makan

See also: makán, mákan, and Makan

English

Etymology

Unadapted borrowing from Malay makan. Doublet of kai.

Pronunciation

• (Singapore) IPA^(key): /ˈmɑkɑn/, [ˈmakan]

Verb

makan (invariable)

1. (Singlish, Manglish) To eat.
   • 2023, Alfian Sa'at, “Dreamplay”, in Collected Plays Two, Singapore: Ethos Books, →ISBN:

     Mdm Zaiton: You makan already? Eat what?

Noun

makan (uncountable)

1. (Singlish, Manglish) Food.
   • 2021 June 8, Sean Lim, quoting Razali, “These Stalls Used To Fuel Workers At Industrial Parks. Now, They Are Barely Surviving”, in ricemedia.co‎^[1], archived from the original on 16 June 2025:

     “HDB there already got makan, they want to come here for what? So leceh,” Mr Razali says. He opens his stall only on weekdays, from 6.30 AM to about 3 PM in the afternoon.

   • 2024 April 14, Daniel Peters, “In Memoriam: Our Makan Places Lost to Time”, in ricemedia.co‎^[2], archived from the original on 17 May 2025:

     It’s not uncommon for Singapore’s F&B landscape to shift in an almost rapid and unsteady fashion. Some businesses morph and transform, closing and reopening spaces to keep up with changes.

Banjarese

Etymology

From Proto-Malayic *makan, from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *kaən, from Proto-Austronesian *kaən.

Verb

makan

1. to eat (consume)

Central Dusun

Verb

makan

1. to eat

References

• “makan”, in Dusun dictionary, 2025–2026

Indonesian

Pronunciation

• (Standard Indonesian) IPA^(key): /ˈmakan/ [ˈma.kan]
• Rhymes: -akan
• Syllabification: ma‧kan

Etymology 1

Inherited from Malay makan, from Proto-Malayic *makan, from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *kaən, from Proto-Austronesian *kaən. Doublet of pakan and pangan.

Verb

makan (active memakan, reflexive passive termakan, ordinary passive dimakan, imperative makan, emphatic-jussive makanlah)

1. (ambitransitive) to eat (to consume, ingest)

   Synonyms: berboga, caplok, cengam, ciak, dahar, ganyang, gerogot, kemce, keme, kemek, kerkah, mam, mamah, mamam, melahap, memajuh, mencaruk, meratah, mimik, nyam, santap, sengam, sungkah, telan

   Pagi ini saya makan ikan.

   This morning I ate fish.

2. (of money, time, etc.) to eat, consume, use up

   Synonym: menghabiskan

   Pembangunan sekolah ini memakan biaya tinggi.

   The construction of this school consumes a lot of money.

3. (of chess) to attack, to kill

   Synonyms: ambil, catuk, ganyang, gasak, serang

4. (usually of a machine part, pen, etc.) to work (to function correctly)

   Synonyms: berjalan, berfungsi, bisa

   Remnya sempat gak makan di tengah jalan.

   The brake wasn't working in the middle of the road.

5. to corrupt, embezzle

   Synonyms: korupsi, rasuah, seleweng

   Dia memakan sebagian besar uang milik koperasi itu.

   He embezzled most of the cooperative's money.

6. (uncommon) to damage, hurt

   Synonyms: merusak, melukai, menelap

7. (uncommon, of a tool, etc.) to reach

   Synonyms: capai, gapai

8. (uncommon) to consume, to take

   Synonyms: konsumsi, mimik, minum, santap, telan

9. (uncommon, idiomatic) to sleep with (to have sex with)

Conjugation

Conjugation of makan (defective)

Active (1)	memakan
Active (2)	–
Passive (1)	dimakan
Passive (2)	termakan
Basic / Imperative	makan
See also Appendix:Indonesian verbs.

Noun

makan (uncountable)

1. eating (the act of ingesting food)
2. (used only in a phrase) apocopic form of makanan (“sustenance (something that provides support or nourishment)”, literally “food, meal”).

Derived terms

• dimakan
• kemakan
• ketermakanan
• makan-makan
• makan-makanan
• makanan
• memakan
• memakani
• memakankan
• pemakan
• pemakanan
• permakanan
• sepemakan
• termakan
• termakankan

• makan ampun
• makan angin
• makan arwah
• makan asam
• makan asam garam
• makan ayapan
• makan bawang
• makan bebas
• makan benak
• makan berkancah
• makan berpantang
• makan berulam
• makan besar
• makan biaya
• makan darah
• makan dati
• makan dawai
• makan dedak
• makan di tempat
• makan diri
• makan duit
• makan emas
• makan gaji
• makan gaji buta
• makan hak
• makan hari mutong
• makan hati
• makan jangat
• makan kawan sendiri
• makan kawat
• makan kerawat
• makan keringat orang
• makan kuli
• makan lewah
• makan malam
• makan mewah
• makan ongkos
• makan pagi
• makan pena
• makan riba
• makan sebelah
• makan sehat
• makan sekolah
• makan sepinggan
• makan sepuasnya
• makan siang
• makan sogok
• makan sore
• makan suap
• makan sumpah
• makan tabungan
• makan tali
• makan tanah
• makan tangan
• makan tengah
• makan tidur
• makan tulang
• makan uang
• makan upah
• makan waktu

Etymology 2

Borrowed from Arabic مَكَان (makān, literally “place, location, position; status, dignity”).

Noun

makan (uncountable)

1. (Islam, Sufism) a place of refuge for the heart and physical health, the disappearance of doubts caused by busy physical work

References

• Blust, Robert; Trussel, Stephen; et al. (2023) “*kaen”, in the CLDF dataset from The Austronesian Comparative Dictionary (2010–), →DOI

See also

• minum (“to drink”)

Further reading

• makan on the Indonesian Wikipedia.Wikipedia ^id
• “makan”, 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

Malay

Alternative forms

• mkn (Internet, text messaging)

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈmakan/ [ˈma.kan]

  • Audio:

    (file)

• Rhymes: -akan, -kan, -an
• Hyphenation: ma‧kan

Etymology 1

Inherited from Proto-Malayic *makan, from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *kaən, from Proto-Austronesian *kaən.

First attested in the Talang Tuo inscription, 684 AD, as Old Malay [script needed] (mākan) in the form nimākan (current spelling dimakan).

Verb

makan (Jawi spelling ماکن, active memakan, third-person passive dimakan)

1. (ambitransitive, literally) to eat

   Synonyms: see Thesaurus:makan

2. (transitive) to consume, spend, use up (of money, time)
3. (transitive) to damage, destroy

   Besi itu dimakan karat ― The iron is damaged by rust.

4. (transitive, sports) to kill, to take out (of chess pieces)
5. (transitive) to injure or penetrate

   Synonyms: lut, masuk, mempan, telap, telut, tembus, dimakan senjata

6. (impersonal) to work as expected (usually of a machine part)
7. to fit in (of holes)
8. to follow (an advice)

   Synonyms: menerima, mengikut, menurut, mendengar, mematuhi, mentaati

9. (figurative) to receive bribes or illegally obtained money
10. (uncommon, idiomatic) to sleep with

Derived terms

Affixations

• bermakan
• kemakanan
• makanan (“food”)
• memakan
• memakani
• memakankan
• pemakan (“eater”)
• pemakanan (“diet”)
• termakan

Compounds

• buruk makan
• makan angin
• makan angkat
• makan bawang
• makan besar
• makan darah
• makan diri
• makan duit
• makan gaji
• makan garam
• makan hati
• makan luar
• makan malam
• makan nikmat
• makan pancing
• makan pena
• makan pencen
• makan puluk
• makan ransom
• makan ransum
• makan riba
• makan sahur
• makan siang
• makan sorong
• makan suap
• makan sumpah
• makan tanah
• makan tangan
• makan tanggung
• makan tempoh
• makan tidur
• makan tuan
• makan tulang
• nafsu makan
• renggah makan
• rumah makan
• wang makan

Proverbs

• bagai haruan makan anak
• harapkan pegar, pegar makan padi
• kais pagi makan pagi, kais petang makan petang
• memberi makan anjing di tembikar, memberi makan gajah dengan alatnya
• orang makan gaji, umur panjang rezeki beragakkan
• orang makan nangka, awak kena getah
• orang tua diajar makan dadih
• pandai makan, pandai simpan
• pandai makan, tak pandai simpan
• pipit pekak makan berhujan
• pipit yang makan padi, merbah terbawa rendong
• seperti cencaru makan petang
• sudah makan bismillah
• tempat makan jangan diberaki
• tidak makan siku-siku

Descendants

• > Indonesian: makan (inherited)
• > North Moluccan Malay: makang (inherited)

Etymology 2

Clipping of makanan (literally “food, meal”).

Noun

makan (Jawi spelling ماکن, uncountable)

1. livelihood, subsistence, sustenance

   Synonym: rezeki

References

• “makan”, in Kamus Dewan [The Institute Dictionary] (in Malay), Fourth edition, Kuala Lumpur: Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka, 2005, →ISBN

Further reading

• makan on the Malay Wikipedia.Wikipedia ^ms
• "makan" in Pusat Rujukan Persuratan Melayu (PRPM) [Malay Literary Reference Centre (PRPM)] (in Malay), Kuala Lumpur: Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka, 2017

Swedish

Noun

makan

1. definite singular of maka

Tagalog

Alternative forms

• macan — obsolete, Spanish-based spelling

Etymology

From either Spanish macan (“bruised”), an inflection of macar (“to bruise”), or Spanish Macán, an obsolete form of Macao according to Manuel (1948), it is supposedly from Macao, due to Noceda & Sanlucar (1860) defining it as "Arroz de tubigan, bueno y oloroso, uno es blanco y otro colorado. Vino la semilla de Macan." and an early account of Fr. Domingo de Salazar (1583) saying that they have located it at "la ysla de Macan, donde viven los Portugueses que estan junto a la ciudad de Cantón, en la China,...".

Pronunciation

• (Standard Tagalog) IPA^(key): /maˈkan/ [mɐˈxan̪]
• Rhymes: -an
• Syllabification: ma‧kan

Noun

makán (Baybayin spelling ᜋᜃᜈ᜔)

1. (botany) a type of aromatic rice (Oryza sativa, sometimes subspecies O. s. indica) grown across the Philippines with a variety of white rice and red rice, often considered as a second-class rice
2. (zoology) a species of pig with a savory meat when cooked

Related terms

• dinorado
• Makaw
• sinandomeng

Further reading

• “makan”, in KWF Diksiyonaryo ng Wikang Filipino, Komisyon sa Wikang Filipino, 2025
• “makan”, in Pambansang Diksiyonaryo | Diksiyonaryo.ph, 2018
• Manuel, E. Arsenio (1948), Chinese elements in the Tagalog language: with some indication of Chinese influence on other Philippine languages and cultures and an excursion into Austronesian linguistics, Manila: Filipiniana Publications, page 40
• Noceda, Fr. Juan José de; Sanlucar, Fr. Pedro de (1860), Vocabulario de la lengua tagala, compuesto por varios religiosos doctos y graves, y coordinado por…, ultimamente aumentado y corregido por varios religiosos de la Orden de Agustinos calzados.‎^[3] (overall work in Spanish and Classical Tagalog), Manila: Ramírez y Giraudier.