jak

See also: Appendix:Variations of "jak"

Translingual

Etymology

Clipping of English Jakun.

Symbol

jak

1. (international standards) ISO 639-3 language code for Jakun.

English

Noun

jak (plural jaks)

1. Alternative form of jack (“the tree Mangifera caesia”).

Derived terms

• jakwood

Related terms

• jakfruit

Anagrams

• AJK, kaj

Acehnese

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ɟaʔ/

Verb

jak

1. to walk; to go

References

• Greenhill, S.J., Blust. R, & Gray, R.D. (2008). The Austronesian Basic Vocabulary Database: From Bioinformatics to Lexomics. Evolutionary Bioinformatics, 4:271-283.

Albanian

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [jak]

Noun

jak m (plural jakë, definite jaku, definite plural jakët)

1. (zoology) yak; (domesticated) wild ox

Further reading

• [1] m. noun jak (engl. yak) • Fjalor Shqip (Albanian Dictionary)

Czech

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ˈjak]

• Audio:

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ak

Etymology 1

Inherited from Old Czech jak, from Proto-Slavic *jako (“how, in which way”).

Adverb

jak

1. how

   Jak se máš/máte? ― How are you?

   Jak to jde? ― How's it going?

Conjunction

jak

1. as

   jak Petr tak Pavel ― both Peter and Paul

   jak se do lesa volá, tak se z lesa ozývá ― as you call into the forest, you hear from the forest; what goes around comes around

See also

• jako
• jakoby
• jaký
• nejen ... ale i at nejen

Etymology 2

Borrowed from Tibetan གཡག (g.yag), from Proto-Sino-Tibetan *g-jak ~ g-jaŋ.

Noun

jak m anim

1. yak (mammal)

Declension

Declension of jak (velar masculine animate)

	singular	plural
nominative	jak	jaci, jakové
genitive	jaka	jaků
dative	jakovi, jaku	jakům
accusative	jaka	jaky
vocative	jaku	jaci, jakové
locative	jakovi, jaku	jacích
instrumental	jakem	jaky

Derived terms

• jačí

Further reading

• “jak”, in Příruční slovník jazyka českého (in Czech), 1935–1957
• “jak”, in Slovník spisovného jazyka českého (in Czech), 1960–1971, 1989
• “jak”, in Internetová jazyková příručka (in Czech), 2008–2025

Dutch

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /jɑk/
• Hyphenation: jak
• Rhymes: -ɑk

Etymology 1

From Tibetan གཡག (g.yag), from Proto-Sino-Tibetan *g-jak ~ g-jaŋ.

Alternative forms

• yack, yak

Noun

jak m (plural jaks, diminutive jakje n)

1. yak, the ox-like Himalayan bovine, Bos grunniens

Derived terms

• (produce) jakboter, jakmelk

Etymology 2

From Middle Dutch jak, borrowed from Old French jaque (“medieval doublet”). Cognate with English jacket.

Noun

jak n (plural jakken, diminutive jakje n)

1. tight upper body garment

Descendants

• Negerhollands: jakje (from the diminutive)

Garo

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /d͡ʒak/

Etymology 1

From Proto-Bodo-Garo *yak (“hand; arm”). Cognate with Narua lak (“hand”).

Noun

jak

1. hand
2. arm

Derived terms

• jak-
• jakchik
• jakgitok
• jakpa
• jakpak
• jakpong
• jaksan
• jaksi
• jakskil
• jaksku
• jakstem
• jaktom
• jaktong

Etymology 2

From Proto-Bodo-Garo *yak (“leaf”).

Noun

jak

1. leaf

Classifier

jak

1. used with leaves

Hungarian

Etymology

From Tibetan གཡག (g.yag), from Proto-Sino-Tibetan *g-jak ~ g-jaŋ.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ˈjɒk]
• Rhymes: -ɒk

Noun

jak (plural jakok)

1. yak

Declension

Inflection (stem in -o-, back harmony)

	singular	plural
nominative	jak	jakok
accusative	jakot	jakokat
dative	jaknak	jakoknak
instrumental	jakkal	jakokkal
causal-final	jakért	jakokért
translative	jakká	jakokká
terminative	jakig	jakokig
essive-formal	jakként	jakokként
essive-modal	—	—
inessive	jakban	jakokban
superessive	jakon	jakokon
adessive	jaknál	jakoknál
illative	jakba	jakokba
sublative	jakra	jakokra
allative	jakhoz	jakokhoz
elative	jakból	jakokból
delative	jakról	jakokról
ablative	jaktól	jakoktól
non-attributive possessive – singular	jaké	jakoké
non-attributive possessive – plural	jakéi	jakokéi

Possessive forms of jak

possessor	single possession	multiple possessions
1st person sing.	jakom	jakjaim
2nd person sing.	jakod	jakjaid
3rd person sing.	jakja	jakjai
1st person plural	jakunk	jakjaink
2nd person plural	jakotok	jakjaitok
3rd person plural	jakjuk	jakjaik

Derived terms

Expressions

• jakvajas mécses

Kalo Finnish Romani

Noun

jak f (genitive jakkako, nominative plural jakka, genitive plural jakkengo)

1. (anatomy) eye

Derived terms

• jakkako botnos
• jakkako diiben
• jakkako duk
• jakkako jaaro
• jakkako makkiba
• jakkako čenstakiero

Kashubian

Etymology

Etymology tree

Proto-Indo-European *ís

Proto-Balto-Slavic *is

Proto-Slavic *jь

Proto-Indo-European *-kos

Proto-Balto-Slavic *-kas

Proto-Slavic *-kъ

Proto-Slavic *jakъ

Proto-Slavic *jako

Kashubian jak

Inherited from Proto-Slavic *jako.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈjak/
• Rhymes: -ak
• Syllabification: jak

Adverb

jak (not comparable)

1. how

Conjunction

jak

1. how

Further reading

• Eùgeniusz Gòłąbk (2011), “jak”, in Słownik Polsko-Kaszubski / Słowôrz Pòlskò-Kaszëbsczi‎^[2]
• “jak”, in Internetowi Słowôrz Kaszëbsczégò Jãzëka [Internet Dictionary of the Kashubian Language], Fundacja Kaszuby, 2022

Malay

Pronunciation

• Rhymes: -aʔ

Adverb

jak

1. (Pontianak) alternative spelling of sahaja (“only”)

Middle English

Noun

jak

1. alternative form of jakke

Norwegian Bokmål

A Tibetan yak in its natural habitat.

Etymology

From languages such as English yak, German Jak or French yak, all from Tibetan གཡག (g.yag, “yak”), from Proto-Sino-Tibetan *g-jak ~ g-jaŋ (“sheep, yak”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /jak/

• Audio:

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ak
• Hyphenation: jak
• Homophone: jakk

Noun

jak m (definite singular jaken, indefinite plural jaker, definite plural jakene)

1. a yak (an ox-like mammal native to the Himalayas, Mongolia, Burma, and Tibet with dark, long, and silky hair, a horse-like tail, and a full, bushy mane; scientific name Bos grunniens)

References

• “jak” in The Bokmål Dictionary.
• “jak” in Det Norske Akademis ordbok (NAOB).
• “jak” in Store norske leksikon

Old Czech

Etymology

Inherited from Proto-Slavic *jako.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): (13^th CE) /ˈjak/
• IPA^(key): (15^th CE) /ˈjak/

Adverb

jak

1. alternative form of jako

Conjunction

jak

1. alternative form of jako

Descendants

• Czech: jak

References

• Jan Gebauer (1903–1916), “jak”, in Slovník staročeský (in Czech), Prague: Česká grafická společnost "unie", Česká akademie císaře Františka Josefa pro vědy, slovesnost a umění

Old Polish

Etymology

Etymology tree

Proto-Indo-European *ís

Proto-Balto-Slavic *is

Proto-Slavic *jь

Proto-Indo-European *-kos

Proto-Balto-Slavic *-kas

Proto-Slavic *-kъ

Proto-Slavic *jakъ

Proto-Slavic *jako

Old Polish jak

Inherited from Proto-Slavic *jako. First attested in the 15th century.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): (10^th–15^th CE) /jak/
• IPA^(key): (15^th CE) /jak/

Adverb

jak

1. adverbial interrogative; how (in what way)
2. adverbial relational; as, like (in a similar way)
3. The meaning of this term is uncertain.
   • 1901 [1471], Materiały i Prace Komisji Językowej Akademii Umiejętności w Krakowie, volume V, page 7:

     A thak albo jak (war. lub.: tak a wsak) igitur (igitur perfecti sunt caeli et terra Gen 2, 1)

     [A tak albo jak (war. lub.: tak a wszak) igitur (igitur perfecti sunt caeli et terra Gen 2, 1)]

Conjunction

jak

1. introduces a conditional; if
2. introduces a temporal clause; when

Descendants

• Polish: jak
• Silesian: jak

References

• B. Sieradzka-Baziur, Ewa Deptuchowa, Joanna Duska, Mariusz Frodyma, Beata Hejmo, Dorota Janeczko, Katarzyna Jasińska, Krystyna Kajtoch, Joanna Kozioł, Marian Kucała, Dorota Mika, Gabriela Niemiec, Urszula Poprawska, Elżbieta Supranowicz, Ludwika Szelachowska-Winiarzowa, Zofia Wanicowa, Piotr Szpor, Bartłomiej Borek, editors (2011–2015), “jak”, in Słownik pojęciowy języka staropolskiego [Conceptual Dictionary of Old Polish] (in Polish), Kraków: IJP PAN, →ISBN

Polish

Pronunciation

 

• IPA^(key): /ˈjak/

• (Middle Polish) IPA^(key): /ˈjak/
• (Greater Poland):
  • (Chełmno-Dobrzyń) IPA^(key): [ˈjak]
  • (Kuyavia) IPA^(key): [ˈjak]
• (Masovia):
  • (Ostróda) IPA^(key): [ˈjak]

• Audio 1:

  (file)

• Audio 2:

  (file)

• Audio 3:

  (file)

• Audio 4:

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ak
• Syllabification: jak
• Homophone: Jak

Etymology 1

Etymology tree

Proto-Indo-European *ís

Proto-Balto-Slavic *is

Proto-Slavic *jь

Proto-Indo-European *-kos

Proto-Balto-Slavic *-kas

Proto-Slavic *-kъ

Proto-Slavic *jakъ

Proto-Slavic *jako

Old Polish jak

Polish jak

Inherited from Old Polish jak.

Pronoun

jak

1. how (to what degree or extent)

   Jak masz na imię? ― What's your name? (informal)

   Jak się masz? ― How are you? (informal)

   Jak to zrobiłeś? ― How did you do that?

Related terms

conjunctions

• jako

pronouns

• jaki

Conjunction

jak

1. as (in the same way or manner that; to the same degree that)

   Jak widać, jeszcze nie skończyłam. ― As you can see, I haven't finished yet.

   Jego ojciec jest silny jak wół. ― His father is strong as an ox.

2. like, as if, as though (in a manner suggesting)

   Wyglądasz jak obcokrajowiec. ― You look like a foreigner.

3. (colloquial or dialectal, Kuyavia) synonym of kiedy / gdy; when (during the time that)

   Jak byłem w lesie, to widziałem niedźwiedzia. ― When I was in the forest, I saw a bear.

4. (colloquial or dialectal, Kuyavia) synonym of jeżeli; if (supposing that, assuming that, in the circumstances that)

   Jak będziesz dalej tak robiła, to w końcu cię rzuci. ― If you keep doing that, he'll eventually dump you.

5. (colloquial or dialectal, Chełmno-Dobrzyń, Kuyavia, Ostróda, Przemyśl) synonym of niż (“than”) (used in comparisons, to introduce the basis of comparison)

   Typ nie miał więcej jak metr sześćdziesiąt. ― The guy was no taller than a meter sixty.

6. used with a superlative; as much as, as soon as (used to say that two things are equal in amount or degree)

   Zrobię to jak najszybciej. ― I'll do it as soon as possible.

Related terms

particles

• jak najbardziej
• jak nic

Etymology 2

jak

Etymology tree

Proto-Sino-Tibetan *jaŋ?

Tibetan གཡག (g.yag)bor.

English yakbor.

Polish jak

Borrowed from English yak.

Noun

jak m animal (related adjective jaczy)

1. yak, Tartary ox, grunting ox, hairy cattle (Bos grunniens)

Declension

Declension of jak

	singular	plural
nominative	jak	jaki
genitive	jaka	jaków
dative	jakowi	jakom
accusative	jaka	jaki
instrumental	jakiem	jakami
locative	jaku	jakach
vocative	jaku	jaki

Trivia

According to Słownik frekwencyjny polszczyzny współczesnej (1990), jak is one of the most used words in Polish, appearing 375 times in scientific texts, 247 times in news, 343 times in essays, 530 times in fiction, and 756 times in plays, each out of a corpus of 100,000 words, totaling 2251 times, making it the 18th most common word in a corpus of 500,000 words.

Further reading

• jak I in Wielki słownik języka polskiego, Instytut Języka Polskiego PAN
• jak II in Wielki słownik języka polskiego, Instytut Języka Polskiego PAN
• jak in Polish dictionaries at PWN
• jak in PWN's encyclopedia
• Maria Renata Mayenowa; Stanisław Rospond; Witold Taszycki; Stefan Hrabec; Władysław Kuraszkiewicz (2010-2023), “jako, jak, jeko”, in Słownik Polszczyzny XVI Wieku [A Dictionary of 16th Century Polish]
• “JAK I”, in Elektroniczny Słownik Języka Polskiego XVII i XVIII Wieku [Electronic Dictionary of the Polish Language of the XVII and XVIII Century], 26.03.2020
• “JAK II”, in Elektroniczny Słownik Języka Polskiego XVII i XVIII Wieku [Electronic Dictionary of the Polish Language of the XVII and XVIII Century], 26.03.2020
• “JAK III”, in Elektroniczny Słownik Języka Polskiego XVII i XVIII Wieku [Electronic Dictionary of the Polish Language of the XVII and XVIII Century], 26.03.2020
• Samuel Bogumił Linde (1807–1814), “jak”, in Słownik języka polskiego
• Aleksander Zdanowicz (1861), “jak”, in Słownik języka polskiego, Wilno 1861
• J. Karłowicz, A. Kryński, W. Niedźwiedzki, editors (1902), “jak”, in Słownik języka polskiego (in Polish), volume 2, Warsaw, page 126
• Oskar Kolberg (1867), “jak”, in Dzieła wszystkie: Kujawy (in Polish), page 271
• Antoni Krasnowolski (1879), “jak”, in Album uczącéj się młodzieży polskiéj poświęcone Józefowi Ignacemu Kraszewskiemu z powodu jubileuszu jego pięćdziesięcioletniéj działalności literackiéj (in Polish), Lviv: Czytelni Akademickiéj Lwowskiéj; "Gaz. Narod." J. Dobrzańskiego i K. Gromana, Słowniczek prowincjalizmów zebranych w ziemi chełmińskiej i świeckiej, page 303
• Kazimierz Nitsch (1907), “niż”, in “Dyalekty polskie Prus zachodnich”, in Materyały i Prace Komisyi Językowej Akademii Umiejętności w Krakowie (in Polish), volume 3, Krakow: Akademia Umiejętności, page 390
• Aleksander Saloni (1908), “jak”, in “Lud rzeszowski”, in Materyały Antropologiczno-Archeologiczne i Etnograficzne (in Polish), volume 10, Kraków: Akademia Umiejętności, page 335

Serbo-Croatian

Etymology 1

Inherited from Proto-Slavic *jakъ.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /jâːk/

Adjective

jȃk (Cyrillic spelling ја̑к, definite jȃkī, comparative jȁčī)

1. strong

   Synonyms: silan, snažan

Declension

positive indefinite forms

singular		masculine	feminine	neuter
nominative		jak	jaka	jako
genitive		jaka	jake	jaka
dative		jaku	jakoj	jaku
accusative	inanimate animate	jak jaka	jaku	jako
vocative		jak	jaka	jako
locative		jaku	jakoj	jaku
instrumental		jakim	jakom	jakim
plural		masculine	feminine	neuter
nominative		jaki	jake	jaka
genitive		jakih	jakih	jakih
dative		jakim(a)	jakim(a)	jakim(a)
accusative		jake	jake	jaka
vocative		jaki	jake	jaka
locative		jakim(a)	jakim(a)	jakim(a)
instrumental		jakim(a)	jakim(a)	jakim(a)

positive definite forms

singular		masculine	feminine	neuter
nominative		jaki	jaka	jako
genitive		jakog(a)	jake	jakog(a)
dative		jakom(u/e)	jakoj	jakom(u/e)
accusative	inanimate animate	jaki jakog(a)	jaku	jako
vocative		jaki	jaka	jako
locative		jakom(e/u)	jakoj	jakom(e/u)
instrumental		jakim	jakom	jakim
plural		masculine	feminine	neuter
nominative		jaki	jake	jaka
genitive		jakih	jakih	jakih
dative		jakim(a)	jakim(a)	jakim(a)
accusative		jake	jake	jaka
vocative		jaki	jake	jaka
locative		jakim(a)	jakim(a)	jakim(a)
instrumental		jakim(a)	jakim(a)	jakim(a)

comparative forms

singular		masculine	feminine	neuter
nominative		jači	jača	jače
genitive		jačeg(a)	jače	jačeg(a)
dative		jačem(u)	jačoj	jačem(u)
accusative	inanimate animate	jači jačeg(a)	jaču	jače
vocative		jači	jača	jače
locative		jačem(u)	jačoj	jačem(u)
instrumental		jačim	jačom	jačim
plural		masculine	feminine	neuter
nominative		jači	jače	jača
genitive		jačih	jačih	jačih
dative		jačim(a)	jačim(a)	jačim(a)
accusative		jače	jače	jača
vocative		jači	jače	jača
locative		jačim(a)	jačim(a)	jačim(a)
instrumental		jačim(a)	jačim(a)	jačim(a)

superlative forms

singular		masculine	feminine	neuter
nominative		najjači	najjača	najjače
genitive		najjačeg(a)	najjače	najjačeg(a)
dative		najjačem(u)	najjačoj	najjačem(u)
accusative	inanimate animate	najjači najjačeg(a)	najjaču	najjače
vocative		najjači	najjača	najjače
locative		najjačem(u)	najjačoj	najjačem(u)
instrumental		najjačim	najjačom	najjačim
plural		masculine	feminine	neuter
nominative		najjači	najjače	najjača
genitive		najjačih	najjačih	najjačih
dative		najjačim(a)	najjačim(a)	najjačim(a)
accusative		najjače	najjače	najjača
vocative		najjači	najjače	najjača
locative		najjačim(a)	najjačim(a)	najjačim(a)
instrumental		najjačim(a)	najjačim(a)	najjačim(a)

Related terms

• jačati

Further reading

• “jak”, in Hrvatski jezični portal [Croatian language portal] (in Serbo-Croatian), 2006–2025

Etymology 2

From Tibetan གཡག (g.yag), from Proto-Sino-Tibetan *g-jak ~ g-jaŋ.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /jâk/

Noun

jȁk m anim (Cyrillic spelling ја̏к)

1. yak (ox-like mammal)

Declension

Declension of jak

	singular	plural
nominative	jȁk	jàkovi
genitive	jaka	jakova
dative	jaku	jakovima
accusative	jaka	jakove
vocative	jače	jakovi
locative	jaku	jakovima
instrumental	jakom	jakovima

Further reading

• “jak”, in Hrvatski jezični portal [Croatian language portal] (in Serbo-Croatian), 2006–2025

Silesian

Alternative forms

• jako

Etymology

Etymology tree

Proto-Indo-European *ís

Proto-Balto-Slavic *is

Proto-Slavic *jь

Proto-Indo-European *-kos

Proto-Balto-Slavic *-kas

Proto-Slavic *-kъ

Proto-Slavic *jakъ

Proto-Slavic *jako

Old Polish jak

Silesian jak

Inherited from Old Polish jak.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈjak/

• Audio:

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ak
• Syllabification: jak

Pronoun

jak

1. how

Adverb

jak

1. comparative as

   Synonyms: choby, choćby

2. as (in the (same) way or manner that; to the (same) degree that)
3. as well as
4. when

   Synonyms: kedy, kej

5. than

   Synonyms: aniżeli, niż

6. if

   Synonyms: dy, ejźli, eli, eźli, gdy, jeli, jeźli, jeźli

Further reading

• jak in dykcjonorz.eu
• jak in silling.org

Slovak

Etymology

Derived from Tibetan གཡག (g.yag), from Proto-Sino-Tibetan *g-jak ~ g-jaŋ (“sheep, yak”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [jak]

Noun

jak m animal (genitive singular jaka, nominative plural jaky, genitive plural jakov, declension pattern of dub)

1. yak

Declension

Declension of jak
(patterns chlap (singular) and dub (plural))

	singular	plural
nominative	jak	jaky
genitive	jaka	jakov
dative	jakovi	jakom
accusative	jaka	jaky
locative	jakovi	jakoch
instrumental	jakom	jakmi

Derived terms

• jačí

Further reading

• “jak”, 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, 2003–2025

Slovene

Etymology

From Tibetan གཡག (g.yag), from Proto-Sino-Tibetan *g-jak ~ g-jaŋ.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /jáːk/

Noun

jȃk m anim

1. yak (ox-like mammal)

Declension

The diacritics used in this section of the entry are non-tonal. If you are a native tonal speaker, please help by adding the tonal marks.

Masculine anim., hard o-stem
nom. sing.	ják
gen. sing.	jáka
	singular	dual	plural
nominative (imenovȃlnik)	ják	jáka	jáki
genitive (rodȋlnik)	jáka	jákov	jákov
dative (dajȃlnik)	jáku	jákoma	jákom
accusative (tožȋlnik)	jáka	jáka	jáke
locative (mẹ̑stnik)	jáku	jákih	jákih
instrumental (orọ̑dnik)	jákom	jákoma	jáki

Further reading

• “jak”, in Slovarji Inštituta za slovenski jezik Frana Ramovša ZRC SAZU, portal Fran
• “jak”, in Termania, Amebis
• See also the general references

Slovincian

Alternative forms

• ak, akô, jakô

Etymology

Etymology tree

Proto-Indo-European *ís

Proto-Balto-Slavic *is

Proto-Slavic *jь

Proto-Indo-European *-kos

Proto-Balto-Slavic *-kas

Proto-Slavic *-kъ

Proto-Slavic *jakъ

Proto-Slavic *jako

Slovincian jak

Inherited from Proto-Slavic *jako.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈjak/
• Rhymes: -ak
• Syllabification: jak

Adverb

jak (not comparable)

1. (interrogative) how

Conjunction

jak

1. as, like
2. (in comparisons) like; than

Further reading

• Lorentz, Friedrich (1908), “jãk”, in Slovinzisches Wörterbuch‎^[3] (in German), volume 1, Saint Petersburg: ОРЯС ИАН, page 379

Swedish

Etymology

From Tibetan གཡག (g.yag), from Proto-Sino-Tibetan *g-jak ~ g-jaŋ.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /jɑːk/

Noun

jak c

1. a yak, an ox-like mammal

Declension

Declension of jak

		nominative	genitive
singular	indefinite	jak	jaks
	definite	jaken	jakens
plural	indefinite	jakar	jakars
	definite	jakarna	jakarnas

Synonyms

• grymtoxe

Related terms

• jakmjölk

References

• jak in Svenska Akademiens ordlista (SAOL)

Anagrams

• Kaj, kaj

Volapük

Etymology

From English shark.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ʃak]

Noun

jak (nominative plural jaks)

1. shark

Declension

Declension of jak

	singular	plural
nominative	jak	jaks
genitive	jaka	jakas
dative	jake	jakes
accusative	jaki	jakis
vocative 1	o jak!	o jaks!
predicative 2	jaku	jakus

¹ status as a case is disputed
² in later, non-classical Volapük only

Derived terms

• hijak
• jijak