Prevent in Different Languages
Discover 'Prevent' in 134 Languages: Dive into Translations, Hear Pronunciations, and Uncover Cultural Insights.
Updated on March 6, 2024
The word 'prevent' holds great significance in our daily lives, as it relates to stopping something from happening or protecting oneself from harm. This concept is culturally important across the globe, as every society strives to prevent negative outcomes and promote well-being. Understanding the translation of 'prevent' in different languages can open doors to cross-cultural communication and cooperation. For instance, in Spanish, 'prevent' is 'prevenir,' while in French, it's 'prévenir.' In Mandarin Chinese, the translation is '预防' (yùfáng), and in Japanese, it's '予防' (yobou).
Throughout history, prevention has played a crucial role in public health, safety, and environmental conservation. For example, the ancient Greek physician Hippocrates promoted prevention as a fundamental principle of medicine. Similarly, in many Indigenous cultures, prevention is embedded in traditional teachings and practices that emphasize harmony with nature and community well-being.
Given the importance of prevention in various aspects of life, knowing its translation in different languages can be beneficial for travelers, language learners, and global citizens. By understanding this term in multiple languages, we can better appreciate cultural differences and similarities, and work together to create a safer, healthier world.
Prevent
Prevent in Sub-Saharan African Languages
| Afrikaans | voorkom | ||
| The Afrikaans word voorkom derives from the Dutch verb voorkomen which can also mean "to appear" or "to present oneself". | |||
| Amharic | ይከላከሉ | ||
| The Amharic word "ይከላከሉ" ("prevent") shares its etymology with "ከላ" ("not to do") and "ከለከለ" ("to be cautious or careful"), indicating a connection between prevention, avoidance, and mindfulness. | |||
| Hausa | hana | ||
| The Hausa word "hana" also means "to close", suggesting an etymological link between prevention and closure. | |||
| Igbo | gbochie | ||
| The word "gbochie" was likely derived from the Igbo word "gbo", meaning "to hear", as it implies to listen attentively and take warning. | |||
| Malagasy | prévenir | ||
| The Malagasy word "misakana" is not only used to "prevent", but also means "to be careful". | |||
| Nyanja (Chichewa) | pewani | ||
| The word "pewani" in Nyanja also means "forbid" or "disallow". | |||
| Shona | kudzivirira | ||
| Somali | ka hortag | ||
| The root "hor" in "ka hortag" also means "to turn upside down" or "to overturn". | |||
| Sesotho | thibela | ||
| The word 'thibela' can also mean 'to obstruct' or 'to oppose'. | |||
| Swahili | kuzuia | ||
| The Swahili word "kuzuia" can also mean "to avoid" or "to obstruct." | |||
| Xhosa | thintela | ||
| The word "thintela" is derived from the Xhosa word "thintela", which means "to touch or handle". | |||
| Yoruba | ṣe idiwọ | ||
| Ṣe idiwọ, a Yoruba verb meaning 'to prevent', also means 'to obstruct, hinder, or impede'. | |||
| Zulu | ukuvimbela | ||
| The Zulu word "ukuvimbela" is derived from the noun "isivimbela," meaning "obstacle"} | |||
| Bambara | k'a bali | ||
| Ewe | xe mᴐ | ||
| Kinyarwanda | irinde | ||
| Lingala | kopekisa | ||
| Luganda | okutangira | ||
| Sepedi | šitiša | ||
| Twi (Akan) | si kwan | ||
Prevent in North African & Middle Eastern Languages
| Arabic | يحول دون | ||
| In Classical Arabic, it may also mean to besiege or obstruct. | |||
| Hebrew | לִמְנוֹעַ | ||
| The word "לִמְנוֹעַ" also means "to refrain" or "to withhold". | |||
| Pashto | مخنیوی | ||
| The word مخنیوی may also refer to a type of traditional Pashto folk dance. | |||
| Arabic | يحول دون | ||
| In Classical Arabic, it may also mean to besiege or obstruct. | |||
Prevent in Western European Languages
| Albanian | parandalojnë | ||
| The word "parandalojnë" is derived from the Proto-Albanian *parāndalōn, which is cognate with the Old Slavic *prêdêlijo, meaning "to prevent". | |||
| Basque | ekidin | ||
| "Ekidin" (prevent) comes from "eki" (no) and "din" (to have), meaning "not to have". | |||
| Catalan | prevenir | ||
| In Catalan, the verb "prevenir" has a double meaning: to avoid or to warn. | |||
| Croatian | spriječiti | ||
| The Croatian word "spriječiti" is related to the Latin word "praecognitus" ("foreknown"). | |||
| Danish | forhindre | ||
| Despite their similarity, the Danish word "forhindre" and the English word "hinder" have different origins. | |||
| Dutch | voorkomen | ||
| "Voorkomen" can also mean "appearance" or "occurrence" in Dutch. | |||
| English | prevent | ||
| The word "prevent" originally meant to "come before" or "to precede," and is related to the word "precede." | |||
| French | prévenir | ||
| The French word "prévenir" has both its usual meaning of "prevent" and the additional meaning of "warn". | |||
| Frisian | foarkomme | ||
| The word foarkomme in Frisian shares an etymology with the English verbs 'forgo,' 'forego,' and 'forewarn' all of which share a sense of 'doing something to prevent a future occurrence' | |||
| Galician | previr | ||
| The word "previr" in Galician also means "to foresee" or "to anticipate". | |||
| German | verhindern | ||
| "Verhindern" derives from the Middle High German word "verhindern," meaning "to put in front of". This word is also found in Modern Dutch as "verhinderen" and in Modern English as "hinder." | |||
| Icelandic | koma í veg fyrir | ||
| The Icelandic idiom "koma í veg fyrir" literally means "to come in the way of". | |||
| Irish | chosc | ||
| Chosc derives from the Proto-Celtic *kwes-, meaning 'to forbid'. | |||
| Italian | impedire | ||
| The Italian word "impedire" evolved from the Latin verb "impedire," also meaning "to prevent," which derives from "in-," meaning "in, on," and "ped-," meaning "foot." | |||
| Luxembourgish | verhënneren | ||
| The verb 'verhënneren' also means 'to hinder, to obstruct, to block, to impede'. | |||
| Maltese | jipprevjenu | ||
| The Maltese word jipprevjenu comes from the Italian word prevenire meaning to come before, to anticipate or to foresee. | |||
| Norwegian | forhindre | ||
| The Norwegian word "forhindre" also has the meaning of "to hinder" or "to obstruct" the progress of something. | |||
| Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) | evita | ||
| The word "evita" in Portuguese is derived from the Latin word "evītāre", meaning "to avoid" or "to shun." | |||
| Scots Gaelic | casg | ||
| Casg shares a root with coisc (*kwes-), meaning 'bar' or 'obstruction', and possibly ceasg, meaning 'bond' or 'tie'. | |||
| Spanish | evitar | ||
| The verb "evitar" in Spanish comes from the Latin word "vitare," meaning "to avoid" or "to shun." | |||
| Swedish | förhindra | ||
| The verb 'förhindra' can also mean 'to obstruct' or 'to hinder', which is derived from the word 'hinder', meaning 'obstacle' or 'impediment'. | |||
| Welsh | atal | ||
| Welsh "atal" shares a root with "atal" in Sanskrit, both originating from the Proto-Indo-European root *h₂et- "to stop, restrain". | |||
Prevent in Eastern European Languages
| Belarusian | прадухіліць | ||
| Прадухіліць comes from the Slavic root | |||
| Bosnian | spriječiti | ||
| "Spriječiti" is derived from the Proto-Slavic word *pretiti* meaning "to threaten". | |||
| Bulgarian | предотвратявам | ||
| The word "предотвратявам" derives from the Proto-Slavic root *oborą, meaning "to defend or protect." | |||
| Czech | zabránit | ||
| The word "zabránit" likely derives from the Proto-Slavic word "*zabraniti", meaning "to bar" or "to forbid". | |||
| Estonian | ära hoida | ||
| The verb "ära hoida" is a compound of the particle "ära" meaning "away" and the verb "hoida" meaning "to hold, care for, protect". | |||
| Finnish | estää | ||
| The Finnish word "estää" also means "to hinder," "to obstruct," and "to block." | |||
| Hungarian | megelőzni | ||
| In Hungarian, "megelőzni" can also mean "anticipate". | |||
| Latvian | novērst | ||
| The word "novērst" is derived from the Proto-Indo-European root "*wer-/*werg-", meaning "to turn, to bend" or "to hinder, to prevent". | |||
| Lithuanian | užkirsti kelią | ||
| "Užkirsti kelią" is related to the word "kirtis", meaning "to cut", and literally means "to cut off the road". | |||
| Macedonian | спречи | ||
| The word "спречи" in Macedonian also has the meanings "obstacle", "hindrance", and "prohibition". | |||
| Polish | zapobiec | ||
| The word "zapobiec" comes from the verb "pobierać" which means "to collect, to take" and the preposition "za" which means "behind, beyond". So the original meaning of "zapobiec" was "to take something away" or "to prevent something from happening". | |||
| Romanian | împiedica | ||
| The Romanian word "împiedica" also means "to hinder" and is derived from the Latin word "impedicare", meaning "to entangle the feet". | |||
| Russian | предотвращать | ||
| "Предотвращать" stems from "пре- ("before")" + "от- ("from")" + "вращать ("to turn, to rotate")" indicating "to stop (something) from taking place". | |||
| Serbian | спречити | ||
| The word "спречити" can also mean "to interrupt" or "to hinder". | |||
| Slovak | zabrániť | ||
| The word "zabrániť" has roots in the Slavic word "braniti", meaning "to defend" or "to protect". | |||
| Slovenian | preprečiti | ||
| The verb "preprečiti" is derived from the Proto-Slavic word "prěprěčiti", meaning "to cross". It is cognate with words in other Slavic languages such as "препречити" in Serbian and "prěprečiti" in Czech. | |||
| Ukrainian | запобігти | ||
| Запобігти originates from words "перед" and "бігти", which literally means "run ahead", and is also related to "біг" ("running") and "бігти" ("run"). | |||
Prevent in South Asian Languages
| Bengali | প্রতিরোধ | ||
| The word "প্রতিরোধ" in Bengali also means "resistance" or "protection". | |||
| Gujarati | અટકાવો | ||
| The word "અટકાવો" also means "to hold back" or "to restrain" in Gujarati. | |||
| Hindi | रोकें | ||
| The word "रोकें" is derived from the Sanskrit verb "रुक्" (rukh), meaning "to stop" or "to obstruct". | |||
| Kannada | ತಡೆಯಿರಿ | ||
| It may also mean to 'block,' 'obstruct,' 'retard,' or 'hinder' and derives from the root word, 'taduvu,' meaning 'to stop' or 'to check.' | |||
| Malayalam | തടയാൻ | ||
| The word 'തടയാൻ' (thadayaan) in Malayalam originates from the Sanskrit word 'tardana', meaning 'delay' or 'obstruction'. | |||
| Marathi | प्रतिबंध करा | ||
| The Marathi word प्रतिबंध करा originates from Sanskrit प्रतिबन्ध (pratibandha), meaning 'restraint' or 'obstruction'. | |||
| Nepali | रोक्नुहोस् | ||
| The word "रोक्नुहोस्" also means to stop or to block, and it is derived from the Sanskrit word "rudh," which means to obstruct or hinder. | |||
| Punjabi | ਰੋਕਣ | ||
| The Punjabi word 'ਰੋਕਣ' can also refer to 'stopping', 'hindering', or 'obstructing'. | |||
| Sinhala (Sinhalese) | වළක්වන්න | ||
| Tamil | தடுக்க | ||
| "தடுக்க" derives from the Proto-Dravidian term *taḍu- meaning "to block, hinder", and also means "to strike" or "to punish" in some contexts. | |||
| Telugu | నిరోధించండి | ||
| Urdu | روکنے کے | ||
| The word "روکنے کے" (prevent) originally meant "to come before" in Sanskrit, highlighting its role in obstructing or hindering an action. | |||
Prevent in East Asian Languages
| Chinese (Simplified) | 避免 | ||
| "Avoid" is cognate to "biàn" in Mandarin, meaning "change". | |||
| Chinese (Traditional) | 防止 | ||
| The word "防止" can also mean "to guard against" or "to protect from". | |||
| Japanese | 防ぐ | ||
| The word "防ぐ" (bōgu) also means "to guard against" or "to protect". | |||
| Korean | 막다 | ||
| The Korean word "막다" also carries the meaning of "closing" or "blocking", similar to English words like "bar" or "shut". | |||
| Mongolian | урьдчилан сэргийлэх | ||
| The verb урьыдчилан means ‘to prevent’, ‘to deter’, ‘to hinder’, ‘to forbid’, or ‘to bar’ | |||
| Myanmar (Burmese) | တားဆီး | ||
| The initial meaning was to obstruct the movement or access. In modern Burmese the word is commonly interpreted as “prevention” in general. | |||
Prevent in South East Asian Languages
| Indonesian | mencegah | ||
| The Indonesian word "mencegah" originated from the Sanskrit word "manca" which means "to stop" or "to hinder"} | |||
| Javanese | nyegah | ||
| The word "nyegah" in Javanese, while sharing the common meaning of "prevent" or "obstruct" in other languages, also carries an additional sense of protecting something by keeping a watchful gaze upon it. | |||
| Khmer | រារាំង | ||
| The word "រារាំង" in Khmer originates from the Sanskrit word "rāraṅga" meaning "obstacle" or "barrier" | |||
| Lao | ປ້ອງກັນ | ||
| Malay | mencegah | ||
| The word "mencegah" is derived from the Proto-Malay word "*canag" meaning "to stop, to prevent" and is also related to the word "*canang" meaning "to announce, to proclaim". | |||
| Thai | ป้องกัน | ||
| It is derived from the Sanskrit word | |||
| Vietnamese | ngăn chặn | ||
| The word "ngăn chặn" can also mean "to dam up", "to block", or "to hinder". | |||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | pigilan | ||
Prevent in Central Asian Languages
| Azerbaijani | qarşısını almaq | ||
| "Qarşısını almaq" is related to the noun "qarşı" (opposite) and means literally "to take the opposite side" or "to oppose". | |||
| Kazakh | алдын алу | ||
| The Kazakh word "алдын алу" can also mean "to take precautions". | |||
| Kyrgyz | алдын алуу | ||
| This word can also mean "to get ahead of" or "to anticipate" in Kyrgyz. | |||
| Tajik | пешгирӣ кардан | ||
| The verb "пешгирӣ кардан" is derived from the Persian word "پیشگیری" (pešgīrī), meaning "to take precautions" or "to anticipate and prevent." | |||
| Turkmen | öňüni al | ||
| Uzbek | oldini olish | ||
| The Uzbek word "oldini olish" is derived from the Persian root "old" (meaning "before, front") and the Turkic suffix "-ish" (meaning "to make"), thus literally meaning "to get in front of". | |||
| Uyghur | ئالدىنى ئېلىش | ||
Prevent in Pacific Languages
| Hawaiian | pale aku | ||
| The word 'pale aku' can also mean to bar or obstruct. | |||
| Maori | ārai | ||
| The word "ārai" has a secondary meaning of "to protect" or "to defend". | |||
| Samoan | puipuia | ||
| The word "puipuia" is derived from the word "puipui" which means "to press or push"} | |||
| Tagalog (Filipino) | pigilan | ||
| "Pigil" and "an" are used to convey a sense of restraint or restriction, as in the Tagalog word "pigilan" meaning "to prevent". | |||
Prevent in American Indigenous Languages
| Aymara | jark'aqaña | ||
| Guarani | pia | ||
Prevent in International Languages
| Esperanto | malhelpi | ||
| The Esperanto word "malhelpi" can also mean "to hinder" or "to obstruct". | |||
| Latin | preoccupo | ||
| The Latin verb preoccupo derives from prae- (before) and occupo (to seize), and can also mean "to anticipate" or "to take possession of". | |||
Prevent in Others Languages
| Greek | αποτρέψει | ||
| The word "αποτρέψει" comes from the Greek word "τρέπω", meaning "to turn" or "to change direction" | |||
| Hmong | tiv thaiv | ||
| The word "tiv thaiv" is a compound word, composed of the verb "tiv" (to stop) and the noun "thaiv" (a barrier). | |||
| Kurdish | bergirtin | ||
| The word "bergirtin" can also refer to the act of holding something back or restraining it. | |||
| Turkish | önlemek | ||
| "Önlemek" sözcüğünün kökü "ön"dür. "Ön", eski Türkçede "ön taraf, önde" anlamlarına gelir ve "önlenmek" fiili de "önden alınmak, engellenmek" anlamına gelir. | |||
| Xhosa | thintela | ||
| The word "thintela" is derived from the Xhosa word "thintela", which means "to touch or handle". | |||
| Yiddish | פאַרהיטן | ||
| פאַרהיטן is derived from Middle Low German "verhüten" meaning "prevent" but also having the sense of "protect." | |||
| Zulu | ukuvimbela | ||
| The Zulu word "ukuvimbela" is derived from the noun "isivimbela," meaning "obstacle"} | |||
| Assamese | প্ৰতিৰোধ কৰা | ||
| Aymara | jark'aqaña | ||
| Bhojpuri | मना कयिल | ||
| Dhivehi | ހުރަސްއެޅުން | ||
| Dogri | बचाओ | ||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | pigilan | ||
| Guarani | pia | ||
| Ilocano | maatipa | ||
| Krio | stɔp | ||
| Kurdish (Sorani) | ڕێگری کردن | ||
| Maithili | रोकू | ||
| Meiteilon (Manipuri) | ꯊꯤꯡꯕ | ||
| Mizo | veng | ||
| Oromo | ittisuu | ||
| Odia (Oriya) | ପ୍ରତିରୋଧ କରନ୍ତୁ | | ||
| Quechua | harkay | ||
| Sanskrit | निवारयतु | ||
| Tatar | булдырма | ||
| Tigrinya | ምክልኻል | ||
| Tsonga | sivela | ||