um

um

1. micrometer; variant of μm used when the character μ is unavailable

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Speech disfluency

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Onomatopoeic.

• umm, uhm, hum, erm

• IPA^(key): /ʌm/

• Audio (US):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ʌm (when stressed, or as a verb)

Used in rhotic dialects. Compare to British English erm.

um

1. Expression of hesitation, uncertainty or space filler in conversation.

   Synonyms: er, hmm, uh

   Um, I don’t know.

   Let’s see... um... how about this?

   • 2002, Newsweek, volume 140, page lxxx:

     It's a great test of the claims of open-source gurus, who say that a self-motivated community can outcode any team working for a single employer—like, um, Microsoft.

2. (chiefly US) Dated spelling of mmm.
   • 1963, Kurt Vonnegut, Cat's Cradle, Dell Publishing Co., Inc., page 65:

     "About the same, wherever you go," he agreed.
     "Um," I said.

3. (US) An expression to forcefully call attention to something wrong.

   Um, excuse me!

4. (UK, childish) An expression of shocked disapproval used by a child who witnesses forbidden behavior.
   • 2011, Kimberly Willis Holt, Piper Reed, Clubhouse Queen:

     While I was in her room, Sam walked by and said, “Um, I'm telling!”
     “You're telling what?” I asked.
     “You're reading Tori's journal,” she said.

   • 2021, Sarah Strangeways, The Gingerbread House, page 13:

     Mair used to look after Laura. If anyone threatened to tease her, Mair would stand up straight, point her finger at the enemy and shout, 'Um! I'm telling on you!'

um (third-person singular simple present ums, present participle umming, simple past and past participle ummed)

1. (intransitive) To make the um sound to express uncertainty or hesitancy.
   • 2007, Michael Erard, Um... Slips, Stumbles, and Verbal Blunders, and What They Mean, page 136:

     Meanwhile, in the popular mind umming was simply a bad habit, akin to spitting or picking one’s nose.

um

1. (dated, sometimes humorous, often offensive) An undifferentiated determiner or article; a miscellaneous linking word, or filler with nonspecific meaning; representation of broken English stereotypically or comically attributed to Native Americans.

   He um Growling Bear. He um heap big chief.

   • 1871, “Grand camp meeting on Bear River”, in The Keepapitchinin‎, volume III, page 3:

     “me heap brave—me talk to um white man so […] me good injun, like um white man, mebbe so, ugh!”

• -mu-, MU, Mu, mu

Inherited from Proto-Slavic *umъ

• IPA^(key):
• Hyphenation: um
• Rhymes: -um

um m inan

1. skill, art

• schopnost
• dovednost
• umění

• “um”, in Příruční slovník jazyka českého (in Czech), 1935–1957
• “um”, in Slovník spisovného jazyka českého (in Czech), 1960–1971, 1989
• “um”, in Internetová jazyková příručka (in Czech)

um

1. house

• C. L. Voorhoeve, The Makian Languages and Their Neighbours (1982)

From Old Norse um, from Proto-Germanic *umbi. Cognate with Swedish om.

um

1. if

um

1. around
2. about (a subject)

From Old Norse umb, from Proto-Germanic *umbi, from Proto-Indo-European *h₂m̥bʰi (“round about, around”).

• IPA^(key): /ʊmː/

um

1. around
2. about
3. during
4. through
5. over

um

1. whether, if

um m (feminine umha or uma, reintegrationist norm)

1. one

The numeral um and its feminine forms umha and uma can form contractions with the prepositions com (“with”), de (“of, from”), and em (“in”).

• cum, cumha, cuma
• dum, dumha, duma
• num, numha, numa

• umb, ümb, üm (obsolete)

From Middle High German umbe, ümbe, from Old High German umbi, from Proto-West Germanic *umbi.

Central German dialects show regular umlaut; the standard form is from Upper German, where umlaut of -u- was blocked before labial geminates and clusters. Cognate with Luxembourgish ëm, Dutch om, English umbe.

• IPA^(key): /ʊm/

• Audio:

  (file)

• Audio:

  (file)

• Audio (Austria):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ʊm

um

1. about

   Es geht um den Kuchen. ― It's about the pie.

2. around

   Um die Ecke ― around the corner

3. at, by (when relating to time)

   Um acht Uhr reisen wir ab ― At eight o’clock we depart

4. by (percentage difference)

   Die Verkaufsmengen gingen um 6% zurück. ― Sales in volume has decreased by 6%.

5. (Austria) for (amount of money)

   Um einen Euro bekommt man heute nicht besonders viel. ― You can't buy much for one euro these days.

   Heute im Sonderangebot um nur 99 Euro. ― Special offer today for only 99 euros.

• (um + das) ums

um (introduces a zu-clause)

1. in order to, so as to

   Wir sind gekommen, um zu helfen.

   We’ve come (in order) to help.

um (indeclinable, predicative only)

1. (predicative, not attributive) up, in the sense of finished

   Werden dich in kurzem binden/ Erdgeist, deine Zeit ist um

   We will shortly bind you/ Erdgeist, your time is up

   (Friedrich von Hardenberg, Novalis)

um

1. around, about
2. turned over, changed, from one state to another

• IPA^(key): /um/

um (+ accusative)

1. around

   Ich hon mich en Duch um de Kopp gebunn.

   I've tied a towel around my head.

2. at, by (when relating to time)

   Um acht Uher.

   At eight o'clock.

• (um + das) ums

um

1. around, about

   Das kost um zweu hunnerd Rëal.

   This costs around two hundred reais.

• Online Hunsrik Dictionary

• umb

From Old Norse um, from Proto-Germanic *umbi (“around, about”).

um

1. used in set phrases

   Það er um að gera að sofa vel.

   The important thing to do is to sleep well.

   Hvað er um að vera?

   What's going on?

   Eins og um var talað.

   As was agreed.

• um að gera
• vera um og ó

um

1. about, concerning

   Um hvað ertu að tala?

   What are you talking about?

   Spurning um líf og dauða.

   A question of life and death.

2. through, around, across

   Áin rennur um dalinn.

   The river runs through the valley.

   Að fara út um gluggann.

   To go out through the window.

   Vestur um haf.

   West across the sea.

3. throughout, over, around

   Við förum um alla sveitina.

   We'll go throughout the district.

   Hann var breiður um herðar.

   He was broad across the shoulders.

   Hún hafði klút um hálsinn.

   She had a scarf around her neck.

4. during, for, in, at

   Hvenær gerðist þetta? - Þetta gerðist um sumarið.

   When did this happen? - It happened during the summer.

   Ég fór um nóttina.

   I went during the night.

5. approximately, about, around

   Pokinn er um fjögur kíló.

   The bag is around four kilos.

• Often used with phrases such as "brjóta heilann um".

  Ég er búinn að brjóta heilann um þetta alla nótt!

  I've been racking my brain about this all night!

From Portuguese um (“a”), from Old Galician-Portuguese ũu, from Latin ūnus, from Proto-Indo-European *h₁óynos.

um

1. a (the indefinite article)
   • 1883, Hugo Schuchardt, Kreolische Studien, volume 3:

     Um homm tinh doiz filh:

     A man had two sons:

• im

From Old Irish imb, from Proto-Celtic *ambi, from Proto-Indo-European *h₂m̥bʰi (“round about, around”).

• IPA^(key): /ʊmˠ/^[1]

um (plus dative, triggers lenition, except of b, m, and p)

1. about
2. at
3. because of, on account of

• uime

• Ó Dónaill, Niall (1977) “um”, in Foclóir Gaeilge–Béarla, Dublin: An Gúm, →ISBN

Probably cognate to U ʔóm.

um

1. water

• H. Roberts, A Grammar of the Khasi Language

• IPA^(key): /um/

u'm

1. first/third-person singular present indicative of vȱlda

um

1. stone

• Greg Pearson, René van den Berg, Lote Grammar Sketch (2008)

um

1. contraction of op + dem; on the, at the, to the
2. contraction of un + dem

From Middle High German umbe, ümbe, from Old High German umbi, from Proto-West Germanic *umbi, from Proto-Germanic *umbi (“around, about”). Cognate with German um, English umbe.

um (+ accusative)

1. about, around
2. (time) at

   Um biavle ist s? ― What time is it? (literally, “How many is it at?”)

• “um” in Cimbrian, Ladin, Mòcheno: Getting to know 3 peoples. 2015. Servizio minoranze linguistiche locali della Provincia autonoma di Trento, Trento, Italy.

From Old Norse um.

• IPA^(key): /ʊmː/, , , ,

um

1. (pre-1938 or dialectal) alternative form of om

• “um” in Ivar Aasen (1873) Norsk Ordbog med dansk Forklaring

• umb (older form)

From Proto-Germanic *umbi (“around, about”). Cognate with Old English ymbe, Old Frisian umbe, ombe, Old Saxon umbi, Old High German umbi.

um

1. about, concerning
2. round, past, beyond
3. over, across, along
4. during, at a point in time
5. because of, for

um

1. (w:Poetic Edda) indicates that the verbal action is completed, compare English “through” as in “read through”. For semantic development, compare adjectival usage of German um.
   • Vǫluspá, verse 2, lines 1-2, in 1860, T. Möbius, Edda Sæmundar hins fróða: mit einem Anhang zum Theil bisher ungedruckter Gedichte. Leipzig, page 1:

     Ek man jǫtna / ár um borna, […]

     I remember giants / born long ago,

• “um”, in Geir T. Zoëga (1910) A Concise Dictionary of Old Icelandic, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• “um” J. Fritzner (1867) Ordbog over det gamle norske Sprog, Kristiania: Feilberg & Landmark

Compare German um, Dutch om, Old English ymb.

um

1. around

From Proto-Khasian *ʔum (“tree”). Cognate with Khasi um.

• IPA^(key): /ʔum/

um

1. water

Inherited from Proto-Slavic *ũmъ.

• IPA^(key): /ˈum/
• Rhymes: -um
• Syllabification: um
• Homophone: -um

um m inan

1. (obsolete) mind, reason

   Synonyms: rozsądek, rozum, umysł

• um in Polish dictionaries at PWN

• hum (obsolete)

Inherited from Old Galician-Portuguese ũu (“one; a”), from Latin ūnum (“one”), from Old Latin oinos, from Proto-Italic *oinos, from Proto-Indo-European *h₁óynos (“one”). Doublet of uno.

• Audio (Brazil):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ũ
• Hyphenation: um

um m (feminine uma)

2. one

   Uma xícara de café ― One cup of coffee

For quotations using this term, see Citations:um.

• Indo-Portuguese: um
• Kabuverdianu: un

um (feminine uma, masculine plural uns, feminine plural umas)

2. (indefinite) a, an

   Um carro, uma casa. ― A car, a house.

   • 2005, J. K. Rowling, translated by Lia Wyler, Harry Potter e o Enigma do Príncipe [Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince] (Harry Potter; 6), Rio de Janeiro: Rocco, →ISBN, page 186:

     Tenho um recado para você.

     I have a message for you.

   • 2005, J. K. Rowling, translated by Lia Wyler, Harry Potter e o Enigma do Príncipe [Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince] (Harry Potter; 6), Rio de Janeiro: Rocco, →ISBN, page 361:

     […] disse o professor com um sorrisinho […]

     the teacher said with a little smile

   2. (in the plural) some; a few (a small number of)

      Uns carros, umas casas. ― A few cars, a few houses.

      Synonym: alguns

   4. (with uncountable nouns) a bit of

      Synonym: um pouco de

   6. (usually in the feminine, pronounced slowly, emphatically and with a high intonation) indicates that what follows is exceptional; quite a; quite the

      Ontem de noite caiu uma chuva.

      We had quite a rain last night.

      Estamos comendo um churrasco.

      We are having the barbecue.

      Synonym: aquele

For quotations using this term, see Citations:um.

um m (plural uns)

2. the figure or digit "1": one

   O um parece o sete sem gravata no pescoço. ― The one looks like the seven with no tie at its neck.

For quotations using this term, see Citations:um.

um m or f (plural uns)

2. a person; one; someone

   Chegou-me um e disse: "Olá!" ― One came to me and said: "Hello!"

4. element(s) of a previously mentioned class: one; some (in the plural)

   Comprei uns e me decepcionei. ― I bought some and got disappointed.

For quotations using this term, see Citations:um.

From Latin homō, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰmṓ (“earthling”).

um m (plural umens)

1. man

   Coordinate term: dunna

2. husband

   Synonym: (Sutsilvan) cunsort

   Coordinate term: dunna

• IPA^(key): /um/

um

1. house

• Donald A. Burquest, Wyn D. Laidig, Phonological Studies in Four Languages of Maluku (1992)

• IPA^(key): /ʌm/, /əm/

um

1. (Southern Scots, personal) him

• hei

Inherited from Proto-Slavic *umъ.

• IPA^(key): /ûːm/

ȗm m (Cyrillic spelling у̑м)

1. mind
2. intellect
3. wit

Inherited from Proto-Slavic *umъ.

• IPA^(key):

um m inan

1. mind
2. intellect
3. wit

• rozum m
• hlava f
• zmysel m

• umček
• umný
• umový

• “um”, in Slovníkový portál Jazykovedného ústavu Ľ. Štúra SAV [Dictionary portal of the Ľ. Štúr Institute of Linguistics, Slovak Academy of Science] (in Slovak), https://slovnik.juls.savba.sk, 2003–2024