Luck in Different Languages
Discover 'Luck' in 134 Languages: Dive into Translations, Hear Pronunciations, and Uncover Cultural Insights.
Luck
Afrikaans geluk | ||
Albanian fat | ||
Amharic ዕድል | ||
Arabic حظ | ||
Armenian հաջողություն | ||
Assamese ভাগ্য | ||
Aymara surti | ||
Azerbaijani uğurlar | ||
Bambara kunna | ||
Basque zortea | ||
Belarusian шанцаванне | ||
Bengali ভাগ্য | ||
Bhojpuri भाग्य | ||
Bosnian sreća | ||
Bulgarian късмет | ||
Catalan sort | ||
Cebuano swerte | ||
Chinese (Simplified) 运气 | ||
Chinese (Traditional) 運氣 | ||
Corsican furtuna | ||
Croatian sreća | ||
Czech štěstí | ||
Danish held | ||
Dhivehi ނަސީބު | ||
Dogri किसमत | ||
Dutch geluk | ||
English luck | ||
Esperanto ŝanco | ||
Estonian õnne | ||
Ewe dzɔgbenyuie | ||
Filipino (Tagalog) swerte | ||
Finnish onnea | ||
French la chance | ||
Frisian gelok | ||
Galician sorte | ||
Georgian იღბალი | ||
German glück | ||
Greek τυχη | ||
Guarani po'a | ||
Gujarati નસીબ | ||
Haitian Creole chans | ||
Hausa sa'a | ||
Hawaiian laki | ||
Hebrew מַזָל | ||
Hindi भाग्य | ||
Hmong hmoov | ||
Hungarian szerencse | ||
Icelandic heppni | ||
Igbo chioma | ||
Ilocano suerte | ||
Indonesian keberuntungan | ||
Irish ádh | ||
Italian fortuna | ||
Japanese 幸運 | ||
Javanese begja | ||
Kannada ಅದೃಷ್ಟ | ||
Kazakh сәттілік | ||
Khmer សំណាង | ||
Kinyarwanda amahirwe | ||
Konkani नशीब | ||
Korean 운 | ||
Krio lɔk | ||
Kurdish şahî | ||
Kurdish (Sorani) بەخت | ||
Kyrgyz ийгилик | ||
Lao ໂຊກດີ | ||
Latin fortuna | ||
Latvian veiksmi | ||
Lingala chance | ||
Lithuanian sėkmė | ||
Luganda omukisa | ||
Luxembourgish gléck | ||
Macedonian среќа | ||
Maithili भाग्य | ||
Malagasy vintana | ||
Malay tuah | ||
Malayalam ഭാഗ്യം | ||
Maltese fortuna | ||
Maori waimarie | ||
Marathi नशीब | ||
Meiteilon (Manipuri) ꯂꯥꯏꯕꯛ | ||
Mizo vanneihna | ||
Mongolian аз | ||
Myanmar (Burmese) ကံ | ||
Nepali भाग्य | ||
Norwegian flaks | ||
Nyanja (Chichewa) mwayi | ||
Odia (Oriya) ଭାଗ୍ୟ | ||
Oromo carraa | ||
Pashto بخت | ||
Persian شانس | ||
Polish szczęście | ||
Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) sorte | ||
Punjabi ਕਿਸਮਤ | ||
Quechua sami | ||
Romanian noroc | ||
Russian удача | ||
Samoan laki | ||
Sanskrit भाग्य | ||
Scots Gaelic fortan | ||
Sepedi mahlatse | ||
Serbian срећа | ||
Sesotho mahlohonolo | ||
Shona rombo rakanaka | ||
Sindhi قسمت | ||
Sinhala (Sinhalese) වාසනාව | ||
Slovak šťastie | ||
Slovenian sreča | ||
Somali nasiib | ||
Spanish suerte | ||
Sundanese kabeneran | ||
Swahili bahati | ||
Swedish tur | ||
Tagalog (Filipino) swerte | ||
Tajik барори кор | ||
Tamil அதிர்ஷ்டம் | ||
Tatar уңыш | ||
Telugu అదృష్టం | ||
Thai โชค | ||
Tigrinya ዕድል | ||
Tsonga nkateko | ||
Turkish şans | ||
Turkmen bagt | ||
Twi (Akan) ti pa | ||
Ukrainian удача | ||
Urdu قسمت | ||
Uyghur تەلەي | ||
Uzbek omad | ||
Vietnamese may mắn | ||
Welsh lwc | ||
Xhosa amathamsanqa | ||
Yiddish גליק | ||
Yoruba orire | ||
Zulu inhlanhla |
Etymology & Notes
| Language | Etymology / Notes |
|---|---|
| Afrikaans | The word "geluk" also means "happiness" in Dutch and German. |
| Albanian | “Fat” has an alternate meaning of “lot” or “fate” and could originate from the Proto-Indo-European word “bhags,” meaning “dividing, or distribution.” |
| Amharic | The word "ዕድል" comes from the Geez word "ዕደለ", meaning "to happen, to occur, or to befall." |
| Arabic | "حظ" comes from the root “to possess”, thus signifying a share or portion of something, so it can also mean a lot or inheritance, a wife’s dowry or portion, or a part of the inheritance of a son, a daughter, or a brother, or a part of a share of booty. |
| Azerbaijani | "Uğurlar" in Azerbaijani is also used as a salutation meaning "good luck" and "success." |
| Basque | The Basque word "zortea" originally meant "portion," and is related to the word "zori," meaning "fate or destiny." |
| Belarusian | In Belarusian, the word "шанцаванне" can also refer specifically to "a sudden stroke of good luck." |
| Bengali | In Bengali, the word "ভাগ্য" can also mean "fortune" or "fate". |
| Bosnian | The word "sreća" can also mean "happiness" or "fortune" in Bosnian. |
| Bulgarian | "Късмет" is also a term used for "fortune telling" and "lottery ticket". |
| Catalan | In Catalan, the noun "sort" can also mean "fate", "kind", or "type". |
| Cebuano | 'Swerte' can mean either 'luck' or 'bad luck', depending on the context in which it is used |
| Chinese (Simplified) | 运气 (yùnqi) can also refer to a person's destiny or fortune, as determined by their birthdate and time. |
| Chinese (Traditional) | The character "運" in "運氣" (luck) originally meant "transporting goods by carriage". |
| Corsican | "Fortuna" has a double meaning in Corsican: luck but also storm. |
| Croatian | The word "sreća" is derived from Proto-Slavonic word *sъręka meaning "success" or "victory". |
| Czech | The word "štěstí" comes from the Czech word "sťast" meaning "happy", which in turn comes from the Proto-Slavic word "sъčęstije", meaning "happiness" or "good fortune". |
| Danish | The word "held" in Danish originally meant "good fortune" or "luck," but its meaning has shifted over time to encompass a broader range of positive outcomes. |
| Dutch | The word "geluk" in Dutch can also refer to "happiness" or "bliss". |
| Esperanto | The word 'ŝanco' originally meant 'opportunity', and still retains this meaning in some contexts. |
| Estonian | The word "õnne" can also refer to a good fortune or a lucky break. |
| Finnish | 'Onnea' in Finnish is not just luck, it can also mean success or prosperity. |
| French | The word "la chance" in French derives from the Latin word "cadentia," meaning "that which falls." |
| Frisian | "Gelok is possibly a loanword from the Latin word 'jocus' meaning 'joke' and therefore related to the English word 'joke'." |
| Galician | "Sorte" in Galician comes from the Latin "sors," meaning "lot" as drawn or cast for divination or fortune-telling. |
| Georgian | The Georgian word "იღბალი" is derived from the Arabic word "iqbāl", meaning "good fortune" or "success". |
| German | The word "Glück" in German has also been used historically to refer to fortune, prosperity, and well-being. |
| Greek | The word 'τυχη' (luck) is derived from the Proto-Indo-European root *tew- ('to swell'), suggesting a link between prosperity and growth. |
| Gujarati | The Gujarati word "નસીબ" not only means "luck" but also refers to "fate" or "destiny". |
| Haitian Creole | "Chans" also means "chance" or "opportunity" in Haitian Creole. |
| Hausa | The word "sa'a" in Hausa has an alternate meaning of "time" or "occasion." |
| Hawaiian | In Hawaiian, “laki” can also mean the act of growing or becoming, and its verb form describes the act of rising or elevating. |
| Hebrew | In Hebrew, the word "מַזָל" (mazal) can also refer to a person's astrological constellation or zodiac sign, aligning with the Babylonian concept of celestial influences on human affairs. |
| Hindi | The word "भाग्य" is derived from the Sanskrit word "भाग", meaning "portion" or "share", and it can also refer to "destiny" or "lot in life". |
| Hmong | In addition to "hmoov", another word for "luck" in Hmong is "hmoov dub," or literally "good luck." |
| Hungarian | "Szerencse" ultimately comes from the Proto-Turkic word *yär, meaning "happiness" and "favor." |
| Icelandic | The word "heppni" comes from the Old Norse word "happ", which also means "chance" or "good fortune". |
| Igbo | In Igbo, the word "chioma" also refers to a person's hair or a lion's mane. |
| Indonesian | Keberuntungan does not mean the state of being successful but rather the state of being fortunate, or not unsuccessful. |
| Irish | The word "ádh" also means "nature" or "existence" in Irish, deriving from the Proto-Indo-European root *h₂wes- "to be". |
| Italian | The Latin term 'fortuna' means both 'luck' and 'strength', thus signifying the two sides of the same coin in Roman thought. |
| Japanese | "幸運" in Japanese literally means "good fortune". |
| Javanese | "Begja" is derived from Old Javanese "bhaggea" (part, portion, allotment), related to Sanskrit "bhag" (share, lot, good fortune), suggesting fortune as one's allotted portion. |
| Kannada | "ಅದೃಷ್ಟ" (luck) is derived from "ಅದೃಷ್ಟಿ" (auspicious vision), meaning the divine favor that brings good fortune. |
| Kazakh | Сәттілік can also refer to opportunities or the favourable conditions of a situation. |
| Khmer | In addition to its primary meaning of "luck," "សំណាង" can also refer to blessings, good fortune, prosperity, or well-being. |
| Korean | In addition to "luck," "운" can also mean "destiny" or "fortune." |
| Kurdish | The word "şahî" in Kurdish derives from the words "şah" and "î", meaning "king" and "fortune" respectively, suggesting the idea of a "king's fortune" or "royal luck." |
| Kyrgyz | The word "ийгилик" (luck) in Kyrgyz comes from the Old Turkic word for "good fortune" and also has the alternate meaning of "success". |
| Lao | The Lao word "ໂຊກດີ" is also used to wish someone good fortune or congratulate them on their success. |
| Latin | The word "fortuna" in Latin also means "wealth, fortune, or prosperity." |
| Latvian | The word "veiksmi" is related to "veikt," meaning "to do" or "to accomplish". Its root word is "veik," meaning "action" or "deed." |
| Lithuanian | “Sėkmė” likely derives from the Slavic “suti”, meaning “to meet”, suggesting an encounter with good fortune. |
| Luxembourgish | "Gléck" is also used in Luxembourgish to describe a state of well-being or happiness. |
| Macedonian | The word "среќа" in Macedonian is related to the Proto-Slavic word "sъręka", meaning "fate" or "destiny". |
| Malagasy | "Vintana," meaning "luck," is related to the word "vintana," meaning "window." |
| Malay | Malay word "tuah" may also refer to "fortune", "fate", or a "supernatural blessing" |
| Malayalam | ഭാഗ്യം originates from the Sanskrit word 'bhaga' meaning 'share' or 'portion', emphasizing that luck is a portion of one's destiny. |
| Maltese | The Maltese word 'fortuna' is derived from the Latin 'fortuna', meaning 'fate, destiny', and 'chance, luck' in Italian. |
| Maori | The Maori word “waimarie” means good luck but can also represent peace, prosperity or a state of well-being. |
| Marathi | The word "नशीब" is an amalgamation of "निस्" (certain) and "भाग्य" (destiny or fortune), and its literal meaning is "sure destiny." |
| Mongolian | The word "аз" can also refer to a type of fermented mare's milk in Mongolian culture. |
| Myanmar (Burmese) | The word "ကံ" (luck) also implies a sense of "fate" or "destiny" in Myanmar (Burmese), reflecting the belief in a predetermined path of events. |
| Nepali | While the noun 'भाग्य' means 'luck' in Nepali, it also refers to 'fate' or 'destiny' and is also found in the context of 'fortune,' 'lot' or 'share'. |
| Norwegian | In Norwegian, flaks can also mean "a piece of fish" or "a flat piece of land near the sea" |
| Nyanja (Chichewa) | The Chichewa word 'mwayi' also holds the meaning of 'chance,' 'opportunity,' or 'possibility.' |
| Pashto | The word "بخت" can also mean "face" or "countenance" in Pashto. |
| Persian | The word "شانس" ("luck") in Persian comes from the Arabic word "شنص" ("bone oracle") |
| Polish | "Szczęście" derives from a verb meaning "to find," indicating luckiness as a result of fortune rather than skill. |
| Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) | "Sorte" in Portuguese comes from Latin word "sors" meaning "lot", "fate" or "prophecy". |
| Punjabi | The Punjabi word "ਕਿਸਮਤ" is also used to describe a person's "destiny" or "lot in life". |
| Romanian | "Noroc" also refers to the drink shared at the beginning of a meal in Romanian culture. |
| Russian | The word "удача" derives from the verb "удеть" ("to succeed"), thus also implying success and skill. |
| Samoan | The word "laki" can also refer to an omen or an animal considered unlucky. |
| Scots Gaelic | The word 'fortan' derives from the Proto-Celtic word '*portos', meaning 'fate' or 'destiny'. |
| Serbian | The word "срећа" is cognate with the Greek word "εὐτυχία" (eutychia), meaning "happiness". |
| Sesotho | The term "mahlohonolo" is also used colloquially to refer to someone who is particularly fortunate or blessed. |
| Shona | The word "rakanaka" in Shona has an etymology rooted in "kana" and "kana-kana" meaning "shining" or ""beautiful". |
| Sindhi | In Sindhi, "قسمت" also refers to a predetermined fate or destiny. |
| Sinhala (Sinhalese) | The word “වාසනාව” is derived from the Sanskrit word “vāsanā”, which means “scent” or “aroma”. |
| Slovak | The word "šťastie" is derived from the Proto-Indo-European root *steh₂-, meaning "to stand" or "to be firm" |
| Slovenian | In archaic Slovenian, 'sreča' meant 'fate' or 'fortune'. |
| Somali | Nasiib (luck) can refer to one's destiny or portion in life. |
| Spanish | In Spanish, "suerte" not only signifies luck, but may also refer to the strands of silk in a spider's web. |
| Sundanese | The word "kabeneran" in Sundanese can also mean "coincidentally" or "unexpectedly". |
| Swahili | "Bahati" can also refer to "blessing" or "fortune" |
| Swedish | The word "tur" in Swedish can also mean "row" or "bull". |
| Tagalog (Filipino) | The word “swerte” comes from the Chinese word for “quick,” and its original meaning was “short cut”. |
| Tajik | The word "барори кор" is derived from an Indo-Iranian root meaning "great" or "high," and also connotes "fortune" or "success." |
| Tamil | "அதிர்ஷ்டம்" also means "shaking," and the word was probably meant to describe how luck can make your hands shake. |
| Telugu | The word "అదృష్టం" is derived from the Sanskrit word "दृष्ट" (drishta), meaning "seen" or "visible". |
| Thai | โชค (luck) derives from Sanskrit "sukha" (happiness, good fortune) but also means "interest on money" in Thai. |
| Turkish | The word "şans" may also be derived from the French word "chance," meaning "opportunity" or "probability." |
| Ukrainian | The word "удача" is derived from the Proto-Slavic word *udati, which means "to succeed" or "to be successful." |
| Urdu | The word 'قسمت' (luck) in Urdu is derived from the Arabic word 'قسم' (part) or 'حصه' (share) |
| Uzbek | The word "omad" in Uzbek comes from the Persian word for "hope" or "expectation". |
| Vietnamese | The word "may mắn" is derived from the Chinese word "mǎng", meaning "lucky star" or "auspicious sign". |
| Welsh | The Welsh word 'lwc' may derive from the Proto-Celtic root '*lug-' meaning 'to shine' and also relates to the name of the deity known in Gaelic languages as 'Lugh'. |
| Xhosa | In addition to "luck", "amathamsanqa" in Xhosa can also refer to the "lucky charms" that are believed to attract good luck. |
| Yiddish | The word "גליק" in Yiddish is thought to be derived from the German "Glück" meaning "happiness" or the Middle High German "gelücke," meaning "good fortune." |
| Yoruba | Orire can also mean "to emerge", "to begin", or "to be born" in Yoruba. |
| Zulu | In Zulu, "inhlanhla" also refers to the umhlanhla, a tree with sacred or medicinal properties. |
| English | "Luck" originally meant "a favorable turn of events" or "a portion of something allotted to someone." |