لما

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See also: لمى

Arabic

Etymology 1

Univerbation of لَم (lam, “not”) +‎ مَا (mā, relative), the original thought being "but not have it that".

Particle

لَمَّا • (lammā)

  1. not yet, but not, yet not; (governs a jussive verb)

Adverb

لِمَا • (limā)

  1. for what (relative, not interrogative)

Etymology 2

Univerbation of لِ (li, “for”) +‎ إِمَّا (ʔimmā, as for), the original thought being "for as for this is so".

Conjunction

لَمَّا • (lammā)

  1. when; (in the past only)
  2. in view of, the fact that; because, since
    • a. 1002, Ibn Jinni, سر صناعة الإعراب:
      فَلَمَّا لَمْ يَرْتَبِطْ أَوَّلُ الْكَلَامِ بِآخِرِهِ لِأَنَّ أَوَّلَهُ فِعْلٌ وَآخِرُهُ ٱسْمَانِ، وَٱلْأَسْمَاءُ لَا يُعَادَلُ بِهَا ٱلْأَفْعَال، أَدْخَلُوا هُنَاكَ حَرْفًا يَدُلُّ عَلَى أَنَّ مَا بَعْدَهُ مُسَبَّبٌ عَمَّا قَبْلَهُ لَا مَعْنَى لِلْعَطْفِ فِيهِ فَلَمْ يَجِدُوا هَٰذَا الْمَعْنَى إِلَّا فِي الْفَاءِ وَحْدَهَا.
      falammā lam yartabiṭ ʔawwalu l-kalāmi biʔāḵirihi liʔanna ʔawwalahu fiʕlun waʔāḵiruhu smāni, wal-ʔasmāʔu lā yuʕādalu bihā l-ʔafʕāl, ʔadḵalū hunāka ḥarfan yadullu ʕalā ʔanna mā baʕdahu musabbabun ʕammā qablahu lā maʕnā lilʕaṭfi fīhi falam yajidū hāḏā l-maʕnā ʔillā fī l-fāʔi waḥdahā.
      (please add an English translation of this quotation)
  3. (obsolete) Synonym of إِلَّا (ʔillā, “except”)
    • 609–632 CE, Qur'an, 86:4:
      إِن كُلُّ نَفْسٍ لَّمَّا عَلَيْهَا حَافِظٌ
      ʔin kullu nafsin llammā ʕalayhā ḥāfiẓun
      (please add an English translation of this quotation)

Proper noun

لَمَا • (lamā) f

  1. a female given name
Declension
Declension of noun لَمَا (lamā)
Singular singular invariable
Indefinite Definite Construct
Informal — لَمَا
lamā 		—
Nominative — لَمَا
lamā 		—
Accusative — لَمَا
lamā 		—
Genitive — لَمَا
lamā 		—

Hijazi Arabic

Etymology 1

From Arabic لَمَّا (lammā).

Pronunciation

Conjunction

لما • (lamma)

  1. when, while
    لما جيت ذاك اليوم ما لقيتك
    lamma jīt dāk al-yōm mā ligītak
    When I came that day I didn't find you
  2. as, as long as

Etymology 2

Pronunciation

Proper noun

لما • (lama) f

  1. a female given name

Punjabi

Etymology

Inherited from Prakrit 𑀮𑀁𑀩 (laṃba), from Sanskrit लम्ब (lamba). Compare Urdu لمبا / Hindi लम्बा (lambā).

Pronunciation

Adjective

لَمّا • (lammā) (feminine لمى, Gurmukhi spelling ਲੰਮਾ)

  1. tall
  2. long; high

Declension

Declension of لما
masculine feminine
singular plural singular plural
direct لَمّا (lammā) لَمّے (lamme) لَمّی (lammī) لَمّیاں (lammīyāṉ)
oblique لَمّے (lamme) لَمّیْاں (lammiyāṉ) لَمّی (lammī) لَمّیاں (lammīyāṉ)

Derived terms

Further reading

  • Iqbal, Salah ud-Din (2002) “لمّا”, in vaḍḍī panjābī lughat‎ (in Punjabi), Lahore: ʻAzīz Pablisharz
  • “لمّا”, in Punjabi-English Dictionary, Patiala: Punjabi University, 2024
  • Turner, Ralph Lilley (1969–1985) “lamba”, in A Comparative Dictionary of the Indo-Aryan Languages, London: Oxford University Press, page 636

South Levantine Arabic

Etymology

From Arabic لَمَّا (lammā).

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /lam.ma/,
  • Audio (Ramallah)(file)

Conjunction

لمّا • (lamma)

  1. when
    Synonym: و (w-)
    لمّا يكون الواحد تعبان أحسن ما يروح عالنادي.
    lamma ykūn il-wāḥad taʕbān ʔaḥsan mā yrūḥ ʕal-nādi
    When someone is tired it's better that they not go to the gym.
  2. as soon as, once (with subjunctive verb)
    Synonym: بسّ (bass)

Ushojo

Noun

لما (lamā)

  1. jackal
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