Afrikaans verduidelik | ||
Albanian shpjegoj | ||
Amharic ያብራሩ | ||
Arabic يشرح | ||
Armenian բացատրել | ||
Assamese ব্যাখ্যা কৰা | ||
Aymara qhananchaña | ||
Azerbaijani izah et | ||
Bambara ka ɲɛfɔ | ||
Basque azaldu | ||
Belarusian растлумачыць | ||
Bengali ব্যাখ্যা করা | ||
Bhojpuri बिस्तार से बतावल | ||
Bosnian objasni | ||
Bulgarian обясни | ||
Catalan explicar | ||
Cebuano ipasabut | ||
Chinese (Simplified) 说明 | ||
Chinese (Traditional) 說明 | ||
Corsican spiegà | ||
Croatian objasniti | ||
Czech vysvětlit | ||
Danish forklare | ||
Dhivehi ދޭހަ ކޮށްދިނުން | ||
Dogri व्याख्या करना | ||
Dutch leg uit | ||
English explain | ||
Esperanto klarigi | ||
Estonian seletama | ||
Ewe ɖe eme | ||
Filipino (Tagalog) ipaliwanag | ||
Finnish selittää | ||
French explique | ||
Frisian ferklearje | ||
Galician explica | ||
Georgian ახსნა | ||
German erklären | ||
Greek εξηγώ | ||
Guarani myesakã | ||
Gujarati સમજાવો | ||
Haitian Creole eksplike | ||
Hausa bayyana | ||
Hawaiian wehewehe | ||
Hebrew להסביר | ||
Hindi समझाना | ||
Hmong piav qhia | ||
Hungarian magyarázza el | ||
Icelandic útskýra | ||
Igbo kọwaa | ||
Ilocano ilawlawag | ||
Indonesian menjelaskan | ||
Irish mínigh | ||
Italian spiegare | ||
Japanese 説明する | ||
Javanese nerangake | ||
Kannada ವಿವರಿಸಿ | ||
Kazakh түсіндіріңіз | ||
Khmer ពន្យល់ | ||
Kinyarwanda sobanura | ||
Konkani स्पश्ट करप | ||
Korean 설명 | ||
Krio ɛksplen | ||
Kurdish daxûyankirin | ||
Kurdish (Sorani) ڕوونکردنەوە | ||
Kyrgyz түшүндүрүү | ||
Lao ອະທິບາຍ | ||
Latin explicate | ||
Latvian paskaidrot | ||
Lingala kolimbola | ||
Lithuanian paaiškinti | ||
Luganda okuwoza | ||
Luxembourgish erklären | ||
Macedonian објасни | ||
Maithili वर्णन | ||
Malagasy hazavao | ||
Malay terangkan | ||
Malayalam വിശദീകരിക്കാൻ | ||
Maltese spjega | ||
Maori whakamārama | ||
Marathi स्पष्ट करणे | ||
Meiteilon (Manipuri) ꯁꯟꯗꯣꯛꯅ ꯇꯥꯛꯄ | ||
Mizo hrilhfiah | ||
Mongolian тайлбарлах | ||
Myanmar (Burmese) ရှင်းပြပါ | ||
Nepali बुझाउनुहोस् | ||
Norwegian forklare | ||
Nyanja (Chichewa) fotokozani | ||
Odia (Oriya) ବୁଝାଇବା | ||
Oromo ibsuu | ||
Pashto تشریح | ||
Persian توضیح | ||
Polish wyjaśnić | ||
Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) explicar | ||
Punjabi ਸਮਝਾਓ | ||
Quechua willay | ||
Romanian explica | ||
Russian объяснять | ||
Samoan faʻamatala | ||
Sanskrit व्याख्याति | ||
Scots Gaelic mìnich | ||
Sepedi hlaloša | ||
Serbian објасни | ||
Sesotho hlalosa | ||
Shona tsanangura | ||
Sindhi وضاحت ڪريو | ||
Sinhala (Sinhalese) පැහැදිලි කරන්න | ||
Slovak vysvetliť | ||
Slovenian razloži | ||
Somali sharax | ||
Spanish explique | ||
Sundanese ngajelaskeun | ||
Swahili eleza | ||
Swedish förklara | ||
Tagalog (Filipino) ipaliwanag | ||
Tajik шарҳ диҳед | ||
Tamil விளக்க | ||
Tatar аңлату | ||
Telugu వివరించండి | ||
Thai อธิบาย | ||
Tigrinya ግለፅ | ||
Tsonga hlamusela | ||
Turkish açıklamak | ||
Turkmen düşündir | ||
Twi (Akan) kyerɛ mu | ||
Ukrainian пояснити | ||
Urdu وضاحت | ||
Uyghur چۈشەندۈرۈڭ | ||
Uzbek tushuntiring | ||
Vietnamese giải thích | ||
Welsh esboniwch | ||
Xhosa cacisa | ||
Yiddish דערקלערן | ||
Yoruba ṣalaye | ||
Zulu chaza |
| Language | Etymology / Notes |
|---|---|
| Afrikaans | "Verduidelik" is derived from the Dutch "verduidelijken", which in turn comes from the Latin "clarus" (clear). |
| Albanian | The word 'shpjegoj' in Albanian is thought to have originated from the Proto-Albanian word '*shpjegoja', which meant 'to unfold' or 'to reveal'. |
| Amharic | "ያብራሩ" can have the alternate meaning of "to tell". |
| Arabic | The verb "يشرح" in Arabic also carries the connotation of "dissecting" or performing an autopsy. |
| Armenian | The word 'բացատրել' is derived from the Proto-Indo-European root '*bʰak-', meaning 'to divide', and is related to the English word 'back' |
| Azerbaijani | "Izah et" means "explain" in Azerbaijani. It comes from the Arabic word "izah", which means "explanation" or "clarification". The word "et" is a suffix that means "to do" or "to make". |
| Basque | Basque verb “azaldu” comes from Latin verb “explicare” (unfold) and its etymology has to do with the action of opening a door or window, and in general to show something hidden. |
| Bengali | ব্যাখ্যা করা has an alternate meaning of "to give a reason for". |
| Bosnian | The word 'objasni' in Bosnian comes from the root 'objasniti', which also means 'to interpret' or 'to elucidate'. |
| Bulgarian | "Объясни" comes from the root "ясни" which means "bright" or "clear", and also relates to the word "утро" (morning). |
| Catalan | The word "explicar" can mean "explain", "unfold" or "deploy" in a military sense |
| Cebuano | The word "ipasabut" is derived from the Proto-Austronesian word *pasa but, which also means "to convey". |
| Chinese (Simplified) | 说明 (Simplified Chinese) can also mean `indicate`, `imply`, `state`, or `illustrate`. |
| Chinese (Traditional) | 說明 as a verb translates to "explain" in English, but as a noun can mean "a pamphlet" or "a manual" |
| Corsican | The Corsican word "spiegà" derives from the Italian word "spiegare", and ultimately from the Latin word "explicare", which means "to unfold or unroll". |
| Croatian | The verb is originally derived from the word 'jasan' (meaning 'clear, obvious'). |
| Czech | "Vysvětlit" is a derivative of "světlo" (light) and the prefix "vy" (out from), so it originally meant "to lead out into the light". |
| Danish | The Danish word "forklare" (meaning "to explain" or "to clarify") comes from the Low German "vorcleren" (meaning "to inform" or "to explain"). |
| Dutch | "Leg uit" is an idiom that means "explain," but it literally means "put down your leg." |
| Esperanto | The word "klarigi" is derived from the Latin word "clarus" meaning "clear" or "bright". |
| Estonian | The word "seletama" is derived from the Proto-Finnic word *selittämE, which means "to clear, to make clear, to explain". |
| Finnish | The Finnish word "selittää" comes from the Proto-Uralic word *selj-, which also meant "to clear" or "to make open." |
| French | "Explique" in French can refer to a large piece of fabric that is used to hang on a boat's yard or from an anchor to the ship's bow |
| Frisian | In its earliest written forms in the 1560s, it meant "to declare, to reveal, to expose". |
| Galician | The Galician word 'explica' also means 'unfold' or 'develop', which reflects its Latin root 'explicare', meaning 'to spread out'. |
| Georgian | The word "ახსნა" can also mean "to interpret" or "to translate" in Georgian. |
| German | The word "erklären" is derived from the Middle High German "erclæren," meaning "to make clear" or "to interpret," and is related to the Latin "clarus," meaning "clear" or "bright." |
| Greek | Εξηγώ is derived from the prefix 'εκ-' (out-) and the verb 'ηγέομαι' (to lead), thus meaning to lead someone out of a state of uncertainty or confusion. |
| Gujarati | The word “સમજાવો” (“explain”) is derived from the Sanskrit word “vi-smṛ-j,” which means “to cause to remember.” |
| Haitian Creole | The word "eksplike" comes from the French word "expliquer". |
| Hausa | The word "bayyana" can also mean "to clarify," "to make clear," or "to shed light on" in Hausa. |
| Hawaiian | "Wehewehe" can also mean "description" or "interpretation" in Hawaiian. |
| Hebrew | In Arabic, "lashahara" means "to brighten", which is a possible root for "להסביר" in Hebrew. |
| Hindi | The word "समझाना" derives from the Sanskrit verb "smṛ" (to remember) and connotes the act of helping someone to recall or understand something. |
| Hmong | It is often used in the context of "explain" or "make clear to someone". |
| Hungarian | The verb 'magyarázza el' comes from the Latin word 'explanare' and also has the meaning 'make clear' or 'unfold'. |
| Icelandic | The Icelandic word "útskýra" derives from the Old Norse word "út-skíra", meaning "to set apart" or "to make clear". |
| Igbo | The noun form, akowa, is sometimes used figuratively for 'excuse', 'justification'. |
| Indonesian | The term "menjelaskan" also carries an additional sense of "to provide reasons" or "to provide a cause of something", akin to the French "expliquer" (which comes from "ex + plicare") or Latin "explicare" (from "ex + plicare"). |
| Irish | The term 'mínigh' originally referred to 'illuminating', with the meaning of 'to explicate' developing later. |
| Italian | “Spiegare” is also used idiomatically to mean “to set out on a journey” as well as “to break” (in the sense of “to break wind”). |
| Japanese | "説明する" combines the kanji 「解」 (to loosen) with 「明」 (bright) and 「示」 (show) and literally means to loosen the knots of darkness of uncertainty and then to show things brightly and clearly. |
| Javanese | The word "nerangake" in Javanese comes from the root word "terang" meaning "light" and the suffix "-ake" which means "to make", suggesting the idea of bringing light or clarity to a subject. |
| Kannada | "ವಿವರಿಸಿ" (explain) is derived from the Sanskrit word "विवृति" (vivṛti), meaning "an unfolding, a disclosure, or an explanation". Additionally, it can also mean "to make clear, elucidate, or interpret" in other contexts. |
| Khmer | Originally a noun of Sanskrit origin meaning “proof, evidence, example” that now functions as a transitive verb |
| Korean | 설명 means not only “explain” but also “describe” or “interpret.” |
| Kurdish | The Kurdish word "daxûyankirin" can also mean "to clarify" or "to elucidate." |
| Lao | The word “ອະທິບາຍ” (explain) in Lao is derived from the Pali word “aṭṭhapana,” which means to “make clear or manifest.” |
| Latin | The Latin word "explicate" derives from "explicare", meaning "to unfold" or "to open up". |
| Latvian | "Paskaidrot" is thought to have originated from the German "aufklären" (to illuminate, to explain). |
| Lithuanian | The word "paaiškinti" can also mean "to demonstrate" or "to illustrate" in Lithuanian. |
| Luxembourgish | In Luxembourgish, "erklären" can also mean to make clear or to clarify. |
| Macedonian | The word "објасни" is also used to mean "to clarify" or "to make clear". |
| Malagasy | "Hazavao" can also mean "to open up" or "to open a way for" something |
| Malay | "Terangkan" can also mean 'to enlighten' or 'to illuminate' in Malay. |
| Maltese | The word "spjega" in Maltese is derived from the Italian word "spiegare", which also means "to explain". |
| Maori | The word "whakamārama" can also mean "to illuminate" or "to make clear". |
| Marathi | The term 'स्पष्ट करणे' is also used for 'make clear or understandable' |
| Mongolian | In Mongolian, the word 'тайлбарлах' is derived from the word 'тайлбар' ('meaning, explanation'), which in turn is derived from the verb 'тэйлбэrlэх' ('to cut, to trim'), implying the act of separating or clarifying something. |
| Nepali | The word "बुझाउनुहोस्" can also mean "to extinguish" or "to calm down" in Nepali. |
| Norwegian | Forklare comes from Old Norse forklāra meaning "make clear, show, prove". |
| Nyanja (Chichewa) | The word "fotokozani" can also mean "to reveal" or "to announce" in Nyanja. |
| Pashto | The word "تشریح" is derived from the Arabic word "شرح", meaning "to explain" or "to clarify." |
| Persian | The word "توضیح" is derived from the Arabic root "ض ح ح" (pronounced "da-ha-ha"), which means "to make clear" or "to elucidate". |
| Polish | "Wyjaśnić" originates from the Old Polish verb "wyjać", meaning "to utter, to speak, to tell". |
| Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) | In Portuguese, "explicar" holds the secondary meaning "to be clear or evident". |
| Punjabi | The word "ਸਮਝਾਓ" in Punjabi is also used to mean "to give reasons for" or "to account for something" |
| Romanian | In Romanian, "explica" means not only "explain" but also "unfold," like a map. |
| Russian | The verb "объяснять" is derived from the Old Church Slavonic word "въсняти", meaning "to make clear" or "to clarify". |
| Samoan | Fa'amatala is also used to describe a traditional Samoan dance that narrates a story through movement and gestures. |
| Scots Gaelic | The Scots Gaelic word "mìnich" can also mean "demonstrate" or "show to someone" |
| Serbian | "Objasni" is the imperative second person singular form of "objasniti", which comes from the Proto-Slavic root *ob-jasniti, meaning "to make clear or light". |
| Sesotho | The Sesotho word "hlalosa" also means "to make known" or "to give an account of". |
| Shona | "Tsanangura" shares the same root with "tsananguro" (explanation) which came from the Proto-Bantu word *-sanangura- which also meant "explain". |
| Slovak | The word "vysvetliť" derives from the Old Church Slavonic verb "vŭsŭvetŭliti", meaning "to make clear, to show, to interpret." |
| Slovenian | The word 'razložiti' in Slovene also means 'to unfold' or 'to spread out'. This shows its close connection to the concept of 'explaining', as 'explaining' often involves 'unfolding' or 'spreading out' the meaning of something. |
| Somali | Sharax is derived from the root word "shar", meaning "to open" or "to make clear". |
| Spanish | "Explique" derives from the Latin "explicare" meaning "to unfold" or "to make clear." |
| Sundanese | The word "ngajelaskeun" in Sundanese can also mean "to clarify" or "to make clear". |
| Swahili | The word "eleza" also means "to describe" or "to tell a story". |
| Swedish | Förr betydde 'att förklara' att göra tydligt eller förklarligt. |
| Tagalog (Filipino) | The word "ipaliwanag" in Tagalog (Filipino) comes from the root word "liwanag" meaning "light" or "brightness", suggesting that explaining something is like shedding light on it to make it clearer. |
| Tajik | The word "шарҳ диҳед" in Tajik is derived from the Persian "شرح دهید" and has the alternate meaning of "to interpret or comment upon". |
| Tamil | The Tamil word "விளக்க" can also refer to a lamp or a light, reflecting its role in illuminating and clarifying. |
| Thai | "อธิบาย" is an archaic form of "อภิปราย" meaning to converse or discuss. |
| Turkish | The word "açıklamak" in Turkish also means "to open" and "to clarify". |
| Ukrainian | "Пояснити" originated from the Old Church Slavonic word "пояснити", meaning "to make clear, to elucidate." |
| Urdu | The word "وضاحت" originally meant "light" or "brightness" in Arabic. |
| Uzbek | The word "tushuntiring" in Uzbek also means "to make something clear or understandable". |
| Vietnamese | "Giải thích" can also mean "to apologize" or "to excuse". |
| Welsh | The word "esboniwch" is a compound of the Welsh words "esbon" ("to speak") and "iwch" ("purpose"), suggesting its primary meaning is "to speak with purpose or intent." |
| Xhosa | The word cacisa can also refer to a detailed description or a piece of information that helps someone understand a situation. |
| Yiddish | דערקלערן can also mean to 'make clear,' 'declare,' or 'interpret'. |
| Yoruba | Ṣalaye has meanings ranging from explaining to clarifying a situation, to revealing a secret. |
| Zulu | The word "chaza" also means "to tell", "to inform", and "to warn" in Zulu. |
| English | The word 'explain' derives from the Latin word 'explanare', meaning to make level or clear. |