k

See also: Appendix:Variations of "k"

k	U+006B, k LATIN SMALL LETTER K

← j

Basic Latin

l →

ᵏ	U+1D4F, ᵏ MODIFIER LETTER SMALL K

← ᵎ

Phonetic Extensions

ᵐ →

ｋ	U+FF4B, ｋ FULLWIDTH LATIN SMALL LETTER K

← ｊ

Halfwidth and Fullwidth Forms

ｌ →

Translingual

English Wikipedia has an article on:

k

Wikipedia

Letter

k (upper case K)

The eleventh letter of the basic modern Latin alphabet.

Pronunciation

(Voiceless velar plosive):
IPA (file)

Symbol

English Wikipedia has an article on:

Voiceless velar plosive

Wikipedia

k

(IPA) a voiceless velar plosive.
(superscript ⟨ᵏ⟩) – See ⟨ᵏ⟩.
(geology) the permeability of a material for fluids
(physics) the spring constant of an elastic material
(physics) Boltzmann's constant

Noun

k

(numbers) Abbreviation of thousand. (1000) (taken from the SI-prefix k- for kilo- meaning 1000's multiplier)
(finance) €500k = 500,000 Euros

Gallery

Letter styles
Uppercase and lowercase versions of K, in normal and italic type
Uppercase and lowercase K in Fraktur

English

Etymology 1

Pronunciation

(letter name): IPA^(key): /keɪ/
- Audio (US) (file)
- Audio (UK) (file)
- Rhymes: -eɪ
(phoneme): IPA^(key): /k/

Letter

k (lower case, upper case K, plural ks or k's)

The eleventh letter of the English alphabet, called kay and written in the Latin script.
The first letter of callsigns allocated to American broadcast television and radio stations west of the Mississippi river.

Number

k (lower case, upper case K)

The ordinal number eleventh, derived from this letter of the English alphabet, called kay and written in the Latin script.

Etymology 2

From kilo-.

Noun

k (plural ks or k's)

(computing) A kilobyte (more formally KB or kB).
(computing) A kilobit (more formally kb), especially in measuring Internet connection.
(colloquial) kilometre or kilometres.
We drove 15 ks before we realised Billy wasn't in the back seat.
(colloquial) thousand or thousands.
Just about 65 k of Jack's full salary comes from servicing the Baker account.
The SI measurement value of 1,000

Derived terms

Etymology 3

Clipping of OK.

Interjection

k

(colloquial, text messaging, Internet slang) OK
Synonym: 'kay

Usage notes

"k" usually implies apathy or anger towards the statement it is responding to, in a less emphatic way than "K".

Derived terms

kk

References

^ “Youthsplaining: You’ve Been Texting the Word “Okay” Wrong”, in Inside Hook, 2019 July 19

Etymology 4

Abbreviations.

(stenoscript) Abbreviation of can.
(stenoscript) Abbreviation of come and inflections coming, came.
(stenoscript) the prefix con- or com-.

Usage notes

Phonetically, /k/ is always ⟨k⟩. ⟨c⟩ is used for /tʃ/.

Afar

Letter

k

The seventh letter of the Afar alphabet, written in the Latin script.

Ainu

Etymology

Contraction of ku.

Pronunciation

IPA^(key):

Pronoun

k= (Kana spelling ㇰ)

(Saru, before vowels) I (first-person singular subject pronoun)

Usage notes

Used before verbs and adjectives to express the first person. When isolated, kuani is used. They can also be used together, thus:

Kuani k=arpa wa ku=ye. ― I will go and tell him.

Azerbaijani

Pronunciation

(phoneme) IPA^(key): /c/, /ç/, /k/

Letter

k lower case (upper case K)

The sixteenth letter of the Azerbaijani alphabet, written in the Latin script.

Basque

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /ka/,

Letter

k (lower case, upper case K)

The eleventh letter of the Basque alphabet, called ka and written in the Latin script.

Chinese

For pronunciation and definitions of k – see K (“karaoke; etc.”). (This character is a variant form of K).

Chipewyan

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /kʰ/

Letter

k (upper case K)

A letter of the Chipewyan alphabet, written in the Latin script.

Czech

Etymology

Inherited from Old Czech k, from Proto-Slavic *kъ(n).

Pronunciation

(before a vowel or a voiceless consonant) IPA^(key):
(before a voiced consonant) IPA^(key):
Audio (file)

Preposition

k

to, toward, towards (movement towards a person)
Šel jsem si k mému bratrovi pro půjčku. ― I went to my brother for a loan.

Měla by jsi jít k lékařovi. ― You should go to a doctor.
to (in the direction of rather than a destination)
V jedné chvíli jsem si uvědomila, že jdu směrem k domu. ― At some point, i found myself walking towards the house.
to, up to
takže jsem vstala a šla k oknu. ― So I got up and I went to the window.

Od nevyšších k nejnižším. ― From the highest to the lowest.
for, to (purpose)
Co si dáš k obědu? ― What will you have for lunch?

něco k jídlu. ― Something to eat.

všechno zlé je k něčemu dobré. ― Everything bad is good for something.

Usage notes

This preposition is followed by the dative case.

Synonyms

ke
ku

Dutch

Pronunciation

Rhymes: -aː
(letter name): IPA^(key): /kaː/

Letter

k (lower case, upper case K)

The eleventh letter of the Dutch alphabet, written in the Latin script.

Esperanto

Pronunciation

(letter name): IPA^(key): /ko/
(phoneme): IPA^(key): /k/
Audio (file)

Letter

k (lower case, upper case K)

The fifteenth letter of the Esperanto alphabet, called ko and written in the Latin script.

Conjunction

k

Abbreviation of kaj (“and”).
- 1938, Alardo Prats, translated by Pario, Fronto k Postfronto de Aragonio, page 24:
  Io mortis en Hispanio k io ega k brilega naskiĝis.
  (please add an English translation of this quotation)
- 1948, Gaston Waringhien, Leteroj de L.-L. Zamenhof: La Tragedio de Lia Vivo Rivelita de Lia Ĵus Retrovita Korespondo kun la Francaj Eminentuloj, Edlonis S.A.T., →OCLC, page 9:
  Cetere li bone konsciis sian valoron, tiris el ĝi orgojlon, kompleze flegadis sian « mi », k rapide senpacienciĝis, se li renkontis kontraŭulon, kiu rifuzis lasi sin persvadi de liaj rezonoj.
  (please add an English translation of this quotation)
- 2003 January 13, Sebastian Hartwig, “Re: 'Ghisdate pri Esperanto' hodiau en la boksmala”, in soc.culture.esperanto‎ (Usenet), retrieved 2017-05-17:
  SAS estas ja nur aerkompanio de tiuj tri landoj. (Ferooj k Gr(o)enlando apartenas al Danio, Islando havas propran kompanion Loftleidir (krom pli nova Viking Air).)
  SAS is really just an airline of those three countries. (the Faroe Islands and Greenland belong to Denmark, Iceland has its own company Loftleidir (besides a newer Viking Air).)

Synonyms

&
(text messaging) K

Estonian

Estonian Wikipedia has an article on:

k

Wikipedia ^et

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /ˈkɑː/

Letter

k (lower case, upper case K)

The eleventh letter of the Estonian alphabet, called kaa and written in the Latin script.

Faroese

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /kʰ/

Letter

k (upper case K)

The thirteenth letter of the Faroese alphabet, written in the Latin script.

Finnish

Etymology

The Finnish orthography using the Latin script was based on those of Swedish, German and Latin, and was first used in the mid-16th century. No earlier script is known. See the Wikipedia article on Finnish for more information, and k for information on the development of the glyph itself.

Pronunciation

Audio: koo, kukka, osake, koo (file)

Letter

k (lower case, upper case K)

The eleventh letter of the Finnish alphabet, called koo and written in the Latin script.

Noun

k

(housing) Abbreviation of keittiö (“kitchen”).

French

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /ka/

Letter

k (lower case, upper case K)

The eleventh letter of the French alphabet, written in the Latin script.

Fula

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /k/

Letter

k (lower case, upper case K)

A letter of the Fula alphabet, written in the Latin script.

Usage notes

Common to all varieties of Fula (Fulfulde / Pulaar / Pular).

Gothic

Romanization

k

Romanization of 𐌺

Hungarian

Pronunciation

(phoneme): IPA^(key):
(letter name): IPA^(key):

Letter

k (lower case, upper case K)

The eighteenth letter of the Hungarian alphabet, called ká and written in the Latin script.

Declension

Inflection (stem in long/high vowel, back harmony)
	singular	plural
nominative	k	k-k
accusative	k-t	k-kat
dative	k-nak	k-knak
instrumental	k-val	k-kkal
causal-final	k-ért	k-kért
translative	k-vá	k-kká
terminative	k-ig	k-kig
essive-formal	k-ként	k-kként
essive-modal	—	—
inessive	k-ban	k-kban
superessive	k-n	k-kon
adessive	k-nál	k-knál
illative	k-ba	k-kba
sublative	k-ra	k-kra
allative	k-hoz	k-khoz
elative	k-ból	k-kból
delative	k-ról	k-król
ablative	k-tól	k-któl
non-attributive possessive - singular	k-é	k-ké
non-attributive possessive - plural	k-éi	k-kéi

Possessive forms of k
possessor	single possession	multiple possessions
1st person sing.	k-m	k-im
2nd person sing.	k-d	k-id
3rd person sing.	k-ja	k-i
1st person plural	k-nk	k-ink
2nd person plural	k-tok	k-itok
3rd person plural	k-juk	k-ik

Ido

Pronunciation

(context pronunciation) IPA^(key): /k/
(letter name) IPA^(key): /ke/

Letter

k (upper case K)

The eleventh letter of the Ido alphabet, written in the Latin script.

Indonesian

Pronunciation

(letter name): IPA^(key): /ka/
(phoneme): IPA^(key): /k/

Letter

k (lower case, upper case K)

The eleventh letter of the Indonesian alphabet, written in the Latin script.

Italian

Letter

k f or m (invariable, lower case, upper case K)

the eleventh letter of the Latin alphabet, called cappa or kappa in Italian

Usage notes

The letter K is not considered part of the contemporary Italian alphabet. See under K.

Kashubian

Etymology

The Kashubian orthography is based on the Latin alphabet. No earlier script is known. See the Kashubian alphabet article on Wikipedia for more, and k for development of the glyph itself.

Letter

k (lower case, upper case K)

The fifteenth letter of the Kashubian alphabet, written in the Latin script.

Latin

Letter

k

The tenth letter of the Latin alphabet, written in the Latin script.

Latvian

Latvian Wikipedia has an article on:

k

Wikipedia ^lv

Etymology

Proposed in 1908 as part of the new Latvian spelling by the scientific commission headed by K. Mīlenbahs, which was accepted and began to be taught in schools in 1909. Prior to that, Latvian had been written in German Fraktur, and sporadically in Cyrillic.

Pronunciation

IPA^(key):

(file)

Letter

k (lower case, upper case K)

The sixteenth letter of the Latvian alphabet, called kā and written in the Latin script.

Livonian

Pronunciation

(phoneme) IPA^(key): /k/

Letter

k (upper case K)

The sixteenth letter of the Livonian alphabet, written in the Latin script.

Lower Sorbian

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /k/

Etymology 1

Letter

k (upper case K)

The fifteenth letter of the Lower Sorbian alphabet, called ka and written in the Latin script.

Etymology 2

From Proto-Slavic *kъ(n).

Alternative forms

ku (before ch, g, and k)

Preposition

k (with dative)

to

Lushootseed

Pronunciation

(phoneme) IPA^(key): /k/

Letter

k

The seventeenth letter of the Lushootseed alphabet, pronounced as a voiceless velar stop.

Malay

Letter

k (lower case, upper case K)

The eleventh letter of the Malay alphabet, written in the Latin script.

Maltese

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /k/
IPA^(key): /ɡ/ (per assimilation to a following voiced obstruent)

Letter

k (lower case, upper case K)

The fifteenth letter of the Maltese alphabet, written in the Latin script.

Norwegian

Pronunciation

(letter name): IPA^(key): /kɔː/
(phoneme): IPA^(key): /k/, /ç/
Audio (file)

Letter

k

The eleventh letter of the Norwegian alphabet, written in the Latin script.

Usage notes

When written before j, k and j merge into voiceless palatal fricative, the ch sound in German ich.

Nupe

Pronunciation

(phoneme): IPA^(key): /k/

Letter

k (lower case, upper case K)

The thirteenth letter of the Nupe alphabet, written in the Latin script.

Old Polish

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): (10^th–15^th CE) /k/
IPA^(key): (15^th CE) /k/

Preposition

k

Alternative form of ku

References

B. Sieradzka-Baziur, editor (2011–2015), “k”, in Słownik pojęciowy języka staropolskiego [Conceptual Dictionary of Old Polish] (in Polish), Kraków: IJP PAN, →ISBN

Polish

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /k/, or IPA^(key): /ɡ/ if voiced

Etymology 1

The Polish orthography is based on the Latin alphabet. No earlier script is known. See the history of Polish orthography article on Wikipedia for more, and k for development of the glyph itself.

Letter

k (upper case K, lower case)

The fourteenth letter of the Polish alphabet, called ka and written in the Latin script.

Etymology 2

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

Preposition

k

Middle Polish form of ku

Portuguese

Letter

k (lower case, upper case K)

The eleventh letter of the Portuguese alphabet, written in the Latin script.

Romani

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /k/

Letter

k (lower case, upper case K)

(International Standard) The fourteenth letter of the Romani alphabet, written in the Latin script.
(Pan-Vlax) The fifteenth letter of the Romani alphabet, written in the Latin script.

Romanian

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /k/

Letter

k (lower case, upper case K)

The fourteenth letter of the Romanian alphabet, called ca or capa and written in the Latin script.

Usage notes

Used only in loanwords and some proper nouns.

Serbo-Croatian

Etymology 1

See Translingual section.

Alternative forms

K (uppercase)

Pronunciation

(phoneme) IPA^(key): /k/

Letter

k (Cyrillic spelling к)

The 15th letter of the Serbo-Croatian Latin alphabet (gajica), preceded by j and followed by l.

Etymology 2

Inherited from Proto-Slavic *kъ(n), from Proto-Indo-European *kom.

Alternative forms

ka (see usage notes)

Preposition

k (Cyrillic spelling к) (+ dative case)

to
towards

Usage notes

Although both k and ka can be used synonymously, k must take the alternative form ka in the following environment:

before /k, g, h/:
ka kući ― to/towards home

ka gradu ― to/towards the city

ka hladu ― to/towards the shade
before consonant clusters with emphasis on /k, g, h/:
ka školi ― to/towards school

ka zgradi ― to/towards the building

ka hladu ― to/towards the shade

Synonyms

ka (see usage notes)

Silesian

Etymology

The Silesian orthography is based on the Latin alphabet. No earlier script is known. See the Silesian language article on Wikipedia for more, and k for development of the glyph itself.

Letter

k (lower case, upper case K)

The thirteenth letter of the Silesian alphabet, written in the Latin script.

Skolt Sami

Pronunciation

(phoneme) IPA^(key): /k/

Letter

k (upper case K)

The eighteenth letter of the Skolt Sami alphabet, written in the Latin script.

Spanish

Etymology 1

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): (phoneme) /k/
IPA^(key): (letter name) /ˈka/
- Audio: (file)
- Rhymes: -a

Letter

k (lower case, upper case K)

The eleventh letter of the Spanish alphabet, written in the Latin script.

Etymology 2

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /ˈke/
Rhymes: -e

Conjunction

k

(slang) Abbreviation of que.

Pronoun

k

(slang) Abbreviation of que.

Etymology 3

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /ˈka/
Rhymes: -a

Adjective

k

(Argentina) Alternative letter-case form of K: kirchnerista
Antonyms: anti-K, antikirchnerista

Swedish

Pronunciation

Letter name

IPA^(key): /koː/

Phoneme

IPA^(key): /k/, /ɕ/

Letter

k (lower case, upper case K)

The eleventh letter of the Swedish alphabet, called kå and written in the Latin script. Pronounced /k/ in front of a, o, u and å and /ɕ/ in front of e, i, y, ä and ö (some loan words might ignore this rule).

Tagalog

Etymology 1

From Spanish k. Each pronunciation has a different source:

Filipino alphabet pronunciation is influenced by English k.
Abakada alphabet pronunciation is influenced by Baybayin character ᜃ (ka).
Abecedario pronunciation is from Spanish k.

The use of ⟨k⟩ instead of using the Spanish-based ⟨c⟩ and ⟨q⟩ was promoted in the late 19th century primarily by the educated (such as José Rizal and Trinidad Pardo de Tavera) because of the Baybayin character primarily being applicable to all vowels, as well as the ease of usage with Tagalog grammar rules. Its order in the Abakada alphabet was due to the order of the similar sounding ⟨c⟩ in the Spanish alphabet.

Pronunciation

Hyphenation: k
(letter name, Filipino alphabet): IPA^(key): /kej/,
(letter name, Abakada alphabet, Abecedario): IPA^(key): /ka/,
(phoneme): IPA^(key): /k/,
(phoneme, intervocalic): IPA^(key): /k/,
Rhymes: -ej, -a

Letter

k (lower case, upper case K, Baybayin spelling ᜃᜒᜌ᜔)

The eleventh letter of the Tagalog alphabet (Filipino alphabet), called key and written in the Latin script.

Letter

k (lower case, upper case K, Baybayin spelling ᜃ)

The third letter of the Tagalog alphabet (Abakada alphabet), called ka and written in the Latin script.
(historical) The twelfth letter of the Tagalog alphabet (Abecedario), called ka and written in the Latin script.

Etymology 2

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /kej/,

Interjection

k (Baybayin spelling ᜃᜒᜌ᜔)

(Internet slang, text messaging) OK

Etymology 3

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /ka/,

Pronoun

k (Baybayin spelling ᜃ)

(Internet slang, text messaging) Alternative form of ka (in text messaging and Internet conversations): you; u
Nasan k na?
Where are u?

Turkish

Pronunciation

(phoneme): IPA^(key): /c/, /k/
(letter name): IPA^(key): (standard) /ceː/, /kɑː/

Letter

k (lower case, upper case K)

The fourteenth letter of the Turkish alphabet, called ke and written in the Latin script.

Turkmen

Pronunciation

(phoneme) IPA^(key): /k~q/

Letter

k (upper case K)

The thirteenth letter of the Turkmen alphabet, called ka and written in the Latin script.

Yoruba

Pronunciation

(phoneme): IPA^(key): /k/
(letter name): IPA^(key): /kí/

Letter

k (lower case, upper case K)

The twelfth letter of the Yoruba alphabet, called kí and written in the Latin script.

Zulu

Letter

k (lower case, upper case K)

The eleventh letter of the Zulu alphabet, written in the Latin script.

person	isolated form	affix form
person	isolated form	nominative	objective
first	singular	kuani, kani¹	ku=, k=¹ (before vowels)	en=
	exclusive plural	ciokay, coka¹, ciutari	ci=, c=¹ =as	un=
	inclusive plural	anokay, aoka¹, anutari	a=, =an	i=
second	singular	eani	e=
	plural	eciokay, ecioka¹, eciutari	eci=
	singular (polite)	anokay, aoka¹	a=, =an	i=
	plural (polite)	anokay, aoka¹, anutari	a=, =an	i=
third	singular	sinuma, anihi	∅=
third	plural	okay, oka¹	∅=
indefinite	singular	asinuma	a=, =an	i=
indefinite	plural	anokay, aoka¹, anutari	a=, =an	i=
1. Saru dialect