Tale in Different Languages
Discover 'Tale' in 134 Languages: Dive into Translations, Hear Pronunciations, and Uncover Cultural Insights.
Updated on March 6, 2024
A 'tale' is a rich and intriguing form of storytelling, often filled with adventure, lessons, and cultural nuances. Tales have been passed down through generations, captivating audiences and transcending barriers of language and geography. The significance of tales extends beyond mere entertainment; they often serve as vessels for cultural education, historical context, and philosophical exploration.
Through the years, tales have been shared in various languages, each with its unique interpretation and cultural significance. For instance, in Spanish, a tale is known as 'cuento', while in German, it is referred to as 'Märchen'. In French, tales are called 'conte', and in Russian, they are known as 'skazka'.
Understanding the translation of 'tale' in different languages can provide valuable insights into the cultural importance of storytelling in various societies. It can also help bridge language gaps, foster cross-cultural communication, and enrich one's appreciation for the diversity of human experiences.
Tale
Tale in Sub-Saharan African Languages
| Afrikaans | so | ||
| An alternate meaning of "so" (Afrikaans for "tale") is "to sow". | |||
| Amharic | እንደዚህ | ||
| The word "እንደዚህ" can also mean "story" or "legend" in Amharic. | |||
| Hausa | irin wannan | ||
| The Hausa word 'irin wannan' is a compound word that literally means 'story of this kind' | |||
| Igbo | dị ka | ||
| The word "dị ka" in Igbo has its roots in the verb "kà," meaning "to read" or "to narrate," suggesting its fundamental connection to storytelling. | |||
| Malagasy | toy | ||
| In Malagasy, "toy" is also a type of small, edible fish. | |||
| Nyanja (Chichewa) | zotero | ||
| In Nyanja, the word "zotero" has a slightly different connotation that translates to "rumor" or "hearsay." | |||
| Shona | akadaro | ||
| "Akadaro" also means "a statement" or "a message" in Shona. | |||
| Somali | sida | ||
| Somali word "sida" has an Arabic origin and also means "a period of time within the day" in Arabic. | |||
| Sesotho | joalo | ||
| Sesotho word "joalo" likely derives from the Proto-Bantu root word "-olo" meaning "to narrate" or "to recount" | |||
| Swahili | vile | ||
| In Swahili, "vile" also has the alternate meaning of "protruding". | |||
| Xhosa | enjalo | ||
| In some contexts, "enjalo" can also refer to a "narrative that is told in a formal and respectful manner" | |||
| Yoruba | iru | ||
| "Iru" (meaning "tale" in Yoruba) comes from the verb "rù," which means "to tell a story." | |||
| Zulu | enjalo | ||
| "Enjalo" also means "news" or "tidings" in Zulu. | |||
| Bambara | maana | ||
| Ewe | glitoto | ||
| Kinyarwanda | umugani | ||
| Lingala | lisapo | ||
| Luganda | olugero | ||
| Sepedi | kanegelo | ||
| Twi (Akan) | anansesɛm | ||
Tale in North African & Middle Eastern Languages
| Arabic | هذه | ||
| The Arabic word "هذه" (tale) can also mean "this" or "these" in English. | |||
| Hebrew | כגון | ||
| The Hebrew word "כגון" can also mean "as if" and "about" indicating a quantity or estimation. | |||
| Pashto | لکه | ||
| The word "لکه" also means "a spot, stain, or blemish" in Pashto. | |||
| Arabic | هذه | ||
| The Arabic word "هذه" (tale) can also mean "this" or "these" in English. | |||
Tale in Western European Languages
| Albanian | të tilla | ||
| The Albanian word "të tilla" can also refer to "story" or "account", indicating a broader meaning than just a traditional tale. | |||
| Basque | hala nola | ||
| The Basque word "hala nola" can also mean "such a way" or "how". | |||
| Catalan | tal | ||
| Catalan tal, like its Spanish cognate tal, can also mean 'such' or 'so'. | |||
| Croatian | takav | ||
| "Takav" shares its origin with the Hungarian word "tav", meaning "lake", also cognate with the German "Teich" and the English "tank". | |||
| Danish | sådan | ||
| Den tilsyneladende beslægtede form i moderne norsk er "sol", mens formen i svensk er "saga". | |||
| Dutch | zo | ||
| In older Dutch, 'zo' could also refer to a collection of legal documents. | |||
| English | tale | ||
| The word 'tale' can also refer to the number of individuals in a group of animals, or to a quantity or amount in general. | |||
| French | tel | ||
| In French, "tel" can also mean "such" or "so". | |||
| Frisian | sok | ||
| The word "sok" in Frisian is cognate with the English word "sack" and can also refer to a bag or container. | |||
| Galician | tal | ||
| Galician "tal" derives from the Latin word "talis", meaning "such" or "like this". | |||
| German | eine solche | ||
| The word "eine solche" in German is not only used for "a tale" but also for "such a". | |||
| Icelandic | svona | ||
| Svona is related to Old Norse svona 'in this manner' and German so 'thus' | |||
| Irish | den sórt sin | ||
| Den sórt sin means 'a sort of' and derives from the Old Norse word ævintýri ('adventure'). | |||
| Italian | tale | ||
| In botany, "tale" refers to the peduncle of a flower, whereas in architecture, it means a roof or a slope. | |||
| Luxembourgish | sou | ||
| The word "sou" can also mean "money" in Luxembourgish, derived from the French word "sou" meaning "coin". | |||
| Maltese | tali | ||
| "Tali" is derived from the Italian word "taglio", meaning "cut" or "slice", and can also refer to a mark or scar. | |||
| Norwegian | slik | ||
| In the context of a fishing net, "slik" means the long line that serves as the base for the vertical lines that hang from it. | |||
| Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) | tal | ||
| Originating from the Latin word "talis", "tal" can also mean "such" or "such a". | |||
| Scots Gaelic | leithid | ||
| In modern Gaelic, the term leithid can also refer to a song or a melody. | |||
| Spanish | tal | ||
| The Spanish word "tal'' may also refer to "such" or "so" | |||
| Swedish | sådan | ||
| "Sådan" can also mean "myth" or "legend" in Swedish. | |||
| Welsh | o'r fath | ||
| "O'r fath" can also mean "from the ground" or "of the sod" in Welsh, referring to the earth's fertility and the agricultural roots of Welsh culture. | |||
Tale in Eastern European Languages
| Belarusian | такія | ||
| In Belarusian, "такія" can also refer to a kind of woven fabric. | |||
| Bosnian | takav | ||
| The word 'takav' in Bosnian may also mean 'fee', 'toll' or 'contribution'. | |||
| Bulgarian | такива | ||
| The word "такива" in Bulgarian can also mean "such" or "those". | |||
| Czech | takový | ||
| The word "takový" (such) comes from the Proto-Slavic root *takъ, which also means "so". In some Slavic languages, such as Polish and Russian, the word "tak" is still used in both senses. | |||
| Estonian | sellised | ||
| The word "sellised" also means "these kinds of" in Estonian. | |||
| Finnish | sellaisia | ||
| From the same root as 'selitys', or 'explanation', 'sellaisia' can also mean 'such'. | |||
| Hungarian | ilyen | ||
| The word "ilyen" in Hungarian has a unique etymology, as it originally derived from the Turkic word "ilin" meaning "thread", indicating a connection between storytelling and the weaving of yarn. | |||
| Latvian | tādi | ||
| The word "tādi" in Latvian also means "such". | |||
| Lithuanian | toks | ||
| In Russian, 'tok' means 'current,' while 'tok' relates to 'weave' in English. | |||
| Macedonian | такви | ||
| "Такви" is derived from the Proto-Indo-European root "*dekʷ-" meaning "to show" or "to point out". | |||
| Polish | taki | ||
| The Polish word "taki" can also refer to a type of dance, a dance party, or a social event. | |||
| Romanian | astfel de | ||
| "Astfel de" can also mean "in this manner" or "such". | |||
| Russian | такой | ||
| The Russian word "такой" can also mean "such" or "so". | |||
| Serbian | такав | ||
| The word "такав" means "such" in Serbian and is related to the words "так" (so) and "овакав" (this way). | |||
| Slovak | taký | ||
| The word "taký" can also mean "such" or "like this". | |||
| Slovenian | taka | ||
| The word "taka" in Slovenian can also mean "female dog" or "money". | |||
| Ukrainian | такі | ||
| "Така" is also a term in logic, referring to a hypothetical proposition. | |||
Tale in South Asian Languages
| Bengali | যেমন | ||
| The word "যেমন" can also mean "for example" or "such as". | |||
| Gujarati | જેમ કે | ||
| In Gujarati, 'જેમ કે' ('tale') derives from Sanskrit 'katha' and can also mean 'like' or 'as'. | |||
| Hindi | ऐसा | ||
| In Hindi, 'ऐसा' can also mean 'such' or 'like,' and is derived from the Sanskrit word 'एतादृश' (etādṛś) meaning 'of this kind.' | |||
| Kannada | ಅಂತಹ | ||
| The word "ಅಂತಹ" also means "such" in Kannada. | |||
| Malayalam | അത്തരം | ||
| Marathi | अशा | ||
| The term "अशा" is also used to refer to "an account". | |||
| Nepali | त्यस्तै | ||
| The word "त्यस्तै" can also mean "similar" or "like that" in Nepali, indicating a comparison or resemblance. | |||
| Punjabi | ਅਜਿਹੇ | ||
| Sinhala (Sinhalese) | එවැනි | ||
| The word එවැනි (tale) in Sinhala also means "story", "account", or "narration". | |||
| Tamil | போன்ற | ||
| The word "போன்ற" in Tamil can also mean "like" or "as". | |||
| Telugu | అటువంటి | ||
| The word "అటువంటి" can also mean "such" or "of that type". | |||
| Urdu | اس طرح | ||
| There is no evidence for an alternate meaning of "اس طرح". | |||
Tale in East Asian Languages
| Chinese (Simplified) | 这样 | ||
| It may also mean 'to guess; to expect'. | |||
| Chinese (Traditional) | 這樣 | ||
| The character 這樣 (tale) in Chinese (Traditional) can mean "such", "so", "like this", or "in this way". | |||
| Japanese | そのような | ||
| The word 'そのような' ('tale') is also used in a figurative sense to mean 'such', 'of such a kind'. | |||
| Korean | 이러한 | ||
| "이러한" is also used to mean "this kind of," "such," or "the like." | |||
| Mongolian | ийм | ||
| The word "ийм" can also mean "history" or "narrative". | |||
| Myanmar (Burmese) | ထိုကဲ့သို့သော | ||
Tale in South East Asian Languages
| Indonesian | seperti itu | ||
| The word "seperti itu" can also be used as a polite way of saying "that's it" or "that's the way it is." | |||
| Javanese | kuwi | ||
| In the Serayu and Banyumas regions of Java, the word "kuwi" can also mean "the last one" or "the final one". | |||
| Khmer | បែបនេះ | ||
| បែបនេះ is cognate with the Thai word "อย่างนี้" (yang nii) or "แบบนี้" (baep nii), and the Mon word "ဗီုဏီ" (bīwnī) | |||
| Lao | ດັ່ງກ່າວ | ||
| Malay | sebegitu | ||
| "Sebegitu" might also mean "because", "so", "that", "that much", or "that way" in Malay. | |||
| Thai | ดังกล่าว | ||
| It can also refer to a legend, narrative, story, account, description, or event. | |||
| Vietnamese | như là | ||
| "Như là" can also mean "story" or "news". | |||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | kuwento | ||
Tale in Central Asian Languages
| Azerbaijani | bu cür | ||
| } The word “bu cür” is also used to describe a small animal with a long tail, such as an opossum or squirrel. | |||
| Kazakh | осындай | ||
| "Осындай" is also the Kazakh form of the Russian accusative pronoun "такой" (meaning "such" or "like that"). | |||
| Kyrgyz | ушундай | ||
| This word may also mean `that kind of` or `such`. | |||
| Tajik | чунин | ||
| The word "чунин" ("tale" in English) is also used in Tajik to refer to "news" or "information" | |||
| Turkmen | erteki | ||
| Uzbek | shunday | ||
| The Uzbek word "shunday" can also refer to a type of traditional Uzbek storytelling performance. | |||
| Uyghur | چۆچەك | ||
Tale in Pacific Languages
| Hawaiian | pēlā | ||
| The word 'pēlā' is related to the Proto-Polynesian word 'fele', meaning 'story', 'news', or 'legend'. | |||
| Maori | penei | ||
| The Maori word "penei" also means "to tell a story" or "to recite". | |||
| Samoan | faʻapea | ||
| The word "faʻapea" in Samoan has alternate meanings such as "manner", "fashion", and "style". | |||
| Tagalog (Filipino) | ganyan | ||
| The word 'ganyan' is also used to refer to a type of folk song in Tagalog culture. | |||
Tale in American Indigenous Languages
| Aymara | cuento uñt’ayaña | ||
| Guarani | mombe’upy | ||
Tale in International Languages
| Esperanto | tia | ||
| The Esperanto word "tia" has additional meanings in Romanian and Hungarian, where it means "she" or "yours" respectively. | |||
| Latin | haec | ||
| The Latin word "haec" also means "this" or "she" in the feminine form. | |||
Tale in Others Languages
| Greek | τέτοιος | ||
| The word "τέτοιος" can also mean "such", "of this kind", or "like this". | |||
| Hmong | xws | ||
| The word "xws" can also mean "story" or "legend" in Hmong. | |||
| Kurdish | yên wisa | ||
| The word "yên wisa" in Kurdish can also mean "history" or "story". | |||
| Turkish | böyle | ||
| As an exclamation, "böyle" means "look" or "behold" | |||
| Xhosa | enjalo | ||
| In some contexts, "enjalo" can also refer to a "narrative that is told in a formal and respectful manner" | |||
| Yiddish | אַזאַ | ||
| The Yiddish word "אַזאַ" (translated literally as "thus") can be used to convey meanings of "so", "such", and "such and such". | |||
| Zulu | enjalo | ||
| "Enjalo" also means "news" or "tidings" in Zulu. | |||
| Assamese | কাহিনী | ||
| Aymara | cuento uñt’ayaña | ||
| Bhojpuri | कहानी बा | ||
| Dhivehi | ވާހަކައެވެ | ||
| Dogri | किस्सा | ||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | kuwento | ||
| Guarani | mombe’upy | ||
| Ilocano | sarita | ||
| Krio | stori | ||
| Kurdish (Sorani) | حیکایەت | ||
| Maithili | कथा | ||
| Meiteilon (Manipuri) | ꯋꯥꯔꯤ꯫ | ||
| Mizo | thawnthu a ni | ||
| Oromo | oduu durii | ||
| Odia (Oriya) | କାହାଣୀ | ||
| Quechua | cuento | ||
| Sanskrit | कथा | ||
| Tatar | әкият | ||
| Tigrinya | ጽውጽዋይ | ||
| Tsonga | ntsheketo | ||