Somewhat in Different Languages
Discover 'Somewhat' in 134 Languages: Dive into Translations, Hear Pronunciations, and Uncover Cultural Insights.
Updated on March 6, 2024
The word 'somewhat' is a small but powerful part of the English language. It's a qualifier that allows us to express a degree of difference or distinction. While it may seem like a simple word, its significance is great, as it allows us to nuance our thoughts and opinions. Moreover, the word 'somewhat' has cultural importance, as it is used in various idiomatic expressions and colloquialisms around the world.
For those interested in language and culture, knowing the translation of 'somewhat' in different languages can be fascinating. For instance, in Spanish, 'somewhat' translates to 'algo', while in French, it is 'un peu'. In German, 'somewhat' is 'etwas', and in Japanese, it is '少し' (sukoshi).
Did you know that the word 'somewhat' has roots in Old English? It comes from the words 'sum' (meaning 'some') and 'hwæt' (meaning 'what'). Over time, these words were combined to form 'sumwhat', which eventually evolved into the modern 'somewhat'.
Understanding the translation of 'somewhat' in different languages can provide insight into the nuances of different cultures and languages. It can also help us better communicate with others and appreciate the richness of the world's linguistic diversity.
Somewhat
Somewhat in Sub-Saharan African Languages
| Afrikaans | ietwat | ||
| The word "ietwat" ultimately derives from the Dutch word "ietswat", meaning "a little bit". | |||
| Amharic | በተወሰነ ደረጃ | ||
| "በተወሰነ ደረጃ" can also mean "to some extent" or "in some measure". | |||
| Hausa | da ɗan | ||
| The Hausa word 'da ɗan' can mean 'rather' in addition to 'somewhat'. | |||
| Igbo | dịtụ | ||
| "Dịtụ" derives from the Igbo word "dị," meaning "exist" or "be," and the suffix "-tụ," which indicates a diminutive or approximation. | |||
| Malagasy | somary | ||
| The Malagasy word "somary" can also mean "more or less" or "approximately". | |||
| Nyanja (Chichewa) | penapake | ||
| The word 'penapake' has roots in the word 'pena,' meaning 'a bit' in Tumbuka and is also used in Swahili. | |||
| Shona | zvimwe | ||
| The word 'zvimwe' is derived from the Proto-Bantu root '*dimi', which also means 'a little bit' or 'a few' | |||
| Somali | xoogaa | ||
| Although not as common, "xoogaa" can also imply "a bit" or "a little". | |||
| Sesotho | hanyane | ||
| The word "hanyane" is an adjective in Sesotho that has various meanings including "somewhat" and "a little bit." | |||
| Swahili | kiasi fulani | ||
| The word 'kiasi fulani' is derived from the Arabic word 'qismat fulan', meaning 'a certain quantity'. | |||
| Xhosa | ngandlela thile | ||
| The term 'ngandlela thile' is a combination of two Xhosa words, 'ngandlela' (a little bit) and 'thile' (on the other hand). | |||
| Yoruba | ni itumo | ||
| It is also used to indicate a condition of "being about to" or "being on the verge of" | |||
| Zulu | ngandlela thile | ||
| "Ngandlela thile" is a phrase in Zulu that also means "by the way" or "incidentally". | |||
| Bambara | dɔɔnin | ||
| Ewe | le mɔ aɖe nu | ||
| Kinyarwanda | mu buryo runaka | ||
| Lingala | mwa moke | ||
| Luganda | ekintu ekimu | ||
| Sepedi | ka tsela e itšego | ||
| Twi (Akan) | wɔ ɔkwan bi so | ||
Somewhat in North African & Middle Eastern Languages
| Arabic | قليلا | ||
| قليلا "A little" may also mean "a short time" in Arabic. | |||
| Hebrew | במידה מסוימת | ||
| בְּמִדָּה מְסֻיֶּמֶת is composed of the words בְּמִדָּה (measure) and מְסֻיֶּמֶת (definite), hence the connotation of "to a certain extent" | |||
| Pashto | یو څه | ||
| In Pashto, "یو څه" means "a little" but also refers to a "small amount" or "just a little bit". | |||
| Arabic | قليلا | ||
| قليلا "A little" may also mean "a short time" in Arabic. | |||
Somewhat in Western European Languages
| Albanian | disi | ||
| The word "disi" in Albanian can also be used to mean "a bit" or "slightly". | |||
| Basque | zertxobait | ||
| "Zertxobait" is an adverb in the Basque language used to express a slight degree of something. It could translate to "more or less" or "sort of" and derives from the noun "zertxo" meaning a "small amount". | |||
| Catalan | una mica | ||
| The phrase "una mica" in Catalan, meaning "a little bit," is cognate to Spanish "mica" (meaning "crumb,") and French "mie" (meaning "crumb"). | |||
| Croatian | nešto | ||
| The Slavic word "nešto" also means "something" as in "nešto dobro" - "something good," a meaning lost in West Slavic languages. | |||
| Danish | noget | ||
| The word "noget" is derived from the Old Norse word "nǫkkurr" and can also mean "something" or "anything". | |||
| Dutch | iets | ||
| The word "iets" in Dutch also means "something" and is derived from the Proto-Germanic word "*aitja-." | |||
| English | somewhat | ||
| Somewhat is an alternative form of the now archaic phrase 'some deal', equivalent to 'a certain amount' or 'to some extent'. | |||
| French | quelque peu | ||
| The word "quelque peu" in French may be derived from the Latin word "qualicumque", meaning both "any" and "bad, mediocre" | |||
| Frisian | bytsje | ||
| In Frisian, "bytsje" can also mean "a bit" or "kind of". | |||
| Galician | algo | ||
| "Algo" also means "something" in Galician. | |||
| German | etwas | ||
| It is an indefinite pronoun that refers to an unspecified amount or quantity and can translate to “some” or “any” in English. | |||
| Icelandic | nokkuð | ||
| Nokkuð can also mean "certain" or "particular", and is cognate with the Norwegian word "noen". | |||
| Irish | rud éigin | ||
| Rud éigin also means 'mysterious' and its cognate 'raed' is the source of the English word 'riddle' | |||
| Italian | un po ' | ||
| The Italian word "un po'" is derived from the Latin "paulum," meaning "a little." | |||
| Luxembourgish | e bëssen | ||
| The word "e bëssen" can also mean "a little bit" or "a little while". | |||
| Maltese | kemmxejn | ||
| The word "kemmxejn" is derived from the Semitic root "*k-m-r", meaning "small" or "little". | |||
| Norwegian | noe | ||
| "Noe" is derived from the Old Norse "nøkkurr" or "nokkurr," which meant "some," "any," or even "a few" depending on the context. | |||
| Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) | um pouco | ||
| "Um pouco" comes from Latin "punctum" that also gives rise to English "point", "punctilious", etc., which refers to something very specific, punctual and exact; its use as a diminutive implies that "um pouco" is a very specific portion, almost "one point" (of an indeterminate whole) that one takes. | |||
| Scots Gaelic | rudeigin | ||
| The root of rudeigin is the word ruid, meaning "a little thing," and it can also mean "rather" or "somewhat." | |||
| Spanish | algo | ||
| The word "algo" in Spanish also means "something" or "a certain amount of something". | |||
| Swedish | något | ||
| Old Norse nægð has the meaning of "enough, sufficient", which is the basis of the current meaning in Swedish denoting a small amount. | |||
| Welsh | rhywfaint | ||
| The word 'rhywfaint' is derived from the Welsh words 'rhyw' meaning 'kind' or 'sort', and 'faint' meaning 'somewhat' or 'a bit'. | |||
Somewhat in Eastern European Languages
| Belarusian | некалькі | ||
| The word "некалькі" is derived from the Proto-Slavic *několĭko, meaning "several". It can also mean "a few". | |||
| Bosnian | donekle | ||
| The word "donekle" in Bosnian is an abbreviation of the Turkish word "don kadar" meaning "as much as". | |||
| Bulgarian | до известна степен | ||
| "До известна степен" (somewhat) in Bulgarian is a calque from Russian with the same meaning, where it is used also to mean "to some extent". | |||
| Czech | poněkud | ||
| "Poněkud" is derived from the Old Czech word "poněkąd" meaning "in some respect, partially". It can also mean "a little bit", "rather", or "kind of". | |||
| Estonian | mõnevõrra | ||
| The first part of the word "mõnevõrra" comes from the Estonian word "mõni" meaning "some". | |||
| Finnish | jokseenkin | ||
| The word 'jokseenkin' comes from the old Finnish word 'jokunen', meaning 'some'. Another old meaning for 'jokseenkin' was 'slightly' or 'a bit'. | |||
| Hungarian | némileg | ||
| The word "némileg" can also mean "not unpleasant". | |||
| Latvian | nedaudz | ||
| "nedaudz" is derived from the Proto-Baltic word "nedati", meaning "not enough" and "audzis", meaning "growth" or "increase" | |||
| Lithuanian | šiek tiek | ||
| The word "šiek tiek" is a contraction of the phrase "šie kiek", meaning "this amount". | |||
| Macedonian | донекаде | ||
| The word “донекаде” originates from the Old Church Slavonic word “донъкадъ”, which means “up to” or “as far as”. | |||
| Polish | nieco | ||
| The word "nieco" is a combination of the prefix "nie-" and the noun "co" (what), so it literally means "not-what". | |||
| Romanian | oarecum | ||
| "Oarecum" derives from a compound of two words: "oare" and "cum," both of which refer to uncertainty or doubt; "oarecum" can also mean "maybe" or "perhaps." | |||
| Russian | в некотором роде | ||
| The phrase "в некотором роде" can also mean "in a way" | |||
| Serbian | донекле | ||
| The word "донекле" in Serbian is derived from the Old Church Slavonic word "доньдеже," which means "until" or "as long as." | |||
| Slovak | trochu | ||
| "Trochu" is derived from the Proto-Slavic "trochъ", meaning "little", and also means "little", "little bit", or "a few" in other Slavic languages. | |||
| Slovenian | nekoliko | ||
| The word 'nekoliko' in Slovenian derives from the Old Church Slavonic word 'nekoliku,' meaning 'to a certain extent'. | |||
| Ukrainian | дещо | ||
| "Дещо" in Ukrainian can also mean "something", "a bit", or "a few." | |||
Somewhat in South Asian Languages
| Bengali | কিছুটা | ||
| The word কিছুটা is ultimately derived from the Sanskrit word कतिपय (katipaya) and it can also mean "a few" in Bengali. | |||
| Gujarati | કંઈક અંશે | ||
| The word “કંઈક અંશે” can also be used to mean “a little bit” or “to some extent”. | |||
| Hindi | कुछ हद तक | ||
| "कुछ हद तक" is a compound word consisting of "कुछ" (some) and "हद तक" (to some extent). | |||
| Kannada | ಸ್ವಲ್ಪಮಟ್ಟಿಗೆ | ||
| Malayalam | കുറച്ച് | ||
| The word "കുറച്ച്" can also mean "some" or "a few" in Malayalam, conveying a sense of quantity or indeterminacy. | |||
| Marathi | काहीसे | ||
| The Marathi word काहीसे ('somewhat') is derived from the Sanskrit word कच्चित् ('maybe'), which also means 'doubt' or 'uncertainty'. | |||
| Nepali | केहि | ||
| The term ‘केहि’ can also be used to convey a sense of ‘a bit’, ‘a few’ or ‘partial'. | |||
| Punjabi | ਕੁਝ ਹੱਦ ਤਕ | ||
| Sinhala (Sinhalese) | තරමක් | ||
| The word “තරමක්” in Sinhala is also used to refer to a certain extent, degree, or amount. | |||
| Tamil | ஓரளவு | ||
| ஓரளவு (Or Alavu) is derived from the Tamil words ஒன்று (One) and அளவு (Quantity), suggesting partial quantity or a state of being not complete or full. | |||
| Telugu | కొంతవరకు | ||
| "కొంతవరకు" is derived from the Sanskrit word "कुत्तावर्त्त" which means "to the extent of a dog's turn". | |||
| Urdu | کسی حد تک | ||
| The Urdu word "کسی حد تک" can also mean "to some extent" or "up to a point". | |||
Somewhat in East Asian Languages
| Chinese (Simplified) | 有些 | ||
| The term "有些" was sometimes used to mean "to have" or "to be" in classical Chinese. | |||
| Chinese (Traditional) | 有些 | ||
| 有些 is also used to indicate the existence of something, as in 有些道理 (there is some truth to it). | |||
| Japanese | 幾分 | ||
| The term “幾分” literally means “several parts” and was originally used in a mathematical sense. | |||
| Korean | 약간 | ||
| The word "약간" is derived from the Chinese root " 약간", meaning "a small amount" | |||
| Mongolian | зарим талаар | ||
| Зарим талаар can also mean "a little bit" or "a bit". | |||
| Myanmar (Burmese) | အတန်ငယ် | ||
Somewhat in South East Asian Languages
| Indonesian | agak | ||
| Agak, meaning "somewhat" or "quite", comes from the Proto-Austronesian word "akal" meaning "mind" or "intellect". | |||
| Javanese | rada | ||
| Javanese "rada" (somewhat) is a cognate of Sundanese "rada" (somewhat, a little) and Balinese "nrada" (a little). | |||
| Khmer | បន្តិច | ||
| បន្តិច comes from the Sanskrit word "panti." It has been used in Khmer since the 13th century. | |||
| Lao | ຮ່ອງ | ||
| The word "ຮ່ອງ" can also mean "missing" or "incomplete". | |||
| Malay | agaknya | ||
| The word "agaknya" in Malay originated from the word "agak (to estimate)" in Old Javanese meaning "maybe"," or, by extension, "perhaps"/"somewhat." | |||
| Thai | ค่อนข้าง | ||
| In Old Thai “ค่อน” meant “half”, so “ค่อนข้าง” originally meant “halfway” (i.e. between two opposite poles). | |||
| Vietnamese | phần nào | ||
| The word 'phần nào' in Vietnamese, meaning 'somewhat', also implies the idea of 'partially' or 'to some extent' | |||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | medyo | ||
Somewhat in Central Asian Languages
| Azerbaijani | bir qədər | ||
| The Azerbaijani word "bir qədər" originates from the Persian phrase "yak qadr", which means "a certain amount". | |||
| Kazakh | біршама | ||
| "біршама" is also the name of a Kazakh dance | |||
| Kyrgyz | бир аз | ||
| "Бир аз" can be used to express not only "quantity" but also "degree" or "intensity" in Kyrgyz. | |||
| Tajik | то андозае | ||
| The word "то андозае" is also used to mean "slightly" or "a little bit". | |||
| Turkmen | birneme | ||
| Uzbek | bir oz | ||
| In Chagatay Turkish, “bir oz” means “a small amount”, in Kazakh it means “one or two”, and in some Uzbek dialects, it means “one or two or a few” | |||
| Uyghur | مەلۇم دەرىجىدە | ||
Somewhat in Pacific Languages
| Hawaiian | iki | ||
| "Iki" can also mean "small" or "younger" in Hawaiian. | |||
| Maori | ahua | ||
| The word "ahua" is also used to describe a person's appearance or build. | |||
| Samoan | fai sina | ||
| Fai sina, meaning somewhat in Samoan, originates from the words fai, which means to do or make, and sina, which refers to a small amount or degree. | |||
| Tagalog (Filipino) | medyo | ||
| The Tagalog word "medyo" is thought to come from the Spanish word "medio", meaning "middle" or "halfway". | |||
Somewhat in American Indigenous Languages
| Aymara | mä juk’a | ||
| Guarani | peteĩ mba’e | ||
Somewhat in International Languages
| Esperanto | iom | ||
| "Iom" is a loanword from Polish, derived from the Old Polish phrase "jako nie" ("as if not") and related to the modern Polish words "jak nie" ("kind of") and "jakby nie" ("as if not"). | |||
| Latin | aliquantum | ||
| The word aliquantum derives from the Latin words "alius" (other) and "quantum" (how much), and thus originally meant "how much of the other." | |||
Somewhat in Others Languages
| Greek | κάπως | ||
| The word “κάπως” can also mean “in a way” or “in some way,” and can be used to express uncertainty or approximation. | |||
| Hmong | qee yam | ||
| The word "qee yam" can also mean "pretty much" or "almost" in Hmong. | |||
| Kurdish | tiştek | ||
| The Kurdish word "tiştek" derives from the Persian word "chistek" meaning "a little". | |||
| Turkish | biraz | ||
| The word "biraz" in Turkish shares the same root as the word "piece" in English, reflecting its original meaning of "a small amount". It can also figuratively mean "a little bit" in the sense of "not much" or "not very". | |||
| Xhosa | ngandlela thile | ||
| The term 'ngandlela thile' is a combination of two Xhosa words, 'ngandlela' (a little bit) and 'thile' (on the other hand). | |||
| Yiddish | עפּעס | ||
| The Yiddish word "עפּעס" (epes) also means "a little bit," "a trifle," or even "something" in the sense of "an unspecified or indefinite thing." | |||
| Zulu | ngandlela thile | ||
| "Ngandlela thile" is a phrase in Zulu that also means "by the way" or "incidentally". | |||
| Assamese | কিছু পৰিমাণে | ||
| Aymara | mä juk’a | ||
| Bhojpuri | कुछ हद तक के बात बा | ||
| Dhivehi | ކޮންމެވެސް ވަރަކަށް | ||
| Dogri | कुछ हद तक | ||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | medyo | ||
| Guarani | peteĩ mba’e | ||
| Ilocano | medio | ||
| Krio | sɔm kayn we | ||
| Kurdish (Sorani) | تا ڕادەیەک | ||
| Maithili | किछु | ||
| Meiteilon (Manipuri) | ꯈꯔꯥ ꯍꯦꯟꯅꯥ ꯂꯩ꯫ | ||
| Mizo | eng emaw chen chu | ||
| Oromo | hamma tokko | ||
| Odia (Oriya) | କିଛି ମାତ୍ରାରେ | ||
| Quechua | imallatapas | ||
| Sanskrit | किञ्चित् | ||
| Tatar | бераз | ||
| Tigrinya | ብመጠኑ | ||
| Tsonga | hi ndlela yo karhi | ||