ka

See also: Appendix:Variations of "ka"

Translingual

Symbol

ka

1. kiloyear (also ky, kyr)
2. thousands of years ago

---

English

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /kɑː/

Etymology 1

Borrowing from Egyptian kꜣ.

Noun

ka (plural kas)

1. A spiritual part of the soul in Egyptian mythology, which survived after death.
   • 1983, Norman Mailer, Ancient Evenings:

     Then, I wondered how long I must wait before seeing my Double, but if I recalled, the Ka was not supposed to appear before the seventy days of embalming were done.

   • 1990, Camille Paglia, Sexual Personae:

     Hence Dorian's portrait is like the ka or double of the deceased in Egyptian tombs, heaped with toys and furniture.

   • 2011, Neil Gaiman, American Gods (Tenth Anniversary Edition), William Morrow 2013, p. 179:

     ‘You could bind the ka of a man to his body for five thousand years,’ said Jaquel.

Etymology 2

Origin uncertain.

Verb

ka

1. (transitive) To serve or help; used only in the phrase "Ka me, ka thee" or variants thereof.
   • 1603, John Florio, translating Michel de Montaigne, Essays, III.5:

     Now nature stood ever on this point, Kæ mee Ile kæ thee, and ever ready to bee even alwaies on recompences and vicissitude of things, and to give as good as one brings.

   • 1821, Walter Scott, Kenilworth:

     Ka me, ka thee, is a proverb all over the world.

References

• Brewer's Dictionary of Phrase and Fable

Anagrams

• AK, Ak

---

Acehnese

Adverb

ka

1. already

---

Albanian

Alternative forms

• nga (Tosk)
• kah

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [qa] (Gheg)

Etymology 1

From older kah, from *kah ~ ngah (compare Tosk nga), from Proto-Albanian *en kaxa, from *en kʷod so ‘wherein, wherefrom’, literally ‘in which this’. Cognate with Old Church Slavonic къ (kŭ, “to”).

Preposition

ka (+nominative)

1. from, out, out of, to

   Jo, unë nuk jam ka Shqipëria.

   No, I am not from Albania.

2. who, whom

Etymology 2

The plural form qe suggests an earlier *kʷē, from Proto-Indo-European *gʷōus (“ox, cow”) via a pre-Albanian language .

Pronunciation

• singular: IPA^(key): [kaː]
• singular: IPA^(key): [qɒ] (Gheg)
• plural: IPA^(key): [ceː]

Noun

ka m (indefinite plural qe, definite singular kau, definite plural qetë)

1. ox
2. steer

Hyponyms

• kau i hullisë ‘stronger ox (of a team) that walks in the furrow’
• ka i kularit ‘yoke ox’

Etymology 3

From Proto-Albanian *kage, from Proto-Indo-European *kʰage/o; 3rd person singular of kam.

Verb

ka

1. he has

Usage notes

• kam - I have

---

Amanab

Pronoun

ka

1. I (first person singular nominative)

---

Chuukese

Pronoun

ka

1. you (singular)

Adjective

ka

1. you are

Related terms

		Present and past tense	Negative tense	Future	Negative future	Distant future	Negative determinate
Singular	First person	ua	use	upwe	usap	upwap	ute
	Second person	ka, ke	kose, kese	kopwe, kepwe	kosap, kesap	kopwap, kepwap	kote, kete
	Third person	a	ese	epwe	esap	epwap	ete
Plural	First person	aua (exclusive) sia (inclusive)	ause (exclusive) sise (inclusive)	aupwe (exclusive) sipwe (inclusive)	ausap (exclusive) sisap (inclusive)	aupwap (exclusive) sipwap (inclusive)	aute (exclusive) site (inclusive)
	Second person	oua	ouse	oupwe	ousap	oupwap	oute
	Third person	ra, re	rese	repwe	resap	repwap	rete

---

Dutch

Etymology 1

From kade.

Noun

ka f (plural kaden or kades or ka's, diminutive kaatje n)

1. Alternative form of kade.

Etymology 2

Uncertain. Possibly from Catharina Mulder or "Kaat Mossel".

Noun

ka f (plural ka's, diminutive kaatje n)

1. (pejorative) dominant woman

Synonyms

• kenau

Etymology 3

Related to kauw.

Noun

ka f (plural ka's or kauwen, diminutive [please provide])

1. Alternative form of kauw.

Etymology 4

Borrowing from Egyptian kꜣ.

Noun

ka c (plural ka's)

1. ka (ancient Egyptian notion of the soul, shown as a bird)

---

Estonian

Etymology

Derived from kaasas.

Adverb

ka

1. also, too

   Tema läks ka metsa.

   He also went to the forest.

---

Ewe

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈkɑː/

Noun

ka (plural kawo)

1. cord
2. line
3. rope
4. string

Verb

ka

1. to bite
2. to break
3. to chip
4. to rummage

---

Finnish

Adverb

ka

1. (rare, dialectal) also, too

   Minä menin kauppaan ka.

   I went to a shop as well.

---

French

Noun

ka m (plural kas)

1. kay, The name of the Latin-script letter K/k.

---

Haitian Creole

Etymology 1

From French cas (“case”).

Noun

ka

1. case, instance

Etymology 2

Contraction of kapab, from French capable

Verb

ka

1. (auxiliary) can, be able to

---

Hawaiian

Article

ka sg (plural nā)

1. the

Usage notes

• Use ke before words that begin with 'k', 'a', 'e', or 'o'.

---

Ido

Particle

ka

1. Alternative form of kad (often used before a consonant)

   Ka tu amas me?

   Do you love me?

---

Japanese

Romanization

ka

1. Rōmaji transcription of か
2. Rōmaji transcription of カ

---

Javanese

Etymology

Clipping of ika

Determiner

ka

1. (colloquial) yonder

---

Latin

Pronunciation

• (Classical) IPA^(key): /kaː/

Noun

kā (indeclinable)

1. The name of the letter K.

Coordinate terms

• (Latin-script letter names) littera; ā, bē, cē, dē, ē, ef, gē, hā, ī, kā, el, em, en, ō, pē, kū, er, es, tē, ū, ix / īx / ex, ȳ / ī graeca / ȳpsīlon, zēta

References

• Arthur E. Gordon, The Letter Names of the Latin Alphabet (University of California Press, 1973; volume 9 of University of California Publications: Classical Studies), part III: “Summary of the Ancient Evidence”, page 32
  Clearly there is no question or doubt about the names of the vowels A, E, I, O, U. They are simply long A, long E, etc. (ā, ē, ī, ō, ū). Nor is there any uncertainty with respect to the six mutes B, C, D, G, P, T. Their names are bē, cē, dē, gē, pē, tē (each with a long E). Or about H, K, and Q: they are hā, kā, kū — each, again, with a long vowel sound.

---

Latvian

Etymology

Orignally an old neuter nominative singular form of kas (“who, what”) that acquired the function of a conjunction. Cognates include Old Prussian ka (“who, what”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ka]

(file)

Conjunction

ka

1. that; used to link a subordinate clause to the main clause, sometimes with a pronominal antecedent (tas, tāds, tik, tādēļ, tāpēc), with various different functions:

   (a) subject:

   labi, ka darbs padarīts ― (it is) good that the work is done

   viņam nepatika, ka tagad viņi ar Plienu bija palikuši tikai divi ― he didn't like that now only he and Pliens had remained

   aplam darīts arī tas, ka divās dienās nopļāva visu Spilvas pļavu ― wrongly done was also that (= the fact) that (he) mowed the entire Spilva meadow in two days

   tveice bija tāda, ka šķita - tīrums smaržo kā liela rudzu kalte ― the heat was such that one felt (as if) the field smelled like a big rye drier

   (b) attributive complement, (secondary) predicate

   pienāca ziņa, ka tēvs saslimis ― there is news that father is sick

   viņi nolaida karogus per zīmi, ka demonstrācija beigusies ― they lowered the flags as a sign that the protest was over

   vēl vairāk sirdi nospeiž sāpes, / ka atkal apkārt tikai mežs ― even more the heart is oppressed by the pain / that again (there is) only forest around

   ir tāds karstums, ka pat putniņi paslēpušies ― (there) is such a heat that even the little birds are hiding

   (c) direct object

   viņš teica, ka varam iet ― he said that we could go

   Ģirts redzēja, ka Artūrs nekā neapjēdz, ka labāk runāt par ko citu ― Ģirts saw that Artūrs would never realize that it would be better to talk about something else

   Krančelis izrādīja visu savu nemieru ar to, ka nevarēja meiteni iepriecināt ― Krančelis showed all his concern with that (= the fact) that he could not cheer up the girl

   kas gan var būt vēl skaistāks pasaulē par to, ka cilvēks palīdz cilvēkam un draugs - draugam! ― what can be more beautiful in (this) world than that (= the fact) that a person helps (another) person and a friend - (another) friend!

   (d) adverbial complement (manner)

   viņpus upes krastā Preimanis lādējās, ka visa pamale skanēja ― on the shore, on the other side of the river, Preimanis cursed (in such a way) that the whole horizon resounded (with his curses)

   Saulītis krāca tā, ka ārā varēja dzirdēt ― Saulītis snored so (= in such a way) that one could hear it outside

   (e) adverbial complement (cause)

   (often tāpēc ka, tādēļ ka, less frequently tamdēļ ka, tālab ka, “for the reason that”)

   viņai kļūst kauns par sevi, ka pat domās pieļāvusi salīdzinājumu ― she felt ashamed of herself, that (= because) she had allowed herself (to make) this comparison even in thought

   publicisti uzbruka rakstniekiem, ka tie bez īstas kvēles un dedzības ķeras pagatavot lugas ― the publishers attacked the writers that (= because) they tried to prepare (= write) plays without real fervor and zeal

   “bet varbūt tāpēc līst, ka man sāp zobs”, viņš iedomājās ― “but maybe it is raining for that reason, that (= because) my tooth hurts,” he thought

   krievu valoda mums jāprot tādēļ, ka tā ir mūsu kaimiņu un draugu valoda ― we must know Russian for that reason, that (= because) it is the language of our neighbors and friends

   Ješka nepaguva atbildēt, tāpēc ka papriekš gribēja iedzert ― Ješka couldn't answer, because he first wanted to drink

   tu, tēvoc, daudz ko nedzirdi, tādēļ ka kurls esi palicis ― you, uncle, haven't heard much, because you have become deaf

   (f) adverbial complement (consequence)

   (often tā kā “so that”)

   otrā rītā sāp mugura, ka tīri vai jāraud ― the next morning (his) back was in pain, (so much) that (he) simply had to cry

   visi bija tik satraukti, ka nemanīja, vai viņš atsveicinās vai ne ― everybody was so excited that (they) did not noticed whether or not he said goodbye

   Ainas acis vērāas tik mierīgas un vēas, ka viņš atmeta šādu domu ― (but) Aina's eyes were so peaceful and cool (= calm) that he abandoned such thought(s)

   dejotāju kājas bija noru noblietējušas tā, ka zeme sāka skanēt ― the dancers' feet had stomped the (forest) glade so (= in such a way) that the earth began to resound

   vējš gaudoja aizvien stiprāk, tā ka sāka jau drebēt majas jumts ― the wind howled more and more strongly, so that the house roof began to shake

   vecais zvirbulis bija ļoti noskumis un kļuva pat neuzmanīgs, tā ka to gandrīz noķēra pelēkais Minka ― the old sparrow had become very sad and even inattentive, so that the gray Minka (= cat) almost caught him

   (g) adverbial complement (purpose)

   pēc malkas ej, ka var kurināt tam akmenim virsū! ― go find wood, (so) that we can burn it on (top of) that rock

   skrien kā traks, ka tikai izraut lielāku normu ― I run (= work) like crazy, (so) that I may get a larger margin (= advantage)

   (h) adverbial complement (measure, proportion)

   tūlīt pēc kara pievairojis bija pelēču, ka mudž ― immediately after the war the grays (= landowners) became many, (so much) that (they) were swarming

   viņa steidzās tik ļoti, ka neievēroja vaļējās klēts durvis un tajās sēdošo cilvēku ― she hurried so much that (she) did not notice the open barn door and the person sitting in(side of) it

   vai tik daudz sāpju sevī pārvarēji, / ka tikai prieku spēsi citiem sniegt? ― have you overcome so much pain in yourself / that you will be able to give only joy to others?

   (i) adverbial complement (condition)

   kas tas par draugu, ka nevar palīdzēt? ― what kind of friend is he, that (= if) he can't help?

   kur gan esat, zilie ceriņi, ka nekur vairs nesatieku jūs? ― where are you, blue lilac, that (= if) I don't find you anywhere?

Particle

ka

1. used to add a nuance of probability or doubt to a, usually negative, utterance, to make it optative, expressive of a desire (cf. kaut); may...

   jāsagrābj siens, ka neuznāk lietus ― (we) have to rake the hay together, may rain not come (i.e., maybe there will be rain)

   vispirms gādājiet, lai rudzi tiek statos; ka neuznāk krusa ― first of all make sure that the rye is in heaps; may hail not come (= i.e., maybe there will be hail)

   ka tik viņš neaizietu! ― may he only not leave! if only he wouldn't leave!

   “ka nenositas”, Nikolajs ieminas, bet onkulis atmet at roku: “liels puisietis, nenositīsies” — “may he not get himself killed” (i.e., he probably won't get himself killed), Nikolas said, and uncle gestured with his hand: “(he is) a big boy, he won't get himself killed”

   “ak, ka tak viss neietu tik lēnām... tos, kas nomirs, tos tak ielaidīs jūrā?” “laikam” — “oh, may everything not go so slowly (= if only everything didn't go so slowly)... those who died, they will be thrown into the sea?” “maybe”

   pagája labs brīdis, bet necēlās neviens no pakritušajiem skrējējiem... ka viņu vilks, nu būs abi divi beigti ― a good while went by, but none of the fallen runners stood up... may (the devil) take him, they now will be (= probably are) both finished (= dead)

2. used to reinforce the intensity of an action or activity, usually with a repeated verb; ... and ...

   māte tik naigi dur ka dur - šuj savu šujamo ― mother so quickly pierced and pierced - she sows her sowing (= what she needs to sow, i.e. she is certainly carrying out her task)

---

Lojban

Cmavo

ka (rafsi kam)

1. (property abstractor) Indicates the quality or property of the following clause; -ness, -ty, -hood.

   simlu le ka rarna

   It seems to be natural (lit. seems the naturalness).

   la meiris. jinvi le du'u le ka bunre cu melbi

   Mary thinks that the color brown (lit. brownness) is beautiful.

   le ka titla cu vrusi lo sakta

   Sweetness is a flavor of sugar.

Usage notes

• This is an abstractor which applied to a selbri returns a sumti which describes the quality of that selbri. For example, for the selbri blanu (“blue”), ka blanu would mean "blueness".
• The elidable terminator for a phrase begun with ka is kei.
  • Use kei only if it has an effect on the parse structure and that effect is desirable; otherwise kei can be elided.

---

Mandarin

Romanization

ka

1. Nonstandard spelling of kā.
2. Nonstandard spelling of kǎ.
3. Nonstandard spelling of kà.

Usage notes

• English transcriptions of Mandarin speech often fail to distinguish between the critical tonal differences employed in the Mandarin language, using words such as this one without the appropriate indication of tone.

---

Mapudungun

Adverb

ka (using Raguileo Alphabet)

1. too; also

Synonyms

• kafey

Conjunction

ka (using Raguileo Alphabet)

1. and

Determiner

ka (using Raguileo Alphabet)

1. another; not the same

---

Min Nan

Noun

ka (POJ, traditional 家, simplified 家)

1. family, household

ka (POJ, traditional 鸠, simplified 鳩)

1. turtle dove; Turtur orientalis

ka (POJ, traditional 铰, simplified 鉸)

1. scissors

Verb

ka (POJ, traditional 加, simplified 加)

1. to raise; to increase; to add; plus

---

Norwegian

Pronoun

ka

1. (dialectal) what (interrogative pronoun); compare to Nynorsk kva

   Ka e da du gjere på?

   What are you doing?

Synonyms

• hva (Bokmål)
• kva (Nynorsk)

---

Pali

Alternative forms

Alternative forms

• क (Devanagari script)
• ক (Bengali script)
• ක (Sinhalese script)
• က (Burmese script)
• ก (Thai script)
• ᨠ (Tai Tham script)
• ក (Khmer script)

Etymology

From Vedic Sanskrit कः (kaḥ).

Pronoun

ka

1. (interrogative) who

---

Picuris

Verb

ka

1. to wash

Further reading

• Dominic Yu, Comparative Phonology of Picurís and Taos (2008)

---

Pitjantjatjara

Conjunction

ka

1. and (switching)

   Watingku maḻu nyangu ka wirtjapakaṉu.

   The man saw the kangaroo and the kangaroo ran away.

Usage notes

• Ka is a switching conjunction. When it links two clauses or sentences, it conveys that the second clause has a different subject from the first. In cases where the subject remains the same, the conjunction munu is used.
  In the example above, the subject of the second clause need not be "the kangaroo", although that seems the most likely possibility from context. The ku simply tells us that someone or something other than wati (the subject of the first clause) ran away.
• Although ka is spelt with a short a, the vowel is actually long (kaa). The misleading spelling exists for historical reasons.

---

Portuguese

Alternative forms

• kaka, kakaka, kakakaka...

Interjection

ka

1. ha (representation of laughter)

---

Rapa Nui

Interjection

ka

1. exclamation suggesting a judgment on external events

Usage notes

For a personal reaction, consider using ko.

---

Serbo-Croatian

Preposition

ka (Cyrillic spelling ка)

1. to
2. toward

Synonyms

• k

Adverb

ka (Cyrillic spelling ка)

1. (Chakavian, Montenegro) as, like

Synonyms

• kao

Conjunction

ka

1. (Chakavian, Montenegro) as, like

Synonyms

• kao

Pronoun

ka (Cyrillic spelling ка)

1. (Chakavian, Kajkavian, interrogative) which (feminine)
2. (Chakavian, Kajkavian, relative) which, that, who (feminine)
3. (Chakavian, Kajkavian, indefinite) some (feminine)

Synonyms

• koja

---

Somali

Preposition

ka

1. from
2. away from
3. out of
4. about, concerning

Usage notes

• In Somali, prepositions fall before the verb and not before the noun they modify:

  ka imow -- to come from

  ka keen -- to bring s.o from

---

Spanish

Noun

ka f (plural kas)

1. Name of the letter k.

---

Tagalog

Pronoun

ka

1. you (second person singular)

See also

Tagalog personal pronouns

Person	Number	Direct (ang)	Indirect (ng)	Oblique (sa)
First	singular	ako	ko	akin
	dual	kita/kata*	nita/nata*	kanita/kanata* (ata)*
	plural inclusive	tayo	natin	atin
	plural exclusive	kami	namin	amin
First & Second	singular	kita
Second	singular	ikaw, ka	mo	iyo
	plural	kayo	ninyo	inyo
Third	singular	siya	niya	kaniya
	plural	sila	nila	kanila
*not commonly used

---

Tok Pisin

Etymology

From English car.

Noun

ka

1. car

---

Tuvaluan

Particle

ka

1. future tense marker, inserted immediately before the relevant verb

---

Ujir

Numeral

ka

1. four

References

• Antoinette Schapper, Marian Klamer, Numeral systems in the Alor-Pantar languages

---

Veps

Adverb

ka

1. yes
2. certainly, absolutely
3. naturally, of course
4. let's [+first-person plural imperative]

Conjunction

ka

1. but
2. then (in "if...then" constructions)

References

• Zajceva, N. G.; Mullonen, M. I. (2007), “безусловно, да, давать, естественно, конечно, но”, in Uz’ venä-vepsläine vajehnik / Novyj russko-vepsskij slovarʹ [New Russian–Veps Dictionary], Petrozavodsk: Periodika

---

Volapük

Conjunction

ka

1. than (used for comparisons)