Lovely in Different Languages
Discover 'Lovely' in 134 Languages: Dive into Translations, Hear Pronunciations, and Uncover Cultural Insights.
Updated on March 6, 2024
The word 'lovely' is more than just a simple adjective; it's a powerful expression of admiration, beauty, and affection. Its significance goes beyond mere aesthetics, as it often conveys a sense of warmth, endearment, and positive regard towards the subject. This makes 'lovely' a culturally important term, as it bridges the gap between language and emotion, allowing us to connect with others on a deeper level.
Moreover, understanding the translation of 'lovely' in different languages can provide valuable insights into the cultural nuances and unique perspectives of various societies. For instance, in Spanish, 'lovely' translates to 'hermoso/a,' which also means 'full of grace.' Meanwhile, in Japanese, 'lovely' becomes 'kirei,' a term that emphasizes cleanliness and elegance. These translations not only reflect linguistic diversity but also highlight the universal human experience of appreciating beauty and expressing affection.
So, whether you're a language enthusiast, a cultural explorer, or simply someone looking to expand your vocabulary, exploring the translations of 'lovely' can be a delightful and enriching journey. Here are some of the ways 'lovely' is expressed in various languages around the world:
Lovely
Lovely in Sub-Saharan African Languages
| Afrikaans | lieflik | ||
| The word "lieflik" in Afrikaans can also mean "rather" and "decent". | |||
| Amharic | ደስ የሚል | ||
| In older usage, "lovely" and "beautiful" had the same meanings, but "lovely" is now usually applied only to things which have not a grand but rather a pleasing or charming quality. | |||
| Hausa | kyakkyawa | ||
| The Hausa word "kyakkyawa" originates from the Arabic word "khafif" meaning "light" and was later borrowed into Hausa as a term of endearment. | |||
| Igbo | mara mma | ||
| The Igbo word "mma" can also refer to a grandmother or an elderly woman, embodying respect and care. | |||
| Malagasy | lovely | ||
| In Malagasy, 'lovely' can also mean 'handsome' or 'pretty' when describing people. | |||
| Nyanja (Chichewa) | wokondeka | ||
| The word "wokondeka" can also mean "adorable" or "cute". | |||
| Shona | akanaka | ||
| The word 'akanaka' is cognate to the Nguni 'akanjani', and has the alternate meaning of 'to be well'. | |||
| Somali | qurux badan | ||
| The Somali word "qurux badan" is derived from the verb "qurux" meaning "to beautify" | |||
| Sesotho | ratehang | ||
| The word "ratehang" in Sesotho originates from the word "rateha," which means "to be happy" or "to be joyful." | |||
| Swahili | nzuri | ||
| The Swahili word "nzuri" is derived from an older Proto-Bantu root meaning "good" or "beautiful". Originally, "beauty" and "goodness" were one in the same concept, and this is reflected in its many uses throughout East Africa. | |||
| Xhosa | kuhle | ||
| The word 'kuhle' in Xhosa also means 'good' or 'nice'. | |||
| Yoruba | ẹlẹwà | ||
| Ẹlẹwà also means "spirit of beauty" and "the spirit who makes one beautiful," and is used as a praise name. | |||
| Zulu | othandekayo | ||
| The word "othandekayo" can also refer to someone who is attractive or desirable. | |||
| Bambara | kanuya | ||
| Ewe | nyo ŋutᴐ | ||
| Kinyarwanda | mwiza | ||
| Lingala | kitoko | ||
| Luganda | kilungi | ||
| Sepedi | rategago | ||
| Twi (Akan) | anika | ||
Lovely in North African & Middle Eastern Languages
| Arabic | محبوب | ||
| The word "محبوب" can also mean "beloved" or "favorite" in Arabic. | |||
| Hebrew | חביב | ||
| The word "חביב" can also mean "dear" or "beloved" in Hebrew. | |||
| Pashto | په زړه پوری | ||
| In Persian, this word means "to heart's content". | |||
| Arabic | محبوب | ||
| The word "محبوب" can also mean "beloved" or "favorite" in Arabic. | |||
Lovely in Western European Languages
| Albanian | bukuroshe | ||
| The Albanian word “bukuroshe” (beautiful) means | |||
| Basque | ederra | ||
| While "ederra" means "lovely" in Basque, it can also mean "beautiful," "fair," or "comely." | |||
| Catalan | encantador | ||
| The Catalan word "encantador" can also mean "charming", "captivating", or "bewitching" in English. | |||
| Croatian | lijep | ||
| In the old Slavic language, the adjective 'lijep' originally referred to something that is pleasing to the eyes or ears. | |||
| Danish | dejlig | ||
| The word "dejlig" derives from the Old Norse word "dœgligr," meaning "fit, worthy, or proper." | |||
| Dutch | lief | ||
| In Dutch, "lief" means "lovely", but it also means "dear" or "beloved". | |||
| English | lovely | ||
| The word 'lovely' is derived from the Old English word 'lufian', which means 'to love'. | |||
| French | charmant | ||
| The French word "charmant" originally meant "singing" and is related to the Latin word "carmen" meaning "song". | |||
| Frisian | moai | ||
| Moai's other meanings include 'pretty', 'agreeable', 'pleasant', and 'beautiful'. | |||
| Galician | encantadora | ||
| The Galician word "encantadora" can be traced back to the Latin word "incantare," meaning "to enchant" or "to bewitch. | |||
| German | schön | ||
| The word 'schön' is derived from the Old High German word 'scōni', which meant 'shining' or 'bright' | |||
| Icelandic | yndisleg | ||
| The word "yndisleg" can also be used to describe something that is beautiful, pleasing, or delightful. | |||
| Irish | álainn | ||
| The word "álainn" is derived from the Proto-Celtic *alno- meaning "beautiful, glorious, radiant". | |||
| Italian | bello | ||
| The word "bello" in Italian derives from the Latin "bellus", meaning "beautiful" or "fine". | |||
| Luxembourgish | léif | ||
| In German, the word "lieb" used in the phrase "ich habe dich lieb" for "I love you" comes from the same root as "léif". | |||
| Maltese | sabiħ | ||
| The word 'sabiħ' is derived from the Arabic word 'sabah', meaning 'morning', and is also used to describe something that is fresh, new, or beautiful. | |||
| Norwegian | herlig | ||
| "Herlig" is a Norwegian word meaning "lovely", and is related to the German word "herrlich" and the Swedish verb "hälsa", meaning "greet." | |||
| Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) | adorável | ||
| The Portuguese word "adorável" comes from the Latin "adorabilis," meaning "worthy of reverence." | |||
| Scots Gaelic | àlainn | ||
| Àlainn is derived from the Old Irish word "alend," meaning "beautiful," and is related to the Welsh word "alan," meaning "fair". | |||
| Spanish | encantador | ||
| The word 'encantador' comes from the Latin word 'incantare', meaning 'to charm' or 'to cast a spell'. | |||
| Swedish | härlig | ||
| The word "härlig" is cognate with the German word "herrlich" and is thought to derive from a Proto-Germanic "heriz" meaning "to praise". | |||
| Welsh | hyfryd | ||
| The Welsh word "hyfryd" (lovely) is derived from the root "hyfr" (pleasant, fair), which is shared with the Irish word "suair" (pleasant) and the Latin word "suavis" (sweet). | |||
Lovely in Eastern European Languages
| Belarusian | выдатны | ||
| "Выдатны" shares the same root as the Russian word "выдающийся" which can mean "prominent" or "extraordinary". | |||
| Bosnian | divno | ||
| "Divno" is also a colloquial word for "strange" or "weird" in Croatian slang, but in Bosnian it is more commonly used as a compliment. | |||
| Bulgarian | прекрасен | ||
| The word "прекрасен" (lovely) in Bulgarian comes from the Old Church Slavonic word "прекрасьнъ" (beautiful, handsome) and is related to the word "краса" (beauty). | |||
| Czech | půvabný | ||
| The word "půvabný" is derived from the Proto-Slavic word *pьrbvь*, meaning "beautiful" or "charming." | |||
| Estonian | armas | ||
| Derived from the Germanic word "arma", meaning "kind, gracious, or merciful" | |||
| Finnish | ihana | ||
| The word "ihana" also means "wonderful" or "nice" in Finnish. | |||
| Hungarian | bájos | ||
| The Hungarian word "bájos" is of Slavic origin and has the broader meaning of "magical" or "enchanting" when applied to objects and actions. | |||
| Latvian | jauki | ||
| "Jauki" is a common adjective in Latvian that may have originated from the Old Prussian word "iaukei" meaning "warm" or "pleasant". | |||
| Lithuanian | mielas | ||
| Related to the Lithuanian word "miela", meaning "dear" or "beloved." | |||
| Macedonian | убава | ||
| The word "убава" is also used to refer to a beautiful woman, and is related to the words "убавина" (beauty) and "убав" (beautiful). | |||
| Polish | śliczny | ||
| The word "śliczny" in Polish is derived from the Proto-Slavic word "*sъličьnъ", meaning "beautiful" or "handsome." | |||
| Romanian | minunat | ||
| Romanian "minunat" comes from an Old Slavic root and initially only meant "past" in reference to times past or "last". | |||
| Russian | прекрасный | ||
| "Прекрасный" is derived from the Old Church Slavonic word "прекрасьнъ," which means "beautiful, excellent, or perfect." | |||
| Serbian | дивно | ||
| "Дивно" is an archaic word that means "wonderful" or "divine". | |||
| Slovak | pôvabný | ||
| The word "pôvabný" is derived from the Slavic root *obъ- "around" or *obъ- "charm, spell, beauty". | |||
| Slovenian | ljubko | ||
| The word “ljubko” is derived from the verb “ljubiti” which means “to love” and it also means “gentle” and “kind”. | |||
| Ukrainian | милий | ||
| The word "милий" is also a noun that means "husband", "lover", "dear one" or "friend." | |||
Lovely in South Asian Languages
| Bengali | সুদৃশ্য | ||
| The word "সুদৃশ্য" is derived from the Sanskrit word "सुदृश्य" meaning "well-seen" or "easily visible." | |||
| Gujarati | મનોરમ | ||
| The Gujarati word "મનોરમ" may also refer to a picturesque location, a charming landscape, or a state of delight and pleasure. | |||
| Hindi | सुंदर | ||
| सुंदर derives from the Sanskrit word 'sundar', meaning 'beautiful' or 'graceful', or 'well-decorated' | |||
| Kannada | ಸುಂದರ | ||
| The word 'ಸುಂದರ' (Sundara) is related to the Tamil words 'sundar' (beautiful), and 'sundari' (a beautiful woman), derived from the root 'sunth'/'sund' (beautiful, pleasant). | |||
| Malayalam | മനോഹരമാണ് | ||
| Marathi | सुंदर | ||
| सुंदर in Marathi can also mean 'bright', 'beautiful', or 'handsome'. | |||
| Nepali | राम्रो | ||
| The word "राम्रो" originates from the Sanskrit word "रम्य" (ramya), meaning "pleasant" or "delightful". | |||
| Punjabi | ਪਿਆਰਾ | ||
| The word 'ਪਿਆਰਾ' in Punjabi is derived from the Sanskrit word 'प्री' (prī) and originally meant 'dear' or 'beloved'. | |||
| Sinhala (Sinhalese) | ආදරණීය | ||
| Tamil | அழகான | ||
| The Tamil word அழகான (aḻakāṉa) is derived from the root word அழகு (aḻaku) meaning "beauty" and can also refer to something that is "handsome" or "beautiful." | |||
| Telugu | సుందరమైన | ||
| The word "సుందరమైన" is derived from the Sanskrit word "sundara", meaning "beautiful" or "handsome". | |||
| Urdu | خوبصورت | ||
| The word "خوبصورت" is derived from the Persian word "خوب" meaning "good" and "صورت" meaning "form or appearance". | |||
Lovely in East Asian Languages
| Chinese (Simplified) | 可爱 | ||
| “ 可爱” 一词还可表示 “讨人喜欢”、 “亲切”、 “可亲”、 “可敬” 等意思。 | |||
| Chinese (Traditional) | 可愛 | ||
| 可愛 (kě ài) literally means "can be loved" and can also refer to pets, children, or anything that arouses affection. | |||
| Japanese | 美しい | ||
| Japanese '美しい (utsukushii)' comes from an obsolete verb stem meaning 'to be crowded' and 'to blossom' | |||
| Korean | 아름다운 | ||
| Literally means 'a thing of beauty.' | |||
| Mongolian | хөөрхөн | ||
| The word "хөөрхөн" also means "beautiful", "charming", or "pleasing". | |||
| Myanmar (Burmese) | ချစ်တယ် | ||
Lovely in South East Asian Languages
| Indonesian | menyenangkan | ||
| The word "menyenangkan" in Indonesian initially meant "to cause pleasure" or "to give joy" and is derived from the root word "senang" which means "joyful" or "pleasant". | |||
| Javanese | apik banget | ||
| Apik banget is often used to describe something that is visually pleasing or aesthetically appealing. | |||
| Khmer | គួរឱ្យស្រឡាញ់ | ||
| The word "គួរឱ្យស្រឡាញ់" can also mean "admirable" or "estimable," suggesting that something or someone is worthy of respect or admiration. | |||
| Lao | ໜ້າ ຮັກ | ||
| Malay | cantik | ||
| The word "cantik" can also mean "beautiful" or "aesthetically pleasing." | |||
| Thai | น่ารัก | ||
| "น่ารัก" also means "young child" in Thai. | |||
| Vietnamese | đáng yêu | ||
| The word "đáng yêu" in Vietnamese literally means "worthy of love" and is used to express endearment. | |||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | kaibig-ibig | ||
Lovely in Central Asian Languages
| Azerbaijani | sevimli | ||
| Sevimli is derived from the Persian word sevmek (to love) and the Turkish suffix -li (having). | |||
| Kazakh | сүйкімді | ||
| The word "сүйкімді" originates from the Old Turkic word "süküm", meaning "to love" or "to be loved". | |||
| Kyrgyz | сүйкүмдүү | ||
| Tajik | зебо | ||
| The Tajik word "зебо" is also used as a female given name. | |||
| Turkmen | owadan | ||
| Uzbek | yoqimli | ||
| The word “yoqimli” in Uzbek also means “beautiful”, “pretty”, or “handsome”. | |||
| Uyghur | سۆيۈملۈك | ||
Lovely in Pacific Languages
| Hawaiian | aloha | ||
| The Hawaiian word "aloha" can also mean hello, goodbye, love, compassion, mercy, pity, kindness, affection, warmth, peace, tranquility, serenity, friendship, and unity. | |||
| Maori | ataahua | ||
| 'Ataahua' also means 'dawn' or 'morning', with the idea that a beautiful view is the same as a new sunrise or day. | |||
| Samoan | aulelei | ||
| The word "aulelei" in Samoan, meaning "lovely," derives from the Proto-Polynesian root word "*lailei," also meaning "lovely" or "admirable." | |||
| Tagalog (Filipino) | kaibig-ibig | ||
| The word "kaibig-ibig" is derived from the words "ibig" (love) and "kaibig" (friend) and initially meant "friendly." | |||
Lovely in American Indigenous Languages
| Aymara | jiwaki | ||
| Guarani | hekopajéva | ||
Lovely in International Languages
| Esperanto | amindaj | ||
| The word "Amindaj" can also mean "kind, generous," or "compassionate," and is related to the word "amo," meaning "to love." | |||
| Latin | amabilia | ||
| In Late Latin, "amabilia" also referred to a beloved person. | |||
Lovely in Others Languages
| Greek | ωραίος | ||
| "Ωραίος" is derived from "ώρα", meaning "time" or "season", implying "being at the right time" or "in bloom". | |||
| Hmong | ntxim hlub | ||
| "Ntxim hlub" comes from the Hmong word "ntxim," meaning "heart," and "hlub," meaning "deep or profound." | |||
| Kurdish | têhezkir | ||
| The word 'têhezkir' in Kurdish originally meant 'beauty' or 'appearance' and is related to the word 'têh', which means 'face' or 'appearance'. | |||
| Turkish | güzel | ||
| The word "güzel" in Turkish, meaning "beautiful or lovely", comes from the Turkic word "güç" meaning "beautiful, handsome, good, or strong" | |||
| Xhosa | kuhle | ||
| The word 'kuhle' in Xhosa also means 'good' or 'nice'. | |||
| Yiddish | lovely | ||
| The Yiddish word 'libelech' ('ליבעלעך') is used to describe someone or something that is 'lovely' or 'likable'. | |||
| Zulu | othandekayo | ||
| The word "othandekayo" can also refer to someone who is attractive or desirable. | |||
| Assamese | ধুনীয়া | ||
| Aymara | jiwaki | ||
| Bhojpuri | प्यारा | ||
| Dhivehi | ލޮބުވެތި | ||
| Dogri | प्यारा | ||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | kaibig-ibig | ||
| Guarani | hekopajéva | ||
| Ilocano | nakaay-ayat | ||
| Krio | fayn | ||
| Kurdish (Sorani) | جوان | ||
| Maithili | सुन्दर | ||
| Meiteilon (Manipuri) | ꯐꯖꯕ | ||
| Mizo | duhawm | ||
| Oromo | bareedduu | ||
| Odia (Oriya) | ସୁନ୍ଦର | ||
| Quechua | munay | ||
| Sanskrit | सुन्दरः | ||
| Tatar | матур | ||
| Tigrinya | ተፈቃሪ | ||
| Tsonga | rhandzeka | ||