Surface in different languages

Surface in Different Languages

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

Updated on March 6, 2024

The word 'surface' holds a wealth of significance, extending beyond its literal meaning as the outermost layer of an object. It also represents the beginning, the initial stage, or the first step in various contexts. Culturally, the term has been used in art, literature, and science to convey depth, complexity, and the unseen world beneath the visible exterior.

For instance, in mathematics, a surface is a generalization of a plane, which has fascinating implications in geometry and topology. In literature, the surface-level narrative can often belie deeper themes and subtexts waiting to be explored. Moreover, in psychology, the concept of 'surface acting' refers to the act of hiding one's true emotions, highlighting the intricate relationship between our inner and outer selves.

Given the term's richness and versatility, understanding its translations in different languages can offer valuable insights into various cultures and their unique perspectives on this multifaceted concept.

Here are a few sample translations to pique your curiosity:

  • French: surface
  • Spanish: superficie
  • German: Oberfläche
  • Mandarin: 表面 (biǎo miàn)
  • Japanese: 表面 (hyōmen)
  • Russian: поверхность (poverkhnost')

Discover more translations of 'surface' and delve deeper into the diverse world of language and culture.

Surface


Surface in Sub-Saharan African Languages

Afrikaansoppervlak
The Afrikaans word "oppervlak" derives from the Dutch word "oppervlakte" and literally means "upper surface."
Amharicገጽ
The Amharic word "ገጽ" can also refer to a person's face, appearance, or countenance.
Hausafarfajiya
The word 'farfajiya' is also used to refer to the upper surface of a liquid.
Igboelu
The word "elu" can also mean "heaven" or "the sky" in Igbo.
Malagasysurface
The Malagasy word "tany" can also mean "country" or "land".
Nyanja (Chichewa)pamwamba
From the Swahili **juu** (**on top**) but also related to the **top part of the maize stalk**
Shonapamusoro
Pamusoro is a Shona noun commonly used to refer to what is "on top" or "above" an object while "pamusoro-soro" means "very much on top" or "superficially."
Somalidusha sare
The Somali word "dusha sare" can also mean "outer garment" or "cape".
Sesothobokaholimo
The word "bokaholimo" in Sesotho also has the alternate meaning of "the top of something" or "the surface of a liquid."
Swahiliuso
The word "uso" can also refer to the top or upper part of something, or to the face of a person or animal.
Xhosaumphezulu
"Umphezulu" signifies not only "surface" but also a celestial realm associated with the ancestral world.
Yorubadada
The word "dada" in Yoruba can also mean "a place where women gather to plait their hair".
Zuluubuso
Zulu ubuso is a derivative of the verb -bona- meaning 'to see', with the idea of 'surface' representing something open to view.
Bambarakɛnɛ
Eweŋkume
Kinyarwandahejuru
Lingalaetando
Lugandaku ngulu
Sepedibokagodimo
Twi (Akan)ani

Surface in North African & Middle Eastern Languages

Arabicسطح - المظهر الخارجي
The Arabic word "سطح - المظهر الخارجي" can also mean the outer appearance or exterior of something.
Hebrewמשטח
The word also means 'platform', as in a political platform
Pashtoسطح
"سطح" in Pashto can also mean "flat land" or the "roof of a building".
Arabicسطح - المظهر الخارجي
The Arabic word "سطح - المظهر الخارجي" can also mean the outer appearance or exterior of something.

Surface in Western European Languages

Albaniansipërfaqe
Sipërfaqe derives from Proto-Indo-European *uper-, meaning 'over' and the Albanian suffix '-faqe' which denotes a flat surface
Basqueazalera
Basque "azalera" is related to "azal" and to Spanish "salir" which come from Latin "salire" with the meanings "to emerge or protrude" and "to get out or depart".
Catalansuperfície
The Catalan word "superfície" is derived from the Latin "superficies", meaning "outermost layer" or "top part"
Croatianpovršinski
"Površinski" not only means "surface" but also "superficial".
Danishoverflade
"Overflade" is derived from "over" (above) and "flade" (flat), and can also mean "superficiality" or "pretense"
Dutchoppervlakte
"Oppervlakte" can also refer to the "area" of a two-dimensional shape.
Englishsurface
The word "surface" can also refer to the external or superficial part of something or its outward appearance.
Frenchsurface
In French, the word "surface" can also mean "area" or "the exterior of something".
Frisianoerflak
It has another meaning of "floor or layer of something."
Galiciansuperficie
"Superficie" en castellano significa superficie pero en gallego no es la única acepción ya que también significa el suelo de un edificio.
Germanoberfläche
The word "Oberfläche" is derived from the Middle High German "obervläche", meaning "upper area".
Icelandicyfirborð
The word "yfirborð" is composed of "yfir" (over) and "borð" (table) and is also used to mean "tabletop" or "countertop".
Irishdromchla
Dromchla, meaning "surface" in Irish, has other meanings such as "ridge" or "esker".
Italiansuperficie
'Superficie' derives from Latin 'superficies' but in Italian it can mean 'arrogance' or 'disdain'.
Luxembourgishuewerfläch
The Luxembourgish word
Maltesewiċċ
The Maltese word "wiċċ" has origins from the Arabic word "wajh", originally coming from a Proto-Semitic root "wjh", meaning "face", "front".
Norwegianflate
The word "flate" also means "floor" in Norwegian, but can also refer to a "flat" surface.
Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil)superfície
"Superfície" comes from the Latin verb "superficere," meaning "to make on top".
Scots Gaelicuachdar
In the older sense, "uachdar" means not "surface" but "upper part" and has cognates in many Indo-European languages, including English "udder".
Spanishsuperficie
"Superficie" is also used in Spanish to refer to the area of a plane figure or a curved surface.
Swedishyta
The word "yta" also literally means "outside" and figuratively "the outside of something", as in your external appearance.
Welshwyneb
The word "wyneb" can also refer to the face, skin, or exterior of something.

Surface in Eastern European Languages

Belarusianпаверхні
The Belarusian word "паверхні" derives from the Old Church Slavonic "повръхъ" and also means "upon", "over", or "above".
Bosnianpovršina
Površina can also refer to the texture of an object.
Bulgarianповърхност
The word "повърхност" can also mean "area" or "territory" in Bulgarian.
Czechpovrch
In Czech, "povrch" not only means "surface", but also "area" or "extent".
Estonianpind
The word "pind" also refers to the back of an animal or the sole of a foot.
Finnishpinta-
The word "pinta" is also used in Finnish to refer to the surface of a body of water.
Hungarianfelület
"Felület" is originally a verb in Hungarian, meaning "to polish" or "to grind" something. "Fel" in Hungarian means "onto something". "Felület" first appeared as a verb in the Vienna Codex, while "felület" as a noun appeared first in the 1570s.
Latvianvirsma
The word "virsma" initially meant "a line of poetry" in Latvian, hence its alternate use to mean "a line" or "a row" in contemporary speech.
Lithuanianpaviršius
The word "paviršius" is derived from the Proto-Indo-European root `*per-` meaning "to pass through, cross, or pass beyond".
Macedonianповршина
The word "површина" can also mean "area" or "territory".
Polishpowierzchnia
The word "powierzchnia" in Polish comes from the Old Polish word "powierzch", meaning "a place where something is placed or spread out".
Romaniansuprafaţă
"Suprafaţă", "supra" and "faţă", has the same root as the English "superficies", but also means "face" or "cover".
Russianповерхность
In Russian, "поверхность" means not only "surface" but also "external side" or "top layer".
Serbianповршина
Although “површина” primarily refers to surface, it’s also used in a metaphorical sense with words such as “играна површина,” which translates to playing field.
Slovakpovrch
Povrch also means "skin" in Slovak, coming from Proto-Slavic "porхъ" via Old Church Slavonic "porъхъ" with the same meaning
Slovenianpovršino
The term 'površino' in Slovenian is derived from Proto-Slavic *povьrxъ, meaning 'the top layer' or 'the uppermost part of something'.
Ukrainianповерхні
The word 'поверхні' ('surface') comes from the Proto-Slavic word 'povrhъ', which means 'upper' or 'over'.

Surface in South Asian Languages

Bengaliপৃষ্ঠতল
The word "পৃষ্ঠতল" can also refer to the outer layer of a body or object.
Gujaratiસપાટી
સપાટી also means a layer or covering, as in 'the surface of the earth'.
Hindiसतह
In Hindi, 'सतह' (surface) is also used to refer to the 'front' or 'facade' of something, like a building or a person's face.
Kannadaಮೇಲ್ಮೈ
ಮೇಲ್ಮೈ also denotes the top layer of a heap or the exterior of a house.
Malayalamഉപരിതലം
The word "ഉപരിതലം" (surface) in Malayalam is derived from the Sanskrit word "उपरि" (above) and "तल" (plane). It can also refer to the upper side of something or to the outer layer of a substance.
Marathiपृष्ठभाग
The Marathi word "पृष्ठभाग" can also mean "back" or "reverse."
Nepaliसतह
The word "सतह" in Nepali originates from the Sanskrit word "सत" (essence) and "तह" (layer), indicating its essential and layered nature.
Punjabiਸਤਹ
"ਸਤਹ" is derived from the Sanskrit word "सत्त्व" (essence) and literally means "the essence of a thing"
Sinhala (Sinhalese)මතුපිට
Tamilமேற்பரப்பு
மேற்பரப்பு can also refer to the superficial or outward part of something.
Teluguఉపరితల
ఉపరితల literally translates to "above the base", hence signifying the outermost layer.
Urduسطح
The word "سطح" can also refer to a level, degree, or standard.

Surface in East Asian Languages

Chinese (Simplified)表面
表面 (biǎomiàn) is also used to refer to the outer layer or appearance of something, or to the superficial or obvious aspect of something.
Chinese (Traditional)表面
表面 (biǎomiàn) literally means 'face of the object'; it can also mean the outward, superficial side of something or a pretense.
Japanese表面
The character “表” in “表面” originally meant “something exposed to direct sunlight”.
Korean표면
The word "표면" is also used to refer to a person's face or appearance.
Mongolianгадаргуу
In Mongolian, the word
Myanmar (Burmese)မျက်နှာပြင်

Surface in South East Asian Languages

Indonesianpermukaan
The word "permukaan" is derived from the Proto-Austronesian word "*p permukaan", which also means "skin".
Javaneselumahing
"Lumahing" also means "a flat area on the ground"
Khmerផ្ទៃ
The word ផ្ទៃ (phdâi) in Khmer means "surface" but can also be used to refer to the face, a wall panel, or a floor panel.
Laoດ້ານ
The Lao word ດ້ານ can also refer to a side or aspect, or to a direction.
Malaypermukaan
The related word "muka" means "face" and "skin" in Malay and shares the same Proto-Austronesian etymon with the English "face."
Thaiพื้นผิว
"พื้นผิว" (surface) literally translates as "floor skin"
Vietnamesebề mặt
"Bề mặt" also means the "honour" or "reputation" of a person in Vietnamese.
Filipino (Tagalog)ibabaw

Surface in Central Asian Languages

Azerbaijanisəth
The word "səth" can also refer to a type of fabric used in traditional Azerbaijani clothing.
Kazakhбеті
The word "беті" can also refer to the top or exterior of something.
Kyrgyzбети
The word "бети" also means "appearance" or "form" in Kyrgyz.
Tajikсатҳ
The word "сатҳ" also means "level", "rank", "class", "stage", or "degree" in Tajik.
Turkmenüstü
Uzbeksirt
In Uzbek, "sirt" has the alternate meaning of "back or ridge" and is related to the Persian word "sar" (head)
Uyghurيۈزى

Surface in Pacific Languages

Hawaiianʻili
ʻIli can refer to the surface of the ocean, land, body, or mind.
Maoripapa
Papa, in Māori, also refers to a priest or a chief's daughter.
Samoanluga
"Luga" (surface) in Samoan can also refer to the ground, a place, or an area.
Tagalog (Filipino)ibabaw
"Ibabaw" also means "the upper part" or "the topmost part" in Tagalog.

Surface in American Indigenous Languages

Aymarajach'a
Guaraniape

Surface in International Languages

Esperantosurfaco
"Surfaco" also means "face" in Esperanto, coming from the French "surface". Similarly, "surfaco" can refer to the outer side of a substance, a geometric plane, or a geographic area.
Latinsuperficiem
"Superficies" can also mean "upper part" or "skin" in Latin.

Surface in Others Languages

Greekεπιφάνεια
In English, the word "epiphany" shares a common Greek origin with επιφάνεια, referring to a sudden moment of insight or revelation.
Hmongnto
Nto, meaning "surface" in Hmong, also describes the smooth, flat side of something, such as a leaf or a rock.
Kurdish
The word "rû" is also used to refer to the side or aspect of something
Turkishyüzey
In older writings, "yüzey" could also mean "face" or "cheek".
Xhosaumphezulu
"Umphezulu" signifies not only "surface" but also a celestial realm associated with the ancestral world.
Yiddishייבערפלאַך
The Yiddish word "ייבערפלאַך" is derived from the German word "oberfläche" and can also mean "outside" or "exterior."
Zuluubuso
Zulu ubuso is a derivative of the verb -bona- meaning 'to see', with the idea of 'surface' representing something open to view.
Assameseপৃষ্ঠ
Aymarajach'a
Bhojpuriसतह
Dhivehiސަރފޭސް
Dogriतला
Filipino (Tagalog)ibabaw
Guaraniape
Ilocanorabaw
Kriosho
Kurdish (Sorani)ڕووپۆش
Maithiliसतह
Meiteilon (Manipuri)ꯃꯃꯥꯏ
Mizopawnlang
Oromoirra-keessa
Odia (Oriya)ପୃଷ୍ଠ
Quechuahawan
Sanskritतलं
Tatarөслеге
Tigrinyaገፅ
Tsongahenhla ka

Click on a letter to browse words starting with that letter