Thing in different languages

Thing in Different Languages

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

Updated on March 6, 2024

The word 'thing' is a small but powerful part of our everyday vocabulary. It's a versatile term that can refer to a physical object, an idea, or an event. Its significance lies in its ability to encompass a wide range of concepts, making it a crucial component of how we communicate and understand the world around us.

The cultural importance of the word 'thing' goes beyond its basic definition. In Old English, 'thing' referred to a gathering or assembly, and this meaning has persisted in modern German as 'Ding' and Icelandic as 'thingvellir', the site of the world's first parliament. This historical context highlights the word's deep roots in our language and culture.

Understanding the translation of 'thing' in different languages can provide insight into the unique perspectives and ways of thinking of other cultures. For example, in Spanish, 'cosa' is a direct translation, but in Japanese, 'mono' is a more general term that can also mean 'person' or 'item'.

Explore the many translations of the word 'thing' and discover the rich cultural and linguistic diversity that exists in our world.

Thing


Thing in Sub-Saharan African Languages

Afrikaansding
"Ding" is derived from the Proto-Germanic "*þingą" and has meanings including "assembly," "court," and "parliament."
Amharicነገር
The word "ነገር" in Amharic is derived from the Proto-Semitic root *n-g-r*, meaning "to move". It can also refer to "speech" or "matter".
Hausaabu
Its plural, "abubuwa," denotes "property," "affairs," while "abu na..." means "that which is of..."
Igboihe
The Igbo word 'ihe' can also refer to an event, an issue, or a situation.
Malagasyzavatra
The Malagasy word "zavatra" can also mean "substance", "matter", "property", or "wealth" in different contexts.
Nyanja (Chichewa)chinthu
"Chinthu" in Nyanja also refers to a matter or issue needing attention.
Shonachinhu
The word "chinhu" can also refer to a matter, issue, or affair, and is related to the verb "kuita", meaning "to do".
Somalishay
Somali "shay" has an alternate plural form, "waxyaalo," and is also a noun root meaning "to be, to exist."
Sesothontho
Ntho can also mean 'affair', 'business', or 'matter'.
Swahilikitu
The word 'kitu' ('thing') in Swahili can also refer to an object, a matter, or an affair.
Xhosainto
In Nguni languages, the cognate -nto signifies a physical location, or 'interior'. For example, in Swati the word endlini translates to 'in/inside the house'.
Yorubankan
In addition to its primary meaning of "thing" in Yoruba, "nkan" can also refer to a "matter, subject, affair, business, case, or problem."
Zuluinto
The word 'into' derives from the Proto-Bantu *in-tu 'thing'. This is a common Bantu root and so it has cognates in many modern day Bantu languages.
Bambarafɛn
Ewenu
Kinyarwandaikintu
Lingalaeloko
Lugandaekintu
Sepediselo
Twi (Akan)adeɛ

Thing in North African & Middle Eastern Languages

Arabicشيء
The Arabic word "شيء" can also refer to a matter, an affair, a business, or an event.
Hebrewדָבָר
The word "דָבָר" has another meaning, "plague" or "pestilence", which is related to its root meaning of "to speak" or "to utter".
Pashtoشی
The word "شی" can also refer to a matter, an object, or a piece of property in Pashto.
Arabicشيء
The Arabic word "شيء" can also refer to a matter, an affair, a business, or an event.

Thing in Western European Languages

Albaniansendi
The Albanian word "sendi" derives from Proto-Indo-European *ḱʰtóm- "ground, earth".
Basquegauza
The Basque word "gauza" can also refer to "matter", "substance", or "affair".
Catalancosa
It derives from the Latin word causa, meaning 'cause', 'motive' or 'reason', from which derives also the English word 'cause'.
Croatianstvar
"Stvar" comes from the Old Slavic *stvarъ, which meant "property" but later acquired a broader sense of "thing, object".
Danishting
The Danish word "ting" can also refer to a legislative or judicial assembly, or to a meeting or gathering.
Dutchding
In Dutch, the word "ding" can also refer to a gadget, device, or object, similar to the English "gizmo" or "contraption".
Englishthing
The origin of 'thing' is Proto-Germanic *þeŋgaz, or possibly a Proto-Indo-European root meaning 'to press' or 'to grasp'
Frenchchose
The word "chose" is derived from the Latin word "causa", which means "cause" or "matter". The French word "chose" can therefore have both a concrete meaning ("thing") and an abstract meaning ("cause").
Frisianding
In Frisian, the word "ding" has a dual meaning, referring to both "thing" and "trial."
Galiciancousa
The Galician word "cousa" is derived from the Latin "causa", meaning "cause, reason, or matter".
Germansache
The term 'Sache' has a dual origin: the Middle Low German word "sake", which referred to "litigation" and a legal case and the Middle High German term "sahhe", which referred to the subject under discussion and was related to "Sagen" ("to say").
Icelandichlutur
The word "hlutur" can also mean "object" or "matter".
Irishrud
In Old Irish, 'rud' could refer to a possession, property, or wealth.
Italiancosa
The Italian word "cosa" can also mean "business", "affair", or "matter".
Luxembourgishsaach
The word "Saach" is derived from the Proto-West Germanic word *saka, meaning "dispute" or "lawsuit".
Malteseħaġa
The Maltese word "ħaġa" can also be used to refer to an object or a concept
Norwegianting
The word "ting" in Norwegian is cognated with the English word "thing", and shares its etymological roots in Old Norse and Proto-Germanic.
Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil)coisa
The etymology of "coisa" can be traced back to the Latin "causa," meaning "case," "reason," or "motive."
Scots Gaelicrud
The Gaelic word rud means 'thing', but it can also mean 'element' or 'matter'.
Spanishcosa
The word "cosa" (thing) derives from the Latin word "causa" (cause or reason), hence its original meaning in Spanish was "reason" or "matter".
Swedishsak
The word "sak" can also refer to a legal case or a document.
Welshpeth
The word "peth" in Welsh can also refer to a "piece" of something, or a "part" of something.

Thing in Eastern European Languages

Belarusianрэч
The word "рэч" can be used figuratively to denote "property" or "affair."
Bosnianstvar
"Stvar" can also mean "creation" in Bosnian, derived from its Slavic root word "sŭtvarŭ" which means "to create".
Bulgarianнещо
In the Bulgarian word "нещо" there is no prefix. The word "не" usually translates to "not", but here it has a different meaning, it has an indefinite meaning.
Czechvěc
The etymology of "věc" suggests a connection to the notion of "property" or "affair," indicating its significance beyond mere materiality.
Estonianasi
The Estonian word "asi", which means "thing", shares a linguistic origin with the Latin word for "matter" and "stuff" in the form of the Indo-European words "h₂é-so" (meaning, "thing, stuff, substance, material, stuff, it") and "h₃ehs₂-ó-", meaning, "to be".
Finnishasia
The word "asia" can also mean "cause" or "matter", and is related to the word "asia" meaning "case" in Estonian and "cause" in Livonian.
Hungariandolog
The word "dolog" derives from the verb "dolokik", meaning to work or to make, and is related to the word "dologidő", which means time spent working.
Latvianlieta
The word "lieta" can also mean "case" or "matter" in a legal context.
Lithuaniandalykas
The word "dalykas" derives from the Proto-Indo-European root *(dʰegʷʰ)- "to put, set", also found in English "thing" and "deed."
Macedonianствар
"The word 'ствар' is derived from the Old Slavic words 'stvoriti' (to create, to make) and 'tvar' (form, appearance)."
Polishrzecz
The word "rzecz" can also refer to a "republic" or a "matter" in Polish.
Romanianlucru
In Romanian, "lucru" can also refer to a business or a task, stemming from Latin "lucrum" meaning "profit," similar to its English use in "lucrative."
Russianпредмет
The Russian word "предмет" can also refer to a subject of study or a topic of discussion.
Serbianствар
The word "ствар" can also refer to a lawsuit or a legal dispute.
Slovakvec
The word "vec" in Slovak can also refer to a "device" or an "object" of any kind.
Slovenianstvar
The Slovenian word "stvar" is a cognate of the Russian word "veshch", meaning "essence" or "material being."
Ukrainianріч
In Ukrainian, "річ" can also refer to a possession or property.

Thing in South Asian Languages

Bengaliজিনিস
The word "জিনিস" can also mean "goods" or "property" in Bengali.
Gujaratiવસ્તુ
The word "વસ્તુ" means "thing", but it can also mean "substance", "matter", or "object".
Hindiचीज़
The Hindi word "चीज़" can also refer to an artifact, item, or substance.
Kannadaವಿಷಯ
"ವಿಷಯ" can also mean 'context', 'substance' or 'topic'.
Malayalamകാര്യം
The word 'കാര്യം' can also mean 'reason', 'purpose', or 'matter'.
Marathiगोष्ट
The word "गोष्ट" can also refer to a story, affair, or a matter, deriving from the Sanskrit word "घोष्टा" meaning "conversation" or "talk."
Nepaliकुरा
कुरा shares its root word with English
Punjabiਚੀਜ਼
The word "ਚੀਜ਼" (thing) in Punjabi can also refer to "a matter" or "an object of value."
Sinhala (Sinhalese)දෙයක්
The word "දෙයක්" (deyek) in Sinhala can also mean "property" or "belonging".
Tamilவிஷயம்
"விஷயம்" has multiple meanings, including "matter", "topic", "business", "affair", "case", "subject", and "circumstance".
Teluguవిషయం
In Telugu, "విషయం" ("vishayam") means both "thing" and "subject".
Urduچیز
The Urdu word "چیز" (thing) is derived from the Persian word "چیز" and can also refer to a piece of property or an object used in sorcery.

Thing in East Asian Languages

Chinese (Simplified)事情
The two characters that compose 事情 (
Chinese (Traditional)事情
"事情" (thing) was originally an event, but since anything can become a topic, it is now also "thing".
Japanese
The word "事" (こと) in Japanese can also mean "affair", "matter", "event", or "circumstance".
Korean맡은 일
The word "맡은 일" in Korean can also mean "duty" or "responsibility".
Mongolianзүйл
The Mongolian word зүйл derives from the Proto-Mongolic word *süyel, meaning "thing, object."
Myanmar (Burmese)အရာ
The word "အရာ" is also used to refer to a person or object of uncertain or unspecified nature.

Thing in South East Asian Languages

Indonesianbenda
Benda, also spelled bendaa, is also a title often given to traditional religious leaders such as dukun or bomoh in certain regions of Indonesia, particularly East Java.
Javanesebab
In the Madurese language, "bab" refers to a specific type of woven fabric skirt.
Khmerរឿង
In Old Khmer, 'រឿង' also meant 'a type of poem'.
Laoສິ່ງ
The word "thing" can also refer to an action or an event.
Malaybenda
The word "benda" has many different meanings in Malay, depending on the context. It can mean an "object," a "thing," a "creature," or a "person."
Thaiสิ่ง
The Thai word "สิ่ง" is cognate with other Kra-Dai languages, and its root meaning is likely "existence", "entity" or "fact"}
Vietnameseđiều
The word "Điều" can also mean "article", "point" or "condition".
Filipino (Tagalog)bagay

Thing in Central Asian Languages

Azerbaijanişey
The Azerbaijani word "şey", besides meaning "thing", can also be used in the sense of "property" or "estate".
Kazakhнәрсе
The word 'нәрсе' ('thing' in Kazakh) comes from the Turkic root 'narse', meaning 'substance'.
Kyrgyzнерсе
The word "нерсе" can also mean "business" or "affair" in Kyrgyz.
Tajikчиз
The word "чиз" can refer to a particular item, a specific instance of something, or an object in general.
Turkmenzat
Uzbeknarsa
The word "narsa" also means "what" and "which" and is related to words like "nerse" which means "this".
Uyghurنەرسە

Thing in Pacific Languages

Hawaiianmea
The Hawaiian word "mea" can also refer to a concept, an object, or a matter.
Maorimea
The Maori word "mea" is derived from the Proto-Polynesian word "*mea" and has the alternate meaning of "belongings" or "goods".
Samoanmea
The word 'mea' in Samoan, besides its literal meaning of 'thing', also carries connotations of personal belongings or possession.
Tagalog (Filipino)bagay
Bagay can also refer to an article of clothing, a suit, or an outfit.

Thing in American Indigenous Languages

Aymara
Guaranimba'e

Thing in International Languages

Esperantoafero
The Esperanto word "afero" ultimately derives from the Latin "res" meaning "thing, matter, or affair."
Latinrem
The word "rem" also means an "object", or "article", and is related to "res", meaning "affair".

Thing in Others Languages

Greekπράγμα
In Greek, "πράγμα" can also refer to a matter, case, or action.
Hmongkhoom
In Hmong, "khoom" encompasses the concept of "existence," meaning not only inanimate objects but also entities like dreams, ideas, and events.
Kurdishtişt
The word "tişt" in Kurdish can also refer to an object, a tool, or a property.
Turkishşey
The word 'şey' can also mean 'it' or 'that' and is the origin of 'şöyle' ('like this') and 'öyle' ('like that').
Xhosainto
In Nguni languages, the cognate -nto signifies a physical location, or 'interior'. For example, in Swati the word endlini translates to 'in/inside the house'.
Yiddishזאַך
זאַך, meaning "a thing" in Yiddish, is derived from the Middle High German "sache", which also means "a thing" and can refer to property or a legal affair
Zuluinto
The word 'into' derives from the Proto-Bantu *in-tu 'thing'. This is a common Bantu root and so it has cognates in many modern day Bantu languages.
Assameseবস্তু
Aymara
Bhojpuriचीज
Dhivehiއެއްޗެއް
Dogriचीज
Filipino (Tagalog)bagay
Guaranimba'e
Ilocanobanag
Kriotin
Kurdish (Sorani)شت
Maithiliचीज
Meiteilon (Manipuri)ꯄꯣꯠꯁꯛ
Mizothil
Oromowanta
Odia (Oriya)ଜିନିଷ
Quechuaima
Sanskritवस्तु
Tatarнәрсә
Tigrinyaነገር
Tsongaxilo

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