Updated on March 6, 2024
The word 'hire' holds great significance in our daily lives, especially in the context of work and employment. It refers to the act of engaging someone's services for a fee, which is a fundamental aspect of many economies around the world. The cultural importance of hiring can be seen in the various ways it is practiced and regulated across different societies.
Moreover, understanding the translation of 'hire' in different languages can be incredibly useful for travelers, businesspeople, and language enthusiasts alike. For instance, in Spanish, 'hire' translates to 'alquilar', while in German, it is 'mieten'. In French, the word is ' louer', and in Japanese, it is '雇う (yaku)' or '借りる (kariru)', depending on the context.
Did you know that in ancient times, hiring was often done through a complex system of patronage and apprenticeship? Or that in some cultures, hiring is still done through personal connections and recommendations? Understanding the nuances of hiring in different languages can open up a world of cultural insights and opportunities.
Afrikaans | huur | ||
In older usage, "huur" was occasionally used to mean "rent". | |||
Amharic | መቅጠር | ||
The word "መቅጠር" can also mean "lease". | |||
Hausa | haya | ||
The Hausa word 'haya' also means 'rent' and is derived from the Arabic word 'hiyya', meaning 'possession'. | |||
Igbo | iku iku | ||
The Igbo word "iku iku" also means "to go out and fetch" or "to carry out an errand." | |||
Malagasy | karamako | ||
The Malagasy word "karamako" also refers to the action of hiring, payment of wages, and the amount of payment for a given job. | |||
Nyanja (Chichewa) | ganyu | ||
In addition to its literal meaning, "ganyu" can also refer to renting or borrowing something. | |||
Shona | hire | ||
In Shona, "hire" also means "to employ" and "to rent out". | |||
Somali | kiraysasho | ||
The Somali word "kiraysasho" can also mean "leasing" or "renting". | |||
Sesotho | hira | ||
The word 'hira' means to "pay rent" or "borrow money with interest" in Sesotho. | |||
Swahili | kuajiri | ||
"Kuajiri" also means "to employ" or "to engage the services of someone." | |||
Xhosa | ukuqesha | ||
The word 'ukuqesha' in Xhosa can also refer to the process of borrowing something or obtaining a loan | |||
Yoruba | bẹwẹ | ||
Bẹwẹ shares the same etymology with 'bẹ̀rẹ̀', both meaning 'to start' or 'to initiate'. | |||
Zulu | qasha | ||
Qasha is also used to mean 'to beg' in the context of asking for money. | |||
Bambara | ka ta baara la | ||
Ewe | da | ||
Kinyarwanda | hire | ||
Lingala | kozwa na mosala | ||
Luganda | okupangisa | ||
Sepedi | thwala | ||
Twi (Akan) | han | ||
Arabic | توظيف | ||
The term "توظيف" derives from the root "وظف" meaning "to place" or "to assign," reflecting the act of assigning a role or task to an individual through employment. | |||
Hebrew | לִשְׂכּוֹר | ||
The Hebrew word "לִשְׂכּוֹר" can also mean "to be drunk" and is cognate with the Arabic "سَكِرَ" with the same meaning. | |||
Pashto | کرایه | ||
The Pashto word "کرایه" can also refer to rent, fare, or toll. | |||
Arabic | توظيف | ||
The term "توظيف" derives from the root "وظف" meaning "to place" or "to assign," reflecting the act of assigning a role or task to an individual through employment. |
Albanian | punësoj | ||
The word "punësoj" is derived from the Latin word "pono", meaning "to place" or "to put", and has been used in Albanian since the 15th century. | |||
Basque | kontratatu | ||
The verb ‘kontratatu’ can be traced back to the Latin verb ‘contractare’ (to contract), and in Basque it can also have the meaning of ‘to engage’ or ‘to acquire’. | |||
Catalan | llogar | ||
The Catalan word "llogar" is related to the English word "location". This is because it originally referred to the act of renting a place to live, but over time it came to be used more generally for any kind of hiring. | |||
Croatian | najam | ||
The Croatian word 'najam' is also related to the Slavic root 'jem' which means 'to take' or 'to seize'. | |||
Danish | leje | ||
Leje is derived from the Proto-Germanic word *laikijō, meaning "to grant", and originally meant "to lend" rather than "to hire". | |||
Dutch | huren | ||
In archaic or formal contexts, "huren" can also mean "to rent" but is considered outdated. | |||
English | hire | ||
Historically, the word hire could also refer to a reward or payment for services rendered. | |||
French | louer | ||
The French word "louer" comes from the Latin word "locare", meaning "to place or let out". | |||
Frisian | hiere | ||
The Frisian word "hiere" can also refer to a shepherd's crook. | |||
Galician | contratar | ||
"Contratar" in Galician can also mean "to subscribe". | |||
German | mieten | ||
"Mieten" also means "to clean" and is used in the context of cleaning a crime scene. | |||
Icelandic | ráða | ||
Icelandic "ráða" derives from "ráð", meaning counsel, advice or consultation. | |||
Irish | fruiliú | ||
"Fruiliú" is derived from the Old Irish "fochraic" meaning "to leave" or "to abandon" and the suffix "-iú" indicating an action or process. | |||
Italian | assumere | ||
In Italian, the word "assumere" also means "to adopt" or "to take on" (a role or responsibility). | |||
Luxembourgish | astellen | ||
"Astellen" is derived from the French word "installer" and also means "to set up" or "to install". | |||
Maltese | kiri | ||
The word "kiri" in Maltese may also refer to a payment for the use of something, such as a house or farm. | |||
Norwegian | ansette | ||
The word "ansette" is cognate with the Dutch word "aannemen", which means "to take on" or "to accept". | |||
Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) | contratar | ||
Portuguese “contratar” comes from the Latin “contrahere”, “contract, draw together”. | |||
Scots Gaelic | fastadh | ||
"Fastadh" can also mean "abode" or "dwelling-place" in Scots Gaelic, as well as "place of holding". | |||
Spanish | alquiler | ||
The word "alquiler" derives from the Arabic word "alkirāʾ", meaning "lease". Originally, the term referred specifically to the rental of animals for labor, but over time it came to be used for the general sense of "hiring". | |||
Swedish | hyra | ||
The Swedish word "hyra" is a doublet of the German " Heuer", likely deriving from the Middle Low German "huren" meaning "to rent". | |||
Welsh | llogi | ||
The Welsh word "llogi" originated from the Latin word "locare", meaning "to place" or "to lease". |
Belarusian | наймаць | ||
The Belarusian word "наймаць" also means "to pay", "to charge", or "to rent". | |||
Bosnian | unajmiti | ||
"Unajmljati" is derived from the Proto-Slavic word "*najǫti" which also means "to hire". | |||
Bulgarian | наемам | ||
The word наемам can also mean "to rent" or "to lease". | |||
Czech | pronájem | ||
Pronájem (hire) is a derivative of the verb pronajmout (to rent out) and has the same root as najem (rent). | |||
Estonian | palgata | ||
"Palgata" has an alternate meaning in the Estonian language as a verb meaning "to fire". | |||
Finnish | vuokraus | ||
Vuokraus is derived from the German word "verkaufen," which means "to sell." | |||
Hungarian | bérel | ||
The noun "bérel" can also mean "lease" and the verb "bérel" can mean "to rent" or "to lease". | |||
Latvian | noma | ||
The word "noma" in Latvian also means "to take" or "to seize" and is derived from the Proto-Indo-European root *nem- meaning "to take, seize, or distribute." | |||
Lithuanian | samdyti | ||
"Samdyti" shares its root with Baltic words for "son" and may have carried the ancient meaning of "to adopt". | |||
Macedonian | вработи | ||
The verb "вработи" can also mean "to give a job to" or "to employ". | |||
Polish | zatrudnić | ||
The verb 'zatrudnić' is also used as a legal term in a passive sense, meaning 'to be subject to a judicial penalty'. | |||
Romanian | închiriere | ||
In Romanian, "închiriere" can also refer to the process of renting or leasing a property or vehicle. | |||
Russian | прокат | ||
"Прокат" (hire) derives from "прокатывать" (to roll out, extend) as something for hire often needed to be stretched out. | |||
Serbian | унајмити | ||
The verb "унајмити" comes from the Old Church Slavonic word "наимати", which means "to hire, to take on lease". | |||
Slovak | najať | ||
The word "najať" in Slovak also means "to rent" or "to lease". | |||
Slovenian | najem | ||
Najem can also be used as the noun of action for the verb "najeti", meaning "renting", "hiring", but also "taking on" a particular task. | |||
Ukrainian | найняти | ||
The word "найняти" is derived from the Proto-Slavic word "*najьnati", which originally meant "to force" or "to subdue". |
Bengali | ভাড়া | ||
"ভাড়া" can also mean "rent" or "freight" in different contexts. | |||
Gujarati | ભાડે | ||
The Gujarati word "ભાડે" is derived from Sanskrit "भाड़" meaning "share" or "portion" as in the term "Bhaade" of "Bhagavad Gita", which implies a fractional share given as rent by tenants under a tenancy agreement. | |||
Hindi | किराये | ||
The word 'किराये' (hire) in Hindi comes from the Sanskrit word 'कीरात' (kirāta), which means 'hunter' or 'barbarian'. | |||
Kannada | ಬಾಡಿಗೆಗೆ | ||
The word "ಬಾಡಿಗೆಗೆ" in Kannada is derived from the Sanskrit word "bhaataka" meaning "rent" or "wages" and is also used to refer to a "lease". | |||
Malayalam | വാടകയ്ക്കെടുക്കുക | ||
Marathi | भाड्याने | ||
The word भाड्याने also refers to "rent" and "wages". | |||
Nepali | भाडामा लिनुहोस् | ||
The word भाडामा लिनुहोस् is derived from the Sanskrit root "bhad" meaning "to take" and "ma" meaning "to hire". It can also refer to "renting" or "leasing" in a more general sense. | |||
Punjabi | ਭਾੜੇ | ||
The word 'ਭਾੜੇ' can also refer to a type of tax levied on land in the Punjab region. | |||
Sinhala (Sinhalese) | කුලියට ගන්න | ||
Tamil | வாடகைக்கு | ||
The word 'வாடகைக்கு' comes from the Sanskrit word 'वाट', meaning 'way' or 'road', and originally referred to a fee paid for the use of a road or ferry. | |||
Telugu | కిరాయి | ||
The word "కిరాయి" is derived from the Sanskrit word "कराड" (karaḍ), meaning "tax" or "levy" | |||
Urdu | کرایہ پر لینا | ||
Chinese (Simplified) | 聘请 | ||
聘请 can also refer to the recruitment of guests or officials for ceremonial occasions, with the alternate meaning of "to invite." | |||
Chinese (Traditional) | 聘請 | ||
聘請 (literally “to invite to work”) | |||
Japanese | 雇う | ||
雇う is derived from the Proto-Japonic root *ko- "to work". | |||
Korean | 고용 | ||
The word '고용' (hire) in Korean is derived from the Middle Chinese word '雇庸', which originally meant 'to use (labor) for pay'. | |||
Mongolian | ажилд авах | ||
The word "ажилд авах" can also mean "to work" or "to be employed" in Mongolian. | |||
Myanmar (Burmese) | ငှားရန် | ||
Indonesian | mempekerjakan | ||
Mempekerjakan is also sometimes used in a broader sense to refer to engaging someone to do a task or provide a service, even if it is not strictly in the context of employment. | |||
Javanese | nyewa | ||
In Old Javanese, nyewa means both 'borrow' and 'rent' while in modern Javanese, it only means 'rent' | |||
Khmer | ជួល | ||
The word "ជួល" can also refer to something that is done in exchange for payment. | |||
Lao | ຈ້າງ | ||
ຈ້າງ can also mean "to invite" or "to request" in Lao. | |||
Malay | mengupah | ||
Mengupah in Malay, meaning to hire, also carries the connotation of | |||
Thai | จ้าง | ||
'จ้าง' (pronounced 'chang') means to both hire someone and to give someone an assignment to complete. | |||
Vietnamese | thuê | ||
The word "Thuê" also means "rent" or "lease". | |||
Filipino (Tagalog) | upa | ||
Azerbaijani | işə götürmək | ||
"İşə götürmək" sözü, köken olarak "işi üstüne almak" anlamına gelen "götürmek" fiilinden türemiştir. | |||
Kazakh | жалдау | ||
The word "жалдау" originally meant "payment for services" and still has this meaning in some contexts. | |||
Kyrgyz | жалдоо | ||
The verb жалдоо may also refer to military conscription, or the forced use of prisoners-of-war as laborers. | |||
Tajik | киро кардан | ||
The word "киро кардан" in Tajik can also refer to a type of small knife or dagger. | |||
Turkmen | hakyna tutmak | ||
Uzbek | yollash | ||
The word "yollash" can also mean "to send" or "to dispatch" in Uzbek. | |||
Uyghur | تەكلىپ قىلىش | ||
Hawaiian | hoʻolimalima | ||
The Hawaiian word "hoʻolimalima" also means "to work for wages". | |||
Maori | utu | ||
"Utu" can also mean "revenge" or "requital". | |||
Samoan | totogi | ||
The verb 'totogi' can also refer to the concept of 'paying back', as in repaying a debt or returning a favour. | |||
Tagalog (Filipino) | umarkila | ||
The Tagalog word "umarkila" can also refer to renting, or paying for a particular period of time. |
Aymara | achikaña | ||
Guarani | jasyporuka | ||
Esperanto | dungi | ||
The Esperanto word "dungi" also means "to engage" or "to employ" in English. | |||
Latin | mercede operis sui | ||
The Latin phrase "mercede operis sui" can also refer to the reward for a service or the wages for work. |
Greek | ενοικίαση | ||
Ενοικίαση derives from the Greek word οίκος (house) and means literally "making use of a house or a building." | |||
Hmong | ntiav | ||
The word "ntiav" is also used as a particle that gives the meaning of "in order to" or "so that" in Hmong. | |||
Kurdish | îcarkirin | ||
İcarkirin also means "rent" in Kurdish and is derived from the Persian word "ejāre". | |||
Turkish | kiralama | ||
Kiralama originally means 'to bring someone to the village' and refers to the action of giving land for cultivation in exchange for a share of the harvest. | |||
Xhosa | ukuqesha | ||
The word 'ukuqesha' in Xhosa can also refer to the process of borrowing something or obtaining a loan | |||
Yiddish | דינגען | ||
"דינגען" (literally "dingen" in German) is also used in Yiddish to mean "to order" or "to request" in a sense similar to German "bestellen". | |||
Zulu | qasha | ||
Qasha is also used to mean 'to beg' in the context of asking for money. | |||
Assamese | ভাড়া কৰা | ||
Aymara | achikaña | ||
Bhojpuri | किराया प दिहल | ||
Dhivehi | ކުއްޔަށްހިފުން | ||
Dogri | कराए पर देना | ||
Filipino (Tagalog) | upa | ||
Guarani | jasyporuka | ||
Ilocano | abangan | ||
Krio | tek pɔsin | ||
Kurdish (Sorani) | بەکرێ گرتن | ||
Maithili | काज पर राखू | ||
Meiteilon (Manipuri) | ꯅꯦꯛꯄ | ||
Mizo | chhawr | ||
Oromo | qacaruu | ||
Odia (Oriya) | ନିଯୁକ୍ତି | ||
Quechua | alquilay | ||
Sanskrit | भृति | ||
Tatar | яллау | ||
Tigrinya | ቁፀር | ||
Tsonga | thola | ||