Speak in Different Languages
Discover 'Speak' in 134 Languages: Dive into Translations, Hear Pronunciations, and Uncover Cultural Insights.
Updated on March 6, 2024
The word 'speak' holds a significant place in our lives as it is the primary means of communication between individuals and cultures. It is through speech that we express our thoughts, emotions, and ideas, making it a crucial aspect of human connection. The significance of 'speak' extends beyond personal interactions, as it also plays a vital role in public speaking, teaching, and entertainment.
Moreover, the word 'speak' carries cultural importance, as different languages and dialects shape the way we communicate and understand the world around us. For instance, in some Indigenous American cultures, speaking one's native language is a way to honor and preserve cultural heritage. Meanwhile, in many African countries, multilingualism is the norm, and the ability to speak multiple languages is a valuable skill.
Understanding the translation of 'speak' in different languages can be beneficial for those looking to connect with people from diverse backgrounds or expand their linguistic abilities. Here are a few examples:
- Spanish: hablar
- French: parler
- Mandarin: 说 (shuō)
- German: sprechen
- Arabic: أتكلم (atakallam)
Speak
Speak in Sub-Saharan African Languages
| Afrikaans | praat | ||
| "Praat" (speak) may also mean "chat" or "gossip". | |||
| Amharic | ተናገር | ||
| The word "ተናገር" (speak) in Amharic has roots in the Proto-Semitic word "NGR", which means "to utter". | |||
| Hausa | yi magana | ||
| 'Yi magana' is not only 'speak', it also means 'talk' and 'tell'. | |||
| Igbo | kwuo okwu | ||
| 'Kwuo okwu' literally means 'drop words' or 'drop speech'. | |||
| Malagasy | mitenena | ||
| Mitenena is also a form of address for a respected person. | |||
| Nyanja (Chichewa) | lankhulani | ||
| The word "lankhulani" can also mean "to tell a story" or "to give a speech". | |||
| Shona | taura | ||
| Taura also means "the act of chewing" or "the act of grinding" in Shona. | |||
| Somali | hadal | ||
| The word "hadal" in Somali also refers to the act of reciting poetry or delivering an address. | |||
| Sesotho | bua | ||
| The word "bua" can also mean "to say" or "to tell". | |||
| Swahili | sema | ||
| The Swahili word "sema" also means "tell" or "say" and is related to the Arabic word "sama" meaning "to hear". | |||
| Xhosa | thetha | ||
| The word "thetha" can also refer to the act of "discussing, arguing, or pleading" in a legal context. | |||
| Yoruba | sọ | ||
| The word "sọ" can also mean 'to say' or 'to utter'. | |||
| Zulu | khuluma | ||
| In some African languages, 'khuluma' also means 'to reveal' or 'to make known'. | |||
| Bambara | ka kuma | ||
| Ewe | ƒo nu | ||
| Kinyarwanda | vuga | ||
| Lingala | koloba | ||
| Luganda | okwoogera | ||
| Sepedi | bolela | ||
| Twi (Akan) | kasa | ||
Speak in North African & Middle Eastern Languages
| Arabic | تحدث | ||
| The word "تحدث" in Arabic can also mean "to come about" or "to occur." | |||
| Hebrew | לְדַבֵּר | ||
| The word "לְדַבֵּר" is derived from the root "דבר" (dvr), which also means "matter" or "thing." | |||
| Pashto | خبرې وکړئ | ||
| The Pashto word "خبرې وکړئ" also means "to have a conversation" or "to discuss something." | |||
| Arabic | تحدث | ||
| The word "تحدث" in Arabic can also mean "to come about" or "to occur." | |||
Speak in Western European Languages
| Albanian | flas | ||
| 'Flas' can also mean 'tell', 'whisper' or 'explain' in Albanian. | |||
| Basque | hitz egin | ||
| The Basque word "hitz egin" also means "to say" or "to talk". | |||
| Catalan | parlar | ||
| Catalan word "parlar" is also commonly used colloquially to mean "to chat"} | |||
| Croatian | govoriti | ||
| The word 'govoriti' is derived from the Proto-Slavic 'govoriti' and is related to the Latin 'loqui' and the Greek 'logos' (word). | |||
| Danish | tale | ||
| In Danish, "tale" also means "to count" and "to endure". | |||
| Dutch | spreken | ||
| Spreken derives from the Proto-Germanic word *sprekaną meaning "to speak, utter, or address." | |||
| English | speak | ||
| The word "speak" derives from the Old English word "specan," which can also mean "to converse" or "to tell a story." | |||
| French | parler | ||
| In French, the word "parler" derives from the Latin word "parabolare", meaning "to talk in parables". | |||
| Frisian | sprekke | ||
| Also used as a noun: "speech" | |||
| Galician | falar | ||
| The Galician verb "falar" is thought to derive from the Latin word "fabulari" meaning "to converse informally" and "to tell stories". | |||
| German | sprechen | ||
| The verb 'sprechen' is cognate with the English 'speak' and 'speech,' and shares an origin with 'spray'. | |||
| Icelandic | tala | ||
| The word "tala" can also mean "to say" or "to tell". | |||
| Irish | labhair | ||
| The word "labhair" is also the name of a mythological princess in Irish folklore. | |||
| Italian | parlare | ||
| "Parlare" derives from the Vulgar Latin verb "parabolare," which in turn derives from "parabola," meaning "narrative," and shares a root with the Greek "parabole," meaning "comparison." Thus, the word "parlare" originally meant to speak in parables. | |||
| Luxembourgish | schwätzen | ||
| Maltese | tkellem | ||
| The verb "tkellem" in Maltese is derived from the Arabic word "kalām" (speech, language), and also means "to converse" or "to have a conversation" | |||
| Norwegian | snakke | ||
| The Norwegian word "snakke" is derived from the Old Norse word "snekkja", meaning "to talk" or "to chatter". | |||
| Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) | falar | ||
| The verb 'falar' in Portuguese originated from the Latin word 'fabulari', which means 'to tell stories or chat'. | |||
| Scots Gaelic | bruidhinn | ||
| In Gaelic, the word "bruidhinn" can also refer to a discussion or debate. | |||
| Spanish | hablar | ||
| The Spanish verb "hablar" derives from the Latin "fabulari," meaning "to chat" or "to gossip." | |||
| Swedish | tala | ||
| The word 'tala' also means 'to talk' or 'to make a speech' and is derived from the Old Norse word 'tala', meaning 'to tell' or 'to speak'. | |||
| Welsh | siarad | ||
| The word 'siarad' can also mean 'conversation' or 'discourse'. | |||
Speak in Eastern European Languages
| Belarusian | гаварыць | ||
| In Belarusian, "гаварыць" (speak) is cognate with the Russian "говорить" (speak), Polish "gadać" (talk), and Old Church Slavonic "гъворити" (speak). | |||
| Bosnian | govori | ||
| The word 'govori' also means 'speakers' in Bosnian. | |||
| Bulgarian | говорете | ||
| The word "говорете" (speak) in Bulgarian also has the alternate meaning of "to tell". | |||
| Czech | mluvit | ||
| The verb “mluvit” comes from the Proto-Slavic word *mъlviti, which is related to the Lithuanian “malda” (prayer), the Old Church Slavonic “molitva” (prayer), and the Polish “mówić” (to speak), among others. | |||
| Estonian | rääkima | ||
| The word "rääkima" in Estonian can also mean "to chatter", "to gossip", or "to talk nonsense". | |||
| Finnish | puhua | ||
| The word 'puhua' also means 'to blow' in Finnish; the word for 'soap bubble' is 'saippuakupla', lit. 'speech bubble-soap', as soap bubbles are 'blown' out of speech. | |||
| Hungarian | beszél | ||
| "Beszél" is not only a verb in Hungarian, but it can also be an adjective meaning "speaking" or "conversational". | |||
| Latvian | runāt | ||
| The verb "runāt" in Latvian derives from the Proto-Baltic verb "*runāti", which means "to make a sound" or "to scream". | |||
| Lithuanian | kalbėti | ||
| Kalbeti is cognate with Sanskrit "kalpana" meaning "to think". | |||
| Macedonian | зборувај | ||
| The verb "зборувај" in Macedonian can also mean "to talk", "to converse", or "to chat". | |||
| Polish | mówić | ||
| The word "mówić" comes from the Proto-Slavic word "*movъti", which also means "to move". | |||
| Romanian | vorbi | ||
| Vorbi's etymology refers to the Indo-European root *werb-, meaning "to turn, bend, twist". | |||
| Russian | разговаривать | ||
| Derived from the Slavic root ‘gov’ ‘speech’ and so cognate with words of similar root found across different Slavic languages | |||
| Serbian | говорити | ||
| ''Говорити'' can also mean ''think'' in Serbian, although it is rarely used in that sense today. | |||
| Slovak | hovor | ||
| The word "hovor" in Slovak can also refer to a colloquial form of language. | |||
| Slovenian | govoriti | ||
| The word 'govoriti' is cognate with the Old Slavic verb 'gvoriti', which means 'to utter sounds', 'to speak' and 'to make noise'. | |||
| Ukrainian | говорити | ||
| The word "говорити" is derived from the Proto-Slavic verb *govoriti, meaning "to speak" or "to say." | |||
Speak in South Asian Languages
| Bengali | কথা বলতে | ||
| "কথা বলতে" in Bengali also means to "promise". | |||
| Gujarati | બોલો | ||
| The Gujarati word "બોલો" ("speak") also means "to call someone out" or "to ask". | |||
| Hindi | बोले | ||
| The Hindi word "बोले" can also mean "to speak out" or "to make a statement". | |||
| Kannada | ಮಾತನಾಡಿ | ||
| The word "ಮಾತನಾಡಿ" can also refer to "a discourse" or "a lecture" in Kannada. | |||
| Malayalam | സംസാരിക്കുക | ||
| The Malayalam word സംസാരിക്കുക comes from the Proto-Dravidian verb *cam-, meaning 'to call' or 'to utter'. | |||
| Marathi | बोला | ||
| "बोला" (speak) can also mean "a big wave of water" in Marathi. | |||
| Nepali | बोल्नुहोस् | ||
| The word "बोल्नुहोस्" can also mean "to talk" or "to say something" in Nepali. | |||
| Punjabi | ਬੋਲੋ | ||
| "ਬੋਲੋ" (speak) comes from the Sanskrit word "वद" (vada), meaning "to speak, to say" | |||
| Sinhala (Sinhalese) | කතා කරන්න | ||
| Tamil | பேசு | ||
| The verb "பேசு" ("speak") can also mean "to talk" or "to converse" in Tamil. | |||
| Telugu | మాట్లాడండి | ||
| Urdu | بولیں | ||
Speak in East Asian Languages
| Chinese (Simplified) | 说话 | ||
| Although the character '说' means 'speak', when it is repeated (as '说话'), it signifies 'conversation'. | |||
| Chinese (Traditional) | 說話 | ||
| The Chinese character “說話” can also mean “reason” or “logic.” | |||
| Japanese | 話す | ||
| 話す originally meant 『to spin fibers into yarn』 and was used in reference to the sound of twisting threads.} | |||
| Korean | 말하다 | ||
| 말하다 (malhada) is thought to have originated from the Old Korean word "mal" (말), meaning "to utter" or "to give a voice to." | |||
| Mongolian | ярих | ||
| The Mongolian word for "speak", "ярих", derives from the Middle Mongolian "jarqugh," meaning "to announce" or "to declare." | |||
| Myanmar (Burmese) | စကားပြော | ||
Speak in South East Asian Languages
| Indonesian | berbicara | ||
| The word 'berbicara' in Indonesian can also mean 'to discuss' or 'to talk about'. | |||
| Javanese | ngomong | ||
| In Javanese, "ngomong" can refer to both spoken and written communication. | |||
| Khmer | និយាយ | ||
| The verb និយាយ can also mean “to speak on behalf of” or “to have a meeting”. | |||
| Lao | ເວົ້າ | ||
| Malay | bersuara | ||
| "Bersuara" originally meant "sound" or "noise" but acquired the meaning of "speak" later on. | |||
| Thai | พูด | ||
| The word "พูด" (speak) in Thai also has the meaning of "to think" or "to utter". | |||
| Vietnamese | nói | ||
| The word "nói" in Vietnamese also means "to talk", "to say", and "to tell". | |||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | magsalita | ||
Speak in Central Asian Languages
| Azerbaijani | danışmaq | ||
| "Danışmaq" sözcüğü, Azericede "sormak, görüşmek, tartışmak" gibi çeşitli anlamlara sahiptir. | |||
| Kazakh | сөйлеу | ||
| Сөйлеу in Kazakh shares its roots with the Turkic word for "voice," "voiceover," or "sound". | |||
| Kyrgyz | сүйлөө | ||
| The word "сүйлөө" in Kyrgyz shares the same root with the verb "сүйүү" "to love". This semantic link is found in many other languages, indicating the close relationship between speaking and expressing affection. | |||
| Tajik | сухан гуфтан | ||
| The word "сухан гуфтан" can also mean "to tell a story" or "to make a speech" in Tajik. | |||
| Turkmen | gürle | ||
| Uzbek | gapirish | ||
| The word Gapirish has also been used historically to mean "to tell someone something". | |||
| Uyghur | سۆزلەڭ | ||
Speak in Pacific Languages
| Hawaiian | ʻlelo | ||
| 'Ōlelo' is not only the Hawaiian word for 'speak' but also refers to the Hawaiian language itself. | |||
| Maori | korero | ||
| The Maori word "korero" also refers to "meeting" or "negotiation". | |||
| Samoan | tautala | ||
| In Samoan, "tautala" also refers to the chiefly orator who delivers speeches with great eloquence and knowledge. | |||
| Tagalog (Filipino) | magsalita | ||
| magsalita can also mean to talk, utter, or express | |||
Speak in American Indigenous Languages
| Aymara | arsuña | ||
| Guarani | ñe'ẽ | ||
Speak in International Languages
| Esperanto | paroli | ||
| The original meaning of "paroli" in Italian is "to double the stakes while gambling" | |||
| Latin | loquere | ||
| "Loquere" is the present imperative form of the Latin verb "loqui," meaning "to speak," and is derived from the Proto-Indo-European root "*leǵʰ-," meaning "to collect" or "to gather." | |||
Speak in Others Languages
| Greek | μιλώ | ||
| "Μιλώ" can also refer to the act of reciting or singing, and even to the act of playing a musical instrument. | |||
| Hmong | hais lus | ||
| Hmong word "hais lus" can also mean "to make a confession of someone's misconduct or crime". | |||
| Kurdish | axaftin | ||
| The word "axaftin" can also refer to the act of reciting or narrating something. | |||
| Turkish | konuşmak | ||
| The verb 'konuşmak' in Turkish is related to the Persian word 'goosh' meaning 'ear,' suggesting a connection between hearing and speaking. | |||
| Xhosa | thetha | ||
| The word "thetha" can also refer to the act of "discussing, arguing, or pleading" in a legal context. | |||
| Yiddish | רעדן | ||
| "רעדן" can be used with "פֿון" and the Yiddish accusative to indicate the language used to speak. | |||
| Zulu | khuluma | ||
| In some African languages, 'khuluma' also means 'to reveal' or 'to make known'. | |||
| Assamese | কথা কোৱা | ||
| Aymara | arsuña | ||
| Bhojpuri | बोलऽ | ||
| Dhivehi | ވާހަކަ ދެއްކުން | ||
| Dogri | बोलो | ||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | magsalita | ||
| Guarani | ñe'ẽ | ||
| Ilocano | agsao | ||
| Krio | tɔk | ||
| Kurdish (Sorani) | قسەکردن | ||
| Maithili | बाजू | ||
| Meiteilon (Manipuri) | ꯋꯥ ꯉꯥꯡꯕ | ||
| Mizo | tawng | ||
| Oromo | dubbachuu | ||
| Odia (Oriya) | କୁହ | ||
| Quechua | rimay | ||
| Sanskrit | वदतिब्रू | ||
| Tatar | сөйләш | ||
| Tigrinya | ተዛረብ | ||
| Tsonga | vulavula | ||
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