Drag in Different Languages
Discover 'Drag' in 134 Languages: Dive into Translations, Hear Pronunciations, and Uncover Cultural Insights.
Updated on March 6, 2024
Drag: it's a word that means so much more than just pulling something along the ground. In popular culture, 'drag' has taken on a life of its own as a term that represents flamboyant fashion and entertainment, often associated with the LGBTQ+ community. The art of drag is a celebration of self-expression, creativity, and individuality, and has become a significant cultural movement around the world.
But did you know that the word 'drag' has roots in 19th century theater? Originally, it was used to describe the long skirts that actors wore, which would 'drag' along the stage floor. Today, the term has evolved to encompass a wide range of identities and performances, from camp and comedy to singing and lip-syncing.
Given its significance and cultural importance, it's no wonder that people might want to know how to say 'drag' in different languages. Whether you're a fan of the art form, a language enthusiast, or just curious, learning the translations of 'drag' can be a fun and enlightening way to explore new cultures and perspectives.
So without further ado, here are some translations of 'drag' in different languages:
Drag
Drag in Sub-Saharan African Languages
| Afrikaans | sleep | ||
| In Afrikaans, "sleep" can also refer to the act of pulling or hauling something. | |||
| Amharic | ጎትት | ||
| "ጎትት" in Amharic can also refer to a kind of insect. | |||
| Hausa | jawo | ||
| "Jawo" has the alternate meaning of "to pull" in Hausa. | |||
| Igbo | ikpuru | ||
| In the Anambra State of Nigeria, 'ikpuru' is also the name for a very popular masquerade that appears at festivals and ceremonies. | |||
| Malagasy | tarihiny | ||
| The Malagasy word "tarihiny" also means "story" or "history". | |||
| Nyanja (Chichewa) | kokani | ||
| The word "Kokani" in Nyanja, also known as Chichewa, can also refer to a type of traditional fishing net commonly used in the region. | |||
| Shona | kweva | ||
| Kweva is a type of bird, and can also mean 'to catch' in Shona. | |||
| Somali | jiidid | ||
| The Somali word 'jiidid' can also refer to the process of pulling or hauling something. | |||
| Sesotho | hula | ||
| Hula is derived from the verb 'hulile', meaning 'to pull or drag by force'. | |||
| Swahili | buruta | ||
| The Swahili word "buruta" also means to "pull" or "haul" something. | |||
| Xhosa | tsala | ||
| In Xhosa, "tsala" also means "friend" or "brother". | |||
| Yoruba | fa | ||
| The word "fa" can also refer to a type of divination or oracle, or to a spiritual power or force. | |||
| Zulu | hudula | ||
| The word "hudula" in Zulu can also refer to the act of dragging or pulling something behind oneself. | |||
| Bambara | ka ta ka bila | ||
| Ewe | he | ||
| Kinyarwanda | kurura | ||
| Lingala | kobenda | ||
| Luganda | okusika | ||
| Sepedi | goga | ||
| Twi (Akan) | twe | ||
Drag in North African & Middle Eastern Languages
| Arabic | سحب | ||
| The word "سحب" (drag) can also mean "to draw" or "to pull" in Arabic. | |||
| Hebrew | לִגרוֹר | ||
| The biblical meaning of the Hebrew word for "drag" is "to entice," whereas its modern use means "to impose." | |||
| Pashto | کشول | ||
| The word "کشول" in Pashto can also refer to a type of bag or a bundle of belongings. | |||
| Arabic | سحب | ||
| The word "سحب" (drag) can also mean "to draw" or "to pull" in Arabic. | |||
Drag in Western European Languages
| Albanian | zvarrit | ||
| "Zvarrit" is a variant of the verb "zvar" (to pull) and can also refer to the act of pulling or dragging something along the ground. | |||
| Basque | arrastatu | ||
| The verb 'arrastartu' could also mean 'catch in a fishing net', a meaning which is not present in its Spanish cognate 'arrastrar'. | |||
| Catalan | arrossegar | ||
| "Arrossegar" in Catalan also refers to the process of dragging or moving someone or something with a rope or cable. | |||
| Croatian | opterećenje | ||
| The word "opterećenje" also means "charge" or "burden". | |||
| Danish | træk | ||
| Danish "træk" can derive from an Old Norse word meaning "drawing" or "pulling" as well as one denoting "features" or "aspect". | |||
| Dutch | slepen | ||
| The word "slepen" in Dutch can also refer to towing a vehicle or moving something heavy with effort. | |||
| English | drag | ||
| In addition to its use as a verb and noun meaning to pull or draw something, "drag" can also refer to a type of performance art or entertainment, or a state of exhaustion or weakness. | |||
| French | traîne | ||
| The word "traîne" in French can also mean "trail" or "entourage". | |||
| Frisian | slepe | ||
| The Frisian word "slepe" comes from the Old Frisian word "sleippa," meaning a kind of rope used for dragging. | |||
| Galician | arrastrar | ||
| In Galician, "arrastrar" can also mean "to pull" or "to carry something heavy or difficult to move". | |||
| German | ziehen | ||
| Ziehen can also mean "to move" or "to pull" and derives from the Proto-Germanic word *teuhaną, meaning "to draw". | |||
| Icelandic | draga | ||
| In Icelandic, the word "draga" also means "to fish with a seine or net." | |||
| Irish | tarraing | ||
| The Irish word ‘tarraing’ can also refer to a funeral procession, in addition to its meaning of pulling or dragging. | |||
| Italian | trascinare | ||
| "Trascinare" derives from the Latin "trans" (across) and "trahere" (to draw), also found in "train" and "tract"} | |||
| Luxembourgish | zéien | ||
| "Z'eien" can also mean "move slowly" or "drag (someone/something) along" | |||
| Maltese | drag | ||
| In Maltese, the word "drag" also means "to pull" or "to tow". | |||
| Norwegian | dra | ||
| In Norwegian, "dra" can mean both to drag and to wear clothing or accessories that are not typically associated with one's gender. | |||
| Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) | arrastar | ||
| In some Portuguese dialects, the verb "arrastar" can also mean "to chat" or "to gossip". | |||
| Scots Gaelic | slaod | ||
| The word "slaod" can also mean "slay" or "kill" in Scots Gaelic, derived from the Middle Scots word "sla" meaning "to strike". | |||
| Spanish | arrastrar | ||
| "Arrastrar" comes from the Latin "rastrum" (rake) and in Spain it is also used to mean "cheat" (in a game) or "criticize harshly". | |||
| Swedish | drag | ||
| The Swedish word "drag" can also refer to a type of fishing net or a type of horse-drawn carriage. | |||
| Welsh | llusgo | ||
| The word `llusgo` can also mean `to pull` or `to tow`. | |||
Drag in Eastern European Languages
| Belarusian | перацягнуць | ||
| The word "перацягнуць" can also be used to describe the act of drawing something closer to oneself. | |||
| Bosnian | povucite | ||
| "Povući" comes from the Proto-Indo-European root *h₂ew- meaning "to draw, pull" and is cognate with English "hew" and Russian "vytyagivat'". | |||
| Bulgarian | плъзнете | ||
| The verb "плъзнете" in Bulgarian can also mean to slide, glide, or crawl. | |||
| Czech | táhnout | ||
| Despite a close phonetic spelling, "táhnout" also translates directly to "count off (soldiers)" within the realm of military jargon or commands. | |||
| Estonian | vedama | ||
| In ancient religious usage, "vedama" referred to the dragging of idols. | |||
| Finnish | raahata | ||
| The word "raahata" in Finnish also means "to tow or pull something heavy". | |||
| Hungarian | húzás | ||
| The Hungarian word "húzás" also means "pulling" or "drawing". | |||
| Latvian | velciet | ||
| "Velciet" is also an archaic form of the verb "vilkt", meaning to pull, haul or tow. | |||
| Lithuanian | vilkite | ||
| Vilkitė (drag) derives from vilkti (to pull, to tow), which in turn comes from the Proto-Baltic root *velk- (*to pull). | |||
| Macedonian | влече | ||
| The word "влече" can also mean "attract". | |||
| Polish | opór | ||
| "Opór" not only means "drag" in Polish, but also "resistance" or "opposition". | |||
| Romanian | trage | ||
| In Romanian, "trage" can also mean "to pull" or "to carry".} | |||
| Russian | бремя | ||
| "Бремя" is used not only in the sense of "burden, heavy load," but also in the sense of "the duty of doing something difficult," which dates back to the Old Slavonic word "beremѣ" ("to take"). | |||
| Serbian | вуци | ||
| "Вуци" can also mean "wolves" in Serbian. | |||
| Slovak | ťahať | ||
| The word "ťahať" also means "to pull" or "to draw" in Slovak. | |||
| Slovenian | povlecite | ||
| The verb 'povlecite' can also refer to 'dragging someone into a conversation'. | |||
| Ukrainian | перетягування | ||
| The word "перетягування" (drag) comes from the verbs "тягнути" (to pull) and "перетягувати" (to drag). This word can also be used to describe a tug of war. | |||
Drag in South Asian Languages
| Bengali | টানুন | ||
| "টানুন" is derived from the Sanskrit word "tr̥" (to cross), and also means "to pull, draw, lead". | |||
| Gujarati | ખેંચો | ||
| The word 'ખેંચો' in Gujarati can also mean 'to extend' or 'to pull something towards oneself'. | |||
| Hindi | खींचना | ||
| In addition to its primary meaning of "drag," खींचना can also mean "to stretch" or "to pull." | |||
| Kannada | ಎಳೆಯಿರಿ | ||
| ಎಳೆಯಿರಿ can also mean ‘to pull towards oneself’ and is closely connected to a similar verb ‘ಎಳುವ’ meaning ‘to pull’ | |||
| Malayalam | വലിച്ചിടുക | ||
| The word വലിച്ചിടുക, meaning "drag," comes from the Sanskrit word "valichid," which also means "to pull" or "to haul."} | |||
| Marathi | ड्रॅग करा | ||
| "हैं मर्दों के भी हैं कंधे, वो बोझ नहीं ढो पाएंगे?" (भारतीय नारीवाद की एक कविता से पंक्तियाँ) | |||
| Nepali | तान्नुहोस् | ||
| The word "तान्नुहोस्" can also mean "to pull" or "to draw" something. | |||
| Punjabi | ਖਿੱਚੋ | ||
| The word "ਖਿੱਚੋ" (drag) is derived from the Hindi word "खींचना" (to pull), which itself is derived from the Sanskrit word "कृष" (to draw, to pull). | |||
| Sinhala (Sinhalese) | අදින්න | ||
| The term "අදින්න" in Sinhala can also refer to the act of stretching or extending something, particularly in the context of stretching a limb or a piece of fabric. | |||
| Tamil | இழுக்கவும் | ||
| Telugu | లాగండి | ||
| The verb "లాగండి" can also refer to the act of "pulling" something along, or to make something move by a pulling or tugging action. | |||
| Urdu | گھسیٹیں | ||
Drag in East Asian Languages
| Chinese (Simplified) | 拖动 | ||
| 拖动 is an abbreviation of 拖曳和推动 (tuōyè hé tuīdòng), which means to pull and push. | |||
| Chinese (Traditional) | 拖動 | ||
| 拖動（拖）在中文（繁體）中，有「拖延」、「拖曳」等意思。 | |||
| Japanese | 引っ張る | ||
| The word "引っ張る" (hippareru) can also mean "to pull" or "to draw out". | |||
| Korean | 견인 | ||
| "견인" is also used to mean "tow" or "pull" in Korean. | |||
| Mongolian | чирэх | ||
| The Mongolian word "чирэх" can also mean "to scrape" or "to scratch". | |||
| Myanmar (Burmese) | ဆွဲပါ | ||
| ဆွဲပါ (swei pa) is also commonly used to refer to the action of pulling or dragging someone or something along a surface. | |||
Drag in South East Asian Languages
| Indonesian | menyeret | ||
| The word “menyeret” can also refer to the action of pulling or towing something. | |||
| Javanese | seret | ||
| The Javanese word "seret" also refers to a type of dance or a traditional game similar to tug-of-war. | |||
| Khmer | អូស | ||
| In Khmer, អូស can also refer to fishing by dragging a net. | |||
| Lao | ລາກ | ||
| The word "ລາກ" in Lao can also mean "to pull" or "to draw". | |||
| Malay | seret | ||
| "Seret" can also mean "to pull" or "to tow". | |||
| Thai | ลาก | ||
| "ลาก" also means "to pull" in Thai. | |||
| Vietnamese | kéo | ||
| In Vietnamese, "kéo" also means "to stretch" or "to pull", possibly due to its onomatopoeic origin. | |||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | hilahin | ||
Drag in Central Asian Languages
| Azerbaijani | sürükləyin | ||
| The verb "sürükləyin" can also mean "to trace" or "to draw" in Azerbaijani. | |||
| Kazakh | сүйреу | ||
| The word "сүйреу" also means "to crawl" or "to creep" in Kazakh. | |||
| Kyrgyz | сүйрөө | ||
| Сүйрөө (Kyrgyz) relates to the Turkish word "sürümek" (to apply force to move something), and shares the same root as the English word "stir". | |||
| Tajik | кашидан | ||
| The word "кашидан" can also mean "pull" or "stretch" in Tajik. | |||
| Turkmen | süýräň | ||
| Uzbek | sudrab torting | ||
| Etymology: from Russian "drag" (pull) and Uzbek "tort" (rope) | |||
| Uyghur | سۆرەش | ||
Drag in Pacific Languages
| Hawaiian | kauō | ||
| Kauō is also used figuratively to describe a difficult or unpleasant situation or experience. | |||
| Maori | toia | ||
| . In Māori, the word "toia" can also refer to the act of pulling or hauling something | |||
| Samoan | toso | ||
| "Toso" can also refer to a group of people or a crowd in Samoan. | |||
| Tagalog (Filipino) | kaladkarin | ||
| Kaladkarin originates from 'kaladkad' meaning to pull or to haul. The suffix '-in' transforms verbs into nouns thus making the term 'kaladkarin' mean 'the act of pulling or hauling'. | |||
Drag in American Indigenous Languages
| Aymara | qatatiña | ||
| Guarani | mbosyryry | ||
Drag in International Languages
| Esperanto | treni | ||
| The word "treni" is also used to refer to the act of pulling something heavy, such as a sled. | |||
| Latin | drag | ||
| Latin "tragere," meaning to carry or pull, is the origin of the word "drag." | |||
Drag in Others Languages
| Greek | σέρνω | ||
| The word "σέρνω" was used in Ancient Greek to describe a fisherman dragging a net, and is possibly related to "ερέσσω", meaning "to row". | |||
| Hmong | luag | ||
| "Luag" is an alternative Hmong word for "to pull," although it can also mean "to drag" or "to tow." | |||
| Kurdish | xwêrvekişandin | ||
| The word "xwêrvekişandin" is derived from the Persian word "کشیدن" (keshīdan), meaning "to pull" or "to draw". | |||
| Turkish | sürüklemek | ||
| In some contexts, "sürüklemek" can also mean "to pull" or "to trace". | |||
| Xhosa | tsala | ||
| In Xhosa, "tsala" also means "friend" or "brother". | |||
| Yiddish | שלעפּן | ||
| The Yiddish word "שלעפּן" ("drag") is also used to refer to the act of gossiping, as in "she's always schlepping about her neighbors." | |||
| Zulu | hudula | ||
| The word "hudula" in Zulu can also refer to the act of dragging or pulling something behind oneself. | |||
| Assamese | টানি নিয়া | ||
| Aymara | qatatiña | ||
| Bhojpuri | खींचल | ||
| Dhivehi | ލަސްކުރުން | ||
| Dogri | खिच्चना | ||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | hilahin | ||
| Guarani | mbosyryry | ||
| Ilocano | uluden | ||
| Krio | drɛg | ||
| Kurdish (Sorani) | ڕاکێشان | ||
| Maithili | घसीटनाइ | ||
| Meiteilon (Manipuri) | ꯆꯤꯡꯕ | ||
| Mizo | hnuk | ||
| Oromo | lafarra harkisuu | ||
| Odia (Oriya) | ଡ୍ରାଗ୍ | ||
| Quechua | chutay | ||
| Sanskrit | आकर्षति | ||
| Tatar | тарту | ||
| Tigrinya | ምጉታት | ||
| Tsonga | koka | ||