Stop in Different Languages
Discover 'Stop' in 134 Languages: Dive into Translations, Hear Pronunciations, and Uncover Cultural Insights.
Updated on March 6, 2024
The word 'stop' is a simple, yet powerful term that carries significant weight in every language. It's a command that demands attention, signals a halt, or brings about a pause. From a cultural standpoint, 'stop' has been used in various contexts, from traffic signals to protest signs, demonstrating its universal importance. Moreover, understanding the translation of 'stop' in different languages can be quite fascinating and useful. For instance, in Spanish, 'stop' is 'alto', while in French, it's 'arrêt'. In Mandarin, it's '停' (tíng), and in Japanese, it's 'ストップ' (sutoppu).
Delving deeper, the word 'stop' has been used historically in many ways. In the early days of telegraphs, 'STOP' was used as a punctuation mark to separate sentences. In the world of music, a 'stop' is a knob or button that controls the flow of air or power to an instrument.
Given its significance and cultural importance, it's intriguing to explore how 'stop' is translated in various languages. Keep reading to discover more about this universal command in different cultures and languages.
Stop
Stop in Sub-Saharan African Languages
| Afrikaans | stop | ||
| In Afrikaans, "stop" means "to stuff" or "to fill". | |||
| Amharic | ተወ | ||
| The Amharic word "ተወ" can also mean "to finish" or "to cease", and is related to the Tigrinya word "ተወይ" with the same meaning. | |||
| Hausa | tsaya | ||
| The word "tsaya" in Hausa can also refer to a gathering or meeting place | |||
| Igbo | kwụsị | ||
| The word "Kwụsị" in Igbo can also refer to a boundary or demarcation. | |||
| Malagasy | mijanòna | ||
| The word "Mijanòna" can also mean "to stay" or "to remain" in Malagasy. | |||
| Nyanja (Chichewa) | imani | ||
| In Nyanja (Chichewa), "Imani" has a dual meaning, both as an imperative verb meaning "stop" and as an expression of astonishment or surprise. | |||
| Shona | mira | ||
| The word "mira" in Shona can also mean "refuse" or "prevent". | |||
| Somali | joogso | ||
| The Somali word "joogso" also means "stay" or "wait". | |||
| Sesotho | ema | ||
| The word "Ema" can also mean "to finish" or "to be completed". | |||
| Swahili | simama | ||
| The noun 'simama' can also mean 'to stand' or 'to endure'. | |||
| Xhosa | yeka | ||
| The word "yeka" can also be used to mean "leave something alone" or "let it be" in Xhosa. | |||
| Yoruba | duro | ||
| Duro means 'keep,' the opposite of its imperative meaning | |||
| Zulu | ima | ||
| The word "Ima" also has a spiritual significance, meaning "to cease from evil" or "to be at peace". | |||
| Bambara | ka dabila | ||
| Ewe | tᴐ | ||
| Kinyarwanda | hagarara | ||
| Lingala | kosukisa | ||
| Luganda | okulekera | ||
| Sepedi | ema | ||
| Twi (Akan) | gyae | ||
Stop in North African & Middle Eastern Languages
| Arabic | قف | ||
| The word "قف" (stop) in Arabic is also used to mean "stand" or "halt". | |||
| Hebrew | תפסיק | ||
| The word "תפסיק" can also colloquially mean to "get a hold of" something, particularly in terms of understanding or managing a concept or situation. | |||
| Pashto | درېدل | ||
| "درېدل" also means "to hold", "to restrain" or "to detain" in Pashto. | |||
| Arabic | قف | ||
| The word "قف" (stop) in Arabic is also used to mean "stand" or "halt". | |||
Stop in Western European Languages
| Albanian | ndalo | ||
| Ndalo (meaning: 'stop') derives from the Proto-Albanian *ndalā meaning 'barrier' or 'fortification'. | |||
| Basque | gelditu | ||
| The verb "gelditu" likely originated from the Proto-Basque root "*geldi-/, which also meant "to come to an end" or "to cease". | |||
| Catalan | atura | ||
| The word "Atura" in Catalan can also refer to a pause, break, or standstill. | |||
| Croatian | stop | ||
| In Croatian, the word "stop" can also mean "track," "footprint," or the first or last station on a train line. | |||
| Danish | hold op | ||
| Hold op originates from the imperative of the verb holde meaning to hold or keep. | |||
| Dutch | hou op | ||
| The word "hou op" in Dutch can also be used to tell someone to "wait" or to "be quiet". | |||
| English | stop | ||
| The word 'stop' derives from the Old English word 'stoppian,' meaning 'to block or obstruct,' and is related to the German word 'stopfen,' meaning 'to fill in' or 'to plug.' | |||
| French | arrêtez | ||
| "Arrêtez" in French can also mean "stay" or "wait". | |||
| Frisian | ophâlde | ||
| The term 'ophâlde' is a Frisian word with Old Frisian and Dutch roots, meaning 'to hold up' or 'to impede'. | |||
| Galician | parar | ||
| "Parar" comes from the Latin "pariare", which also means "to give birth". | |||
| German | halt | ||
| The German word "halt" not only means "stop", but also "hold" and "keep". | |||
| Icelandic | hætta | ||
| "Hætta", originating from Old Scandinavian, signifies not just "stop", it can also mean to cease an activity or come into an inert standstill. | |||
| Irish | stad | ||
| The Irish word "stad" can also mean "to stand", "to remain", or "to be situated." | |||
| Italian | fermare | ||
| The Italian word "fermare" also means "to close" or "to lock" in the context of doors and gates. | |||
| Luxembourgish | ophalen | ||
| The word "ophalen" is derived from the German word "aufhalten" and can also mean "to hold up" or "to detain". | |||
| Maltese | waqfa | ||
| The Maltese word "waqfa" also denotes a punctuation mark, the full stop. | |||
| Norwegian | stoppe | ||
| The word "Stoppe" in Norwegian also means "clog" or "bung". | |||
| Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) | pare | ||
| "Pare" comes from Latin "para" meaning "stop, stay, stand" and it also means "pair" in Portuguese. | |||
| Scots Gaelic | stad | ||
| The word "stad" in Scots Gaelic can also mean "to set" or "to place". | |||
| Spanish | detener | ||
| In Spanish, "detener" is derived from the Latin "detinere," meaning "to hold back, detain, delay, or hinder." | |||
| Swedish | sluta | ||
| The Swedish word "sluta" also means "to finish", "to end", or "to complete". | |||
| Welsh | stopio | ||
| In Welsh, 'stopio' is closely related to the word 'stoppa', meaning 'to prop' or 'to fill up'. | |||
Stop in Eastern European Languages
| Belarusian | спыніць | ||
| The word "спыніць" is derived from the Proto-Slavic root *spęti, meaning "to restrain" or "to hinder". | |||
| Bosnian | stani | ||
| The word 'stani' has additional meanings, e.g. 'to stay' | |||
| Bulgarian | спри се | ||
| 'Спри се', meaning 'stop' in Bulgarian, also means 'come to your senses' and 'pull yourself together'. | |||
| Czech | stop | ||
| In Czech, "stop" can also refer to a state of being "still" or "not moving" | |||
| Estonian | peatus | ||
| The word "peatus" also means "station" in Estonian, reflecting its original meaning as a place where people stopped to rest or change horses. | |||
| Finnish | lopettaa | ||
| "Lopettaa" is also used in Finnish to mean "to cease" or "to give up". | |||
| Hungarian | álljon meg | ||
| The Hungarian word "álljon meg" also means "stand still" in a military context | |||
| Latvian | apstāties | ||
| "Apstāties" is also used in Latvian for "getting off" a means of transportation. | |||
| Lithuanian | sustabdyti | ||
| The original meaning of sustabdyti, from which its present day meaning was derived, is "to support". | |||
| Macedonian | запре | ||
| "Запре" is also the Macedonian name for the plant common fig (Ficus carica), which was used to make ropes and ties. | |||
| Polish | zatrzymać | ||
| The word "zatrzymać" in Polish is also used to refer to holding something back or preventing it from moving forward. | |||
| Romanian | stop | ||
| The Romanian word “stop” is rooted in the German “Stopp” and, besides meaning “to cease”, it can also refer to “a halt” or “a pause”. | |||
| Russian | стоп | ||
| The word "стоп" in Russian can also mean "halt" or "block". | |||
| Serbian | зауставити | ||
| Serbian "зауставити" also means "hinder" and derives from the Old Church Slavonic *staviti*, "to stand" or "put", and the prefix *za-,* "behind". | |||
| Slovak | zastav | ||
| The word "zastav" is of Slavic origin, and its original meaning was "to block" or "to close off". | |||
| Slovenian | ustavi se | ||
| The verb "ustavi se" originally meant "to establish oneself" or "to take a stand". | |||
| Ukrainian | стоп | ||
| "Стоп" derives from Old Church Slavonic and was also used to refer to the foot (as the part of the body) and the footprint (as a unit of area). | |||
Stop in South Asian Languages
| Bengali | থামো | ||
| The word "থামো" can also mean "halt", "suspend", or "pause". | |||
| Gujarati | બંધ | ||
| The Gujarati word "બંધ" ("bandh") can also mean a strike, protest, or closure. | |||
| Hindi | रुकें | ||
| The Hindi word 'रुकें' can also mean 'wait' or 'pause' in English. | |||
| Kannada | ನಿಲ್ಲಿಸಿ | ||
| The Kannada word "ನಿಲ್ಲಿಸಿ" is related to the word "ನಿಲಿಸು", which means "to become stable" or "to be upright". | |||
| Malayalam | നിർത്തുക | ||
| In Malayalam, "നിർത്തുക" can also mean to leave off or discontinue something, or to stand or be in a certain place. | |||
| Marathi | थांबा | ||
| The word 'थांबा' in Marathi also has alternate meanings such as 'stand still' and 'wait'. | |||
| Nepali | रोक | ||
| The word "रोक" in Nepali means "to stop", but it also has other meanings such as "a hurdle" or "an obstacle". | |||
| Punjabi | ਰੂਕੋ | ||
| The Punjabi word "ਰੂਕੋ" is derived from the Hindi word "रुको", and can also be used to mean "wait" or "pause". | |||
| Sinhala (Sinhalese) | නවත්වන්න | ||
| The word "නවත්වන්න" in Sinhala has an alternate meaning of "to desist" or "to refrain from doing something." | |||
| Tamil | நிறுத்து | ||
| The word "நிறுத்து" means "to stop, to cease," and has a secondary meaning of "to place". | |||
| Telugu | ఆపండి | ||
| The Telugu word "ఆపండి" may also mean "don't worry" or "take it easy". | |||
| Urdu | رک جاؤ | ||
| The word 'رک جاؤ' in Urdu also means 'take a break', suggesting a brief pause or cessation of activity. | |||
Stop in East Asian Languages
| Chinese (Simplified) | 停 | ||
| "停" can also mean "pause" or "park". | |||
| Chinese (Traditional) | 停 | ||
| In Taiwan, 停 also means 'suspend', 'park', and 'pay attention'. | |||
| Japanese | やめる | ||
| The verb "やめる" can also mean to quit doing something (a habit), resign from office, or to leave off doing the next thing (in a list). | |||
| Korean | 중지 | ||
| '중지' comes from the Chinese word '中止', meaning 'to cut off' or 'to interrupt'. | |||
| Mongolian | зогс | ||
| The word "Зогс" has been theorized to come from the root "зуг" which translates to "hinder" or "restrain". | |||
| Myanmar (Burmese) | ရပ် | ||
| ရပ် (yat) can mean 'to stop', 'to reside', 'to be positioned', 'to put a stop to', 'to terminate', or 'to forbid'. | |||
Stop in South East Asian Languages
| Indonesian | berhenti | ||
| "Berhenti" is also used in Indonesian to say "retire from work or service". | |||
| Javanese | mandheg | ||
| The word "mandheg" in Javanese can also mean "to stop or cease moving," as well as "to be at a standstill." | |||
| Khmer | បញ្ឈប់ | ||
| The term "បញ្ឈប់" (stop) may also be used metaphorically to refer to the interruption of an action or activity. | |||
| Lao | ຢຸດ | ||
| The word "ຢຸດ" in Lao can also mean "to cease" or "to end". | |||
| Malay | berhenti | ||
| The word "berhenti" can also mean "to resign" or "to quit". | |||
| Thai | หยุด | ||
| หยุด can also refer to stopping or ending physical or abstract states, including emotions, thinking, and actions. | |||
| Vietnamese | dừng lại | ||
| "Dừng lại" (stop) can also mean "stop by (at a place)", and is used in a variety of phrases such as "dừng lại nghỉ chân" ("stop to rest") and "dừng lại mua gì" ("stop to buy something"). | |||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | huminto | ||
Stop in Central Asian Languages
| Azerbaijani | dur | ||
| In Old Turkic, "dur" also meant "to freeze". | |||
| Kazakh | тоқта | ||
| The word "Тоқта" also means "to cease" or "to end" in Kazakh. | |||
| Kyrgyz | токтоо | ||
| The Kyrgyz word "токтоо" also means "to cease" or "to hold back". | |||
| Tajik | ист | ||
| The word "Ист" is derived from the Proto-Iranian verb "*sti-", meaning "to stand". | |||
| Turkmen | dur | ||
| Uzbek | to'xta | ||
| "To'xta" is also used colloquially to describe something that is frozen or stuck in place. | |||
| Uyghur | توختا | ||
Stop in Pacific Languages
| Hawaiian | kū | ||
| Kū has additional meanings, including 'prohibition' and 'cause to stand'. | |||
| Maori | kati | ||
| Kati, meaning "stop" in Māori, has the alternate spelling of "kati" in Cook Islands Māori and Tuamotuan, where it also means "to seize". | |||
| Samoan | taofi | ||
| “Taofi,” meaning “stop,” can also mean “remain,” “cease,” “halt,” or “stay.” | |||
| Tagalog (Filipino) | huminto ka | ||
| The Tagalog word "huminto ka" (stop) derives from the Spanish word "alto" (halt). | |||
Stop in American Indigenous Languages
| Aymara | suyt'ayaña | ||
| Guarani | pyta | ||
Stop in International Languages
| Esperanto | halti | ||
| Esperanto's "halti" originally meant "to be lame" or "to limp" while travelling, then generalized to mean "to stop". | |||
| Latin | prohibere | ||
| Latin "prohibere" also refers to "put forward" or "offer" depending on context. | |||
Stop in Others Languages
| Greek | να σταματήσει | ||
| The verb "να σταματήσει" is derived from the Late Latin "stoppāre", which means "to hinder" or "to close up". | |||
| Hmong | tsum | ||
| Tsum can be used with the prefix "pab" or the suffix "moob" to denote "don't". | |||
| Kurdish | rawestan | ||
| The word "rawestan" in Kurdish, meaning "to stop", shares its etymology with the Persian word "rowestan" and the Sanskrit word "ruidh," both meaning "to obstruct". | |||
| Turkish | dur | ||
| "Dur" originally meant "to stand" and can still be used in that sense in Turkish. | |||
| Xhosa | yeka | ||
| The word "yeka" can also be used to mean "leave something alone" or "let it be" in Xhosa. | |||
| Yiddish | אָפּשטעל | ||
| The Yiddish word "אָפּשטעל" can also mean "ceasefire" or "to abstain". | |||
| Zulu | ima | ||
| The word "Ima" also has a spiritual significance, meaning "to cease from evil" or "to be at peace". | |||
| Assamese | ৰ’ব | ||
| Aymara | suyt'ayaña | ||
| Bhojpuri | रूकीं | ||
| Dhivehi | ހުއްޓުން | ||
| Dogri | रुको | ||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | huminto | ||
| Guarani | pyta | ||
| Ilocano | isardeng | ||
| Krio | lɛf | ||
| Kurdish (Sorani) | وەستان | ||
| Maithili | रुकू | ||
| Meiteilon (Manipuri) | ꯂꯦꯞꯄ | ||
| Mizo | tawp | ||
| Oromo | dhaabuu | ||
| Odia (Oriya) | ବନ୍ଦ କର | | ||
| Quechua | sayay | ||
| Sanskrit | विरमतु | ||
| Tatar | тукта | ||
| Tigrinya | ጠጠው በል | ||
| Tsonga | yima | ||