Function in Different Languages
Discover 'Function' in 134 Languages: Dive into Translations, Hear Pronunciations, and Uncover Cultural Insights.
Updated on March 6, 2024
The word 'function' holds a significant place in our vocabulary, encompassing a variety of meanings that are integral to many aspects of our lives. At its core, 'function' refers to the action or task that a person, thing, or system performs. This concept is so fundamental that it has been translated into countless languages, reflecting its cultural importance across the globe.
Throughout history, the idea of function has been a driving force behind numerous innovations and discoveries. From the mathematical concept of a function as a relation between a set of inputs and a set of permissible outputs, to the philosophical notion of function as the purpose or role of an entity, this word has shaped our understanding of the world in profound ways.
Given its wide-ranging significance, it's no wonder that someone might want to know the translation of 'function' in different languages. Whether you're a student of linguistics, a global citizen looking to expand your vocabulary, or a professional seeking to communicate across cultures, understanding the nuances of this word in various languages can be a powerful tool.
Here are just a few examples of how 'function' translates in some of the world's most widely spoken languages:
Function
Function in Sub-Saharan African Languages
| Afrikaans | funksie | ||
| The Afrikaans word "funksie" is also used to refer to a social gathering, derived from its Dutch root ‘functie’ meaning ‘performance’. | |||
| Amharic | ተግባር | ||
| The word "ተግባር" can also refer to a job or occupation. | |||
| Hausa | aiki | ||
| The word "aiki" in Hausa also means "work" or "business." | |||
| Igbo | ọrụ | ||
| It is also used to refer to the gathering of a group of people for a common purpose | |||
| Malagasy | asa | ||
| The word 'asa' in Malagasy can also mean 'use', 'purpose', or 'role'. | |||
| Nyanja (Chichewa) | ntchito | ||
| "Ntchito" also refers to a type of traditional dance in Malawi. | |||
| Shona | basa | ||
| "Basa" can also mean "to ask"} | |||
| Somali | shaqo | ||
| The word shaqo also means "work" or "occupation" in Somali. | |||
| Sesotho | mosebetsi | ||
| Swahili | kazi | ||
| The Swahili word "kazi" can also refer to a job or task. | |||
| Xhosa | umsebenzi | ||
| The word "umsebenzi" can also refer to a job, task, or duty. | |||
| Yoruba | iṣẹ | ||
| "Ìṣẹ́" does not only refer to "work' or "function," but also has a deep spiritual significance, representing one's life purpose and destiny. | |||
| Zulu | umsebenzi | ||
| The Zulu word "umsebenzi" can also mean "a task" or "a duty." | |||
| Bambara | baarakunda | ||
| Ewe | wᴐ dᴐ | ||
| Kinyarwanda | imikorere | ||
| Lingala | mosala | ||
| Luganda | enkola | ||
| Sepedi | mošomo | ||
| Twi (Akan) | dwumadie | ||
Function in North African & Middle Eastern Languages
| Arabic | وظيفة | ||
| The word "وظيفة" in Arabic can also mean "position," "office," or "role." | |||
| Hebrew | פוּנקצִיָה | ||
| The word פוּנקצִיָה derives from the Latin word functio, meaning "discharge" or "performance," as in a performance of a duty. | |||
| Pashto | فعالیت | ||
| The Pashto word "فعالیت" also means "action" or "deed." | |||
| Arabic | وظيفة | ||
| The word "وظيفة" in Arabic can also mean "position," "office," or "role." | |||
Function in Western European Languages
| Albanian | funksioni | ||
| The Albanian word "funksioni" derives from the Latin "functio," meaning "performance" or "accomplishment." | |||
| Basque | funtzioa | ||
| In Basque, "funtzioa" originally meant "employment" or "duty", but it has come to mean "function" in the mathematical sense. | |||
| Catalan | funció | ||
| In Catalan, the word "funció" also means "performance" or "show". | |||
| Croatian | funkcija | ||
| The term funkcija can refer to various forms in the musical sense such as rhythm, harmony and structure. | |||
| Danish | fungere | ||
| The Danish word "fungere" ultimately derives from the Latin word "fungi" and can also mean "to act" or "to carry out a task." | |||
| Dutch | functie | ||
| In Dutch, "functie" can also mean "role", "job", or "department". | |||
| English | function | ||
| The word "function" shares its Latin root with the word "fashion" due to its meaning of "carry out." | |||
| French | fonction | ||
| French "fonction" also means "ceremony" - e.g. "la fonction a été annulée à cause de la pluie". | |||
| Frisian | funksje | ||
| The word "funksje" derives from the Latin word "functio", but it also has the alternate meaning of "profession". | |||
| Galician | función | ||
| The word "función" has multiple meanings in Galician, including "office" or "task". | |||
| German | funktion | ||
| The word "Funktion" derives from the Latin "functio", meaning "performance" or "fulfillment." | |||
| Icelandic | virka | ||
| Icelandic "virka" also means "to knit". | |||
| Irish | feidhm | ||
| Etymology: 'Feidhm': from Proto-Celtic *weyd-, meaning 'to go, to work' | |||
| Italian | funzione | ||
| The word "funzione" derives from the Latin "functio," meaning "performance" or "fulfillment," and has alternate meanings such as "role" or "purpose. | |||
| Luxembourgish | funktioun | ||
| Maltese | funzjoni | ||
| The word "funzjoni" originates from the Latin word "functio" meaning "performance" or "execution." | |||
| Norwegian | funksjon | ||
| In its original sense, 'funksjon' referred to a person's official position or profession. | |||
| Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) | função | ||
| The word "função" in Portuguese is derived from the Latin "functio," meaning "performance" or "execution." | |||
| Scots Gaelic | gnìomh | ||
| The word "gnìomh" can also mean "deed" or "action" in Scots Gaelic. | |||
| Spanish | función | ||
| The Spanish word "función" also means "role", "duty", or "performance", and derives from the Latin "functio", meaning "accomplishment" or "execution." | |||
| Swedish | fungera | ||
| The word 'fungera' derives from the same root as 'function' in English, and also carries the meanings of 'work' or 'behave' in Swedish. | |||
| Welsh | swyddogaeth | ||
| Swydogaeth can also mean 'duty' or 'office', derived from the word 'swydd' meaning 'work' or 'position'. | |||
Function in Eastern European Languages
| Belarusian | функцыя | ||
| The word "функцыя" comes from the Latin word "functio", meaning "performance" or "duty". | |||
| Bosnian | funkcija | ||
| Bosnian "funkcija" also denotes a special occasion, event or a social gathering. | |||
| Bulgarian | функция | ||
| Bulgarian "функция" can also mean "duty" or "purpose," while the related word "функционер" can mean "an official" or "a functionary." | |||
| Czech | funkce | ||
| Czech "funkce" shares roots with Latin "functor" and Greek "funktio", describing roles or duties. | |||
| Estonian | funktsioon | ||
| "Funktsion" on laenatud inglise keelest ning tähendab muusikasugupuu või stiili ja matemaatikavaldkonnas suhet, mis seab ühe parameetri vastavusse teisega. | |||
| Finnish | toiminto | ||
| The word "toiminto" (function) also means "activity" or "operation" in Finnish. | |||
| Hungarian | funkció | ||
| Funkció is a Hungarian word with several meanings, including function, role, and duty. | |||
| Latvian | funkciju | ||
| The Latvian word "funkcija" also has the alternate meaning of "duty". | |||
| Lithuanian | funkcija | ||
| In Lithuanian, "funkcija" can also mean "purpose" or "role." | |||
| Macedonian | функција | ||
| "Функција" originates from Latin "functio", meaning "fulfillment", a derivative of "fungor" ("fulfill, discharge"). Additionally, it designates "social duty, occupation, office" and "religious ceremony, divine service." | |||
| Polish | funkcjonować | ||
| The Polish word "funkcjonować" also has the meaning of "to work" and comes from the Latin word "functio" which means "performance". | |||
| Romanian | funcţie | ||
| The Romanian word "funcţie" comes from the Latin word "functio," which also means "performance" or "duty." | |||
| Russian | функция | ||
| The Russian word "функция" (function) can also refer to "purpose", "role" or "responsibility". | |||
| Serbian | функцију | ||
| Функцију, in Serbian, is also used to mean "the role or position of a person in society or an organization," as in "има важну функцију у фирми" ("he has an important role in the company"). | |||
| Slovak | funkcie | ||
| The word "funkcie" in Slovak comes from the Latin word "functio", meaning "performance" or "execution." | |||
| Slovenian | funkcijo | ||
| The word 'funkcijo' can also mean 'duty' or 'role' in Slovenian. | |||
| Ukrainian | функція | ||
| The Ukrainian word "функція" is derived from the Latin "functio", meaning "performance" or "duty". | |||
Function in South Asian Languages
| Bengali | ফাংশন | ||
| The word 'ফাংশন' ('function') in Bengali is derived from the Sanskrit 'functio', meaning 'performance, discharge of duty' | |||
| Gujarati | કાર્ય | ||
| The Gujarati word "કાર્ય" also means "purpose" or "activity." | |||
| Hindi | समारोह | ||
| The word 'समारोह' comes from the Sanskrit root 'सम्' meaning 'together' and 'आरभ' meaning 'to begin', implying a gathering or commencement. | |||
| Kannada | ಕಾರ್ಯ | ||
| The term "ಕಾರ್ಯ" is also used in the context of grammar to refer to the "subject" or "agent" within a sentence. | |||
| Malayalam | പ്രവർത്തനം | ||
| The word "pravartanam" derives from Sanskrit, meaning "movement" or "change", and has also been used in Malayalam to refer to "work" or "activity". | |||
| Marathi | कार्य | ||
| The word "कार्य" ("function") in Marathi can also mean "work". | |||
| Nepali | समारोह | ||
| The word समारोह in Nepali has its roots in the Sanskrit word "sama" meaning "together" and "aroha" meaning "ascend" or "rise", hence implying a gathering or assembly of people. | |||
| Punjabi | ਕਾਰਜ | ||
| ਕਾਰਜ (kāraj) also means 'work, business, duty, purpose, undertaking, affair, concern, occupation, task, mission, charge, commission, assignment, project, job, operation, process, procedure, ritual, ceremony, or observance'. | |||
| Sinhala (Sinhalese) | ශ්රිතය | ||
| ශ්රිතය shares its root with the term 'ශ්රී', meaning 'glory' or 'prosperity', and can also refer to 'a place' or 'a state'. | |||
| Tamil | செயல்பாடு | ||
| The term 'seylapadu' is also used in Tamil to describe an activity, action, performance, process, or service. | |||
| Telugu | ఫంక్షన్ | ||
| The word "ఫంక్షన్" ("function") is derived from Latin word "functio" and Old French word "fonction". It is also used in Mathematics and Computer Science to denote a relation that assigns to each element of a set a unique element of another set. | |||
| Urdu | تقریب | ||
| The word "تقریب" also means "approximation" or "estimation" in Urdu. | |||
Function in East Asian Languages
| Chinese (Simplified) | 功能 | ||
| The Chinese word "功能" has an additional meaning of "ability" or "skill", similar to the English word "function" in the phrase "function of the heart". | |||
| Chinese (Traditional) | 功能 | ||
| 功能 (Mandarin Chinese) was a Buddhist term meaning 'action', 'activity' (as an expression of merit), 'merit' (as a cause of rebirth), etc. | |||
| Japanese | 関数 | ||
| As "関す" means "to be connected with/involved in", "関数" originally meant a variable that is determined by another variable. | |||
| Korean | 함수 | ||
| "함수(function)" can also mean "duty" or "role" in Korean. | |||
| Mongolian | функц | ||
| The word "функц" (funktz) is derived from the Russian word "функция" (funktsiya), which in turn comes from the Latin word "functio" meaning "performance" or "duty". | |||
| Myanmar (Burmese) | function ကို | ||
| The word 'function' in Burmese can also refer to 'purpose' or 'usage'. | |||
Function in South East Asian Languages
| Indonesian | fungsi | ||
| In Indonesian, the word "fungsi" also refers to a social role or duty. | |||
| Javanese | fungsi | ||
| The Javanese word "fungsi" (function) is derived from Sanskrit and has the alternate meaning of "nature" or "form". | |||
| Khmer | មុខងារ | ||
| Lao | ໜ້າ ທີ່ | ||
| "ໜ້າທີ່" is a Lao word that originally meant "face" or "appearance" and came to mean "function" or "role" through semantic extension. | |||
| Malay | fungsi | ||
| The Malay word "fungsi" can also refer to a ceremony, event, or occasion, derived from the Sanskrit "vrtti" (conduct). | |||
| Thai | ฟังก์ชัน | ||
| The Thai word "ฟังก์ชัน" can also mean "role" or "duty". | |||
| Vietnamese | chức năng | ||
| The word "chức năng" originates from the Chinese word "職能" which also means "office duty". | |||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | function | ||
Function in Central Asian Languages
| Azerbaijani | funksiya | ||
| In Azeri, “funksiya” can mean “ceremony” and, in a derogatory tone, “pompous ritual” | |||
| Kazakh | функциясы | ||
| The word "функциясы" is derived from the Latin word "functio", meaning "performance" or "action". | |||
| Kyrgyz | функция | ||
| In Kyrgyz, "функция" (funktsiya) is also used to describe "a set of related activities or actions" or an "official role or position". | |||
| Tajik | функсия | ||
| The word "функция" is also used to refer to "duty" or "task" in Tajik. | |||
| Turkmen | funksiýasy | ||
| Uzbek | funktsiya | ||
| The word "funktsiya" is a homonym in Uzbek, also meaning "an act performed by an official" or "the responsibility of an organization or official." | |||
| Uyghur | function | ||
Function in Pacific Languages
| Hawaiian | hana | ||
| The word "hana" also refers to a "job" or "work". | |||
| Maori | mahi | ||
| "Mahi" in Maori can also refer to any kind of work or activity, such as gardening, cooking, or fishing. | |||
| Samoan | gaioiga | ||
| 'Gaioiga' also means 'work', 'duty', 'office', 'profession' or 'role'. | |||
| Tagalog (Filipino) | pagpapaandar | ||
| In Tagalog, "pagpapaandar" can also refer to the act of driving a vehicle or operating a machine. | |||
Function in American Indigenous Languages
| Aymara | phunsyuna | ||
| Guarani | hembiapo | ||
Function in International Languages
| Esperanto | funkcio | ||
| The Esperanto word "funkcio" can also mean "service" or "use". | |||
| Latin | officium | ||
| Officium, from the Latin word for "work", was used in a legal context to refer to one's duty to perform a task or role. | |||
Function in Others Languages
| Greek | λειτουργία | ||
| The word 'λειτουργία' also means 'service or duty' in Greek, and is cognate with the English word 'liturgy'. | |||
| Hmong | muaj nuj nqi | ||
| In Hmong, "muaj nuj nqi" can also refer to a ceremony or a ritual involving the calling of spirits or deities. | |||
| Kurdish | karî | ||
| The word "karî" also means "job" or "occupation" in Kurdish, and is related to the Persian word "kâr" meaning "work". | |||
| Turkish | işlevi | ||
| The word "işlevi" can also mean "role" or "purpose" in Turkish. | |||
| Xhosa | umsebenzi | ||
| The word "umsebenzi" can also refer to a job, task, or duty. | |||
| Yiddish | פונקציע | ||
| יiddish פונקציע is cognate with German Funktion, both ultimately deriving from Latin functio "performance, duty". | |||
| Zulu | umsebenzi | ||
| The Zulu word "umsebenzi" can also mean "a task" or "a duty." | |||
| Assamese | অনুষ্ঠান | ||
| Aymara | phunsyuna | ||
| Bhojpuri | परोजन | ||
| Dhivehi | ފަންކްޝަން | ||
| Dogri | फंक्शन | ||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | function | ||
| Guarani | hembiapo | ||
| Ilocano | amad | ||
| Krio | wok | ||
| Kurdish (Sorani) | کردار | ||
| Maithili | आयोजन | ||
| Meiteilon (Manipuri) | ꯃꯊꯧ | ||
| Mizo | thiltih | ||
| Oromo | faayidaa | ||
| Odia (Oriya) | କାର୍ଯ୍ୟ | ||
| Quechua | ruway | ||
| Sanskrit | नियोग | ||
| Tatar | функциясе | ||
| Tigrinya | ተግባር | ||
| Tsonga | ntirho | ||