yu

See also: Appendix:Variations of "yu"

Languages (36)

English

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Ama • Bargam • Belizean Creole • Bislama • Cameroon Pidgin • Duna • Indonesian • Jamaican Creole • Japanese • Jarai • Kamula • Kapampangan • Lashi • Malalamai • Malay • Mandarin • Mapudungun • Middle English • Miskito • Nigerian Pidgin • Papiamentu • Pichinglis • Pijin • Prasuni • Sranan Tongo • Swahili • Tagalog • Tataltepec Chatino • Tok Pisin • Torres Strait Creole • Unami • Waskia • Yoruba • Zacatepec Chatino • Zarma

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Page categories

English

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /juː/
• Rhymes: -uː
• Homophones: Yoo, you; yew, ewe (not in Wales)

Etymology 1

Borrowed from Chinese 玉.

Noun

yu (countable and uncountable, plural yu)

1. (archaeology, countable) An ancient Chinese wine-bucket, often having a decorative cover.
   • 1962, William Watson, Ancient Chinese Bronzes, page 34:

     A group of slenderer yu also survive from the Shang into the early Chou period, though they are rarer than the other design […] A yu with square body in the Hakuzuru Museum is the finest of these.

2. (archaic, uncountable) Jade, nephrite or jadeite.
   • 1818, Clarke Abel, Narrative of a Journey in the Interior of China, page 133:

     The Yu, although of the hardness of rock crystal, is worked into an endless variety of forms […]

   • 1826, The Asiatic Journal and Monthly Register for British India and Its Dependencies:

     Another stone with which it would be interesting to compare it is the celebrated yu stone of the Chinese, which Dr. Abel, in his work on China, conjectured to be a species of nephrite […]

Etymology 2

See you.

Pronoun

yu

1. Eye dialect spelling of you.
   • 2009 March 10, Rosie DiManno, “Murder reduced to infantile online postings”, in Toronto Star‎^[2], archived from the original on 13 March 2009:

     Then, in a staggering display of empathy for the deceased lacking, this friend segues to the narcissist nub of the matter: "Omg wat if yu get arrested b4 yur bdai."

Etymology 3

Borrowed from Russian ю (ju).

Noun

yu (plural yus)

1. The letter Ю, ю.

Translations

Ю

• Russian: ю (ru) n (ju)

See also

• yu choy
• yu sheng
• yu shiang
• yu toy

Anagrams

• Uy

Ama

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ju/

Noun

yu

1. mountain, hill

Bargam

Noun

yu

1. alternative form of yuw

References

• Loanwords in Takia, in Loanwords in the World's Languages: A Comparative Handbook (edited by Martin Haspelmath, Uri Tadmor), page 761

Belizean Creole

Etymology

From English you.

Pronoun

yu

1. you (second-person singular pronoun)

Determiner

yu

1. your (second-person singular possessive pronoun)

References

• Crosbie, Paul, ed. (2007), Kriol-Inglish Dikshineri: English-Kriol Dictionary. Belize City: Belize Kriol Project, p. 379.

Bislama

Etymology

From English you. Cognate with Tok Pisin yu.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈju/
• Hyphenation: yu

Pronoun

yu

1. thou, you (singular)

See also

Bislama personal pronouns

		singular	dual	trial	plural
1st person	exclusive	mi	mitufala	mitrifala	mifala
	inclusive	—	yumitu, yumitufala	yumitrifala	yumi
2nd person		yu	yutufala	yutrifala	yufala
3rd person	neutral	hem, em	tufala	trifala	ol1, olgeta
	collective2	—	tugeta	trigeta	—

¹ Used only as an object of a preposition or a verb.
² The collective pronouns specify that the action is performed by all subjects together, rather than on their own.
Some speakers may not distinguish various plurality categories, using only one or two plural pronouns.

References

• Terry Crowley (2004), Bislama Reference Grammar, Honolulu: University of Hawaiʻi press, →ISBN, page 46

Cameroon Pidgin

Pronoun

yu

1. alternative spelling of you (“2nd person singular subject and object personal pronoun”)

Duna

Noun

yu

1. water

References

• Transnewguinea.org, citing Shaw (1973) (see Pacific Linguistics, edited by Karl James Franklin, 1973)

Indonesian

Etymology

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium. Particularly: “probably from Javanese or Chinese”)

Pronunciation

• (Standard Indonesian) IPA^(key): /ˈju/ [ˈju]
• Rhymes: -u
• Syllabification: yu

Noun

yu

1. (dialectal) older sister

   Synonym: (dialectal) mbakyu

Jamaican Creole

Pronoun

yu

1. alternative spelling of yuh

Japanese

Romanization

yu

1. The hiragana syllable ゆ (yu) or the katakana syllable ユ (yu) in Hepburn romanization.

Jarai

Etymology

From Vietnamese dù.

Noun

yu (classifier pŏk)

1. parachute

Kamula

Noun

yu

1. water

References

• transnewguinea.org, citing G. Reesink Languages of the Aramia River Area (1976), Papers in New Guinea Linguistics No. 19
• Possible Cognates Between Kamula and Pa, chart 10, page 16, in Papers in New Guinea Linguistics, issues 17-20 (1990)

Kapampangan

Alternative forms

• yo
• ye

Etymology 1

From Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *iu, from Proto-Austronesian *iSu. Compare Tagalog iyo, Ilocano -yo.

Pronoun

yu

1. (in the plural) you
2. (honorific singular) you

   Pakilawen yu pu. ― Let's have a look.

   Ikuwa yo. ― Did y'all get it?!

See also

• ikayu
• iko
• iyo
• iyu
• kekayu
• keko
• ko

Etymology 2

Compare Tagalog iyon.

Pronoun

yu

1. He; She; that
2. (colloquial) it

   Palako ne anya mako nakurin.

   S/he's about to leave that's why I'm leaving as well.

   Atiyu nayu.

   It's here.

See also

• iya
• iyu
• nayu
• ne
• no
• ya
• yo

Kapampangan personal pronouns

		absolute		ergative	oblique
		disjunctive	enclitic
first person	singular	aku/i aku/yaku	ku		kanaku
	plural inclusive	ikatamu	katamu/tamu	tamu/ta	kekatamu
	plural exclusive	ikami, ike	kami/ke	mi	kekami/keke
second person	singular	ika	ka	mu	keka
	plural	ikayu/iko	kayu/ko	yu	kekayu/keko
third person	singular	iya/ya	ya	na	keya/kaya
	plural	ila	la	da/ra	karela

Particle

yu

1. A particle attached with na to show respect to the listener in the polite style.

   Ninu nayo?

   Who is it?

   Mengan nayu.

   S/he already ate.

2. Indicates emphasis.

   Sabian munayo.

   Please, tell me!

   Alinayu.

   There's no need for that.

Usage notes

• The word yu changes to yo if it is an exclamation or a question.
• When speaking to be formal, follow it with pu at the end.

Lashi

Etymology

From Proto-Lolo-Burmese *yu¹. Cognate with Burmese ယူ (yu).

Pronunciation

• (Waingmaw) IPA^(key): [ju˧˧]
• Hyphenation: yu

Verb

yu

1. (transitive) to take
   • 2005, “Apoem ayang꞉ 25:1 [Genesis 25:1]”, in Jhoem꞉ mougsougˮ [The Book of the Bible]‎^[3], page 37:

     Abraham gi Ketura ga꞉ daˮ yhoem꞉ seing꞉ myhiʼ gootu꞉ doem yu.

     Abraham took another wife again named Keturah.

References

• Hkaw Luk (2017), A grammatical sketch of Lacid‎^[4], Chiang Mai: Payap University (master thesis), page 56

Malalamai

Noun

yu

1. water

Further reading

• Malcolm Ross, Proto Oceanic and the Austronesian Languages of Western Melanesia, Pacific Linguistics, series C-98 (1988)

Malay

Alternative forms

• hiu (obsolete in Malay, standard in Indonesian)

Etymology

From hiu, from Proto-Malayic *hiuʔ, from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *qihu, from Proto-Austronesian *qiSu.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈju/ [ˈju]
• Rhymes: -u
• Hyphenation: yu

Noun

yu (Jawi spelling يو, plural yu-yu or yu²)

1. A shark (scaleless cartilaginous fish).

   Synonym: jerung

   Ikan yu ialah seekor haiwan akuatik yang sangat kuat gigitannya.

   The shark is an aquatic animal whose bites are very strong.

Compounds

• yu belak
• yu belangkas
• yu bengkong
• yu berui
• yu bodoh
• yu cercak
• yu cermangi
• yu cicak
• yu gergaji
• yu giling
• yu jaras
• yu jerih
• yu jerung
• yu kabut
• yu kecil
• yu kemejan
• yu kepak hitam
• yu kia
• yu manis
• yu mata jauh
• yu nipah
• yu palang
• yu parang
• yu pasir
• yu paus
• yu pendek
• yu pengajam
• yu pokah
• yu pulah
• yu punai
• yu putih
• yu rimau
• yu sambaran
• yu sanggul
• yu sanggul lintang
• yu sirip hitam
• yu tanduk
• yu tembaga
• yu tenggiri
• yu todak
• yu tokeh

Further reading

• "yu" in Pusat Rujukan Persuratan Melayu (PRPM) [Malay Literary Reference Centre (PRPM)] (in Malay), Kuala Lumpur: Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka, 2017

Mandarin

Romanization

yu

1. nonstandard spelling of yū
2. nonstandard spelling of yú
3. nonstandard spelling of yǔ
4. nonstandard spelling of yù

Usage notes

• Transcriptions of Mandarin into the Latin script often do not distinguish between the critical tonal differences employed in the Mandarin language, using words such as this one without indication of tone.

Mapudungun

Noun

yu (Raguileo spelling)

1. (anatomy) nose

References

• Wixaleyiñ: Mapucezugun-wigkazugun pici hemvlcijka (Wixaleyiñ: Small Mapudungun-Spanish dictionary), Beretta, Marta; Cañumil, Dario; Cañumil, Tulio, 2008.

Middle English

Pronoun

yu

1. (Yorkshire) alternative form of yow

Miskito

Noun

yu

1. sun
2. day

Nigerian Pidgin

Etymology

From English you.

Pronoun

yu

1. you

Papiamentu

Alternative forms

• yiu (alternative spelling)

Etymology

Comes from Old Papiamentu "joego", from Spanish hijo. Compare Kabuverdianu fidju (“child”) (ac Jacobs).

Noun

yu

1. child (of parents)

Pichinglis

Etymology

From English you.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /jù/

Pronoun

yu

1. Second-person singular dependent pronoun; you, your

See also

Pichinglis personal pronouns

	Independent	Dependent
		Subject	Possessive	Object
1st person sg	mí	a	mi	―
2nd person sg	yú	yu		―
3rd person sg	ín	e	in	-an
1st person pl	wí	wi		―
2nd person pl	una, unu			―
3rd person pl	dɛ́n	dɛn		―

References

• Kofi Yakpo (2019), A grammar of Pichi (Studies in Diversity Linguistics; 23)‎^[5], Berlin: Language Science Press, →DOI, →ISBN, →ISSN, page 578

Pijin

Pronoun

yu

1. alternative form of iu

Prasuni

Noun

yu (Pronz)

1. basket

Sranan Tongo

Alternative forms

• i

Etymology

From English you.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ju/, /i/
• IPA^(key): /i/

Determiner

yu

1. your

Pronoun

yu

1. you

Descendants

• Aukan: yu
• >? Maroon Spirit Language: i
• Saramaccan: yu

Swahili

Pronunciation

• Audio (Kenya):

  (file)

Verb

yu

1. (dated or literary) positive degree present and gnomic third-person singular m class_(I) of -wa (“he/she is”)
   • (Can we date this quote?), “Umechoka Umesumbuka”:

     Mwambie Yesu sumbuko lako, yu rafiki amini

     Tell Jesus your trouble; [he] is a friend, trust it

Tagalog

Etymology

Borrowed from English u, the English name of the letter U / u.

Pronunciation

• (Standard Tagalog) IPA^(key): /ju/ [jʊ]
• Rhymes: -u
• Syllabification: yu
• Homophone: Yu

Noun

yu (Baybayin spelling ᜌᜓ)

1. the name of the Latin script letter U/u, in the Filipino alphabet

   Synonym: (in the Abakada alphabet and the Abecedario) u

See also

• (Latin-script letter names) titik; ey, bi, si, di, i, ef, dyi, eyts, ay, dyey, key, el, em, en, enye, en dyi, o, pi, kyu, ar, es, ti, yu, vi, dobolyu, eks, way, zi

Further reading

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

Anagrams

• uy, Uy

Tataltepec Chatino

Pronoun

yu

1. he

Tok Pisin

Etymology

From English you.

Pronoun

yu (personal)

1. you (singular)
   • 1989, Buk Baibel long Tok Pisin, Port Moresby: Bible Society of Papua New Guinea, Jenesis 2:16:

     Na God i tokim man olsem, “Yu ken kaikai pikinini bilong olgeta diwai bilong dispela gaden.

     →New International Version translation

See also

Tok Pisin personal pronouns

			singular	dual	trial	plural
1st person		exclusive	mi	mitupela	mitripela	mipela
		inclusive		yumitupela	yumitripela	yumipela, yumi
2nd person			yu	yutupela	yutripela	yupela
3rd person			em	tupela	tripela	ol

Torres Strait Creole

Etymology

From English you.

Pronoun

yu (personal)

1. you (singular)

See also

• yutu
• yupla

Unami

Alternative forms

• yun

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ju]

Pronoun

yu

1. this (inanimate)

See also

Unami demonstrative pronouns

	animate	inanimate	obviative
proximal singular (“this”)	wa, wàn, wàni	yu, yun, yuni	yul, yuli
distal singular (“that”)	na, nàn, nàni	në, nën, nëni
proximal plural (“these”)	yuki, yuk	yuli, yul	nèl
distal plural (“those”)	nèki, nèk	nèl
absentative1 distal singular	naka	nike
absentative1 distal plural	nèl	nikahke
absentative1 proximal singular	waka

¹ Inaccessible to speaker, deceased

Waskia

Noun

yu

1. water
2. river

References

• Waskia dictionary (SIL)

Yoruba

Alternative forms

• yún
• jú (Ào)
• hú (Eastern Àkókó)

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /jú/

Verb

yú

1. (Ekiti, Idanre, Ondo, Ọwọ, Ikalẹ, Usẹn) to go

   Synonyms: lọ, rè

   Me è yú ― I will not go (Èkìtì)

   Ùwọ ó yú ín. ― It was you who went. (Ìkálẹ̀)

Derived terms

• yúbẹ̀ (“to go there”)

Zacatepec Chatino

Pronoun

yu

1. they

Synonyms

• neʔ

Zarma

Noun

yu

1. honey

References

• David Bellama, Cours de Zarma pour le Niger: trainee's book (1976)