Butter in Different Languages
Discover 'Butter' in 134 Languages: Dive into Translations, Hear Pronunciations, and Uncover Cultural Insights.
Butter
Afrikaans botter | ||
Albanian gjalpë | ||
Amharic ቅቤ | ||
Arabic زبدة | ||
Armenian կարագ | ||
Assamese মাখন | ||
Aymara lik'i | ||
Azerbaijani kərə yağı | ||
Bambara naare | ||
Basque gurina | ||
Belarusian сметанковае масла | ||
Bengali মাখন | ||
Bhojpuri माखन | ||
Bosnian puter | ||
Bulgarian масло | ||
Catalan mantega | ||
Cebuano mantikilya | ||
Chinese (Simplified) 牛油 | ||
Chinese (Traditional) 牛油 | ||
Corsican burru | ||
Croatian maslac | ||
Czech máslo | ||
Danish smør | ||
Dhivehi ބަޓަރު | ||
Dogri मक्खन | ||
Dutch boter | ||
English butter | ||
Esperanto butero | ||
Estonian või | ||
Ewe bᴐta | ||
Filipino (Tagalog) mantikilya | ||
Finnish voita | ||
French beurre | ||
Frisian bûter | ||
Galician manteiga | ||
Georgian კარაქი | ||
German butter | ||
Greek βούτυρο | ||
Guarani kyramonarã | ||
Gujarati માખણ | ||
Haitian Creole bè | ||
Hausa man shanu | ||
Hawaiian pata | ||
Hebrew חמאה | ||
Hindi मक्खन | ||
Hmong butter | ||
Hungarian vaj | ||
Icelandic smjör | ||
Igbo bọta | ||
Ilocano mantikilya | ||
Indonesian mentega | ||
Irish im | ||
Italian burro | ||
Japanese バター | ||
Javanese mentega | ||
Kannada ಬೆಣ್ಣೆ | ||
Kazakh май | ||
Khmer ប៊ឺ | ||
Kinyarwanda amavuta | ||
Konkani लोणी | ||
Korean 버터 | ||
Krio bɔta | ||
Kurdish runê nîvişk | ||
Kurdish (Sorani) پەنیر | ||
Kyrgyz май | ||
Lao ມັນເບີ | ||
Latin butyrum | ||
Latvian sviests | ||
Lingala manteka | ||
Lithuanian sviesto | ||
Luganda siyaagi | ||
Luxembourgish botter | ||
Macedonian путер | ||
Maithili मक्खन | ||
Malagasy dibera | ||
Malay mentega | ||
Malayalam വെണ്ണ | ||
Maltese butir | ||
Maori pata | ||
Marathi लोणी | ||
Meiteilon (Manipuri) ꯕꯠꯇꯔ | ||
Mizo butter | ||
Mongolian цөцгийн тос | ||
Myanmar (Burmese) ထောပတ် | ||
Nepali मक्खन | ||
Norwegian smør | ||
Nyanja (Chichewa) batala | ||
Odia (Oriya) ଲହୁଣୀ | ||
Oromo dhadhaa | ||
Pashto کوچ | ||
Persian کره | ||
Polish masło | ||
Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) manteiga | ||
Punjabi ਮੱਖਣ | ||
Quechua wira | ||
Romanian unt | ||
Russian масло | ||
Samoan pata | ||
Sanskrit नवनीत | ||
Scots Gaelic ìm | ||
Sepedi potoro | ||
Serbian путер | ||
Sesotho botoro | ||
Shona ruomba | ||
Sindhi مکڻ | ||
Sinhala (Sinhalese) බටර් | ||
Slovak maslo | ||
Slovenian maslo | ||
Somali subag | ||
Spanish mantequilla | ||
Sundanese mantega | ||
Swahili siagi | ||
Swedish smör | ||
Tagalog (Filipino) mantikilya | ||
Tajik равған | ||
Tamil வெண்ணெய் | ||
Tatar май | ||
Telugu వెన్న | ||
Thai เนย | ||
Tigrinya ጠስሚ | ||
Tsonga botere | ||
Turkish tereyağı | ||
Turkmen ýag | ||
Twi (Akan) bɔta | ||
Ukrainian вершкового масла | ||
Urdu مکھن | ||
Uyghur ماي | ||
Uzbek sariyog ' | ||
Vietnamese bơ | ||
Welsh menyn | ||
Xhosa ibhotolo | ||
Yiddish פּוטער | ||
Yoruba bota | ||
Zulu ibhotela |
Etymology & Notes
| Language | Etymology / Notes |
|---|---|
| Afrikaans | The word "botter" in Afrikaans likely originated from the Old French word "bouter," meaning "to shove" or "to push." |
| Albanian | The term "gjalpë" is derived from the Proto-Albanian word "*gʰalp-e", found also in Slavic languages (e.g. Serbian "žup", Bulgarian "джупа", Slovene "župca"). |
| Amharic | "ቅቤ" can also mean 'foam' (e.g. shaving foam) |
| Arabic | "Butter” comes from a root of the verb “Zubd,” or "to foam." |
| Armenian | The word “կարագ” is also used to refer to other kinds of fats such as vegetable fat and margarine. |
| Azerbaijani | The Azerbaijani word "kərə yağı" has Turkic roots and is related to the Persian word "kereh," which also means "butter." |
| Basque | The word “gurina” comes from the Latin word for cheese, “caseus”. |
| Belarusian | The word "сметанковае масла" in Belarusian is derived from the word "сметана" (sour cream), which is used in its production, and "масла" (oil). |
| Bengali | The word "মাখন" (butter) also refers to the fat or cream that separates from milk during boiling. |
| Bosnian | In Bosnian, 'puter' also refers to butter produced from animal fat or vegetable oil. |
| Bulgarian | The word "масло" has the same Proto-Slavic root as the English "maslo", which means "ointment" or "oil". |
| Catalan | The Catalan word for butter, "mantega," is a cognate of Latin "butyrum" which is derived from Ancient Greek "βούτυρον" (boútyron), itself originating from a pre-Greek substrate. |
| Cebuano | The Cebuano word "mantikilya" is derived from the Spanish word "mantequilla", which itself comes from the Latin word "butyrum". It can also refer to the butter used in cooking or baking, or to the process of making butter from milk. |
| Chinese (Simplified) | "牛油" (niúyóu) can also refer to cocoa butter. |
| Chinese (Traditional) | 牛油 can mean not only "butter" but also "tallow" or "margarine" depending on the context |
| Corsican | The word "burru" in Corsican comes from the Latin word "butyrum" and is related to the Greek word "βούτυρον" (bóutyron), meaning "cow cheese". |
| Croatian | The word 'maslac' is derived from the Proto-Slavic term 'maslo', meaning both 'butter' and 'oil'. |
| Czech | "Máslo" also means "money" in Czech slang. |
| Danish | The word "smør" comes from the Proto-Germanic word "smeurjon", meaning "fat". |
| Dutch | Dutch "boter" comes from Proto-Germanic "butraz", meaning "thick liquid", and is also related to English "bottle". |
| Esperanto | The Esperanto word "butero" also means "grease" and is derived from the Latin "butyrum". |
| Estonian | The Estonian word "või" is cognate with the Finnish word "voi", both originating from the Proto-Finnic word *woi. |
| Finnish | The word "voita" may derive from the Proto-Germanic word "*waitjaną" meaning "to hunt" or "to watch". |
| French | "Beurre" can also refer to a shade of yellow similar to the color of butter. |
| Frisian | The Frisian word "bûter" is derived from the Old English word "butere" and has the alternate meaning of "to smear". |
| Galician | In Galician, "manteiga" is both butter and an adjective meaning "soft" or "gentle." |
| Georgian | The word "კარაქი" in Georgian can also refer to a "butter-knife" or a "wooden box". |
| German | In German, the word "Butter" is also used to refer to the butterfly, stemming from its yellow color and fluttering wings resembling butter. |
| Greek | "βούτυρο" derives from the Ancient Greek "βουτύριον," which in turn stems from the Proto-Indo-European "*ghwut-ro-," meaning "cow's fat". |
| Gujarati | The word 'માખણ' (butter) is derived from the Sanskrit word 'मक्खन' (makṣa), which means 'to stir or churn'. |
| Haitian Creole | The word originates from the French and Picard term "beurre". |
| Hausa | Hausa word man shanu also means "cow butter" or "clarified butter" |
| Hawaiian | Pata can also refer to 'a stick used to beat or stir' or the 'stalk of a plant' in Hawaiian. |
| Hebrew | The word חמאה ultimately derives from the Akkadian word for "milk, cream or butter" (ḫam'atu). |
| Hindi | In Hindi, the word "मक्खन" (makkhan) is a derivative of the Sanskrit word "मधु" (madhu), meaning "honey". |
| Hmong | The Hmong word "puaj" can also refer to ointment, lotion, or salve. |
| Hungarian | The Hungarian word "vaj" (butter) derives from the Proto-Uralic word *woje "fat". |
| Icelandic | Smjör is derived from the Proto-Germanic **smerþan** ('to smear') and is cognate with the English 'smear'. |
| Igbo | Bọta, meaning 'butter' in Igbo, also refers to 'fat' or 'margarine' in other contexts. |
| Indonesian | The word "mentega" is derived from the Portuguese word "manteiga", which in turn comes from the Latin word "butyrum" meaning "butter". |
| Irish | The Irish word "im" is cognate with the Welsh word "menyn" and the Latin word "butyrum". |
| Italian | The Italian word "burro" is also used in some rural areas to mean "butter churn" |
| Japanese | The word "バター" (bata) originated from the Portuguese word "manteiga", which itself derived from the Latin word "butyrum", meaning "cow dung" |
| Javanese | In Javanese, 'mentega' is also used as a term to refer to the 'essence' of something valuable, e.g. 'mentega ilmu' (the essence of knowledge). |
| Kannada | The term "ಬೆಣ್ಣೆ" is an etymological cognate of the Sanskrit "वर्ण" or "varna." Both words are derived from Proto-Indo-European root "*weren-" meaning "to cover," signifying butter's role as a protective layer for foods. |
| Kazakh | "Май" can also refer to oil or fat in general in Kazakh. |
| Khmer | ប៊ឺ can also mean "cream" or "milk fat" in Khmer. |
| Korean | "버터" can mean both "butter" and "fudge" in Korean. |
| Kyrgyz | The word "май" in Kyrgyz also refers to the month of May, and is related to the verb "маюу" meaning "to rub". |
| Lao | The Lao word for "butter," "ມັນເບີ," is a loanword from English and French, and is ultimately derived from the Greek word for "cow." |
| Latin | In Late Latin, "butyrum" also referred to "cow dung", but this usage is rare. |
| Latvian | Sviests is likely rooted in the ancient Lithuanian word "sviesti" or the similar term "sviescas", both meaning "grease". |
| Lithuanian | The word "sviesto" in Lithuanian is derived from the Proto-Indo-European root "*gʰwen-s-/*gʰwēn-s-/, which also means "to shine" or "to be white." |
| Luxembourgish | In Luxembourgish, "Botter" also refers to a large piece of bread with a hole in it. |
| Macedonian | The word "путер" in Macedonian is of German origin, coming from "Butter". Besides its main meaning, it's also used colloquially to mean laziness, slowness or doing things without much care. |
| Malagasy | Malagasy word "dibera" also means "cream" and is cognate with the Malay word "mentega" of the same meaning. |
| Malay | The word 'mentega' derives from the Portuguese word 'manteiga', which is cognate with the Latin word 'butyrum', meaning 'butter' or 'cow's fat'. |
| Malayalam | "വെണ്ണ" is derived from the Proto-Dravidian root "ven" meaning "fat" or "oil". |
| Maltese | The Maltese word "butir" is derived from the Arabic "butir" meaning "small pieces" and in this context refers specifically to butter grains. |
| Maori | In Maori, the word 'pata' can also refer to fat, oil, or a creamy substance. |
| Marathi | The word "लोणी" in Marathi is derived from the Sanskrit word "लवण," meaning "salt". |
| Mongolian | The term "цөцгийн тос" directly translates to "breast oil," and can also refer to breast milk. |
| Myanmar (Burmese) | The word "ထောပတ်" (butter) in Myanmar (Burmese) is derived from the Pali word "dhavapāta", which means "to spread". It can also refer to the process of churning milk to make butter. |
| Nepali | "मक्खन" (butter) is also a slang term for "flattery" in Nepali. |
| Norwegian | Norwegian "smør" can also refer to goose fat, lard, or the fat of various marine mammals |
| Nyanja (Chichewa) | The word "batala" also means "oily", "fatty", or "unctuous". |
| Pashto | The word "کوچ" (butter) in Pashto is also figuratively used to refer to "cream" or "elite". |
| Persian | "کره" (butter) is also used to refer to the planet Earth, as well as the Sun. |
| Polish | The word "masło" can also refer to a cream-like substance or a spreadable fat. |
| Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) | In Portuguese, "manteiga" can also mean "smoothness" or "delicacy". |
| Romanian | In Romanian, "unt" can also refer to axle grease or ointment, derived from the Latin "unctus" (fatty). |
| Russian | The Russian word "масло" (butter) also refers to a thick paint used in icon painting, and in a figurative sense, can mean "flattery" or "bribery". |
| Samoan | The Samoan word "pata" can also refer to a type of ointment made from coconut oil and turmeric. |
| Scots Gaelic | The Gaelic word for butter, "ìm," can also refer to buttercups, or be used affectionately to mean "my dear." |
| Serbian | The Serbian word "путер" (butter) is derived from the Slavic word for "milk (fat)", and has a related meaning in various other Slavic languages. |
| Sesotho | In Sesotho, the word "botoro" originally referred to the foam that forms on the surface of freshly-brewed traditional beer. |
| Shona | The Shona word "ruomba" also denotes "grease", "fat", "oil", "cream", and "milk", and is used in some phrases to depict the quality of cattle. |
| Sindhi | The word "مکڻ" in Sindhi derives from the Sanskrit word "मक्खन" (makkhan), meaning "butter". In other languages such as Bangla, it also means "butter". |
| Sinhala (Sinhalese) | The word "බටර්" (butter) in Sinhala (Sinhalese) is derived from the Sanskrit word "batra" meaning "foam" or "churned liquid", and is also related to the Hindi word "batter" meaning "a mixture of flour and liquid used for making cakes or bread". |
| Slovak | The word "maslo" in Slovak is derived from the Proto-Slavic word "*maslo", meaning "fat" or "oil". |
| Slovenian | Maslo is also used as a slang term for money in Slovenia, potentially originating from the Italian word "maso" meaning "stack". |
| Somali | Subag is also the term for an object that acts as a vessel; specifically a wooden bowl used to hold liquids or as a place for the kneading (and fermentation) of bread dough. |
| Spanish | The Spanish word "mantequilla" originally referred to an ointment, and is cognate with the English word "mantle". |
| Sundanese | The Sundanese word "mantega" is also used to describe a specific type of coconut milk-based sauce, similar to the Malaysian "gulai" or the Thai "gang. |
| Swahili | The Swahili word "siagi" is cognate with other Bantu languages, such as the Proto-Bantu *saǵa. |
| Swedish | In Swedish, smör also refers to a layer of grease on top of a liquid, like soup or sauce. |
| Tagalog (Filipino) | The Tagalog word "mantikilya" is derived from the Sanskrit "manthana" meaning "to churn" and originally referred to any type of fat extracted from plants or animals. |
| Tajik | Равған, besides meaning 'butter,' also refers to a type of wild rue plant. |
| Telugu | The word "వెన్న" also means "foam" in Telugu, possibly because butter is formed when milk foams. |
| Thai | The word "เนย" (butter) in Thai is derived from the Sanskrit word "navanīta" meaning "fresh butter". |
| Turkish | "Tereyağı" means both "butter" and "sweating fat" in Turkish, but the latter is now considered derogatory slang. |
| Ukrainian | Ukrainian "вершкового масла" comes from the Old Slavonic word "връхъ", meaning "peak", and refers to the skimmed top layer of milk after churning. |
| Urdu | The word "مکھن" (butter) is derived from the Sanskrit word "मक्षिका" (makṣikā), meaning "fly," as butter was traditionally made by churning milk with a stick on which flies had settled. |
| Uzbek | The word "sariyog'" is also used to refer to "ghee", a type of clarified butter. |
| Vietnamese | The Vietnamese word "bơ" originally referred to a type of avocado in the Mon-Khmer language, but was later borrowed into Vietnamese to describe dairy butter. |
| Welsh | The Welsh word "menyn" shares a root with the word "meinyddau" (mountains) |
| Xhosa | A variant of the word 'ibhotolo' is 'utywala', meaning 'beer', emphasizing the cultural significance of livestock and dairy products in Xhosa society. |
| Yiddish | The word "פּוטער" can also refer to a type of pastry filled with butter, known as a "pâte feuilletée" in French. |
| Yoruba | The word 'bota' can also refer to a type of leather bag or a small container used for carrying liquids in Yoruba. |
| Zulu | Ibhotela also refers to the frothy layer on fermented beer. |
| English | In Old English, 'butere' referred to butter made from goat or sheep milk, while 'buttor' was cow butter. |