Up in Different Languages
Discover 'Up' in 134 Languages: Dive into Translations, Hear Pronunciations, and Uncover Cultural Insights.
Updated on March 5, 2024
The word 'up' is simple, yet holds great significance in our daily lives. It represents movement in a direction, a sense of progress, and even a positive outlook. From the inspiring phrase 'look up' to the popular saying 'lift up', it's clear that 'up' carries a positive cultural impact.
Moreover, understanding the translation of 'up' in different languages can provide fascinating insights into various cultures. For instance, in German, 'up' is 'auf', while in Spanish, it's 'arriba'. In Japanese, 'up' is 'uwagi', and in Russian, it's 'вверх' (vyverkh).
Did you know that 'up' has been used in English language for over a thousand years? Its historical context is rich and varied, making it a truly intriguing word to study. Whether you're a language enthusiast, a cultural explorer, or simply curious, learning the translations of 'up' in different languages is a fun and enlightening journey.
Up
Up in Sub-Saharan African Languages
| Afrikaans | op | ||
| In Afrikaans, 'op' can also mean 'on' or 'at', while its equivalent in English, 'up', has connotations of movement or position. | |||
| Amharic | ወደ ላይ | ||
| "ወደ ላይ" can be used to mean "to the top" or "on top of" in addition to its primary meaning of "upward". | |||
| Hausa | sama | ||
| Hausa | |||
| Igbo | elu | ||
| In addition to describing the vertical direction, "elu" also connotes greatness, superiority, or prominence. | |||
| Malagasy | ny | ||
| The word "ny" in Malagasy can also mean "new" or "fresh". | |||
| Nyanja (Chichewa) | mmwamba | ||
| In some contexts, mmwamba can also refer to the upper body. | |||
| Shona | kumusoro | ||
| Somali | kor | ||
| There is a related noun form of "kor," "kordh" meaning "high" or "up" in an elevated position. | |||
| Sesotho | nyoloha | ||
| Originally used to mean "straight" or "perpendicular," over time "nyoloha" also came to mean "upwards". | |||
| Swahili | juu | ||
| "Juu" in Swahili comes from the proto-Bantu word */zulu/* 'high'. | |||
| Xhosa | phezulu | ||
| The noun **phezulu** also represents a state of happiness and good fortune in Xhosa traditions. | |||
| Yoruba | soke | ||
| The Yoruba word 'soke' also means to lift something from a lower to a higher position or to raise something to a standing position. | |||
| Zulu | phezulu | ||
| The Zulu word "phezulu" can also refer to a higher or more dominant place, person or thing. | |||
| Bambara | sanfɛ | ||
| Ewe | dzi me | ||
| Kinyarwanda | hejuru | ||
| Lingala | likolo | ||
| Luganda | waggulu | ||
| Sepedi | godimo | ||
| Twi (Akan) | soro | ||
Up in North African & Middle Eastern Languages
| Arabic | فوق | ||
| فوق means "above" in Arabic and comes from a root word meaning "to rise or ascend". | |||
| Hebrew | לְמַעלָה | ||
| לְמַעלָה can refer to the sky in Biblical Hebrew as well as the future in Jewish liturgy. | |||
| Pashto | بره | ||
| "بره" also refers to the number one and "first"} | |||
| Arabic | فوق | ||
| فوق means "above" in Arabic and comes from a root word meaning "to rise or ascend". | |||
Up in Western European Languages
| Albanian | lart | ||
| The word "lart" in Albanian shares an origin with the Latin "altus" and the Albanian "lartësi" (altitude). | |||
| Basque | gora | ||
| The word "gora" in Basque can also mean "top" or "summit" and is cognate with the word "gara" in other Basque languages, which also means "up" or "high". | |||
| Catalan | amunt | ||
| The word "amunt" is also used in the sense of "above" or "top", as in the expression "la muntanya de Montserrat", which means "the mountain of Montserrat". | |||
| Croatian | gore | ||
| Gore has a different meaning in Croatian compared to in English; it also means ‘to burn'. | |||
| Danish | op | ||
| The Danish word 'op' ('up') is cognate with the English word 'up', both deriving from the Proto-Germanic word *uppa. | |||
| Dutch | omhoog | ||
| The Dutch word "omhoog" is a combination of the preposition "om" (around) and the noun "hoog" (high), indicating a movement toward a higher position around something. | |||
| English | up | ||
| The word "up" has many meanings, including vertical direction, a state of greater intensity, and even a slang term for something good. | |||
| French | haut | ||
| The word “haut” comes from the Old French word “halt” and also means “proud” or “arrogant”. | |||
| Frisian | op | ||
| In Frisian, "op" also means "open". | |||
| Galician | cara arriba | ||
| Galician's "cara arriba" derives from Latin "cara ad verticem," which could also mean "in the right way" or "straight ahead." | |||
| German | oben | ||
| In Old High German, 'ovana' (from which 'oben' is derived) meant 'above' or 'on top' and was also used as an adverb meaning 'upwards'. | |||
| Icelandic | upp | ||
| Icelandic 'upp' has no relation to Norwegian and Swedish 'opp' (up), but is cognate to English 'up' (but not 'above') | |||
| Irish | suas | ||
| "Suas" is derived from Proto-Celtic "*sous", meaning "up, above, from below", and is cognate with Latin "sursum" and Welsh "i fyny" | |||
| Italian | su | ||
| The Italian word "su" can also mean "on" or "over" when placed before a noun or pronoun. | |||
| Luxembourgish | erop | ||
| "Erop" comes from the Germanic word "uppa", meaning "on" or "above". | |||
| Maltese | sa | ||
| The word "sa" in Maltese shares its etymology with the word "up" in English, but it also means "higher-up" in status or position. | |||
| Norwegian | opp | ||
| The Norwegian word "opp" is also used figuratively, such as "opp og ned" (up and down) which means to be in an emotional turmoil. | |||
| Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) | acima | ||
| The Portuguese word "acima" originates from the Latin phrase "ad cyma", meaning "towards the summit". | |||
| Scots Gaelic | suas | ||
| The Scots Gaelic word "suas" is cognate with the Welsh word "syth" and the Irish word "suas" or "suasann", all meaning "up" or "above". | |||
| Spanish | arriba | ||
| "Arriba" also serves as an exclamation denoting encouragement or excitement. | |||
| Swedish | upp | ||
| The Swedish word “upp” is often preceded by “åt” to mean “towards”, e.g. “He went towards the top of the mountain/Han gick uppåt berget”. | |||
| Welsh | i fyny | ||
| The Welsh word "i fyny" can also refer to the future or to a higher level of something. | |||
Up in Eastern European Languages
| Belarusian | уверх | ||
| The word "уверх" also means "on" in Belarusian. | |||
| Bosnian | gore | ||
| The word "gore" can also mean "forest" or "mountain" in Bosnian. | |||
| Bulgarian | нагоре | ||
| The word "нагоре" is derived from the Proto-Slavic verb *nagoriti, which meant "to go up" or "to climb" | |||
| Czech | nahoru | ||
| Nahoru is also an informal term for 'drunk'. | |||
| Estonian | üles | ||
| The word "üles" is also used in Estonian to mean "on top of" or "above". | |||
| Finnish | ylös | ||
| The word "ylös" can be traced back to the Proto-Uralic root *yle-, which also means "up" or "high" | |||
| Hungarian | fel | ||
| Hungarian word "fel" can also mean "on", "over", "above", "at the top"} | |||
| Latvian | uz augšu | ||
| "Uz augšu" in Latvian is also used to mean "upwards" and "above". | |||
| Lithuanian | aukštyn | ||
| The word "aukštyn" also means "above" or "higher" in Lithuanian. | |||
| Macedonian | горе | ||
| The Macedonian word "горе" (up) derives from the Proto-Slavic word *gorě, meaning "up" or "high". | |||
| Polish | w górę | ||
| The Polish word "w górę" can also be used to describe an increase or improvement, as in "sytuacja gospodarcza w górę" (the economic situation is improving). | |||
| Romanian | sus | ||
| "Sus" also means "to hang", implying the position of something up in the air. | |||
| Russian | вверх | ||
| The Russian word "вверх" can also mean "upwards" or "in a higher position". | |||
| Serbian | горе | ||
| The word "горе" in Serbian, apart from meaning "up", can also refer to a "mountain" or "uphill". | |||
| Slovak | hore | ||
| The word "hore" in Slovak also means "onward" or "forward". | |||
| Slovenian | gor | ||
| The word "gor" can also mean a small elevated part of terrain or a forest, especially a spruce one, in Slovenian. | |||
| Ukrainian | вгору | ||
| The Ukrainian word "вгору" is a cognate of the Russian word "вверх" and the Polish word "w górę", all of which mean "upwards" or "to a higher place". | |||
Up in South Asian Languages
| Bengali | আপ | ||
| আপ is also used as an honorific pronoun to address someone older or respected. | |||
| Gujarati | ઉપર | ||
| ઉપર, an adverb of place in Gujarati, can also be used as a preposition in the sense of "on top of" or "above". | |||
| Hindi | यूपी | ||
| The word "यूपी" can also mean "above" or "on top of". | |||
| Kannada | ಅಪ್ | ||
| The word "ಅಪ್" can also mean "above", "on top of", or "the top of something." | |||
| Malayalam | മുകളിലേക്ക് | ||
| Marathi | वर | ||
| Marathi word 'वर (var)', which means 'above' in English comes with several connotations and has different meanings in different context | |||
| Nepali | माथि | ||
| The word "माथि" derives from the Sanskrit word "मस्तक" (mastaka), meaning "head" or "crown", hence its meaning of "above" or "on top of". | |||
| Punjabi | ਉੱਪਰ | ||
| The Punjabi word "ਉੱਪਰ" (up) is derived from the Sanskrit word "उपरि" (upari), and also means "above" or "on top of". | |||
| Sinhala (Sinhalese) | ඉහළට | ||
| The word "ඉහළට" ("up") in Sinhala also means "above" or "higher than". | |||
| Tamil | மேலே | ||
| மேலே is used in Tamil as both an adverb and a preposition, and is cognate with Sanskrit ऊपरि (upari), from the root ऊप (ūp), "up". | |||
| Telugu | పైకి | ||
| Urdu | اوپر | ||
| The term "اوپر" is a derivative of the Sanskrit "upari" meaning above, over or on top of. | |||
Up in East Asian Languages
| Chinese (Simplified) | 向上 | ||
| 向上 also means "to progress" or "to improve". | |||
| Chinese (Traditional) | 向上 | ||
| In Chinese, "向上" (up) also means "progressing" or "improving". | |||
| Japanese | アップ | ||
| "アップ" is borrowed from English and also means "completion" or "perfection". | |||
| Korean | 쪽으로 | ||
| The word "쪽으로" also means "direction" or "towards". | |||
| Mongolian | дээш | ||
| Mongolian word дээш, written with Cyrillic characters, derives from Middle Mongol term deǧü. | |||
| Myanmar (Burmese) | တက် | ||
| "တက်" can also mean "to take" in the sense of taking a train or plane. | |||
Up in South East Asian Languages
| Indonesian | naik | ||
| The Indonesian word "naik" also means "to increase," "to grow," or "to be promoted." | |||
| Javanese | munggah | ||
| In Indonesian, | |||
| Khmer | ឡើង | ||
| The Khmer word "ឡើង" also means "to rise," "to increase," or "to ascend." | |||
| Lao | ເຖິງ | ||
| The word "ເຖິງ" is related to the Chinese word "到", which can mean "at the end of" | |||
| Malay | naik | ||
| The word 'naik' also means 'to ascend', 'to increase', or 'to go higher in rank' in Malay. | |||
| Thai | ขึ้น | ||
| "ขึ้น" also means "to ride" in Thai, such as "ขึ้นรถ" for "to get on a vehicle". | |||
| Vietnamese | lên | ||
| The word "lên" also has alternate meanings such as "to go up," "to climb," "to rise," "to ascend," and "to advance." | |||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | pataas | ||
Up in Central Asian Languages
| Azerbaijani | yuxarı | ||
| "Yuxarı" is a word with a rich history, meaning both "up" in a physical sense and "superior" or "more advanced" in a qualitative sense. | |||
| Kazakh | жоғары | ||
| "Жоғары" can also mean "superior" or "higher" in terms of rank or quality. | |||
| Kyrgyz | өйдө | ||
| 'Өй' in 'өйдө' stems from the noun 'үй' ('house'), while '-дө' is a locative suffix. Hence, 'өйдө' literally means 'in/on/at the house' and can be figuratively used to describe an elevated position. | |||
| Tajik | боло | ||
| The word “боло” also means “above” or “top” and originates from the Proto-Indo-European word “*bʰel-” meaning “to shine.” | |||
| Turkmen | ýokary | ||
| Uzbek | yuqoriga | ||
| The word "yuqoriga" can also mean "over" or "above" in Uzbek. | |||
| Uyghur | up | ||
Up in Pacific Languages
| Hawaiian | i luna | ||
| In Hawaiian, "i luna" also means "on the mountain side", "to windward", or "in the uplands". | |||
| Maori | ki runga | ||
| "Ki runga" can also mean "to the north," with its opposite being "ki raro" ("south"). | |||
| Samoan | i luga | ||
| The Samoan word for "up" can also be used to mean "to ascend" or "to rise." | |||
| Tagalog (Filipino) | pataas | ||
| The word 'pataas' in Tagalog also means 'to rise' or 'to ascend'. | |||
Up in American Indigenous Languages
| Aymara | alaya | ||
| Guarani | yvate | ||
Up in International Languages
| Esperanto | supren | ||
| The word "Supren" can also mean "supreme" or "highest" in Esperanto, derived from the Latin "supernus" meaning "above". | |||
| Latin | autem | ||
| Autem is often used in the sense of "but", "however", or "moreover". | |||
Up in Others Languages
| Greek | πάνω | ||
| The word "πάνω" in Greek can also mean "on top of" or "above". | |||
| Hmong | up | ||
| In Hmong, the word "up" also means "to climb" or "to ascend". | |||
| Kurdish | bi jorve | ||
| The Kurdish word "bi jorve" is also used as an intensifier, meaning "very" or "completely". | |||
| Turkish | yukarı | ||
| "Yukarı" can mean not only "up" but also "higher" or "upper". | |||
| Xhosa | phezulu | ||
| The noun **phezulu** also represents a state of happiness and good fortune in Xhosa traditions. | |||
| Yiddish | אַרויף | ||
| The Yiddish word אַרויף shares a root with the Hebrew ערב, meaning "evening" or "sunset", which is when the sun rises in the sky. | |||
| Zulu | phezulu | ||
| The Zulu word "phezulu" can also refer to a higher or more dominant place, person or thing. | |||
| Assamese | ওপৰত | ||
| Aymara | alaya | ||
| Bhojpuri | ऊपर | ||
| Dhivehi | މަތި | ||
| Dogri | उप्पर | ||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | pataas | ||
| Guarani | yvate | ||
| Ilocano | ngato | ||
| Krio | ɔp | ||
| Kurdish (Sorani) | سەروو | ||
| Maithili | ऊपर | ||
| Meiteilon (Manipuri) | ꯃꯊꯛ | ||
| Mizo | chunglam | ||
| Oromo | ol | ||
| Odia (Oriya) | ଅପ୍ | ||
| Quechua | hanay | ||
| Sanskrit | उपरि | ||
| Tatar | өскә | ||
| Tigrinya | ሓፍ | ||
| Tsonga | henhla | ||
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