be dead". | |||
| Xhosa | ukungabikho | ||
| As a noun, 'ukungabikho' can also mean 'the state of being absent' or 'non-existence'. | |||
| Yoruba | isansa | ||
| The word 'isansa' in Yoruba can also refer to a state of being lost or bewildered. | |||
| Zulu | ukungabikho | ||
| The word 'ukungabikho' in Zulu also refers to 'an unknown entity or force'. | |||
| Bambara | dayan | ||
| Ewe | aƒetsitsi | ||
| Kinyarwanda | kubura | ||
| Lingala | kozanga koya | ||
| Luganda | okubulawo | ||
| Sepedi | se be gona | ||
| Twi (Akan) | nni hɔ | ||
Absence in North African & Middle Eastern Languages
| Arabic | غياب | ||
| غياب may also refer to a period when a person is not present, such as during a vacation or leave of absence. | |||
| Hebrew | הֶעְדֵר | ||
| The word "הֶעְדֵר" is the opposite of "יְהִי" which means "to make present". | |||
| Pashto | نشتوالی | ||
| "نشتوالی" also refers to an object or situation that is no more. | |||
| Arabic | غياب | ||
| غياب may also refer to a period when a person is not present, such as during a vacation or leave of absence. | |||
Absence in Western European Languages
| Albanian | mungesa | ||
| The word "mungesa" in Albanian is derived from the Proto-Albanian word *mungā, meaning "lack" or "privation". | |||
| Basque | absentzia | ||
| The term originates in Latin, in the phrase «ab esse», which literally means «away from being». | |||
| Catalan | absència | ||
| In Catalan, "absència" can also refer to a leave of absence or a holiday. | |||
| Croatian | odsutnost | ||
| The Slavic root of 'odsutnost' (отъ/ot- and сѫ/sǫ-) can also be seen in the words 'otustvo' (leave, break) and 'ostati' (stay). | |||
| Danish | fravær | ||
| Fravær originates in the Old Danish word 'fraværi', which means 'to stay away', and is related to the verb 'at være', meaning 'to be'. | |||
| Dutch | afwezigheid | ||
| The word "afwezigheid" has no alternate meanings in Dutch. | |||
| English | absence | ||
| French «absence», from Late Latin «absentia», from «ab» meaning «away from» and «esse» meaning «to be». | |||
| French | absence | ||
| In French, "absence" not only means "not being present" but also "lack of something", like a sense or quality. | |||
| Frisian | ôfwêzigens | ||
| The West Frisian word 'ôfwêzigens' is derived from the Dutch word 'afwezigheid', which also means absence. | |||
| Galician | ausencia | ||
| The word "ausencia" derives from the Latin "absentia", meaning "being away" or "not present". | |||
| German | abwesenheit | ||
| The word "Abwesenheit" is derived from Middle High German "abwesen," which itself is composed of the prefix "ab-" (meaning "away") and the root "wesen" (meaning "being"). | |||
| Icelandic | fjarvera | ||
| 'Fjarvera' stems from the Old Norse 'fjar' (far) and 'vera' (to be) and also refers to the state of being absent or far from one's usual abode. | |||
| Irish | neamhláithreacht | ||
| Italian | assenza | ||
| "Assenza" derives from the Latin "ab-esse", meaning "to be away". In Italian, "assenza" can also refer to a legal exemption or a leave of absence. | |||
| Luxembourgish | absence | ||
| "Absence" in Luxembourgish, also commonly known as "Ofwesenheit" in German, denotes the state of being absent or away from a particular place or situation. | |||
| Maltese | nuqqas | ||
| The term "nuqqas" also denotes a state of deficiency or a lack of something essential | |||
| Norwegian | fravær | ||
| The term “fravær” in Norwegian holds a dual nature, encompassing its root “frà”, denoting “from”, while simultaneously containing “vàr”, meaning “being | |||
| Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) | ausência | ||
| The word "ausência" derives from Latin "absentia," and also denotes a sense of loneliness in the absence of something. | |||
| Scots Gaelic | neo-làthaireachd | ||
| The word "neo-làthaireachd" can also refer to a period of time when someone or something is not present. | |||
| Spanish | ausencia | ||
| El término español "ausencia" deriva del latín "ab" y "esse", que significa estar lejos o no estar presente. | |||
| Swedish | frånvaro | ||
| The word "frånvaro" is derived from the old Swedish word "frånva", meaning "away from" or "removed from". | |||
| Welsh | absenoldeb | ||
| The word 'absenoldeb' can also mean 'lack of spirit' or 'fainting' in Welsh. | |||
Absence in Eastern European Languages
| Belarusian | адсутнасць | ||
| Bosnian | odsustvo | ||
| The word "odsustvo" also means "leave" (from work or school). | |||
| Bulgarian | отсъствие | ||
| The word "отсъствие" also has the meaning "lack", as in the phrase "отсъствие на интерес" (lack of interest). | |||
| Czech | absence | ||
| In Czech, “absence” can also refer to a mental state or a person who is missing or out of place. | |||
| Estonian | puudumine | ||
| In Estonian, the word "puudumine" also refers to a person who is mentally absent or unaware of their surroundings. | |||
| Finnish | poissaolo | ||
| "Poissaolo" is a compound word derived from the word "poissa" (away, absent) and the suffix "-olo" (state, condition). | |||
| Hungarian | hiány | ||
| "Hiány" is also used in Hungarian to denote a deficiency or lack of something. | |||
| Latvian | prombūtne | ||
| The word "prombūtne" is derived from the verb "prombt" and it also means "gap". | |||
| Lithuanian | nebuvimas | ||
| The Lithuanian word "nebuvimas" is derived from the Proto-Indo-European root *ne-bhew-, meaning "not to be". | |||
| Macedonian | отсуство | ||
| The Macedonian word "отсуство" is derived from the Proto-Slavic word "*ǫtьsǫ" meaning "to be away" or "to be absent". | |||
| Polish | brak | ||
| Polish "brak" is cognate with Slovak "brak" meaning "marriage" and Czech "brak" which means "wedding". | |||
| Romanian | absenta | ||
| In Romanian, the word "absenta" also means "forgiveness" or "indulgence granted for a sin or offense" | |||
| Russian | отсутствие | ||
| The Russian word "отсутствие" can also refer to a "deficit" or a "lack" of something. | |||
| Serbian | одсуство | ||
| The word "одсуство" in Serbian can also refer to "leave" or "vacation". | |||
| Slovak | neprítomnosť | ||
| "Neprítomnosť" comes from a combination of the prefix "ne-" (meaning "not") and the verb "prítomny" (meaning "present"). The word can also refer to "unconsciousness" or "lack of attention." | |||
| Slovenian | odsotnost | ||
| "Odsotnost" is derived from the Proto-Slavic root "*sut-", also present in the word "soditi" (to judge). | |||
| Ukrainian | відсутність | ||
| The word "відсутність" in Ukrainian can also refer to the lack of something or a gap. | |||
Absence in South Asian Languages
| Bengali | অনুপস্থিতি | ||
| The word অনুপস্থিতি (onupsthiti) in Bengali comes from the Sanskrit অনু + উপস্থিতি (anu + uposthiti), meaning 'not' + 'presence'. | |||
| Gujarati | ગેરહાજરી | ||
| The word "ગેરહાજરી" in Gujarati comes from the Sanskrit word "गैर-हाजिरी" (gair-hajri), meaning "not being present". It can also be used to describe a person's lack of punctuality or reliability. | |||
| Hindi | अभाव | ||
| "अभाव" means not only "absence", but also "deficiency", "lack", "scarcity", or "want" | |||
| Kannada | ಅನುಪಸ್ಥಿತಿ | ||
| The word 'ಅನುಪಸ್ಥಿತಿ' is derived from a combination of the Sanskrit words 'anu' (after) and 'upasthi' (present) and denotes the state of being not present or away from something in Kannada. | |||
| Malayalam | അഭാവം | ||
| The word "അഭാവം" also means "lack" or "deficiency" in Malayalam. | |||
| Marathi | अनुपस्थिती | ||
| The word 'Anupasthiti' in Marathi comes from the Sanskrit word 'Anupasthita,' meaning 'not present' or 'unavailable'. | |||
| Nepali | अनुपस्थिति | ||
| The word "अनुपस्थिति" can also mean "inattention" or "negligence". | |||
| Punjabi | ਗੈਰਹਾਜ਼ਰੀ | ||
| Sinhala (Sinhalese) | නොමැති වීම | ||
| Tamil | இல்லாதது | ||
| In Tamil, 'இல்லாதது' can also mean 'not existing' or 'nonexistent'. | |||
| Telugu | లేకపోవడం | ||
| "లేకపోవడం" also means the lack of a person who was expected to come. | |||
| Urdu | عدم موجودگی | ||
| The alternate Urdu sense of 'عدم موجودگی' is that in which it signifies the absence of all qualities (except unity) from existence. | |||
Absence in East Asian Languages
| Chinese (Simplified) | 缺席 | ||
| 缺席 is composed of the characters 缺 (lack) and 席 (seat), and can also mean "empty seat". | |||
| Chinese (Traditional) | 缺席 | ||
| 缺席 is formed from 缺 (lack) and 席 (mat); a person without a mat to sit on at a meeting is one who is absent. | |||
| Japanese | 不在 | ||
| The term 不在 comes from Chinese, where its characters mean not (不) and to exist (在). | |||
| Korean | 부재 | ||
| 부재, 부족함, 죽음을 의미하는 고어사 '부'에서 파생되었습니다. | |||
| Mongolian | байхгүй байх | ||
| The word "байхгүй байх" can also refer to "not having something" or "being without something". | |||
| Myanmar (Burmese) | မရှိခြင်း | ||
Absence in South East Asian Languages
| Indonesian | ketiadaan | ||
| The word 'ketiadaan' (absence) in Indonesian is derived from the root word 'ada' (to be), which also means 'presence'. | |||
| Javanese | ora ana | ||
| The word 'ora ana' also means 'not present', 'not available', 'not there', or 'nowhere to be found' in Javanese. | |||
| Khmer | អវត្តមាន | ||
| Lao | ການຂາດ | ||
| The word ການຂາດ is also used in the sense of lacking or missing something. | |||
| Malay | ketiadaan | ||
| In the context of Malay folk medicine, "ketiadaan" refers to a particular type of herbal remedy used to treat wounds and other ailments. | |||
| Thai | ขาด | ||
| The word "ขาด" can also mean "lack" or "be missing". | |||
| Vietnamese | vắng mặt | ||
| Vắng mặt in Vietnamese can also refer to a "void", "vacancy" or "emptiness". | |||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | kawalan | ||
Absence in Central Asian Languages
| Azerbaijani | yoxluq | ||
| In Old Turkic, the word yoxluq meant "lack, poverty, destitution". | |||
| Kazakh | болмауы | ||
| The Kazakh word "болмауы" is derived from the verb "болмау", which means "to be not" or "to be absent". | |||
| Kyrgyz | жокчулук | ||
| In Kyrgyz, the word "жокчулук" can also mean a "lack of something", "deprivation", or "a void". | |||
| Tajik | набудани | ||
| The Tajik word "набудани" is derived from the Persian word "nabodan," which means "not to be" or "nonexistence." | |||
| Turkmen | ýoklugy | ||
| Uzbek | yo'qlik | ||
| "Yo'qlik" is also known as "butun" in Uzbek, with "butun" being a noun that can mean both "absense" and "void." | |||
| Uyghur | يوق | ||
Absence in Pacific Languages
| Hawaiian | kaawale | ||
| The term 'kaawale' can also refer to a void or gap. | |||
| Maori | ngaro | ||
| The word "ngaro" in Maori can also mean "concealment" or "disappearance." | |||
| Samoan | toesea | ||
| Samoan 'toesea', 'absence' or 'nothing', is related to its synonym 'toe', meaning 'gone'. | |||
| Tagalog (Filipino) | kawalan | ||
| Kawalan's root word 'kawala' also means 'freed' or 'escaped'. | |||
Absence in American Indigenous Languages
| Aymara | jan ukankaña | ||
| Guarani | pore'ỹ | ||
Absence in International Languages
| Esperanto | foresto | ||
| The Esperanto word "foresto" is derived from the Latin "fores" (out of doors) through the French "forêt" (forest). | |||
| Latin | absentia, | ||
| In Latin, "absentia" is derived from the prefix "ab-" (away) and the verb "esse" (to be), implying a state of being away or not present. | |||
Absence in Others Languages
| Greek | απουσία | ||
| The word "απουσία" comes from the ancient Greek word "απόντες", which originally meant "away, absent" but eventually came to mean "absence" itself. | |||
| Hmong | qhaj ntawv | ||
| The word "qhaj ntawv" in Hmong has additional meanings such as "lacking" or "devoid of". | |||
| Kurdish | neamadeyî | ||
| "Neamadeyî" can also mean "lack" or "deficiency" in Kurdish. | |||
| Turkish | yokluk | ||
| The word “yokluk” in Turkish can also refer to poverty, destitution, or scarcity. | |||
| Xhosa | ukungabikho | ||
| As a noun, 'ukungabikho' can also mean 'the state of being absent' or 'non-existence'. | |||
| Yiddish | אַוועק | ||
| The word אַוועק is also used to indicate "far away" or "gone," as in: אַוועק צום שכן ("off to the neighbor's"). | |||
| Zulu | ukungabikho | ||
| The word 'ukungabikho' in Zulu also refers to 'an unknown entity or force'. | |||
| Assamese | অনুপস্থিতি | ||
| Aymara | jan ukankaña | ||
| Bhojpuri | गैरमौजूदगी | ||
| Dhivehi | ޣައިރު ޙާޒިރު | ||
| Dogri | गैर-हाजरी | ||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | kawalan | ||
| Guarani | pore'ỹ | ||
| Ilocano | kinaawan | ||
| Krio | nɔ de | ||
| Kurdish (Sorani) | نەبوون | ||
| Maithili | अनुपस्थिति | ||
| Meiteilon (Manipuri) | ꯌꯥꯎꯗꯕ | ||
| Mizo | awm lohna | ||
| Oromo | hafuu | ||
| Odia (Oriya) | ଅନୁପସ୍ଥିତି | ||
| Quechua | illay | ||
| Sanskrit | उनुपास्थिति | ||
| Tatar | юклык | ||
| Tigrinya | ምትራፍ | ||
| Tsonga | xwa | ||