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Are any words the same in all languages?

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Re: Are any words the same in all languages?

#181
post #165

I believe mango is another candidate for a word that's nearly the same in many languages. Like chai vs tea, the two words (that I know of) are aam and mango.

Yep, "mango" is surprisingly consistent across every language I checked, but in Bengali and possibly quite a few other similar widely spoken languages it's different. Whereas "sushi" I haven't found a language using a distinct word for so far.

Re: Are any words the same in all languages?

#182
post #179

These seem like very bad candidates. All are loan words, which is interesting, but we could go deeper if we're considering pineapple/ananas and coffee. And let's be real, words like robot and computer are mostly the same in this respect too, especially if we're considering taxi. But what about words that are more "native"? How about "mama" and "papa"? There are variations, but these seem to be pretty small and mostly…

Small correction: Hebrew for father is "ah-bah" (אַבָּא) not "bah-bah"

Edited, thanks!

Re: Are any words the same in all languages?

#183
post #178

These seem like very bad candidates. All are loan words, which is interesting, but we could go deeper if we're considering pineapple/ananas and coffee. And let's be real, words like robot and computer are mostly the same in this respect too, especially if we're considering taxi. But what about words that are more "native"? How about "mama" and "papa"? There are variations, but these seem to be pretty small and mostly…

It's "ah-bah" in Hebrew, not "bah-bah".

Edited, thanks!

Re: Are any words the same in all languages?

#185

Earlier quoted context omitted.

yeah, i understand that they're not visual renditions of spoken or written words. but as far as the possibility for a sign language to share a word with a written or spoken language - how? does a sign language have words, in the sense that a spoken language does, that could be shared with a spoken language and aren't simply a transliteration of a spoken-language word into signing? from the example in the article, is…

Signs and spoken language feel very different, at least to me. ASL is definitely not "english, but with signs instead of verbal words". In ASL, there are some words where you just spell it out. But most things have their own dedicated sign, or maybe a compound of a couple of signs, or a sign that looks -almost- like a related concept but with a modifier (it almost feels like Chinese in that respect). The sign usually…

Do the meanings of mouth morphemes ever correspond to the mouth shapes associated with spoken morphemes in the local spoken language? (Sorry if that's incorrectly/confusingly phrased; been awhile since I cracked open a linguistics textbook.) Curious about both ASL and other sign languages, if you happen to know.

Re: Are any words the same in all languages?

#186
post #174
post #156

There is one word which I think is the same in all languages: Tariff. And it makes sense - it's the "how much?" that would be (and is) asked at any port and travelling hub.

One counterexample: the Mandarin word for tariff is 關稅 (guānshuì).

Even Greek has a quite different word for it.

Re: Are any words the same in all languages?

#187

These seem like very bad candidates. All are loan words, which is interesting, but we could go deeper if we're considering pineapple/ananas and coffee. And let's be real, words like robot and computer are mostly the same in this respect too, especially if we're considering taxi. But what about words that are more "native"? How about "mama" and "papa"? There are variations, but these seem to be pretty small and mostly…

In Georgian “mama” means father

[dead]

Re: Are any words the same in all languages?

#188
I've been on the hunt for the equivalent of "preaching to the choir" which, as far as I can tell, only really exists in English.

For non-English speakers it translates to: "Attempting to convince a group of people who are already convinced of something"

Anyone have an example in another language?

Re: Are any words the same in all languages?

#189

These seem like very bad candidates. All are loan words, which is interesting, but we could go deeper if we're considering pineapple/ananas and coffee. And let's be real, words like robot and computer are mostly the same in this respect too, especially if we're considering taxi. But what about words that are more "native"? How about "mama" and "papa"? There are variations, but these seem to be pretty small and mostly…

[deleted]

Re: Are any words the same in all languages?

#190

I've been on the hunt for the equivalent of "preaching to the choir" which, as far as I can tell, only really exists in English. For non-English speakers it translates to: "Attempting to convince a group of people who are already convinced of something" Anyone have an example in another language?

Portuguese: Pregar ao convertido.

English: Preach to the [already] converted.

Very equivalent.

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