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English
Etymology
From Latin familiāris (“pertaining to servants; pertaining to the household”). Doublet of familial. Displaced native Old English hīwcūþ.
Pronunciation
Adjective
familiar (comparative more familiar, superlative most familiar)
- Known to one, or generally known; commonplace.
2013 July 20, “Welcome to the plastisphere”, in The Economist, volume 408, number 8845:Plastics are energy-rich substances, which is why many of them burn so readily. Any organism that could unlock and use that energy would do well in the Anthropocene. Terrestrial bacteria and fungi which can manage this trick are already familiar to experts in the field.
There’s a familiar face; that tune sounds familiar.
- Acquainted.
I'm quite familiar with this system; she's not familiar with manual gears.
- Intimate or friendly.
We are on familiar terms now; our neighbour is not familiar
Don’t be familiar with me, boy!
c. 1599–1602 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Hamlet, Prince of Denmarke”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies (First Folio), London: Isaac Iaggard, and Ed Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, , page 156, column 1:Be thou familiar; but by no meanes vulgar: […]
- Of or pertaining to a family; familial.
Synonyms
Antonyms
Derived terms
Translations
known to one
- Arabic: مَأْلُوف (maʔlūf)
- Armenian: ծանոթ (hy) (canotʻ)
- Bashkir: таныш (tanış)
- Belarusian: знаёмы (znajómy)
- Bulgarian: позна́т (bg) (poznát), изве́стен (bg) (izvésten)
- Catalan: familiar (ca)
- Chinese:
- Mandarin: 熟悉 (zh) (shúxī, shóuxī)
- Czech: známý (cs)
- Danish: bekendt (da)
- Dutch: bekend (nl)
- Esperanto: konata (eo)
- Finnish: tuttu (fi)
- French: familier (fr)
- Georgian: ნაცნობი (nacnobi)
- German: bekannt (de)
- Greek: οικείος (el) (oikeíos), γνωστός (el) (gnostós), γνώριμος (el) (gnórimos), φιλικός (el) (filikós)
- Ancient: γνώριμος (gnṓrimos)
- Hebrew: מֻכָּר (he) m (mukkár)
- Hungarian: ismerős (hu)
- Ido: familiara (io)
- Irish: aithnidiúil
- Italian: familiare (it)
- Japanese: おなじみの (o-najimi no)
- Korean: 알려진 (ko) (allyeojin)
- Kurdish:
- Northern Kurdish: nas (ku), niyas (ku)
- Ladino: conocido
- Macedonian: познат (poznat)
- Malayalam: പരിചയമുള്ള (paricayamuḷḷa), പരിചിതം (paricitaṁ)
- Marathi: परिचित (paricit), ओळखीचे n (oḷkhīce), ओळखीची f (oḷkhīcī), ओळखीचा m (oḷkhīcā)
- Norman: fanmilyi
- Persian: آشنا (fa) (âšnâ, âšenâ)
- Polish: znany (pl), znajomy (pl), nieobcy
- Portuguese: familiar (pt)
- Romanian: familiar (ro)
- Russian: знако́мый (ru) (znakómyj), изве́стный (ru) (izvéstnyj)
- Serbo-Croatian:
- Cyrillic: упознат
- Roman: upoznat
- Slovak: známy (sk)
- Slovene: znan (sl), poznan
- Spanish: familiar (es)
- Swedish: bekant (sv)
- Tagalog: pamilyar
- Ukrainian: знайо́мий (znajómyj), відо́мий (vidómyj)
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intimate or friendly
- Armenian: մտերիմ (hy) (mterim)
- Bulgarian: бли́зък (bg) (blízǎk), инти́мен (bg) (intímen)
- Catalan: familiar (ca)
- Chinese:
- Mandarin: 熟悉 (zh) (shúxī, shóuxī)
- Dutch: vertrouwd (nl)
- Esperanto: familiara (eo)
- Finnish: läheinen (fi), tuttavallinen (fi)
- French: familier (fr)
- Greek: οικείος (el) (oikeíos), φιλικός (el) (filikós)
- Indonesian: familier (id), akrab (id)
- Italian: familiare (it)
- Kurdish:
- Northern Kurdish: nêz (ku), nêzîk (ku)
- Maori: rata (mi)
- Norman: fanmilyi
- Polish: bliski (pl), poufały (pl), familiarny (pl)
- Portuguese: próximo (pt)
- Russian: бли́зкий (ru) (blízkij), инти́мный (ru) (intímnyj)
- Tagalog: mahilway
- Thai: เป็นมิตร (bpen-mít)
- Ukrainian: близьки́й (uk) (blyzʹkýj), інти́мний (intýmnyj)
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inappropriately intimate or friendly
Noun
familiar (plural familiars)
- (witchcraft) An attendant spirit, often in animal or demon form.
The witch’s familiar was a black cat.
1936, Rollo Ahmed, The Black Art, London: Long, page 75:The familiars of the magicians, on the other hand, were not in all cases evil, and often may have approximated the "guides" with whom present-day spiritualists are well acquainted.
1971, Richard Carpenter, Catweazle and the Magic Zodiac, Harmondsworth: Puffin Books, page 8:"What power hath gold?" Catweazle wondered as he picked up his familiar and put him in his special pocket.
- (obsolete) A member of one's family or household.
- A member of a pope's or bishop's household.
- (obsolete) A close friend.
1624, Democritus Junior [pseudonym; Robert Burton], “Concerning the Patient”, in The Anatomy of Melancholy: , 2nd edition, Oxford, Oxfordshire: Printed by John Lichfield and James Short, for Henry Cripps, →OCLC, partition 2, section 1, member 4, subsection 3, page 199:[A] friend of mine, that finding a Receipt in Braſsivola, would needs take Hellebor in ſubſtance, & try it on his own perſon; but had not ſome of his familiars come to viſite him by chance, he had by his indiſcretion hazarded himſelfe; many ſuch I have obſerued.
- (historical) The officer of the Inquisition who arrested suspected people.
Synonyms
Translations
See also
Further reading
Catalan
Etymology
Borrowed from Latin familiāris.
Pronunciation
Adjective
familiar m or f (masculine and feminine plural familiars)
- familiar
- familial
- family-friendly
pel·lícules familiars- family movies
Derived terms
Noun
familiar m or f by sense (plural familiars)
- relative
Further reading
Galician
Etymology
From Latin familiāris.
Adjective
familiar m or f (plural familiares)
- of family
- close, familiar
- daily, plain
Noun
familiar m (plural familiares)
- relative
Synonyms
Further reading
Norwegian Nynorsk
Noun
familiar m
- indefinite plural of familie
Portuguese
Etymology
Borrowed from Latin familiāris.
Pronunciation
- (Brazil) IPA(key): /fa.mi.liˈaʁ/ , (faster pronunciation) /fa.miˈljaʁ/
- (Brazil) IPA(key): /fa.mi.liˈaʁ/ , (faster pronunciation) /fa.miˈljaʁ/
- (São Paulo) IPA(key): /fa.mi.liˈaɾ/ , (faster pronunciation) /fa.miˈljaɾ/
- (Rio de Janeiro) IPA(key): /fa.mi.liˈaʁ/ , (faster pronunciation) /fa.miˈljaʁ/
- (Southern Brazil) IPA(key): /fa.mi.liˈaɻ/ , (faster pronunciation) /fa.miˈljaɻ/
Adjective
familiar m or f (plural familiares)
- familiar (known to one)
- (relational) family
Derived terms
Noun
familiar m (plural familiares)
- (usually in the plural) relative (person in the same family)
- familiar (attendant spirit)
- Synonym: espírito familiar
Further reading
Romanian
Etymology
Borrowed from French familier, from Latin familiaris. By surface analysis, familie + -ar.
Adjective
familiar m or n (feminine singular familiară, masculine plural familiari, feminine and neuter plural familiare)
- familiar
Declension
Spanish
Etymology
From Latin familiāris.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /famiˈljaɾ/
- Rhymes: -aɾ
- Syllabification: fa‧mi‧liar
Adjective
familiar m or f (masculine and feminine plural familiares)
- familial, family
- close, familiar
- daily, plain
Derived terms
Noun
familiar m (plural familiares)
- relative, family member
- Synonyms: miembro de la familia, pariente
Further reading