kuku

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See also: Kuku, kūkū, kukū, куку, and ку-ку

English

English Wikipedia has an article on:
Wikipedia
Kuku sabzi (herb kuku) topped with barberries and walnuts

Etymology 1

From Persian کوکو (kuku).

Noun

kuku (countable and uncountable, plural kukus)

  1. An Iranian dish somewhat resembling a quiche or omelette.
Alternative forms

Etymology 2

Borrowed from Japanese くく (kuku, onomatopoeia for the sound of laughter).

Interjection

kuku

  1. (fandom slang, chiefly in translations of Japanese works) Alternative form of kukuku (onomatopoeia for sinister laughter).

Aklanon

Etymology

Inherited from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *kukuh.

Noun

kuku

  1. (anatomy) nail (on fingers and toes)

Albanian

Etymology

Onomatopoeic.

Interjection

kuku

  1. mourn
  2. The sound of an owl singing.

Anguthimri

Noun

kuku

  1. (Mpakwithi) maternal grandfather
  2. (Mpakwithi) paternal aunt

References

  • Terry Crowley, The Mpakwithi dialect of Anguthimri (1981), page 186

Basque

Basque Wikipedia has an article on:
Wikipedia eu
Kuku arrunta.

Etymology

Onomatopoeic, imitation of the bird’s call. Compare Spanish cuco, English cuckoo, Catalan cucut, Dutch koekoek, Russian кукушка (kukuška) etc.

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /kuku/
  • Audio:(file)
  • Rhymes: -uku, -u
  • Hyphenation: ku‧ku

Noun

kuku anim

  1. cuckoo
  2. hidden, lurking

Declension

Declension of kuku (animate, ending in vowel)
indefinite singular plural
absolutive kuku kukua kukuak
ergative kukuk kukuak kukuek
dative kukuri kukuari kukuei
genitive kukuren kukuaren kukuen
comitative kukurekin kukuarekin kukuekin
causative kukurengatik kukuarengatik kukuengatik
benefactive kukurentzat kukuarentzat kukuentzat
instrumental kukuz kukuaz kukuez
inessive kukurengan kukuarengan kukuengan
locative
allative kukurengana kukuarengana kukuengana
terminative kukurenganaino kukuarenganaino kukuenganaino
directive kukurenganantz kukuarenganantz kukuenganantz
destinative kukurenganako kukuarenganako kukuenganako
ablative kukurengandik kukuarengandik kukuengandik
partitive kukurik
prolative kukutzat

Further reading

Bikol Central

Etymology 1

From Proto-Philippine *kukuh, from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *kukuh, from Proto-Austronesian *kuSkuS.

Pronunciation

  • Hyphenation: ku‧ku
  • IPA(key): /ˈkuku/

Noun

kuku

  1. Alternative form of kuko (nails (fingers and toes))

Etymology 2

Pronunciation

  • Hyphenation: ku‧ku
  • IPA(key): /kuʔˈku/

Noun

kùku

  1. Alternative form of kuko (chin)

Brunei Malay

Etymology

From Proto-Malayic *kuku, from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *kukuh, from Proto-Austronesian *kuSkuS.

Pronunciation

Noun

kuku

  1. (anatomy) nail (on fingers and toes)

Chinese

Pronunciation


Noun

kuku

  1. (Internet slang) Alternative form of 矻矻 (kūkū, busy)
    kuku自拍  ―  kūkū zìpāi  ―  taking selfies all the time

Czech

Pronunciation

Interjection

kuku

  1. cuckoo (the sound of cuckoo)

Further reading

Fijian

Etymology

From Proto-Central-Pacific *kuku, from Proto-Oceanic *kuku, from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *kukuh, from Proto-Austronesian *kuSkuS.

Noun

kuku

  1. (anatomy) nail (on fingers and toes)

Finnish

Etymology 1

Imitative of the sound made by a cuckoo/coua.

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ˈkuku/,
  • Rhymes: -uku
  • Syllabification(key): ku‧ku
  • Hyphenation(key): ku‧ku

Noun

kuku

  1. coua (any terrestrial bird of the genus Coua, in the cuckoo family)
Declension
Inflection of kuku (Kotus type 1/valo, no gradation)
nominative kuku kukut
genitive kukun kukujen
partitive kukua kukuja
illative kukuun kukuihin
singular plural
nominative kuku kukut
accusative nom. kuku kukut
gen. kukun
genitive kukun kukujen
partitive kukua kukuja
inessive kukussa kukuissa
elative kukusta kukuista
illative kukuun kukuihin
adessive kukulla kukuilla
ablative kukulta kukuilta
allative kukulle kukuille
essive kukuna kukuina
translative kukuksi kukuiksi
abessive kukutta kukuitta
instructive kukuin
comitative See the possessive forms below.
Possessive forms of kuku (Kotus type 1/valo, no gradation)
first-person singular possessor
singular plural
nominative kukuni kukuni
accusative nom. kukuni kukuni
gen. kukuni
genitive kukuni kukujeni
partitive kukuani kukujani
inessive kukussani kukuissani
elative kukustani kukuistani
illative kukuuni kukuihini
adessive kukullani kukuillani
ablative kukultani kukuiltani
allative kukulleni kukuilleni
essive kukunani kukuinani
translative kukukseni kukuikseni
abessive kukuttani kukuittani
instructive
comitative kukuineni
second-person singular possessor
singular plural
nominative kukusi kukusi
accusative nom. kukusi kukusi
gen. kukusi
genitive kukusi kukujesi
partitive kukuasi kukujasi
inessive kukussasi kukuissasi
elative kukustasi kukuistasi
illative kukuusi kukuihisi
adessive kukullasi kukuillasi
ablative kukultasi kukuiltasi
allative kukullesi kukuillesi
essive kukunasi kukuinasi
translative kukuksesi kukuiksesi
abessive kukuttasi kukuittasi
instructive
comitative kukuinesi
first-person plural possessor
singular plural
nominative kukumme kukumme
accusative nom. kukumme kukumme
gen. kukumme
genitive kukumme kukujemme
partitive kukuamme kukujamme
inessive kukussamme kukuissamme
elative kukustamme kukuistamme
illative kukuumme kukuihimme
adessive kukullamme kukuillamme
ablative kukultamme kukuiltamme
allative kukullemme kukuillemme
essive kukunamme kukuinamme
translative kukuksemme kukuiksemme
abessive kukuttamme kukuittamme
instructive
comitative kukuinemme
second-person plural possessor
singular plural
nominative kukunne kukunne
accusative nom. kukunne kukunne
gen. kukunne
genitive kukunne kukujenne
partitive kukuanne kukujanne
inessive kukussanne kukuissanne
elative kukustanne kukuistanne
illative kukuunne kukuihinne
adessive kukullanne kukuillanne
ablative kukultanne kukuiltanne
allative kukullenne kukuillenne
essive kukunanne kukuinanne
translative kukuksenne kukuiksenne
abessive kukuttanne kukuittanne
instructive
comitative kukuinenne

Etymology 2

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ˈkukuˣ/,
  • Rhymes: -uku
  • Syllabification(key): ku‧ku
  • Hyphenation(key): ku‧ku

Verb

kuku

  1. inflection of kukkua:
    1. present active indicative connegative
    2. second-person singular present imperative
    3. second-person singular present active imperative connegative

Iban

Etymology

Inherited from Proto-Malayic *kuku, from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *kukuh, from Proto-Austronesian *kuSkuS.

Noun

kuku

  1. (anatomy) claw

References

  • Scott, N. C. (1956) A Dictionary of Sea Dayak, School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London

Indonesian

Indonesian Wikipedia has an article on:
Wikipedia id

Etymology

Inherited from Malay kuku, from Proto-Malayic *kuku, from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *kukuh, from Proto-Austronesian *kuSkuS.

Pronunciation

Noun

kuku (plural kuku-kuku)

  1. (anatomy) nail (on fingers and toes)
  2. (anatomy, loosely) claw; a curved, pointed horny nail on each digit of the foot of a mammal, reptile, or bird
    Synonym: cakar
  3. claw; a mechanical device resembling a claw, used for gripping or lifting
    Synonym: cakar
  4. (anatomy) hoof; the tip of a toe of an ungulate such as a horse, ox or deer, strengthened by a thick keratin covering
  5. (figurative, rare) Synonym of kekuasaan

Derived terms

Further reading

Japanese

Romanization

kuku

  1. Rōmaji transcription of くく

Javanese

Alternative forms

Etymology

From Old Javanese kuku.

Noun

kuku (krama ngoko kuku, krama inggil kanaka)

  1. (anatomy) nail

References

  • The Linguistic Center of Yogyakarta (2011) “kuku”, in Kamus Basa Jawa (Bausastra Jawa) (in Javanese), 2nd edition, Yogyakarta: Kanisius, →ISBN


Kapampangan

Etymology 1

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ˈkukuʔ/
  • Hyphenation: ku‧ku

Noun

kúkû

  1. cough

Etymology 2

Compare Tagalog kuko.

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /kʊˈkuʔ/
  • Hyphenation: ku‧ku

Noun

kukû

  1. fingernail; toenail

Laboya

Etymology

From Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *kukuh, from Proto-Austronesian *kuSkuS₁.

Noun

kuku

  1. claw

References

Limos Kalinga

Noun

kukú

  1. (anatomy) nail (on fingers and toes)

Malay

Etymology

From Proto-Malayic *kuku, from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *kukuh, from Proto-Austronesian *kuSkuS.

Pronunciation

Noun

kuku (Jawi spelling کوکو, plural kuku-kuku)

  1. (anatomy) nail (on fingers and toes)
  2. (anatomy) hoof; the tip of a toe of an ungulate such as a horse, ox or deer, strengthened by a thick keratin covering
  3. (anatomy, loosely) claw; a curved, pointed horny nail on each digit of the foot of a mammal, reptile, or bird
    Synonym: cakar
  4. claw; a mechanical device resembling a claw, used for gripping or lifting
    Synonym: cakar
  5. (figurative, rare) Synonym of kekuasaan

Derived terms

Descendants

  • Indonesian: kuku

References

  • Pijnappel, Jan (1875) “کوکو koekoe”, in Maleisch-Hollandsch woordenboek, John Enschede en Zonen, Frederik Muller, page 95
  • Wilkinson, Richard James (1901) “کوکو kuku”, in A Malay-English dictionary, Hong Kong: Kelly & Walsh limited, page 549
  • Wilkinson, Richard James (1932) “kuku”, in A Malay-English dictionary (romanised), volume I, Mytilene, Greece: Salavopoulos & Kinderlis, pages 620-1

Further reading

Maori

Etymology 1

From Proto-Oceanic *kuku “finger or toe nail” (compare with Samoan ʻuʻu “nail”, Tongan kuku “to grasp, to grip, to clutch”, Fijian kuku) from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *kuku “ibid.” (compare with Malay kuku, Tagalog kuko).

Broadening in sense of “pinching” > “attraction” observable in the same language family e.g. Malay cuit (e.g. mencuit hati).

Noun

kuku

  1. pincers, tweezers, any tool or item that nips or pinches
  2. (archaic) finger or toe nail, alternative form of matikuku
  3. ( ~ o te manawa) attraction

Verb

kuku (passive kukua)

  1. to nip, to pinch
    Synonyms: kini, kuti
  2. to hold (of one's breath)
  3. to clench (of one's fist)
    Synonym: kumu
  4. to shut (of one's eyes)
    Synonym: kupi
  5. to draw together and close an opening of something
    Synonyms: kukumu, kuti

References

  1. ^ Ross, Malcolm D., Pawley, Andrew, Osmond, Meredith (2016) The lexicon of Proto-Oceanic, volumes 5: People, body and mind, Canberra: Australian National University, →ISBN, pages 176-7

Etymology 2

From Proto-Polynesian *kukumussel, any Mytilidae species” (compare with Rarotongan kuku, Samoan ʻuʻu, Tongan kuku) from Proto-Oceanic *kukur “to scrape, any mussel with shells used for this purpose” from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *kuDkuD “to scrape; rasp; grate” (compare with Malay kukur “to scrape , to scratch , to rasp”, Tagalog kudkod “grating (of coconut), shaving or scraping ”).

Verb

kuku

  1. to grate, to scrape – usually part of compound verbs, otherwise an alternative form of kukū

Noun

kuku

  1. any type of mussel

References

  1. ^ Tregear, Edward (1891) Maori-Polynesian Comparative Dictionary, Wellington, New Zealand: Lyon and Blair, page 181
  2. ^ Ross, Malcolm D., Pawley, Andrew, Osmond, Meredith (2011) The lexicon of Proto-Oceanic, Canberra: Australian National University
    • volume 1: Material Culture, page 161 →ISBN
    • volume 4: Animals, pages 235-7 →ISBN

Derived terms

Further reading

  • Williams, Herbert William (1917) “kuku”, in A Dictionary of the Maori Language, pages 180-1
  • kuku” in John C. Moorfield, Te Aka: Maori–English, English–Maori Dictionary and Index, 3rd edition, Longman/Pearson Education New Zealand, 2011, →ISBN.

Mapudungun

Noun

kuku (Raguileo spelling)

  1. paternal grandmother
  2. grandchild

See also

References

  • Wixaleyiñ: Mapucezugun-wigkazugun pici hemvlcijka (Wixaleyiñ: Small Mapudungun-Spanish dictionary), Beretta, Marta; Cañumil, Dario; Cañumil, Tulio, 2008.

Ngizim

Noun

kukú (plural kukwakin)

  1. baobab, Adansonia digitata

Nigerian Pidgin

Etymology

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

Adverb

kuku

  1. really, truly
    • 2024 March 17, Selin Girit and Grujica Andric, “Wetin go happun to your social media accounts wen you die”, in BBC News Pidgin:
      "I don do am almost 20 times and notin dey happun. I no kuku get di strength contact Facebook to fix am."
      "I have messaged him almost 20 times and nothing has happened. I don't really have the strength to contact Facebook to fix it."

Old Javanese

Etymology

From Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *kukuh.

Noun

kuku

  1. nail (anatomy)

Polish

Etymology

Onomatopoeic.

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ˈku.ku/
  • Audio:(file)
  • Rhymes: -uku
  • Syllabification: ku‧ku

Interjection

kuku

  1. cuckoo (used to imitate the voice of a male cuckoo)

Noun

kuku n (indeclinable)

  1. (childish, pathology) boo-boo (minor injury)
    Synonyms: ranka, skaleczenie

Derived terms

interjections

Further reading

  • kuku in Wielki słownik języka polskiego, Instytut Języka Polskiego PAN
  • kuku in Polish dictionaries at PWN

Serbo-Croatian

Etymology 1

Onomatopoeic.

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /kûkuː/
  • Hyphenation: ku‧ku

Interjection

kȕkū (Cyrillic spelling ку̏кӯ)

  1. woe
  2. The sound of a cuckoo singing.
  3. Shout in a hide and seek game.

Etymology 2

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

Noun

kuku (Cyrillic spelling куку)

  1. dative/locative singular of kuk

Noun

kuku (Cyrillic spelling куку)

  1. accusative singular of kuka

References

  • kuku”, in Hrvatski jezični portal (in Serbo-Croatian), 2006–2025

Sranan Tongo

Etymology

Borrowed from Dutch koek.

Noun

kuku

  1. cake, pastry

Sundanese

Sundanese register set
lemes tanggay
lemes ka sorangan {{{les}}}
lemes ka batur {{{leb}}}
loma kuku
cohag {{{co}}}

Etymology

From Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *kukuh, from Proto-Austronesian *kuSkuS.

Noun

kuku (Sundanese script ᮊᮥᮊᮥ)

  1. (anatomy) nail

Swahili

Swahili Wikipedia has an article on:
Wikipedia sw

Etymology

From *nkʊ́kʊ́, a variant of Common Bantu *nkókó.

Pronunciation

Noun

kuku class IX (plural kuku class X)

  1. chicken, fowl

Derived terms

Descendants

See also

Tagal Murut

Noun

kuku

  1. puppy (young dog)

Thao

Etymology

From Proto-Austronesian *kuSkuS.

Noun

kuku

  1. (anatomy) fingernail; toenail

Turkish

Pronunciation

Noun

kuku (definite accusative kukuyu, plural kukular)

  1. (child talk) female genitalia, vagina

Declension

Declension of kuku
singular plural
nominative kuku kukular
definite accusative kukuyu kukuları
dative kukuya kukulara
locative kukuda kukularda
ablative kukudan kukulardan
genitive kukunun kukuların

See also

Ye'kwana

Variant orthographies
ALIV kuku
Brazilian standard kuku
New Tribes cucu

Pronunciation

Noun

kuku

  1. a life-sized figure constructed from tree branches and other natural materials, symbolically killed in the aji'choto weja'kadü ritual

References

  • Lauer, Matthew Taylor (2005) Fertility in Amazonia: Indigenous Concepts of the Human Reproductive Process Among the Ye’kwana of Southern Venezuela, Santa Barbara: University of California, pages 239–240:cucu

Yogad

Noun

kukú

  1. nail; claw; hoof

Noun

kuku

  1. possession