Essential in Different Languages
Discover 'Essential' in 134 Languages: Dive into Translations, Hear Pronunciations, and Uncover Cultural Insights.
Updated on March 6, 2024
The word
Essential
Essential in Sub-Saharan African Languages
| Afrikaans | noodsaaklik | ||
| The Afrikaans word "noodsaaklik" is derived from the Dutch word "noodzakelijk", which also means "necessary" or "essential" | |||
| Amharic | አስፈላጊ | ||
| አስፈላጊ derives from the verb ፍለጋ (to examine, inspect) and thus implies not only necessity but also a degree of scrutiny. | |||
| Hausa | mahimmanci | ||
| **mahi** ('life, wellspring, being')+**man**('one, only, alone, single, unique'). | |||
| Igbo | dị mkpa | ||
| In Igbo, 'dị mkpa' means 'essential,' but a literal translation would be 'to be in need'. | |||
| Malagasy | tena ilaina | ||
| "Tena ilaina" is also used to refer to something that is very important or necessary. | |||
| Nyanja (Chichewa) | zofunika | ||
| Zofunika derives from the word "funika" meaning "to tie" and originally meant "what is tied together" | |||
| Shona | zvakakosha | ||
| Zvakakosha can also mean 'difficult' or 'complex'. | |||
| Somali | muhiim ah | ||
| The Somali word "muhiim ah" also means "that which cannot be avoided". | |||
| Sesotho | bohlokwa | ||
| The word "bohlokwa" can also refer to a person who is knowledgeable and wise. | |||
| Swahili | muhimu | ||
| The Swahili word "muhimu" is derived from the Arabic word "muhīm", meaning "important" or "urgent". | |||
| Xhosa | ibalulekile | ||
| The word "ibalulekile" can also mean "complete" or "whole" in Xhosa. | |||
| Yoruba | awọn ibaraẹnisọrọ | ||
| The word 'awọn ibaraẹnisọrọ' is derived from the verb 'bara' meaning 'to cling' or 'to adhere to'. | |||
| Zulu | kubalulekile | ||
| "Kubalulekile" derives from the word "ubalo lulekile," meaning "a perfect life". It's also related to "ububululu," or "importance". | |||
| Bambara | fanba | ||
| Ewe | si hiã | ||
| Kinyarwanda | ngombwa | ||
| Lingala | ya ntina | ||
| Luganda | akatalekeka | ||
| Sepedi | bohlokwa | ||
| Twi (Akan) | hia | ||
Essential in North African & Middle Eastern Languages
| Arabic | أساسى | ||
| "أساسى" is also derived from "أَسسَ," meaning "to found/establish" and hence carries the notion of importance and foundational qualities. | |||
| Hebrew | חִיוּנִי | ||
| The Hebrew word "חִיוּנִי" can also mean "living", with the two meanings possibly stemming from a common root meaning "life or liveliness." | |||
| Pashto | اړین | ||
| The word "اړین" can also mean "necessary", "requisite", or "indispensable" depending on the context. | |||
| Arabic | أساسى | ||
| "أساسى" is also derived from "أَسسَ," meaning "to found/establish" and hence carries the notion of importance and foundational qualities. | |||
Essential in Western European Languages
| Albanian | thelbësore | ||
| Thelbësore is derived from the Albanian word thelb, meaning 'desire' or 'need'. | |||
| Basque | ezinbestekoa | ||
| The word “ezinbestekoa” is composed of the negative particle “ezin” (not) and “bestekoa” (different), meaning literally “not other” and thus “unique” or “essential”. | |||
| Catalan | essencial | ||
| Catalan "essencial" (essential) derives from the Latin word "esse", meaning "to be" and connoting the fundamental or necessary nature of something. | |||
| Croatian | bitno | ||
| The etymology of the Croatian word 'bitno' may be connected to the Proto-Indo-European root *bheid-, meaning to divide or separate. | |||
| Danish | vigtig | ||
| In Swedish and Norwegian, 'viktig' means 'important', while in Danish it means 'essential'. | |||
| Dutch | essentieel | ||
| In Dutch, "essentieel" can also refer to a type of flower known as "marigold". | |||
| English | essential | ||
| The word "essential" derives from the Latin verb "esse," meaning "to be" or "to exist." | |||
| French | essentiel | ||
| In French, the word "essentiel" also means "being" or "substance". | |||
| Frisian | wêzentlik | ||
| The Frisian word "wêzentlik" not only means "essential" but also "the presence of something that is not physically present"} | |||
| Galician | esencial | ||
| In Galician, "esencial" can also mean "elementary" or "basic" | |||
| German | wesentlich | ||
| The German word "wesentlich" has the additional meaning of "substantial" or "material" which is lost in translation to "essential". | |||
| Icelandic | ómissandi | ||
| "Ómissandi" can also refer to something "that is omitted" or "that has been omitted". | |||
| Irish | riachtanach | ||
| "Riachtanach" comes from the Proto-Celtic word "*rikto-s" meaning "right," and is cognate with the Latin word "rectus" meaning "straight." | |||
| Italian | essenziale | ||
| The Italian word 'essenziale' also has a meaning related to the perfume industry. | |||
| Luxembourgish | essentiel | ||
| In Luxembourgish, "essentiell" means "essential" but also "essence" or "crux" of something. | |||
| Maltese | essenzjali | ||
| The word "essenzjali" is derived from the Latin word "essentia", meaning "essence" or "being". | |||
| Norwegian | viktig | ||
| The Norwegian word "viktig", meaning "essential" or "important," is derived from the Old Norse word "vikja," meaning "to turn" or "to change." | |||
| Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) | essencial | ||
| The word "essencial" is derived from the Latin "essentia" (essence), and in Portuguese, it can also mean "fundamental" or "indispensable." | |||
| Scots Gaelic | riatanach | ||
| Riatanach derives from the Proto-Indo-European root *rei-, meaning 'to flow, run, rush', and cognate forms can be seen in Greek ῥέω (rheō) and Latin rivus. | |||
| Spanish | esencial | ||
| The Spanish word "esencial" also means "basic" or "indispensable". | |||
| Swedish | grundläggande | ||
| The word grundläggande, meaning foundational, derives from the Proto-Germanic word grundu, meaning "ground" | |||
| Welsh | hanfodol | ||
| The word "hanfodol" in Welsh can also mean "pertinent" or "important" | |||
Essential in Eastern European Languages
| Belarusian | істотнае | ||
| The word "істотнае" in Belarusian is derived from the Indo-European root *wes- "to dwell" and originally meant "having life". It also has the meaning of "main" in this language. | |||
| Bosnian | bitno | ||
| In the idiom 'bitno kao no kat' ('essential like the nose on your face'), the word 'no' (nose) comes from the same root as 'znati' (to know), suggesting that knowledge and understanding are considered essential parts of our being. | |||
| Bulgarian | от съществено значение | ||
| "От съществено значение" can also mean "essential in terms of existence" or "basic." | |||
| Czech | nezbytný | ||
| The word "nezbytný" in Czech is derived from the Proto-Slavic root *net- denoting "without", and thus originally meant "that cannot be without", i.e. "necessary". | |||
| Estonian | hädavajalik | ||
| The word "hädavajalik" is derived from the Finnic word "hätä" meaning "need" or "distress". | |||
| Finnish | välttämätöntä | ||
| The Finnish word "välttämätöntä" originates from the word "välttää", which means "to avoid" or "to escape." | |||
| Hungarian | alapvető | ||
| The Hungarian word "alapvető" is derived from the word "alap", meaning "base" or "foundation". | |||
| Latvian | būtiska | ||
| Latvian "būtiska" (essential) is derived from Slavic "быти" (to be), and also means "existing" or "real" in modern usage. | |||
| Lithuanian | esminis | ||
| The Lithuanian word "esminis" comes from the Latin word "esse", meaning "to be". | |||
| Macedonian | суштински | ||
| ''Суштински'' derives from the word ''суштина'' (''sushina''), i.e. ''essence''. | |||
| Polish | kluczowy | ||
| The word "kluczowy" in Polish originates from the word "klucz" (key), likely due to its metaphorical meaning of "being indispensable". | |||
| Romanian | esenţial | ||
| The word "esenţial" originates from the Latin "essentia" and also means "essence" or "substance" in Romanian. | |||
| Russian | существенный | ||
| In Russian, "существенный" can also mean "significant" or "material". | |||
| Serbian | суштински | ||
| In Serbian, "суштински" also has a metaphysical definition of "belonging to the essence of a thing". | |||
| Slovak | nevyhnutné | ||
| 'Nevyhnutné' ('essential' in Slovak) is a negated form of 'vyhnúť sa' ('to avoid'), thus originally meaning 'that cannot be avoided'. | |||
| Slovenian | bistvenega pomena | ||
| The word 'bistvenega pomena' literally translates as 'core of meaning' in the Slovene language. | |||
| Ukrainian | суттєвий | ||
| The word "суттєвий" in Ukrainian also means "important" or "significant". | |||
Essential in South Asian Languages
| Bengali | অপরিহার্য | ||
| "অপরিহার্য" originates from Sanskrit "apariharya", which also means "unavoidable, inevitable". | |||
| Gujarati | આવશ્યક | ||
| The word 'આવશ્યક' (essential) comes from the Sanskrit word 'आवश्यक', which means 'necessary', 'indispensable', or 'requisite'. | |||
| Hindi | आवश्यक | ||
| आवश्यक (essential) also means "needful" or "requisite", and is related to the word "आवश्य" (certainly). | |||
| Kannada | ಅಗತ್ಯ | ||
| In modern Kannada "ಅಗತ್ಯ" also means a necessity, a need, and a requirement. | |||
| Malayalam | അത്യാവശ്യമാണ് | ||
| Marathi | आवश्यक | ||
| The word "आवश्यक" originates from "अवश्य" (necessity) and its root "वश्" (power) indicating something that has the inherent power to be necessary. | |||
| Nepali | आवश्यक | ||
| The word 'आवश्यक' is most likely derived from 'आवष्यक' which means 'sufficient or necessary'. | |||
| Punjabi | ਜ਼ਰੂਰੀ | ||
| The word comes from the Persian loanword 'zarur', meaning 'urgent or essential' in its original language. | |||
| Sinhala (Sinhalese) | අත්යවශ්යයි | ||
| Tamil | அவசியம் | ||
| Telugu | అవసరం | ||
| The word "అవసరం" is derived from the Sanskrit word "अवश्य" meaning "necessary, indispensable". In Telugu, it also has meanings such as "use, need, want, requirement". | |||
| Urdu | ضروری | ||
| The word "ضروری" can also mean "inevitable" or "unavoidable". | |||
Essential in East Asian Languages
| Chinese (Simplified) | 必要 | ||
| The character "必" originally meant "must," "inevitable," or "certainly". | |||
| Chinese (Traditional) | 必要 | ||
| In addition to "essential", the word "必要" can also mean "necessity" or "requirement". | |||
| Japanese | エッセンシャル | ||
| In Japanese, エッセンシャル (essensharu) can also refer to an aromatic oil used in traditional Japanese incense. | |||
| Korean | 본질적인 | ||
| 본질적인 is the native Korean word for 'essential', but it can also mean 'original', 'basic', or 'fundamental'. | |||
| Mongolian | чухал | ||
| The verb "чухал" can also mean "to rub" or "to scratch". | |||
| Myanmar (Burmese) | မရှိမဖြစ်လိုအပ်သည် | ||
Essential in South East Asian Languages
| Indonesian | penting | ||
| "Penting" originally meant "important" or "necessary" in Old Javanese. Indonesian adopted the word and expanded its meaning to include "essential". | |||
| Javanese | penting | ||
| The word "penting" in Javanese derives from the Proto-Austronesian term for "breath of life". | |||
| Khmer | ចាំបាច់ | ||
| The term "ចាំបាច់" is also used in some contexts to describe something as "necessary" or "urgent". | |||
| Lao | ຈຳ ເປັນ | ||
| Malay | penting | ||
| Penting can also mean 'to matter' or 'to be important'. | |||
| Thai | จำเป็น | ||
| จำเป็น (chām pen) is derived from the Pali word "chapen" meaning "urgent" or "immediate". Therefore, it can also mean "urgently". | |||
| Vietnamese | thiết yếu | ||
| The word "Thiết yếu" can also mean "vital" or "indispensable" in Vietnamese. | |||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | mahalaga | ||
Essential in Central Asian Languages
| Azerbaijani | vacibdir | ||
| The word "vacibdir" in Azerbaijani is derived from the Arabic word "wajib", meaning "obligatory" or "necessary." | |||
| Kazakh | маңызды | ||
| The word "маңызды" (essential) in Kazakh originates from the Persian word "مانید" (meaning) or "معنوی" (spiritual). | |||
| Kyrgyz | маанилүү | ||
| The Kyrgyz word "маанилүү" is derived from the Old Turkic word "maŋuŋ" meaning "constant". | |||
| Tajik | муҳим | ||
| In Tajiki, "муҳим" can also refer to "essential oil" or "importance". | |||
| Turkmen | zerurdyr | ||
| Uzbek | muhim | ||
| The word "muhim" is derived from the Arabic word "muheem", meaning "important" or "urgent." | |||
| Uyghur | زۆرۈر | ||
Essential in Pacific Languages
| Hawaiian | pono | ||
| Pono is also the Hawaiian word for justice, righteousness, morality, and duty. | |||
| Maori | tino | ||
| "Tino" can also mean "fat" or "greasy" in Maori. | |||
| Samoan | taua | ||
| In Samoan, 'taua' can also mean 'war' or 'battle', or refer to a person who is a warrior or fighter. | |||
| Tagalog (Filipino) | mahalaga | ||
| "Mahalaga" originates from the root word "mahal" meaning "expensive" or "precious," emphasizing the value or importance of something essential. | |||
Essential in American Indigenous Languages
| Aymara | wasiku | ||
| Guarani | oñeikotevẽva | ||
Essential in International Languages
| Esperanto | esenca | ||
| The Esperanto word "esenca" ultimately derives from the Latin "esse," meaning "to be," and shares a root with the English word "essence." | |||
| Latin | essential | ||
| The Latin word "essentia" comes from the verb "esse," meaning "to be," and refers to the core nature or substance of something. | |||
Essential in Others Languages
| Greek | ουσιώδης | ||
| "Ουσιώδης" in Greek also means "of substance, material". | |||
| Hmong | qhov tseem ceeb | ||
| Kurdish | pêwist | ||
| The word 'pêwist' is commonly used to describe something essential while it also refers specifically a foundation, basis or core of a structure or entity in the Kurdish language. | |||
| Turkish | önemli | ||
| The word "önemli" also means "important" in Turkish, and comes from the Arabic word "wajib", meaning "obligatory". | |||
| Xhosa | ibalulekile | ||
| The word "ibalulekile" can also mean "complete" or "whole" in Xhosa. | |||
| Yiddish | יקערדיק | ||
| Yiddish "יקערדיק" (yikerdick) derives from “core, pith” and ultimately from Middle Dutch "kern". | |||
| Zulu | kubalulekile | ||
| "Kubalulekile" derives from the word "ubalo lulekile," meaning "a perfect life". It's also related to "ububululu," or "importance". | |||
| Assamese | আৱশ্যকীয় | ||
| Aymara | wasiku | ||
| Bhojpuri | जरूरी | ||
| Dhivehi | މުހިންމު | ||
| Dogri | जरूरी | ||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | mahalaga | ||
| Guarani | oñeikotevẽva | ||
| Ilocano | napateg | ||
| Krio | impɔtant | ||
| Kurdish (Sorani) | گرنگ | ||
| Maithili | जरूरी | ||
| Meiteilon (Manipuri) | ꯇꯉꯥꯏ ꯐꯗꯕ | ||
| Mizo | tul | ||
| Oromo | murteessaa | ||
| Odia (Oriya) | ଜରୁରୀ | | ||
| Quechua | kaqpuni | ||
| Sanskrit | अनिवार्यम् | ||
| Tatar | мөһим | ||
| Tigrinya | ኣገዳሲ | ||
| Tsonga | nkoka | ||