Afrikaans moontlik | ||
Albanian e mundshme | ||
Amharic ይቻላል | ||
Arabic ممكن | ||
Armenian հնարավոր է | ||
Assamese সম্ভৱ | ||
Aymara wakiskiri | ||
Azerbaijani mümkündür | ||
Bambara bɛ se ka kɛ | ||
Basque posible | ||
Belarusian магчыма | ||
Bengali সম্ভব | ||
Bhojpuri संभव | ||
Bosnian moguće | ||
Bulgarian възможен | ||
Catalan possible | ||
Cebuano mahimo | ||
Chinese (Simplified) 可能 | ||
Chinese (Traditional) 可能 | ||
Corsican pussibule | ||
Croatian moguće | ||
Czech možný | ||
Danish muligt | ||
Dhivehi ވެދާނެ | ||
Dogri मुमकन | ||
Dutch mogelijk | ||
English possible | ||
Esperanto ebla | ||
Estonian võimalik | ||
Ewe ate ŋu adzᴐ | ||
Filipino (Tagalog) maaari | ||
Finnish mahdollista | ||
French possible | ||
Frisian mooglik | ||
Galician posible | ||
Georgian შესაძლებელია | ||
German möglich | ||
Greek δυνατόν | ||
Guarani ikatukuaaite | ||
Gujarati શક્ય | ||
Haitian Creole posib | ||
Hausa zai yiwu | ||
Hawaiian hiki | ||
Hebrew אפשרי | ||
Hindi मुमकिन | ||
Hmong ua tau | ||
Hungarian lehetséges | ||
Icelandic mögulegt | ||
Igbo kwere omume | ||
Ilocano posible | ||
Indonesian bisa jadi | ||
Irish féidir | ||
Italian possibile | ||
Japanese 可能 | ||
Javanese bisa uga | ||
Kannada ಸಾಧ್ಯ | ||
Kazakh мүмкін | ||
Khmer អាចធ្វើទៅបាន | ||
Kinyarwanda birashoboka | ||
Konkani शक्य | ||
Korean 가능한 | ||
Krio pɔsibul | ||
Kurdish derîmkan | ||
Kurdish (Sorani) دەشێت | ||
Kyrgyz мүмкүн | ||
Lao ເປັນໄປໄດ້ | ||
Latin maxime | ||
Latvian iespējams | ||
Lingala likoki ezali | ||
Lithuanian įmanoma | ||
Luganda -soboka | ||
Luxembourgish méiglech | ||
Macedonian можно | ||
Maithili संभव | ||
Malagasy azo atao | ||
Malay mungkin | ||
Malayalam സാധ്യമാണ് | ||
Maltese possibbli | ||
Maori ka taea | ||
Marathi शक्य | ||
Meiteilon (Manipuri) ꯑꯣꯏꯊꯣꯛꯄ ꯌꯥꯕ | ||
Mizo thei | ||
Mongolian боломжтой | ||
Myanmar (Burmese) ဖြစ်နိုင်တယ် | ||
Nepali सम्भव छ | ||
Norwegian mulig | ||
Nyanja (Chichewa) zotheka | ||
Odia (Oriya) ସମ୍ଭବ | ||
Oromo kan danda'amu | ||
Pashto امکان لري | ||
Persian ممکن | ||
Polish możliwy | ||
Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) possível | ||
Punjabi ਸੰਭਵ | ||
Quechua atipanalla | ||
Romanian posibil | ||
Russian возможно | ||
Samoan mafai | ||
Sanskrit सम्भव | ||
Scots Gaelic comasach | ||
Sepedi kgonagalo | ||
Serbian могуће | ||
Sesotho khoneha | ||
Shona zvinogoneka | ||
Sindhi ممڪن آهي | ||
Sinhala (Sinhalese) හැකි | ||
Slovak možné | ||
Slovenian mogoče | ||
Somali suurtagal ah | ||
Spanish posible | ||
Sundanese mungkin | ||
Swahili inawezekana | ||
Swedish möjlig | ||
Tagalog (Filipino) maaari | ||
Tajik имконпазир | ||
Tamil சாத்தியம் | ||
Tatar мөмкин | ||
Telugu సాధ్యమే | ||
Thai เป็นไปได้ | ||
Tigrinya ዝከኣል | ||
Tsonga kumbexana | ||
Turkish mümkün | ||
Turkmen mümkin | ||
Twi (Akan) bɛyɛ yie | ||
Ukrainian можливо | ||
Urdu ممکن | ||
Uyghur مۇمكىن | ||
Uzbek mumkin | ||
Vietnamese khả thi | ||
Welsh bosibl | ||
Xhosa kunokwenzeka | ||
Yiddish מעגלעך | ||
Yoruba ṣee ṣe | ||
Zulu kungenzeka |
| Language | Etymology / Notes |
|---|---|
| Afrikaans | The Afrikaans word "moontlik" is derived from the Dutch "mogelijk," which itself originated from the Middle Dutch "moeghen lijken," meaning "to be like" or "to be able to happen." |
| Albanian | The word "e mundshme" is derived from the Albanian word "mund" meaning "can" or "ability". |
| Amharic | The word "ይቻላል" has cognates in several other Semitic languages, including Arabic and Hebrew, which also use the same root to express the idea of "ability" or "power". |
| Arabic | The word "ممكن" in Arabic originates from the root "م-ك-ن" which also means "to be firm, stable, or established". |
| Armenian | The word "հնարավոր է" is composed of two roots: "հնար", which means "way" or "means", and "ավոր", which means "having". Thus, the literal meaning of the word is "having a way" or "having a means". |
| Azerbaijani | The word “mümkündür” in Azerbaijani ultimately derives from Proto-Indo-European *mey- (“to measure, distribute”) |
| Basque | The Basque word "posible" derives from the Latin "possibilis," meaning "capable of being done or achieved." |
| Belarusian | "Магчыма" is derived from the Old Belarusian word "магчыць," meaning "to be able to do something". |
| Bengali | The word "সম্ভব" has multiple meanings, including "capable", "likely", and "probable". |
| Bosnian | In Slavic languages, the word "moguće" also means "to be able to" |
| Bulgarian | The word "възможен" in Bulgarian is derived from the Proto-Slavic word "vьzmožьnъ", meaning "attainable, capable". |
| Catalan | The Catalan word "possible" comes from the Latin word "possibilis", which means "able to be done". |
| Cebuano | "Mahimo" is actually the shortened of "mamahimo," which is the active form of the verb "himo," which means to do or to make. |
| Chinese (Simplified) | 可能 (kěnéng) originally meant a "situation," or "manner" by which something could be achieved. |
| Chinese (Traditional) | "可能"在中文(繁体)中还有"大概"的意思。 |
| Corsican | The Corsican word 'pussibule' (possible) derives from the Latin 'possibile', meaning 'capable of being or happening'. |
| Croatian | The word 'moguće' also means 'perhaps' or 'maybe' in Croatian |
| Czech | “Možný” in Czech derives from the Proto-Slavic word *mogtь, meaning “to be able,” and is cognate with Russian "мочь" (moch’), Polish “móc,” and Old Church Slavonic “мошти” (moshti). |
| Danish | The word "muligt" is derived from the Old Norse word "mógligr", which means "able" or "capable". It can also be used to mean "likely" or "probable". |
| Dutch | In Middle Dutch, 'mogelijk' meant 'capable' or 'able'. |
| Esperanto | Esperanto's "ebla" is an Esperanto-specific word with no clear etymology or alternate meanings, unlike its false cognates in many languages |
| Estonian | The Estonian word "võimalik" originates from the Proto-Finnic word "voima", meaning "power" or "strength". This reflects the idea that something is possible if it is within one's power or capability. |
| Finnish | "Mahdollista" is the passive form of the verb "mahdollistaa" in Finnish, meaning to "make possible" or "enable". |
| French | In French, the word “possible” derives from the Latin “possibile,” which means “capable of being done.” |
| Frisian | It is a contraction of 'moog' and 'lyk', which could be related to the English words 'may' and 'likelihood' respectively, or to the Dutch 'mogelijk' (possible). |
| Galician | The spelling "posible" is the Galician form of the Castilian word "posible" and both derive from the Latin root "possibilis". |
| German | The German word "möglich" comes from the Old High German "muogēn," which also means "to be able to" or "have the power to." |
| Greek | The word 'δυνατόν' originally meant 'capable' or 'able', and only later came to mean 'possible'. |
| Gujarati | The word "શક્ય" also means "probable" or "likely" in Gujarati. |
| Haitian Creole | The word "posib" in Haitian Creole can also refer to a possibility or an opportunity. |
| Hausa | 'Zai yiwu' also means 'a possible thing' |
| Hawaiian | Hiki also means 'to ascend' or 'to climb' and is found in the term hiki nui for 'high tide'. |
| Hebrew | "אפשרי" (possible) derives from "אפשר" (to allow), implying something that is permissible. |
| Hindi | The word 'Mumkin' in Hindi is derived from the Arabic word 'Mumkin', meaning both 'possible' and 'worthy of consideration'. |
| Hmong | Hmong "ua tau"'s etymology suggests "possible" as the ability to "hold still". |
| Hungarian | The Hungarian term 'lehetséges' comes from 'lehet', meaning 'to be able' or 'to have the chance', and '-sége'- 'to become'. |
| Icelandic | Mögulegt is cognate to the English word "might" and can also mean "maybe" or "probably". |
| Igbo | The word "kwere omume" in Igbo can also mean "doable" or "feasible". |
| Indonesian | Bisa jadi can also mean 'it is possible that' or 'maybe'. |
| Irish | "Féidir" is a Middle Irish word (Old Irish "is-feidir") that literally translates as "can-be" and can refer to something being permitted or potential. |
| Italian | The Italian word 'possibile' is derived from the Latin word 'possibilis,' which means 'able to be done.' |
| Japanese | 可能 (kanō) can also mean “probable” and is often used with the particle の (no) in the phrases 可能のない (kanō no nai), “impossible,” 可能のある (kanō no aru), “possible,” and 可能である (kanō de aru), “likely”. |
| Javanese | 'Bisa uga' as a phrase, is a contraction of 'bisa uga-uga' which means 'possible according to guess', where 'uga' means 'guess' or 'estimate'. The word 'uga' is a derivative of the verb 'ngugo' which means 'to guess' or 'to estimate'. |
| Kannada | "ಸಾಧ್ಯ" comes from the Sanskrit word "sadhya," which also means "feasible, attainable, or achievable." |
| Kazakh | The word "мүмкін" can also mean "perhaps" or "it is possible". |
| Korean | Possible comes from Latin word 'possibilis', which means 'being able' (posse = be able, bilis = -able). Possible also means 'to be expected' in English. |
| Kurdish | "Derîmkan" originates from Persian "dare-mândan" meaning "to have been left over" as well as "derî" meaning "door" and "mândan" meaning "to remain". Alternatively, the word denotes "the one that has been left behind" and figuratively "possible" in Kurdish. |
| Kyrgyz | The word "мүмкүн" also means "maybe" or "perhaps" in Kyrgyz, and is derived from the Proto-Turkic word " mümkün". |
| Latin | The Latin word "maxime" can also mean "especially" or "primarily" |
| Latvian | Iespējams can also mean 'perhaps' or 'probably' in Latvian. |
| Lithuanian | Įmanoma is cognate with the Latin "imminere", meaning "to overhang" or "to be imminent". |
| Luxembourgish | The term "méiglech" can also be used with its alternative meaning "maybe" when the possibility of something happening is low but still exists. |
| Macedonian | The word "можно" is used in Macedonian to say "possible", but it can also mean "allowed" or "able to do something." |
| Malagasy | "Azo atao" also means "it is doable" or "it can be done" in Malagasy. |
| Malay | "Mungkin" originated from the Sanskrit word "mukhya," meaning "chief" or "important," and has also been used in Malay to mean "perhaps" or "maybe." |
| Maltese | The Maltese word "possibbli" shares its etymology with the Italian word "possibile" and the French word "possible". |
| Maori | "Ka taea" is the Māori word for "can do" or "possible," but literally means "can stand," referring to the idea of overcoming an obstacle. |
| Marathi | शक्य (shakya) is derived from Sanskrit शक् (shak) meaning 'to prevail', 'to be able'. |
| Mongolian | The word "боломжтой" shares the same root with the word "болох" which means "to become". |
| Nepali | The word सम्भव छ does not have any alternate meanings but is formed from the words सम्भव meaning 'possible' and छ meaning 'is'. |
| Norwegian | The Norwegian word "mulig" is related to the English word "may" and the German word "möglich." |
| Nyanja (Chichewa) | Zotheka has other related forms, including 'zosatheka' ('it was possible'), 'zikatheka' ('it has been possible') and 'kadzatheka' ('it could be possible') and refers to a condition that is able to be or likely to happen or be true. |
| Pashto | The word "امکان لري" can also mean "it is likely" or "it is probable". |
| Persian | The term "ممکن" derives from the Arabic word "مکن" (makana), which originally meant "to have or hold the place or power to do something." |
| Polish | The word "możliwy" comes from the Old Polish word "możny," which means "strong" or "powerful." |
| Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) | In Portuguese, the word "possível" (possible) derives from the Latin word "possibilis," meaning "able to be done," and also has the secondary meaning of "maybe" or "perhaps." |
| Punjabi | The word 'ਸੰਭਵ' is derived from the Sanskrit word 'सम्भव' ('sambhava'), which originally meant 'coming into existence' or 'being produced'. |
| Romanian | The word "posibil" can also be used to indicate "potential", "ability", or "means"} |
| Russian | The Russian word 'возможно' derives from the Proto-Slavic word 'vozmogti', meaning 'to have the power' or 'to be able'. |
| Samoan | The word "mafai" also has the alternate meaning of "permissible" in Samoan. |
| Scots Gaelic | "Comasach" also means "leisure" or "opportunity" in Gaelic. |
| Serbian | The word 'могуће' also means 'power' or 'ability' in Serbian. |
| Sesotho | "Khoneha" is a possible derivative of "ho", meaning "to exist", or "khona", meaning "to be present" in Sesotho. |
| Shona | Zvinogoneka, a Shona word for 'possible' can mean "what can bring one up or out", from "kukwira", "to come to life". |
| Sindhi | The word "ممڪن آهي" in Sindhi comes from the Persian word "ممکن" which means "possible, likely, or probable." |
| Sinhala (Sinhalese) | The Sinhala word "හැකි" (possible) is derived from the Proto-Indo-Aryan root *sak- (to be able), also found in Sanskrit "śakti" (power) and "saknoti" (can, is able). |
| Slovak | The word "možné" in Slovak also means "maybe" or "it is possible that". |
| Slovenian | Mogoče, Slovenian for possible, may also refer to a person or place, or to the possibility of something occurring or not occurring. |
| Somali | In Somali, "suurtagal ah" is a verb meaning "to be possible" or "to be able to". |
| Spanish | The word "posible" in Spanish comes from the Latin word "possibilis", meaning "that can be done" or "that can happen". |
| Sundanese | In Sundanese, "mungkin" can also mean "maybe" or "perhaps". |
| Swahili | The Swahili word "inawezekana" is derived from the Arabic word "mumkin", which originally meant "to be able to" or "to be capable of". |
| Swedish | "Möjlig" comes from the Middle Low German "mogelik", meaning "able" or "capable". |
| Tagalog (Filipino) | The word "maaari" has a Proto-Austronesian origin, meaning "to be able to" or "to have the power to" |
| Tajik | The word “имконпазир” (“possible”) in Tajik is ultimately derived from an early New Persian compound formed from the noun "imkān" and the verb "paziridan." |
| Tamil | The Tamil word "சாத்தியம்" originates from the Sanskrit term "साध्य" , meaning "to be accomplished". |
| Telugu | సాధ్యమే (sādhyamē) comes from the word సాధ్ (sādh) meaning 'to accomplish' and the suffix -్యమ్ (-yam) indicating possibility. |
| Thai | The Thai word "เป็นไปได้" can also mean "feasibility" or "likelihood". |
| Turkish | Mümkün ultimately derives from Arabic مكن, meaning to establish, to confirm, or to empower. |
| Ukrainian | The word “можливо” is derived from the Old Slavic word “мочь”, which means “to be able”. It can also mean “maybe” or “perhaps”. |
| Urdu | ممکن is related to the root word "کن" which means "to be" and is related to words like "مکان" (place) and "کام" (work). |
| Uzbek | Mumkin also means "a very large quantity" or "a great amount" in Uzbek. |
| Vietnamese | Khả thi is derived from the Chinese word khả thi, meaning "feasible" or "practical"} |
| Welsh | Welsh "bosibl" originates from "bos" (be), "sib" (possible) and has the alternative meaning of "it may be". |
| Xhosa | The word "kunokwenzeka" in Xhosa has the same root as the word for "ability" or "capability". |
| Yiddish | The Yiddish word מעגלעך can also mean "circular," "rotating," or "cyclical." |
| Yoruba | Ṣee ṣe, originally meaning "to be possible" or "capable of being done," can also mean "maybe" or "perhaps" in contemporary Yoruba. |
| Zulu | The noun 'kungenzeka' also means 'opportunity' or 'chance' in Zulu. |
| English | Possible derives from the Greek "dynamis" (power), akin to the Latin "posse" (be able) and "potentia" (power). |