tattoo

English

Wikipedia

Etymology 1

A tattoo (image made in skin)

From Samoan tatau (“to tap”).

Pronunciation

• (Can we verify this pronunciation?) IPA: [tʰæˈtʰu]

Noun

Wikipedia tattoo (plural tattoos)

1. An image made in the skin with ink and a needle.
2. A method of decorating the skin by inserting colored substances under the surface. The skin is punctured with a sharp instrument, which now is usually a solenoid-driven needle, that carries the inks to lower layers of the skin.

Translations

an image made in the skin with ink and a needle

• Albanian: tatuazh (sq) m
• Arabic: وشم (ar) (washm) m
• Armenian: դաջվածք (hy) (daǰvackʿ)
• Assamese: please add this translation if you can
• Asturian: tatuaxe (ast) m
• Bengali: উল্কি (bn) (ulki)
• Bulgarian: татуировка (bg) (tatuirovka) f
• Burmese: please add this translation if you can
• Catalan: tatuatge (ca) m
• Chinese:

  Cantonese: trad. 紋身, simpl. 纹身 (Jyutping: man4 san1), trad. and simpl. 刺青 (jyutping: ci3 ceng1)

  Mandarin: (formal) 文身 (cmn) (wénshēn), 紋身 (cmn) 纹身 (cmn) (wénshēn)

• Czech: tetování (cs) n
• Danish: tatovering (da) c
• Dutch: tatoeage (nl) f
• Esperanto: tatuo (eo)
• Estonian: tätoveering (et)
• Faroese: litprikan (fo) f, tatovering (fo) f
• Finnish: tatuointi (fi)
• French: tatouage (fr) m
• Galician: tatuaxe (gl) f
• Georgian: please add this translation if you can
• German: Tätowierung (de) f, Tattoo (de) n
• Greek: τατουάζ (el) (tatouáz) n, (archaic) κατάστιξη (el) (katástixi)
• Hawaiian: kākau
• Hebrew: קעקע (he) (ka'aka)
• Hindi: गोदना (hi) (godnā)
• Hungarian: tetoválás (hu), tetkó (hu)
• Icelandic: húðflúr (is) n, tattú (is) n, tattó (is) n
• Italian: tatuaggio (it) m
• Japanese: 刺青 (ja), 入れ墨 (ja), 文身 (ja) (いれずみ, irezumi)

• Jèrriais: tatouage m
• Khmer: សាក់ (km) (sak)
• Korean: 문신 (ko) (munsin) (文身 (ko))
• Kurdish: deq (ku) f
• Latvian: please add this translation if you can
• Lithuanian: tatuiruotė (lt)
• Macedonian: тетоважа (mk) (tetováža) f
• Malay: tatu (ms)
• Maori: moko (mi)
• Marathi: टॅटू (mr) (ṭǎṭū)
• Nepali: please add this translation if you can
• Norwegian: tatovering (no) m
• Persian: خال‌کوبی (fa) (xâl-kubi)
• Polish: tatuaż (pl) m
• Portuguese: tatuagem (pt) f
• Romanian: tatuaj (ro) n
• Romansch: tetovaziun (rm) f, tatuaziun (rm) f
• Russian: татуировка (ru) (tatuiróvka) f, наколка (ru) (nakólka) f, (indeclinable) тату (ru) (tatú) n
• Samoan: tatau
• Serbo-Croatian: tetovaža (sh) f
• Slovak: tetovanie (sk)
• Slovene: tetoviranje (sl)
• Spanish: tatuaje (es) m
• Swedish: tatuering (sv) c
• Tahitian: tatau
• Thai: การสัก (th) (gaan-sàk), รอยสัก (th) (roi-sàk)
• Turkish: dövme (tr)
• Vietnamese: xăm (vi), hiệu trống tập trung buổi tối (vi)
• ǃXóõ: ǁáa

method of decorating the skin by inserting colored substances under the surface

• Albanian: tatuazh (sq) m
• Armenian: դաջում (hy) (daǰum)
• Finnish: tatuointi (fi)
• German: Tätowieren (de) n
• Greek: δερματοστιξία (el) (dermatostixía) f

• Khmer: ការសាក់លើស្បែក (km) (kaa sak ləə sbaek)
• Macedonian: тетовирање (mk) (tetovíranje) n
• Serbo-Croatian: tetoviranje (sh) n
• Swedish: tatuering (sv) c

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables, removing any numbers. Numbers do not necessarily match those in definitions. See instructions at Help:How to check translations.

Translations to be checked

• North Marquesan: tatu

• South Marquesan: tatu

Verb

tattoo (third-person singular simple present tattoos, present participle tattooing, simple past tattooed, past participle tattoed)

1. To apply a tattoo to (someone or something).
2. (baseball) To hit the ball hard, as if to figuratively leave a tattoo on the ball.

   Jones tattoos one into the gap in left; that will clear the bases.

Translations

to apply a tattoo

• Arabic: وشم (wášama)
• Armenian: դաջել (hy) (daǰel)
• Asturian: tatuar (ast)
• Catalan: tatuar (ca)
• Chinese: 刺 (cì)
• Czech: tetovat (cs)
• Dutch: tatoeëren (nl)
• Faroese: litprika (fo), tatovera (fo)
• Finnish: tatuoida (fi)
• French: tatouer (fr)
• Galician: tatuar (gl)
• German: tätowieren (de)
• Greek: στίζω (el) (stízo)

  Ancient: στίζω

• Hawaiian: kākau
• Hungarian: tetovál (hu)

• Icelandic: húðflúra (is), tattóvera (is), tattúera (is)
• Italian: tatuare (it)
• Jèrriais: tatouer
• Khmer: សាក់លើស្បែក (km) (sak ləə sbaek)
• Lithuanian: tatuiruoti (lt)
• Macedonian: тетовира (mk) (tetovíra)
• Norwegian: tatovere (no)
• Persian: خال کوبیدن (fa)
• Polish: robić tatuaż, tatuować (pl)
• Portuguese: tatuar (pt)
• Romanian: tatua (ro)
• Serbo-Croatian: tetovirati (sh)
• Spanish: tatuar (es)
• Swedish: tatuera (sv)
• Turkish: dövme yapmak (tr)

Related terms

• tatt
• tattoo artist
• tattoo parlour

Etymology 2

From Dutch taptoe.

Pronunciation

• IPA: /tæˈtuː/

Noun

tattoo (plural tattoos)

1. (nautical) A signal played five minutes before taps (lights out).
2. A signal by drum or bugle ordering soldiers to return to their quarters.
3. A military display or pageant.

Translations

time to close the taps

• Finnish: hiljaisuus (fi)

• German: Tattoo (de) n

signal

• Finnish: iltasoitto (fi), tattoo (fi)
• Greek: τυμπανοκρουσία (el) (tympanokrousía) f

• Spanish: retreta (es) f

a military display or pageant

• Spanish: parada (es) f

Etymology 3

From Hindi tattū.

Noun

tattoo (plural tattoos)

1. A breed of pony from India; a pony of that breed.