Weight in Different Languages
Discover 'Weight' in 134 Languages: Dive into Translations, Hear Pronunciations, and Uncover Cultural Insights.
Updated on March 6, 2024
Weight is a concept that carries great significance in our daily lives, often determining the amount of effort we put into our actions and the results we achieve. From a cultural perspective, weight has been a topic of interest across various societies, influencing perceptions of beauty, health, and strength. The word 'weight' itself has been translated into different languages, reflecting the universality of this concept and the diversity of human cultures.
Interestingly, the English word 'weight' comes from the Old English 'gewicht', which means 'a balance, a weight'. This term has evolved over time, yet its importance in our lives remains unchanged. Understanding the translation of 'weight' in different languages can provide us with valuable insights into how other cultures perceive and interact with this concept.
For instance, in Spanish, 'weight' is translated as 'peso', while in French, it is 'poids'. In German, the word is 'Gewicht', and in Japanese, it is 'お荷物' (onimoji). These translations not only help us communicate effectively with people from different linguistic backgrounds but also offer a glimpse into the cultural nuances associated with the word.
Weight
Weight in Sub-Saharan African Languages
| Afrikaans | gewig | ||
| The Afrikaans word "gewig" is derived from the Dutch word "gewicht" and also means "importance" or "significance". | |||
| Amharic | ክብደት | ||
| "ክብደት" is also used in the figurative sense, like "the heaviness of the heart" or "the burden of sin." | |||
| Hausa | nauyi | ||
| The word 'nauyi' also means 'load' or 'burden' in Hausa. | |||
| Igbo | ibu ibu | ||
| "Ibu ibu" also means "load" when it has a high tone. | |||
| Malagasy | lanja | ||
| The Malagasy word "lanja" shares linguistic roots with the words for "heavy" in Proto-Austronesian and Proto-Malayo-Polynesian languages. | |||
| Nyanja (Chichewa) | kulemera | ||
| Shona | uremu | ||
| The Shona word 'uremu' can also refer to the sensation of being weighed down or burdened. | |||
| Somali | miisaanka | ||
| The word "miisaanka" can also mean "balance" or "scale" in Somali. | |||
| Sesotho | boima | ||
| In Sesotho, boima is associated with the concept of strength and masculinity, as well as having a sense of authority. | |||
| Swahili | uzito | ||
| Swahili 'uzito' derives from 'kuzita' ('to be heavy'). | |||
| Xhosa | ubunzima | ||
| "Isibunzima's' primary meaning is weight; however, it can also describe hardship or a burden." | |||
| Yoruba | iwuwo | ||
| "Iwúwo" refers to either "heavier" or "the one bearing" in the Yoruba context. | |||
| Zulu | isisindo | ||
| 'Isisindo' is derived from the verb 'sinda', meaning to press down or weigh. | |||
| Bambara | girinya | ||
| Ewe | kpekpeme | ||
| Kinyarwanda | uburemere | ||
| Lingala | kilo | ||
| Luganda | obuzito | ||
| Sepedi | boima | ||
| Twi (Akan) | muduro | ||
Weight in North African & Middle Eastern Languages
| Arabic | وزن | ||
| The word وزن (pron. wazn) in Arabic derives from the root word و ز ن (letters waw, zayn, and noon), which means "to be balanced, equal, or proportional" | |||
| Hebrew | מִשׁקָל | ||
| The Hebrew word "מִשׁקָל" also means "balance", "measure", or "amount". | |||
| Pashto | وزن | ||
| The word "وزن" (weight) is derived from Arabic and has a secondary meaning of "measure" or "value" in Pashto. | |||
| Arabic | وزن | ||
| The word وزن (pron. wazn) in Arabic derives from the root word و ز ن (letters waw, zayn, and noon), which means "to be balanced, equal, or proportional" | |||
Weight in Western European Languages
| Albanian | pesha | ||
| The Albanian word "pesha" derives from the Proto-Indo-European root "*peh₂-/*peh₃-", meaning "to weigh" or "to be heavy". | |||
| Basque | pisua | ||
| The word "pisua" in Basque can also refer to "value, worth" or "importance." | |||
| Catalan | pes | ||
| In Catalan, the word "pes" also means "foot" and originates from the Latin word "pes, pedis". | |||
| Croatian | težina | ||
| "Težina" also means "difficulty" in Croatian, which derives from the Proto-Indo-European word "*teg-," meaning "to press, tighten." | |||
| Danish | vægt | ||
| The word "vægt" derives from the Proto-Germanic word "*wagto" and its cognates include "weight" and "weigh" in English, "gewicht" in German, and "vækt" in Norwegian and Swedish. | |||
| Dutch | gewicht | ||
| The Dutch word | |||
| English | weight | ||
| The word "weight" also refers to the importance or significance of something. | |||
| French | poids | ||
| In 16th century French, "poids" could also mean the chest where weights were kept.} | |||
| Frisian | gewicht | ||
| In Frisian, "gewicht" can also refer to a person's importance or influence. | |||
| Galician | peso | ||
| The word 'peso' in Galician also refers to a type of fish, a large weight used to balance a scale, and a unit of currency in Chile, Colombia, Cuba, the Dominican Republic, Mexico, and other countries. | |||
| German | gewicht | ||
| The word "Gewicht" can also refer to the importance or influence of something. | |||
| Icelandic | þyngd | ||
| The Icelandic word "þyngd" shares its root with "þengja" meaning "to tighten" and "þungur" meaning "heavy". | |||
| Irish | meáchan | ||
| The Irish word "meáchan" is derived from the Old Irish word "meicc", meaning "son" or "seed". | |||
| Italian | peso | ||
| "Peso" also means "Mexican peso", which takes its name from the Spanish word _peso_ (weight), which in turn comes from the Latin word _pensum_ (payment). | |||
| Luxembourgish | gewiicht | ||
| "Gewiicht" is likely derived from the Proto-Germanic word "wihti", meaning "importance" or "value". | |||
| Maltese | piż | ||
| The word "piż" in Maltese comes from the Arabic word "وَزَن" (wazn), meaning "weight" or "measure", and is also related to the Italian "peso" and Spanish "peso" (both of which mean "weight"). | |||
| Norwegian | vekt | ||
| The word "vekt" in Norwegian is derived from the Old Norse word "vikti", which referred to a unit of measure for weight. | |||
| Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) | peso | ||
| In Portuguese, the term "peso" also signifies the weight of monetary currency, with "peso" being the unit of currency in many Spanish-speaking countries. | |||
| Scots Gaelic | cuideam | ||
| "Cuideam" is a cognate of Middle Irish "cuinde" meaning "measure, dimension, quantity" and likely descends from Proto-Celtic "*kʷindos" (measure, weighing). | |||
| Spanish | peso | ||
| "Peso" is derived from the Latin "pensum," meaning "payment," and refers to the weight of coins, as their value was determined by their weight in precious metals. | |||
| Swedish | vikt | ||
| In Swedish, "vikt" can also mean "importance" or "value" of something. | |||
| Welsh | pwysau | ||
| The Welsh word "pwysau" originally referred to the pressure of fluids in addition to its current meaning of "weight". | |||
Weight in Eastern European Languages
| Belarusian | вага | ||
| The word "вага" in Belarusian is cognate to the Latin "vagus", meaning "wandering", and in the context of measurement, it refers to the balance or equilibrium of a scale. | |||
| Bosnian | težina | ||
| In the 16th century, the word "težina" also meant "punishment" in Bosnian. | |||
| Bulgarian | тегло | ||
| The word "тегло" also means "importance, significance" in Bulgarian. | |||
| Czech | hmotnost | ||
| Czech "hmotnost" can also mean "gravitational force" or "substance". | |||
| Estonian | kaal | ||
| In addition to weight, the word "kaal" (weight) also refers to scales or the process of weighing in Estonian. | |||
| Finnish | paino | ||
| "Paino" as a unit of measurement derives from the old Russian "pad"́ (падь), which was a unit of weight equal to roughly 16 kilograms. | |||
| Hungarian | súly | ||
| "Súly" also means "gravity" and comes from the Proto-Slavic word "tęgъ", meaning "heavy". | |||
| Latvian | svars | ||
| The Latvian word "svars" is a cognate of the Germanic word "schwer" (heavy), which is also related to the English word "severe". | |||
| Lithuanian | svoris | ||
| The word "svoris" in Lithuanian is derived from the Proto-Indo-European root *swer- meaning "heavy" or "to weigh". | |||
| Macedonian | тежина | ||
| The word "Тежина" can also mean "the heaviness of a situation or responsibility" in Macedonian. | |||
| Polish | waga | ||
| "Waga" also means "scales" - a device used to weigh things. | |||
| Romanian | greutate | ||
| The Romanian word "greutate" also means "difficulty" or "importance". | |||
| Russian | вес | ||
| In Old Russian, "вес" meant "joy," "merrymaking," and "fun." | |||
| Serbian | тежина | ||
| Alternate meanings of "тежина" include heaviness, difficulty, and importance. | |||
| Slovak | váha | ||
| The word "váha" in Slovak can also refer to a scale or balance used for measuring weight. | |||
| Slovenian | utež | ||
| "Utež", meaning weight, is derived from old German "uht" (dawn) referring to night-time weighing for better accuracy. | |||
| Ukrainian | вага | ||
| Ukrainian word "вага" (weight) also means "scales" or "balance". | |||
Weight in South Asian Languages
| Bengali | ওজন | ||
| ওজন also means 'importance' or 'significance' | |||
| Gujarati | વજન | ||
| In addition to weight, 'વજન' can also refer to authority, importance, or significance. | |||
| Hindi | वजन | ||
| "वजन" also means 'importance' or 'significance'. | |||
| Kannada | ತೂಕ | ||
| The word "ತೂಕ" (weight) also refers to a unit of measurement (equivalent to 5 grams) used in Karnataka, India. | |||
| Malayalam | ഭാരം | ||
| The word "ഭാരം" ("weight") in Malayalam also refers to a "burden" or "responsibility". | |||
| Marathi | वजन | ||
| The Marathi word "वजन" ("weight") is derived from the Sanskrit "वाजन" ("strength" or "heaviness") and also has the connotation of "reputation" or "influence". | |||
| Nepali | तौल | ||
| The word "तौल" is also used to refer to the act of comparing or measuring something. | |||
| Punjabi | ਭਾਰ | ||
| The word "ਭਾਰ" can also refer to the burden of responsibility or the importance of something. | |||
| Sinhala (Sinhalese) | බර | ||
| The word "බර" also means "importance" or "significance" in Sinhala. | |||
| Tamil | எடை | ||
| எடை ('weight') also refers to the measure of a person's fate, or their 'lot in life', as in the phrase அதிர்ஷ்ட எடை ('luck's weight'). | |||
| Telugu | బరువు | ||
| In addition to its primary meaning of "weight," "బరువు" can also refer to "importance" or "seriousness." | |||
| Urdu | وزن | ||
| "وزن" can also mean "ponder" or "consider" in Urdu. | |||
Weight in East Asian Languages
| Chinese (Simplified) | 重量 | ||
| "重量"也指沉重或重要的事物。 | |||
| Chinese (Traditional) | 重量 | ||
| The character 重量, meaning "weight," is formed by combining 重, meaning "heavy," and 量, meaning "measure". | |||
| Japanese | 重量 | ||
| "重量" can also refer to the force exerted on an object by gravity or acceleration, or the relative importance or influence of something. | |||
| Korean | 무게 | ||
| Korean 무게 derives from Middle Mongolian möge 'weight', from Proto-Mongolic *möge- 'heavy'. | |||
| Mongolian | жин | ||
| The Mongolian word "жин" shares its root with the word "жинх" (to weigh). | |||
| Myanmar (Burmese) | အလေးချိန် | ||
Weight in South East Asian Languages
| Indonesian | bobot | ||
| The Indonesian word 'bobot' can also refer to a person's character, significance, or influence. | |||
| Javanese | bobote | ||
| In Javanese, "bobote" also means "to be carried" or "to lift something heavy" | |||
| Khmer | ទំងន់ | ||
| "ទំងន់" also refers to "burden", "responsibility", or "the burden of proof". | |||
| Lao | ນ້ ຳ ໜັກ | ||
| Malay | berat badan | ||
| "Berat badan" also means "heavy heart" in Malay. | |||
| Thai | น้ำหนัก | ||
| Literally “heavy water,” Thai น้ำหนัก (ná-màak) is a compound noun composed of น้ำ (ná-màak) "water" + the classifier หนัก (nák) "heavy. | |||
| Vietnamese | cân nặng | ||
| "Cân nặng" literally means "scales" which are used for the measurement of weight | |||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | timbang | ||
Weight in Central Asian Languages
| Azerbaijani | çəki | ||
| "Çəki" can also mean "power, strength" in Azerbaijani. | |||
| Kazakh | салмағы | ||
| The word "салмағы" can also refer to the importance or significance of something. | |||
| Kyrgyz | салмагы | ||
| The words "салмагы" ("weight") and "салмак" ("to count") in Kyrgyz both derive from the Old Turkic word "sal- " ("to measure"). | |||
| Tajik | вазн | ||
| The word “вазн” (“weight”) in Tajik, is related to the Persian word “وزن” which is derived from the Arabic word “وزن” meaning “weight” or “portion”. | |||
| Turkmen | agramy | ||
| Uzbek | vazn | ||
| In Uzbek, "vazn" also means "importance" or "significance" in a more abstract sense. | |||
| Uyghur | ئېغىرلىقى | ||
Weight in Pacific Languages
| Hawaiian | kaupaona | ||
| The word 'kaupaona' is derived from 'kau', meaning 'to carry', and 'paona', meaning 'burden'. | |||
| Maori | taumaha | ||
| In addition to its literal meaning of "burden," "taumaha" can also refer to "pressure," "grief," or "anguish." | |||
| Samoan | mamafa | ||
| Mamafa is also used to describe a situation or task that is arduous or burdensome. | |||
| Tagalog (Filipino) | bigat | ||
| "Bigat" also means heaviness in the heart or mind. | |||
Weight in American Indigenous Languages
| Aymara | pisu | ||
| Guarani | pohýi | ||
Weight in International Languages
| Esperanto | pezo | ||
| The word "pezo" is also used in Spanish and Portuguese to mean "currency" | |||
| Latin | pondus | ||
| "Pondus" comes from the Proto-Indo-European root "*pend-" meaning "to weigh or hang". | |||
Weight in Others Languages
| Greek | βάρος | ||
| The Greek word "βάρος" (weight) also carries metaphorical meanings such as "responsibility," "burden," and "importance."} | |||
| Hmong | qhov hnyav | ||
| Kurdish | pîvan | ||
| The word "pîvan" in Kurdish derives from the Middle Persian word "pîman" meaning "measure" or "standard". It also has the alternate meaning of "balance" or "equilibrium". | |||
| Turkish | ağırlık | ||
| The word "ağırlık" can also refer to the act of weighting or the state of being weighted. | |||
| Xhosa | ubunzima | ||
| "Isibunzima's' primary meaning is weight; however, it can also describe hardship or a burden." | |||
| Yiddish | וואָג | ||
| The Yiddish word "וואָג" (vqg) is cognate with the German word "Wage" (balance) and the English word "weigh". | |||
| Zulu | isisindo | ||
| 'Isisindo' is derived from the verb 'sinda', meaning to press down or weigh. | |||
| Assamese | ওজন | ||
| Aymara | pisu | ||
| Bhojpuri | वजन | ||
| Dhivehi | ބަރުދަން | ||
| Dogri | भार | ||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | timbang | ||
| Guarani | pohýi | ||
| Ilocano | kinadagsen | ||
| Krio | we | ||
| Kurdish (Sorani) | کێش | ||
| Maithili | वजन | ||
| Meiteilon (Manipuri) | ꯑꯔꯨꯝꯕ | ||
| Mizo | buk | ||
| Oromo | ulfaatina | ||
| Odia (Oriya) | ଓଜନ | ||
| Quechua | llasay | ||
| Sanskrit | भारः | ||
| Tatar | авырлык | ||
| Tigrinya | ክብደት | ||
| Tsonga | ntikelo | ||