Afrikaans meneer | ||
Albanian zotëri | ||
Amharic ጨዋ ሰው | ||
Arabic انسان محترم | ||
Armenian ջենտլմեն | ||
Assamese ভদ্ৰলোক | ||
Aymara señor chacha | ||
Azerbaijani bəy | ||
Bambara cɛkɔrɔba | ||
Basque jauna | ||
Belarusian спадар | ||
Bengali ভদ্রলোক | ||
Bhojpuri सज्जन के बा | ||
Bosnian gospodine | ||
Bulgarian господин | ||
Catalan senyor | ||
Cebuano ginoo | ||
Chinese (Simplified) 绅士 | ||
Chinese (Traditional) 紳士 | ||
Corsican signore | ||
Croatian gospodin | ||
Czech gentleman | ||
Danish gentleman | ||
Dhivehi ޖެންޓަލްމަން | ||
Dogri सज्जन जी | ||
Dutch heer | ||
English gentleman | ||
Esperanto sinjoro | ||
Estonian härra | ||
Ewe aƒetɔ | ||
Filipino (Tagalog) maginoo | ||
Finnish herrasmies | ||
French gentilhomme | ||
Frisian ealman | ||
Galician cabaleiro | ||
Georgian ჯენტლმენი | ||
German gentleman | ||
Greek κύριος | ||
Guarani karai | ||
Gujarati સજ્જન | ||
Haitian Creole mesye | ||
Hausa mutum | ||
Hawaiian keonimana | ||
Hebrew ג'ֶנטֶלמֶן | ||
Hindi सज्जन | ||
Hmong yawg moob | ||
Hungarian úriember | ||
Icelandic herra minn | ||
Igbo nwa amadi | ||
Ilocano gentleman nga lalaki | ||
Indonesian pria | ||
Irish a dhuine uasail | ||
Italian signore | ||
Japanese 紳士 | ||
Javanese purun | ||
Kannada ಸಂಭಾವಿತ | ||
Kazakh мырза | ||
Khmer សុភាពបុរស | ||
Kinyarwanda nyakubahwa | ||
Konkani सज्जन मनीस | ||
Korean 신사 | ||
Krio jentlman we de na di wɔl | ||
Kurdish birêz | ||
Kurdish (Sorani) بەڕێز | ||
Kyrgyz мырза | ||
Lao ສຸພາບບຸລຸດ | ||
Latin virum | ||
Latvian kungs | ||
Lingala monsieur moko | ||
Lithuanian ponas | ||
Luganda omwami | ||
Luxembourgish grondhär | ||
Macedonian господин | ||
Maithili सज्जन जी | ||
Malagasy rangahy | ||
Malay puan | ||
Malayalam മാന്യൻ | ||
Maltese gentleman | ||
Maori rangatira | ||
Marathi गृहस्थ | ||
Meiteilon (Manipuri) ꯃꯔꯨꯄꯁꯤꯡ꯫ | ||
Mizo mi fel tak a ni | ||
Mongolian эрхэм | ||
Myanmar (Burmese) လူကြီးလူကောင်း | ||
Nepali भद्र पुरुष | ||
Norwegian herre | ||
Nyanja (Chichewa) njonda | ||
Odia (Oriya) ଭଦ୍ରଲୋକ | ||
Oromo jaalallee | ||
Pashto ښاغلى | ||
Persian آقا | ||
Polish pan | ||
Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) cavalheiro | ||
Punjabi ਸੱਜਣ | ||
Quechua wiraqocha | ||
Romanian domn | ||
Russian джентльмен | ||
Samoan aliʻi | ||
Sanskrit सज्जन | ||
Scots Gaelic duine-uasal | ||
Sepedi mohlomphegi | ||
Serbian господине | ||
Sesotho mohlomphehi | ||
Shona muchinda | ||
Sindhi شريف ماڻھو | ||
Sinhala (Sinhalese) මහත්වරුනි | ||
Slovak pán | ||
Slovenian gospod | ||
Somali mudane | ||
Spanish caballero | ||
Sundanese purun | ||
Swahili muungwana | ||
Swedish herre | ||
Tagalog (Filipino) ginoo | ||
Tajik ҷаноб | ||
Tamil நற்பண்புகள் கொண்டவர் | ||
Tatar әфәнде | ||
Telugu పెద్దమనిషి | ||
Thai สุภาพบุรุษ | ||
Tigrinya ለዋህ ሰብኣይ | ||
Tsonga gentleman | ||
Turkish beyefendi | ||
Turkmen jenap | ||
Twi (Akan) ɔbarima a ɔyɛ ɔbadwemma | ||
Ukrainian джентльмен | ||
Urdu شریف آدمی | ||
Uyghur ئەپەندى | ||
Uzbek janob | ||
Vietnamese quý ông | ||
Welsh boneddwr | ||
Xhosa mnumzana | ||
Yiddish דזשענטלמען | ||
Yoruba okunrin jeje | ||
Zulu umnumzane |
| Language | Etymology / Notes |
|---|---|
| Afrikaans | The word "meneer" in Afrikaans is derived from the Dutch word "mijnheer" and is used as a formal term of address for men, but can also mean "husband" or "father" in a family context. |
| Albanian | The Albanian word "zotëri" (gentleman) is derived from the Latin word "senior" (elder), which originally referred to the head of a family or clan. |
| Amharic | In Amharic, the word ጨዋ ሰው ('gentleman') shares the same root with the word ጨዋ ('play'). |
| Arabic | The word "انسان محترم" (insan muhtaram) literally translates to "respected human" and can also refer to someone who is well-mannered and polite. |
| Armenian | The word ջենտլմեն is derived from the French word gentilhomme, which originally meant 'nobleman'. |
| Azerbaijani | The word "bəy" is derived from the Persian word "bey," which originally meant "prince" or "chieftain." |
| Basque | The word “jauna” comes from the Latin “dominus” and was originally used to refer to a nobleman or landowner. |
| Belarusian | The word 'спадар' comes from the Old Belarusian word 'спад' ('lord'), which in turn derives from the Proto-Slavic word '*gъspodь' ('master'). |
| Bengali | The word "ভদ্রলোক" (bhadralok) in Bengali can also refer to a landed gentry or a prosperous person, and was originally used to indicate a person of high social status. |
| Bosnian | Gospodine originated from the Slavic word 'gospod', meaning 'lord' or 'master'. |
| Bulgarian | The word "господин" in Bulgarian derives from the Old Church Slavonic "господь" meaning "lord" or "master". |
| Catalan | The word "senyor" is derived from the Latin "senior," meaning "older" or "superior." |
| Cebuano | The word "ginoo" may also be used as a term of respect for older men or those in positions of authority. |
| Chinese (Simplified) | The word 绅士 was introduced into Chinese during the Qing dynasty (1644–1911) from Japanese, where it referred to a type of Western-style men's clothing. |
| Chinese (Traditional) | The word "紳士" also means a person who wears a silk belt, which was a symbol of high social status in ancient China. |
| Corsican | Corsican "signore" is derived from Latin "senior", originally meaning "elder" or "senior". |
| Croatian | The Croatian word "gospodin" derives from the Proto-Slavic *gospodь, meaning "master" or "lord". |
| Czech | In Czech the term gentleman means both the person with good manners (definition of gentleman in English) or an unmarried man. |
| Danish | Gentleman comes from the Norman French word "gentilhomme," which itself comes from the Latin word "gentilis," meaning "of the same stock or clan." |
| Dutch | The word "heer" evolved from the Middle Dutch word "here" meaning "lord", which in turn derived from the Old High German word "herro" meaning "master" or "lord". |
| Esperanto | The word "sinjoro" comes from the Spanish "señor" and the Portuguese "senhor", both meaning "lord". |
| Estonian | The term härra can also refer to a person with supernatural powers, such as a shaman. |
| Finnish | It is suggested that the word "herrasmies" derives from the word "herra" ("lord") and the suffix "mies" ("man"), and that it was originally used to address feudal lords. |
| French | The French word "gentilhomme" comes from the Latin "gentilis," meaning "noble" or "of noble birth." |
| Frisian | The Frisian word 'ealman' is cognate with the English word 'oathman', and originally meant 'a man who takes an oath'. |
| Galician | In medieval times it referred to someone riding horses. |
| Georgian | The Georgian word "ჯენტლმენი" is also used colloquially to refer to a male who behaves in a considerate and respectful manner. |
| German | The German word "gentleman" is derived from Middle Low German "jonghêrre" meaning "young lord". |
| Greek | The word "κύριος" (kyrios) in Greek can also mean "lord", "master", or "owner", reflecting its roots in the concept of power and authority. |
| Gujarati | The word 'સજ્જન' is derived from 'સજ્જ', meaning 'ready' or 'prepared', and can also refer to a 'well-behaved or respectable person'. |
| Haitian Creole | The word "mesye" is derived from the French word "monsieur" and can also mean "mister" or "sir". |
| Hausa | The word "mutum" also means "person" and is derived from the Hausa verb "mu" meaning "to be". |
| Hawaiian | Its literal meaning is 'having a fine, pleasing face,' referring to the face that a man presents to the world. |
| Hebrew | The Hebrew word "ג'ֶנטֶלמֶן" (gentleman) is derived from the English word "gentleman" and has the same meaning. |
| Hindi | "सज्जन" (gentleman) derives from the Sanskrit word "सत्" (good), and also means "honorable" and "virtuous". |
| Hmong | The Hmong word "yawg moob" directly translates as "man" or "male", but is commonly used as a polite term to refer to any elder or male guest. |
| Hungarian | In Hungarian, the word "úriember" evolved from "úr" meaning "lord", while "ember" means "person". |
| Icelandic | Herra minn, a term of address for men, derives from an Old Norse word that originally implied 'lord' or 'master', and has cognates in several other Germanic languages. |
| Igbo | The Igbo word "nwa amadi" can also refer to a young man who is well-behaved and responsible. |
| Indonesian | "Pria" derives from the Sanskrit "priya" meaning "beloved". |
| Irish | The term "a dhuine uasail" literally translates to "the noble man" in Irish. |
| Italian | Italian "signore" originally stems from Latin "senior," which referred to an elderly male and then acquired its modern meaning of "lord," whereas its feminine counterpart, "signora," originally meant "lady," and now primarily means "Mrs.". |
| Japanese | "紳士" also means "well-dressed person" as it is based on how the word "紳" (shin) means "belt for trousers" in Chinese. |
| Javanese | The word "purun" can also mean "you" when used in polite speech or when addressing a superior. |
| Kannada | The word "ಸಂಭಾವಿತ" also means "nobleman" or "a man of good family". |
| Kazakh | The word "мырза" can also refer to a nobleman or ruler, and has been used as a title in some Central Asian cultures. |
| Korean | The word "신사" (shinsa) is the Korean word for "gentleman", but it can also refer to a "scholar" or a "person of refinement". |
| Kurdish | The word "birêz" can also mean "kind" or "polite". |
| Kyrgyz | The word "мырза" originally meant "hunter" or "hero" in Kyrgyz and later came to be used as a title for noblemen. |
| Latin | The Latin word "virum" can also refer to a man or husband. |
| Latvian | The word "kungs" is derived from the Proto-Indo-European root "*ǵʰén-ti", meaning "noble" or "well-born". It was originally a title given to members of the nobility, but over time became to be used as a general term for a gentleman. |
| Lithuanian | The word "ponas" is likely derived from the word "ponas", meaning "lord" |
| Luxembourgish | The word “Grondhär” derives from two Old German words that mean “lord” and “landowner.” |
| Macedonian | The word "господин" in Macedonian is derived from the Slavic word "господь" meaning "lord" and is used as a formal address for a man or as a title for a person in a position of authority or respect. |
| Malagasy | The word "rangahy" in Malagasy is derived from the Arabic word "rajul" meaning "man" or "male". |
| Malay | In the 16th century, the word "puan" was used as a royal title, but it later transitioned to refer to a wealthy or well-respected man. |
| Maltese | The Maltese word 'sinjur' can also mean 'lord', 'master', or 'mister'. |
| Maori | "Rangatira" initially meant "child of heaven" then "descendants of chiefs" and finally "chiefly rank". |
| Marathi | The Marathi word "गृहस्थ" is derived from the Sanskrit word "गृहस्थ" which refers to a householder or head of the household. |
| Mongolian | The word "эрхэм" has a dual meaning, as it can also refer to a "precious gem". |
| Nepali | The word "भद्र पुरुष" (gentleman) in Nepali derives from Sanskrit "भद्र" (good) and "पुरुष" (man), embodying qualities of virtue, integrity, and social grace. |
| Norwegian | The word "herre" in Norwegian comes from the Old Norse word "herr", which could mean either "lord" or "master" |
| Nyanja (Chichewa) | The word "njonda" can also mean "chief" or "leader". |
| Pashto | The word "ښاغلى" comes from the Persian word "شاغلی" which also means "gentleman". |
| Persian | The word 'آقا' in Persian can also mean 'master', 'lord', or 'owner'. |
| Polish | Pan in Polish is cognate with English "thane" and German "Degen", and derives from an old term for an aristocratic warrior. |
| Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) | In Portuguese the word 'cavalheiro' also has meanings like 'knight', 'rider' or 'horseman'. |
| Punjabi | The word 'ਸੱਜਣ' has a double meaning: 'gentleman' and 'lover'. |
| Romanian | The term "domn" is derived from the Latin word "dominus", and can also refer to a person holding a high social rank or position of authority. |
| Russian | В русском языке слово "джентльмен" употребляется также в значении "настоящий мужчина" или "идеальный мужчина". |
| Samoan | The word "aliʻi" can also refer to a chief or ruler in Samoan society. |
| Scots Gaelic | "Duine-uasal" can also refer to a type of fairy in Scottish folklore. |
| Serbian | There are no other meanings of the word 'господине' other than 'gentleman'. |
| Sesotho | In Tswana, 'mohlomphehi' is also used to refer to a senior male family member or elder within a community. |
| Shona | Muchinda in Shona can mean 'a free man', 'a landowner', 'a married man' or 'a person of respect'. |
| Sindhi | The Sindhi word for "gentleman," "شريف ماڻھو," also means "honorable person," "respectable person," or "noble person." |
| Slovak | Slovak word "pán" can also mean God in a religious context |
| Slovenian | "Gospod" is not only an honorific title, but also a loanword from the German "Gottesfreund" meaning "friend of God". It can also refer to a feudal lord or a master craftsman. |
| Somali | The Somali word 'mudane' also means 'peaceful' and 'relaxed'. |
| Spanish | The Spanish word "Caballero" (literally translating to "horseman"), has also evolved to mean a "man of quality," "nobleman," or "gentleman," as someone well-versed in courtly etiquette, chivalry, and horsemanship, or even a knight. |
| Sundanese | The word "purun" in Sundanese has an alternate meaning of "father", and is cognate with the Javanese word "bapa". |
| Swahili | The Swahili word "muungwana" originally referred to a member of the nobility or upper class, but can also mean a respectful or courteous person. |
| Swedish | The word is cognate with the English "hire" and the German "Heere", meaning "army", with original meaning "host of warriors." |
| Tagalog (Filipino) | "Ginoo" can be traced back to the Spanish "señor". It is also used in a playful or sarcastic way when a younger person addresses a much older person as, literally, "grandparent" |
| Tajik | The word "ҷаноб" is also used to refer to a respectable person or a superior. |
| Telugu | The word "పెద్దమనిషి" can also refer to an elder or respectable person, such as a teacher or political figure. |
| Thai | The word "สุภาพบุรุษ" also refers to a polite and refined young male, particularly a student or a noble's son. |
| Turkish | Beyefendi has its origins in the Ottoman military, where it was used as a title for high-ranking officers. |
| Ukrainian | The word "джентльмен" is derived from the Latin word "gentilis", meaning "of the same clan or family". It originally referred to a man of noble birth, but its meaning has since broadened to include any man who behaves with courtesy and respect. |
| Urdu | The word "شریف آدمی" originated from the Arabic word "شريف" meaning "noble" or "honorable". |
| Uzbek | The word "janob" is also used as a term of respect for elders or superiors. |
| Vietnamese | The word "quý ông" can also refer to a wealthy or noble man, or a man of good character. |
| Welsh | The word "boneddwr" can also mean "lineage" or "nobility". |
| Xhosa | The word 'mnumzana' originally meant 'father' in Proto-Bantu, but acquired its current meaning in the colonial era. |
| Yiddish | The Yiddish word "דזשענטלמען" ("dzhentlmen") is borrowed from the English word "gentleman", but it can also refer to a non-Jewish person, especially a Christian. |
| Yoruba | The Yoruba word "okunrin jeje" can also refer to a man who is calm, collected, and has good manners. |
| Zulu | The Zulu word "umnumzane" has other meanings, including "uncle", "lord", and "master". |
| English | The word 'gentleman' comes from the Old English 'gentiman', originally denoting a person of high social status. |