Ago in Different Languages
Discover 'Ago' in 134 Languages: Dive into Translations, Hear Pronunciations, and Uncover Cultural Insights.
Updated on March 6, 2024
The word 'ago' is a small but powerful term that helps us understand the concept of time and its passage. It holds great significance in our daily conversations and written communications as it allows us to express when an event occurred in relation to the present moment.
The word 'ago' has also made its mark in various cultures and languages around the world. Its translation can provide insight into how different cultures perceive and express time. For instance, in Spanish, 'ago' is translated as 'hace' while in French, it is 'il y a'.
Moreover, understanding the translation of 'ago' in different languages can be useful in a variety of situations. Whether you're traveling, studying a new language, or simply looking to expand your cultural knowledge, knowing the equivalent term in other languages can be a valuable tool.
So, without further ado, here are some translations of the word 'ago' in different languages, from the commonly spoken to the more obscure.
Ago
Ago in Sub-Saharan African Languages
| Afrikaans | gelede | ||
| The Afrikaans word "gelede" can also mean "layer" or "strata". | |||
| Amharic | በፊት | ||
| The word "በፊት" can also mean "before" or "in front of". | |||
| Hausa | da suka wuce | ||
| The Hausa word "da suka wuce" can trace its roots back to the phrase "da ya wuce" meaning "the day that passed". | |||
| Igbo | gara aga | ||
| The term 'gara aga' in Igbo is also used to refer to a distant unspecified time in the past. | |||
| Malagasy | lasa izay | ||
| The word "lasa izay" can also mean "already" or "before" in Malagasy. | |||
| Nyanja (Chichewa) | zapitazo | ||
| The word "zapitazo" can also refer to a sudden or unexpected event, such as a sudden change in weather or a sudden influx of people. | |||
| Shona | apfuura | ||
| "Apfuura" is derived from the Shona verb "kupfuura" (to pass) and refers to a time that has passed. | |||
| Somali | hore | ||
| The word "hore" also means "past" or "formerly" and is related to the Arabic word "har" | |||
| Sesotho | fetileng | ||
| Fetileng can also mean 'recently' and is used to describe past events that are still relevant to the present. | |||
| Swahili | iliyopita | ||
| The word "iliyopita" in Swahili can also mean "the past" or "a previous time". | |||
| Xhosa | eyadlulayo | ||
| Xhosa "eyadlulayo" is cognate to the Zulu and Swati words for yesterday. | |||
| Yoruba | sẹyin | ||
| "Sẹyin" (ago) can also mean "in the future" or "sometime in the past," depending on context. | |||
| Zulu | edlule | ||
| The Zulu word "edlule" can also refer to a time period, such as a month or a year. | |||
| Bambara | a bɛ wagati bɔ | ||
| Ewe | si va yi | ||
| Kinyarwanda | kera | ||
| Lingala | eleki | ||
| Luganda | edda | ||
| Sepedi | fetilego | ||
| Twi (Akan) | atwam | ||
Ago in North African & Middle Eastern Languages
| Arabic | منذ | ||
| The Arabic word "منذ" "mndh" can mean "ever since", "from", and "during or since"" | |||
| Hebrew | לִפנֵי | ||
| "לִפנֵי" (lifnei) is cognate with the Akkadian word *lepnu* meaning "before". | |||
| Pashto | مخکې | ||
| The Pashto word "مخکې" also signifies preceding events without temporal relation. | |||
| Arabic | منذ | ||
| The Arabic word "منذ" "mndh" can mean "ever since", "from", and "during or since"" | |||
Ago in Western European Languages
| Albanian | më parë | ||
| The Albanian word "më parë" also means "before" and "previously". | |||
| Basque | duela | ||
| The Basque word "duela" can also refer to the time "before" or "previously" | |||
| Catalan | fa | ||
| The word "fa", meaning "ago", derives from the Latin word "facere," which means "to do" or "to make." | |||
| Croatian | prije | ||
| Prije originally meant 'in earlier times', and derived from 'prěti' meaning 'to cross' (a point in time). | |||
| Danish | siden | ||
| The Danish word "siden" can also mean "since" in English. | |||
| Dutch | geleden | ||
| "Geleden" originally meant "gone by" or "passed away". | |||
| English | ago | ||
| The word 'ago' originates from the Old English word 'āgān', meaning 'gone by' or 'past'. | |||
| French | depuis | ||
| The French word "depuis" comes from the Latin preposition "de post", meaning "from behind" or "after". It has since been used to express a point in time in the past. | |||
| Frisian | lyn | ||
| It is cognate with the English word "since" and the German word "längst". | |||
| Galician | hai | ||
| Its alternate form in Portuguese is still used in some Galician varieties, while the Castilian term "hace" appears in some fixed phrases. | |||
| German | vor | ||
| The word "vor" can also mean "in front of" or "before" in terms of location or time. | |||
| Icelandic | síðan | ||
| "Síðan" derives from the verb "síða" meaning "to filter" or "to strain", as time can be perceived as a filtering process. | |||
| Irish | ó shin | ||
| The Irish word 'ó shin' ('ago') is derived from the Old Irish phrase 'ó sin' ('from now') and can also refer to 'a while back' or 'recently'. | |||
| Italian | fa | ||
| The word "fa" in Italian derives from the Latin expression "facere habeo," meaning "I have to do" and has also been used in the past to mean "time ago." | |||
| Luxembourgish | virun | ||
| "Virun" is derived from the Old High German "furan", meaning "before", and also has the alternate meaning of "in front of" in Luxembourgish. | |||
| Maltese | ilu | ||
| "Ilu" also means "formerly" in Maltese. | |||
| Norwegian | siden | ||
| The word "siden" can also mean "on the side" or "since then". | |||
| Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) | atrás | ||
| The Portuguese word "atrás" also means "behind" or "in the back". | |||
| Scots Gaelic | air ais | ||
| The word "air ais" can also mean "at a distance" or "afar off" in Scots Gaelic. | |||
| Spanish | hace | ||
| The term 'hace', translating to 'ago', derives from Latin 'facere' (to make or do) via old Spanish 'faze'. | |||
| Swedish | sedan | ||
| The Swedish word "sedan" can also mean "since" or "later". | |||
| Welsh | yn ôl | ||
| The Welsh word 'yn ôl' can also mean 'back' or 'behind' in a spatial sense. | |||
Ago in Eastern European Languages
| Belarusian | таму | ||
| The Belarusian word "таму" can also mean "there" and is related to the Russian word "там". | |||
| Bosnian | prije | ||
| Bosnian "prije" comes from a Proto-Slavic root and is cognate with the words "pry" in English, "pryč" in Czech and "pre" in Italian. | |||
| Bulgarian | преди | ||
| The word "преди" can also mean "before" or "in front of" in Bulgarian. | |||
| Czech | před | ||
| The word "před" also means "in front" or "before" in a spatial sense. | |||
| Estonian | tagasi | ||
| The phrase 'taga ajada' (literally, 'drive behind'), also uses 'taga' to mean 'behind' in a time frame. | |||
| Finnish | sitten | ||
| Sitten on useita merkityksiä, esimerkiksi 'sijainti' tai 'tapa'. | |||
| Hungarian | ezelőtt | ||
| The word "ezelőtt" also means "previously" or "before" in Hungarian. | |||
| Latvian | pirms | ||
| "Pirms" is also a form of "prim", meaning "first" or "primary", related to Latin "primus" (first). | |||
| Lithuanian | prieš | ||
| The Lithuanian word "prieš" also means "in front of" or "before". | |||
| Macedonian | пред | ||
| The word "пред" in Macedonian can also be used to mean "in front of" or "in the presence of." | |||
| Polish | temu | ||
| The word "temu" can also mean "in the past" or "in times gone by". | |||
| Romanian | în urmă | ||
| Literal translation of "în urmă" is "in back" or "in the back", which is a very descriptive way of talking about the past since it positions it as behind us. | |||
| Russian | тому назад | ||
| "Тому назад" (ago) is an archaic Russian expression that literally means "that way back" when translated word-for-word. Nowadays, however, it usually carries the meaning of "some time ago". | |||
| Serbian | пре | ||
| The Serbian word "пре" is derived from the Proto-Slavic preposition *per, meaning "over" or "through." | |||
| Slovak | pred | ||
| The word "pred" can also mean "before" or "in front of". | |||
| Slovenian | nazaj | ||
| The word 'nazaj' is also used to describe the location 'behind' something in Slovenian. | |||
| Ukrainian | тому | ||
| The Ukrainian word тому, meaning "ago," also means "therefore" in other Slavic languages. | |||
Ago in South Asian Languages
| Bengali | আগে | ||
| The Bengali word "আগে" can also refer to "front", "forehead", or "before". | |||
| Gujarati | પહેલાં | ||
| The Gujarati word "પહેલાં" can also mean "previously" or "at first". | |||
| Hindi | पूर्व | ||
| The word "पूर्व" can also mean "east" or "former" in Hindi. | |||
| Kannada | ಹಿಂದೆ | ||
| The word 'ಹಿಂದೆ' also means 'back' or 'behind', and it can refer to a point in time or to a physical location. | |||
| Malayalam | മുമ്പ് | ||
| The Malayalam word "മുമ്പ്" can also refer to "formerly," "previously" or "before" in addition to expressing time lapsed in the past. | |||
| Marathi | पूर्वी | ||
| The Marathi word "पूर्वी" meaning "ago" originates from Sanskrit "पूर्व" meaning "earlier" or "eastward". | |||
| Nepali | पहिले | ||
| Nepali word "पहिले" also denotes ancient times | |||
| Punjabi | ਪਹਿਲਾਂ | ||
| Sinhala (Sinhalese) | පෙර | ||
| The word "පෙර" can also mean "before" or "in the past". | |||
| Tamil | முன்பு | ||
| The Tamil word "முன்பு" can also mean "before" or "previously". | |||
| Telugu | క్రితం | ||
| Telugu word "క్రితం" means "ago" in English and "a short time passed" in Kannada. | |||
| Urdu | پہلے | ||
| The Urdu word "پہلے" is cognate to the Sanskrit word "prathamay", which also means "first" or "in the first place." | |||
Ago in East Asian Languages
| Chinese (Simplified) | 前 | ||
| 前 can also mean 'in front of', 'anterior', 'previous', 'former', or 'front' in Chinese. | |||
| Chinese (Traditional) | 前 | ||
| 前 can also mean 'front' or 'fore-' in the sense of 'in front of' or 'before' something else. | |||
| Japanese | 前 | ||
| "前" (zen) also means "front" in Japanese, reflecting the idea that time flows forward. | |||
| Korean | ...전에 | ||
| The word "전에" can also mean "before" or "in the past". | |||
| Mongolian | өмнө | ||
| Өмнө, meaning 'the south/the front,' is cognate with Turkic *ön 'front, before,' and Hungarian én 'self.' | |||
| Myanmar (Burmese) | လွန်ခဲ့သော | ||
Ago in South East Asian Languages
| Indonesian | lalu | ||
| In addition to meaning "ago," "lalu" also means "passed by," "elapsed," or "gone by." | |||
| Javanese | kepungkur | ||
| In Javanese, the word "kepungkur" has the same root as "pungkur" (back), indicating a connection between time and spatial orientation. | |||
| Khmer | មុន | ||
| មុន has roots in Old Khmer and Mon, and originally meant "yesterday"/"first". | |||
| Lao | ກ່ອນຫນ້ານີ້ | ||
| "ກ່ອນຫນ້ານີ້" is similar to the English phrase "before this" in terms of meaning and usage, but it can also be used in a more general sense to refer to the past, similar to the English word "ago." | |||
| Malay | yang lalu | ||
| The word "yang lalu" in Malay combines the definite article "yang" with the verb "lalu" meaning "pass". It can also refer to the past or to a previous event. | |||
| Thai | ที่ผ่านมา | ||
| The Thai word ที่ผ่านมา can also mean "past" or "previously." | |||
| Vietnamese | trước đây | ||
| "Trước đây" is a set phrase that literally means "in front of this". | |||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | kanina | ||
Ago in Central Asian Languages
| Azerbaijani | əvvəl | ||
| Əvvəl is historically related to the Persian word | |||
| Kazakh | бұрын | ||
| The word "бұрын" can also mean "previously" or "former". | |||
| Kyrgyz | мурун | ||
| The Kyrgyz word "мурун" also signifies the front part or top tip of an animal | |||
| Tajik | пеш | ||
| "Пеш" (ago) in Tajik can also refer to "foot" or "step". | |||
| Turkmen | ozal | ||
| Uzbek | oldin | ||
| "Oldin" in Uzbek literally means "before" and can also refer to a specific time period in the past. | |||
| Uyghur | ago | ||
Ago in Pacific Languages
| Hawaiian | i hala aku nei | ||
| The word 'i hala aku nei' literally means 'passed over the trail' in Hawaiian. | |||
| Maori | i mua | ||
| The word "i mua" comes from the Maori word "mu" meaning "before", and is also used to describe a position in front of or ahead of something in space or time. | |||
| Samoan | talu ai | ||
| This expression can also be used to reference an action that will happen very soon. | |||
| Tagalog (Filipino) | nakaraan | ||
| "Nakaraan" originally meant "past events" or "history" in Tagalog. | |||
Ago in American Indigenous Languages
| Aymara | qhipa | ||
| Guarani | kupe | ||
Ago in International Languages
| Esperanto | antaŭ | ||
| Etymology: from Slavic "prědъ", "pred" (before) or "odъ" "ot" (from). | |||
| Latin | ante | ||
| In Classical Latin, "ante" can also mean "before" in space and time, or "in front of". | |||
Ago in Others Languages
| Greek | πριν | ||
| The word "πριν" can also mean "before" or "in front of". | |||
| Hmong | dhau los | ||
| The Hmong word "dhau los" ("ago") is likely derived from the Chinese word "dào liǎo" ("arrived"). | |||
| Kurdish | pêşî | ||
| The word "pêşî" in Kurdish also means "front" or "beginning". | |||
| Turkish | önce | ||
| "Önce" can mean "first" as an adverb, as in "önce yap bunu" (do this first). | |||
| Xhosa | eyadlulayo | ||
| Xhosa "eyadlulayo" is cognate to the Zulu and Swati words for yesterday. | |||
| Yiddish | צוריק | ||
| The Yiddish word "צוריק" "tsurik" is likely borrowed from the German word "zurück" "back", but its meaning is more extended than the German word and more akin to the English word "ago". | |||
| Zulu | edlule | ||
| The Zulu word "edlule" can also refer to a time period, such as a month or a year. | |||
| Assamese | আগতে | ||
| Aymara | qhipa | ||
| Bhojpuri | पहिले | ||
| Dhivehi | ކުރިން | ||
| Dogri | पैहलें | ||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | kanina | ||
| Guarani | kupe | ||
| Ilocano | idi | ||
| Krio | trade | ||
| Kurdish (Sorani) | لەمەوبەر | ||
| Maithili | पहिने | ||
| Meiteilon (Manipuri) | ꯃꯃꯥꯡꯗ | ||
| Mizo | kal ta | ||
| Oromo | dura | ||
| Odia (Oriya) | ପୂର୍ବରୁ | ||
| Quechua | ñawpaq | ||
| Sanskrit | पूर्व | ||
| Tatar | элек | ||
| Tigrinya | ቕድሚ | ||
| Tsonga | khale | ||