Severe in different languages

Severe in Different Languages

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

Updated on March 6, 2024

The word severe holds great significance in our vocabulary, often used to describe situations or conditions that are extreme, intense, or serious. Its cultural importance is evident in literature, where it's used to add weight to a narrative, and in scientific or medical contexts, where it indicates a critical level of a phenomenon or condition.

Understanding the translation of severe in different languages can open up new dimensions of cultural understanding and communication. For instance, in Spanish, severe translates to grave, which also means 'serious' or 'important'. In French, it's sévère, reflecting a similar phonetic and semantic structure. In Japanese, it's Japanse: 厳しい (kibishii), a term that also carries connotations of strictness and harshness.

Delving into the translations of severe is not just a linguistic exercise, but a journey into the heart of different cultures and their ways of expressing intensity and seriousness. Stay tuned for more translations and their cultural contexts.

Severe


Severe in Sub-Saharan African Languages

Afrikaansernstig
The Afrikaans word "ernstig" ultimately derives from Middle Dutch "ernst" and Old French "ernest", but also has cognates in Spanish, Catalan, and several other Romance languages.
Amharicከባድ
ከባድ is derived from the root verb "ከበደ" (to make heavy) and can also mean "difficult" or "serious".
Hausamai tsanani
The word ''mai tsanani'' is also a euphemism for ''snuff''.
Igbosiri ike
The term 'siri ike' can also refer to a person who is physically strong and robust.
Malagasymafy
"Mafy" can also mean "strict" or "hard".
Nyanja (Chichewa)kwambiri
In Nyanja, "kwambiri" also refers to a person who is harsh or unforgiving.
Shonazvakanyanya
The verb 'zvakanyanya' is also used to describe the action of a sharp object piercing or cutting through something
Somalidaran
The word
Sesothomatla
The word "matla" in Sesotho can also refer to "a strong person" or "a difficult task."
Swahilikali
In Swahili, "kali" also means "black" or "bad," reflecting the negative connotations associated with darkness.
Xhosakakhulu
The word "kakhulu" in Xhosa also means "very much" or "greatly".
Yorubaàìdá
Àìdá also means 'difficult or hard' and derives from the Yoruba word 'dán dán' meaning 'firm' or 'stubborn'.
Zuluezinzima
"Ezinzima" can also refer to a person or animal that is strong and powerful.
Bambarajuguman
Eweseŋu
Kinyarwandabikabije
Lingalamakasi
Luganda-ngi
Sepedišoro
Twi (Akan)emu yɛ den

Severe in North African & Middle Eastern Languages

Arabicشديد
In Arabic, the word "شديد" also means "very" or "strong".
Hebrewחָמוּר
The word "חָמוּר" can also mean "donkey" in Hebrew, originating from the Akkadian word for "donkey" "imēru".
Pashtoسخت
The word "سخت" in Pashto can also mean "strong" or "difficult."
Arabicشديد
In Arabic, the word "شديد" also means "very" or "strong".

Severe in Western European Languages

Albaniantë rënda
The word "të rënda" can also mean "difficulty" or "hardship" in Albanian.
Basquelarria
A variant of "larria" is "laria" meaning "heavy", which may derive from Proto-Basque "*lare" meaning "fat".
Catalangreu
"Greu" is derived from Occitan "greu", meaning both "heavy" and "difficult".
Croatianozbiljna
"Ozbiljna" comes from the Proto-Slavic word "*ob-zъlbĭnъ", meaning "having a clear or definite form". In modern Croatian, it can also mean "important" or "serious".
Danishalvorlig
The word "alvorlig" is derived from the Old Norse word "alvorr," meaning "seriousness" or "gravity."
Dutcherge, ernstige
The Dutch word "erge" comes from the Old Dutch word "arge" which means "bad" or "evil."
Englishsevere
"Severe" comes from the Latin "severus" but can also mean "strict," "harsh," or "somber."
Frenchsévère
'Sévère' may also mean rigorous, earnest, harsh, strict, uncompromising, curt, sharp, critical, grave, solemn, austere, bleak, stern, inflexible
Frisianstrang
The word "strang" in Frisian can also mean "strong" or "powerful".
Galiciangrave
In Galician, “grave” is also a unit of weight (1,000 kg)
Germanstark
Stark in German can also mean rigid, stiff, or inflexible.
Icelandicalvarlegur
The Icelandic word "alvarlegur" can also be used to describe someone or something that is "serious, earnest, solemn, grave or weighty."
Irishdian
The word "dian" is also used in Irish to describe a sharp pain or pang.
Italianacuto
The Italian word "acuto" has an alternate meaning of "high-pitched" and is linked to the Latin word "acus", meaning "needle".
Luxembourgishschwéier
Maltesesevera
Maltese "severa" is cognate with Arabic "shadid", Persian "shadid" and Turkic "sedit", all meaning "strong" or "violent".
Norwegianalvorlig
The Old Norse root "alvarlig" meant 'serious or earnest,' with the connotation 'grave' from the 17th century.
Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil)forte
The word "forte" in Portuguese also means "strong" or "loud".
Scots Gaeliccruaidh
The Scots Gaelic word "cruaidh" also means "hard" or "difficult".
Spanishgrave
The Spanish word "grave" originally meant "heavy" and is cognate with the English word "grave" (a hole in the ground), as well as with the French word "grève" (a beach).
Swedishsvår
The word "svår" is also used in Swedish to describe something that is difficult to understand or do.
Welshdifrifol
The word "difrifol" in Welsh is derived from the Latin word "difficilis", meaning "difficult" or "hard to do".

Severe in Eastern European Languages

Belarusianцяжкая
Bosnianozbiljno
The word "ozbiljno" comes from the Turkish word "öz", meaning "essence" or "core". It can also mean "serious" or "important".
Bulgarianтежък
The word "тежък" shares its root with a word meaning "difficult", "hard".
Czechtěžké
The word "těžké" is an adjective meaning "heavy" or "difficult", and is related to the word "tíže" meaning "weight" or "burden."
Estonianraske
The word "raske" also means "heavy" or "difficult".
Finnishvakava
"Vakava" is cognate with "vacancy" and "vague", which are derived from Latin "vacare" (to be empty).
Hungarianszigorú
"Szigorú" is also an adjective meaning "strict" or "rigorous".
Latviansmags
The Latvian word "smags" has Indo-European roots and is cognate with the English word "slack".
Lithuaniansunkus
The word "sunkus" may have derived from the Proto-Germanic root "sunquaz", meaning "swollen" or "heavy".
Macedonianтешка
The word "тешка" in Macedonian can also mean "difficult", "arduous", or "onerous".
Polishciężki: silny
The word "ciężki" also means "heavy" in Polish.
Romanianseveră
The word "severă" is derived from the Latin word "severus" which means "strict or stern". It also has the alternate meaning of "cold" in Romanian, especially when it comes to weather.
Russianтяжелая форма
The literal meaning of "тяжелая форма" is "heavy form" but this is used figuratively (e.g. in medicine) to express "severe" as if a medical condition carries a lot of "weight"
Serbianозбиљна
The word "озбиљна" comes from the Old Slavic word "злобъ", meaning "evil" or "harmful".
Slovakťažké
The Slovak word "ťažké" also means "heavy" or "difficult".
Slovenianhudo
The word "hudo" in Slovenian is derived from the Proto-Slavic word "xudъ", which means "evil" or "bad".
Ukrainianсильний
"Сильний" in Ukrainian can also mean "large" or "heavy".

Severe in South Asian Languages

Bengaliগুরুতর
The word "গুরুতর" also means "heavy" or "serious" in Bengali, in addition to its primary meaning of "severe".
Gujaratiગંભીર
The Gujarati word "ગંભીર" (pronounced "gambhīr") has alternate meanings in Sanskrit, including "deep," "solemn," and "weighty."
Hindiगंभीर
The word "गंभीर" also means "profound" or "deeply felt".
Kannadaತೀವ್ರ
The term "ತೀವ್ರ" is an adjective meaning "intense" or "excessive" in Kannada, originating from the Sanskrit word "tīvra" with similar connotations, which is derived from the Indo-European root "tei- " meaning "to sharpen or incite."
Malayalamകഠിനമാണ്
Marathiतीव्र
"तीव्र" also means "sharp" and "intense" in Marathi.
Nepaliगम्भीर
"गम्भीर" is derived from Sanskrit "गम्भीर" and also means "deep" or "grave".
Punjabiਗੰਭੀਰ
Sinhala (Sinhalese)දරුණු
The word "දරුණු" also means "terrible" and "bad" in Sinhala (Sinhalese).
Tamilகடுமையானது
கடுமையானது originally meant
Teluguతీవ్రమైన
తీవ్రమైన also means 'very', 'much', 'great', 'intense', 'strong', 'deep', 'violent', 'sharp', 'acute', 'bitter', 'pungent', 'harsh', 'cruel', 'hard', 'difficult', 'distressing', 'painful', and 'dangerous'.
Urduشدید
The word "شدید" also means "hard" or "rough".

Severe in East Asian Languages

Chinese (Simplified)严重
严重 (yàn zhòng) also means "serious" or "grave" in Chinese.
Chinese (Traditional)嚴重
"嚴重" can also mean "important" or "solemn" in archaic Chinese.
Japanese重度
重度 is also a Buddhist term meaning "heavy sin" or "grave offense".
Korean중증
The word "중증" is derived from Chinese characters meaning "heavy" and "burden".
Mongolianхүнд
The word "хүнд" not only reflects negative events, but rather can also mean a "heavy" amount of something positive such as joy or wealth.
Myanmar (Burmese)ပြင်းထန်

Severe in South East Asian Languages

Indonesianberat
Berat can also refer to weight, burden, or importance.
Javaneseparah
"Parah" in Javanese can also mean "extreme, intense", or "badly damaged".
Khmerធ្ងន់ធ្ងរ
"ធ្ងន់ធ្ងរ" (heavy/harsh) has an extended figurative meaning of "severe pain" and "severe punishment."
Laoຮ້າຍແຮງ
Malayteruk
"Teruk" also means "very" in Kelantanese Malay, as in "very good" or "very delicious."
Thaiรุนแรง
รุนแรง is derived from 'รุน' (to pull or cause pressure) and 'แรง' (force), and can also refer to causing pressure on something to compel them to do something.
Vietnamesedữ dội
Dữ dội means "fierce" but is also used ironically to mean "so-so".
Filipino (Tagalog)malala

Severe in Central Asian Languages

Azerbaijaniağır
The word "ağır" also means "heavy" in Azerbaijani, reflecting its multifaceted semantic field.
Kazakhауыр
In addition to its primary meaning of "severe," "ауыр" can also be used to describe something that is heavy, difficult, or challenging in Kazakh.
Kyrgyzкатуу
The word "катуу" in Kyrgyz has several alternate meanings, including "hard", "strong", and "firm".
Tajikсахт
In Persian, “sakhth” means “firm”, “strong”, and “difficult”.
Turkmenagyr
Uzbekog'ir
"Og'ir" has two meanings: severe, serious and heavy, weighty
Uyghurئېغىر

Severe in Pacific Languages

Hawaiiankoʻikoʻi loa
In Hawaiian, "koʻikoʻi loa" can also refer to a sharp, cutting pain or a deep, intense emotion.
Maorikino
Kino also means "ugly" or "unpleasant" in Maori.
Samoanogaoga
The Samoan word 'ogaoga' also means 'to be raw or unripe', and is related to the Polynesian word 'otaota' meaning 'grass'
Tagalog (Filipino)matindi
"Matindi" is derived from the root word "tindi" meaning "intensity" and can also refer to something "serious" or "extraordinary".

Severe in American Indigenous Languages

Aymarasiwiru
Guaraniivaietereíva

Severe in International Languages

Esperantosevera
The word "severa" is derived from the Latin word "severus" meaning "strict" or "harsh"
Latingravibus
Gravibus derives from the Proto-Indo-European root *ǵʰre- (“to age”) and is also related to the Latin word gravis (“heavy”).

Severe in Others Languages

Greekαυστηρός
"Αυστηρός" can also mean "stringent" or "strict" in Greek, emphasizing the intensity or rigidity of something.
Hmongloj heev
"Loj heev" also means "too much" or "to the extreme" in Hmong.
Kurdishgiran
The Kurdish word 'giran' also means 'heaviness', 'pressure', 'hardship' and 'oppression'
Turkishşiddetli
The word "şiddetli" is derived from the Arabic word "shiddat", meaning "intensiveness" or "violence".
Xhosakakhulu
The word "kakhulu" in Xhosa also means "very much" or "greatly".
Yiddishשטרענג
The word "שטערענג" (shtrange) in Yiddish also means "rigid" or "exacting".
Zuluezinzima
"Ezinzima" can also refer to a person or animal that is strong and powerful.
Assameseঅতিশয়
Aymarasiwiru
Bhojpuriगम्हीर
Dhivehiގަދަފަދަ
Dogriडाहडा
Filipino (Tagalog)malala
Guaraniivaietereíva
Ilocanonakaro
Kriosiriɔs
Kurdish (Sorani)تووند
Maithiliगंभीर
Meiteilon (Manipuri)ꯁꯥꯊꯤꯕ
Mizonasa
Oromohammaataa
Odia (Oriya)ଗମ୍ଭୀର
Quechuanisyu
Sanskritअति
Tatarкаты
Tigrinyaሓያል
Tsongahi matimba

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