Task in Different Languages
Discover 'Task' in 134 Languages: Dive into Translations, Hear Pronunciations, and Uncover Cultural Insights.
Updated on March 6, 2024
The word 'task' holds great significance in our daily lives as it represents the various activities and responsibilities we undertake. From a cultural perspective, tasks play a crucial role in shaping our societal norms, work ethics, and personal growth. Understanding the translation of 'task' in different languages can provide valuable insights into diverse cultures and traditions.
For instance, the German translation of 'task' is 'Aufgabe', which stems from the verb 'auffordern' meaning 'to challenge'. This linguistic connection highlights the German emphasis on facing challenges head-on. Meanwhile, the Chinese translation of 'task' is '任务' (renwu), which also signifies 'opportunity' or 'mission', reflecting the Chinese cultural value of viewing tasks as chances for self-improvement.
As you explore the world of languages, you'll discover that the word 'task' carries various nuances and connotations. Here's a list of translations of 'task' in different languages to pique your curiosity:
Task
Task in Sub-Saharan African Languages
| Afrikaans | taak | ||
| Afrikaans "taak" is closely related to the English "tack", both derived from the Proto-Germanic root "Þak" meaning "to fasten, attach". | |||
| Amharic | ተግባር | ||
| The word "ተግባር" can also refer to a tax or a duty. | |||
| Hausa | aiki | ||
| In some contexts, "aiki" can refer to a person's role, responsibility, or purpose in life. | |||
| Igbo | ọrụ | ||
| The word 'ọrụ' could also mean 'work' or 'labour' in Igbo. | |||
| Malagasy | asa | ||
| "Asa" also means "a while" or "a moment". | |||
| Nyanja (Chichewa) | ntchito | ||
| The word "ntchito" also means "service" and is related to the root word "ntchito" which means "to serve". | |||
| Shona | basa | ||
| The word "basa" is also used proverbially to mean "duty" or "responsibility". | |||
| Somali | hawl | ||
| The term "hawl" is used in Somali to refer to any difficult work, particularly something arduous. Moreover, it is employed with a religious sense as a mandatory undertaking. | |||
| Sesotho | mosebetsi | ||
| The word "mosebetsi" is derived from the verb "seba", meaning "to work", and the noun "mosebetsi", meaning "work" or "job". | |||
| Swahili | kazi | ||
| The word "kazi" is derived from the Arabic word "kazā", meaning "decree" or "judgment". | |||
| Xhosa | umsebenzi | ||
| 'Umsebenzi' can also refer to the physical place where work occurs. | |||
| Yoruba | iṣẹ-ṣiṣe | ||
| The word "iṣẹ-ṣiṣe" can also refer to the process or act of completing a task, rather than the task itself. | |||
| Zulu | umsebenzi | ||
| The Zulu word for 'task,' 'umsebenzi,' comes from the root '-sebenza,' meaning 'to work.' | |||
| Bambara | baara | ||
| Ewe | dɔ | ||
| Kinyarwanda | inshingano | ||
| Lingala | mosala | ||
| Luganda | ekigezo | ||
| Sepedi | mošomo | ||
| Twi (Akan) | adwuma | ||
Task in North African & Middle Eastern Languages
| Arabic | مهمة | ||
| The word مهمة (task) is derived from the Arabic root همم (determination), indicating a serious or crucial undertaking. | |||
| Hebrew | מְשִׁימָה | ||
| The word "מְשִׁימָה" derives from the Hebrew root "ש.מ.ם", meaning "to become desolate, ruined, or wasted." | |||
| Pashto | دنده | ||
| The Pashto word "دنده" can also refer to a "musical note" or a "debt." | |||
| Arabic | مهمة | ||
| The word مهمة (task) is derived from the Arabic root همم (determination), indicating a serious or crucial undertaking. | |||
Task in Western European Languages
| Albanian | detyrë | ||
| Despite its Latin origin ("de terere": to rub down), "detyrë" in Albanian also means "assignment" in an educational context. | |||
| Basque | zeregina | ||
| "Zeregina" is derived from Proto-Basque *ereg-gi-na, meaning "(something) to be done". | |||
| Catalan | tasca | ||
| The word "tasca" in Catalan derives from the Arabic "taska" meaning "drinking place". | |||
| Croatian | zadatak | ||
| The Croatian word "zadatak" originated from the Turkish word "zorluk" meaning task, hardship or difficulty. | |||
| Danish | opgave | ||
| The word "opgave" in Danish has its roots in the Old Norse word "at gefa," which means "to give" or "to assign." | |||
| Dutch | taak | ||
| Taak can also refer to a pile of hay for livestock (used in this sense in many dialects and regionally throughout the Dutch-speaking world) | |||
| English | task | ||
| The word "task" derives from Middle English, where its original sense was 'work imposed' and the meaning "any duty, chore" first appeared early in 17th-century. | |||
| French | tâche | ||
| The word "tâche" comes from the Latin word "tacea", which means "a spot" or "a mark", and is related to the English word "tack". In French, "tâche" can also refer to a stain or a blemish. | |||
| Frisian | taak | ||
| Frisian: "taak" is derived from the same root as "touch" and also means the leather on the thumb of a glove. | |||
| Galician | tarefa | ||
| "Tarefa" comes from the Arabic "ṭarf", "boundary", meaning "the task of a peasant who had a field to plough." | |||
| German | aufgabe | ||
| "Aufgabe" means "giving up" or "surrender" in some historical contexts. | |||
| Icelandic | verkefni | ||
| The word "verkefni" derives from the Old Norse word "verk", meaning "work" or "deed". | |||
| Irish | tasc | ||
| The Irish word "tasc" ultimately derives from the Latin word "taxare", meaning "to estimate, assess" and also "to blame". | |||
| Italian | compito | ||
| The Italian word "compito" comes from the Latin "compitum," meaning "crossroad". This suggests that the word originally referred to a task that had to be completed before proceeding further. | |||
| Luxembourgish | aufgab | ||
| The word 'Aufgabe' has a second meaning in Luxembourgish, which is 'duty'. | |||
| Maltese | kompitu | ||
| The word "kompitu" comes from the Italian word "compito" which means "homework" or "assignment". | |||
| Norwegian | oppgave | ||
| The Norwegian word "oppgave" originated in the 15th century and originally meant a "duty" or "obligation" | |||
| Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) | tarefa | ||
| "Tarefa" comes from the Arabic "tarha", meaning "obligation, work or task". | |||
| Scots Gaelic | ghnìomh | ||
| The word "ghnìomh" in Scots Gaelic, meaning "task," also carries the connotation of "deed" or "action." | |||
| Spanish | tarea | ||
| The word tarea comes from the Arabic term “taraha,” meaning collection. | |||
| Swedish | uppgift | ||
| "Uppgift" is derived from the Old Norse word "upphaf", meaning "beginning". | |||
| Welsh | dasg | ||
| The Welsh word 'dasg' also means 'lesson' and shares a root with the word 'dysgu' ('to learn'). | |||
Task in Eastern European Languages
| Belarusian | заданне | ||
| The word "заданне" in Belarusian is a borrowing from the Russian word „задание,” which comes from the verb „задать,” meaning “to set” or “to ask.” | |||
| Bosnian | zadatak | ||
| The word "zadatak" in Bosnian is derived from the Proto-Slavic word "zadati", meaning "to give" or "to ask", and also refers to a school assignment. | |||
| Bulgarian | задача | ||
| The word "задача" comes from the Old Church Slavonic word "задати", which means "to ask" or "to give a task". | |||
| Czech | úkol | ||
| The word "úkol" in Czech is derived from the Proto-Slavic word *ǫkъlъ, which originally meant "fate" or "lot". | |||
| Estonian | ülesanne | ||
| "Ülesanne" is a noun in the singular form of the Estonian word for "task". It is derived from the verb "üles anda" (to assign a task) and can also mean "assignment" or "mission". | |||
| Finnish | tehtävä | ||
| The word "tehtävä" is derived from the Proto-Finnic word "*tehkæ", meaning "to make". | |||
| Hungarian | feladat | ||
| The Hungarian word "feladat" is derived from the Turkish "fal" (task, omen) and "adat" (habit, custom). | |||
| Latvian | uzdevums | ||
| The word “uzdevums” is a cognate for the Old Prussian word “usdewis” (duty) and the Old Saxon word “undewa” (obligation). | |||
| Lithuanian | užduotis | ||
| "Užduotis" and "uždavinys" are both Lithuanian words for "task", but "uždavinys" is more formal and can also mean "problem" or "puzzle." | |||
| Macedonian | задача | ||
| The word "задача" (task) in Macedonian originally meant "a piece of work to be done" and can also refer to a mathematical problem. | |||
| Polish | zadanie | ||
| Zadanie derives from the Old Polish word „zdadza”, meaning “to grant” or “to assign”. | |||
| Romanian | sarcină | ||
| The Romanian word "sarcină" also means "pregnancy" and comes from the Latin "sarcina" meaning "burden" or "load." | |||
| Russian | задача | ||
| The Russian word "задача" is derived from the Old Russian word "давати" (to give), and it originally meant "a given amount of work to be done." | |||
| Serbian | задатак | ||
| The Serbian word "задатак" (task) derives from the Old Church Slavonic word "за-дѫти" (to blow onto), implying the idea of assigning a task to someone. | |||
| Slovak | úloha | ||
| The word "úloha" also means "role" or "mission". | |||
| Slovenian | naloga | ||
| The word "naloga" can also mean "charge" or "assignment". | |||
| Ukrainian | завдання | ||
| The word "завдання" is derived from the Proto-Slavic word *zadъ, meaning "debt" or "obligation". | |||
Task in South Asian Languages
| Bengali | টাস্ক | ||
| The Bengali word "টাস্ক" (task) is derived from the Persian word "تسک" (task), which originally meant "a levy or tax" or "a duty or obligation". | |||
| Gujarati | કાર્ય | ||
| The Gujarati word 'કાર્ય' primarily means 'task' or 'work', but it also has the connotation of 'purpose' or 'objective'. | |||
| Hindi | कार्य | ||
| The word कार्य (task) in Hindi, originates from the Sanskrit root 'kar' meaning 'to do', and is cognate with the Latin word 'carere', meaning 'to lack or need', indicating its connection to the action of undertaking a task to fulfill a requirement. | |||
| Kannada | ಕಾರ್ಯ | ||
| The Kannada word 'ಕಾರ್ಯ' can also refer to 'work' as in 'profession or employment'. | |||
| Malayalam | ചുമതല | ||
| The word "ചുമതല" in Malayalam is derived from the Sanskrit word "चुमत्" meaning "to raise" or "to lift". It also has the alternate meaning of "responsibility" or "obligation". | |||
| Marathi | कार्य | ||
| The word "कार्य" also has the alternate meaning of "work" or "action" in Marathi. | |||
| Nepali | कार्य | ||
| The Nepali word "कार्य" (kārya) is related to the Sanskrit word "कृ" (kṛ), meaning "to do" or "to make", and also to the Latin word "creare". | |||
| Punjabi | ਕੰਮ | ||
| The Punjabi word "ਕੰਮ" (task) originated from the Sanskrit word "कर्म" (action), which also means "duty," "deed," and "work." | |||
| Sinhala (Sinhalese) | කාර්ය | ||
| Sinhala "කාර්ය" also means "function," likely influenced by the Sanskrit origin and the related word "karma" in Indian languages. | |||
| Tamil | பணி | ||
| The Tamil word "பணி" (task) also denotes respect or submission to a higher power. | |||
| Telugu | పని | ||
| "పని" also means "employment; profession; business" | |||
| Urdu | کام | ||
| The word "کام" in Urdu can also mean "wish" or "desire". | |||
Task in East Asian Languages
| Chinese (Simplified) | 任务 | ||
| 任務 (任务) can also mean 'commission' or 'errand'. | |||
| Chinese (Traditional) | 任務 | ||
| "任 (ren)" means "person" and "務 (wu)" means "affairs," so the Chinese word for "task" can also mean "the duties of someone holding an official post." | |||
| Japanese | 仕事 | ||
| "仕事 (shigoto)", meaning "task" in Japanese, originally referred to "serving a noble." | |||
| Korean | 직무 | ||
| The word '직무' (task) in Korean comes from the Chinese compound word '職務', which means 'official duty' or 'function'. | |||
| Mongolian | даалгавар | ||
| Myanmar (Burmese) | တာဝန် | ||
| The word တာဝန် originates from the Proto-Tibeto-Burman root *ʔa-ran-C “to carry on the back”. | |||
Task in South East Asian Languages
| Indonesian | tugas | ||
| The word "tugas" comes from the Proto-Austronesian word "*tugaS" meaning "work" or "labor". | |||
| Javanese | tugas | ||
| In Old Javanese, tugas means 'order' or 'instruction' | |||
| Khmer | ភារកិច្ច | ||
| Lao | ວຽກງານ | ||
| Malay | tugas | ||
| In Javanese, "tugas" means "duty" or "responsibility" and is derived from the verb "tugu" (to wait or expect). | |||
| Thai | งาน | ||
| Apart from the general usage, "งาน" can be used to describe a religious duty or an activity that brings benefits, or in the ancient past to describe someone's position or role. | |||
| Vietnamese | bài tập | ||
| "Bài tập" (task) is a compound derived from "bài" (piece, item) and "tập" (collection, practice, exercise), implying a set of exercises or activities done. | |||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | gawain | ||
Task in Central Asian Languages
| Azerbaijani | tapşırıq | ||
| The Azerbaijani word "tapşırıq" is ultimately derived from the Persian word "tafṣīr" (task), which in turn is derived from the Arabic word "tafsīr" (interpretation, commentary). | |||
| Kazakh | тапсырма | ||
| The Kazakh word "тапсырма" (task) derives from the verb "тапсыру" (to give, to assign), ultimately tracing back to the Turkic root *tab- (< *dap-) "to give". | |||
| Kyrgyz | тапшырма | ||
| The word "тапшырма" is also used to refer to a "homework assignment" or a "mission" in Kyrgyz. | |||
| Tajik | вазифа | ||
| The word "вазифа" in Tajik can also refer to a "duty" or "obligation". | |||
| Turkmen | wezipe | ||
| Uzbek | vazifa | ||
| In Afghan Persian, the word "vazifa" may also refer to religious practices, particularly those related to pilgrimage. | |||
| Uyghur | ۋەزىپە | ||
Task in Pacific Languages
| Hawaiian | hana | ||
| The word "hana" in Hawaiian can also mean "work" or "occupation". | |||
| Maori | mahi | ||
| In addition to meaning 'task,' 'mahi' also means 'work' and 'effort' in Maori. | |||
| Samoan | galuega | ||
| The word 'galuega' also refers to work done, labor, or employment. | |||
| Tagalog (Filipino) | gawain | ||
| While 'gawain' often means 'task', it can also refer to one's profession or occupation. | |||
Task in American Indigenous Languages
| Aymara | tariya | ||
| Guarani | mba'aporã | ||
Task in International Languages
| Esperanto | tasko | ||
| The Esperanto word "tasko" comes from the Russian word "задача" (zadacha), which can also mean "project", "problem", or "goal". | |||
| Latin | negotium | ||
| Derived from nec and otium, negotia initially referred to non-leisure-related activities and gradually came to mean a person's business affairs that needed attention. | |||
Task in Others Languages
| Greek | έργο | ||
| The word 'έργο' comes from the Ancient Greek word 'έργω,' meaning 'to work,' and is cognate with the Latin 'operor' and the Sanskrit 'irjyati.' | |||
| Hmong | hauj lwm | ||
| The word hauj lwm also means "work" and is derived from the Proto-Hmong-Mien word *hɔːm². | |||
| Kurdish | karî | ||
| "Kari", a Kurdish word for "task", also refers to a "piece" or a "chapter". In the phrase "dûkari", it means "a group of two". In "sêkari" meaning "a group of three", it is often replaced with the word “kes”. | |||
| Turkish | görev | ||
| The word "görev" in Turkish also has the meanings of "duty" and "service". | |||
| Xhosa | umsebenzi | ||
| 'Umsebenzi' can also refer to the physical place where work occurs. | |||
| Yiddish | אַרבעט | ||
| Though it now means 'task' in Yiddish, 'אַרבעט' initially described hard physical labor – a term still preserved in German, its language of origin. | |||
| Zulu | umsebenzi | ||
| The Zulu word for 'task,' 'umsebenzi,' comes from the root '-sebenza,' meaning 'to work.' | |||
| Assamese | কাৰ্য | ||
| Aymara | tariya | ||
| Bhojpuri | काम | ||
| Dhivehi | މަސައްކަތެއް | ||
| Dogri | कम्म | ||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | gawain | ||
| Guarani | mba'aporã | ||
| Ilocano | tarabaho | ||
| Krio | wok | ||
| Kurdish (Sorani) | ئەرک | ||
| Maithili | कार्य | ||
| Meiteilon (Manipuri) | ꯊꯕꯛ | ||
| Mizo | tihtur | ||
| Oromo | hojii | ||
| Odia (Oriya) | କାର୍ଯ୍ୟ | ||
| Quechua | ruwana | ||
| Sanskrit | कार्य | ||
| Tatar | бирем | ||
| Tigrinya | ዕዮ | ||
| Tsonga | ntirho | ||