ma - synonyms, antonyms, definitions

ma

synonyms, antonyms, definitions, examples & translations of ma in English

English Online Dictionary. What means ma‎? What does ma mean?

English

Etymology 1

Noun

ma (plural mas)

(astronomy, usually in the plural) Abbreviation of milli-arcsecond.

Etymology 2

The sound, which parents interpret as a reference to themselves, is very commonly made by infants. For more on the linguistic process whereby infants' monosyllables are tied to ancient word roots for parents, see mama, papa, mātēr, and patēr.

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /mɑː/
Rhymes: -ɑː

Noun

ma (plural mas)

(colloquial, and in direct address) mother, mama
Coordinate term: pa
(colloquial) The landlady of a theater.

Usage notes

Often capitalized when used to refer to a specific person.

Synonyms

Translations

References

(landlady of a theater): 1984, Jonathon Green, Newspeak.

Etymology 3

Abbreviation.

Noun

May.

Usage notes

Usually capitalised as Ma.

Etymology 4

From my.

Determiner

(dialectal, informal) Alternative spelling of my

Etymology 5

From Cantonese 嘛 (maa³, “of course!”).

Particle

(Manglish, Singlish) Alternative form of mah

Etymology 6

From Mandarin 嗎／吗 (ma).

Particle

(Chinese Malaysian and Singaporean) Alternative spelling of mah

References

Anagrams

A&M, A. M., am, A. & M., AM, 'am, Am., Am, a.m., a. m., A.M.

Acehnese

Noun

mother

References

2007. The UCLA Phonetics Lab Archive. Los Angeles, CA: UCLA Department of Linguistics.

Afar

Alternative forms

máa

Etymology

From Proto-Afroasiatic *ma, *mi-.

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /ˈma/ [ˈmʌ]

Determiner

má (bound form maa-)

what? what kind of?

Derived terms

Related terms

macá (“what?”)

References

E. M. Parker, R. J. Hayward (1985) “ma”, in An Afar-English-French dictionary (with Grammatical Notes in English), University of London, →ISBN

Afrikaans

Pronunciation

Noun

ma (plural ma's)

mom, mother

Synonyms

mamma
moeder

Antonyms

Derived terms

ouma

Ajië

Conjunction

References

Leenhardt, M. (1935) Vocabulaire et grammaire de la langue Houaïlou, Paris: Institut d'ethnologie. Cited in: "Houaïlou" in Greenhill, S.J., Blust, R., & Gray, R.D. (2008). The Austronesian Basic Vocabulary Database: From Bioinformatics to Lexomics. Evolutionary Bioinformatics, 4:271–283.
Leenhardt, M. (1946) Langues et dialectes de l'Austro-Mèlanèsie. Cited in: "Ajiø" in Greenhill, S.J., Blust, R., & Gray, R.D. (2008). The Austronesian Basic Vocabulary Database: From Bioinformatics to Lexomics. Evolutionary Bioinformatics, 4:271–283.

Akkadian

Etymology

Unknown. Compare Ge'ez -መ (-mma) (emphatic enclitic).

Pronunciation

(Old Babylonian) IPA^(key): /ma/

Particle

(enclitic) and, but
(enclitic) used to stress single words, especially the predicate of nominal clauses
𒌓𒈠𒈠 [ūmamma] ― u₄-ma-ma ― this very day

Alternative forms

me, mu

References

Black, Jeremy, George, Andrew, Postgate, Nicholas (2000) “-ma”, in A Concise Dictionary of Akkadian, 2nd corrected edition, Wiesbaden: Otto Harrassowitz Verlag

Alemannic German

Alternative forms

mà, Maa, Mann, Mànn, mo

Etymology

From Middle High German man, from Old High German man, from Proto-Germanic *mann-.

Noun

ma m (Gressoney, Issime)

man
husband

References

Patuzzi, Umberto, ed., (2013) Luserna / Lusérn: Le nostre parole / Ünsarne börtar / Unsere Wörter [Our Words], Luserna, Italy: Comitato unitario delle isole linguistiche storiche germaniche in Italia / Einheitskomitee der historischen deutschen Sprachinseln in Italien

Anaang

Verb

má

to love

Anguthimri

Noun

(Mpakwithi) man

Verb

(transitive, Mpakwithi) to hear
(transitive, Mpakwithi) to listen

References

Terry Crowley, The Mpakwithi dialect of Anguthimri (1981), page 187

'Are'are

Conjunction

References

Kateřina Naitoro, A Sketch Grammar of 'Are'are: The Sound System and Morpho-Syntax (2013)

Aromanian

Etymology 1

From Latin magis. Compare Romanian mai.

Adverb

Etymology 2

From Italian ma.

Conjunction

but, yet
if

Asturian

Alternative forms

mamá

Etymology

See madre

Noun

ma f (plural mas)

mother
Synonym: madre

Bambara

Etymology 1

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): [màꜜà]

Noun

sea cow

Etymology 2

Verb

ma (auxiliary)

(verbal auxiliary) marks an action which is not accomplished

References

2007. The UCLA Phonetics Lab Archive. Los Angeles, CA: UCLA Department of Linguistics.

Bavarian

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /mɑ/

Etymology 1

Unstressed form of mia

Pronoun

me (dative)
we

Etymology 2

From Middle High German man, from Old High German man, from Proto-West Germanic *mann, from Proto-Germanic *mann- (“person”). Compare German man and Dutch men.

Pronoun

one, you (indefinite pronoun; construed as a third-person singular)
Ma waß nia, wås an erwoat. ― You never know what to expect.
they, people (people in general)
Des sågt ma hoid a so. ― That's just the way people say it.
they (some unspecified group of people)

Breton

Pronoun

Interjection

good!

Conjunction

that
if

Synonyms

Cameroon Pidgin

Determiner

Alternative spelling of my (“1st person singular possessive determiner”)

Caolan

Pronunciation

Noun

horse

Catalan

Etymology

From Vulgar Latin *mam, reduced form of Latin meam.

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): (Central, Balearic) [mə]
IPA^(key): (Valencia) [ma]
Homophone: mà

Determiner

feminine singular of mon

Chamorro

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /mæ/

Pronoun

they

Usage notes

ma is used solely as a subject of a transitive verb, while siha is used either as a subject of an intransitive verb or an object of a transitive verb.

References

Donald M. Topping (1973) Chamorro Reference Grammar‎^[1], Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press.

Champenois

Alternative forms

(Langrois) mo

Etymology

Inherited from Old French mes, Latin magis.

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /ma/

Noun

(Troyen, Langrois) but

References

Daunay, Jean (1998) Parlers de Champagne : Pour un classement thématique du vocabulaire des anciens parlers de Champagne (Aube - Marne - Haute-Marne)‎^[2] (in French), Rumilly-lés-Vaudes
Baudoin, Alphonse (1885) Glossaire de la forêt de Clairvaux‎^[3] (in French), Troyes

Cimbrian

Etymology 1

From Middle High German māne, from Old High German māno, from Proto-West Germanic *mānō, from Proto-Germanic *mēnô (“moon”).

Noun

ma m

(Tredici Comuni) moon

Alternative forms

maano, må

References

Patuzzi, Umberto, ed., (2013) Luserna / Lusérn: Le nostre parole / Ünsarne börtar / Unsere Wörter [Our Words], Luserna, Italy: Comitato unitario delle isole linguistiche storiche germaniche in Italia / Einheitskomitee der historischen deutschen Sprachinseln in Italien

Etymology 2

An unstressed pronunciation of månn (“man”).

Pronoun

(Luserna) one, you (indefinite pronoun)

References

“ma” in Cimbrian, Ladin, Mòcheno: Getting to know 3 peoples. 2015. Servizio minoranze linguistiche locali della Provincia autonoma di Trento, Trento, Italy.

Coatepec Nahuatl

Noun

hand.

Dama (Sierra Leone)

Etymology

Related to widespread words for "mother" and related respectful terms for women across West Africa.

Noun

mother-in-law

References

Dalby, T. D. P. (1963) “The extinct language of Dama”, in Sierra Leone Language Review, volume 2, Freetown: Fourah Bay College, pages 50–54

Dorze

Noun

bee (insect)

Dutch

Pronunciation

Rhymes: -aː

Noun

ma f (plural ma's, diminutive maatje n)

(informal) mother

Synonyms

mama
moeder

Descendants

Negerhollands: maa

Efik

Verb

má

love, like

Estonian

Etymology

Abbreviation of mina, from Proto-Finnic *minä, from Proto-Uralic *minä.

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /mɑ/

Pronoun

ma (genitive mu, partitive mind, long form mina)

I (1st person singular personal pronoun)

Usage notes

Used unstressed in a sentence; when the pronoun is stressed, mina is used.

Declension

Finnish

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /ˈmɑ/, [ˈmɑ̝]
Rhymes: -ɑ
Hyphenation^(key): ma

Etymology 1

Noun

Abbreviation of maanantai (“Monday”).

Etymology 2

See minä; developed through contraction. Compare Estonian ma.

Pronoun

ma (poetic, archaic)

(personal) I

Declension

Other forms than the nominative generally align with mä.

Synonyms

minä (standard Finnish; see it for full list)

Franco-Provençal

Determiner

feminine singular of mon

French

Etymology

From Old French ma, from Latin meam.

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /ma/

Determiner

ma f

feminine singular of mon

Related terms

Descendants

Louisiana Creole: mâ

Friulian

Etymology

From Latin magis.

Conjunction

German

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /ma/, [mä], [mɐ]

Adverb

(colloquial) Pronunciation spelling of mal.

Havasupai-Walapai-Yavapai

Pronoun

2nd-person singular pronoun: you
2nd-person plural pronoun: you
2nd-person singular possessive pronoun: your
2nd-person plural possessive pronoun: your

Hawaiian

Etymology

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /ma/, [mə]

Preposition

in, at

Hungarian

Etymology

Probably related to más.

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): [ˈmɒ]
Rhymes: -mɒ

Adverb

today
Synonym: (folksy) máma

Coordinate terms: holnap, tegnap
(attributively, before any time of day) this …… (morning etc.), to-…… (as in “tonight”)
ma reggel/délelőtt ― this morning

ma délután ― this afternoon

ma este ― this evening

ma éjjel/éjszaka ― tonight

ma hajnalban, délben, éjfélkor ― at dawn, noon, midnight today

Noun

ma (usually uncountable, plural mák)

(usually preceded by the definite article “a”) today (the present time period; nowadays)

Declension

The suffixed singular forms máig, mára, mához, máról, and mától are common, while mát, mának, mával, máért, mában, mánál, mába, and mából occur mostly in a figurative sense, referring to the present time. The phrase a mai nap is commonly used in its literal sense, adding suffixes to nap instead of this term. Its plural forms are virtually non-existent.

Its (single- and multiple-possession) possessive forms are hardly if ever used.

Derived terms

Related terms

más

Ido

Etymology

Borrowed from French mais, Italian ma, Portuguese and Spanish mas, all from Latin magis, from Proto-Indo-European *méǵh₂s.

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /ma/

Conjunction

Synonyms

sed (archaic)

Interlingua

Etymology

From Italian ma.

Conjunction

Istriot

Etymology

From Latin magis.

Conjunction

Italian

Alternative forms

mà (misspelling or obsolete)

Etymology

From Latin magis.

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /ˈma/^*, /ˈma/
Rhymes: -a
Hyphenation: mà

Conjunction

Noun

ma f

Abbreviation of mamma.

Interjection

(informal, emphatic) indicates emotion or emphasis
Ma che carino! ― Oh, how cute!
(informal) used to introduce a new topic or a question
Ma...tu sei di Roma? ― So...you're from Rome?

Japanese

Romanization

The hiragana syllable ま (ma) or the katakana syllable マ (ma) in Hepburn romanization.

Jarawa

Etymology

Cognate to Önge mi (“I; me”).

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /ma/

Pronoun

me; us (singular and plural first-person pronoun in the accusative case)

Usage notes

The pronoun mi can also be used in the accusative case, but it is less common than ma. When used in possessive constructions, the choice of pronoun is largely determined by vowel harmony.

References

Kumar, Pramod (2012) Descriptive and Typological Study of Jarawa^[5] (PhD). Jawaharlal Nehru University. Page 76—85.

Kabyle

Conjunction

Kavalan

Adverb

only

Noun

daddy; father (term of address)

Keoru-Ahia

Noun

water

References

Karl J. Franklin, Comparative Wordlist 1 of the Gulf District and adjacent areas (1975), page 67

Kikuyu

Etymology 1

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /mǎꜜ/

As for Tonal Class, Benson (1964) classifies this term into Class 3 with a monosyllabic stem, together with rũkũ, and so on.

(Kiambu)
- (Limuru) As for Tonal Class, Yukawa (1981) classifies this term into a group including baba, guka, gũtũ, mũguĩ, mũtwe, nyamũ, ruo, rũhĩ (pl. hĩ), rũkũ (pl. ngũ), taata (“my aunt”), ũta (pl. mota), ũthiũ (pl. mothiũ), and so on.

Noun

truth

Adverb

truly

Etymology 2

Particle

(for class 6) of

References

Ladino

Etymology

From Old Spanish mas, from Latin magis.

Conjunction

ma (Latin spelling)

but
Synonym: ama
why

Lala (South Africa)

Etymology

From Proto-Bantu *-jɪ́ma.

Verb

-má

to stand

Lhao Vo

Etymology

Cognate with Lashi muì and Burmese အမွေ (a.mwe).

Noun

inheritance
heirloom

References

Dr. Ola Hanson, A Dictionary of the Kachin Language (1906).

Ligurian

Conjunction

Linngithigh

Etymology

From Proto-Paman *pama.

Noun

ma (ergative mal, dative maw)

man, person

Livonian

Alternative forms

minā

Etymology

Shorter form of minā.

Pronoun

I; first person pronoun, referring to the speaker

Declension

References

Renāte Blumberga, Tapio Mäkeläinen, Karl Pajusalu (2013), Lībieši: vēsture, valoda un kultūra, Rīga: Līvõ Kultūr sidām, →ISBN

Lower Sorbian

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): [ma]

Verb

third-person singular present of měś

Maltese

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /maː/
Usually unstressed and then automatically shortened to /ma/.
Homophone: ma’

Etymology 1

From Arabic مَا (mā, “not”).

Adverb

not; used to negate verbs and pronominal adverbs
Illum ma nixrobx. ― I do not drink today.

Qatt ma nixrob. ― I never drink. / I do not ever drink.

Usage notes

Generally used together with the negative ending -x attached to the verb or pronominal adverb. This ending is absent, however, when another negative word is used, such as qatt (“never”), ebda (“no, none”), ħadd (“nobody”), xejn (“nothing”).

Etymology 2

From Arabic مَا (mā, “what”).

Pronoun

(relative) Alternative form of li (“who, which, that”), used in some fossiled expressions
(obsolete, with comparative adjective) how (as in “how beautiful is...”)
Synonym: kemm

Derived terms

Mandarin

Romanization

ma (ma⁵ / ma⁰, Zhuyin ˙ㄇㄚ)

Hanyu Pinyin reading of 么
Hanyu Pinyin reading of 嗎 / 吗
Hanyu Pinyin reading of 嘛
Hanyu Pinyin reading of 㕰

Nonstandard spelling of mā.
Nonstandard spelling of má.
Nonstandard spelling of mǎ.
Nonstandard spelling of mà.

Usage notes

Transcriptions of Mandarin into the Latin script often do not distinguish between the critical tonal differences employed in the Mandarin language, using words such as this one without indication of tone.

Maonan

Noun

Maricopa

Noun

milk

Mbyá Guaraní

Adverb

already

Particle

separates the topic from the rest of the sentence.

Middle English

Pronoun

Alternative form of man (“one, you”)

Mursi

Etymology

Cognate with Suri ma.

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /mà/, [mà]
Hyphenation: ma

Noun

ma (Ethiopic script ማ)

water
river

References

David Turton, Moges Yigezu, Olisarali Olibui (2008) “ma”, in Mursi-English-Amharic dictionary, →ISBN, page 117
Firew Girma Worku (2020) A grammar of Mursi, page 123

Neapolitan

Etymology

From Latin magis. Compare Italian ma, French mais.

Conjunction

Nefamese

Etymology

From Assamese মা (ma), Early Assamese মাৱ (mawo), from Prakrit 𑀫𑀸𑀬𑀸 (māyā), from Sanskrit माता (mātā).

Noun

mother, mom

Nigerian Pidgin

Etymology

From English my.

Determiner

ma (with tonal diacritic: má)

North Frisian

Preposition

(Mooring) with

Northern Ndebele

Etymology

From Proto-Bantu *-jɪ́ma.

Verb

-má

to stand

Inflection

This verb needs an inflection-table template.

Old Czech

Etymology

Derived from the 1st person dual suffix -ma, which itself is a neologism, found in 15th century texts, derived from the 1st person dual suffix -va under the influence of the 1st person plural suffices -m/-me/-my. There aren't many attestations of this pronoun.

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): (13^th CE) /ˈma/
IPA^(key): (15^th CE) /ˈma/

Pronoun

(rare) we two (first person dual)
Synonyms: vě, va

Declension

References

Jan Gebauer (1903–1916) “ma”, in Slovník staročeský (in Czech), Prague: Česká grafická společnost "unie", Česká akademie císaře Františka Josefa pro vědy, slovesnost a umění

Old English

Etymology

From Proto-Germanic *maiz. Cognate with Old Frisian mā, Old Saxon mēr, Old Dutch mēr, Old High German mēr, Old Norse meir, Gothic 𐌼𐌰𐌹𐍃 (mais).

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /mɑː/

Adverb

mā

more
- late 9th century, King Alfred's translation of Boethius' Metres of Boethius, lines 85-89
- The Life of Saint Margaret
further
- late 9th century, King Alfred's translation of Boethius' The Consolation of Philosophy
instead, rather

Adjective

mā (indeclinable)

more (often + genitive)
- late 10th century, Ælfric, "Saint Maur, Abbot"

Usage notes

The expected comparative and superlative forms of mā, māra and mǣst, occur, but are traditionally considered to be suppletive forms of miċel instead.

Old French

Etymology

From Latin meam.

Determiner

ma f (masculine mon, plural mes)

my (first-person singular possessive)

Descendants

French: ma

Old Frisian

Pronoun

Old Irish

Conjunction

Alternative spelling of má

Omaha-Ponca

Noun

snow

References

Omaha Ponca digital dictionary

Opao

Noun

water

References

Karl J. Franklin, Comparative Wordlist 1 of the Gulf District and adjacent areas (1975), page 67

Orokolo

Noun

water

References

Karl J. Franklin, Comparative Wordlist 1 of the Gulf District and adjacent areas (1975), page 67

Phalura

Etymology

From Sanskrit म (ma, “1sg (base of oblique cases)”).

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /ma/

Pronoun

ma (personal, Perso-Arabic spelling مہ)

I (1sg nom, subject), me (1sg direct object)

Alternative forms

máa- (Forming one phonological word with following postposition or clitic, e.g. máathe 'me, to me' with the 'to'.)

References

Henrik Liljegren, Naseem Haider (2011) “ma”, in Palula Vocabulary (FLI Language and Culture Series; 7)‎^[8], Islamabad, Pakistan: Forum for Language Initiatives, →ISBN
Turner, Ralph Lilley (1969–1985) “ma”, in A Comparative Dictionary of the Indo-Aryan Languages, London: Oxford University Press

Pipil

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /maː/

Particle

mā

Subjunctive marker
Clipping of maka. (Negative imperative marker)

Usage notes

The particle ma helps disambiguating many of the subjunctive forms from the present indicative or imperative forms.

Verb

-má

Clipping of -maka.

Pitjantjatjara

Adverb

away

Pohnpeian

Conjunction

Polish

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /ˈma/
Rhymes: -a
Syllabification: ma

Etymology 1

Verb

third-person singular present indicative of mieć
Andrzej ma 18 lat. ― Andrzej is 18 years old.

Etymology 2

Pronoun

(literary) Alternative form of moja.

Portuguese

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /mɐ/

Contraction

Contraction of me a (“her/it to me”).

Romani

Etymology

Inherited from Prakrit 𑀫𑀸 (mā), from Ashokan Prakrit 𑀫𑀸 (mā), from Sanskrit मा (mā).

Particle

don't (prohibitive particle)

References

Turner, Ralph Lilley (1969–1985) “māˊ”, in A Comparative Dictionary of the Indo-Aryan Languages, London: Oxford University Press, page 574
Boretzky, Norbert, Igla, Birgit (1994) “ma¹”, in Wörterbuch Romani-Deutsch-Englisch für den südosteuropäischen Raum : mit einer Grammatik der Dialektvarianten [Romani-German-English dictionary for the Southern European region] (in German), Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz Verlag, →ISBN, page 172a
Marcel Courthiade (2009) “ma (and-e rokhimàta)”, in Melinda Rézműves, editor, Morri angluni rromane ćhibǎqi evroputni lavustik = Első rromani nyelvű európai szótáram : cigány, magyar, angol, francia, spanyol, német, ukrán, román, horvát, szlovák, görög [My First European-Romani Dictionary: Romani, Hungarian, English, French, Spanish, German, Ukrainian, Romanian, Croatian, Slovak, Greek] (overall work in Hungarian and English), Budapest: Fővárosi Onkormányzat Cigány Ház--Romano Kher, →ISBN, page 231a

Romanian

Adverb

Obsolete form of mai.

References

ma in Academia Română, Micul dicționar academic, ediția a II-a, Bucharest: Univers Enciclopedic, 2010. →ISBN

Salar

Conjunction

Samoan

Etymology

Cognate with Maori me and Hawaiian me.

Conjunction

and
because

Preposition

with

Savi

Etymology

From Sanskrit मया (mayā) or another form of अहम् (aham, “I”).

Pronoun

I; first-person singular personal pronoun

References

Knobloch, Nina (2020) A grammar sketch of Sauji: An Indo-Aryan language of Afghanistan‎^[9], Stockholm: Stockholm University

Scots

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /ma/, /mə/

Determiner

Alternative form of my

References

“my, poss. adj.”, in The Dictionary of the Scots Language, Edinburgh: Scottish Language Dictionaries, 2004–present, →OCLC, retrieved 23 May 2024, reproduced from W[illiam] Grant and D[avid] D. Murison, editors, The Scottish National Dictionary, Edinburgh: Scottish National Dictionary Association, 1931–1976, →OCLC.

Scottish Gaelic

Etymology

From Old Irish má, from Proto-Celtic *mā, *ma (compare Cornish and Breton mar), from Proto-Indo-European *meh₂.

Conjunction

if
Ma tha thu ’g iarrraidh sin… ― If you want that…

Ma bhios tu…/Ma bhitheas tu… ― If you will be…/If you are… (habitual)

Usage notes

Where followed by the ‘future’ tense, the corresponding relative verb-form is used.
In the conditional tense, instead of ma, nan/nam is used in positive sentences and mura/mur/mana in negative ones.

Serbo-Croatian

Etymology

From Italian ma, reinforced by Ancient Greek μά (má); both ultimately from Latin magis.

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /mâ/
Hyphenation: m‧a

Interjection

mȁ (Cyrillic spelling ма̏)

bah, whatever
Placed at the beginning of a sentence to add intensity and surprise
Ma kako?! ― How?!

Ma gdje? ― Where in the world...?

Ma da? ― Really?

Ma to je on! ― That's definitely him!
Placed at the beginning of a sentence to express dismissal and indignation
Ma ne. ― No way.

Ma daj. ― Oh come on.

Ma kakvi. ― Impossible.
Used to emphasize sarcasm
Ma da!/Ma svakako!/Ma naravno! ― Yeah, sure.

Ma nemoj. ― Oh you don't say?

Ma nikad niste vi krivi. ― Of course it can never be your fault.

Situ

Etymology

Proto-Sino-Tibetan *ma.

Particle

not, no; negative particle

Slovak

Alternative forms

mňa

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): [ma]

Pronoun

genitive/accusative of ja

Spanish

Noun

ma f (plural mas)

(Latin America) mum; mom

Sumerian

Romanization

Romanization of 𒈠 (ma)

Suri

Noun

mà

water

References

1999, Michael Bryant, Aspects of Tirmaga Grammar (in notes, as ma)
Michael Bryant, A Brief Grammar of the Suri Language (2011) (as mà)

Swazi

Etymology

From Proto-Bantu *-jɪ́ma.

Verb

-́ma

to stand
to stop, to wait

Inflection

This verb needs an inflection-table template.

Tagalog

Pronunciation

(Standard Tagalog) IPA^(key): /ma/ [mɐ]
Rhymes: -a
Syllabification: ma

Etymology 1

Influenced by Baybayin character ᜋ (ma).

Noun

ma (Baybayin spelling ᜋ)

the name of the Latin-script letter M/m, in the Abakada alphabet
Synonyms: (in the Filipino alphabet) em, (in the Abecedario) eme

Etymology 2

Noun

ma (Baybayin spelling ᜋ)

Clipping of mama: mom

Etymology 3

Noun

ma (Baybayin spelling ᜋ)

(zoology) mollusk with a shell that looks like a coat of mail

Anagrams

Tahitian

Conjunction

Preposition

with

Tairuma

Noun

Alternative form of ma'a

References

Karl J. Franklin, Comparative Wordlist 1 of the Gulf District and adjacent areas (1975), page 67

Tat

Etymology

Cognate with Persian (mâh).

Noun

moon

Tày

Pronunciation

(Thạch An – Tràng Định) IPA^(key): [maː˧˧]
(Trùng Khánh) IPA^(key): [maː˦˥]

Etymology 1

From Proto-Tai *ʰmaːᴬ (“dog”). Cognate with Thai หมา (mǎa), Northern Thai ᩉ᩠ᨾᩣ, Lao ໝາ (mā), Tai Dam ꪢꪱ, Lü ᦖᦱ (ṁaa), Shan မႃ (mǎa), Tai Nüa ᥛᥣᥴ (máa), Aiton မႃ (mā), Ahom 𑜉𑜠 (ma), Zhuang ma, Saek หม่า.

Noun

ma (𬍄)

(zoology) dog

Synonyms

cẩu

Derived terms

References

Lương Bèn (2011) Từ điển Tày-Việt [Tay-Vietnamese dictionary]‎^[10][11] (in Vietnamese), Thái Nguyên: Nhà Xuất bản Đại học Thái Nguyên
Lục Văn Pảo, Hoàng Tuấn Nam (2003) Hoàng Triều Ân, editor, Từ điển chữ Nôm Tày [A Dictionary of (chữ) Nôm Tày]‎^[12] (in Vietnamese), Hanoi: Nhà xuất bản Khoa học Xã hội

Etymology 2

From Vietnamese ma.

Noun

ma (魔)

ghost

Teanu

Etymology

From Proto-Vanikoro *ma, from Proto-Oceanic *lima, from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *lima, from Proto-Austronesian *lima.

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /ma/

Noun

arm
hand

References

François, Alexandre. 2021. Teanu dictionary (Solomon Islands). Dictionaria 15. 1-1877. DOI:10.5281/zenodo.5653063. – entry ma.
François, Alexandre. 2021. Online Teanu–English dictionary, with equivalents in Lovono and Tanema. Electronic files. Paris: CNRS. – entry ma.
Lackey, W.J.. & Boerger, B.H. (2021) “Reexamining the Phonological History of Oceanic's Temotu subgroup”, in Oceanic Linguistics.

Ternate

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /ma/

Conjunction

relative clause introducer; which, that
Synonym: yang

References

Rika Hayami-Allen (2001) A descriptive study of the language of Ternate, the northern Moluccas, Indonesia, University of Pittsburgh

Toaripi

Noun

(Toaripi, Kaipi, Sepoe) water

References

Karl J. Franklin, Comparative Wordlist 1 of the Gulf District and adjacent areas (1975), page 67

Tokelauan

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): [ma]
Hyphenation: ma

Etymology 1

From Proto-Polynesian *ma. Cognates include Maori mā and Samoan ma.

Conjunction

Joins noun clauses; and, with
Joins verb clauses; and, also, too

Etymology 2

From Proto-Polynesian *ma.

Preposition

from, away from

Etymology 3

Preposition

Marks a prospective role of the subject; as, for

References

R. Simona, editor (1986), Tokelau Dictionary‎^[15], Auckland: Office of Tokelau Affairs, page 198

Tz'utujil

Adverb

Veps

Etymology

From Proto-Finnic *maa, from Proto-Uralic *mëxe.

Noun

earth
ground
soil
land, country, region
state

Inflection

Derived terms

References

Zajceva, N. G., Mullonen, M. I. (2007) “грунт, держава, земля, почва, свет, страна”, in Uz’ venä-vepsläine vajehnik / Novyj russko-vepsskij slovarʹ [New Russian–Veps Dictionary]‎^[16], Petrozavodsk: Periodika

Vietnamese

Etymology

Sino-Vietnamese word from 魔.

The modern Vietnamese usage of ma (“ghost”) and quỷ (“demon; ogre”) is contrary to that of Mandarin 魔 (mó, “demon”) and 鬼 (guǐ, “ghost”). This can be exemplified in the pair ma đói vs. 餓鬼 / 饿鬼 (ngạ quỷ, “preta”).

Pronunciation

(Hà Nội) IPA^(key): [maː˧˧]
(Huế) IPA^(key): [maː˧˧]
(Saigon) IPA^(key): [maː˧˧]

Noun

(classifier con) ma

ghost (spirit appearing after death)
(archaic) a demon
Synonym: quỷ

Derived terms

Romanization

Sino-Vietnamese reading of 魔

Derived terms

Anagrams

Vilamovian

Pronoun

(indefinite) one, they (indefinite third-person singular pronoun)

Vilela

Noun

water

References

Bernard Comrie, Lucía Golluscio, Language Contact and Documentation (2015, →ISBN
Bartolomé Tavera-Acosta, En el sur: (Dialectos indígenas de Venezuela) (1907)

Warao

Alternative forms

Pronoun

my
me, accusative of iné

References

Focus, chapter 8: Warao and Urarina
Languages with Wilf, Comparison: Warao vs. Warray

West Makian

Etymology 1

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /ma/

Pronoun

(animate) third-person possessive pronoun, its
mene me mo oma ― this is his child (literally, “this (is) he his child”)

da kabi mo gou ― the goat's leg

Usage notes

The possessive pronoun ma follows West Makian vowel harmony, and as such may surface as me, mi, or mo.

Alternative forms

me, mi, mo

Etymology 2

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /ma/

Determiner

(distal) that, those
Synonym: mema

Antonym: ne

pala ma ilamo ― that house is large

oma ma ― those children

Etymology 3

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /ma/

Conjunction

then
toi ipongi, ma tasagal yo ― if it rains, then I won't go

References

Clemens Voorhoeve (1982) The Makian languages and their neighbours‎^[17], Pacific linguistics

Wolof

Pronoun

me (first-person singular object pronoun)

Wutunhua

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): [mɑ]

Etymology 1

Probably related to Mandarin 麼／么 (me).

Pronoun

what (interrogative)

Related terms

Etymology 2

From Mandarin 馬 / 马 (mǎ).

Noun

horse

References

Juha Janhunen, Marja Peltomaa, Erika Sandman, Xiawu Dongzhou (2008) Wutun (LINCOM's Descriptive Grammar Series), volume 466, LINCOM Europa, →ISBN
Erika Sandman (2016) A Grammar of Wutun‎^[18], University of Helsinki (PhD), →ISBN

Xhosa

Etymology

From Proto-Bantu *-jɪ́ma.

Verb

-̂ma

(intransitive) to halt
(intransitive) to stop

Inflection

This verb needs an inflection-table template.

Derived terms

ummi

Yola

Verb

Alternative form of mye (“may”)

References

Kathleen A. Browne (1927) The Journal of the Royal Society of Antiquaries of Ireland Sixth Series, Vol.17 No.2, Royal Society of Antiquaries of Ireland, page 137

Zazaki

Pronunciation

Rhymes: -ma

Pronoun

we; us (first-person plural personal pronoun)

Zhuang

Pronunciation

(Standard Zhuang) IPA^(key): /ma˨˦/
Tone numbers: ma¹
Hyphenation: ma

Etymology 1

From Proto-Tai *ʰmaːᴬ (“dog”). Cognate with Thai หมา (mǎa), Northern Thai ᩉ᩠ᨾᩣ, Lao ໝາ (mā), Lü ᦖᦱ (ṁaa), Tai Dam ꪢꪱ, Shan မႃ (mǎa), Tai Nüa ᥛᥣᥴ (máa), Aiton မႃ (mā), Ahom 𑜉𑜠 (ma), Saek หม่า.

Noun

ma (classifier duz, Sawndip forms 𬌫 or 獁 or 𬍄 or 𰡪 or 䭾 or 庅 or 犸 or 𭸱, 1957–1982 spelling ma)

Derived terms

Etymology 2

From Proto-Tai *ʰmaːᴬ (“to come”). Cognate with Thai มา (maa), Northern Thai ᨾᩣ (ma), Lao ມາ (mā), Lü ᦙᦱ (maa), Tai Nüa ᥛᥣᥰ (mäa), Shan မႃး (máa), Aiton မႃ (mā), Ahom 𑜉𑜠 (ma) or 𑜉𑜡 (mā) or 𑜉𑜡𑜠 (māa).

Verb

ma (Sawndip forms 庲 or ⿸广末 or 么 or 麻 or ⿸广处 or 𮜃 or ⿰么馬 or ⿰㐅馬 or 𫹞 or 駡, 1957–1982 spelling ma)

to come back; to return

Zulu

Etymology

From Proto-Bantu *-jɪ́ma.

Verb

-má

(intransitive) to stand, to be standing
(intransitive) to stand still, to not move
(intransitive) to stop, to come to a standstill, to halt

Inflection

Derived terms

-mi
isimo
umumo

References

C. M. Doke, B. W. Vilakazi (1972) “ma”, in Zulu-English Dictionary, →ISBN: “ma”

ma

ma

English

Etymology 1

Noun

Etymology 2

Pronunciation

Noun

Usage notes

Synonyms

Translations

References

See also

Etymology 3

Noun

Usage notes

Etymology 4

Determiner

Etymology 5

Particle

Etymology 6

Particle

References

Anagrams

Acehnese

Noun

References

Afar

Alternative forms

Etymology

Pronunciation

Determiner

Derived terms

Related terms

References

Afrikaans

Pronunciation

Noun

Synonyms

Antonyms

Derived terms

Ajië

Conjunction

References

Akkadian

Etymology

Pronunciation

Particle

Alternative forms

References

Alemannic German

Alternative forms

Etymology

Noun

References

Anaang

Verb

Further reading

Anguthimri

Noun

Verb

References

'Are'are

Conjunction

References

Aromanian

Etymology 1

Adverb

Etymology 2

Conjunction

Asturian

Alternative forms

Etymology

Noun

Bambara

Etymology 1

Pronunciation

Noun

Etymology 2

Verb