Moment in different languages

Moment in Different Languages

Discover 'Moment' in 134 Languages: Dive into Translations, Hear Pronunciations, and Uncover Cultural Insights.

Updated on March 6, 2024

At its core, the word 'moment' represents a point in time or a brief period of time. However, its significance goes far beyond this simple definition. Moments are the building blocks of our lives, shaping our experiences, memories, and personal growth. They hold cultural importance across the globe, as societies have long sought to capture and preserve significant moments through various forms of art, literature, and historical records.

Given the universal nature of time, it's no surprise that the word 'moment' has been translated into countless languages, each with its own unique cultural and linguistic nuances. For example, in Spanish, 'moment' translates to 'momento,' while in French, it becomes 'moment.' In Mandarin Chinese, the word takes on a more complex form, '这个时刻' (zhège shíkè), which directly translates to 'this time/period.'

Understanding the translation of 'moment' in different languages can provide valuable insights into the cultural contexts and histories of various societies. Join us as we explore the fascinating world of language and culture through the lens of this simple, yet powerful, word.

Moment

Moment in Sub-Saharan African Languages

Afrikaansoomblik
"Oomblik" (derived from "oom", meaning "uncle", and "blik", meaning "glance") suggests a brief, affectionate moment shared between family.
Amharicአፍታ
The word "afta" used to mean "breath", later taking on the sense of "moment" or instant.
Hausalokacin
The Hausa word "lokacin" also means "situation," "condition," or "circumstance."
Igbooge
The word "oge" can also mean "time" or "occasion" in Igbo, signifying its broader significance beyond simply a single moment.
Malagasyfotoana
In Malagasy, "fotoana" is also a colloquial term that can mean "a short while".
Nyanja (Chichewa)mphindi
Mphindi is also an edible wild plant and is used to treat wounds and coughs
Shonanguva
"Nguva" can also refer to "time", "season", or "history."
Somalidaqiiqad
The Somali word for moment, 'daqiiqad', also means 'precise' or 'minute'.
Sesothomotsotsoana
The Sesotho word "motsotsoana" can also refer to a "short while" or a "brief period of time."
Swahiliwakati
Wakati is derived from the verb 'ku-wakia' which means 'to happen' or 'to occur'.
Xhosaokomzuzwana
"Okomzuzwana" is derived from "umzuzwana," meaning small flame or flicker. It implies a precise, short point in time.
Yorubaasiko
The word 'asiko' also means 'time' and can be used to refer to a specific point in time or to a period of time.
Zuluumzuzwana
"Umzuzwana" can refer to the moment in time, a particular time, or a short interval of time.
Bambarawagati
Eweɣeyiɣi
Kinyarwandaakanya
Lingalantango
Lugandaakaseera
Sepedinakwana
Twi (Akan)berɛ

Moment in North African & Middle Eastern Languages

Arabicلحظة
The word "لحظة" can also mean "glance", "wink", or "second" in Arabic.
Hebrewרֶגַע
In biblical Hebrew "רֶגַע" meant both a "moment" as well as the trembling that accompanied emotional upheaval.
Pashtoشېبه
The Pashto word "شېبه" (moment) has cognates in other Iranian languages, such as Persian "شب" (night) and Avestan "xšap" (night).
Arabicلحظة
The word "لحظة" can also mean "glance", "wink", or "second" in Arabic.

Moment in Western European Languages

Albanianmoment
"Momenti" in Albanian can mean either "moment" or "momentum".
Basqueunea
The Basque word "unea" also means "turn", "round" or "time".
Catalanmoment
In Catalan, "moment" can also mean "time" or "season".
Croatiantrenutak
In Bulgarian and Serbo-Croatian, an additional sense of "instant, flash, spark" in addition to "moment" can be found.
Danishøjeblik
The word "øjeblik" is related to the word "øje" (eye), implying a "blink of an eye" or a "brief moment".
Dutchmoment
The Dutch word "moment" can also mean "opportunity" or "chance".
Englishmoment
Moment is derived from the Latin word "momentum," meaning impulse or force, and originally referred to a fleeting instant in time.
Frenchmoment
The word "moment" in French comes from the Latin word "momentum," which means "movement" or "change".
Frisianmomint
Frisian 'momint' also means 'momentum' in English.
Galicianmomento
The common noun "momento" in Galician means "a present given to commemorate a past event", but can also mean "a keepsake".
Germanmoment
The German word for "moment" can also refer to "torque" or "engine power".
Icelandicaugnablik
Related to the Old Norse word "augnabragð", meaning "the time it takes to say a word"
Irishnóiméad
The Irish word "nóiméad" ultimately derives from the Latin "momentum," and in addition to meaning "moment," it can also mean "impetus," "energy," or "drive."
Italianmomento
"Momento" can also refer to "reminder" or "memento", a tangible object that serves as a memory trigger.
Luxembourgishmoment
The word "Moment" can also mean "impulse" or "opportunity" in Luxembourgish.
Maltesemument
The word "mument" in Maltese is derived from the Latin word "momentum", meaning "impulse" or "impetus".
Norwegianøyeblikk
Øy means island and blikk means glance, thus the word literally translates as "island glance".
Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil)momento
In Portuguese, "momento" can also refer to a small gift or souvenir, typically given as a keepsake or reminder of a special occasion.
Scots Gaelicmionaid
Scots Gaelic "mionaid" comes from Latin "minuta" which means a "small part" of time.
Spanishmomento
The word 'momento' in Spanish has multiple meanings, from 'moment' to 'memory of a special event' to 'keepsake.'
Swedishögonblick
"Ögonblick" originates from the obsolete Swedish word "ögnabragd", meaning "a blink of an eye".
Welshhyn o bryd
The term 'hyn o bryd' ('moment') literally translates as 'time out' ('hin' - time 'of' or 'out' - 'of' 'pryd' - time or when).

Moment in Eastern European Languages

Belarusianмомант
The word "момант" also means "power" in Belarusian.
Bosnianmomenat
In Bosnian, the word "momenat" can also refer to a "momentum of force".
Bulgarianмомент
In Bulgarian, "момент" also translates to "impulse" and "momentum".
Czechokamžik
Okamžik is related to the verb 'okávat' (to expect) and originally meant 'an expected or hoped-for moment'.
Estonianhetk
The word "hetk" also refers to an appropriate or opportune time or occasion.
Finnishhetki
"Hetki" can also mean "a little while" or "a while".
Hungarianpillanat
The word pillanat, meaning "moment" in Hungarian, also refers to a tiny, hard insect that lives in wood and is considered a pest.
Latvianbrīdi
The word "brīdi" is a cognate of the Lithuanian word "brindis" and the Old Church Slavonic word "brĭdĭ", derived from the Proto-Indo-European root "*bʰer-" (to cut, to divide).
Lithuanianmomentas
In Lithuanian, "momentas" can also refer to an amount of force or torque.
Macedonianмомент
The word "момент" can also refer to the right time or opportunity.
Polishza chwilę
The Polish phrase "za chwilę" has alternate meanings, such as "soon" or "in a moment".
Romanianmoment
In Romanian, "moment" can also refer to a specific time or instance, as in "în acel moment" (at that moment).
Russianмомент
The Russian word "момент" (moment) originates from the Latin word "momentum" (movement, impulse), which in turn is derived from the verb "movere" (to move).
Serbianтренутак
The word "тренутак" in Serbian comes from the Old Slavic word "tręsti" meaning "to shake" or "to move".
Slovakokamih
The word `okamih` in Slovak might be derived from Latin `occūmentum`, meaning `something hidden`, implying its transient nature.
Sloveniantrenutek
The word "trenutek" shares its root with the Latin word "tendo" meaning "to stretch" or "to make taut".
Ukrainianмомент
"Момент" в українській мові має те ж саме значення, що й латинське "momentum", яке означало "рух" або "імпульс".

Moment in South Asian Languages

Bengaliমুহূর্ত
The Sanskrit word "muhūrta" has an additional sense of an astrological time unit equivalent to 48 minutes.
Gujaratiક્ષણ
The word "ಕ್ಷಣ" is also used in Kannada and Marathi with the same meaning, and has Sanskrit origins.
Hindiपल
The Hindi word "पल" not only means "moment" but also has the meanings of "eyelid" and "wing" in the context of birds.
Kannadaಕ್ಷಣ
The word "ಕ್ಷಣ" not only means "moment" but also refers to a unit of time used in measuring musical performance.
Malayalamനിമിഷം
The word "നിമിഷം" (moment) in Malayalam can also refer to a blink of an eye or a short period of time.
Marathiक्षण
The Marathi word "क्षण" can also refer to "eyelid" and "the edge of something"
Nepaliपल
Nepali word "पल" also means "eyelid".
Punjabiਪਲ
The word "ਪਲ" is thought to be derived from the Sanskrit word "प्रलय" (pralaya), meaning "dissolution" or "end of the world."
Sinhala (Sinhalese)මොහොත
"මොහොත" comes from Sanskrit and originally meant "a twinkling of the eye".
Tamilகணம்
The Tamil word "கணம்" also refers to a group or multitude, and is cognate with "கண" meaning "to count" in Sanskrit.
Teluguక్షణం
The Telugu word "క్షణము" (kṣaṇam), meaning "moment," derives from the Sanskrit word "क्षण" (kṢaṇa) meaning "instant, fraction," and is also associated with "death" in poetic usage.
Urduلمحہ
The word "لمحہ" (moment in Urdu) is derived from the pre-Islamic Arabian notion of the "atom of time" or the "smallest possible unit of time".

Moment in East Asian Languages

Chinese (Simplified)时刻
The Chinese word "时刻" also means "always" or "every moment."
Chinese (Traditional)時刻
The word '時刻' can refer both to a specific moment or an extended moment, with a similar ambiguity in the English word 'moment'.
Japanese瞬間
The word "瞬間" can also mean "an instant" or "a flash of light".
Korean순간
The word "순간" is derived from the Chinese characters "瞬間", which means "a short period of time".
Mongolianмөч
Мөч is related to möngün, which means silver, and it was a word for a measure of silver in the Mongolian era.
Myanmar (Burmese)ခဏ
The word "ခဏ" can also refer to a period of time, such as a day or a month.

Moment in South East Asian Languages

Indonesiansaat
The word "saat" in Indonesian comes from the Arabic word "sa'at", meaning "time" or "hour", and also shares a similar root with the English word "second".
Javanesewayahe
The word also refers to the time between the birth of a newborn and when the body is washed.
Khmerពេលបច្ចុប្បន្ន
Laoປັດຈຸບັນ
Malaysekejap
"Sekejap" is a reduplicated form of the word "kejap", which means "a while". It is often used to indicate a short period of time, such as a moment or an instant.
Thaiช่วงเวลา
ช่วงเวลา derives from Sanskrit "kṣaṇa", which also translates to “instant,” “interval,” and “period”.
Vietnamesechốc lát
The word "chốc lát" can also mean "a little while" or "a short time".
Filipino (Tagalog)sandali

Moment in Central Asian Languages

Azerbaijanian
The Azerbaijani word "an" shares an etymology with "an" in Turkish language, both ultimately deriving from Persian "ān".
Kazakhсәт
The Kazakh word "сәт" can also mean "time", "occasion", "opportunity", or "period of time".
Kyrgyzкөз ирмем
The term “көз ирмем” means a moment, a short period of time in Kyrgyz and is a phrase literally meaning “blink of the eye”.
Tajikлаҳза
The word "лаҳза" also means "accent" in Persian and "tone" in Turkish.
Turkmenpursat
Uzbeklahza
In Uzbek, "lahza" can also refer to a "short period of time" or an "interval".
Uyghurmoment

Moment in Pacific Languages

Hawaiianmanawa
In Hawaiian, the word "manawa" also means "breath" or "heartbeat."
Maorimomeniti
The word 'momeniti' is a loanword from English and can also mean 'a brief event or experience'.
Samoantaimi
The word 'taimi' not only means 'moment' in Samoan, but also 'time' and 'weather'.
Tagalog (Filipino)sandali
Sandali may also refer to a type of footwear, particularly sandals, derived from the Spanish word for 'sandals'.

Moment in American Indigenous Languages

Aymaraukhapacha
Guaraniko'ag̃aite

Moment in International Languages

Esperantomomento
In Esperanto, "momento" can also refer to a keepsake or souvenir.
Latinmomentum
The Latin word 'momentum' can also refer to 'consequence', 'importance', or 'weight'.

Moment in Others Languages

Greekστιγμή
The word " στιγμή " is also used in Greek to mean "a point ".
Hmonglub caij
'Lub caij' is derived from the Chinese phrase 'li shi ji,' which also translates to moment.
Kurdishevdem
The word "evdem" in Kurdish finds its roots in the Persian word "avam" meaning "public," suggesting a broader sense of "a shared instant in time" beyond its literal translation as "moment."
Turkishan
"An", derived from Persian, can also refer to an agreement or oath.
Xhosaokomzuzwana
"Okomzuzwana" is derived from "umzuzwana," meaning small flame or flicker. It implies a precise, short point in time.
Yiddishמאָמענט
In Yiddish, "מאָמענט" can also refer to a specific amount of time, similar to the French word "instant".
Zuluumzuzwana
"Umzuzwana" can refer to the moment in time, a particular time, or a short interval of time.
Assameseমুহূৰ্ত
Aymaraukhapacha
Bhojpuriपल
Dhivehiހިނދުކޮޅު
Dogriपल
Filipino (Tagalog)sandali
Guaraniko'ag̃aite
Ilocanokanito
Kriotɛm
Kurdish (Sorani)سات
Maithiliक्षण
Meiteilon (Manipuri)ꯃꯤꯠꯀꯨꯞ
Mizohun tawi te
Oromoyeroo gabaabduu
Odia (Oriya)ମୁହୂର୍ତ୍ତ
Quechuauchuy pacha
Sanskritक्षण
Tatarмизгел
Tigrinyaቕጽበት
Tsongankarhi

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