li
Translingual
Symbol
li
- (mathematics) The symbol for the logarithmic integral function.
- (international standards) ISO 639-1 language code for Limburgish.
English
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /liː/
Audio (Southern England) (file) - Rhymes: -iː
Etymology 1
An early romanization of Chinese Mandarin 里 (lǐ). As a Korean unit, via the Yale romanization of Korean 리 (ri), from the Chinese distance.
Alternative forms
- (Korea): ri
Noun
- The Chinese mile, a traditional unit of distance equal to 1500 chis or 150 zhangs, now standardized as a half-kilometer (500 meters).
- Synonym: Chinese mile
- 1927, Chi Li, “Archaeological Survey of the Fêng River Valley, Southern Shansi, China”, in Explorations and Field-work of the Smithsonian Institution in 1926 (Smithsonian Miscellaneous Collections), volume 78, number 7, Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution, →OCLC, page 129:
- It was a whole day's journey from I-ch'eng to Chü-wo which, in turn, is about 60 li east of Chiang Chou — one of the most important cities in southern Shansi and a center for curio-dealers.
- 1999 [1994], Heng (邹衡) Zou, “The Early Jin State Capital Discovered: a Personal Account”, in Roderick Whitfield, Wang Tao, transl., Exploring China's Past: New Discoveries and Studies in Archaeology and Art, Saffron Books, Eastern Art Publishing, →ISBN, →OCLC, page 106:
- In 1979, while we were conducting our archaeological work in Yucheng and Quwo, Shanxi province, I noticed another historical record in the Kuodizhi (a comprehensive account of geography written in 641), which stated that "the ancient city of Tang was 20 li west of Yuchengxian in Jiangzhou."
- 2000, Shui-Bian Chen, “Learning and Transformation”, in David J. Toman, transl., The Son of Taiwan: The Life of Chen Shui-Bian and His Dreams for Taiwan, Taiwan Publishing Co., Ltd., →ISBN, →OCLC, page 40:
- The two gods who accompany Matsu, one with eyes that can see 1000 li⁶ and the other with ears that can hear far over the horizon, represent empathy, observation, and feeling. Government should be like Matsu, equipped with acute powers of observation; see clearly to the bottom of issues, and know how to respond.
- For more quotations using this term, see Citations:li.
- The Korean mile, a traditional unit of distance equivalent to about 393 m.
- Synonym: Korean mile
- 1980, Il-sung Kim, “Meeting with My Comrades-in-Arms in North Manchuria”, in Kim Il Sung Works, volume 48, Pyongyang: Foreign Languages Publishing House, →OCLC, page 144:
- While scaling the Laoyeling Mountains, the Chinese Worker-Peasant Red Army, under the command of Mao Ze-dong and Zhu De, was successfully stepping up the historic 25 000-li Long March in China proper, breaking through the surrounding rings formed by Chiang Kai-shek’s army.
Translations
Noun
li (plural li)
- A traditional Chinese unit of weight, equal to one-thousandth of a liang, or fifty milligrams.
Etymology 5
Altered from la, with the vowel changed to signify a raised note.
Noun
li (uncountable)
Albanian
Etymology 1
Orel suggests from South Slavic, compare Serbo-Croatian lȉh (“exclusive”), lȋh (“false, odd”), Slovene lȋh (“uneven, odd”).[1] However, generally thought to be from Ancient Greek εὐλογία (eulogía) "blessing", with a euphemistic sense development.[2][3] Compare e.g. the euphemistic synonym "e lume" (the happy/blessed one)[4]
Alternative forms
- lijë
Hyponyms
- li e bardhë (“chicken pox”)
- li e dushkut (“chicken pox”)
- li e dhenve (“sheeppox”)
- li e madhe (“smallpox”)
- li e mirë (“chicken pox”)
- li e pyllit (“chicken pox”)
- li e ullirit (“olive scab, peacock spot”) (Cycloconium oleaginum)
Derived terms
- lijëvrarë
- lijim
- lijoj
- lijosje
- lijosh
- lijuar
References
- Orel, Vladimir E. (1998) “lijë”, in Albanian Etymological Dictionary, Leiden, Boston, Köln: Brill, →ISBN, page 227
- Eqrem Çabej, Studime etimologjike në fushë të shqipes, Akademia e Shkencave e RPS të Shqipërisë, Instituti i Gjuhësisë dhe i Letërsisë, 1996, page 168
- Eqrem Çabej, Studime Filologjike, Akademia e Shkencave e RPSSH, Instituti i Gjuhësisë dje i Letërsisë., 1990, page 99
- Eqrem Çabej, Studime gjuhësore: Nga historia e gjuhës shqipe, Rilindja, 1977, page 22
Etymology 2
Borrowed through Vulgar Latin from Latin līnum.
Aromanian
Catalan
Pronoun
li (enclitic and proclitic)
Declension
Corsican
Etymology
From Latin illi, masculine plural of ille, from Old Latin olle. Cognates include Italian gli (“the, them”) and Romanian îi (“them”).
See also
References
Dutch
Pronunciation
Audio (file)
Noun
li m (uncountable)
- li (Chinese unit of distance).
Esperanto
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): [li]
- Audio:
(file) - Hyphenation: li
Usage notes
- Li is traditionally used as both a masculine and a gender-neutral pronoun, but since the 1970s generic usage has sometimes been criticized and is increasingly being avoided and replaced by "li aŭ ŝi". Some people think this is an imperfect solution which is inappropriately long. In response to such criticisms, there have been various proposals for new pronouns, but the only proposal that has been gaining some adoption is ri.
Related terms
- ili (“they”) (plural)
French
Pronunciation
Etymology 2
Probably from influence of Louisiana Creole li (“he, she, it”).
Further reading
- chapter LI, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.
Anagrams
Galician
Haitian Creole
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /li/
Ido
Istriot
Article
li
- masculine plural definite article
- 1877, Antonio Ive, Canti popolari istriani: raccolti a Rovigno, volume 5, Ermanno Loescher, page 40:
- Ti me pari oûna dea infra li dai,
- You seem to me a goddess among the gods
Italian
Alternative forms
- -li (enclitic)
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): °/li/°
- Homophone: lì
- Rhymes: -i
- Hyphenation: li
- As an unstressed clitic, it does not trigger syntactic gemination of the following consonant. It also actively blocks syntactic gemination of its initial consonant, such as after a word like però (“but”) that would normally trigger syntactic gemination. (This does not apply to the enclitic form -li, e.g. dalli a me (“give them to me”).)
Usage notes
- Never elides.
See also
Number | Person | Gender | Nominative | Reflexive | Accusative | Dative | Conjunctive | Disjunctive | Locative | Partitive |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Singular | first | — | io | mi, m', -mi | me | me | — | |||
second | — | tu | ti, t', -ti | te | te | |||||
third | m | lui | si2, s', -si | lo, l', -lo | gli, -gli | glie, se2 | lui, sé | ci, c', vi, v' (formal) |
ne, n' | |
f | lei, Lei1 | la, La1, l', L'1, -la, -La1 | le3, Le1, -le3, -Le1 | lei, Lei1, sé | ||||||
Plural | first | — | noi | ci, c', -ci | ce | noi | — | |||
second | — | voi, Voi4 | vi, Vi4, v', V'4, -vi, -Vi4 | ve | voi, Voi4 | |||||
third | m | loro, Loro1 | si, s', -si | li, Li1, -li, -Li1 | gli, -gli, loro (formal), Loro1 |
glie, se | loro, Loro1, sé | ci, c', vi, v' (formal) |
ne, n' | |
f | le, Le1, -le, -Le1 | |||||||||
1 | Third person pronominal forms used as formal terms of address to refer to second person subjects (with the first letter frequently capitalised as a sign of respect, and to distinguish them from third person subjects). Unlike the singular forms, the plural forms are mostly antiquated terms of formal address in the modern language, and second person plural pronouns are almost always used instead. | |||||||||
2 | Also used as indefinite pronoun meaning “one”, and to form the passive. | |||||||||
3 | Often replaced by gli, -gli in informal language. | |||||||||
4 | Formal (capitalisation optional); in many regions, can refer to just one person (compare with French vous). |
Etymology 2
Variant of gli.
Khumi Chin
Etymology
From Proto-Kuki-Chin *lii, from Proto-Sino-Tibetan *d-liy. Cognate to Burmese လေး (le:, “bow”) and S'gaw Karen ချံၣ် (khleè, “bow”).
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /li˥/
Livonian
Louisiana Creole
Etymology
(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium. Particularly: “May be unrelated to French "il" or "lui".”)
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /li/
- Rhymes: -i
Descendants
- → French: li
Maltese
Alternative forms
- illi (after a word-final consonant cluster)
Etymology
From Arabic اَلَّذِي (allaḏī, relative pronoun). Compare common dialectal Arabic اللي (illi, lli). The use as a conjunction is widely found in Maghrebi Arabic, so there is no reason to consider it a Romance influence (as might otherwise be thought; compare Italian che, which is both a relative pronoun and the conjunction “that”).
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /lɪ/
Pronoun
li
Usage notes
- Unlike standard Arabic, the relative pronoun is normally used also with indefinite referents (example sentence 2). However, it is optional in this case.
Mandarin
Romanization
- Hanyu Pinyin reading of 哩
- Hanyu Pinyin reading of 裏/里
- Hanyu Pinyin reading of 裡/里
- Hanyu Pinyin reading of 里
li
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.
Mauritian Creole
Michif
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): [lɪ]
Miskito
References
- Eduard Conzemius, Ethnographical Survey of the Miskito and Sumu Indians (1932)
Mokilese
Munsee
References
- O'Meara, John (2014) “lí-”, in Delaware-English/English-Delaware Dictionary (Heritage), Toronto: University of Toronto Press, published 1996, →ISBN
Niuatoputapu
Norman
Etymology
From Old French li, from Vulgar Latin *illui, a Vulgar Latin dative of Classical Latin ille.
Northern Kurdish
Etymology
Ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *en.
Pronunciation
- Rhymes: -ɪ
Preposition
Central Kurdish | لە (le) |
---|
li
- in
- li Kurdistanê ― in Kurdistan
- an element of several prepositions and circumpositions
Norwegian Bokmål
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /liː/
Noun
li f or m (definite singular lia or lien, indefinite plural lier, definite plural liene)
- A sloping mountainside or hillside covered with grass or forest.
References
- “li” in The Bokmål Dictionary.
Anagrams
Norwegian Nynorsk
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /liː/
Etymology 1
From Old Norse hlíð, from Proto-Germanic *hlīdō, from Proto-Indo-European *ḱleytéh₂ (“something leaned, inclined”).
Noun
li f (definite singular lia, indefinite plural lier, definite plural liene)
- a sloping mountainside or hillside covered with grass or forest.
Inflection
Historical inflection of li
Forms in italics are currently considered non-standard. Forms in [brackets] were official, but considered second-tier. Forms in (parentheses) were allowed under Midlandsnormalen. 1Nouns were capitalised for most of the 19th century. |
Etymology 2
From Old Norse líða, from Proto-Germanic *līþaną. The sense of suffering may be a loan from Middle Low German.
Verb
li (present tense lir, past tense lei, supine lidd or lidt or liden, past participle lidd or liden, present participle lidande, imperative li)
References
- “li” in The Nynorsk Dictionary.
Anagrams
Old French
Etymology 1
From Latin ille (“that”). In the nominative singular, it was influenced by the nom. sg. form of the pronoun quī.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /li/
Article
li
- the (masculine nominative singular and plural definite article)
- c. 1170, Chrétien de Troyes, Érec et Énide:
- Li rois respont: "N'est pas mançonge"
- The king replied "this is no lie"
Inflection
Etymology 2
From Latin illī (“to that one”), dative singular of Latin ille. Cognate of Spanish le, Portuguese lhe, Italian gli.
Pronoun
li
- third-person singular indirect object pronoun; to him, to her, to it
- c. 1180, Chrétien de Troyes, Lancelot ou le Chevalier de la charrette:
- Si li ancomancent a dire
- He started to tell him
Descendants
- French: lui
Old Occitan
Old Polish
Particle
li
- interrogative particle: introduces a yes-no question
- (when reduplicated) whether … or
- (when reduplicated) both … and
Descendants
- Polish: li
References
- Boryś, Wiesław (2005) “li”, in Słownik etymologiczny języka polskiego (in Polish), Kraków: Wydawnictwo Literackie, →ISBN
- Bańkowski, Andrzej (2000) “li”, in Etymologiczny słownik języka polskiego [Etymological Dictionary of the Polish Language] (in Polish)
- B. Sieradzka-Baziur, editor (2011–2015), chapter LI, in Słownik pojęciowy języka staropolskiego [Conceptual Dictionary of Old Polish] (in Polish), Kraków: IJP PAN, →ISBN
Polish
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /li/
Audio (file) - Rhymes: -i
- Syllabification: li
Etymology 1
Inherited from Old Polish li.[1][2]
Particle
li
- (archaic, literary) interrogative particle: introduces a yes-no question
- Synonym: czy
- (archaic, literary) only
- (Middle Polish) emphasis particle
Conjunction
li
- (obsolete) if
- Synonym: jeśli
- (Middle Polish) since, because
- Synonym: skoro
- (Middle Polish) though
- Synonyms: acz, aczkolwiek, chociaż, mimo że
- (Middle Polish) when
- Synonym: kiedy
- (Middle Polish) or
References
- Boryś, Wiesław (2005) “li”, in Słownik etymologiczny języka polskiego (in Polish), Kraków: Wydawnictwo Literackie, →ISBN
- Bańkowski, Andrzej (2000) “li”, in Etymologiczny słownik języka polskiego [Etymological Dictionary of the Polish Language] (in Polish)
- Maria Renata Mayenowa, Stanisław Rospond, Witold Taszycki, Stefan Hrabec, Władysław Kuraszkiewicz (2010-2023) chapter LI, in Słownik Polszczyzny XVI Wieku [A Dictionary of 16th Century Polish]
Further reading
- li in Wielki słownik języka polskiego, Instytut Języka Polskiego PAN
- li in Polish dictionaries at PWN
- Samuel Bogumił Linde (1807–1814) chapter LI, in Słownik języka polskiego
- Aleksander Zdanowicz (1861) chapter LI, in Słownik języka polskiego, Wilno 1861
- J. Karłowicz, A. Kryński, W. Niedźwiedzki, editors (1902), chapter LI, in Słownik języka polskiego (in Polish), volume 2, Warsaw, page 2730
- Witold Doroszewski, editor (1958–1969), chapter LI, in Słownik języka polskiego (in Polish), Warszawa: PWN
Portuguese
Romagnol
References
Ercolani, Libero (1971) Vocabolario Romagnolo-Italiano, Monte di Ravenna, page 232
Romanian
Usage notes
This word is used when le (which is dative) is combined with the following accusatives:
Sassarese
Alternative forms
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /li/, (after a word ending in a vowel) /ri/
Article
li m pl or f pl
Sassarese definite articles | ||
---|---|---|
singular | plural | |
masculine | lu/l' | li/l' |
feminine | la/l' |
- the (masculine and feminine plural)
Usage notes
- Becomes l' before a vowel.
Pronoun
li m pl or f pl
- (followed by chi) those
- Di curori vi ni so umbè. Ca so li chi tu priferi?
- There are lots of colors. Which ones do you prefer?
- (literally, “Of colors there are a lot. Which ones are those which you prefer?”)
- them (accusative)
- Abà li zerchu ― I'll look for them (literally, “Now I look for them”)
- dative of eddu
- Li cuzinu la trìglia ― I'll prepare him mullet (literally, “I cook to him the mullet”)
- dative of edda
- Li fozzu li frisgiori ― I'll prepare her some flapjacks (literally, “I make to her the flapjacks”)
- dative of eddi
References
- Rubattu, Antoninu (2006) Dizionario universale della lingua di Sardegna, 2nd edition, Sassari: Edes
Serbo-Croatian
Etymology
Inherited from Proto-Slavic *li.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /li/
Particle
li (Cyrillic spelling ли)
- question-forming interrogative particle (postpositive, unlike other particles, never first word in a sentence)
- poznaješ li me ― do you know me?
- jesi li stigao na odredište? ― did you reach the destination?
- jeste li ga vid(j)eli ― have you seen him?
- gd(j)e li se samo nalazimo? ― where could we be?
- kad li će doći? ― when will he/they come?
- je li? ― Is it? (Is that so? Isn't that so?)
- used as conjunction with da (except in Croatian, je li is used instead)
- da li ― whether
- nemam pojma da li je došao ― I have no idea whether he came (Croatian: "nemam pojma je li došao")
- (as a conjunction) if
- pokušaš li me napasti, ja ću ti uzvratiti ― should you try to attack me, I'll strike you back (when "li" is used in this sense, it is usually translated as a subjunctive form "should", and when "ako" is used, it is usually translated as "if" - ako me pokušaš napasti = if you try to attack me)
- used as an emphatic intensifier
- a sn(ij)eg pada li pada ― the snow just keeps falling and falling...
- d(ij)ete plače li plače ― the child just keeps crying and crying...
See also
- zar (interrogative particle)
Sicilian
Alternative forms
Etymology 1
From the conflation of the apheresis of Latin illī and illae, both nominative plurals of ille.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /li/ (stressed)
- IPA(key): /li/ (unstressed)
Usage notes
- This article is nowadays an obsolete variant, unlike its illiquid counterpart i. It is currently used only in some restricted areas where it is still withheld in conversational communications.
- Today it is mostly used in crystallized contexts, such as singing, poetry or sayings and proverbs. In all these cases this definite article is more euphonetic than the variants, now predominant, which have undergone the lenition of the initial liquid consonant.
- Its use is however almost undisputed before nouns (or nominalized forms of other parts of speech, most often adjectives) that begin with vowels. In this case the form is an apocopic l'. Otherwise, illiquid definite articles are phonetically absorbed by the following noun. I.e: l'arancini (liquid) and ârancini (illiquid).
Inflection
Sicilian articles | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Masculine singular definite article | Feminine singular definite article | Masculine and feminine plural definite article | ||
Definite articles (liquid) | lu | la | li | |
Definite articles (illiquid) | u | a | i | |
Definite articles | nu (also: un, 'n) |
na |
Etymology 2
From the conflation of the apheresis of Latin illī and illae, both nominative plurals of ille.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /li/ (stressed)
- IPA(key): /li/ (unstressed)
Pronoun
li m pl or f pl
Usage notes
- This pronoun is now an obsolete variant. It is currently used only in some restricted areas where it is still withheld in conversational communications.
- Today it is mostly used in crystallized contexts, such as singing, poetry or sayings and proverbs. In all these cases this definite article is more euphonetic than the variants, now predominant, which have undergone the lenition of the initial liquid consonant.
- Its use is however almost undisputed before words that begin with vowels. In this case the form is an apocopic l'.
Sumerian
Swahili
Pronunciation
Audio (Kenya) (file)
Tedim Chin
Etymology
From Proto-Sino-Tibetan *b-ləj.
References
- Zomi Ordbog based on the work of D.L. Haokip
Tooro
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /li/
Etymology 1
Inherited from Proto-Bantu *dɪ̀ (“to be”, irregular verb). Cognate with Kikuyu -rĩ.
Verb
-li (defective)
- to be, to exist
- 2008, Ekitabu Ekirukwera N'Ebitabu Ebyeetwa Deturokanoniko/Apokurifa [Bible in Runyoro/Rutooro Interconfessional Translation], Bible Society of Uganda, Okubanza 4:9:
- Aho MUKAMA yakaguza Kaini ati: “Abberi owanyoko ali nkaha?” Kaini yagarukamu ati: “Tindukumanya; ninyowe mulinzi w'Owanyina nyowe?”
- Then the Lord said to Cain, “Where is your brother Abel?” “I don’t know,” he replied. “Am I my brother’s keeper?”
- to become
- Synonym: -ba
Usage notes
- Since this is a defective verb, it does not have many conjugations, and the remaining conjugations needed are constructed using -ba as an auxiliary verb. For example, the 1st person singular negative remote past of -li is nkaba ntali (literally, “I was not being”).
- This verb removes the augment of the noun after it (e.g. ndi manzi, not *ndi emanzi "I am a courageous person").
- The 3rd person singular present and 3rd person plural present forms are usually only used after a locative class or a place name. In other cases, the noun is almost always left augmentless (e.g. muntu "he/she is a person").
Conjugation
Tensed forms | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Negative present (ti- + subject concord + -li)
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Positive present continuative (subject concord + -kyali)
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Negative present continuative (ti- + subject concord + -kyali)
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
For more conjugations, see -ba. |
Derived terms
Etymology 2
Inherited from Proto-Bantu *dɪ́á (“that, those”). Cognate with Swahili -le.
Declension
Noun class | non-copulative | copulative | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
singular | plural | singular | plural | |
1/2 | oli | bali | nguli | mbali |
3/4 | guli | eri | nguli | ngiri |
5/6 | liri | gali | ndiri | ngali |
7/8 | kiri | biri | nkiri | mbiri |
9/10 | eri | ziri | ngiri | nziri |
11/10 | ruli | nduli | ||
12/14 | kali | buli | nkali | mbuli |
13 | tuli | ntuli | ||
14/6 | buli | gali | mbuli | ngali |
15/6 | kuli | nkuli | ||
16 | hali | mpali | ||
17 | kuli | |||
18 | muli |
See also
- -nu (“this (proximal demonstrative determiner)”)
References
- Kaji, Shigeki (2007) A Rutooro Vocabulary, Tokyo: Research Institute for Languages and Cultures of Asia and Africa (ILCAA), →ISBN, pages 313-315, 409
- Entry 940 at Bantu Lexical Reconstructions 3
- Entry 945 at Bantu Lexical Reconstructions 3
Vietnamese
Alternative forms
Pronunciation
- (Hà Nội) IPA(key): [li˧˧]
- (Huế) IPA(key): [lɪj˧˧]
- (Hồ Chí Minh City) IPA(key): [lɪj˧˧]
Etymology 1
Sino-Vietnamese word from 璃 (“glass”).
Derived terms
- li cối
Etymology 2
(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)
Volapük
Particle
li
- Appended with a hyphen to a verb, it turns the entire clause it is in into a question.
Walloon
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /li/
Article
li (after an open syllable and/or before a vowel: l', plural: les, plural after an open syllable and before a vowel: ls)
- the
- Li mwaisse ― The master
- Li maistrece ― The mistress
- L' ome ― The man
- C' est li l' mwaisse ― He is the master
- Les måjhons ― The houses
- Les omes ― The men
- Çou sont ls åtes tchesteas ― These are the other castles
West Makian
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /l̪i/
Yoruba
Pronunciation
IPA(key): /lí/
Zou
< 3 | 4 | 5 > |
---|---|---|
Cardinal : li | ||
Etymology
From Proto-Kuki-Chin *lii, from Proto-Sino-Tibetan *b-ləj. Cognates include Burmese လေး (le:) and Nuosu ꇖ (ly).
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /lī/
- Hyphenation: li
References
- Lukram Himmat Singh (2013) A Descriptive Grammar of Zou, Canchipur: Manipur University, page 40
- Philip Thanglienmang (2014) “Zou Tonology”, in Indian Linguistics, volume 75, numbers 1-2, →ISSN