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English
Pronunciation
This entry needs pronunciation information. If you are familiar with the IPA or enPR then please add some!
Noun
ni
( grammar ) Initialism of noun inanimate .
See also
Anagrams
Abinomn
Pronoun
ni
you ( singular )
Afar
Pronunciation
Determiner
ní
our
Saytun Qhuraan kee kay maqnah tarjamaty Qafar afal tani [The clear Qur'an and its explanation translated into the Afar language ] , Suurat Al-Faatica, verse 5:Diggah nanu Ni Rabbow koo inkittosnaah Qibaada dibuk koo caglisna, nanu ni- caagiidah inkih cato koo esserra. Our God, with strength we make you whole, only you we give adoration, we as one ask you for help with our afairs.
See also
Afar possessive determiners
References
E. M. Parker, R. J. Hayward (1985 ) “ni”, in An Afar-English-French dictionary (with Grammatical Notes in English) , University of London, →ISBN
Mohamed Hassan Kamil (2015 ) L’afar: description grammaticale d’une langue couchitique (Djibouti, Erythrée et Ethiopie) , Paris: Université Sorbonne Paris Cité (doctoral thesis)
Ainu
Pronunciation
Noun
ni (Kana spelling ニ )
tree
wood
Synonyms
Albanian
Etymology
From Proto-Albanian *nū , from Proto-Indo-European *nū ( “ now ” ) . Cognate to Sanskrit नू ( nū , “ now ” ) .[ 1] Often occurs in coordination with other particles, compare tani , nani , nime .
Adverb
ni
now
Synonyms: tash , tani , hë , nani , nime
References
^ Orel, Vladimir E. (2000 ) A concise historical grammar of the Albanian language: reconstruction of Proto-Albanian , Leiden, Boston, Köln: Brill, →ISBN , page 206
Anguthimri
Noun
ni
( Mpakwithi ) place
( Mpakwithi ) camp
References
Terry Crowley, The Mpakwithi dialect of Anguthimri (1981), page 187
Aromanian
Etymology
From Vulgar Latin nīs , from Latin nos . Compare Romanian ne (older form nă ).
Pronoun
ni (unstressed accusative and reflexive form of noi )
( direct object, first-person plural ) us
noi (stressed accusative )
Pronoun
ni (unstressed dative and reflexive form of noi )
( indirect object, first-person plural ) (to) us
See also
Asturian
Noun
ni f (uncountable )
nu ( name for the letter of the Greek alphabet: Ν and ν )
Atong (India)
Etymology
From Proto-Bodo-Garo *nɯi⁴ ( “ two ” ) , from Proto-Sino-Tibetan *g/s-ni-s ( “ two ” ) . Cognate with S'gaw Karen ခံ ( khee ) , Tibetan གཉིས ( gnyis ) , Sikkimese ཉི ( nyi ) , Nuosu ꑍ ( nyip ) , Burmese နှစ် ( hnac ) .
Pronunciation
Numeral
ni (Bengali script নি )
two
Synonyms
References
Bambara
Etymology 1
Noun
ni
soul , life , spirit
Etymology 2
Conjunction
ni
if
N i taara sugu la, i bɛ ne ba ye.If you go to the market, you will see my mother
when
References
Basque
Etymology
From Proto-Basque *ni .
Pronunciation
IPA (key ) : /ni/
Rhymes: -i
Hyphenation: ni
Pronoun
ni
First-person singular personal pronoun ; I
c. 1808 , Juan Bautista Aguirre, Eracusaldiac [Lessons ] , Tolosa, published 1850 , page 473 :[ …] Jauna: ez naiz ni beñere izan zu neure viotzean artzeco diña [ …] [ [ …] Jauna, ez naiz ni beñere izan zu nere biotzean artzeko diña [ …] ] Lord, not even once have I been worth of belonging to your heart
1989 , Gorka Aulestia, Basque-English Dictionary , Douglas: William A, page 53 :Ni errege izan nintzen.I was king.
2013 , Patricio Urquizu Sarasua, Gramática de la lengua vasca , Universidad Nacional de Educación de Distancia, page 154 :Ni etorri naiz.I have come.
Declension
Declension of Basque personal pronouns
Common pronouns
singular
plural
1st person
2nd person (informal)
2nd person (neutral)
1st person
2nd person
absolutive
ni
hi
zu
gu
zuek
ergative
nik
hik
zuk
guk
dative
niri
hiri
zuri
guri
zuei
genitive
nire ,ene
hire
zure
gure
zuen
comitative
nirekin ,enekin
hirekin
zurekin
gurekin
zuekin
causative
nigatik , niregatik ,enegatik
higatik , hiregatik
zugatik , zuregatik
gugatik , guregatik
zuengatik
benefactive
niretzat , niretako ,enetzat ,enetako
hiretzat , hiretako
zuretzat , zuretako
guretzat , guretako
zuentzat , zuendako
instrumental
nitaz
hitaz
zutaz
gutaz
zuetaz
inessive
nigan , niregan , nire baitan , nitan ,enegan , ene baitan
higan , hiregan , hire baitan , hitan
zugan , zuregan , zure baitan , zutan
gugan , guregan , gure baitan , gutan
zuengan , zuen baitan , zuetan
locative
nire baitako , ene baitako
hire baitako
gu baitako , gure baitako
zu baitako , zure baitako
zuen baitako
allative
niregana , nireganat , nire baitara , nire baitarat ,enegana , eneganat , ene baitara , ene baitarat
hiregana , hireganat , hire baitara , hire baitarat
zugana , zuregana , zuganat , zureganat ,zu baitara , zure baitara , zu baitarat , zure baitarat
gugana , guregana , guganat , gureganat ,gu baitara , gure baitara , gu baitarat , gure baitarat
zuengana , zuenganat ,zuen baitara , zuen baitarat
terminative
nireganaino , nire baitaraino ,eneganaino
higanaino , hireganaino ,hire baitaraino
zuganaino , zureganaino ,zu baitaraino , zure baitaraino
guganaino , gureganaino ,gu baitaraino , gure baitaraino
zuenganaino ,zuen baitaraino
directive
niganantz , nireganantz ,eneganantz
higanantz , hireganantz
zuganantz , zureganantz
guganantz , gureganantz
zuenganantz
destinative
niganako , nireganako ,eneganako
higanako , hireganako
zuganako , zureganako
guganako , gureganako
zuenganako
ablative
nireganik , niregandik , nire baitatik , nire baitarik ,eneganik , enegandik , ene baitatik , ene baitarik
higanik , hireganik , higandik , hiregandik ,hire baitatik , hire baitarik
zuganik , zureganik , zugandik , zuregandik ,zu baitatik , zu baitarik , zure baitatik , zure baitarik
guganik , gureganik , gugandik , guregandik ,gu baitatik , gu baitarik , gure baitatik , gure baitarik
zuenganik , zuengandik ,zuen baitatik , zuen baitarik
Emphatic pronouns
absolutive
neu
heu
zeu
geu
zeuek
ergative
neuk
heuk
zeuk
geuk
dative
neuri
heuri
zeuri
geuri
zeuei
genitive
neure
heure
zeure
geure
zeuen
comitative
neurekin
heurekin
zeurekin
geurekin
zeuekin
causative
neugatik , neuregatik
heugatik , heuregatik
zugatik , zuregatik
gugatik , guregatik
zuengatik
benefactive
neuretzat , neuretako
heuretzat , heuretako
zeuretzat , zeuretako
geuretzat , geuretako
zeuentzat , zeuendako
instrumental
neutaz
heutaz
zeutaz
geutaz
zeuetaz
inessive
neugan
heuregan , heure baitan
zeugan , zeuregan
geugan , geuregan
zeuengan
locative
neure baitako
heure baitako
zeure baitako
geure baitako
zeuen baitako
allative
neuregana
heugana , heuregana , heure baitara , heure baitarat
zeugana , zeuregana
geugana , geuregana
zeuengana
terminative
neuregaino
heuganaino , heureganaino , heure baitaraino
zeuganaino , zeureganaino
geuganaino , geureganaino
zeuenganaino
directive
neuganantz
heuganantz , heureganantz
zeuganantz , zeureganantz
geuganantz , geureganantz
zeuenganantz
destinative
neureganako
heuganako , heureganako
zeuganako , zeureganako
geuganako , geureganako
zeuenganako
ablative
neuganik , neugandik
heuganik , heureganik , heugandik , heuregandik ,heure baitatik , heure baitarik
zeuganik , zeureganik , zeugandik , zeuregandik
geuganik , geureganik , geugandik , geuregandik
zeuenganik , zeuengandik
Derived terms
Further reading
“ni ”, in Euskaltzaindiaren Hiztegia [Dictionary of the Basque Academy ], Euskaltzaindia
“ni ”, in Orotariko Euskal Hiztegia [General Basque Dictionary ], Euskaltzaindia , 1987–2005
Biloxi
Noun
ni
Synonym of ani ( “ water ” )
References
Breton
Etymology 1
From Proto-Brythonic *ni , from Proto-Celtic *snīs .
Pronoun
ni
we ( first-person plural personal pronoun )
Etymology 2
From Proto-Brythonic *nei , from Proto-Celtic *neɸūss , from Proto-Indo-European *népōts .
Noun
ni m (plural nied )
nephew
Catalan
Pronunciation
Etymology 1
Conjunction
ni
neither , nor
Adverb
ni
not even , even
Etymology 2
Noun
ni f (plural nis )
nu ; the Greek letter Ν (lowercase ν )
Czech
Pronunciation
Pronoun
ni f
accusative singular of ona
Danish
Etymology
From Old Norse níu , from Proto-Germanic *newun , from Proto-Indo-European *h₁néwn̥ ( “ nine ” ) .
Pronunciation
Numeral
ni
nine
Drung
Etymology
From Proto-Sino-Tibetan *s-nəj .
Noun
ni
day
References
Ross Perlin (2019 ) A Grammar of Trung , Santa Barbara: University of California
Dumbea
Pronunciation
Pronoun
ni
they
References
Leenhardt, M. (1946 ) Langues et dialectes de l'Austro-Mèlanèsie . Cited in: "ⁿDuᵐbea " in Greenhill, S.J., Blust, R. , & Gray, R.D. (2008). The Austronesian Basic Vocabulary Database: From Bioinformatics to Lexomics . Evolutionary Bioinformatics , 4:271–283.
Shintani, T.L.A. & Païta, Y. (1990 ) Dictionnaire de la langue de Païta , Nouméa : Sociéte d'etudes historiques de Nouvelle-Calédonie . Cited in: "Drubea " in Greenhill, S.J., Blust, R. , & Gray, R.D. (2008). The Austronesian Basic Vocabulary Database: From Bioinformatics to Lexomics . Evolutionary Bioinformatics , 4:271–283.
Eastern Huasteca Nahuatl
Determiner
ni
this .
Pronoun
ni
this .
Esperanto
Etymology
From Italian noi , French nous , Spanish nos , Latin nos , plus the i of personal pronouns.
Pronunciation
Pronoun
ni (first-person plural , accusative nin , possessive nia )
we (first-person plural personal pronoun)
ourselves
Ni diris al ni . We said to ourselves .
French
Etymology
From Middle French ny , from Old French ne , from Latin nec . Compare Italian né , Catalan and Spanish ni , Portuguese nem .
Pronunciation
Conjunction
ni
neither ; nor
1898 , Revue du monde invisible , page 339 :Notre imagination, si ardente qu’on la suppose, ne peut ni guérir instantanément une lésion organique, ni ressusciter un mort. Our imagination, so ardent as we suppose, can neither instantaneously heal an organic lesion, nor resuscitate the dead.
1876 , Bulletins et mémoires de la Société médicale des hôpitaux de Paris, Volume 12 :[ …] les constitutions accidentelles ou intercurrentes ne sont ni moins importantes ni plus faciles à expliquer. accidental or intercurrent constitutions are neither less important nor easier to explain.
c. 1656–1662 , Blaise Pascal, “Preuves par discours I – Papier original : RO 3-1 r° / v° et RO 7-1 r° / v°”, in Pensées [Thoughts ] :Mais nous ne connaissons ni l’existence ni la nature de Dieu, parce qu’il n’ a ni étendue, ni bornes. But we know neither the existence nor the nature of God, because He has neither extent nor limits.
Usage notes
Used with the negative particle ne .
Chiefly used at least twice in the same sentence the same way neither and nor would be used in an English sentence, such as ni riche, ni pauvre ( “ neither rich nor poor ” ) .
Derived terms
See also
Further reading
Gothic
Romanization
ni
Romanization of 𐌽𐌹
Hanunoo
Etymology
From Proto-Austronesian *ni ( “ marker of possession ” ) .
Pronunciation
IPA (key ) : /ˈni/
Rhymes: -i
Syllabification: ni
Preposition
ni (Hanunoo spelling ᜨᜲ )
of ; by
ti luka ni Bado ― lime tube of Bado
Kinaon ni Bado ti burot. The wild yam was eaten by Bado.
See also
Further reading
Conklin, Harold C. (1953 ) Hanunóo-English Vocabulary (University of California Publications in Linguistics), volume 9, London, England: University of California Press, →OCLC , page 198
Hausa
Etymology
From Proto-Chadic , from Proto-Afroasiatic *ˀanāku .
Pronunciation
Pronoun
nī
I ( 1st person singular pronoun )
See also
mínì (1st person singular indirect object enclitic pronoun )
nì (1st person singular independent object pronoun )
-wá (1st person singular possessive enclitic pronoun )
Hungarian
Etymology
Native word of debated origin:[ 1]
Shortened from nézd ( “ look! ” ) ~ nízd (a dialectal variant).
An onomatopoeia expressing astonishment.
Pronunciation
Interjection
ni
( colloquial ) lo !, look !
Itt van ni ! ― Look ! Here it is!
Usage notes
Most of the time it is used in its duplicated form: nini !
References
Further reading
ni in Bárczi, Géza and László Országh . A magyar nyelv értelmező szótára (“The Explanatory Dictionary of the Hungarian Language”, abbr.: ÉrtSz. ). Budapest: Akadémiai Kiadó, 1959–1962. Fifth ed., 1992: →ISBN
Idi
Noun
ni
water
References
Ido
Pronoun
ni
( personal ) we (first-person plural personal pronoun)
Ingrian
Pronunciation
Conjunction
ni
Alternative form of niin
1937 , V. A. Tetjurev, translated by N. I. Molotsova, Loonnontiito (ensimäin osa): oppikirja alkușkoulun kolmatta klaassaa vart , Leningrad: Riikin Ucebno-Pedagogiceskoi Izdateljstva, page 6:Jot saavva tiitä mitä ono pintamaas, ni pittää tehä mokomat oopьtat. In order to get to know what is in the topsoil, (that's why ) it's important to perform such experiments.
References
Ruben E. Nirvi (1971 ) Inkeroismurteiden Sanakirja , Helsinki: Suomalais-Ugrilainen Seura, page 340
Interlingua
Etymology
From French and Spanish ni , from Latin nec ( “ and not ” ) .
Adverb
ni
and not .
Io non sape, ni vole saper ― I don’t know, and I don’t want to know
Neither , nor .
Illo ni me place ni displace ― It neither pleases me nor displeases me
And , or (following a "with no " or "without ").
Nos debe resister sin aqua ni alimento ― We must resist with no water or food
Italian
Pronunciation
IPA (key ) : /ˈni/
Rhymes: -i
Hyphenation: nì
Etymology 1
Blend of no + sì .
Adverb
ni
( informal ) neither yes nor no
Etymology 2
Noun
ni m or f (invariable )
nu (Greek letter)
Anagrams
Japanese
Romanization
ni
The hiragana syllable に ( ni ) or the katakana syllable ニ ( ni ) in Hepburn romanization.
Kamano
Noun
ni
water
References
The Papuan Languages of New Guinea (1986, →ISBN
Kansa
Etymology
From Proto-Siouan *wa-rį́• ( “ water ” ) .
Noun
ni
water
any liquid
river
References
Kedah Malay
Etymology
(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium .)
Pronunciation
Pronoun
ni
you ( singular )
Klao
Noun
ni
water
References
World Lexicon of Grammaticalization (2002, →ISBN
Laboya
Pronunciation
Noun
ni
coconut
References
Allahverdi Verdizade (2019 ) “ni”, in Lamboya word list , Leiden: LexiRumah
Latin
Etymology
From Old Latin nei , from Proto-Italic *nei , from Proto-Indo-European *néy ( “ not ” ) , from *ne . Cognates include Gothic 𐌽𐌴𐌹 ( nei ) , Lithuanian nei , Old Church Slavonic ни ( ni ) , Old Irish ní and Sanskrit न ( ná ) . See also nē .
Pronunciation
Adverb
nī (not comparable )
not , if ...not , unless - an absolutely negative particle like ne so only in combinations
Derived terms
Conjunction
nī
not , that not, unless ; like ne in imperative and intentional clauses
Ni quid tibi hinc in spem referas. ― (please add an English translation of this usage example)
Vinum aliudve quid ni laudato. ― (please add an English translation of this usage example)
Numa constituit, ut pisces, qui squamosi non essent, ni pollucerent ... ni qui ad polluctum emerent. ― Numa ordained scaleless fish not to be served nor bought for serving.
Ligurian
Etymology
From Latin nec .
Pronunciation
Conjunction
ni
nor
neither ...nor
either ...or
Livonian
Etymology
From Proto-Finnic *nügüt . Cognates include Finnish nyt .
Adverb
ni
now
Lolopo
Etymology
From Proto-Loloish *(ʔ)-ne¹ , from Proto-Lolo-Burmese *ʔnəj¹/³ , from Proto-Sino-Tibetan *s-nəj ( “ sun; day ” ) .
Pronunciation
Noun
ni
( Yao'an ) day
References
Merrifield, Judith, Merrifield, Scott (2018 ) “Query for ni ”, in Yao'an Loxrlavu – English Dictionary (in Chinese), SIL International
Luxembourgish
Etymology
From Middle High German nie , from Old High German nio . Cognate with German nie .
Pronunciation
Adverb
ni
never
Synonyms
Malay
Pronunciation
Determiner
ni (Jawi spelling ني )
Colloquial form of ini
Pronoun
ni (Jawi spelling ني )
Colloquial form of ini
Mandarin
Romanization
ni
Nonstandard spelling of nī .
Nonstandard spelling of ní .
Nonstandard spelling of nǐ .
Nonstandard spelling of nì .
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.
Marshallese
Etymology
From Proto-Micronesian *niu , from Proto-Oceanic *niuʀ , from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *niuʀ .
Pronunciation
Noun
ni
coconut tree
References
Middle English
Adverb
ni
Alternative form of ne
Conjunction
ni
Alternative form of ne
Middle Irish
Particle
ni
Alternative spelling of ní
Mizo
Etymology 1
From Proto-Kuki-Chin *nii ( “ sun; day ” ) , from Proto-Sino-Tibetan *s-nəj ( “ sun; day ” ) .
Noun
ni
sun
day
time
Etymology 2
Noun
ni
aunt
References
Mohegan-Pequot
Pronoun
ni (first person singular )
singular first-person pronoun I
Mokilese
Etymology
From Proto-Micronesian *niu , from Proto-Oceanic *niuʀ , from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *niuʀ .
Noun
ni
coconut tree
Derived terms
References
Navajo
Pronoun
ni
second person singular pronoun you
Shí dóó ni ayóo ałk’is niidlį́. You and I are really good friends.
second person singular possessive pronoun yours
Díí naaltsoos éí ni . This book is yours.
Usage notes
The verb in Navajo incorporates information about person, and many sentences may thus not have explicit independent pronouns. For instance:
Hooghandi naniná.
Ni éí hooghandi naniná.
Both sentences are grammatically complete, and mean essentially the same thing: you are at home. The verb naniná is in the second-person form, so the pronoun can be safely omitted, as in the first sentence. This is similar to pronoun dropping in other languages where the verb specifies person, such as Spanish. Meanwhile, the explicit use of ni in the second sentence emphasizes that the speaker is talking about you . This can be thought of as roughly equivalent to the use of emphasis in English: while the first sentence comes across as you're at home , the second one is more like you, you're at home .
See also
Naxi
Etymology 1
From Proto-Sino-Tibetan *s-ŋja .
Noun
ni
fish
Etymology 2
From Proto-Sino-Tibetan *g/s-ni-s .
Numeral
ni
two
References
Naxi Dictionary by T.M. Pinson, Lijiang 2012
Ningil
Noun
ni
water
References
transnewguinea.org , citing D. C. Laycock, Languages of the Lumi Subdistrict (West Sepik District), New Guinea (1968), Oceanic Linguistics, 7 (1): 36-66 : /niː/
Margaret Manning, Naomi Saggers, A Tentative Phonemic Analysis of Ningil (SIL), in Phonologies of five Austronesian languages (Richard Loving, John M. Clifton; 1975) : /ni/
Norwegian Bokmål
Etymology
From Old Norse níu (whence also Danish ni , Icelandic níu , Faroese níggju and Swedish nio ) from Proto-Germanic *newun , from Proto-Indo-European *h₁néwn̥ . Cognate with Gothic 𐌽𐌹𐌿𐌽 ( niun ) ; Old English niġon (English nine ); Old Frisian nigun (West Frisian njoggen ); Old High German niun (German neun ).
Pronunciation
Numeral
ni
nine
Derived terms
References
“ni” in The Bokmål Dictionary .
Norwegian Nynorsk
Etymology
From Old Norse níu .
Numeral
ni
nine
Derived terms
References
“ni” in The Nynorsk Dictionary .
Nutabe
Noun
ni
water
References
Old Czech
Pronunciation
Pronoun
ni
dual accusative of oně
Old High German
Etymology
From Proto-Germanic *ne .
Pronunciation
Particle
ni
not
Derived terms
Descendants
Old Irish
Particle
ni
Alternative spelling of ní
Omaha-Ponca
Etymology
From Proto-Siouan *wa-rį́• ( “ water ” ) .
Noun
ni
water
References
Alice Cunningham Fletcher, Francis La Flesche, The Omaha Tribe (1970), page 166
Phalura
Etymology 1
(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium .)
Pronunciation
Determiner
ni (demonstrative , Perso-Arabic spelling نیۡ )
this (agr: prox fem / prox non-nom masc)
References
Henrik Liljegren, Naseem Haider (2011 ) “ni”, in Palula Vocabulary (FLI Language and Culture Series; 7) , Islamabad, Pakistan: Forum for Language Initiatives, →ISBN
Etymology 2
(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium .)
Pronunciation
Determiner
ni (demonstrative , Perso-Arabic spelling نیۡ )
these (agr: prox)
References
Henrik Liljegren, Naseem Haider (2011 ) “ni”, in Palula Vocabulary (FLI Language and Culture Series; 7) , Islamabad, Pakistan: Forum for Language Initiatives, →ISBN
Etymology 3
(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium .)
Pronunciation
Pronoun
ni (demonstrative , Perso-Arabic spelling نیۡ )
it
she (prox fem nom)
References
Henrik Liljegren, Naseem Haider (2011 ) “ni”, in Palula Vocabulary (FLI Language and Culture Series; 7) , Islamabad, Pakistan: Forum for Language Initiatives, →ISBN
Etymology 4
(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium .)
Pronunciation
Pronoun
ni (demonstrative , Perso-Arabic spelling نیۡ )
they (prox nom)
References
Henrik Liljegren, Naseem Haider (2011 ) “ni”, in Palula Vocabulary (FLI Language and Culture Series; 7) , Islamabad, Pakistan: Forum for Language Initiatives, →ISBN
Polish
Pronunciation
Etymology 1
Inherited from Proto-Slavic *ni .
Conjunction
ni
( archaic ) Alternative form of ani
Derived terms
Particle
ni
( dialectal ) Alternative form of nie
Etymology 2
See ny .
Noun
ni n (indeclinable )
Alternative form of ny
Further reading
ni in Wielki słownik języka polskiego , Instytut Języka Polskiego PAN
ni in Polish dictionaries at PWN
Portuguese
Etymology
Borrowed from Ancient Greek νῦ ( nû ) .
Pronunciation
Noun
ni m (plural nis )
nu ( the thirteenth letter of the Greek alphabet )
Proto-Norse
Romanization
ni
Romanization of ᚾᛁ
Rawang
Pronunciation
Etymology 1
Verb
ni
to pour ; to water .
Etymology 2
Noun
ni
headhair .
Etymology 3
From Proto-Sino-Tibetan *s-nəj . Cognate with Burmese နေ ( ne ) and နေ့ ( ne. ) , Old Chinese 日 ( *njiɡ ) .
Noun
ni
day (24 hour).
See also
Romanian
Etymology 1
Inherited from Latin.
Pronoun
ni
Alternative form of ne ( dative of noi ) : to us
Usage notes
This form is used when ne (which is dative) is combined with the following accusatives:
îl ( the accusative of el , contracted as ni-l )
îi ( the accusative of ei , contracted as ni-i )
le ( the accusative of ele )
se ( the reflexive accusative of all third-person pronouns )
See also
Etymology 2
Borrowed from Hungarian ni .
Interjection
ni
( Transylvania ) lo !, look !, behold !
Ni la el! ― Look at him!
Samoan
Article
ni
some (plural indefinite article)
Serbo-Croatian
Etymology
From Proto-Slavic *ni ( “ nor, not ” ) , from Proto-Balto-Slavic *nej , from Proto-Indo-European *ney . Compare ni- , ne .
Particle
ni (Cyrillic spelling ни )
( emphasizes negation ) even , either
ni ja to ne znam — even I don't know that; I don't know that either
Nisam ni htio čuti njegov prijedlog. I didn't even want to hear his proposal.
Conjunction
ni (Cyrillic spelling ни )
( shortening of niti ) neither , nor
ona nije ni pametna ni(ti) marljiva — she is neither smart nor industrious
ni traga ni glasa o .. — not a trace about ..
ni kriv ni dužan — completely innocent (lit. neither guilty nor indebted)
Sicilian
Pronunciation
Pronoun
ni
us , accusative of nuàutri
us , dative of nuàutri
us , reflexive of nuàutri
Inflection
See also
Slovene
Pronunciation
Verb
ní
negative third-person singular present of bíti
Spanish
Pronunciation
IPA (key ) : /ˈni/
Rhymes: -i
Syllabification: ni
Etymology 1
From Old Spanish nin , from Latin nec , apocopated form of neque , from Proto-Indo-European *nekʷe ( “ and not, neither, nor ” ) , from *ne ( “ not ” ) + *-kʷe ( “ and ” ) . Compare Asturian and Galician nin , Catalan and French ni , Portuguese nem , Italian né , Dalmatian ne . Indo-European cognates include Gothic 𐌽𐌹𐌷 ( nih ) and Irish nach .
Conjunction
ni
( coordinating ) neither ... nor
Antonym: o ... o
No tengo ni dinero ni tiempo. I have neither money nor time.
( with three or more referents ) none of ...
Ni Juan, ni Pedro, ni Felipe te darán la razón.None of John, Peter, or Phillip will give you the reason.
nor , or
No descansa de día ni de noche. He doesn't rest during the day nor during the night.
Derived terms
Adverb
ni
not even
No descansaba ni por un minuto I didn't rest even for a minute.
Ni yo sé qué significa esta palabra.Not even I know what this word means.
Derived terms
Etymology 2
Noun
ni f (plural níes )
nu ; the Greek letter Ν , ν
Synonym: ny
Further reading
Swahili
Pronunciation
Verb
ni
positive degree present and gnomic (all persons, numbers, and classes) of -wa ( “ to be ” )
Swedish
Etymology
Since 1661, through rebracketing of the 2nd plural verb suffix -(e)n and the older pronoun I ("ye "), e.g. vissten I > visste n i (“did you know”). Compare Icelandic þér and þið which developed similarly.
The Old Swedish ī , īr derives from Old Norse *īʀ (East Norse variant of ér ) from Proto-Germanic *jīz , from Proto-Indo-European *yū́ . Compare Danish I .
Pronunciation
Pronoun
ni
you (plural nominative)
Du är bara en person, men ni där borta är fyra personer You are just one person, but you/you guys over there are four people
you (second-person singular nominative formal) (capitalized Ni , rare in modern use)
( obsolete ) title used when addressing a person of lower social rank
–Ni kan börja med att städa kontoret, fröken Andersson. –Javisst, Herr Direktör. –You can start with cleaning the office, miss Andersson. –Certainly, Mr. Director
( colloquial , perceived formal , derogatory to some) by some considered a respectful alternative to du ( “ you ” ) , especially when addressing customers or the elderly
Vill ni ha en påse med köpet? Do you want a bag with your purchase?
Usage notes
Both ni and er are second person plural forms, but can also be used as formal second person singular, as in the German Sie or French vous . It may sometimes also be capitalized (Ni , Er ). The courteous "ni" was introduced in Swedish around the year 1900 as an alternative to the more complicated pattern of addressing others in the third person singular by their appropriate titles. This required knowledge of social status, occupation, educations, etc. with terms like fru ( “ Mrs .” ) or fröken ( “ Ms .” ) , greve ( “ count ” ) , kamrer ( “ accountant ” ) , kandidat ( “ bachelor's degree holder” ) , etc. However this "ni-reform" was not well liked and when authority came to use the word ni to their subordinates the word got a condescending undertone. Interestingly enough the older I , from which ni was originally formed, was used alongside ni all along (and is still in use in some dialects) but never got the condescending undertone that ni got. This was all phased out gradually during the 1960s and 1970s in the so-called du-reformen , (“the you-reform”). In contemporary Swedish, du is universal and may be used to address anyone, regardless of differences in social status or age.
Ni is used occasionally by younger speakers to address customers in order to be formal and polite. However this is often seen as being overly formal and too contrived, even condescending and insulting, especially by older speakers. Formality and politeness in modern Swedish is not conveyed through specific grammatical forms, but primarily done through indirectness, manners of speaking or various other behaviors.
Declension
Swedish personal pronouns
Number
Person
Type
Nominative
Oblique
Possessive
common
neuter
plural
singular
first
—
jag
mig , mej 3
min
mitt
mina
second
—
du
dig , dej 3
din
ditt
dina
third
masculine (person)
han
honom , han 2 , en 5
hans
feminine (person)
hon
henne , na 5
hennes
gender-neutral (person)1
hen
hen , henom 7
hens
common (noun)
den
den
dess
neuter (noun)
det
det
dess
indefinite
man or en 4
en
ens
reflexive
—
sig , sej 3
sin
sitt
sina
plural
first
—
vi
oss
vår , våran 2
vårt , vårat 2
våra
second
—
ni
er
er , eran 2 , ers 6
ert , erat 2
era
archaic
I
eder
eder , eders 6
edert
edra
third
—
de , dom 3
dem , dom 3
deras
reflexive
—
sig , sej 3
sin
sitt
sina
1 Neologism. Usage has increased since 2010, though it remains limited.
2 Informal
4 Dialectal, also used lately as an alternative to man , to avoid association to the male gender.
5 Informal, somewhat dialectal
6 Formal address
Synonyms
References
Anagrams
Tagalog
Pronunciation
Etymology 1
From Proto-Austronesian *ni ( “ marker of possession ” ) .
Preposition
ni (plural nina , Baybayin spelling ᜈᜒ )
of ; possessive particle, used only with personal names
bisikleta ni Juan ― Juan's bicycle
objective marker for personal names, objective form of si ; functional equivalent of ng
Derived terms
See also
Etymology 2
Borrowed from Spanish ni ( “ not even ” ) , from Old Spanish nin , from Latin nec , apocopated form of neque .
Conjunction
ni (Baybayin spelling ᜈᜒ )
neither ; nor
Ni ako hindi nagsisigarilyo . ― Even I don't do cigarettes .
Ni aso ni pusa . ― Neither dog nor cat .
See also
Adverb
ni (Baybayin spelling ᜈᜒ )
not even
Synonym: ni ultimo
Hindi ako humingi ni isang butil ng bigas. ― I didn't ask not even for a single grain of rice.
Anagrams
Tarifit
Etymology
(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium .)
Pronunciation
This entry needs pronunciation information. If you are familiar with the IPA then please add some!
Verb
ni (Tifinagh spelling ⵏⵉ )
( intransitive ) to mount ( on an animal )
( intransitive ) to get into , to board , to embark ( a vehicle )
Conjugation
This verb needs an inflection-table template .
Derived terms
Verbal noun: tnaya ( “ mounting, boarding ” )
Causative: sni ( “ to make board ” )
tnaya ( “ transport ” )
amnay ( “ rider; cavalier, knight ” )
Tokelauan
Pronunciation
Etymology 1
From Proto-Nuclear Polynesian *ni . Cognates include Tuvaluan ni and Samoan ni .
Article
ni
Plural indefinite article ; any
See also
Tokelauan articles
Impersonal
singular
plural
Definite
te
nā
Indefinite
he
ni
Personal
Nominal
Pronominal
Simple
ia
After i /ki
a
a te
After mai
ia te
Etymology 2
Particle
ni
Changes a statement into a polite question ; isn't it ? doesn't it ?
References
R. Simona, editor (1986 ), Tokelau Dictionary , Auckland: Office of Tokelau Affairs, page 250
Unami
Pronunciation
Pronoun
ni
I
Ura (Vanuatu)
Pronunciation
Noun
ni
tree
Further reading
Terry Crowley, Ura: A Disappearing Language of Southern Vanuatu (1999)
Uzbek
Particle
ni
accusative case marker; placed after the direct object of a transitive verb
Men O'zbek tili ni o'rganyapman. I am studying Uzbek.
Veps
Etymology
Borrowed from Russian ни ( ni ) .
Determiner
ni
not , not a, no
Inflection
Not inflected.
Conjunction
ni ... ni
neither ... nor
References
Zajceva, N. G., Mullonen, M. I. (2007 ) “ни ”, in Uz’ venä-vepsläine vajehnik / Novyj russko-vepsskij slovarʹ [New Russian–Veps Dictionary ] , Petrozavodsk: Periodika
Vietnamese
Etymology
See này .
This is one of many cases in which monophthongs were not diphthongized in Central Vietnamese, compare mày vs. mi , chấy vs. chí , nước vs. nác .
Pronunciation
Determiner
ni
( Central Vietnam ) this
Adverb
ni
( Central Vietnam ) now
See also
Vietnamese demonstratives
Proximal (*-iː )
Distal 1 (*-iːʔ )
Distal 2 (*-əːʔ )
Distal 3/ Remote (*-ɔːʔ )
Interrogative (rime was a rounded back vowel)
Place, attributive1 n-
ni nì này /nầy nây
nấy
nớ
nọ (nó )
nào
Place, nominal2 đ-
đây
đấy (ấy )
—
đó
đâu
Mannerr-
ri rày
—
rứa
—
ru sao 3
Extent 14 b-
bây
bấy
—
—
bao
Extent 25 v-
vầy
vậy
—
—
—
1 Originally can only follow a nominal (being used attributively), hence nơi này ( “ this place; here ” ) , nơi nào ( “ where ” ) (no longer completely true in the modern language). 2 Can be used on its own/is itself nominal, hence đây ( “ here ” ) , đâu ( “ where ” ) . 3 From earlier *C-raːw (where *C is nonspecific consonant). 4 Placed before the head: bây nhiêu ( “ this much ” ) , bấy nhiêu ( “ that much ” ) , bao nhiêu ( “ how much ” ) . 5 Placed after the head: nhanh vầy ( “ this fast ” ) , nhanh vậy ( “ that fast/so fast ” ) .
Visibility/evidentiality6
Distal (ngang )
Remote (huyền )
Northern-Southern
kia (cơ )
kìa (cờ )
Central
tê
tề
6 Originally, these demonstratives might have been used to assert that something is visible and/or verifiable . They have been bleached quite thoroughly and currently are usually used like other distal demonstratives. The biggest trace of their evidentiality might be in their usage as final particles, often in reduced forms cơ /cờ : ừ đấy về tới Hà Nội, còn những ba cái cầu nữa cơ mà! ("From there to Hanoi, there're still three more bridges to cross!") (Ba ngày luân lạc , 1943).
Anagrams
Welsh
Pronunciation
Etymology 1
From Proto-Brythonic *ni , from Proto-Celtic *snīs .
Pronoun
ni
us ; we
Etymology 2
From Proto-Celtic *nīs , from Proto-Indo-European *ne h₁ésti ( “ is not ” ) .
Adverb
ni (triggers mixed mutation )
( literary ) not
2004 , Beibl Cymraeg Newydd Diwygiedig , Cymdeithas y Beibl, Genesis 21:26:Dywedodd Abimelech, “Ni wn i ddim pwy a wnaeth hyn; ni ddywedaist wrthyf, ac ni chlywais i sôn am y peth cyn heddiw.” Abimelech said, “I do not know who has done this; you did not tell me, and I did not hear anything about it until today.”
Usage notes
Triggers mixed mutation (i.e. aspirate of p , t , c and soft of remaining mutatable letters) of a following consonant.
The form nid is used before a vowel. When the following consonant is g , which disappears under soft mutation, the form ni remains, thus ni + gwn becomes ni wn , not *nid wn .
In literary registers, dim ( “ anything ” ) may be added (as ddim , with soft mutation ) for emphasis, so ni chlywais i ddim may mean either “I did not hear anything” or simply “I did not hear”. In the colloquial language, ni is omitted but the mixed mutation remains, giving chlywais i ddim (“I didn't hear”).[ 1]
See also
References
^
Gareth King, editor (2000 ), “ni”, in Pocket Modern Oxford Welsh Dictionary: Welsh-English , Oxford University Press, →ISBN
West Makian
Pronunciation
Pronoun
ni (possessive prefix ni )
second-person singular pronoun , you
See also
West Makian personal pronouns
independent
possessive prefix
1st person singular
de
ti
2nd person singular
ni
ni
3rd person singular
me
mV an. , dV inan.
1st person plural inclusive
ene
nV
1st person plural exclusive
imi
mi
2nd person plural
ini
fi
3rd person plural
eme
di
References
Clemens Voorhoeve (1982 ) The Makian languages and their neighbours , Pacific linguistics
Wutunhua
Etymology
From Mandarin 你 (nǐ ).
Pronunciation
Pronoun
ni
you ( second-person subject pronoun )
See also
Wutunhua personal pronouns
Yil
Noun
ni
water
References
transnewguinea.org , citing D. C. Laycock, Languages of the Lumi Subdistrict (West Sepik District), New Guinea (1968), Oceanic Linguistics, 7 (1): 36-66 : /niː/
A Tentative Phonemic Statement in Yil in West Sepik Province , in Phonologies of five Austronesian languages (Richard Loving, John M. Clifton; 1975) : /ni/
Yoruba
Etymology 1
Pronunciation
IPA (key ) : /nĩ́/
Noun
ní
The name of the Latin-script letter N /n .
See also
( Latin-script letter names ) lẹ́tà ; á , bí , dí , é , ẹ́ , fí , gí , gbì , hí , í , jí , kí , lí , mí , ní , ó , ọ́ , pí , rí , sí , ṣí , tí , ú , wí , yí
Etymology 2
Pronunciation
IPA (key ) : /nĩ́/
Verb
ní
( transitive ) to have
Etymology 3
Pronunciation
IPA (key ) : /nĩ́/
Preposition
ní
at , in ( used when no movement is implied )
preposition used for creating adverbials
Derived terms
See also
Etymology 4
Pronunciation
IPA (key ) : /nĩ́/
Verb
ní
( intransitive ) to say
See also
Etymology 5
Pronunciation
IPA (key ) : /nĩ̄/
Verb
ni
( transitive ) to be ( to have a quality or identification )
Usage notes
This verb cannot be used with regular subject pronouns such as mo or ó , and emphatic subject pronouns must be used in their place. This verb is also often used in a flipped structure where the quality or identification becomes the grammatical subject of the verb while an object pronoun is used for the actual subject of the sentence.
Òun ni ọ̀rẹ́ mi. – He is my friend. (uses the emphatic pronoun òun instead of ó )
Ṣé ọmọ Yorùbá ni yín? – Are you Yoruba? (Ọmọ Yorùbá becomes the subject of ni while "you" becomes the object pronoun yín )
See also
Etymology 6
Pronunciation
IPA (key ) : /nĩ̄/
( intransitive ) to be bloated , to be tumid
Derived terms
Zou
Etymology 1
Ni.
From Proto-Kuki-Chin *nii , from Proto-Sino-Tibetan *s-nəj . Cognates include Northern Min 日 ( nì ) and Burmese နေ ( ne ) .
Pronunciation
Noun
ni
sun
Etymology 2
From Proto-Kuki-Chin *ni , from Proto-Sino-Tibetan *g/s-ni-s . Cognates include Northern Min 二 ( nī ) and Tibetan གཉིས ( gnyis ) .
Pronunciation
Numeral
ni
two
References
Lukram Himmat Singh (2013 ) A Descriptive Grammar of Zou , Canchipur: Manipur University, page 40
Zulu
Etymology 1
(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium .)
Adjective
-ni?
what (kind of)
Inflection
Etymology 2
See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.
Pronoun
-ni
Combining stem of nina .
References