Sound in Different Languages
Discover 'Sound' in 134 Languages: Dive into Translations, Hear Pronunciations, and Uncover Cultural Insights.
Sound
Afrikaans klank | ||
Albanian tingull | ||
Amharic ድምጽ | ||
Arabic صوت | ||
Armenian ձայնային | ||
Assamese ধ্বনি | ||
Aymara salla | ||
Azerbaijani səs | ||
Bambara kanɲɛ | ||
Basque soinua | ||
Belarusian гук | ||
Bengali শব্দ | ||
Bhojpuri आवाज | ||
Bosnian zvuk | ||
Bulgarian звук | ||
Catalan so | ||
Cebuano tunog | ||
Chinese (Simplified) 声音 | ||
Chinese (Traditional) 聲音 | ||
Corsican sonu | ||
Croatian zvuk | ||
Czech zvuk | ||
Danish lyd | ||
Dhivehi އަޑު | ||
Dogri अवाज | ||
Dutch geluid | ||
English sound | ||
Esperanto sono | ||
Estonian heli | ||
Ewe gbeɖiɖi | ||
Filipino (Tagalog) tunog | ||
Finnish ääni | ||
French du son | ||
Frisian lûd | ||
Galician son | ||
Georgian ხმა | ||
German klang | ||
Greek ήχος | ||
Guarani pu | ||
Gujarati અવાજ | ||
Haitian Creole son | ||
Hausa sauti | ||
Hawaiian kani | ||
Hebrew נשמע | ||
Hindi ध्वनि | ||
Hmong suab | ||
Hungarian hang | ||
Icelandic hljóð | ||
Igbo uda | ||
Ilocano timek | ||
Indonesian suara | ||
Irish fuaim | ||
Italian suono | ||
Japanese 音 | ||
Javanese swara | ||
Kannada ಧ್ವನಿ | ||
Kazakh дыбыс | ||
Khmer សំឡេង | ||
Kinyarwanda ijwi | ||
Konkani आवाज | ||
Korean 소리 | ||
Krio sawnd | ||
Kurdish rengdan | ||
Kurdish (Sorani) دەنگ | ||
Kyrgyz үн | ||
Lao ສຽງ | ||
Latin sana | ||
Latvian skaņu | ||
Lingala makelele | ||
Lithuanian garsas | ||
Luganda okuwulikika | ||
Luxembourgish toun | ||
Macedonian звук | ||
Maithili आवाज | ||
Malagasy misaina | ||
Malay suara | ||
Malayalam ശബ്ദം | ||
Maltese ħoss | ||
Maori oro | ||
Marathi आवाज | ||
Meiteilon (Manipuri) ꯃꯈꯣꯜ | ||
Mizo ri | ||
Mongolian дуу чимээ | ||
Myanmar (Burmese) အသံ | ||
Nepali आवाज | ||
Norwegian lyd | ||
Nyanja (Chichewa) phokoso | ||
Odia (Oriya) ଶବ୍ଦ | ||
Oromo sagalee | ||
Pashto غږ | ||
Persian صدا | ||
Polish dźwięk | ||
Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) som | ||
Punjabi ਆਵਾਜ਼ | ||
Quechua qapariy | ||
Romanian sunet | ||
Russian звук | ||
Samoan leo | ||
Sanskrit ध्वनि | ||
Scots Gaelic fuaim | ||
Sepedi modumo | ||
Serbian звук | ||
Sesotho modumo | ||
Shona kurira | ||
Sindhi آواز | ||
Sinhala (Sinhalese) ශබ්දය | ||
Slovak zvuk | ||
Slovenian zvok | ||
Somali dhawaaq | ||
Spanish sonido | ||
Sundanese sora | ||
Swahili sauti | ||
Swedish ljud | ||
Tagalog (Filipino) tunog | ||
Tajik садо | ||
Tamil ஒலி | ||
Tatar тавыш | ||
Telugu ధ్వని | ||
Thai เสียง | ||
Tigrinya ድምጺ | ||
Tsonga mpfumawulo | ||
Turkish ses | ||
Turkmen ses | ||
Twi (Akan) nnyegyeeɛ | ||
Ukrainian звук | ||
Urdu آواز | ||
Uyghur ئاۋاز | ||
Uzbek tovush | ||
Vietnamese âm thanh | ||
Welsh sain | ||
Xhosa isandi | ||
Yiddish קלאַנג | ||
Yoruba ohun | ||
Zulu umsindo |
Etymology & Notes
| Language | Etymology / Notes |
|---|---|
| Afrikaans | The Afrikaans word 'klank' comes from the Dutch word 'klank', which means 'sound'. |
| Albanian | The word "tingull" in Albanian also refers to a bell |
| Amharic | The Amharic word for sound, ድምጽ, is related to the root word ድም, which means 'to ring' or 'to make a sound'. |
| Arabic | The Arabic word "صوت" (sawt) also means "voice" and can be used to describe a musical instrument or a vocal performance. |
| Azerbaijani | The word "səs" in Azerbaijani can also refer to "voice" or "noise". |
| Basque | The Basque word "soinua" also means "melody" or "music". |
| Belarusian | The Belarusian word «гук» can also mean «call» or «shout» depending on the context. |
| Bengali | The word "শব্দ" in Bengali can also mean "word" or "noise", and is derived from the Sanskrit word "śabda" meaning "sound". |
| Bosnian | "Zvuk" also means "bell" in Bosnian, likely deriving from the onomatopoeic sound of a bell ringing. |
| Bulgarian | The Proto-Slavic root of "звук" also referred to a specific musical instrument. |
| Catalan | The Catalan word "so" can also mean "quietly" or "slowly". |
| Cebuano | In addition to its literal meaning, "tunog" can mean "fame" or "reputation" in Cebuano. |
| Chinese (Simplified) | 声音 (yīn shēng) literally means 'sound waves'. It can also refer to 'voice' or 'noise'. |
| Chinese (Traditional) | The character "聲" (sound) in "聲音" (sound) was originally a pictograph of a musical instrument, representing the sense of hearing. |
| Corsican | The Corsican word "sonu" also means "news" and derives from the Latin word "sonus". |
| Croatian | The word "zvuk" derives from the Proto-Slavic word "*zvьkъ," which meant "call" or "voice." |
| Czech | Zvuk is also used figuratively in Czech, like in the phrase "to make a sound" (dělat zvuk). |
| Danish | "Lyd" also refers to the act of sounding or producing a certain sound. |
| Dutch | The word "geluid" can also be used to refer to "noise" or "music" in Dutch. |
| Esperanto | "Sono" derives from the Latin word "sonus" and also means "bell" in Esperanto. |
| Estonian | "Heli" is also used to refer to the volume of a sound or the range of frequencies that can be perceived by the human ear. |
| Finnish | The Finnish word "ääni" also refers to a vote or ballot. |
| French | In addition to its literal meaning, the French word "du son" can also refer to "music", "noise" or "information". |
| Frisian | The Frisian word "lûd" is cognate with the English word "loud" and the Dutch word "luid", all deriving from the Proto-West-Germanic word "*hludaz" meaning "loud" or "noise". |
| Galician | In Galician, "son" (pronounced as English "sawn") also means a "dream" or a "nightmare." |
| Georgian | The Georgian word "ხმა" can also refer to a person's voice or to the volume or loudness of a sound. |
| German | The German word "Klang" is also used to describe the specific tone or timbre of a sound. |
| Greek | In Byzantine music, ήχος ('sound') also refers to a musical scale or mode, one of eight standard melodic patterns used in the composition and performance of Byzantine chant. |
| Gujarati | The word "અવાજ" can also refer to a person's voice or reputation. |
| Haitian Creole | In Haitian Creole, "son" can also mean "noise" or "sound of music". |
| Hausa | The word "sauti" in Hausa also refers to a musical instrument used to accompany traditional songs and storytelling. |
| Hawaiian | In Hawaiian, "kani" also means "to ring" or "to sound". This is the etymology or word origin of the word's other meaning, "bell". |
| Hebrew | The Hebrew word "נשמע" can also mean "to be heard, to be perceptible" or "to be considered, to be deemed." |
| Hindi | The word "ध्वनि" can also refer to "clarity", "brightness" and "tone", or specifically to the "sacred sounds" (i.e. mantras). |
| Hmong | In Hmong, the concept 'sound', 'voice' and 'words of a song' can all be represented using the word 'suab'. |
| Hungarian | The Hungarian word for "hang" (sound), like its English counterpart, can also refer to the act of execution by hanging. |
| Icelandic | The word "hljóð" can also refer to silence or quietude in Icelandic. |
| Igbo | In the Igbo language, the word “uda” also refers to a musical instrument or a type of dance rhythm. |
| Indonesian | In Sundanese, 'suara' means 'voice', while in Javanese it means 'noise'. |
| Irish | Fuaim derives from the common Celtic word for 'sound', and also means 'noise'. |
| Italian | "Suono" can also mean a melody, symphony or tone. |
| Japanese | 音 is used in the given name 音 (on), meaning "music melody". |
| Javanese | The related word `swari` means either `singers` or `syllables`, suggesting a connection between sounds and singers or language. |
| Kannada | "ಧ್ವನಿ" means 'sound', but in music it means a 'note', and a 'tone' in the sense of a particular musical note. |
| Kazakh | The word "дыбыс" in Kazakh can also mean "melody" or "noise". |
| Khmer | The Khmer word "សំឡេង" can also mean "to speak, to make a sound" or "to cry, to weep". |
| Korean | 소리 can also mean "news" or "rumor" in Korean. |
| Kurdish | In Kurdish mythology, 'rengdan' also refers to a supernatural being associated with thunder and lightning. |
| Kyrgyz | The Kyrgyz word "үн" also means "voice" and is cognate with the Mongolian word "үн" and the Turkish word "ses". |
| Lao | The Lao word "ສຽງ" also means "voice", "noise", or "music". |
| Latin | The Latin word "sana" can also mean "healthy" or "whole". |
| Latvian | In Latvian, "skaņu" also means "noise" or "tone". |
| Lithuanian | The Lithuanian word "garsas" derives from "garsėti", meaning "to sound aloud, make noise". |
| Luxembourgish | The word "Toun" in Luxembourgish can also refer to a place, specifically a village or small town. |
| Macedonian | The word "звук" can also refer to a musical instrument or the act of ringing a bell. |
| Malagasy | MISAINA, in Malagasy, comes from the word "SAINA" which means "noise". However, when "MI" is added in front of SAINA, the meaning changes to "sound". |
| Malay | The word "suara" in Malay can also refer to "voice" or "news". |
| Malayalam | The Malayalam word "ശബ്ദം" (śabdam) is derived from the Sanskrit word "शब्द" (śabda), which means "word" or "sound." |
| Maltese | The Maltese word 'ħoss' is also used to refer to the sense of hearing. |
| Maori | Maori word "oro" also means "to speak" and "to sing". |
| Marathi | "आवाज" (sound) in Marathi also means "call" or "voice". |
| Mongolian | The Mongolian word |
| Myanmar (Burmese) | The Myanmar (Burmese) word "အသံ" (asham) can also mean "melody" or "music". |
| Nepali | The Nepalese word "आवाज" can originate either from an Austronesian root word as an onomatopoeia or from the Sino-Tibetan word "avadz", which likely originated in Indo-Aryan languages meaning "voice". |
| Norwegian | The word "lyd" can also mean "appearance" or "demeanor" in Norwegian. |
| Nyanja (Chichewa) | The word "phokoso" may also refer to the act of producing a sound, or to the quality of a sound. |
| Pashto | The etymology of "غږ" may link to Avestan "γaθa", meaning "verse" or "hymn", or to Sanskrit "ghosha", meaning "noise" or "sound". |
| Persian | The Persian word "صدā" can also refer to a "voice", "noise", "fame", or "reputation" |
| Polish | The related adjective "dźwięczny" means "voiced" in reference to consonants, and "sonorous" in reference to vowels. |
| Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) | The Portuguese noun 'som' originates from Latin "summus", referring to the "top of the scale", hence the association with sound and high notes. |
| Punjabi | The Punjabi word 'ਆਵਾਜ਼' can also refer to a melody or a cry for help. |
| Romanian | The word "sunet" is also used in Romanian to refer to the "sunset". |
| Russian | The verb form of сзвук, meaning "calling" or "summoning", is зову.} |
| Samoan | The word "leo" also means "to bark" or "to crow" in Samoan. |
| Scots Gaelic | The word "fuaim" can also mean "a tune" or "a noise" in Scots Gaelic. |
| Serbian | In addition to its meaning of "sound", "звук" can also refer to a "musical note" or "tone". |
| Sesotho | "Modumo" is derived from the Proto-Bantu root "-*dumu". Its other meanings in Southern Bantu languages include "to call" or "to tell." |
| Shona | The Shona word "kurira" not only means "sound," but also "sing" or "make a noise." |
| Sindhi | آواز has multiple meanings, including: sound, music, melody, song, and voice. |
| Sinhala (Sinhalese) | ශబ්දය can also mean 'word' and 'meaning' |
| Slovak | The Slovak word "zvuk" is also used to refer to a musical instrument or a noise. |
| Slovenian | The Slovenian word "zvok" is a cognate of the Russian word "zvuk," also meaning "sound," which probably derives from a Proto-Slavic form meaning "call" or "noise". |
| Somali | "Dhawaaq" also means "to utter a sound." |
| Spanish | The word "sonido" is derived from the Latin word "sonitus," meaning "noise" or "sound." |
| Sundanese | Sunda and Japanese both use a shared form to mean sound (sora), in which Sundanese also uses it to mean 'song' and 'news'. |
| Swahili | The Swahili word 'sauti' can also refer to 'voice', 'noise', or 'pronunciation'. |
| Swedish | The Swedish word ljud originally referred to "song" and is related to words like "lute" and "melody". |
| Tagalog (Filipino) | In Tagalog, "tunog" is derived from the Proto-Austronesian word "tunuŋ" and also refers to a musical chord or a harmonious combination of sounds. |
| Tajik | The Tajik word "садо" is derived from the Proto-Iranian word *ćā́ta- meaning "to shout" |
| Telugu | The word "ధ్వని" in Telugu also refers to the concept of "sound" or "meaning" in literature and philosophy. |
| Thai | While "เสียง" primarily means "sound" in Thai, it can also refer to "fame" or "voice" |
| Turkish | Ses is a Turkish homonym, referring to both ‘sound’ and ‘voice’. |
| Ukrainian | The Ukrainian word “звук” is also used to refer to the act of expressing an opinion or thought. |
| Urdu | "Avaz" also means "call to prayer" or "song" in Urdu. |
| Uzbek | "Tovush" (sound) can also refer to "voice," "tone," or "noise" in Uzbek. |
| Vietnamese | The Vietnamese word "âm thanh" can also mean "music" or "tone". |
| Welsh | The Welsh word "sain" can also mean "healthy" or "whole". |
| Xhosa | The word 'isandi' also refers to the sound of a bell, which is a symbol of peace and tranquility. |
| Yiddish | The Yiddish word "קלאַנג" is derived from the German word "Klang", which also means "sound", and is ultimately derived from the Proto-Indo-European root "*klang-", meaning "to sound". |
| Yoruba | The Yoruba word 'ohun' not only means 'sound,' but also refers to 'things' and the 'reason' for something. |
| Zulu | Umsindo also signifies "news" or "report" in the context of communication. |
| English | , referring to a body of water, is an archaic usage dating back to the 14th century. |