Updated on March 6, 2024
The word 'immediate' holds a significant place in our vocabulary, denoting something that is instant, happening right now, or requiring no intermediate agency. Its cultural importance is evident in various contexts, from our daily conversations to official communications, where the need for urgency and quick action is often emphasized.
Delving into the historical context, the word 'immediate' has its roots in the Latin word 'immediatus', which means 'without an intervening agent'. This historical connection gives the word a richer meaning, linking it to the concept of directness and absence of delay.
Given the global interconnectedness of our world, understanding the translation of 'immediate' in different languages can be beneficial. It can foster effective communication, promote cultural understanding, and even help in professional settings where multilingual communication is essential.
For instance, the French translation of 'immediate' is 'immédiat', while in Spanish, it's 'inmediato'. In German, it's 'unmittelbar', and in Japanese, it's '直ち' (chokuchi).
Afrikaans | onmiddellik | ||
The word "onmiddellik" in Afrikaans is derived from the Dutch word "onmiddellijk", which also means "immediate". | |||
Amharic | ወዲያውኑ | ||
In Amharic, "ወዲያውኑ" can also be translated as "at that particular moment" or "without leaving any gap". | |||
Hausa | kai tsaye | ||
Kai tsaye can carry several other meanings in addition to "immediate", such as "upright" and "in good condition". | |||
Igbo | ozugbo | ||
"Ozogbo" is synonymous with "right away", "immediately", "this very moment", or "instantly" in Igbo. | |||
Malagasy | avy hatrany | ||
"Avy hatrany" can also mean "from there," "from that moment," or "since then." | |||
Nyanja (Chichewa) | nthawi yomweyo | ||
The word "nthawi yomweyo" can also mean "today" or "at this time" | |||
Shona | pakarepo | ||
"Pakarepo" can also mean "quick to take action or react; hasty." | |||
Somali | degdeg ah | ||
The term 'degdeg ah' not only means 'immediate' but also refers to someone who is 'quick-witted' or 'clever'. | |||
Sesotho | hanghang | ||
The word "hanghang" also means "suddenly" or "unexpectedly" in Sesotho. | |||
Swahili | mara moja | ||
The Swahili word "mara moja" literally means "one time". | |||
Xhosa | kwangoko | ||
The word "kwangoko" may also refer to something instantaneous. | |||
Yoruba | lẹsẹkẹsẹ | ||
The word lẹsẹkẹsẹ is a reduplicated form of sẹkẹ, which means to rush or hurry. | |||
Zulu | ngokushesha | ||
In Nguni languages, the word 'ngokushesha' is closely associated with the concept of 'urgency' and implies that an action should be carried out without delay. | |||
Bambara | sisan sisan | ||
Ewe | emumake | ||
Kinyarwanda | ako kanya | ||
Lingala | kozanga kozela | ||
Luganda | mangu ddala | ||
Sepedi | ka pela | ||
Twi (Akan) | hɔ ara | ||
Arabic | فوري | ||
"فوري" can also mean "instant" or "fresh." | |||
Hebrew | מִיָדִי | ||
The word "מִיָדִי" in Hebrew shares roots with the word "יד" meaning hand, hence it originally meant "right to hand". | |||
Pashto | سمدستي | ||
The word "سمدستي" is derived from the word "سمد" meaning "now" or "present time". | |||
Arabic | فوري | ||
"فوري" can also mean "instant" or "fresh." |
Albanian | i menjëhershëm | ||
The word "i menjëhershëm" derives from the Latin word "immediate" meaning "closely following; not distant in time or space." | |||
Basque | berehalakoa | ||
In Basque, "berehalakoa" can also mean "prompt" in addition to "immediate". | |||
Catalan | immediata | ||
In Catalan, "immediata" also means "straight away" or "at once". | |||
Croatian | neposredna | ||
The word 'neposredna' in Croatian comes from the Latin word 'nepos' meaning 'grandson', and can also mean 'close' or 'direct'. | |||
Danish | umiddelbar | ||
"Umiddelbar" can also mean "direct", "explicit", or "undisguised" in Danish. | |||
Dutch | onmiddellijk | ||
The word "onmiddellijk" in Dutch comes from the Old Dutch word "onmiddele", meaning "without mediation" | |||
English | immediate | ||
The word "immediate" comes from the Latin "immediatus," meaning "not mediated". It also has a legal meaning referring to "not deferred to a later time." | |||
French | immédiat | ||
"Immédiat" is cognate to the English word "imminent" and can also mean "overhanging" in architecture. | |||
Frisian | fuortendaliks | ||
The word "fuortendaliks" in Frisian (like the German "fortan" and English "forthwith") originally meant "from this day forward". | |||
Galician | inmediato | ||
In medieval Galician, "inmediato" also meant "neighbour" or "relative." | |||
German | sofortig | ||
The word "sofortig" is derived from the Middle High German "sô vürtic", meaning "at once". | |||
Icelandic | strax | ||
In Icelandic, the word "strax" also means "in a moment, soon", or "right away". | |||
Irish | láithreach | ||
The word "láithreach" (immediate) in Irish also has the meanings of "near", "present", and "at hand". | |||
Italian | immediato | ||
The Italian word "immediato" derives from the Latin "immediatus", meaning "unmediated" or "direct". The term can also imply urgency or proximity in both space and time. | |||
Luxembourgish | direkt | ||
"Direkt" can be used to say someone is forward or straightforward. | |||
Maltese | immedjat | ||
The Maltese word 'immedjat' ('immediate') derives from the Italian 'immediato', which ultimately originates from the Latin 'inmediatus', meaning 'not separated' or 'uninterrupted'. | |||
Norwegian | umiddelbar | ||
Umiddelbar may also mean 'without mediation' or 'direct'. | |||
Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) | imediato | ||
The word "imediato" in Portuguese can also mean "close" or "neighboring". | |||
Scots Gaelic | anns a ’bhad | ||
"Anns a ’bhad" can also mean "at the moment", "instantly" or "at once". | |||
Spanish | inmediato | ||
El término "inmediato" proviene del latín "inmediatus" y también puede significar "próximo", "cercano" o "contiguo". | |||
Swedish | omedelbar | ||
In medieval times, 'omedelbar' referred to people with direct ties to royalty as well as their possessions like castles. | |||
Welsh | ar unwaith | ||
"Ar unwaith" can also mean "suddenly" or "at once". |
Belarusian | неадкладны | ||
The Belarusian word "неадкладны" is derived from the prefix "не-" (meaning "not, without") and the stem "адкла" (meaning "to postpone, to defer"). Thus, "неадкладны" literally means "not postponable, not deferrable" and it can also be used to describe something that is urgent or pressing. | |||
Bosnian | odmah | ||
"Odmah" can also mean "at the same time" or "immediately" in Bosnian. | |||
Bulgarian | незабавна | ||
The word "незабавна" comes from the Old Slavonic word "незабавно", meaning "without delay" or "immediately". | |||
Czech | bezprostřední | ||
"Bezprostřední" is formed by combining two words which mean "without" and "middle". | |||
Estonian | kohene | ||
Kohene may also refer to a priestly rank or the position of the priestly head in ancient Israel. | |||
Finnish | välittömästi | ||
"Välittömästi" comes from "väli", between or medium + "tää", here and "-sti", manner adv., so it means literally, between-this-ly | |||
Hungarian | azonnali | ||
In some Hungarian dialects, "azonnali" means "right now" or "as soon as possible". | |||
Latvian | tūlītēja | ||
The word "tūlītēja" is derived from the verb "tūlīt", meaning "to do quickly" or "to hurry". | |||
Lithuanian | nedelsiant | ||
The word "nedelsiant" is derived from the Lithuanian word "delsti", which means "to delay". | |||
Macedonian | непосреден | ||
The word "непосреден" can also mean "direct" or "first-hand". | |||
Polish | natychmiastowy | ||
The word "natychmiastowy" originally meant "instantaneous". | |||
Romanian | imediat | ||
''Mea culpa'' is a Latin saying that means ''my fault''. | |||
Russian | немедленный | ||
The word "немедленный" can also mean "instant" or "quick" in Russian. | |||
Serbian | непосредан | ||
The word "непосредан" (immediate) in Serbian also means "direct" or "not mediated". | |||
Slovak | okamžitý | ||
The word "okamžitý" can also mean "momentary" or "fleeting" in Slovak. | |||
Slovenian | takoj | ||
The word "takoj" can also mean "then" or "thereupon" in Slovenian. | |||
Ukrainian | негайний | ||
The word "негайний" also means "urgent" or "without delay" in Ukrainian. |
Bengali | তাত্ক্ষণিক | ||
The word 'তাত্ক্ষণিক' also means 'instant, urgent, pressing, imperative' in Bengali. | |||
Gujarati | તાત્કાલિક | ||
Hindi | तुरंत | ||
"तुरंत" ('immediate') in Hindi comes from the Persian origin "turat". | |||
Kannada | ತಕ್ಷಣ | ||
The word "ತಕ್ಷಣ" is derived from the Sanskrit word "तक्षणम्" (takshaṇam), which means "at once, immediately". | |||
Malayalam | ഉടനടി | ||
The word 'ഉടനടി' in Malayalam finds its roots in the Sanskrit word 'उत् (uda)' meaning 'up' or 'quickly' and 'तडि (taḍi)' meaning 'thunderbolt', hence signifying 'as quick as lightning'. | |||
Marathi | त्वरित | ||
"त्वरित" is also used to refer to "a span of time", especially in the context of music and dance. | |||
Nepali | तत्काल | ||
The word "तत्काल" is derived from the Sanskrit root 'ततक्ष', meaning 'to weave' or 'to join', suggesting a sense of immediacy or swiftness. | |||
Punjabi | ਤੁਰੰਤ | ||
The word "ਤੁਰੰਤ" in Punjabi not only means "immediate" but also "quickly" or "without delay". | |||
Sinhala (Sinhalese) | වහාම | ||
"වහාම" (immediate) is a compound word, made up of the words "වහ" (quick) and "අම" (now, at once). | |||
Tamil | உடனடியாக | ||
உடனடியாக is a compound word derived from 'உடன்' meaning 'with' and 'அடியாக' meaning 'foot' or 'base', suggesting something done without delay or hesitation. | |||
Telugu | వెంటనే | ||
The word "వెంటనే" can also mean "at once" or "without delay." | |||
Urdu | فوری طور پر | ||
The word "فوری طور پر" can also mean "promptly" or "without delay". |
Chinese (Simplified) | 即时 | ||
即时' can also mean 'real-time' or 'on-the-spot'. | |||
Chinese (Traditional) | 即時 | ||
"即時" can also mean "real-time" or "the present moment". | |||
Japanese | 即時 | ||
即時 (Japanese) comes from the Chinese characters "即" (meaning time) and "時" (meaning moment) and can also mean "at once" or "immediately". | |||
Korean | 즉시 | ||
즉시 can also mean "right now," "without delay," or "at once." | |||
Mongolian | нэн даруй | ||
"Нэн даруй" is derived from "нэн" (right now) and "даруй" (at the moment, right now), and also shares the meaning of "urgently" | |||
Myanmar (Burmese) | လက်ငင်း | ||
Indonesian | segera | ||
The Indonesian word "segera" is a loanword from the Sanskrit word "sigra," meaning "swift," and has the alternate meaning of "forthwith." | |||
Javanese | langsung | ||
"Langsung" also means "right or left side of a road" or "one side" in Javanese. | |||
Khmer | ជាបន្ទាន់ | ||
Lao | ທັນທີ | ||
ທັນທີ (ทันที or ทันที in Thai) can also mean "in time" or "timely". | |||
Malay | segera | ||
It can also be used to mean "soon" or "right away". | |||
Thai | ทันที | ||
The word "ทันที" also means "when" or "as soon as" in Thai. | |||
Vietnamese | ngay tức khắc | ||
'Ngay tức khắc' is directly translated to 'right away', but it actually consists of two words, 'ngay' (right) and 'tức khắc' (instant). | |||
Filipino (Tagalog) | kaagad | ||
Azerbaijani | dərhal | ||
The word 'dərhal', meaning 'immediate' in Azerbaijani, shares its origin with the Persian word 'dar al' ('from the place'). | |||
Kazakh | дереу | ||
"Дереу" is derived from the Old Turkic word "dürü" meaning "straight, directly." | |||
Kyrgyz | токтоосуз | ||
In the Karakhanid period, "tokto" meant 2 hours and "toktoosuz" meant 1 hour or instantly. | |||
Tajik | фавран | ||
Фавран – слово арабского происхождения, восходящее к корню «ف و ر» | |||
Turkmen | derrew | ||
Uzbek | darhol | ||
The word "darhol" is the same or an analog of words with similar meaning in many Turkic languages | |||
Uyghur | دەرھال | ||
Hawaiian | koke | ||
In Hawaiian, the word "koke" also means "mountain ridge" or "hilltop". | |||
Maori | inamata | ||
In other contexts, “inamata” can mean “right away.” | |||
Samoan | vave | ||
The word "vave" also means "to hurry" or "to hasten" in Samoan. | |||
Tagalog (Filipino) | kaagad | ||
The word "kaagad" (immediate) may have originated from the Malay word "sekejap", meaning "briefly" or "in a short while." |
Aymara | jank'aki | ||
Guarani | ag̃aiteguáva | ||
Esperanto | tuja | ||
The Esperanto word "tuja" also means "one's own" in Latin. | |||
Latin | statim | ||
Statim is also used in the sense of "immediately after" and can be combined with other adverbs of time. |
Greek | άμεσος | ||
The Ancient Greek word "άμεσος" could also mean "unmediated." | |||
Hmong | sai li sai tau | ||
"Sai li sai tau" (immediate) in Hmong can also mean "immediately" or "straightaway". | |||
Kurdish | derhal | ||
In Kurdish, the word "derhal" can also mean "in a hurry" or "quickly". | |||
Turkish | hemen | ||
"Hemen" also means "straight" and "at once" in Turkish. | |||
Xhosa | kwangoko | ||
The word "kwangoko" may also refer to something instantaneous. | |||
Yiddish | באַלדיק | ||
The Yiddish word באַלדיק (baldik) is derived from the Slavic word "baldo," meaning "quickly" or "soon." | |||
Zulu | ngokushesha | ||
In Nguni languages, the word 'ngokushesha' is closely associated with the concept of 'urgency' and implies that an action should be carried out without delay. | |||
Assamese | লগে লগে | ||
Aymara | jank'aki | ||
Bhojpuri | तुरंत | ||
Dhivehi | ވަގުތުން | ||
Dogri | फौरन | ||
Filipino (Tagalog) | kaagad | ||
Guarani | ag̃aiteguáva | ||
Ilocano | dagus | ||
Krio | wantɛm wantɛm | ||
Kurdish (Sorani) | دەستبەجێ | ||
Maithili | तुरंत | ||
Meiteilon (Manipuri) | ꯈꯨꯗꯛꯇ | ||
Mizo | chawpchilh | ||
Oromo | yerooma sana | ||
Odia (Oriya) | ତୁରନ୍ତ | ||
Quechua | chayllapuni | ||
Sanskrit | तुरत | ||
Tatar | шунда ук | ||
Tigrinya | ሽዕ ንሻዕ | ||
Tsonga | xikan'we | ||