bikini

See also: Bikini and bikiní

Languages (20)

English

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Cebuano • Dutch • Finnish • French • Indonesian • Italian • Japanese • Norman • Norwegian Bokmål • Norwegian Nynorsk • Polish • Portuguese • Romanian • Serbo-Croatian • Spanish • Swahili • Swedish • Tagalog • Turkish

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Page categories

English

A woman wearing a bikini

Etymology

Etymology tree

Marshallese pik

Marshallese ni

Marshallese Pikinnibor.

German Bikinibor.

English Bikinibor.

French Bikini

French bikinibor.

English bikini

From French bikini, named after the place name Bikini, from English Bikini, the name of the atoll where the United States tested nuclear weapons in July 1946; it was reckoned that the bathing suit would cause as much excitement as a nuclear bomb. This name was originally from German Bikini, the colonial name of the atoll as part of German New Guinea, and this was derived from Marshallese Pikinni.

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /bɪˈkiː.ni/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /bɪˈki.ni/

• Audio (US):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -iːni
• Homophone: Bikini

Noun

bikini (plural bikinis)

2. A brief two-piece bathing suit worn by women, especially one that exposes the midriff and navel.

   Synonym: two-piece

   • 1950 October 2, “In the Swim”, in Time:

     Cole has little but scorn for France's famed Bikini bathing suits. Explains he: " French girls, have short legs. Swimsuits have to be hiked up at the sides to make their legs look longer. "

   • 2025 November, Daniel Kolitz, “The Goon Squad: Loneliness, porn’s next frontier, and the dream of endless masturbation”, in Harper's Magazine‎^[1], →ISSN:

     The café where they were gathered, Bikini Beans, was part of a chain whose baristas wear bikinis.

3. (Can we verify⁽⁺⁾ this sense?) A brief bathing suit covering only the pelvis (equivalent to the bottom portion of a two-piece bikini), worn by any gender.
   • 2004, Cathy Crimmons, How the Homosexuals Saved Civilization, page 202:

     We high-schoolers didn't understand why death came in the form of a gorgeous young man with muscles in a skimpy bikini.

   • 2024 May 14, Stephen Birmingham, The Rothman Scandal, Open Road Media, →ISBN:

     […] a group of bikini-clad young men had started a game, and Alex could see why lifeguards referred to men's bikinis as banana hammocks. She made a mental note: No men in bikinis in my picnic issue. She was also, naturally, noticing what the women were wearing. It was, as Mel had said, mostly shorts and cutoffs, halters, cotton […]

   • For more quotations using this term, see Citations:bikini.
4. Brief underpants or trousers that reach to the hips rather than the waist.
   • 1982, Ruth Tolman, Selling Men’s Fashion, page 124:

     Boxer shorts, knitted briefs, and bikinis are the most popular styles in shorts, formerly called “drawers.”

Coordinate terms

• microkini
• minikini
• monokini
• trikini
• burqini

Derived terms

• bandikini
• bandini
• bandkini
• Beijing bikini
• bikini babe
• bikini bar
• bikini beach
• bikini body
• bikini bottom
• bikini bridge
• bikini briefs
• bikini contest
• bikinied
• bikini jeans
• bikiniless
• bikinilike
• bikini line
• bikini line incision
• bikini panties
• bikini top
• bikini wax
• bikini waxing
• burqini, burkini
• camikini
• cheekini
• facekini
• fatkini
• full bikini wax
• halterini
• halterkini
• mankini
• microbikini
• microkini
• monokini
• pubikini
• seekini
• skirtini
• sling bikini
• slingkini
• string bikini
• stringkini
• tankini
• trikini

Descendants

• → Norwegian Bokmål: bikini

Translations

bathing suit

• Afrikaans: bikini
• Albanian: bikini (sq)
• Amharic: ቢኪኒ (bikini)
• Arabic: بِيكِينِي m (bīkīnī)
• Armenian: բիկինի (hy) (bikini)
• Azerbaijani: bikini
• Basque: bikini (eu)
• Belarusian: бікі́ні n (bikíni)
• Bengali: বিকিনি (bn) (bikini)
• Bulgarian: бики́ни n (bikíni)
• Catalan: biquini (ca) m
• Chinese:

  Cantonese: 三點式 / 三点式 (saam¹ dim² sik¹), 比堅尼 / 比坚尼 (bei² gin¹ nei⁴)

  Mandarin: 比基尼 (zh) (bǐjīní)

• Czech: bikiny (cs) f pl
• Danish: bikini (da) c
• Dutch: bikini (nl) m
• Esperanto: bikino
• Estonian: bikiinid pl
• Finnish: bikinit (fi) pl
• French: bikini (fr) m
• Georgian: ბიკინი (biḳini)
• German: Bikini (de) m
• Greek: μπικίνι (el) n (bikíni)
• Hebrew: בִּיקִינִי (he) m (bikini)
• Hindi: बिकिनी f (bikinī)
• Hungarian: bikini (hu)
• Indonesian: bikini (id)
• Italian: bikini (it) m
• Japanese: ビキニ (ja) (bikini)
• Kazakh: бикини (bikini)
• Korean: 비키니 (ko) (bikini)
• Kyrgyz: бикини (bikini)
• Latvian: bikini
• Lithuanian: bikinis m
• Macedonian: бики́ни n (bikíni)
• Malay: bikini
• Maltese: bikini
• Marathi: बिकिनी f (bikinī)
• Mongolian: бикини (bikini)
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: bikini m

  Nynorsk: bikini m

• Persian: بیکینی (fa) (bikini)
• Polish: bikini (pl) n
• Portuguese: biquíni (pt)
• Romanian: bikini (ro)
• Russian: бики́ни (ru) n (bikíni)
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: бикини m

  Latin: bikini (sh) m

• Slovak: bikiny f pl
• Slovene: bikini m
• Spanish: biquini (es) m
• Swedish: bikini (sv) c
• Tajik: бикини (bikin-i)
• Tamil: நீச்சலுடை (nīccaluṭai)
• Telugu: బికినీ (bikinī)
• Thai: บิกินี (bì-gì-nîi)
• Turkish: bikini (tr)
• Ukrainian: бікі́ні n (bikíni)
• Urdu: بکنی (bikinī)
• Uzbek: bikini

  Cyrillic: бикини (bikini)

• Vietnamese: bikini (vi), áo tắm hai mảnh
• Volapük: bikinit, niblitül
• Welsh: bicini m, bicinis m pl
• Yiddish: ביקיני m (bikini)

See also

• swim briefs

Cebuano

Etymology

From English bikini.

Pronunciation

• Hyphenation: bi‧ki‧ni

Noun

bikini

1. a monokini; the lower part of a bikini
2. a bikini; a two-piece

Dutch

Etymology

Borrowed from French bikini.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /biˈki.ni/

• Audio:

  (file)

• Hyphenation: bi‧ki‧ni
• Rhymes: -ini

Noun

bikini m (plural bikini's, diminutive bikinietje n)

1. bikini

Derived terms

• bikinibabe
• bikinibroekje
• bikinilijn
• bininitop
• gezichtsbikini

Related terms

• boerkini
• facekini
• mankini
• monokini
• tankini

Further reading

• “bikini” in Woordenlijst Nederlandse Taal – Officiële Spelling, Nederlandse Taalunie. [the official spelling word list for the Dutch language]

Finnish

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈbikini/, [ˈbik̟ini]
• Rhymes: -ikini
• Syllabification^(key): bi‧ki‧ni
• Hyphenation^(key): bi‧ki‧ni

Noun

bikini

1. (only in compounds) nominative singular of bikinit

French

Etymology

Named after the place name Bikini, from Bikini, the name of the atoll where the United States tested nuclear weapons in July 1946; it was reckoned that the bathing suit would cause as much excitement as an atom bomb. This name was originally from German Bikini, the colonial name of the atoll as part of German New Guinea, and this was derived from Marshallese Pikinni.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /bi.ki.ni/

• Audio:

  (file)

• Audio (Switzerland (Valais)):

  (file)

• Audio (France (Vosges)):

  (file)

• Audio (France (Saint-Étienne)):

  (file)

Noun

bikini m (plural bikinis)

1. bikini

Descendants

• → Dutch: bikini
• → English: bikini
  • → Norwegian Bokmål: bikini
• → German: Bikini
• → Portuguese: biquíni
• → Spanish: biquini

Further reading

• “bikini”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012

Indonesian

Etymology

Borrowed from French bikini.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /biˈkini/
• Hyphenation: bi‧ki‧ni

Noun

bikini (plural bikini-bikini)

1. bikini

   Synonym: amplek

Further reading

• “bikini”, in Kamus Besar Bahasa Indonesia [Great Dictionary of the Indonesian Language] (in Indonesian), Jakarta: Agency for Language Development and Cultivation – Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology of the Republic of Indonesia, 2016

Italian

Alternative forms

• bichini

Etymology

Borrowed from French bikini.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /biˈki.ni/
• Rhymes: -ini
• Hyphenation: bi‧kì‧ni

Noun

bikini m (invariable)

1. bikini

   Synonym: due pezzi

See also

• costume da bagno

Japanese

Romanization

bikini

1. Rōmaji transcription of ビキニ

Norman

Etymology

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Noun

bikini m (plural bikinis)

1. (Jersey) bikini

Norwegian Bokmål

Noun

bikini m (definite singular bikinien, indefinite plural bikinier, definite plural bikiniene)

1. bikini

Norwegian Nynorsk

Noun

bikini m (plural bikinien)

1. bikini

Polish

Etymology

Unadapted borrowing from English bikini, from French bikini. First attested in 1959.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /biˈki.ɲi/

• Audio:

  (file)

• Rhymes: -iɲi
• Syllabification: bi‧ki‧ni

Noun

bikini n (indeclinable)

1. bikini

   Coordinate term: monokini

Derived terms

adjective

• bikiniarski

nouns

• bikiniara
• bikiniarstwo
• bikiniarz

Further reading

• bikini in Wielki słownik języka polskiego, Instytut Języka Polskiego PAN
• bikini in Polish dictionaries at PWN

Portuguese

Etymology

Unadapted borrowing from English bikini.

Noun

bikini m (plural bikinis)

1. unadapted form of biquíni

Romanian

Etymology

Borrowed from French bikini.

Noun

bikini n (uncountable)

1. bikini

Declension

singular only	indefinite	definite
nominative-accusative	bikini	bikiniul
genitive-dative	bikini	bikiniului
vocative	bikiniule

Serbo-Croatian

Etymology

Borrowed from English bikini.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /bǐkiːni/
• Hyphenation: bi‧ki‧ni

Noun

bìkīni m inan (Cyrillic spelling бѝкӣни)

1. bikini

Declension

Declension of bikini

	singular	plural
nominative	bikini	bikiniji
genitive	bikinija	bikinija
dative	bikiniju	bikinijima
accusative	bikini	bikinije
vocative	bikini	bikiniji
locative	bikiniju	bikinijima
instrumental	bikinijem	bikinijima

References

• “bikini”, in Hrvatski jezični portal [Croatian language portal] (in Serbo-Croatian), 2006–2026

Spanish

Alternative forms

• biquini

Etymology

Borrowed from English bikini. For the sandwich, see more at Catalan biquini.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /biˈkini/ [biˈki.ni]

• Audio (Venezuela):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ini
• Syllabification: bi‧ki‧ni

Noun

bikini m (plural bikinis)

1. bikini
2. (Catalonia) ham and cheese sandwich

   Synonyms: cubano, mixto

   • 2017 April 10, Aurora Segura, “¿Por qué lo llamas ‘bikini’ cuando quieres decir ‘mixto’?”, in La Vanguardia‎^[2]:

     Se sorprenden los catalanes cuando les miran con expresión rara al pedir un “bikini” en cualquier bar o cafetería fuera de la comunidad.

     Catalans are surprised when they get strange looks after asking for a "bikini" in any bar or cafeteria outside the autonomous community.

Further reading

• “bikini”, in Diccionario de la lengua española [Dictionary of the Spanish Language] (in Spanish), online version 23.8.1, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], 15 December 2025

Swahili

Etymology

Borrowed from English bikini.

Pronunciation

• Audio (Kenya):

  (file)

Noun

bikini class IX (plural bikini class X)

1. bikini

Swedish

Etymology

Borrowed from French bikini.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /bɪˈkiːnɪ/
• Rhymes: -iːnɪ

Noun

bikini c

1. bikini

Declension

Declension of bikini

		nominative	genitive
singular	indefinite	bikini	bikinis
	definite	bikinin	bikinins
plural	indefinite	bikinier, bikinis	bikiniers, bikinis
	definite	bikiniernas	bikinirnas, bikiniernas

Derived terms

• bikinibrud
• bikinilinje
• bikinitrosa
• bikiniöverdel

References

• bikini in Svensk ordbok (SO)
• bikini in Svenska Akademiens ordlista (SAOL)

Tagalog

Etymology

Etymology tree

Marshallese pik

Marshallese ni

Marshallese Pikinnibor.

German Bikinibor.

English Bikinibor.

French Bikini

French bikinibor.

English bikinibor.

Tagalog bikini

Borrowed from English bikini, borrowed from French bikini, from Bikini, borrowed from English Bikini, borrowed from German Bikini, borrowed from Marshallese Pikinni, from pik + ni.

Pronunciation

• (Standard Tagalog) IPA^(key): /biˈkini/ [bɪˈxiː.n̪ɪ]
• Rhymes: -ini
• Syllabification: bi‧ki‧ni

Noun

bikini (Baybayin spelling ᜊᜒᜃᜒᜈᜒ)

1. bikini

Further reading

• “bikini”, in Pambansang Diksiyonaryo | Diksiyonaryo.ph, 2018

Turkish

Etymology

Borrowed from English bikini.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [biˈcini]

Noun

bikini (definite accusative bikiniyi, plural bikiniler)

1. bikini

Declension

Declension of bikini

singular plural nominative bikini bikiniler definite accusative bikiniyi bikinileri dative bikiniye bikinilere locative bikinide bikinilerde ablative bikiniden bikinilerden genitive bikininin bikinilerin Possessive forms nominative singular plural 1st singular bikinim bikinilerim 2nd singular bikinin bikinilerin 3rd singular bikinisi bikinileri 1st plural bikinimiz bikinilerimiz 2nd plural bikininiz bikinileriniz 3rd plural bikinileri bikinileri definite accusative singular plural 1st singular bikinimi bikinilerimi 2nd singular bikinini bikinilerini 3rd singular bikinisini bikinilerini 1st plural bikinimizi bikinilerimizi 2nd plural bikininizi bikinilerinizi 3rd plural bikinilerini bikinilerini dative singular plural 1st singular bikinime bikinilerime 2nd singular bikinine bikinilerine 3rd singular bikinisine bikinilerine 1st plural bikinimize bikinilerimize 2nd plural bikininize bikinilerinize 3rd plural bikinilerine bikinilerine locative singular plural 1st singular bikinimde bikinilerimde 2nd singular bikininde bikinilerinde 3rd singular bikinisinde bikinilerinde 1st plural bikinimizde bikinilerimizde 2nd plural bikininizde bikinilerinizde 3rd plural bikinilerinde bikinilerinde ablative singular plural 1st singular bikinimden bikinilerimden 2nd singular bikininden bikinilerinden 3rd singular bikinisinden bikinilerinden 1st plural bikinimizden bikinilerimizden 2nd plural bikininizden bikinilerinizden 3rd plural bikinilerinden bikinilerinden genitive singular plural 1st singular bikinimin bikinilerimin 2nd singular bikininin bikinilerinin 3rd singular bikinisinin bikinilerinin 1st plural bikinimizin bikinilerimizin 2nd plural bikininizin bikinilerinizin 3rd plural bikinilerinin bikinilerinin

See also

• mayokini
• mayo