тьма

Old Church Slavonic

Alternative forms

• Glagolitic: ⱅⱐⰿⰰ (tĭma)

Etymology 1

From Proto-Slavic *tьma, from Proto-Balto-Slavic *timāˀ, from Proto-Indo-European *temH-.

Noun

тьма • (tĭma) f

1. darkness
   • 2 Коринт. 4:6-15 from Син. евх.:

     б҃ъ рекъі и҅с тъмъі свѣтоу въсиꙗ҅ти· ꙇ҅же въсиꙗ҅ въ ср҃цихъ вашихъ·

     b:ŭ rekŭi i҅s tŭmŭi světu vŭsija҅ti· i҅že vŭsija҅ vŭ sr:cixŭ vašixŭ·

     For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts.

Declension

Antonyms

• свѣтъ (světŭ)

Derived terms

Etymology 2

Borrowed from an ancestor of Mongolian түм (tüm).

Noun

тьма • (tĭma) f

1. ten thousand; a myriad
   • from Slavonic Josephus, kniga 4, 432б:

     идѧхоу бо по немъ кромѣ ѡроужникъ, четꙑри тмꙑ.

     idęxu bo po nemŭ kromě oružnikŭ, četyri tmy.

     (please add an English translation of this quotation)

2. a large number or multitude (of specified things)

References

• Nikolić, Svetozar (1989) Staroslovenski jezik: Pravopis, glasovi, oblici, Beograd

Old East Slavic

Alternative forms

• тма (tma), тъма (tŭma)

Etymology 1

From Proto-Slavic *tьma. Cognates include Old Church Slavonic тьма (tĭma) and Old Polish ćma.

Pronunciation

• (ca. 9^th CE) IPA^(key): /tɪˈmɑ/
• (ca. 11^th CE) IPA^(key): /tʲɪˈma/
• (ca. 13^th CE) IPA^(key): /ˈtʲma/
• Hyphenation: ть‧ма

Noun

тьма (tĭma) f

1. darkness

Declension

Antonyms

• свѣтъ (světŭ, “light”)

Descendants

• Old Ruthenian: тьма (tʹma)
  • Belarusian: цьма (cʹma)
  • Ukrainian: тьма (tʹma)
• Russian: тьма (tʹma)

Etymology 2

Borrowed from a Mongolic language (compare Mongolian түм (tüm)). Cognate with Old Church Slavonic тьма (tĭma).

Pronunciation

• (ca. 9^th CE) IPA^(key): /tɪˈmɑ/
• (ca. 11^th CE) IPA^(key): /tʲɪˈma/
• (ca. 13^th CE) IPA^(key): /ˈtʲma/
• Hyphenation: ть‧ма

Noun

тьма (tĭma) f

1. myriad (10.000)
2. multitude (large amount)

Declension

Descendants

• Old Ruthenian: тьма (tʹma)
  • Ukrainian: тьма (tʹma)
• Russian: тьма (tʹma)

References

• Sreznevsky, Izmail I. (1912) “тьма”, in Матеріалы для Словаря древне-русскаго языка по письменнымъ памятникамъ [Materials for the Dictionary of the Old East Slavic Language Based on Written Monuments]‎ (in Russian), volumes 3 (Р – Ꙗ и дополненія), Saint Petersburg: Department of Russian Language and Literature of the Imperial Academy of Sciences, column 1081

Russian

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key):

• Audio

  (file)

Etymology 1

Inherited from Old East Slavic тьма (tĭma), from Proto-Slavic *tьma, from Proto-Balto-Slavic *timāˀ, from Proto-Indo-European *temH-.

Noun

тьма • (tʹma) f inan (genitive тьмы, nominative plural тьмы, genitive plural тем)

1. dark, darkness

   Synonyms: темнота́ f (temnotá), те́мень f (témenʹ), потёмки f (potjómki), мгла f (mgla), мрак m (mrak)

   Antonym: свет m (svet)

Declension

Related terms

• впотьма́х (vpotʹmáx)
• тёмный (tjómnyj)

Etymology 2

Inherited from Old East Slavic тьма (tĭma), borrowed from a Mongolic language.

Noun

тьма • (tʹma) f inan (genitive тьмы, nominative plural тьмы, genitive plural тем)

1. (colloquial) thousands, a multitude, a host, lots of

Declension

Ukrainian

Etymology

Inherited from Old East Slavic тьма (tĭma), from Proto-Slavic *tьma, from Proto-Balto-Slavic *timāˀ, from Proto-Indo-European *temH-.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key):

• Audio

  (file)

Noun

тьма • (tʹma) f inan (genitive тьми, uncountable)

1. darkness

   Synonyms: те́мрява (témrjava), те́мінь (téminʹ), темно́та́ (temnótá)

2. (figuratively) uneducatedness

   Synonym: неосві́ченість (neosvíčenistʹ)

3. (figuratively) wickedness (something vile and evil)

Declension

Noun

тьма • (tʹma) f inan (genitive тьми, nominative plural тьми, genitive plural тем)

1. (historical, countable) ten thousand
2. (figuratively, colloquial, uncountable) ton (large amount of something)

Declension

References

• Bilodid, I. K., editor (1970–1980), “тьма”, in Словник української мови: в 11 т. [Dictionary of the Ukrainian Language: in 11 vols] (in Ukrainian), Kyiv: Naukova Dumka
• “тьма”, in Горох – Словозміна (in Ukrainian)