Roughly in Different Languages
Discover 'Roughly' in 134 Languages: Dive into Translations, Hear Pronunciations, and Uncover Cultural Insights.
Updated on March 6, 2024
The word 'roughly' is a small but powerful term, indicating an approximation or estimate in English. Its significance extends beyond mere numbers, as it can also describe physical textures and emotional experiences. 'Roughly' carries a friendly, conversational tone, making it a versatile word in many situations.
Throughout history, 'roughly' has been used in various contexts, from mathematical calculations to descriptive storytelling. Its cultural importance is evident in its translations into different languages, reflecting the unique ways each culture approximates or estimates concepts.
For those interested in language and culture, understanding the translations of 'roughly' can provide valuable insights into how different cultures perceive and communicate approximation. Here are a few sample translations:
- French: environ
- Spanish: aproximadamente
- German: ungefähr
- Mandarin: 大约 (dàyuē)
- Japanese: およそ (oyoso)
Stay tuned for a comprehensive list of 'roughly' translations in various languages, helping you expand your linguistic and cultural knowledge.
Roughly
Roughly in Sub-Saharan African Languages
| Afrikaans | rofweg | ||
| Etymology: Dutch "grofweg", a blend of "grof" (coarse) and "weg" (way). | |||
| Amharic | በግምት | ||
| The word “በግምት” can also mean "nearly" or "approximately". | |||
| Hausa | kamar | ||
| The Hausa word “kamar” is also used to mean “about, nearly, or more or less”. | |||
| Igbo | olee ihe enyemaka | ||
| The Igbo word "Olee ihe enyemaka" can also mean "anything that is helpful or beneficial". | |||
| Malagasy | mitovitovy | ||
| "Mitovitovy" is also an exclamation meaning "Oh my goodness!" | |||
| Nyanja (Chichewa) | pafupifupi | ||
| The word "pafupifupi" can also be used to describe a rough or uneven surface. | |||
| Shona | nehasha | ||
| The word "nehasha" can also be used to mean "almost" or "not quite." | |||
| Somali | qiyaas ahaan | ||
| "Qiyaas ahaan" is a Somali word meaning "approximately" or "in general". It can also mean "for example" or "by way of comparison." | |||
| Sesotho | hanyane | ||
| The word "hanyane" can also mean "in a hurry" or "quickly". | |||
| Swahili | takribani | ||
| The word "takribani" in Swahili can also mean "approximately", "nearly", or "more or less". | |||
| Xhosa | kalukhuni | ||
| In Xhosa, "kalukhuni" literally means "to go around in circles". | |||
| Yoruba | aijọju | ||
| In addition to meaning “roughly” or “approximately”, "aijọju" can also mean “by chance" or “by accident". | |||
| Zulu | cishe | ||
| "Cishe" has a second meaning as an adverb that means "near" or "close to" something. | |||
| Bambara | ɲɔ̀gɔnna | ||
| Ewe | lɔƒo | ||
| Kinyarwanda | hafi | ||
| Lingala | makasi | ||
| Luganda | okukozesa amaanyi | ||
| Sepedi | e ka ba | ||
| Twi (Akan) | basaa | ||
Roughly in North African & Middle Eastern Languages
| Arabic | بقسوة | ||
| "بقسوة" literally means "with hardness" in Arabic, but is often used figuratively to mean "brutally" or "harshly." | |||
| Hebrew | בְּעֵרֶך | ||
| The Hebrew word 'בְּעֵרֶך' is a loanword from the Arabic word 'بِالقَرْب', meaning 'about' or 'near'. | |||
| Pashto | څه ناڅه | ||
| څه ناڅه can also mean "in general" or "all in all" in Pashto. | |||
| Arabic | بقسوة | ||
| "بقسوة" literally means "with hardness" in Arabic, but is often used figuratively to mean "brutally" or "harshly." | |||
Roughly in Western European Languages
| Albanian | afërsisht | ||
| The word "afërsisht" in Albanian can also mean "approximately" or "about". | |||
| Basque | gutxi gorabehera | ||
| The word "gutxi gorabehera" also means "approximately" and "more or less." | |||
| Catalan | aproximadament | ||
| The word "aproximadament" in Catalan comes from the Latin "approximare", meaning "to come near" or "to approach". | |||
| Croatian | grubo | ||
| The word "grubo" in Croatian can also mean "coarse" or "rude". | |||
| Danish | rundt regnet | ||
| "Rundt regnet" literally means "counting in circles" and is a metaphor for estimating something roughly. | |||
| Dutch | ongeveer | ||
| The Dutch word "ongeveer" also means "nearly" and it is derived from the Middle Dutch words "omtrent" and "geveerde" meaning "approximately". | |||
| English | roughly | ||
| "Roughly" is derived from the Middle English word "rough" meaning "hairy" or "coarse" and is not related to the word "rough" meaning "uneven". | |||
| French | grossièrement | ||
| The word "grossièrement" derives from the Old French word "gros", meaning "big" or "thick", and is related to the English word "gross". | |||
| Frisian | rûchwei | ||
| The word "rûchwei" is derived from the Old Frisian word "rûgh", meaning "rough, coarse". | |||
| Galician | aproximadamente | ||
| Galician "aproximadamente" comes from Latin "approximare," and means "to approach," "to bring close," or "to come near." | |||
| German | grob | ||
| "Grob" in German can also mean "coarse" or "large". | |||
| Icelandic | í grófum dráttum | ||
| The adverb "í grófum dráttum" can also mean "in broad strokes" or "in a loose way" in Icelandic. | |||
| Irish | go garbh | ||
| "Go garbh" is a common word used to mean "rough" in the Donegal Irish dialect, and it also commonly appears to mean "awkward" or "inconvenient". | |||
| Italian | approssimativamente | ||
| The Italian "approssimativamente" is derived from Latin "approximare", meaning "approach" or "draw near". | |||
| Luxembourgish | ongeféier | ||
| Maltese | bejn wieħed u ieħor | ||
| The term "bejn wieħed u ieħor" derives from the preposition "bejn" ("between") and literally means "between one and another" or "between something and something else", suggesting an approximation or estimate. | |||
| Norwegian | omtrent | ||
| The Norwegian word "omtrent" originally meant "around noon" or "around" and later acquired its current meaning of "approximately." | |||
| Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) | aproximadamente | ||
| The word "aproximadamente" comes from the Greek word "aproximos", which means "near". | |||
| Scots Gaelic | garbh | ||
| The word "garbh" in Scots Gaelic can also mean "fierce" or "harsh". | |||
| Spanish | aproximadamente | ||
| Aproximadamente is derived from the Latin word “approximare” which means to draw near. | |||
| Swedish | ungefär | ||
| "Ungefär" can mean either "about" or "a little bit", depending on the context. | |||
| Welsh | yn fras | ||
| In Welsh, 'yn fras' ('roughly') may also refer to 'in a hasty manner' or 'without refinement'. | |||
Roughly in Eastern European Languages
| Belarusian | прыблізна | ||
| In some contexts, прыблізна means "approximately" and in others, it means "about" or "more or less" | |||
| Bosnian | grubo | ||
| The word "grubo" has the additional meaning of "crude" or "vulgar" in Bosnian. | |||
| Bulgarian | приблизително | ||
| The word "приблизително" is derived from the Slavic root "priblъžiti", meaning "to approach". It can also mean "approximately", "nearly", or "more or less". | |||
| Czech | zhruba | ||
| "Zhruba" derives from an archaic word "zhrobný," meaning "rough," or as a noun, "the rough," as in a forest, and can be applied to both physical dimensions (terrain, or the draft of a written work) or abstract (a rough estimate). | |||
| Estonian | jämedalt | ||
| "Jämedalt" comes from "jäme" meaning "coarse" and can also mean "in general" or "more or less". | |||
| Finnish | karkeasti | ||
| In the past, "karkeasti" could also mean: 1) crudely, 2) roughly, 3) roughly, 4) roughly, 5) roughly, 6) roughly, 7) roughly, 8) roughly, 9) roughly, 10) roughly. | |||
| Hungarian | nagyjából | ||
| "Nagy" (large) + "jából" (from its part) | |||
| Latvian | rupji | ||
| The word "rupji" also means "thoroughly" in Latvian. | |||
| Lithuanian | grubiai | ||
| "Grubiai" can also mean "coarsely" or "unrefined". | |||
| Macedonian | грубо | ||
| The word "грубо" can also mean "crudely", "harshly", "rudely", "clumsily", "coarsely", or "roughly". | |||
| Polish | w przybliżeniu | ||
| The phrase «w przybliżeniu» also means approximately, for instance, «w przybliżeniu cztery kilometry» – approximately four kilometers. | |||
| Romanian | aproximativ | ||
| Romanian word "aproximativ" may also mean "approximately", "nearly", or "vaguely" in different contexts. | |||
| Russian | примерно | ||
| The word "примерно" derives from the prefix "при" and the verb "мерить" (to measure), thus suggesting an approximation or rough estimate. | |||
| Serbian | отприлике | ||
| "Отприлике" originates from the Proto-Slavic "*pri-lьkъ", meaning "at one's side" or "approximately." | |||
| Slovak | zhruba | ||
| The word "zhruba" is derived from the Proto-Slavic word "*žьrbъ", meaning "lot, portion" or "a small amount". | |||
| Slovenian | približno | ||
| The word 'približno' derives from the Slavic root 'približiť' meaning 'to approach', and can also mean 'approximately' or 'close to' in Slovenian. | |||
| Ukrainian | приблизно | ||
| The word "приблизно" can also mean "approximately" or "about" in Ukrainian. | |||
Roughly in South Asian Languages
| Bengali | মোটামুটিভাবে | ||
| It is an adverb of degree formed from the combination of 'মোটা' ('coarse') and 'মুটি' ('lump'). | |||
| Gujarati | આશરે | ||
| "આશરે" is also used to mean "almost" or "approximately". | |||
| Hindi | मोटे तौर पर | ||
| The word "मोटे तौर पर" can also mean "in general" or "approximately". | |||
| Kannada | ಸ್ಥೂಲವಾಗಿ | ||
| The word "ಸ್ಥೂಲವಾಗಿ" can also mean "approximately" or "broadly" in Kannada. | |||
| Malayalam | ഏകദേശം | ||
| The word "ഏകദേശം" comes from the Sanskrit words "एका" (one) and "देश" (place), and originally meant "in one place" or "in one way". | |||
| Marathi | साधारणपणे | ||
| साधारणपणे (sadharnapane) translates to 'in general' or 'normally' and is derived from the Sanskrit word 'सामान्य' (samaanya), meaning 'common' or 'ordinary'. | |||
| Nepali | लगभग | ||
| The word 'लगभग' (roughly) in Nepali is derived from the word 'लगभग' (near) in Sanskrit, and can also mean 'approximately' or 'close to'. | |||
| Punjabi | ਮੋਟੇ ਤੌਰ ਤੇ | ||
| Sinhala (Sinhalese) | දළ වශයෙන් | ||
| "දළ වශයෙන්" can also mean something that is not refined or polished. | |||
| Tamil | தோராயமாக | ||
| The word "தோராயமாக" comes from the Sanskrit word "तुल्य" (tūlya), meaning "equal" or "equivalent". | |||
| Telugu | సుమారుగా | ||
| The word "సుమారుగా" can also be used to refer to something that is average or ordinary. | |||
| Urdu | تقریبا | ||
| تقریبا is derived from Arabic, where it means 'nearly' or 'approximately'. Over time, the term has taken on slightly different connotations in Urdu, coming to also imply 'almost' or 'more or less'. | |||
Roughly in East Asian Languages
| Chinese (Simplified) | 大致 | ||
| 《辞海》称该词有“大略”之义，明李时珍《本草纲目》中“大致相类”即取此意。 | |||
| Chinese (Traditional) | 大致 | ||
| 大致 can also mean 'mostly', 'in general', or 'on the whole'. | |||
| Japanese | 大まかに | ||
| 大まかに can also mean "roughly speaking" or "broadly speaking." | |||
| Korean | 대충 | ||
| "대충" originally meant 'in rough outline' and was used to refer to a draft or rough sketch. | |||
| Mongolian | ойролцоогоор | ||
| The word "ойролцоогоор" can also mean "approximately" or "more or less". | |||
| Myanmar (Burmese) | အကြမ်းအားဖြင့် | ||
Roughly in South East Asian Languages
| Indonesian | kurang lebih | ||
| "Kurang" means "less" or "lacking" while "lebih" means "more" or "exceeding", thus "kurang lebih" literally means "less more". | |||
| Javanese | kira-kira | ||
| The Javanese word "kira-kira" can also mean "approximately", "more or less" or "about" | |||
| Khmer | ប្រហែល | ||
| ប្រហែល is also used to introduce hypothetical statements, similar to the English word 'perhaps'. | |||
| Lao | ປະມານ | ||
| Malay | secara kasar | ||
| 'Secara kasar' can also mean 'crudely' or 'obscenely' in Indonesian. | |||
| Thai | คร่าวๆ | ||
| The word "คร่าวๆ" (roughly) comes from the older word "คร่าว" (to guess), which in turn likely originates from the Mon language. | |||
| Vietnamese | đại khái | ||
| "Đại khái" is a Chinese loanword meaning "big outline; rough sketch; generally speaking." | |||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | halos | ||
Roughly in Central Asian Languages
| Azerbaijani | təxminən | ||
| "Təxminən" is a cognate of the Turkish word "tahminen" which itself derives from the Arabic word "taqriban" (تقريباً), meaning "approximately". | |||
| Kazakh | шамамен | ||
| The word "шамамен" is a homonym for the word meaning "about" and can also mean "more" or "less". | |||
| Kyrgyz | болжол менен | ||
| The word "болжол менен" can also mean "approximately" or "more or less" in Kyrgyz. | |||
| Tajik | тақрибан | ||
| The word "тақрибан" can also mean "approximately", "about", or "nearly". | |||
| Turkmen | takmynan | ||
| Uzbek | taxminan | ||
| The word "taxminan" is also used to mean "approximately" or "around". | |||
| Uyghur | تەخمىنەن | ||
Roughly in Pacific Languages
| Hawaiian | ʻoʻoleʻa | ||
| ʻOʻoleʻa can also refer to the Hawaiian language, or as the name of an ancient Hawaiian warrior or chief. | |||
| Maori | pakeke | ||
| The word "pakeke" can also mean "old person" or "to be old" in Maori. | |||
| Samoan | talatala | ||
| The Samoan word "talatala" also means "talk" or "story". | |||
| Tagalog (Filipino) | magaspang | ||
| The word "magaspang" in Tagalog may be derived from the root word "gaspang" which means "to grind" or "to mill". | |||
Roughly in American Indigenous Languages
| Aymara | ñäka | ||
| Guarani | hekoitépe | ||
Roughly in International Languages
| Esperanto | proksimume | ||
| Its meaning may also be understood by referring to the phrase "alproksimigi proksimumi" (approximate the rough average). | |||
| Latin | roughly | ||
| The Latin word "rug" also means "rough" or "coarse," and is the source of "roughly"'s alternate meanings. | |||
Roughly in Others Languages
| Greek | χονδρικά | ||
| 'Χονδρικά' translates to 'roughly' but can also mean 'wholesale'. | |||
| Hmong | ntxhib | ||
| Ntxhib can additionally mean "a little bit"} | |||
| Kurdish | teqrîben | ||
| The word "teqrîben" has Persian origins, coming from the word "taqriban" meaning "approximately". | |||
| Turkish | kabaca | ||
| The word 'kabaca' is derived from the Persian word 'kabah' (meaning 'large, gross'), and is also used in Turkish to mean 'approximately' or 'more or less'. | |||
| Xhosa | kalukhuni | ||
| In Xhosa, "kalukhuni" literally means "to go around in circles". | |||
| Yiddish | בעערעך | ||
| According to the Yiddish Dictionary by Uriel Weinreich, the word "בעערעך" may come from the Polish word "około" or the German "ungefähr". | |||
| Zulu | cishe | ||
| "Cishe" has a second meaning as an adverb that means "near" or "close to" something. | |||
| Assamese | মোটামুটিকৈ | ||
| Aymara | ñäka | ||
| Bhojpuri | सांढ | ||
| Dhivehi | ގާތްގަނޑަކަށް | ||
| Dogri | अंदाजन | ||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | halos | ||
| Guarani | hekoitépe | ||
| Ilocano | nasurok | ||
| Krio | lɛkɛ | ||
| Kurdish (Sorani) | بە نزیکەیی | ||
| Maithili | मोटा-मोटी | ||
| Meiteilon (Manipuri) | ꯆꯥꯎꯔꯥꯛꯅ | ||
| Mizo | vel | ||
| Oromo | irra keessa | ||
| Odia (Oriya) | ପ୍ରାୟ | ||
| Quechua | yaqa | ||
| Sanskrit | तृष्टदंश्मन् | ||
| Tatar | тупас | ||
| Tigrinya | ዳርጋ | ||
| Tsonga | kwalomu | ||