تنها

Persian

Etymology

From Middle Persian tn'yhʾ (tanīhā). Equivalent to Middle Persian tn' (tan, “body, self”) + yhʾ (īhā).

Pronunciation

• (Classical Persian) IPA^(key): /tan.ˈhaː/

 

• (Dari, formal) IPA^(key): [t̪ʰän.hɑ́ː]

• (Dari, formal) IPA^(key): [t̪ʰän.hɑ́ː]
  • (Kabuli) IPA^(key): [t̪ʰä.nɑ́ː]
  • (Hazaragi) IPA^(key): [t̪ʰɔː.nɔ́ː], [t̪ʰɔː.ná]

• (Iran, formal) IPA^(key): [t̪ʰæn.hɒ́ː]

• (Tajik, formal) IPA^(key): [t̪ʰän.hɔ́]

Readings
Classical reading?	tanhā
Dari reading?	tanhā
Iranian reading?	tanhâ
Tajik reading?	tanho

Adjective

تنها • (tanhā / tanhâ) (Tajik spelling танҳо)

1. alone
2. lonely
   • 1972, “نمياد”, performed by Googoosh:

     واسه این دل تنها دیگه مهمون نمیاد

     vâse in del-e tanhâ dige mehmun nemiyâd

     For this lonely heart the guest never comes to visit

3. single
4. just
5. only

Derived terms

• تنهایی (tanhāyī / tanhâyi, “loneliness, solitude”)

Descendants

• → Azerbaijani: tənha
• → Hindustani:

  Hindi: तनहा (tanhā)

  Urdu: تَنْہا (tanhā)

• → Northern Luri: تںنیا (tənia)
• → Ottoman Turkish: تنها
  • ⇒ Serbo-Croatian: natenane
  • Turkish: tenha
• → Uyghur: تەنھا (tenha)