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liang. In DICTIOUS you will not only get to know all the dictionary meanings for the word
liang, but we will also tell you about its etymology, its characteristics and you will know how to say
liang in singular and plural. Everything you need to know about the word
liang you have here. The definition of the word
liang will help you to be more precise and correct when speaking or writing your texts. Knowing the definition of
liang, as well as those of other words, enriches your vocabulary and provides you with more and better linguistic resources.
English
Etymology
The atonal Wade-Giles and pinyin romanization of the standard Mandarin pronunciation of Chinese 兩／两 (liǎng). Doublet of leung and yang.
Noun
liang (plural liang or liangs)
- (chiefly historical) Synonym of tael, a former Chinese unit of weight (about 40 g) and a related unit of silver currency.
Anagrams
Indonesian
Etymology 1
From Malay liang, from Proto-Austronesian *liaŋ (“cave, cavern”).
Pronunciation
Noun
liang (plural liang-liang, first-person possessive liangku, second-person possessive liangmu, third-person possessive liangnya)
- small hole.
- Synonym: lubang
Derived terms
Etymology 2
Onomatopoeic.
Pronunciation
Root
liang (plural liang-liang)
- wavy
Derived terms
Etymology 3
From Mandarin 兩／两 (liǎng).
Pronunciation
Noun
liang (plural liang-liang, first-person possessive liangku, second-person possessive liangmu, third-person possessive liangnya)
- A Chinese ounce or tael, reckoned as one-third heavier than the ounce avoirdupois. Short for 臺兩／台两 (“Taiwanese tael, equal to 1/16 of a catty or 37.5 grams”).
Further reading
Kambera
Etymology
From Proto-Austronesian *liaŋ (“cave, cavern”).
Noun
liang
- cave
References
- Marian Klamer (1998) A Grammar of Kambera, Berlin, New York: Mouton de Gruyter, →ISBN, page 213
Malay
Etymology
From Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *liaŋ (“cave, cavern”). Cognate with Javanese leng.
Pronunciation
Noun
liang (Jawi spelling لياڠ, plural liang-liang, informal 1st possessive liangku, 2nd possessive liangmu, 3rd possessive liangnya)
- small hole (e.g. nose, stab mark)
- Synonyms: lubang, rongga
Further reading
- “liang” in Pusat Rujukan Persuratan Melayu | Malay Literary Reference Centre, Kuala Lumpur: Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka, 2017.
- Blust, Robert; Trussel, Stephen; et al. (2023) “*liaŋ”, in the CLDF dataset from The Austronesian Comparative Dictionary (2010–), →DOI
Mandarin
Romanization
liang
- Nonstandard spelling of liáng.
- Nonstandard spelling of liǎng.
- Nonstandard spelling of liàng.
Usage notes
- Transcriptions of Mandarin into the Latin script often do not distinguish between the critical tonal differences employed in the Mandarin language, using words such as this one without indication of tone.
Woiwurrung
Etymology
From Proto-Pama-Nyungan *rirra.
Noun
liang
- tooth
References
- Barry J. Blake, Woiwurrung, in The Aboriginal Language of Melbourne and Other Sketches (1991; edited by R. M. W. Dixon and Barry J. Blake; OUP, Handbook of Australian Languages 4), pages 31–124