ayo

See also: Ayo, ayó, ayọ, and āyo

English

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈeɪ.(j)oʊ/

• Audio (Southern England)

  (file)

Etymology 1

Combination of hey and yo

Interjection

ayo

1. (African-American Vernacular, slang) A greeting.
   • 2004, Michael Daniel Baptiste, Cracked Dreams, page 73:

     "Ayo, Red. It's the homie Spits on the jack for you, blood." "Ayo, homeboy," said Red as he excitedly picked up the telephone receiver. "What's up, fool?"

   • 2007, Reginald L. Hall, In Love with a Thug, page 38:

     “Ayo, wassup, girl,” he said to Keisha as he continued to walk toward the back area where I stood. […] “Ayo, wassup, playa?

   • 2007, Tony J. Ward, Jr., I've Got to Make It to Heaven for Going Through Hell: Part 1, page 39:

     Ayo Toine, you think they'd put me down?

   • 2007, Nikki Turner, Christmas in the Hood, page 289:

     "Ayo, fam, you a'ight down there?" Victorious's cell mate asked.

   • 2008, Treasure Hernandez, Resurrection, page 106:

     "Ayo, ma, where you going?" a dude asked her as she walked by him.

   • 2008, Ashley JaQuavis, The Trophy Wife, page 103:

     "Ayo, Kalil!" a man's voice said from amidst the crowd. Kalil looked up and saw his lil' man, Peanut, distributing packets of heroin and taking money from the fiends.

   • 2010, R Green Damon, Somethin' to Think about, page 197:

     "Ayo, Cee, listen to this shit here," said Matt, passing him his cell.

2. (African-American Vernacular, slang) Used to imply that was what said is inappropriate. Similar to hold up.

Synonyms

• (greeting): hey, hi, yo

Etymology 2

From Yoruba ayò, an abridged form of ayò ọlọ́pọ́n.

Noun

ayo (uncountable)

1. (West African English) A strategy game.

Synonyms

• (strategy game): ayoayo, oware, awari

See also

• Ayoayo on Wikipedia.Wikipedia

Anagrams

• Yao

Classical Nahuatl

Noun

ayo (inanimate)

1. Obsolete spelling of āyoh

Hiligaynon

Noun

ayô

1. a pet name
2. bargain, discount

Verb

ayô

1. to ask or request

Indonesian

Etymology

From Malay ayuh, ayo, from Classical Malay ايوه‎ (ayuh), ايو‎ (ayo). Cognate of Malay ayuh, Javanese ayo (ꦲꦪꦺꦴ, “come on, let's, please”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /aˈjo/
• Rhymes: -jo, -o
• Hyphenation: a‧yo

Interjection

ayo

1. (informal) come on!

Alternative forms

• ayuh (Standard Malay)
• hayo

Synonyms

• mari (polite)

Further reading

• “ayo” in Kamus Besar Bahasa Indonesia, Jakarta: Language Development and Fostering Agency — Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology of the Republic Indonesia, 2016.

Musi

Etymology

• From Javanese ꦠꦺꦴꦪ (toya, “water”), from Old Javanese toya (“water”), from Sanskrit तोय (toya, “water”).
• From Proto-Malayic *air, from Proto-Malayo-Chamic *air, from Proto-Malayo-Sumbawan *wair, from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *wahiʀ. Compare to Indonesian air, Urak Lawoi' อาเย (ayë).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /a.jɔ/
• Hyphenation: a‧yo

Noun

ayo

1. water (clear liquid H₂O)

   Synonym: banyu

Papiamentu

Alternative forms

• ayó (alternative spelling)

Etymology

From Spanish adiós and Portuguese adeus.

Interjection

ayo

1. goodbye
2. farewell

Portuguese

Noun

ayo m (plural ayos, feminine aya, feminine plural ayas)

1. Obsolete spelling of aio

Spanish

Etymology

Inherited from Late Latin avius, masculinized from Latin avia (“grandmother”), whence Spanish aya.

Pronunciation

 

• IPA^(key): /ˈaʝo/ [ˈa.ʝo]

• IPA^(key): (everywhere but Argentina and Uruguay) /ˈaʝo/ [ˈa.ʝo]
• IPA^(key): (Buenos Aires and environs) /ˈaʃo/ [ˈa.ʃo]
• IPA^(key): (elsewhere in Argentina and Uruguay) /ˈaʒo/ [ˈa.ʒo]

• Rhymes: -aʝo
• Syllabification: a‧yo

Noun

ayo m (plural ayos, feminine aya, feminine plural ayas)

1. person who takes care of children, tutor

   Synonym: tutor

Further reading

• “ayo”, in Diccionario de la lengua española, Vigésima tercera edición, Real Academia Española, 2014

West Makian

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈa.jo/

Noun

ayo

1. older sibling

   ayo da at ― older brother

   ayo da papa ― older sister

References

• Clemens Voorhoeve (1982) The Makian languages and their neighbours‎^[1], Pacific linguistics

Yami

Noun

ayo

1. river; stream; brook

Yoruba

Ewé ayò (1)

Àwọn ọmọ tó ń ta ayò (3)

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ā.jò/

Noun

ayò

1. Any of a variety of plants including Guilandina bonduc and Corchorus olitorius (ewédú)
2. The seeds of the ayò plant

   Synonym: ọmọ ayò

3. The strategy game ayo, a variety of the mancala or oware game played by the Yoruba, of which the seeds of the ayò plant are used in the game

   Synonyms: ayò ọlọ́pọ́n, ayòayò, awò, ayò jẹ̀rin, ayò kàrè, ayò jòdù-jòdù

   bí ayò ó bá wọ ọ̀ta lára, á dígbà sọ ìsọkúsọ

   When an expert ayo player becomes over-excited while ayo, he will occasionally utter some gibberish

   (proverb on over-excitement)

4. (by extension) A general term for any strategic game, competition, or pastime, hobby

   mo pa á ní ayò ― I won in a game

Derived terms

• agbọndan ayò (“longitudinal row of ayò holes”)
• aláyò (“someone who plays the ayo game”)
• àmì ayò (“a point in competitive sport”)
• òdù ayò (“The hole in an ayo game board filled with seeds”)
• ojúlé ayò (“the holes in the ayo board”)
• ọmọ ayò (“ayo pieces”)
• ọpọ́n ayò (“Ayo board, mancala board”)
• ta ayò (“to play ayo”)

 

Descendants

• → English: ayo

Yurumanguí

Noun

ayo

1. river

References

• Prehistoria: Lenguas y dialectos indigenas de Colombia (Luis Duque Gómez, Sergio Elías Ortiz, 1965), citing Romero's wordlist