Unfortunately in Different Languages
Discover 'Unfortunately' in 134 Languages: Dive into Translations, Hear Pronunciations, and Uncover Cultural Insights.
Unfortunately
Afrikaans ongelukkig | ||
Albanian për fat të keq | ||
Amharic በሚያሳዝን ሁኔታ | ||
Arabic لسوء الحظ | ||
Armenian ցավոք | ||
Assamese দুৰ্ভাগ্যবশতঃ | ||
Aymara jan wakiskiri | ||
Azerbaijani təəssüf ki | ||
Bambara kunagoya | ||
Basque zoritxarrez | ||
Belarusian на жаль | ||
Bengali দুর্ভাগ্যক্রমে | ||
Bhojpuri दुर्भाग से | ||
Bosnian nažalost | ||
Bulgarian за жалост | ||
Catalan per desgràcia | ||
Cebuano sa kasubo | ||
Chinese (Simplified) 不幸 | ||
Chinese (Traditional) 不幸 | ||
Corsican sfurtunatamente | ||
Croatian nažalost | ||
Czech bohužel | ||
Danish uheldigvis | ||
Dhivehi ކަންދިމާކުރިގޮތުން | ||
Dogri बदनसीबी कन्नै | ||
Dutch helaas | ||
English unfortunately | ||
Esperanto bedaŭrinde | ||
Estonian kahjuks | ||
Ewe dzᴐgbevᴐetᴐ | ||
Filipino (Tagalog) sa kasamaang palad | ||
Finnish valitettavasti | ||
French malheureusement | ||
Frisian spitigernôch | ||
Galician desafortunadamente | ||
Georgian სამწუხაროდ | ||
German unglücklicherweise | ||
Greek δυστυχώς | ||
Guarani añarã | ||
Gujarati કમનસીબે | ||
Haitian Creole malerezman | ||
Hausa rashin alheri | ||
Hawaiian minamina | ||
Hebrew לצערי | ||
Hindi दुर्भाग्य से | ||
Hmong hmoov tsis txog | ||
Hungarian sajnálatos módon | ||
Icelandic því miður | ||
Igbo dị mwute ikwu na | ||
Ilocano daksanggasat | ||
Indonesian sayangnya | ||
Irish ar an drochuair | ||
Italian sfortunatamente | ||
Japanese 残念ながら | ||
Javanese sayangé | ||
Kannada ದುರದೃಷ್ಟವಶಾತ್ | ||
Kazakh өкінішке орай | ||
Khmer ជាអកុសល | ||
Kinyarwanda kubwamahirwe | ||
Konkani दुर्दैवान | ||
Korean 운수 나쁘게 | ||
Krio i sɔri fɔ no se | ||
Kurdish mixabîn | ||
Kurdish (Sorani) بەداخەوە | ||
Kyrgyz тилекке каршы | ||
Lao ແຕ່ໂຊກບໍ່ດີ | ||
Latin quod valde dolendum | ||
Latvian diemžēl | ||
Lingala eza mawa | ||
Lithuanian deja | ||
Luganda eky'embi | ||
Luxembourgish leider | ||
Macedonian за жал | ||
Maithili दुर्भाग्यपूर्ण | ||
Malagasy indrisy | ||
Malay malangnya | ||
Malayalam നിർഭാഗ്യവശാൽ | ||
Maltese sfortunatament | ||
Maori heoi | ||
Marathi दुर्दैवाने | ||
Meiteilon (Manipuri) ꯂꯥꯏꯕꯛ ꯊꯤꯕꯗꯤ | ||
Mizo vanduaithlak takin | ||
Mongolian харамсалтай нь | ||
Myanmar (Burmese) ကံမကောင်း | ||
Nepali दुर्भाग्यवश | ||
Norwegian dessverre | ||
Nyanja (Chichewa) mwatsoka | ||
Odia (Oriya) ଦୁର୍ଭାଗ୍ୟବଶତ। | | ||
Oromo kan hin eegamne | ||
Pashto بدبختانه | ||
Persian متاسفانه | ||
Polish niestety | ||
Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) infelizmente | ||
Punjabi ਬਦਕਿਸਮਤੀ ਨਾਲ | ||
Quechua mana samiyuq | ||
Romanian din pacate | ||
Russian к сожалению | ||
Samoan paga lea | ||
Sanskrit दौर्भाग्यवशात् | ||
Scots Gaelic gu mì-fhortanach | ||
Sepedi ka madimabe | ||
Serbian нажалост | ||
Sesotho ka bomalimabe | ||
Shona zvinosuruvarisa | ||
Sindhi بدقسمتي سان | ||
Sinhala (Sinhalese) අවාසනාවට | ||
Slovak bohužiaľ | ||
Slovenian na žalost | ||
Somali nasiib daro | ||
Spanish desafortunadamente | ||
Sundanese hanjakalna | ||
Swahili kwa bahati mbaya | ||
Swedish tyvärr | ||
Tagalog (Filipino) sa kasamaang palad | ||
Tajik бадбахтона | ||
Tamil எதிர்பாராதவிதமாக | ||
Tatar кызганычка каршы | ||
Telugu దురదృష్టవశాత్తు | ||
Thai น่าเสียดาย | ||
Tigrinya ብዘሕዝን | ||
Tsonga nkateko-khombo | ||
Turkish ne yazık ki | ||
Turkmen gynansakda | ||
Twi (Akan) nanso | ||
Ukrainian на жаль | ||
Urdu بدقسمتی سے | ||
Uyghur بەختكە قارشى | ||
Uzbek afsuski | ||
Vietnamese không may | ||
Welsh yn anffodus | ||
Xhosa ngelishwa | ||
Yiddish ליידער | ||
Yoruba laanu | ||
Zulu ngeshwa |
Etymology & Notes
| Language | Etymology / Notes |
|---|---|
| Afrikaans | The Afrikaans word "Ongelukkig" comes from the Dutch word "ongelukkig," which also means "unfortunate" but is derived from the German word "unglücklich," meaning "not lucky" or "unhappy." |
| Amharic | The word "በሚያሳዝን ሁኔታ" can be used to refer to something that is not actually unfortunate, such as a good joke.} |
| Arabic | The phrase "لسوء الحظ" originally meant "in the evil eye" in Arabic. |
| Azerbaijani | The word "təəssüf ki" is derived from the Arabic word "taʼassuf" meaning "regret" or "sorrow". |
| Basque | "Zor" means luck in old Basque, but "zori" means bad luck or misfortune. |
| Belarusian | “На жаль”, помимо своего основного значения “не к добру” или “несчастный”, в некоторых диалектах означает также “хорошо”, “к счастью”. |
| Bengali | The word দুর্ভাগ্যক্রমে can also mean 'due to bad luck' or 'by chance' in Bengali. |
| Bosnian | "Na žalost", "unfortunately", is a compound of "na", "on", and "žalost", "sadness, sorrow, pity", from Proto-Slavic žalosьtь, a derivative of Proto-Indo-European ǵʰélH- "to feel sorrow". |
| Bulgarian | The word "за жалост" is a compound of the preposition "за" (for) and the noun "жалост" (pity, regret), and can also mean "regrettably". |
| Catalan | The Catalan phrase "per desgràcia" ("unfortunately") comes from the Latin phrase "per desgraciam," meaning "by misfortune." |
| Cebuano | Sa kasubo is a Cebuano word that literally means "in the shell". |
| Chinese (Simplified) | 不幸 ('bùxìng') also means 'not lucky' or 'unfortunate'. |
| Chinese (Traditional) | The word "不幸" can also mean "unhappiness" or "misfortune". |
| Corsican | The Corsican word "sfurtunatamente" is derived from the Italian word "sfortunatamente", which itself comes from the Latin word "infortunatus", meaning "unfortunate". |
| Croatian | "Nažalost" is a compound of the preposition "na" (on, upon) and the noun "žalost" (sadness, grief), so it literally means "on sadness". |
| Czech | The word "bohužel" is derived from the Old Czech word "bohu" (meaning "God") and the suffix "-žel" (meaning "pity"), hence its literal meaning is "God's pity". |
| Danish | The word "uheldigvis" derives from the Old Danish word "uhæppeligvis", meaning "unexpectedly" or "coincidentally". |
| Dutch | "Helaas" is etymologically related to "heil," meaning "salvation," and originally meant "lacking salvation." |
| Esperanto | "Bedaŭrinde" is derived from the Esperanto root "bedaŭr", which means "to regret" or "to deplore." |
| Estonian | The word "kahjuks" in Estonian has multiple meanings, including "unfortunately", "regrettably", and "to one's detriment." |
| Finnish | The Finnish word "valitettavasti" is derived from the noun "valitus" (complaint) and the suffix "-sti" (manner), indicating a regrettable or unfortunate situation. |
| French | Malheureusement, or 'unhappily' in French, also carries the meaning of 'not being in a good position' from its Latin root 'male positus'. |
| Frisian | The compound Frisian word 'spitigernôch' combines the morphemes 'spit' (spite) and 'gernôch' (enough), conveying a sense of excessive unhappiness. |
| Galician | The Galician word "Desafortunadamente" ultimately comes from the Latin word "fortunatus," meaning "lucky" or "fortunate." |
| German | “Unglücklicherweise” etymologically translates as “luckless”; the “-lich” ending in German usually denotes similarity or affinity with a concept, rather than the more straightforward “-ly” ending in English. |
| Greek | Δυστυχώς means "difficult to bear" in Greek, which is a more literal translation that hints at the suffering that misfortune brings. |
| Gujarati | The Gujarati word "કમનસીબે" ("kamnasibe") is derived from the Persian phrase "kam-nasīb" meaning "less-fortunate" or "having less luck". |
| Haitian Creole | "Malerezman" in Haitian Creole originally meant "poorly made" or "not well-crafted." |
| Hausa | The Hausa word "rashin alheri" also means "lack of well-being" or "bad fortune." |
| Hawaiian | 'Minamina' in Hawaiian can also mean 'in sorrow' or 'with regret'. |
| Hebrew | The word "לצערי" can also mean "to my regret" or "I'm sorry". |
| Hindi | The word "दुर्भाग्य से" (dubhāgye se) literally translates to "from ill fortune" or "by misfortune" in Hindi. |
| Hmong | The word 'hmoov tsis txog' can have other meanings depending on which language is being used. |
| Hungarian | The word Sajnálatos módon is derived from the Hungarian words "sajnálat" (pity, regret) and "módon" (manner, way), suggesting a sense of remorse or disappointment. |
| Icelandic | Því miður is composed of the accusative of the demonstrative pronoun því, and miður, which derives from the comparative form of the Old Norse adjective smár, "small, scant, narrow". |
| Indonesian | In Indonesian, "sayangnya" can also mean "too bad" or express regret. |
| Irish | The Gaelic 'ar an drochuair' derives from 'ar an droichead' ('on the bridge') and connotes the notion of being 'stuck' in an unfortunate situation |
| Italian | "Sfortunatamente" derives from the Latin "fortuna," or "fate," meaning "without luck." |
| Japanese | 残念 (zannen) derives from Sanskrit, and originally meant 'to abandon', while 後 (go) means 'afterward'. |
| Javanese | “Sayangé” is derived from the Sanskrit word “sajjanaka”, meaning “good person” or “virtuous”. |
| Kannada | "ದುರದೃಷ್ಟ" means 'misfortune' or 'bad luck', while "ವಶಾತ್" means 'at the mercy of' or 'under the control of'. |
| Khmer | The word "ជាអកុសល" comes from the Pali word "akusala" which means "evil" or "unskillful". |
| Korean | 운수 나쁘게 is an adverbial phrase which literally means 'bad way of luck' in Korean. |
| Kurdish | The word “mixabîn” in Kurdish means “unfortunately,” but it can also be used to express feelings of regret or disappointment. |
| Kyrgyz | The word "тилекке каршы" can also mean "unexpectedly" or "contrary to expectations". |
| Latin | The phrase "quod valde dolendum" literally means "which is very much to be grieved." |
| Latvian | It consists of the words "dievs" (god) and "žēl" (pity), thus the full meaning translates as "it is a pity for god." |
| Lithuanian | "Deja" derives from Lithuanian "deja" (literally "therefore, hence, so") from Proto-Indo-European "*dei-dʰeh₁" meaning "to put, set, place". |
| Luxembourgish | The word "leider" in Luxembourgish is derived from the German word "leider", which means "unfortunately" or "sadly". |
| Macedonian | The word "за жал" is a contraction of "за жалост," which literally means "for pity" or "for regret." |
| Malagasy | "Indrisy" originates from the Proto-Austronesian word "indu" meaning "pain" or "misery", and it still has this meaning in Malagasy as a standalone word. |
| Malay | The Malay word "malangnya" (meaning "unfortunately") derives from the Proto-Malayo-Polynesian root word "*malaŋ, |
| Maltese | "Sfortunatament," in Maltese, also signifies "by accident" or "by chance," emphasizing the unpredictable nature of misfortune. |
| Maori | The word "heoi" can also mean "but" or "however" in Maori. |
| Marathi | दुर्दैवाने is derived from the Sanskrit words दुर् (dur), meaning "difficult," and दैव (daiva), meaning "fate," implying something that happens against one's will. |
| Mongolian | The phrase "харамсалтай нь" is an idiom that literally translates to "regrettably" or "pity". |
| Myanmar (Burmese) | This Burmese (Myanmar) term can literally be broken down as either "karma is no-good" or in a more literary sense as either "auspicious moment/fate had no effect (on this)" or "auspicious moment/fate had an inappropriate role (in this)" |
| Nepali | दुर्भाग्यवश is derived from the Sanskrit words दुर्गति (misfortune) and वश (under the control of). |
| Norwegian | Dessverre originates from the Old Norse words "at verri" meaning "to make it worse". |
| Nyanja (Chichewa) | The word "mwatsoka" in Nyanja (Chichewa) is derived from the verb "kuchokera," meaning "to come from" or "to originate from." |
| Pashto | Alternately, "بدبختانه" (badbakhtāna) may convey "inauspiciously," "unpropitiously," or, colloquially, "unluckily." |
| Persian | The word “متاسفانه” also has an archaic usage meaning “regrettably but justifiably” which is now rarely used. |
| Polish | Niestety comes from the Old Polish word 'nie szczescie,' meaning 'not fortune. |
| Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) | The Portuguese word "infelizmente" derives from Latin "infamis", meaning "without reputation". |
| Punjabi | Its alternate meanings include: sadly, distressingly, pitiably, unhappily, regrettably. |
| Romanian | The Romanian expression 'Din păcate', meaning "Unfortunately", stems from "Din păcat". "Păcat" is the cognate with the Slavic "grijeh," which in Old Slavic could also signify a misfortune or mishap, but now in Slavic mostly means "sin". |
| Russian | The word "К сожалению" originally meant "with shame" and was associated with the word "жаль" (pity, regret). |
| Samoan | "Paga lea" can also mean "to speak the wrong language, to speak foolishly, or to speak out of turn". |
| Scots Gaelic | The Scots Gaelic term "gu mì-fhortanach" evolved from "gu mì-fhòirtineach," meaning "lacking protection," and took on its current sense of "unfortunate" via semantic broadening. |
| Serbian | The word "нажалост" is derived from the Proto-Slavic word *žalъ, meaning "sorrow" or "pity". |
| Sesotho | The word "ka bomalimabe" is also used to express regret, disapproval, or disappointment. |
| Shona | Zvinosuruvarisa is derived from the word suruvara meaning 'to grieve', implying a feeling of deep sadness or regret. |
| Sindhi | بدقسمتي سان (badqismati san) is a Sindhi word that literally translates to "in the state of bad luck" or "by chance". |
| Sinhala (Sinhalese) | In astrology, "අවාසනාවට" describes the position of a weak planet in a chart, and thus can be interpreted as "auspiciously." |
| Slovak | The word "bohužiaľ" is derived from the words "boh" ("god") and "žiaľ" ("pity"), implying that something is regrettable or unfortunate by divine will. |
| Slovenian | The phrase "na žalost" is derived from the combination of the preposition "na" (meaning "on") and the word "žalost" (meaning "sorrow"). It is primarily used to express sadness, disappointment, or regret. |
| Somali | Nasiib daro is a Somali term derived from "nasiib" (fate, destiny) and "daro" (black), implying a negative turn of fate. |
| Spanish | 'Desafortunadamente' derives from 'de-+a-+fortis-unatus,' meaning 'born with no fortune or luck'. |
| Sundanese | Sundanese "hanjakalna" derives from "hanjakal" via the infix "na" which indicates regret; the former means "being sorrowful". |
| Swahili | The Swahili word "kwa bahati mbaya" literally means "by bad luck" or "by misfortune." |
| Swedish | "Tyvärr" is a contraction of "ty" (bad) and "värre" (worse). |
| Tagalog (Filipino) | Sa kasamaang palad can also mean, coincidentally, as it is composed of the prefix "sa" (in/within/by/during) and "kasamaan" (evil/bad thing), in which the prefix connotes "unintentionally" or "by chance" |
| Tajik | The word "бадбахтона" ("unfortunately") is derived from the Persian phrase "بدبختانه" ("miserably"). |
| Tamil | The Tamil verb அதுறைர் ("eti pு par") literally means "opposite,"} |
| Thai | The term "น่าเสียดาย" can also refer to a feeling of regret, pity, or sorrow. |
| Turkish | The word "ne yazık ki" originally meant "what a pity," and is derived from the Arabic phrase "mā 'aṣfaa." |
| Ukrainian | "На жаль" in Ukrainian can also mean "please" when used at the end of a sentence. |
| Urdu | The word "بدقسمتی سے" in Urdu can also be translated as "by ill luck" or "with misfortune." |
| Uzbek | The word "afsuski" is derived from the Arabic word "afsus", which means "grief" or "regret". |
| Vietnamese | The word "không may" can also mean "unlucky" or "misfortunate". |
| Welsh | The word "yn anffodus" in Welsh is an adverb that means "unfortunately", "sadly", or "regrettably". |
| Xhosa | The Xhosa word "ngelishwa" derives from the verb "ukulila," meaning "to cry," and thus signifies a state of sadness or regret. |
| Yiddish | The Yiddish word "ליידער" not only means "unfortunately" but also "sadly" or "regrettably." |
| Yoruba | "Laanu" also means "to reject" or "to curse". |
| Zulu | The word 'ngeshwa' in Zulu is derived from the verb 'gesha', meaning 'to miss' or 'to fail', and it is used to express regret or sorrow over something that has not happened as desired. |
| English | The word "unfortunately" has two possible etymologies, either both "un- + fortune" and "un- + fortunately." |