Job in Different Languages
Discover 'Job' in 134 Languages: Dive into Translations, Hear Pronunciations, and Uncover Cultural Insights.
Updated on March 6, 2024
The word 'job' holds great significance in our lives as it represents the work or occupation we engage in to earn a living. Jobs not only provide financial stability but also contribute to our sense of identity and purpose. The term has been an essential part of human culture since the dawn of civilization, with different societies having various ways to describe work and occupations.
Interestingly, the English word 'job' comes from the Dutch word 'jobben,' which means 'to chop' or 'to cut.' It was initially used to describe a piece of work, a task, or a project. Over time, its meaning evolved to encompass a person's long-term occupation or career.
Knowing the translation of 'job' in different languages can be beneficial for various reasons. For instance, if you're traveling, working, or studying abroad, understanding the local term for 'job' can help you navigate job markets, communicate with locals, and appreciate cultural nuances.
Here are a few translations of the word 'job' in various languages:
Job
Job in Sub-Saharan African Languages
| Afrikaans | werk | ||
| The Afrikaans word 'werk' likely derives from the Middle Dutch 'werc', meaning 'action, business, or occupation' | |||
| Amharic | ሥራ | ||
| "ሥራ" (job in Amharic), can also refer to one's calling, duty or service. | |||
| Hausa | aiki | ||
| The word "aiki" in Hausa can also mean "profession" or "occupation". | |||
| Igbo | oru | ||
| (Igbo) The term 'oru' refers not only to employment, but also carries a broader sense of duty and accomplishment, reflecting the communal values of the Igbo culture. | |||
| Malagasy | asa | ||
| The word "asa" can also mean "duty" or "obligation" | |||
| Nyanja (Chichewa) | ntchito | ||
| In Nyanja, the word "ntchito" can also mean "purpose" or "mission." | |||
| Shona | basa | ||
| In Shona, basa can also mean 'occupation, vocation, work, business, industry, profession, trade, or calling'. | |||
| Somali | shaqo | ||
| The word "shaqo" likely came from the Arabic word "shaghl" or the English word "job" and was subsequently adopted into the Somali language. | |||
| Sesotho | mosebetsi | ||
| The word "mosebetsi" is derived from the verb "seba", meaning "to work", which also gives rise to other terms like "mosebetsing" (work) and "mosebetsa" (worker). | |||
| Swahili | kazi | ||
| The word "kazi" in Swahili can also refer to a "court case" or "occupation" | |||
| Xhosa | umsebenzi | ||
| The Xhosa word "umsebenzi" is cognate with the Zulu word "umsebenzi," both deriving from the Proto-Bantu word *sebɛnzi. | |||
| Yoruba | iṣẹ | ||
| Although "iṣẹ" frequently translates as "job", it can also mean "work", "duty", "service", or even "business" in Yoruba. | |||
| Zulu | umsebenzi | ||
| In Zulu, 'umsebenzi' ('job') also refers to the work done for a 'chieftain', 'king' or 'head of household' as part of traditional community responsibilities. | |||
| Bambara | baara | ||
| Ewe | dɔ | ||
| Kinyarwanda | akazi | ||
| Lingala | mosala | ||
| Luganda | omulimu | ||
| Sepedi | mošomo | ||
| Twi (Akan) | adwuma | ||
Job in North African & Middle Eastern Languages
| Arabic | مهنة | ||
| The Arabic word "مهنة" originally referred to a "profession" or "craft", but now has a broader meaning of "job" or "occupation". | |||
| Hebrew | עבודה | ||
| The Hebrew word "עבודה" (avodah), meaning "job," also holds historical and religious connotations of "worship," "service," and "labor." | |||
| Pashto | دنده | ||
| The word "دنده" in Pashto also means "tooth." | |||
| Arabic | مهنة | ||
| The Arabic word "مهنة" originally referred to a "profession" or "craft", but now has a broader meaning of "job" or "occupation". | |||
Job in Western European Languages
| Albanian | punë | ||
| The Albanian word "punë" also means "work" or "task". | |||
| Basque | lana | ||
| Basque "lana" (job) also means "wool" in Spanish and "blade" in Latin. | |||
| Catalan | feina | ||
| The word "feina" also means "deed" or "work" in a more general sense. | |||
| Croatian | posao | ||
| The word "posao" originates from the ancient word "posao" meaning "thing", "matter", "duty", "task", or "business". | |||
| Danish | job | ||
| In Danish, "job" also refers to a small fishing boat for inshore waters. | |||
| Dutch | baan | ||
| Originally, the Dutch word "baan" referred only to activities and routes that were suitable for walking, riding, or driving. | |||
| English | job | ||
| The word "job" derives from the Middle English word "jobbe," meaning 'a piece of work' or 'a task'. | |||
| French | emploi | ||
| In French, 'emploi' also pertains to 'employment,' 'using,' and 'position,' and originates from Latin 'implicare' ('to fold, intertwine'). | |||
| Frisian | taak | ||
| "Taak" is also used as a Frisian word for a small meadow | |||
| Galician | traballo | ||
| "Traballo" also means "suffering" and comes from Latin "trepalium" which is an instrument of torture. | |||
| German | job | ||
| The word 'Job' in German can also mean a 'messenger' or a 'herald'. | |||
| Icelandic | starf | ||
| The word "starf" in Icelandic is derived from the Old Norse word "starf", which means "hard work" or "labor". | |||
| Irish | post | ||
| The Irish word 'post' is derived from the Latin word 'positus', meaning 'to place' | |||
| Italian | lavoro | ||
| The word "lavoro" comes from the Latin "laborare", which means "to work" or "to strive", and is related to the English word "labor" | |||
| Luxembourgish | aarbecht | ||
| The word "Aarbecht" is derived from the Old High German word "arbieten", which means "to work". It is related to the English word "labour" and the German word "Arbeit". | |||
| Maltese | xogħol | ||
| The word "xogħol" in Maltese is derived from the Arabic word "shughl", meaning "work" or "occupation". | |||
| Norwegian | jobb | ||
| Norwegian "jobb" translates directly to "job," but is also used colloquially to mean "hassle" or "difficult situation." | |||
| Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) | trabalho | ||
| The word "trabalho" has Latin roots, meaning "to torment" or "to struggle," reflecting its historical association with toil and labor. | |||
| Scots Gaelic | dreuchd | ||
| The term 'dreuchd' (job) is likely derived from the Old Irish word 'drecht' (right) or 'dreich' (oppression). | |||
| Spanish | trabajo | ||
| It shares its root with | |||
| Swedish | jobb | ||
| The Swedish word "jobb" originally meant a "task" or "piece of work," and is related to the English word "job"} | |||
| Welsh | swydd | ||
| The Welsh word "swydd" comes from the Proto-Celtic *suedyo-, meaning "path" or "road". | |||
Job in Eastern European Languages
| Belarusian | працу | ||
| The word "працу" (job) in Belarusian comes from the Proto-Slavic word "*orba", meaning "work" or "field work." | |||
| Bosnian | posao | ||
| Etymology of Bosnian word "posao": from Proto-Slavic *posъlъ, meaning "sending, delegation" or "message, commandment". Indo-European origin: *peḱ- "to shear, comb, card". | |||
| Bulgarian | работа | ||
| The word "работа" in Bulgarian also means "labor" or "slavery". | |||
| Czech | práce | ||
| The word "práce" derives from the Proto-Slavic word *orbota, meaning "slavery" or "serfdom". | |||
| Estonian | töö | ||
| The word "töö" in Estonian is derived from the Proto-Finnic word *tō̮ki, meaning "work" or "occupation". | |||
| Finnish | job | ||
| Its name "työ" is connected to the word "tapaus" meaning "event". | |||
| Hungarian | munka | ||
| The Hungarian word "munka" comes from the Proto-Uralic *moŋke, meaning "to do, to make, to create". | |||
| Latvian | darbs | ||
| The word "darbs" is derived from the Proto-Indo-European root *dʰwerbʰ- "to work, do, make" | |||
| Lithuanian | darbas | ||
| Darbas, meaning "job" in Lithuanian, traces its origin to the Indo-European root "*dʰer- (to hold, support)", also found in Sanskrit "dʰárma-" ("law, duty"), Latin "firmus" ("firm"), and English "firm". | |||
| Macedonian | работа | ||
| In Old Church Slavonic, the word "работа" also meant "slavery" or "serfdom". | |||
| Polish | praca | ||
| The word "praca" can also refer to toil, effort, or work in a general sense, rather than specifically a job or occupation. | |||
| Romanian | loc de munca | ||
| "Loc de munca" in Romanian can also refer to a workplace or employment bureau. | |||
| Russian | работа | ||
| The word "работа" in Russian can also mean "slavery" or "serfdom," a reminder of the country's feudal past. | |||
| Serbian | посао | ||
| The Serbian word "posao" originally meant "work" or "business" and later came to mean "job". | |||
| Slovak | zamestnanie | ||
| The word "zamestnanie" in Slovak can also mean "occupation" or "employment". | |||
| Slovenian | službo | ||
| The word "službo" also has the alternate meaning of "service" in Slovenian. | |||
| Ukrainian | робота | ||
| The Ukrainian word "робота" can also refer to a person's duty, task, or role. | |||
Job in South Asian Languages
| Bengali | কাজ | ||
| The Bengali word "কাজ" (job) is derived from the Sanskrit word "कर्म" (karma), which also means "action" or "deed". | |||
| Gujarati | નોકરી | ||
| The Gujarati word "नोक्री" has the alternate meaning of "service". | |||
| Hindi | काम | ||
| In Hindi, the word 'काम' (job) shares its root with the Sanskrit word 'karma,' meaning 'action, work, or destiny,' capturing the multifaceted nature of work. | |||
| Kannada | ಕೆಲಸ | ||
| The word "ಕೆಲಸ" (job) also means "work" or "task" in Kannada as a noun and "to work" or "to do" as a verb. | |||
| Malayalam | ജോലി | ||
| The word "ജോലി" ultimately derives from the Sanskrit word "यज्ञ" (yajña), referring to a religious ceremony or sacrifice. | |||
| Marathi | नोकरी | ||
| The word "नोकरी" in Marathi derives from the Persian word "nukar", meaning "servant" or "employee". | |||
| Nepali | काम | ||
| The word | |||
| Punjabi | ਨੌਕਰੀ | ||
| "ਨੌਕਰੀ" is the Panjabi term for "job" which shares its etymology with the Sanskrit "नौकरमि" (naukarami) meaning "service" or "employment." | |||
| Sinhala (Sinhalese) | රැකියා | ||
| Tamil | வேலை | ||
| "வேலை" can refer to a job, task, or work and comes from the Proto-Dravidian root *veḷ-, meaning "to do". | |||
| Telugu | ఉద్యోగం | ||
| The word ఉద్యోగం (udyogam) is derived from the Sanskrit word 'udyamag' meaning 'effort' or 'endeavor'. | |||
| Urdu | نوکری | ||
| The word نوکری ("job") in Urdu can also mean "servitude" or "slavery." | |||
Job in East Asian Languages
| Chinese (Simplified) | 工作 | ||
| The word 工作 (job) in Chinese is also used to refer to a piece of art or writing. | |||
| Chinese (Traditional) | 工作 | ||
| "工作" (job) is derived from the concept of "gong" (work) and "zuo" (to do), meaning "to perform work". | |||
| Japanese | ジョブ | ||
| ジョブ can additionally refer to a type of character role in video games. | |||
| Korean | 일 | ||
| Originally, the Korean word "일" meant "sun", then came to mean "day" and finally settled into its current meaning of "work". | |||
| Mongolian | ажил | ||
| "Ажил" can also refer to a person's occupation or profession, or to the duties and responsibilities associated with a particular position. | |||
| Myanmar (Burmese) | အလုပ် | ||
Job in South East Asian Languages
| Indonesian | pekerjaan | ||
| The word pekerja in Indonesian comes from the Sanskrit word 'karyawān' which also means worker or employee. | |||
| Javanese | padamelan | ||
| In Javanese, the word "padamelan" can also refer to a "group of people working together" or a "working environment". | |||
| Khmer | ការងារ | ||
| Its second meaning is 'work' as in physics or chemistry, as in 'the work done by a force'. | |||
| Lao | ວຽກ | ||
| The word "ວຽກ" is also used to refer to a specific piece of work that needs to be completed. | |||
| Malay | pekerjaan | ||
| The word "pekerjaan" in Malay is derived from the Sanskrit word "paricāra", meaning "service". It can also refer to "work" or "labor" in a more general sense. | |||
| Thai | งาน | ||
| The term "งาน" can also refer to an important event or ceremony (e.g., a wedding), its main part or task (e.g., the main part of a job), a person's duty or role (e.g., the task of a soldier), or an art or craft. | |||
| Vietnamese | việc làm | ||
| "Việc làm" is Sino-Vietnamese and means "to do something" or "task". Hence, it commonly refers to a job or employment, but can also refer to a mission or project. | |||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | trabaho | ||
Job in Central Asian Languages
| Azerbaijani | iş | ||
| The word "iş" in Azerbaijani also has the meanings of "action", "deed", and "business". | |||
| Kazakh | жұмыс | ||
| The word "жұмыс" originated from the old Turkic word "jumus" which means "work" or "task". | |||
| Kyrgyz | жумуш | ||
| The word "жумуш" may also mean "duty" or "task" in Kyrgyz. | |||
| Tajik | кор | ||
| The word "кор" ("job") in Tajik is derived from the Persian word "کار" ( "work"), which is itself derived from the Proto-Indo-European root *ker- ("to make"). | |||
| Turkmen | iş | ||
| Uzbek | ish | ||
| Ish can also mean "work" or "business" in Uzbek. | |||
| Uyghur | خىزمەت | ||
Job in Pacific Languages
| Hawaiian | hana | ||
| The Hawaiian word “hana” not only means “work,” but can also mean “responsibility,” “burden,” or “service. | |||
| Maori | mahi | ||
| Mahi can also mean 'to work, to do, to create, to perform, to accomplish a task or duty'. | |||
| Samoan | galuega | ||
| Galuega is a Polynesian word shared by Samoan, Tongan, Māori, and Hawaiian, meaning "work". It is cognate to the Rotuman word "gañua", the Fijian word "caloa", and the Indonesian word "kerja." | |||
| Tagalog (Filipino) | trabaho | ||
| The word "trabaho" in Tagalog (Filipino) is derived from the Spanish word "trabajo", which means "work" or "labor". | |||
Job in American Indigenous Languages
| Aymara | irnaqawi | ||
| Guarani | mba'apo | ||
Job in International Languages
| Esperanto | laboro | ||
| The Esperanto word "laboro" comes from the Latin "labor" which means "work" or "toil". | |||
| Latin | officium | ||
| The Latin word "officium" originally referred to a religious duty or service, hence its connection to the concept of an assigned role or task. | |||
Job in Others Languages
| Greek | δουλειά | ||
| The word "δουλειά" derives from the ancient Greek word "δουλός," meaning "slave" or "servant." | |||
| Hmong | hauj lwm | ||
| The word hauj lwm can also mean 'place of employment' or 'workplace'. | |||
| Kurdish | kar | ||
| The word "kar" in Kurdish is often used to refer to the act of doing something, rather than a specific occupation or job title. | |||
| Turkish | iş | ||
| The word "iş" comes from the Old Turkic word "iş", meaning "work" or "business". | |||
| Xhosa | umsebenzi | ||
| The Xhosa word "umsebenzi" is cognate with the Zulu word "umsebenzi," both deriving from the Proto-Bantu word *sebɛnzi. | |||
| Yiddish | אַרבעט | ||
| "אַרבעט" (arbet) literally means "four" or "four parts" in Yiddish, referring to the traditional division of labor into four parts of the day (morning, noon, afternoon, evening) | |||
| Zulu | umsebenzi | ||
| In Zulu, 'umsebenzi' ('job') also refers to the work done for a 'chieftain', 'king' or 'head of household' as part of traditional community responsibilities. | |||
| Assamese | চাকৰি | ||
| Aymara | irnaqawi | ||
| Bhojpuri | नौकरी | ||
| Dhivehi | ވަޒީފާ | ||
| Dogri | नौकरी | ||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | trabaho | ||
| Guarani | mba'apo | ||
| Ilocano | tarabaho | ||
| Krio | wok | ||
| Kurdish (Sorani) | پیشە | ||
| Maithili | चाकरी | ||
| Meiteilon (Manipuri) | ꯊꯕꯛ | ||
| Mizo | hna | ||
| Oromo | hojii | ||
| Odia (Oriya) | ଚାକିରି | ||
| Quechua | llamkay | ||
| Sanskrit | कार्य | ||
| Tatar | эш | ||
| Tigrinya | ስራሕ | ||
| Tsonga | ntirho | ||