Clue in Different Languages
Discover 'Clue' in 134 Languages: Dive into Translations, Hear Pronunciations, and Uncover Cultural Insights.
Clue
Afrikaans leidraad | ||
Albanian çelës | ||
Amharic ፍንጭ | ||
Arabic فكرة | ||
Armenian թել | ||
Assamese সূত্ৰ | ||
Aymara wakiskiri | ||
Azerbaijani ipucu | ||
Bambara ekuru | ||
Basque arrastoa | ||
Belarusian падказка | ||
Bengali ক্লু | ||
Bhojpuri संकेत | ||
Bosnian trag | ||
Bulgarian улика | ||
Catalan pista | ||
Cebuano timailhan | ||
Chinese (Simplified) 线索 | ||
Chinese (Traditional) 線索 | ||
Corsican indiziu | ||
Croatian trag | ||
Czech vodítko | ||
Danish nøgle | ||
Dhivehi ކްލޫ | ||
Dogri सराग | ||
Dutch aanwijzing | ||
English clue | ||
Esperanto indico | ||
Estonian aimugi | ||
Ewe dzesi | ||
Filipino (Tagalog) bakas | ||
Finnish vihje | ||
French indice | ||
Frisian oanwizing | ||
Galician pista | ||
Georgian ნახავ | ||
German hinweis | ||
Greek ένδειξη | ||
Guarani marandurendapy | ||
Gujarati ચાવી | ||
Haitian Creole endikasyon | ||
Hausa ra'ayi | ||
Hawaiian kuhi | ||
Hebrew רֶמֶז | ||
Hindi संकेत | ||
Hmong pov thawj | ||
Hungarian nyom | ||
Icelandic vísbending | ||
Igbo ihe ngosi | ||
Ilocano pagilasinan | ||
Indonesian petunjuk | ||
Irish leid | ||
Italian traccia | ||
Japanese 手がかり | ||
Javanese pitunjuk | ||
Kannada ಸುಳಿವು | ||
Kazakh анықтама | ||
Khmer តម្រុយ | ||
Kinyarwanda ibimenyetso | ||
Konkani संकेत | ||
Korean 실마리 | ||
Krio ɛp | ||
Kurdish agah | ||
Kurdish (Sorani) بەڵگە | ||
Kyrgyz ачкыч | ||
Lao ຂໍ້ຄຶດ | ||
Latin clue | ||
Latvian pavediens | ||
Lingala eloko ezosalisa na koyeba | ||
Lithuanian užuomina | ||
Luganda ekikundi | ||
Luxembourgish hiweis | ||
Macedonian поим | ||
Maithili संकेत | ||
Malagasy vakio ny | ||
Malay petunjuk | ||
Malayalam സൂചന | ||
Maltese ħjiel | ||
Maori tohu | ||
Marathi सुगावा | ||
Meiteilon (Manipuri) ꯂꯪꯂꯥ ꯂꯪꯖꯤꯟ | ||
Mizo sulhnu | ||
Mongolian сэжүүр | ||
Myanmar (Burmese) သဲလွန်စ | ||
Nepali सुराग | ||
Norwegian ledetråd | ||
Nyanja (Chichewa) yankho | ||
Odia (Oriya) ସୂଚକ | ||
Oromo ragaa xiqqoo | ||
Pashto نښې | ||
Persian سرنخ | ||
Polish wskazówka | ||
Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) pista | ||
Punjabi ਸੁਰਾਗ | ||
Quechua yupi | ||
Romanian cheie | ||
Russian ключ к разгадке | ||
Samoan faʻailo | ||
Sanskrit सङ्केत | ||
Scots Gaelic boillsgeadh | ||
Sepedi sekgomaretši | ||
Serbian траг | ||
Sesotho leseli | ||
Shona clue | ||
Sindhi اشارو | ||
Sinhala (Sinhalese) හෝඩුවාව | ||
Slovak indícia | ||
Slovenian namig | ||
Somali tilmaam | ||
Spanish pista | ||
Sundanese pitunjuk | ||
Swahili kidokezo | ||
Swedish ledtråd | ||
Tagalog (Filipino) bakas | ||
Tajik калид | ||
Tamil துப்பு | ||
Tatar аңлатма | ||
Telugu క్లూ | ||
Thai เบาะแส | ||
Tigrinya ፍንጪ | ||
Tsonga xikombiso | ||
Turkish ipucu | ||
Turkmen düşündiriş | ||
Twi (Akan) adwene | ||
Ukrainian підказка | ||
Urdu اشارہ | ||
Uyghur يىپ ئۇچى | ||
Uzbek maslahat | ||
Vietnamese manh mối | ||
Welsh cliw | ||
Xhosa umkhondo | ||
Yiddish קלו | ||
Yoruba olobo | ||
Zulu umkhondo |
Etymology & Notes
| Language | Etymology / Notes |
|---|---|
| Afrikaans | In German, "Leitfaden" is the leading thread in a labyrinth, while "draad" is "thread" in Afrikaans, hence " |
| Albanian | The Albanian word "çelës" (clue) derives from the Greek word "kleis" (key), indicating its use as a means to unlock information or secrets. |
| Amharic | The word |
| Arabic | The word 'فكرة' is derived from the Proto-Semitic root *FKR, meaning 'to think' or 'to remember'. |
| Armenian | In Armenian, "թել" (tel) also means "string", "thread", or "wire" and is likely derived from the Proto-Indo-European root *ter- or *tar- meaning "to twist" or "to turn." |
| Azerbaijani | The word "ipucu" in Azerbaijani comes from the Persian word "ipuk", which means "thread" or "clue". |
| Basque | In modern Basque, "arrastoa" refers to a "clue" or "hint", while in Old Basque it meant "step" or "stride." |
| Belarusian | The word 'падказка' is derived from the verb 'казаць' meaning 'to say', indicating a piece of information that is said in secret or whispered. |
| Bengali | The word 'clue' is derived from the Middle English word 'clew', which means 'a ball of thread' or 'a guide'. |
| Bosnian | The Bosnian word "trag" is derived from the Proto-Slavic word "trgъ", meaning "path" or "road". |
| Bulgarian | In Bulgarian, "улика" can also mean "evidence" or "proof". |
| Catalan | The word "pista" in Catalan comes from the Latin "spica", meaning "ear of corn", and also refers to a narrow path or road. |
| Cebuano | Possibly derives from a Proto-Austronesian word meaning "to follow along the edge of". |
| Chinese (Simplified) | The Chinese word “线索” means “clue” but can also mean “thread” or “guideline”. |
| Chinese (Traditional) | 線索 is a calque of the English word "clue", and has the connotation of "evidence". |
| Corsican | The term "indiziu" is likely derived from the Italian word "indizio" with the same meaning, though some believe it may have originated in Proto-Indo-European. |
| Croatian | In Old Church Slavonic, the word "trag" also referred to a "path" or "route"} |
| Czech | The word "vodítko" is cognate with the word "vodič" which means "driver" and can also refer to "a leash for a dog". |
| Danish | "Nøgle" in Danish also means "key". |
| Dutch | The word "aanwijzing" in Dutch can also refer to an instruction or a direction. |
| Esperanto | "Indico" derives from the Latin "index," meaning "indicator" or "pointer." |
| Estonian | The word "aimugi" also means "a thought" or "an idea" in Estonian. |
| Finnish | The word "vihje" may also refer to a "hint" or a "tip" in Finnish. |
| French | In French, the word "indice" derives from the Latin word "index," meaning "pointer" or "indicator." |
| Frisian | The origin of the word "oanwizing" is obscure, but it may be related to the Old Saxon word "anwisien," meaning "to show". It is also possible that it is derived from the Middle Dutch word "oanwisen," meaning "to point out". The word "oanwizing" also has the alternate meaning of "evidence" or "proof". |
| Galician | The word "pista" in Galician also refers to a racetrack or runway, and can carry the alternate meaning of "trail" or "path" in certain contexts. |
| Georgian | "ნახავ" means "clue" in Georgian, but it can also mean "sign", "omen", "indication", "hint", "evidence", or "proof". |
| German | The etymology is obscure although the word is sometimes thought to be a loan from Slavic, ultimately related to "hint." |
| Greek | The Greek word "ένδειξη" also means "indication" or "evidence", and is related to the verb "ενδεικνύω" ("to indicate"). |
| Gujarati | In Gujarati, "ચાવી" (chaavi) also means "key," potentially indicating its role as a tool for unlocking information or solving mysteries. |
| Haitian Creole | The word "endikasyon" in Haitian Creole can also mean "sign" or "indication". |
| Hausa | "Ra'ayi" derives from the Arabic word "رأي" (opinion, judgment), as clues often guide opinions and judgments. |
| Hawaiian | "Kūhi" is also the Hawaiian word for "secret" and "mystery." |
| Hebrew | רֶמֶז, which means "clue," is a feminine noun that comes from the root ר-מ-ז and can also mean "hint" or "suggestion". |
| Hindi | The Sanskrit origin of 'संकेत' ('clue') also implies a 'sign, gesture, or symbol'. |
| Hmong | The Hmong word 'pov thawj' also means 'evidence' or 'proof'. |
| Hungarian | Nyom "clue" comes from the verb *nyom*, "to press" (e.g. nyomtatni "to print") or "to follow a track" (e.g. nyomkövetni "to trace"). |
| Icelandic | Vísbending relates to 'bent' (bendinga), indicating something that leads astray or causes error |
| Igbo | The Igbo term 'ihe ngosi' (literally, 'thing of showing') also refers to evidence that helps prove the guilt or innocence of an accused party in traditional Igbo courts. |
| Indonesian | The word "petunjuk" in Indonesian can also mean "indication", "hint", or "instruction." |
| Irish | The Irish word "leid" can also mean track or trail, suggesting a connection to the pursuit of knowledge and the unraveling of mysteries. |
| Italian | "Traccia" also means "track" and derives from the Latin "tractiare," meaning "to drag" or "to pull". This implies that a clue is something that leads you along a path. |
| Japanese | The Japanese word "手がかり" (clue) originally referred to a "handhold" or "support". |
| Javanese | In Javanese, "pitunjuk" can also refer to a guide or signpost, indicating a path to follow or a direction to go. |
| Kannada | The word "ಸುಳಿವು" is also used to indicate a suggestion, a hint, or a piece of advice in Kannada. |
| Kazakh | "Анықтама" also refers to a certificate or attestation of education. |
| Khmer | "តម្រុយ" is also a kind of game where one person hides something and gives the others clues to find it. |
| Korean | 실마리는 '실'('thread')과 '마리'('end')가 합쳐져 '실의 끝'이라는 뜻으로, 길을 찾는 데에 비유적으로 쓰이게 되었습니다. |
| Kurdish | The word could be traced from Persian (آگاه), which can have a broad sense in other contexts such as being “informed/conscious of” an object, person, place or general subject. |
| Kyrgyz | The Kyrgyz word "ачкыч" (clue) is derived from the Turkic root "açı-" meaning "to open". |
| Latin | "Clue" originates from the Latin word "globus," meaning "ball of thread", as a clue was originally a ball of yarn used to find one's way back through a labyrinth. |
| Latvian | The word "pavediens" comes from the Latin word "pavens" meaning "one who trembles or fears". |
| Lithuanian | The Lithuanian word "užuomina" (clue) also means "hint" or "suggestion." |
| Luxembourgish | The word "Hiweis" likely originates from the Proto-Germanic language branch. |
| Macedonian | In Old Church Slavonic, 'поим' refers to drinking, suggesting a link between finding solutions and refreshment. |
| Malagasy | Vakio ny is Malagasy for 'clue', however it also has the connotation of something 'found'. |
| Malay | The Malay word "petunjuk" can also refer to "guidance" or "instruction". |
| Malayalam | The term “സൂചന” originates from the Sanskrit word “sūcana”, which means “indication or sign”. |
| Maltese | The word "ħjiel" ultimately derives from the Italian "guida", meaning "guide" or "sign", and is semantically related to "gwida" (guide), "ħajt" (route) and "hija" (it is). |
| Maori | In Maori the word "tohu" can also mean "sign" or "indication." |
| Marathi | "सुगावा" (clue) in Marathi originally meant 'thread' and 'hint' |
| Mongolian | The word "сэжүүр" in Mongolian comes from the verb "сэжүүх", which means "to guide" or "to lead." |
| Nepali | सुराग (Nepali) comes from the Sanskrit word 'sura', meaning 'alcohol', as it originally referred to a trail of alcohol left behind by a person or animal. |
| Norwegian | In Swedish, "ledetråd" refers specifically to a clue in a crime investigation. |
| Nyanja (Chichewa) | The word "yankho" is also used to refer to a "solution" or "answer". |
| Pashto | The word "نښې" in Pashto is derived from the Persian word "نشان" (nishān), meaning "sign" or "mark." |
| Persian | The Persian word "سرنخ" (clue) originates from the Arabic word "سرّ" (secret), implying that a clue helps uncover a hidden truth. |
| Polish | The word "Wskazówka" also means "pointer", "hint", or "guide" in Polish. |
| Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) | 'Pista' can also mean 'slope' or 'dance floor' in Portuguese, derived from the Italian word 'pista' ('race-track'). |
| Punjabi | The word "ਸੁਰਾਗ" (clue) in Punjabi shares its etymology with the Persian "سر آگاه" (secret awareness or knowledge), suggesting its use as a means to uncover hidden information. |
| Romanian | Romanian word "cheie" has additional meanings like "key" or "main point" that suggest a connection to Latin "clavis" ("key") |
| Russian | The Russian word "ключ к разгадке" (clue) is related to the word "ключ" (key), which can also mean "solution" or "explanation". |
| Samoan | The term fa'ailo also refers to the stars that point the way to travellers at night. |
| Scots Gaelic | The word "boillsgeadh" in Scots Gaelic can also mean "a knot" or "a swelling or boil". |
| Serbian | The word "траг" in Serbian also means a "trace" and is derived from the Proto-Slavic word "tьrgъ", meaning "a rubbing, a mark". |
| Sesotho | The word can also refer to an animal that leads others to water or to a place with good grazing. |
| Shona | The Shona word "rufu" originally meant "path" or "trace" but now also means "clue". |
| Sindhi | The word "اشارو" can also mean "sign" or "mark" in Sindhi. |
| Sinhala (Sinhalese) | Sinhala හෝඩුවාව comes from Tamil கூடு (kūṭu; "nest") implying a connection between the clues and hiding something. |
| Slovak | The word "indícia" is borrowed from Latin and originally meant "pointer, indication, sign". |
| Slovenian | The word "namig" in Slovenian is a borrowing from German "Namen" meaning "name" or "designation". |
| Somali | The word "tilmaam" can also refer to a secret or a riddle. |
| Spanish | The word 'pista' in Spanish can also refer to a race track or an airport runway. |
| Sundanese | In Sundanese, "pitunjuk" also means "signpost" or "guidance". |
| Swahili | Kidokezo is cognate with kitendawili (riddle) and tendo (puzzle). |
| Swedish | Ledtråd, meaning "clue" in Swedish, can also refer to a "life line" in a lake or to metal wire. |
| Tagalog (Filipino) | The Tagalog word "bakas" also means "trace, mark, or scar." |
| Tajik | The word "калид" also means "key" in Tajik. |
| Tamil | The Tamil word "துப்பு" (clue) also means "a point," "a hint," or "a sign." |
| Telugu | "క్లూ" is derived from the Middle English word "clew", meaning a ball of thread. |
| Thai | "เบาะแส" (clue) comes from the Sanskrit word "bhedaśa," meaning "separation" or "difference." |
| Turkish | "İpucu" has also the meaning of "tip" or "money given as a tip". |
| Ukrainian | The Ukrainian word "підказка" also means "hint". |
| Urdu | The word "اشارہ" (clue) is derived from the Arabic word "اشار" (to point out, indicate), and can also mean "sign, indication, reference, or hint." |
| Uzbek | Uzbek “maslahat” is of Persian origin and can also mean 'policy' or 'expedience' depending on context. |
| Vietnamese | The word "manh mối" also means "evidence" in Vietnamese, suggesting its connection to the idea of "finding" or "revealing" information. |
| Welsh | Cliw, "clue," also means "crag," or "precipice" in Welsh. |
| Xhosa | The Xhosa word "umkhondo" can also mean "a path" or "a track". |
| Yiddish | The Yiddish word "קלו" (clue) is derived from the German word "klühe" (crack, crevice), suggesting a connection to solving puzzles or uncovering hidden information. |
| Yoruba | The word "olobo" also means "thief" in Yoruba, which could be a reference to the sneaky nature of clues. |
| Zulu | The word "umkhondo" can also refer to a path or trail in Zulu, further emphasizing its connection to the process of solving a mystery or puzzle. |
| English | Etymology: Middle English clue, from Old English cleowen, meaning "ball of thread". |