None in Different Languages
Discover 'None' in 134 Languages: Dive into Translations, Hear Pronunciations, and Uncover Cultural Insights.
Updated on March 6, 2024
The word 'none' holds a significant place in English language and culture, often used to signify the absence or lack of something. It's a simple term, yet its implications are far-reaching. None can represent the absence of people, things, or ideas, making it a versatile word in our daily conversations.
Historically, none has been used in literature and poetry to create emphasis or rhythm. For instance, Shakespeare often used 'none' to add weight to his negative constructions. Culturally, none is significant as it reflects our human experience - we often define ourselves by what we are not, rather than what we are.
Given the globalized world we live in, understanding the translation of none in different languages can be beneficial. It not only helps in cross-cultural communication but also provides insight into how various cultures perceive and express the concept of nothingness.
Here are some translations of 'none' in different languages:
None
None in Sub-Saharan African Languages
| Afrikaans | geen | ||
| Afrikaans 'geen' traces its origin to Old High German 'dehein' (no any, not one), from the Proto-Germanic *ni-ainaz (not one), a negation of Proto-Germanic *ainaz (one). | |||
| Amharic | የለም | ||
| In Amharic, "የለም" also means "there is not" or "does not exist." | |||
| Hausa | babu | ||
| "Babu" can also mean "without" or "except" in Hausa. | |||
| Igbo | ọ dịghị | ||
| "Ọ dịghị" also means something is "worthless" or "not worth thinking about" in Igbo. | |||
| Malagasy | tsy misy | ||
| The word "tsy misy" in Malagasy is the compound form of the negative prefix "tsy" and the verb "misy" meaning "to exist." | |||
| Nyanja (Chichewa) | palibe | ||
| In Chichewa, "palibe" and its cognates in other Bantu languages also mean "there is not" as well as "there is no". | |||
| Shona | hapana | ||
| In Shona, 'hapana' can also refer to a state of nothingness, emptiness, or absence. | |||
| Somali | midna | ||
| Midna is also the Somali word for the Arabic letter "mim," which represents the sound "m." | |||
| Sesotho | haho lea mong | ||
| In Sesotho, "haho lea mong" is the negative form of "ho lea mong," which means "one," making it a negation of existence or quantity. | |||
| Swahili | hakuna | ||
| Although 'hakuna' means 'none' in Swahili, it can also mean 'nothing' or 'there is not' | |||
| Xhosa | nanye | ||
| In Xhosa, the word "nanye" is sometimes used as a general-purpose pronoun or demonstrative to refer to inanimate objects or abstract concepts. | |||
| Yoruba | ko si | ||
| The Yoruba word “ko si” translates to “nonexistence,” and implies an absence of quantity as opposed to an absence of quality. | |||
| Zulu | akekho | ||
| "Akekho" is a Zulu word meaning "nobody", also used to convey the absence of any person, object, or thing. | |||
| Bambara | foɲisi | ||
| Ewe | ɖeke o | ||
| Kinyarwanda | nta na kimwe | ||
| Lingala | moko te | ||
| Luganda | tewali | ||
| Sepedi | ga go selo | ||
| Twi (Akan) | ɛnyɛ ebiara | ||
None in North African & Middle Eastern Languages
| Arabic | لا شيء | ||
| The word "لا شيء" (none) in Arabic literally means "not anything". | |||
| Hebrew | אף אחד | ||
| The word "אף אחד" is a contraction of "לא אף אחד", meaning "not one", as opposed to "לא כלום", meaning "nothing". | |||
| Pashto | هیڅ نه | ||
| The word "هیڅ نه" in Pashto also has the connotation of "useless" or "worthless." | |||
| Arabic | لا شيء | ||
| The word "لا شيء" (none) in Arabic literally means "not anything". | |||
None in Western European Languages
| Albanian | asnje | ||
| The word "asnje" can also mean "any" | |||
| Basque | bat ere ez | ||
| The second half of the term “baterozez,” which literally translates in the present-day Basque language into something akin to “at this hour,” was first used during the Middle Ages to describe events which had not transpired by a particular time of day | |||
| Catalan | cap | ||
| The Catalan word "cap" also means "head" and is derived from the Latin "caput" meaning "head" or "top". | |||
| Croatian | nijedna | ||
| The word "nijedna" is cognate with the Serbian "nijedna" and the Bulgarian "nijedna" and shares an etymological root with the Old Church Slavonic word "ni" and the Proto-Indo-European word "ne" meaning "not". | |||
| Danish | ingen | ||
| In Danish, "ingen" can also mean "no one" or "not anyone". | |||
| Dutch | geen | ||
| The word "geen" in Dutch is derived from the Old Saxon word "gein", meaning "contrary" or "opposite". | |||
| English | none | ||
| The word 'none' originates from the Old English word 'nān', which means 'not one'. | |||
| French | aucun | ||
| "Aucun" originally originates from the Latin term "alcunus", meaning "some" or "any". | |||
| Frisian | gjin | ||
| "Gjin" is cognate with the English "none" and the German "kein". | |||
| Galician | ningunha | ||
| The Galician word "ningunha" is derived from the Latin word "nec ulla," meaning "not one." | |||
| German | keiner | ||
| Keiner is cognate with the English word "no one" and derives from the Middle High German word "dekeiner," a combination of "de" (meaning "the") and "ein" (meaning "one"). | |||
| Icelandic | enginn | ||
| Enginn originates from the Proto-Germanic word "ainaz," and also means "only one" or "one and the same" in Icelandic. | |||
| Irish | aon cheann | ||
| In Gaelic, the word "aon cheann" originally meant "the only head" and was used to describe the first-born of twins, but it later came to mean "not any" or "not one". | |||
| Italian | nessuna | ||
| Nessuna also means 'female' or 'virgin' in Italian, like the Lady of the Lake in the Arthurian legend | |||
| Luxembourgish | kee | ||
| The word "kee" is derived from the Proto-Germanic word "*kani", also meaning "no" or "not". | |||
| Maltese | xejn | ||
| The word "xejn" in Maltese is derived from the Arabic word "šay'" meaning "thing". | |||
| Norwegian | ingen | ||
| The word "ingen" can also mean "not any", "no one", or "nobody" in Norwegian. | |||
| Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) | nenhum | ||
| The word "Nenhum" in Portuguese comes from the Latin "Nec Unus", meaning "not one". | |||
| Scots Gaelic | gin | ||
| The Scots Gaelic word 'gin', meaning 'none' or 'not any', is unrelated to the English word 'gin', meaning 'a distilled alcoholic beverage'. | |||
| Spanish | ninguna | ||
| In Spanish, "ninguna" is the feminine form of "ninguno" ("no one, none") and can also mean "not even one." | |||
| Swedish | ingen | ||
| The Swedish word "ingen" can also mean "any" or "someone" in certain contexts. | |||
| Welsh | dim | ||
| The Welsh word “dim” is a versatile negative term that can indicate the absence of anything, including light, sound, or even an idea. | |||
None in Eastern European Languages
| Belarusian | няма | ||
| “Няма” in Belarusian shares a common Indo-European root *ne- with “no” in English or “Nein” in German, all meaning “not” | |||
| Bosnian | nijedan | ||
| The word 'nijedan' is a Slavic word, used in various Slavic languages, e.g. Serbian, Bulgarian, Russian, etc. | |||
| Bulgarian | нито един | ||
| In Bulgarian, "нито един" can also mean "not a single one" or "not even one" | |||
| Czech | žádný | ||
| The word "žádný" can also mean "not a single one" or "not even one". | |||
| Estonian | mitte ühtegi | ||
| The word "mitte ühtegi" (none) is literally translated as "not one" in Estonian. | |||
| Finnish | ei mitään | ||
| Ei mitään literally means "it is not anything" in Finnish. | |||
| Hungarian | egyik sem | ||
| 'Egyik sem' is an expression composed of the indefinite numeral 'egyik' ('one', 'some') and the negative indefinite pronoun 'sem' ('none', 'not any'), respectively. | |||
| Latvian | neviena | ||
| The word "neviena" in Latvian is derived from the Proto-Indo-European root *ne- "not" and is related to the words "ne" (no) and "nieks" (nothing). | |||
| Lithuanian | nė vienas | ||
| The word "nė vienas" is literally translated as "not one" in Lithuanian and it can also be used to express a lack of something or a denial of something | |||
| Macedonian | никој | ||
| It can also mean 'person', and is used in an archaic expression to describe a man of no importance. | |||
| Polish | żaden | ||
| The Polish word "żaden" derives from the Proto-Slavic "jedьnъ", which meant "alone" | |||
| Romanian | nici unul | ||
| In Romanian, "nici unul" also means "not a single one" and is used to emphasize the absence or lack of something. | |||
| Russian | никто | ||
| "никто" (none) can also mean "no one" in Russian. | |||
| Serbian | ниједан | ||
| The Serbian "ниједан" derives from the Proto-Slavic *ni jedinъ, meaning "not a single one." | |||
| Slovak | žiadny | ||
| "Žiadny" can also mean "no problem, alright". | |||
| Slovenian | nobenega | ||
| The word "nobenega" comes from the Proto-Slavic word "nebyti", meaning "to not be". Variant forms include "nič" and "niš", also meaning "none". | |||
| Ukrainian | жоден | ||
| The Ukrainian word "жоден" (none) originates from the Proto-Slavic word "*jedinъ" (one), and is related to the words "один" (one) and "одинокий" (lonely). | |||
None in South Asian Languages
| Bengali | কিছুই না | ||
| কিছুই না can also mean "nothing at all" or "not anything." | |||
| Gujarati | કંઈ નહીં | ||
| The word "કંઈ નહીં" can also mean "nothing", "nothingness", or "non-existence" in Gujarati. | |||
| Hindi | कोई नहीं | ||
| Hindi "कोई नहीं" derives from "कोई" (any/someone) and "नहीं" (not/no) and thus literally means "not anyone". | |||
| Kannada | ಯಾವುದೂ | ||
| The word "ಯಾವುದೂ" can also mean "nothing" or "not any" in Kannada. | |||
| Malayalam | ഒന്നുമില്ല | ||
| The Malayalam word "ഒന്നുമില്ല" (onnumilla) can also mean "nothing doing" or "there's nothing to do". | |||
| Marathi | काहीही नाही | ||
| The word "काहीही नाही" can also mean "whatever" or "anything" in Marathi. | |||
| Nepali | कुनै हैन | ||
| The word "कुनै हैन" can also be used as a negative response to a question in Nepali, similar to the English "no". | |||
| Punjabi | ਕੋਈ ਨਹੀਂ | ||
| Sinhala (Sinhalese) | කිසිවක් නැත | ||
| Tamil | எதுவும் இல்லை | ||
| Telugu | ఏదీ లేదు | ||
| The word "ఏదీ లేదు" in Telugu can also be used to express emptiness, absence, or lack of anything in a particular context. | |||
| Urdu | کوئی نہیں | ||
None in East Asian Languages
| Chinese (Simplified) | 没有 | ||
| The Simplified Chinese character "没有" derives from the oracle bone script depicting a person pointing at a tree without fruit: 木 (tree) and 非 (not), hence the meaning "none". | |||
| Chinese (Traditional) | 沒有 | ||
| 沒有 is also an important keyword in Taoism and Buddhism, which is often used to imply emptiness or nothingness. | |||
| Japanese | なし | ||
| 梨 (なし) means pear and could derive from "not-there" (ナシ) in the sense that the tree shed all its leaves in autumn. | |||
| Korean | 없음 | ||
| "없음" literally means "there is no" and is a shortened form of "없는" ("non-existing") and is also used in "없어요" ("not there"). | |||
| Mongolian | үгүй | ||
| The Mongolian word "үгүй" (none) is derived from the word "үг" (word), and thus means literally "without a word" or "unsaid". | |||
| Myanmar (Burmese) | မရှိ | ||
None in South East Asian Languages
| Indonesian | tidak ada | ||
| "Tidak ada" in Indonesian, literally meaning "not there", is the cognate of "tidakada" in Tagalog, meaning "nowhere". | |||
| Javanese | ora ana | ||
| The word "ora ana" can also refer to "not present" or "not existing" in Javanese. | |||
| Khmer | គ្មាន | ||
| The Khmer word គ្មាន, pronounced 'kam-neun', is likely derived from the Sanskrit word kshana, meaning 'perish'. | |||
| Lao | ບໍ່ມີ | ||
| "ບໍ່ມີ" (bɔː.míː) is a Lao negative word meaning "none", "there is no", or "nothing" and is used in both formal and informal settings. | |||
| Malay | tiada | ||
| The word tiada in Malay is derived from Sanskrit and has the literal meaning of 'not-being'. | |||
| Thai | ไม่มี | ||
| The word "ไม่มี" (none) in Thai is derived from the Sanskrit word "นิร-" (without) and is also used as a prefix to negate adjectives and verbs. | |||
| Vietnamese | không ai | ||
| In Vietnamese, "không ai" translates to "no one," but it can also mean "never" or "not at all." | |||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | wala | ||
None in Central Asian Languages
| Azerbaijani | yox | ||
| The word "yox" in Azerbaijani originated from the Old Turkic word "yok" meaning "to be absent" and is also used in Turkish, Kazakh, and Kyrgyz. | |||
| Kazakh | жоқ | ||
| The word "жоқ" in Kazakh can also mean "no" or "not". | |||
| Kyrgyz | эч ким | ||
| The word "эч ким" in Kyrgyz derives from the Proto-Turkic word "*eč ki" meaning "not who". | |||
| Tajik | ҳеҷ | ||
| The word "ҳеҷ" also means "any" in Persian and "zero" in Arabic. | |||
| Turkmen | hiç | ||
| Uzbek | yo'q | ||
| In the Uzbek language, "yo'q" means both "none" and "disappearance." | |||
| Uyghur | none | ||
None in Pacific Languages
| Hawaiian | ʻaʻole kekahi | ||
| 'Aʻole kekahi' can also be translated as 'not any', 'not one', or 'no one'. | |||
| Maori | kāo | ||
| Maori word "kāo" can mean a void, a place, or a state of being, and its original meaning "to hold" is now a subordinate meaning. | |||
| Samoan | leai se mea | ||
| The Samoan word "leai se mea" can also mean "there is nothing". | |||
| Tagalog (Filipino) | wala | ||
| "Wala" may be a contraction of "walang" ("without") or can mean "no one" or "nothing" as an independent word. | |||
None in American Indigenous Languages
| Aymara | janiwkhitisa | ||
| Guarani | avave | ||
None in International Languages
| Esperanto | neniu | ||
| The word 'neniu' may also refer to a mythical sea monster in Esperanto folklore, a usage inspired by the word's original root in Proto-Indo-European. | |||
| Latin | nemo | ||
| The Latin word "nemo" also means "nobody" and is the origin of the famous quote "nemo me impune lacessit," which means "no one provokes me with impunity." | |||
None in Others Languages
| Greek | κανένας | ||
| The word "κανένας" can also mean "nobody" or "not one" in Greek. | |||
| Hmong | tsis muaj leej twg | ||
| The word "tsis muaj leej twg" comes from the Hmong word "tsis muaj", which means "there is not", and the word "leej twg", which means "anything". Therefore, the phrase literally means "there is nothing". | |||
| Kurdish | netû | ||
| In the Kurdish language, the word "netû" has additional meanings beyond "none," including "not present" and "in vain." | |||
| Turkish | yok | ||
| "Yok" means "there is not" in Turkish but also it is one of the ways to say "no". | |||
| Xhosa | nanye | ||
| In Xhosa, the word "nanye" is sometimes used as a general-purpose pronoun or demonstrative to refer to inanimate objects or abstract concepts. | |||
| Yiddish | גאָרניט | ||
| 'Gor' is borrowed from 'gar nicht',' not at all'' in Bavarian German, and 'Nit' originates in the Old Middle German verb ''niuten'' meaning ''using nothing''. | |||
| Zulu | akekho | ||
| "Akekho" is a Zulu word meaning "nobody", also used to convey the absence of any person, object, or thing. | |||
| Assamese | একো নাই | ||
| Aymara | janiwkhitisa | ||
| Bhojpuri | कवनो ना | ||
| Dhivehi | އެއްޗެއްނޫން | ||
| Dogri | कोई नेईं | ||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | wala | ||
| Guarani | avave | ||
| Ilocano | awan | ||
| Krio | nɔn | ||
| Kurdish (Sorani) | هیچ | ||
| Maithili | कोनो नहि | ||
| Meiteilon (Manipuri) | ꯑꯃꯠꯇ ꯅꯠꯇꯦ | ||
| Mizo | pakhatmah | ||
| Oromo | homaa | ||
| Odia (Oriya) | କିଛି ନୁହେଁ | | ||
| Quechua | mana mayqinpas | ||
| Sanskrit | न कश्चित् | ||
| Tatar | юк | ||
| Tigrinya | ዋላ ሓደ | ||
| Tsonga | hava | ||