man

See also: Appendix:Variations of "man"

Translingual

Symbol

man

  1. (international standards) ISO 639-2 & ISO 639-3 language code for Mandingo.

English
Man: Male human. Detail from a Pioneer 11 spacecraft picture

Pronunciation

Etymology 1

From Middle English man, from Old English mann m (“human being, person, man”), from Proto-West Germanic *mann, from Proto-Germanic *mann- m, from Proto-Indo-European *mon- (“human being, man”). Doublet of Manu.

Alternative forms
  • (singular): mang (dialectal rendering, suggesting a Spanish accent), mane (dialectal rendering, suggesting an AAVE accent), mans (slang), mon (slang, used in the vocative, in places such as Jamaica and Shropshire in England), mxn (rare, feminist)
  • (plural): mans (Multicultural London English, Toronto, nonstandard, proscribed), mens, man, mandem (Multicultural London English),[1] mens (nonstandard, African-American Vernacular), mxn (rare, feminist), myn (very rare, chiefly humorous)
  • (interjection): maaan (elongated)

Noun

man (plural men)

  1. An adult male human.
    The show is especially popular with middle-aged men.
    • 1599 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Life of Henry the Fift”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act IV, scene i]:
      The king is but a man, as I am; the violet smells to him as it doth to me.
    • 1910, Emerson Hough, chapter I, in The Purchase Price: Or The Cause of Compromise, Indianapolis, Ind.: The Bobbs-Merrill Company, →OCLC:
      “ […] it is not fair of you to bring against mankind double weapons ! Dangerous enough you are as woman alone, without bringing to your aid those gifts of mind suited to problems which men have been accustomed to arrogate to themselves.”
    • For more quotations using this term, see Citations:man.
  2. (collective) All human males collectively: mankind.
    • 2011, Eileen Gray and the Design of Sapphic Modernity: Staying In, page 109:
      Unsurprisingly, if modern man is a sort of camera, modern woman is a picture.
  3. A human, a person regardless of gender or sex, usually an adult. (See usage notes.)
    every man for himself
    • c. 1596–1599 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Second Part of Henry the Fourth, […]”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act IV, scene ii]:
      […] a man cannot make him laugh.
    • 1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Romans 12:17:
      Recompence to no man euill for euill.
    • 1624, John Donne, “17. Meditation”, in Deuotions upon Emergent Occasions, and Seuerall Steps in My Sicknes: […], London: Printed by A[ugustine] M[atthews] for Thomas Iones, →OCLC; republished as Geoffrey Keynes, edited by John Sparrow, Devotions upon Emergent Occasions: […], Cambridge: At the University Press, 1923, →OCLC, page 98, lines 2–3:
      No man is an Iland, intire of it selfe; every man is a peece of the Continent, a part of the maine; […]
    • c. 1700, Joseph Addison, Monaco, Genoa, &c., page 9:
      A man would expect, in so very ancient a town of Italy, to find some considerable antiquities; but all they have to show of this nature is an old Rostrum of a Roman ship, that stands over the door of their arsenal.
    • 1793 August, Edmund Burke, “The Right Hon. Edmund Burke to the Comte de Mercy”, in Charles William [Wentworth-Fitzwilliam], [5th] Earl Fitzwilliam, Richard Bourke, editors, Correspondence of the Right Honourable Edmund Burke; Between the Year 1744, and the Period of His Decease, in 1797, volume IV, London: Francis & John Rivington, […], published 1844, pages 144–145:
      Without this help, such a deplorable havoc is made in the minds of men (both sexes) in France, still more than in the external order of things, and the evil is so great and spreading, that a remedy is impossible on any other terms.
    • 1991 edition (original: 1953), Darell Huff, How to Lie with Statistics, pages 19–20:
      Similarly, the next time you learn from your reading that the average man (you hear a good deal about him these days, most of it faintly improbable) brushes his teeth 1.02 times a day—a figure I have just made up, but it may be as good as anyone else's – ask yourself a question. How can anyone have found out such a thing? Is a woman who has read in countless advertisements that non-brushers are social offenders going to confess to a stranger that she does not brush her teeth regularly?
  4. (collective) All humans collectively: mankind, humankind, humanity. (Sometimes capitalized as Man.)
    • 1647, Westminster Shorter Catechism, question 10:
      How did God create man?
      God created man male and female, after his own image, in knowledge, righteousness, and holiness, with dominion over the creatures.
    • 1991, Barry J. Blake, Australian Aboriginal Languages: A General Introduction, page 75:
      Academics who study Aboriginal languages are […] contributing to Man’s search for knowledge, a search that interests most people even if they are not personally involved in it.
    • 2013 July 20, “Old soldiers?”, in The Economist‎, volume 408, number 8845:
      Whether modern, industrial man is less or more warlike than his hunter-gatherer ancestors is impossible to determine. The machine gun is so much more lethal than the bow and arrow that comparisons are meaningless.
    • 2021 January 20, Amanda Gorman, The Hill We Climb:
      We are striving to forge our union with purpose. To compose a country committed to all cultures, colors, characters and conditions of man.
  5. (anthropology, archaeology, paleontology) A member of the genus Homo, especially of the species Homo sapiens.
    • 1990, The Almanac of Science and Technology, →ISBN, page 68:
      The evidence suggests that close relatives of early man, in lineages that later became extinct, also were able to use tools.
  6. A male person, usually an adult; a (generally adult male) sentient being, whether human, supernatural, elf, alien, etc.
    • c. 1500, “A Gest of Robyn Hode”, in Child Ballads:
      For God is holde a ryghtwys man.
    • 1598–1599 (first performance), William Shakespeare, “Much Adoe about Nothing”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act III, scene v]:
      God's a good man.
    • 1609 December (first performance), Beniamin Ionson [i.e., Ben Jonson], “Epicoene, or The Silent Woman. A Comœdie. […]”, in The Workes of Beniamin Ionson (First Folio), London: […] Will[iam] Stansby, published 1616, →OCLC, (please specify the act number in uppercase Roman numerals, and the scene number in lowercase Roman numerals):
      Expect: But was the devil a proper man, gossip?
      As fine a gentleman of his inches as ever I saw trusted to the stage, or any where else.
    • 2008, Christopher Paolini, Brisingr: Or The Seven Promises of Eragon Shadeslayer and Saphira Bjartskular - Inheritance Book Three, →ISBN, page 549:
      Clearing a space between the tables, the men tested their prowess against one another with feats of wrestling and archery and bouts with quarterstaves. Two of the elves, a man and a woman, demonstrated their skill with swordplay— […]
    • 2014, Oisin McGann, Kings of the Realm: Cruel Salvation, Penguin UK, →ISBN:
      There was a pair of burly dwarves – a woman and a man – bearing the markings of the formidable Thane Guards.
  7. An adult male who has, to an eminent degree, qualities considered masculine, such as strength, integrity, and devotion to family; a mensch.
    • 1881–1882, Robert Louis Stevenson, “In The Enemy’s Camp”, in Treasure Island, London, Paris: Cassell & Company, published 14 November 1883, →OCLC, part VI (Captain Silver), page 234:
      He’s more a man than any pair of rats of you in this here house […]
    • 2011, Timothy Shephard, Can We Help Us?: Growing Up Bi-Racial in America, →ISBN, page 181:
      I had the opportunity to marry one of them but wasn't mature enough to be a man and marry her and be close to the […] children and raise them […].
  8. (uncountable, obsolete, uncommon) Manliness; the quality or state of being manly.
  9. A husband.
  10. A male lover; a boyfriend.
    Stay away from my man, Sister!
  11. A male enthusiast or devotee; a male who is very fond of or devoted to a specified kind of thing. (Used as the last element of a compound.)
    Some people prefer apple pie, but me, I’m a cherry pie man.
  12. A person, usually male, who has duties or skills associated with a specified thing. (Used as the last element of a compound.)
    I wanted to be a guitar man on a road tour, but instead I’m a flag man on a road crew.
  13. A person, usually male, who can fulfill one's requirements with regard to a specified matter.
    • 2007, Thriller: Stories to Keep You Up All Night, →ISBN, page 553:
      "She's the man for the job."
    • 2008, Soccer Dad: A Father, a Son, and a Magic Season, →ISBN, page 148:
      Joanie volunteered, of course — if any dirty job is on offer requiring running, she's your man —
    • 2012, The Island Caper: A Jake Lafferty Action Novel, →ISBN, page 34:
      He also owns the only backhoe tractor on Elbow Cay, so whenever anyone needs a cistern dug, he's their man.
  14. A male who belongs to a particular group: an employee, a student or alumnus, a representative, etc.
    • 1909, Harper's Weekly, volume 53, page iii:
      When President Roosevelt goes walking in the country about Washington he is always accompanied by two Secret Service men.
    • 1913, Robert Herrick, One Woman's Life, page 46:
      "And they're very good people, I assure you — he's a Harvard man." It was the first time Milly had met on intimate terms a graduate of a large university.
  15. An adult male servant.
  16. (historical) A vassal; a subject.
    Like master, like man.
    (old proverb)
    all the king's men
    • c. 1700s, William Blackstone:
      The vassal, or tenant, kneeling, ungirt, uncovered, and holding up his hands between those of his lord, professed that he did become his man from that day forth, of life, limb, and earthly honour.
    • 1897 December (indicated as 1898), Winston Churchill, chapter IV, in The Celebrity: An Episode, New York, N.Y.: The Macmillan Company; London: Macmillan & Co., Ltd., →OCLC, page 46:
      No matter how early I came down, I would find him on the veranda, smoking cigarettes, or otherwise his man would be there with a message to say that his master would shortly join me if I would kindly wait.
  17. A piece or token used in board games such as backgammon.
    • 1883, Henry Richter, Chess Simplified!, page 4:
      The white men are always put on that side of the board which commences by row I, and the black men are placed opposite.
  18. A term of familiar address often implying on the part of the speaker some degree of authority, impatience, or haste.
    Come on, man, we've got no time to lose!
  19. A friendly term of address usually reserved for other adult males.
    Hey, man, how's it goin'?
  20. (sports) A player on whom another is playing, with the intent of limiting their attacking impact.
    • 2018 Dinny Navaratnam, Andrews will learn from experience: Fagan Brisbane Lions, 30 July 2018. Accessed 6 August 2018.
      "It was a brutal return to football for Brisbane Lions defender Harris Andrews as his man Tom Hawkins booted seven goals but Lions Coach Chris Fagan said the team's defensive faults, rather than the backman's, allowed the big Cat to dominate."
    • 2023 March 26, Phil McNulty, “England 2-0 Ukraine”, in BBC Sport‎:
      The second arrived three minutes later and was all Saka's own work, the Arsenal winger turning away from his man on the edge of the area and curling a superb effort beyond the reach of Anatoliy Trubin and into the top corner.
  21. A clipping of "in man" or equivalent used in the CGS unit roentgen equivalent man.
    • 1953, Notes, Medical Basic Sciences Course, 1950-1953‎, volume 2, Walter Reed Army Institute of Research, page 695:
      The roentgen-equivalent-man (or mammal), (rem), is the estimated amount of energy absorbed in tissue which is biologically equivalent in man to 1 r of gamma- or x-rays.
Usage notes
  • The use of "man" (compare Old English: mann, wer, wīf) to mean both "human (of any gender)" and "adult male", which developed after Old English's distinct term for the latter (wer) fell out of use, has been criticized since at least the second half of the twentieth century.[2] Critics claim that the use of "man", both alone and in compounds, to denote a human or any gender "is now often regarded as sexist or at best old-fashioned",[2] "flatly discriminatory in that it slights or ignores the membership of women in the human race".[3] The American Heritage Dictionary wrote that in 2004 75–79% of their usage panel still accepted sentences with generic man, and 86–87% accepted sentences with man-made.[4] Some style guides recommend against generic "man",[5] and "although some editors and writers reject or disregard […] objections to man as a generic, many now choose instead to use" human, human being or person instead.[3]
    • This generic usage is still preserved in certain dialects, pidgins, and creoles of English, as well as fixed expressions and certain religious documents and declarations such as the Nicene Creed (e.g. "...for us men and our salvation..."). Consideration of this has sometimes led to accusations of the critics of the generic man as enforcing linguistic prescriptivism.
  • See also the man
Synonyms
Coordinate terms
Derived terms

See also Category:English terms suffixed with -man

Descendants

See also descendants of -man.

  • Tok Pisin: man
  • → Cantonese: man (men1)
  • → Chinook Jargon: man
  • → Korean: 맨 (maen)
  • → Mandarin: man (mān)
  • → Spanish: man
  • → Thai: แมน (mɛɛn)
  • → Volapük: man
Translations
See man/translations § Noun.
See also

Adjective

man (not comparable)

  1. Only used in man enough

Interjection

man

  1. Used to place emphasis upon something or someone; sometimes, but not always, when actually addressing a man.
    Man, that was a great catch!
    • 2019 August 15, Bob Stanley, “'Groovy, groovy, groovy': listening to Woodstock 50 years on – all 38 discs”, in The Guardian‎:
      The 19 meandering minutes of Dark Star are attractive enough but, man, they go on, while poor Creedence Clearwater Revival – headliners, with Bad Moon Rising still in the charts – are watching the clock tick in the wings.
    • For quotations using this term, see Citations:man.
Translations
See man/translations § Interjection.

Pronoun

man

  1. (MLE, slang, personal pronoun) Used to refer to oneself or one's group: I, we; construed in the third person.
    man's got some new creps
    • 2011, Top Boy:
      Sully: If it weren’t for that snake […] Man wouldn’t even be in this mess right now.
    • 2013, Jenny Cheshire, “Grammaticalisation in social context: The emergence of a new English pronoun”, in Journal of Sociolinguistics‎, volume 17, number 5, page 609:
      before I got arrested man paid for my own ticket to go Jamaica you know . but I’ve never paid to go on no holiday before this time I paid (Dexter, MLE)
    • 2017 September 22, “Man's Not Hot”‎performed by Big Shaq [Michael Dapaah]:
      The girl told me, "take off your jacket" / I said, "Babe, man's not hot" (never hot)
    • 2017, Joseph Barnes Phillips, Big Foot ...and Tiny Little Heartstrings:
      Blood I swear she just gave man extra chicken? Two fat pieces of chicken.
  2. (MLE, slang, personal pronoun) You; construed in the third person.
    man thinks i was born yesterday
    • 2023, Nathan Bryon, Tom Melia, directed by Raine Allen-Miller, Rye Lane, spoken by Nathan (Simon Manyonda):
      Oh, come on. Help a brother out. People see you coppin', might inspire them. Look, I know you ain't payin' bills right now. Man must have bare peas saved up.
  3. (MLE, slang, indefinite personal pronoun) Any person, one
    man don't care
    • c. 1450, Thomas Chestre, Libeaus Desconus:
      He was of all colours Þat man may se of flours Be-twene Mydsomer and May.
    • 2013, Jenny Cheshire, “Grammaticalisation in social context: The emergence of a new English pronoun”, in Journal of Sociolinguistics‎, volume 17, number 5, page 609:
      I don’t really mind how . how my girl looks if she looks decent yeah and there’s one bit of her face that just looks mashed yeah . I don’t care it’s her personality man’s looking at (Alex, Multicultural London English corpus [MLE])
Usage notes

The usage of man as a pronoun originally died out in the 15th century. It has independently reappeared in Multicultural London English. There it is most commonly used as a first person pronoun or as an indefinite personal pronoun, but uses in the second and third person are also attested.[1]

Etymology 2

From Middle English mannen, from Old English mannian, ġemannian (“to man, supply with men, populate, garrison”), from mann (“human being, man”). Cognate with Dutch bemannen (“to man”), German bemannen (“to man”), Danish bemande (“to man”), Swedish bemanna (“to man”), Icelandic manna (“to supply with men, man”).

Verb

man (third-person singular simple present mans, present participle manning, simple past and past participle manned)

  1. (transitive) To supply (something) with staff or crew (of either sex).
    The ship was manned with a small crew.
    • 2023 March 8, David Clough, “The long road that led to Beeching”, in RAIL, number 978, page 39:
      In Britain, nearly 2,500 steam locomotives were built, 999 to new designs. Although the latter were modern, they were still labour-intensive to man and maintain, during a period of full employment when working for poor pay in the dirty railway environment was unattractive.
  2. (transitive) To take up position in order to operate (something).
    Man the machine guns!
    • 1851, Herman Melville, Moby Dick:
      ‘Avast!’ roared Ahab, dashing him against the bulwarks — ‘Man the boat! Which way heading?’
  3. (reflexive, possibly dated) To brace (oneself), to fortify or steel (oneself) in a manly way. (Compare man up.)
    • 1876, Julian Hawthorne, Saxon Studies:
      he manned himself heroically
  4. (transitive, obsolete) To wait on, attend to or escort.
  5. (transitive, obsolete, chiefly falconry) To accustom (a raptor or other type of bird) to the presence of people.
Derived terms
Translations
See man/translations § Verb.

Etymology 3

Clipping of manual.

Proper noun

man

  1. (computing) A command used to display help pages in Unix and Unix-like operating systems.
Derived terms

References
  1. Jenny Cheshire (2013) “Grammaticalisation in social context: The emergence of a new English pronoun”, in Journal of Sociolinguistics‎, volume 17, number 5, pages 608–633
  2. “man”, in Lexico, Dictionary.com; Oxford University Press, 2019–2022.
  3. “man”, in Dictionary.com Unabridged, Dictionary.com, LLC, 1995–present.
  4. American Heritage Dictionary, 5th edition
  5. Purdue OWL

Further reading

Anagrams

Abinomn

Noun

man

  1. moon

Afrikaans

Etymology

From Dutch man, from Middle Dutch man, from Old Dutch man, from Proto-Germanic *mann-, from Proto-Indo-European *mon- (“human being, man”).

Pronunciation
  • IPA(key): /man/
  • Audio(file)

Noun

man (plural mans or manne, diminutive mannetjie)

  1. man
  2. husband

Usage notes
  • The normal plural in contemporary Afrikaans is mans. The form manne now usually refers to the members of a male group, such as a group of friends or a team or unit. Compare:
Vroue en mans moet gelyke regte hê. ― Women and men must have equal rights.
Die manne het goed gespeel vandag. ― The men played well today.

Albanian
Mulberries on a tree.

Alternative forms
  • Tosk: mën
  • Gheg: mand, mandë

Etymology

Syncopated form of Gheg mand, from Proto-Albanian *manta. Compare Ancient Greek βάτος (bátos, “bramble”), said by Beekes to be a Mediterranean wanderwort, and μαντία (mantía, “blackberry”) (Dacian loan).

Pronunciation
  • IPA(key): /man/

Noun

man m (plural mana, definite mani, definite plural manat)

  1. mulberry, mulberry tree

Declension
Declension of man
indefinite definite
singular plural singular plural
nominative man mana mani manat
accusative manin
dative mani manave manit manavet
ablative manash

Hyponyms

Aragonese

Etymology

Akin to Spanish mano, from Latin manus.

Pronunciation
  • IPA(key): /ˈman/
  • Rhymes: -an
  • Syllabification: man

Noun

man f (plural mans)

  1. hand

Arigidi

Pronoun

man

  1. I, first person singular pronoun, as subject

References
  • B. Oshodi, The HTS (High Tone Syllable) in Arigidi: An Introduction, in the Nordic Journal of African Studies 20(4): 263–275 (2011)\
  • Boluwaji Oshodi (2011 December) A Reference Grammar of Arigidi, Montem Paperbacks, →ISBN

Bagirmi

Noun

man

  1. water

References
  • R. C. Stevenson, Bagirmi Grammar (1969)

Bariai

Noun

man

  1. bird

References

Bikol Central

Etymology

Inherited from Proto-Philippine *man.

Pronunciation
  • IPA(key): /ˈman/, [ˈman̪]

Adverb

man (Basahan spelling ᜋᜈ᜔)

  1. also
    Synonym: pati

Particle

man (Basahan spelling ᜋᜈ᜔)

  1. used to abate or soften the impacts of negatives and commands
    Dai man iyan ― It's nothing.

Bonggo

Noun

man

  1. bird

References
  • George W. Grace, Notes on the phonological history of the Austronesian languages of the Sarmi Coast, in Oceanic Linguistics (1971, 10:11-37)

Caló

Pronoun

man

  1. Contraction of mangue (“I, me”).

References
  • “man” in J. Tineo Rebolledo, A Chipicalli (La Llengua Gitana), Granada: Gómez de la Cruz, 1900, →OCLC, page 60.
  • “man” in Francisco Quindalé, Diccionario gitano, Madrid: Oficina Tipográfica del Hospicio.
  • “man” in Vocabulario : Caló - Español, Portal del Flamenco y Universidad.

Cebuano

Etymology

Inherited from Proto-Philippine *man. Compare Tagalog man.

Pronunciation
  • IPA(key): /ˈman/, [ˈman̪]

Particle

man (Badlit spelling ᜋᜈ᜔)

  1. gives information; could be omitted
    (Person 1): Hain man si Pedro?
    (Person 2): Tua man 'to siya sa Carcar
    (Person 1): Where is Pedro?
    (Person 2): He is/was there in Carcar
  2. contradicts a previous statement or presumption; usually with the particle ugod/gud
    (Person 1): Hain man si Pedro?
    (Person 2): Tua siya sa Carcar
    (Person 3 responding to person 2): Tua man gud siya sa Cebu
    (Person 1): Where is Pedro?
    (Person 2): He is in Carcar
    (Person 3): No, he's in Cebu
  3. makes a question not abrupt
    Hain man si Pedro?
    Where is Pedro?
    Could you tell me where Pedro is?

Chinese

Alternative forms

Etymology

Borrowed from English man.

Pronunciation

Adjective

man

  1. (informal) manly; masculine
    • For quotations using this term, see Citations:man.

See also

Chinook Jargon

Etymology

Borrowed from English man.

Noun

man

  1. man

Synonyms

Antonyms

Adjective

man

  1. male

Antonyms

Chuukese

Noun

man

  1. Alternative spelling of maan

Cimbrian

Alternative forms

Etymology

From Middle High German man, from Old High German man, from Proto-Germanic *mann-.

Noun

man m (Tredici Comuni)

  1. man
  2. husband

References

Czech

Etymology

From Old Czech man, from Middle High German and Old High German man.

Pronunciation
  • IPA(key): [ˈman]
  • Hyphenation: man

Noun

man m anim (feminine manka)

  1. (historical) vassal, feoffee
    Synonyms: vazal, leník

Declension
Declension of man (hard masculine animate)
singular plural
nominative man manové
genitive mana manů
dative manovi, manu manům
accusative mana many
vocative mane manové
locative manovi, manu manech
instrumental manem many

Derived terms
  • manský
  • manství

Further reading
  • man in Příruční slovník jazyka českého, 1935–1957
  • man in Slovník spisovného jazyka českého, 1960–1971, 1989

Danish

Etymology 1

From Old Norse mǫn, from Proto-Germanic *manō (“mane”).

Pronunciation
  • IPA(key): /maːˀn/, [mæˀn]

Noun

man c (singular definite manen, plural indefinite maner)

  1. (rare, used primarily by horse specialists) mane (longer hair growth on the back of the neck of a horse)
    Synonym: manke
Declension
Declension of man
common
gender		 Singular Plural
indefinite definite indefinite definite
nominative man manen maner manerne
genitive mans manens maners manernes

Etymology 2

The same word as the noun mand (“man”). Calque of German man.

Pronunciation
  • IPA(key): /man/, [man]

Pronoun

man (accusative en or én, possessive ens or éns)

  1. you, one, they, people (a general, unspecified person)
  2. I (used modestly instead of the first-person pronoun)
  3. you (used derogatorily instead of the second-person pronoun)

Etymology 3

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

Pronunciation
  • IPA(key): /maːˀn/, [ˈmæˀn]

Verb

man

  1. imperative of mane

Dutch

Etymology

From Middle Dutch man, from Old Dutch man, from Proto-West Germanic *mann, from Proto-Germanic *mann-.

Pronunciation
  • IPA(key): /mɑn/
  • Audio(file)
  • Hyphenation: man
  • Rhymes: -ɑn

Noun

man m (plural mannen or man or mans, diminutive mannetje n or manneke n or manneken n)

  1. man, human male, either adult or age-irrespective
    De man liep rustig door het park.
    The man walked calmly through the park.
    De jonge mannen speelden voetbal op het veld.
    The young men were playing soccer on the field.
    De oudere man glimlachte vriendelijk naar de kinderen.
    The older man smiled kindly at the children.
  2. husband, male spouse
    Ze is al jaren gelukkig getrouwd met haar man.
    She has been happily married to her husband for years.
    Hij is een zorgzame man en een geweldige vader.
    He is a caring husband and a great father.
    Haar man verraste haar met een romantisch diner.
    Her husband surprised her with a romantic dinner.

Usage notes
  • The normal plural is mannen. The unchanged form man is used after numerals only; it refers to the size of a group rather than a number of individuals. For example: In totaal verloren er 5000 man hun leven in die slag. (“5000 men altogether lost their lives in that battle.”) The plural mans is dated, now mostly occurring in nautical contexts or in dialect.
  • Compound words with -man as their last component often take -lieden or -lui in the plural, rather than -mannen. For example: brandweerman (“firefighter”) → brandweerlieden (alongside brandweerlui and brandweermannen).
  • Various alternative diminutives exist, including manneke (used especially in Flanders) and the dialectal mannechie.

Derived terms

Descendants
  • Afrikaans: man
  • Jersey Dutch: mān
  • Negerhollands: man
    • → Virgin Islands Creole: mani (dated)
  • → Caribbean Javanese: mang

Interjection

man

  1. Indicates that something is larger/stronger/... than usual.
    Man, is me dat schrikken.
    Man, that was quite some scare.

Coordinate terms

Anagrams

Fala

Etymology

From Old Galician-Portuguese mão, from Latin manus.

Pronunciation
  • IPA(key): /ˈman/

Noun

man f (plural mans or más)

  1. hand

References
  • Valeš, Miroslav (2021) Diccionariu de A Fala: lagarteiru, mañegu, valverdeñu (web)‎, 2nd edition, Minde, Portugal: CIDLeS, published 2022, →ISBN

Faroese

Verb

man

  1. first/third-person singular present of munna
    I, he, she, it will / may

Derived terms
  • tað man vera (so) - this may be (so)
  • tað man óivað vera beinari - this will doubtless be more correct

Pronoun

man

  1. (colloquial) one, they (indefinite third-person singular pronoun)

Synonyms

French

Etymology

Blend of mon +‎ ma.

Pronunciation
  • IPA(key): /mɑ̃/
  • Audio(file)
  • Audio (CAN)(file)

Determiner

man n (singular, plural mes)

  1. (gender-neutral, neologism) my
    Man colocataire a fait son coming out non-binaire.
    My roommate came out as non-binary.
Possessee
Singular Plural
Masculine Feminine
Possessor Singular First person mon1mames
Second person ton1tates
Third person son1sases
PluralFirst person notrenos
Second person votre2vos2
Third person leurleurs
1 Also used before feminine adjectives and nouns beginning with a vowel or mute h.
2 Also used as the polite singular form.

See also

Further reading

Friulian

Etymology

From Latin manus.

Noun

man m (plural mans)

  1. hand

Gaikundi

Noun

man

  1. foot

Further reading

Galician

Alternative forms
  • mão (reintegrationist spelling, lusista)
  • mam (reintegrationist spelling)
  • mao (central and eastern Galicia)

Etymology

From Old Galician-Portuguese mão, from Latin manus. Cognate with Portuguese mão and Spanish mano.

Noun

man f (plural mans)

  1. hand
  2. (figurative) ownership; protection; power; grasp

Usage notes
  • Man is a false friend, and does not mean man. The Galician word for man is home.

Derived terms

References
  • “mão” in Dicionario de Dicionarios do galego medieval, SLI - ILGA 2006–2022.
  • “mãao” in Xavier Varela Barreiro & Xavier Gómez Guinovart: Corpus Xelmírez - Corpus lingüístico da Galicia medieval. SLI / Grupo TALG / ILG, 2006–2018.
  • “man” in Dicionario de Dicionarios da lingua galega, SLI - ILGA 2006–2013.
  • “man” in Tesouro informatizado da lingua galega. Santiago: ILG.
  • “man” in Álvarez, Rosario (coord.): Tesouro do léxico patrimonial galego e portugués, Santiago de Compostela: Instituto da Lingua Galega.

German

Pronunciation
  • IPA(key): /man/
  • (Austria)
    (file)
  • Rhymes: -an
  • Homophone: Mann

Etymology 1

From Middle High German man, from Old High German man, from Proto-West Germanic *mann, from Proto-Germanic *mann- (“person”).

Pronoun

man

  1. one, you (indefinite pronoun; construed as a third-person singular)
    Man kann nicht immer kriegen, was man will.
    You can’t always get what you want.
    Manchmal muss man Kompromisse machen.
    Sometimes one must compromise.
    • 2008, Frank Behmeta, Wenn ich die Augen öffne, page 55:
      Kann man es fühlen, wenn man schwanger ist?
      Can one feel that one is pregnant?
  2. they, people (people in general)
    Zumindest sagt man das so...
    At least that’s what they say...
  3. someone, somebody (some unspecified person)
  4. they (some unspecified group of people)
Usage notes
  • Man is used in the nominative case only; for the oblique cases forms of the pronoun einer are used. For example: Man kann nicht immer tun, was einen glücklich macht. — One cannot always do what makes one happy.
  • Since man derives from the same source as Mann (“man; male”), its use is considered problematic by some feminists. They have proposed alternating man and the feminine neologism frau, or using the generic neologism mensch. This usage has gained some currency in feminist and left-wing publications, but remains rare otherwise.
  • In the sense of “someone,” man is often translated using the passive voice (“I was told that...” rather than “someone told me that...”).

Etymology 2

From Middle Low German man. A contraction of Old Saxon newan (“none other than”). Compare a similar contraction in Dutch maar (“only”).

Adverb

man

  1. (colloquial, regional, Northern Germany) just; only
    Komm man hier rüber!
    Just come over here!
    Das sind man dreißig Stück oder so.
    These are only thirty or so.

Further reading

German Low German

Etymology

From Middle Low German man. A contraction of Old Saxon newan (“none other than”). Compare a similar contraction in Dutch maar (“only”).

Conjunction

man

  1. (in many dialects, including Low Prussian) only; but

Synonyms
  • (in various dialects) avers, awer (and many variations thereof; for which, see those entries)
  • (in some dialects) bloots

Gothic

Romanization

man

  1. Romanization of 𐌼𐌰𐌽

Icelandic

Pronunciation
  • IPA(key): /man/, [maːn]
  • Rhymes: -aːn

Etymology 1

From Old Norse man, perhaps from Proto-Germanic *gamaną (with unstressed prefix *ga-).

Noun

man n (genitive singular mans, nominative plural mön)

  1. (obsolete, uncountable, collective) slaves
  2. (archaic, countable) a female slave
  3. (archaic or poetic, countable) maiden
Declension
declension of man
n-s singular plural
indefinite definite indefinite definite
nominative man manið mön mönin
accusative man manið mön mönin
dative mani maninu mönum mönunum
genitive mans mansins mana mananna
Synonyms
Derived terms

Etymology 2

From mana (“to dare [someone] [to do something]”).

Noun

man n (genitive singular mans, no plural)

  1. the act of daring someone to do something; provocation, dare
Declension
declension of man
n-s singular
indefinite definite
nominative man manið
accusative man manið
dative mani maninu
genitive mans mansins

Etymology 3

Appears in Guðbrandur Þorláksson’s 1584 Bible translation. Borrowed from German Man (in Luther’s 1534 German Bible), from Hebrew מן (mān, “manna”).

Noun

man n (indeclinable)

  1. (biblical, obsolete) manna
    • 1584, “Exodus. Aunnur Bok Moſe”, in Guðbrandur Þorláksson, transl., Biblia, Þad Er Øll Heiloͤg Ritning vtloͤgd a Norrænu‎, Hólar: Jón Jónsson, chapter 16, verse 33, page 76:
      Og Moſes ſegde til Aaron / Tak þier eina Føtu / og legg eirn Gomor fullan af Man þar i / og lꜳt þad vardueitaſt fyrer DROTTNI til ydar ep[t]erkomande Kynkuijſla
      (please add an English translation of this quotation)
Synonyms

Verb

man

  1. first-person singular present indicative of muna; I remember
    Ég man ekki.
    I don't remember.
  2. third-person singular present indicative of muna; he/she/it remembers
    Hann man hvað gerðist.
    He remembers what happened.

References

Istriot

Etymology

From Latin manus.

Noun

man m

  1. hand

Jamaican Creole

Etymology

Derived from English man.

Pronunciation
  • IPA(key): /man/

Noun

man (plural man dem, quantified man)

  1. man (adult male human)
    • 2012, Di Jamiekan Nyuu Testiment, Edinburgh: DJB, published 2012, →ISBN, 1 Korintiyan 11:11:
      Dat no miin se man kyan du widout uman ar uman widout man, kaaz Gad neva mek dem fi du widout dem wan aneda.
      So then, I have to insist that in the Lord, neither is woman inferior to man nor is man inferior to woman.

Adjective

man

  1. male
    man daag, uman daag
    male dog, female dog

Coordinate terms

Further reading
  • man at majstro.com

Japanese

Romanization

man

  1. Rōmaji transcription of まん
  2. Rōmaji transcription of マン

Kapampangan

Etymology

From Proto-Philippine *man.

Pronunciation
  • IPA(key): /ˈman/, [ˈmän]

Adverb

man

  1. although; even if; even though
    Synonyms: mo, agyang pa
  2. also; too
    Synonyms: din, pati
  3. only; even
    Synonyms: mu, mo

Derived terms
  • nanuman
  • ninuman
  • sanuman
  • kaninuman
  • kapilanman
  • paman
  • nokarinman

Ladin

Etymology

From Latin manus.

Noun

man f (plural mans)

  1. (Gherdëina, Badiot, Fascian) hand
    Auzé la man ciancia.
    To lift the left hand.
    L ie na lëtra scrita a man.
    It's a letter written by hand.
    Dé na man
    To give a hand (to help)

Latvian

Pronoun

man

  1. to me; dative singular of es

Ligurian

Etymology

From Latin manus.

Pronunciation
  • IPA(key): [maŋ]

Noun

man f (plural moæn)

  1. hand

Lithuanian

Pronunciation
  • IPA(key): [man]

Pronoun

mán

  1. first-person singular dative of aš
    Dúok mán tą̃ knỹgą.
    Give me that book.

Lombard

Alternative forms
  • ma, mà (Eastern orthographies)

Etymology

From Latin manus.

Pronunciation
  • IPA(key): /maːn/, [maːŋ] (Western)
  • IPA(key): /maː/, [ma(ː)] (Eastern)

Noun

man f (plural man)

  1. hand

Luxembourgish

Pronunciation
  • IPA(key): /maːn/

Verb

man (third-person singular present meet, past participle gemat or gemeet, auxiliary verb hunn)

  1. (regional, southern dialects) Alternative form of maachen

Mandarin

Romanization

man

  1. Nonstandard spelling of mān.
  2. Nonstandard spelling of mán.
  3. Nonstandard spelling of mǎn.
  4. Nonstandard spelling of màn.

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.

Middle Dutch

Etymology

From Old Dutch man, from Proto-West Germanic *mann, from Proto-Germanic *mann-.

Noun

man m

  1. human
  2. person
  3. man, male
  4. husband
  5. subordinate

Inflection

This noun needs an inflection-table template.

Derived terms

- general:

  • manachtich
  • manatich
  • manbaer
  • manboete
  • manbrief
  • manbrugge
  • mancamer
  • mancosten
  • mandeel
  • mandelijc
  • mandelike
  • mandiet
  • maneet
  • manesse
  • mangedinge
  • mangelt
  • manheit
  • manhovet
  • manhuus
  • manleen
  • manlijc
  • manlike
  • mannenclooster
  • manordeel
  • manpat
  • manpersone
  • mansc
  • manscap
  • manscracht
  • mansgeboorte
  • mansgelient
  • manshalven
  • manslacht
  • manslijf
  • mansoene
  • mansoor
  • mansstat
  • mansstoel
  • manssurcoot
  • manswerde
  • mantale
  • mantrouwe
  • manvolc
  • manwaerheit

- persons:

  • ackerman
  • ambachtsman
  • amman
  • amtman
  • arman
  • beierman
  • beleitsman
  • belleman
  • besetman
  • blindeman
  • boomgaertman
  • borchman
  • bouman
  • bovenman
  • buurman
  • clockenman
  • cloosterman
  • cokenman
  • condsman
  • coolman
  • coopman
  • cornman
  • dadingesman
  • deelman
  • dienstman
  • dorpman
  • druutsman
  • edelman
  • eigenman
  • gelagesman
  • geleitsman
  • gemeentman
  • goetman
  • grietman
  • hancman
  • hantwercman
  • hartman
  • heidman
  • hofman
  • houtman
  • hovetman
  • humpelman
  • huurman
  • huusman
  • huwelijxman
  • iserman
  • joncman
  • keersman
  • kercman
  • kerstijnman
  • lantman
  • lasersman
  • ledichman
  • leecman
  • leenman
  • leitsman
  • lijcman
  • lochtincman
  • loosman
  • lootsman
  • maecsman
  • maelman
  • manbode
  • manboort
  • mansman
  • mansname
  • manwijf
  • mateman
  • medeman
  • meesterman
  • merseman
  • metselman
  • meyerman
  • molenman
  • moorman
  • muurman
  • naerman
  • naman
  • norman
  • offerman
  • operman
  • orlogesman
  • ouderman
  • outman
  • overman
  • pachtman
  • panneman
  • parreman
  • partiësman
  • pensman
  • ploechman
  • raetman
  • ridderman
  • rijcman
  • sacman
  • schaecman
  • schimman
  • schipman
  • schotman
  • schuteman
  • seeman
  • segsman
  • sledeman
  • soutman
  • speelman
  • stalman
  • statman
  • sterfman
  • stuerman
  • susterman
  • swertman
  • taelman
  • talicman
  • teelman
  • tijnsman
  • timmerman
  • tolman
  • torfman
  • tugesman
  • turcman
  • uteman
  • vaerman
  • vedelman
  • veenman
  • veerman
  • veilichsman
  • velleman
  • veltman
  • vindman
  • voerman
  • voetman
  • vogelman
  • vogetman
  • voreman
  • vrachtman
  • vrecman
  • vremtman
  • vroetman
  • waerman
  • waernsman
  • waerstman
  • wagenman
  • wantcoopman
  • warmoesman
  • wechman
  • wederman
  • wedman
  • weduwenman
  • weetman
  • wercman
  • wertman
  • wijngaertman
  • wijnman
  • wijsman
  • wildeman
  • wouterman

Descendants

Further reading
  • “man”, in Vroegmiddelnederlands Woordenboek, 2000
  • Verwijs, E., Verdam, J. (1885–1929) “man (I)”, in Middelnederlandsch Woordenboek, The Hague: Martinus Nijhoff, →ISBN, page I

Middle English

Etymology 1

From Old English mann, from Proto-West Germanic *mann, from Proto-Germanic *mann-, from Proto-Indo-European *mon-.

Alternative forms

Pronoun

man

  1. Typically singular, indefinite pronoun: one, you (indefinite).
Derived terms
See also
References

Noun

man

  1. Alternative form of mon (“man”)

Verb

man

  1. (Late Middle English) Alternative form of mone (“shall”)

Miskito

Pronunciation
  • IPA(key): /man/

Pronoun

man

  1. (in the singular) you

See also
Miskito personal pronouns
Singular Plural
First inclusive yawan
exclusive yang yang nani
Second man man nani
Third witin witin nani

Norman

Alternative forms

Etymology 1

From Old French main, mein, man, from Latin manus (“hand”).

Noun

man f (plural mans)

  1. (France, anatomy) hand

Etymology 2

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Adjective

man (feminine ma)

  1. my (belonging to me)
Coordinate terms
  • tan (“your”)
  • san (“hers, his, its”)

North Frisian

Etymology

From Old Frisian mīn, from Proto-West Germanic *mīn.

Pronoun

man m (feminine min, neuter min, plural min)

  1. (Föhr-Amrum) my

Northern Kurdish

Verb

man

  1. to stay
  2. to remain

Northern Sami

Pronoun

man

  1. accusative/genitive singular of mii

Norwegian Bokmål

Pronunciation
  • IPA(key): /mɑn/
  • Homophone: mann
  • Rhymes: -ɑn

Pronoun

man

  1. you
  2. one
  3. they
  4. people

Etymology 2

From Old Norse mǫn, from Proto-Germanic *manō.

Pronunciation
  • IPA(key): /mɑːn/
  • Rhymes: -ɑːn

Noun

man f or m (definite singular mana or manen, indefinite plural maner, definite plural manene)

  1. a mane (of a horse)

References

Norwegian Nynorsk

Etymology

From Old Norse mǫn, from Proto-Germanic *manō.

Noun

man f (definite singular mana, indefinite plural maner, definite plural manene)

  1. mane (of a horse)

References

Occitan

Etymology

From Old Occitan man, from Latin manus.

Pronunciation
  • IPA(key): [ma]
  • Audio(file)

Noun

man f (plural mans)

  1. hand

Old Dutch

Etymology

From Proto-West Germanic *mann, from Proto-Germanic *mann-.

Noun

man m

  1. human, person
  2. man, male

Inflection

 The template Template:odt-decl-table does not use the parameter(s): 
head=man
Please see Module:checkparams for help with this warning.

Declension of man
Singular Plural
nominative man manna
accusative man manna
genitive mannis manno
dative manne mannon

Derived terms
Derived terms

Descendants

Further reading
  • “man (I)”, in Oudnederlands Woordenboek, 2012

Old English

Alternative forms

Etymology 1

From mann.

Pronunciation
  • IPA(key): /mɔn/

Pronoun

man

  1. one, you (indefinite pronoun; construed as a third-person singular)
    • c. 992, Ælfric, "The First Sunday in September, When Job Is Read"
      Man sċeal lǣwedum mannum seċġan be heora andġietes mǣðe, swā þæt hīe ne bēon þurh þā dēopnesse ǣmōde ne þurh þā langsumnesse ǣþrȳtte.
      One has to talk to laymen according to how much they understand, so they are not intimidated by the depth of what one is saying or bored by the length.
    • c. 992, Ælfric, "Dedication of the Church of St. Michael"
      Sē hrōf ēac swelċe hæfde mislīċe hēanesse: on sumre stōwe hine man meahte mid hēafde ġerǣċan, on sumre mid handa earfoþlīċe.
      The height of the roof was also uneven: you could touch one part of it with the top of your head, and barely reach another part with your hand.
    • c. 897, Alfred the Great, translation of Pope Gregory's Pastoral Care
      Hēr man mæġ ġīet ġesēon heora swaðu, ac wē him ne cunnon æfter spyrian.
      Here you can still see their footprints, but we don't know how to follow them.
  2. they, people (people in general)
  3. someone, somebody (some unspecified person)
    • c. 1005, Wulfstan, Laws of Edward and Guthrum‎:
      Ġif dēaþsċyldiġ man sċriftsprǣċe ġierne, ne him man nǣfre ne wierne.
      If someone condemned to death desires confession, it should never be refused to them.
  4. they (some unspecified group of people)
  5. often used where modern English would use the passive voice
    • late 9th century, King Alfred's translation of Boethius' The Consolation of Philosophy
      Hine man sċeal lǣdan tō þām lǣċe.
      He should be taken to the doctor.
    • Early 11th century, Wulfstan, "On the Beginning of Creation"
      Þā sē Hǣlend ċild wæs, eall hine man fēdde swā man ōðru ċildru fētt. Hē læġ on cradole bewunden, ealswā ōðru ċildru dōþ. Hine man bær oþ hē self gān meahte.
      When Jesus was a baby, he was fed just like other babies are fed. He lay wrapped up in a cradle, just like other babies do. He was carried until he could walk by himself.
  6. it
    • c. 900, translation of Orosius' History Against the Pagans
      Man ġeseah swelċe sē heofon burne.
      It looked like the sky was on fire.
    • late 9th century, translation of Bede's Ecclesiastical History
      Man ġeseah swelċe ān fȳren hring norðan cōme.
      It looked like a ring of fire was coming from the north.
    • c. 1005, Wulfstan, Laws of Edward and Guthrum‎:
      Ġif dēaþsċyldiġ man sċriftsprǣċe ġierne, ne him man nǣfre ne wierne.
      If someone condemned to death desires confession, it should never be refused to them.
Descendants

Etymology 2

See mann.

Pronunciation
  • IPA(key): /mɔnn/, [mɔn]

Noun

man m

  1. Alternative form of mann
Declension
Declension of man (strong consonant stem)
Case Singular Plural
nominative man men
accusative man men
genitive manes mana
dative men manum

Etymology 3

From Proto-Germanic *mainą.

Pronunciation
  • IPA(key): /mɔːn/

Noun

mān n

  1. crime, sin, wickedness
Derived terms

Old High German

Etymology

From Proto-West Germanic *mann, from Proto-West Germanic *mann, from Proto-Germanic *mann-.

Noun

man m

  1. man

Declension
Declension of man (masculine a-stem)
case singular plural
nominative man manna
accusative man manna
genitive mannes manno
dative manne mannum
instrumental mannu —

Descendants

Old Norse

Etymology

Probably from Proto-Germanic *gamaną (“fellow human”)

Noun

man n (genitive mans, plural mǫn)

  1. household, house-folk, bondslaves
  2. bondwoman, female slave
  3. woman, maid
    • 900-1100, The Alvíssmál, verse 7:
      Sáttir þínar er ek vil snemma hafa
      ok þat gjaforð geta;
      eiga vilja heldr en án vera
      þat it mjallhvíta man.
      Quickly will I have your agreement
      and win the word of marriage;
      I would rather own than be without
      that pale maid.

Declension
  Declension of man (strong a-stem)
neuter singular plural
indefinite definite indefinite definite
nominative man manit mǫn mǫnin
accusative man manit mǫn mǫnin
dative mani maninu mǫnum mǫnunum
genitive mans mansins mana mananna

Derived terms
  • mankynni n pl
  • mansal n
  • mansmaðr m

Descendants

References
  • Zoëga, Geir T. (1910) A Concise Dictionary of Old Icelandic‎, Oxford: Clarendon Press

Old Occitan

Etymology

From Latin manus.

Noun

man f (oblique plural mans, nominative singular man, nominative plural mans)

  1. hand (anatomy)

Descendants

References

Old Saxon

Noun

man m

  1. Alternative form of mann

Old Spanish

Etymology

From Latin māne (“morning”).

Pronunciation
  • IPA(key): /ˈman/

Noun

man f (plural manes)

  1. morning
    • c. 1200, Almerich, Fazienda de Ultramar, f. 18r:
      Fue el dia t̃cero al alba dela man. ⁊ vinẏerõ truenos ⁊ relãpagos ⁊ nuf grãt ſobrel mõt.
      It was the early morning of the third day, and there came thunder and flashes of lightning and a great cloud upon the mountain.

Synonyms

Papiamentu

Etymology

From Spanish mano.

Noun

man

  1. hand

Romani

Pronoun

man

  1. accusative of me

Sambali

Adverb

man

  1. also

Saterland Frisian

Pronunciation
  • IPA(key): /man/
  • Hyphenation: man
  • Rhymes: -an

Etymology 1

Borrowed from Middle Low German man. Related to German Low German man and Swedish men.

Conjunction

man

  1. but

Adverb

man

  1. but, just

Etymology 2

From an unstressed variant of Old Frisian mon (“man”). Compare Dutch men and German man.

Pronoun

man

  1. one, they
    • 2000, Marron C. Fort, transl., Dät Näie Tästamänt un do Psoolme in ju aasterlauwerfräiske Uurtoal fon dät Seelterlound, Fräislound, Butjoarlound, Aastfräislound un do Groninger Umelounde [The New Testament and the Psalms in the East Frisian language, native to Saterland, Friesland, Butjadingen, East Frisia and the Ommelanden of Groningen], →ISBN, Dät Evangelium ätter Matthäus 1:23:
      Sjooët, n Maiden skäl n Bäiden undfange, n Súun skäl ju uurwinne, un man skäl him dän Nome Immanuel reke, dät hat uursät: God is mäd uus.
      Behold, a virgin shall become pregnant with a child, she will give birth to a son, and they shall give him the name Immanuel, which is translated: God is with us.
  • Mon (“man, husband”)

References
  • Marron C. Fort (2015) “man”, in Saterfriesisches Wörterbuch mit einer phonologischen und grammatischen Übersicht, Buske, →ISBN

Scottish Gaelic

Preposition

man (+ nominative with the definite article, + dative otherwise, no mutation)

  1. Lewis form of mar

Spanish

Etymology

Borrowed from English man.

Pronunciation
  • IPA(key): /ˈman/ [ˈmãn]
  • Rhymes: -an
  • Syllabification: man

Noun

man m (plural mans or manes)

  1. (Latin America, colloquial) man, guy, dude
    Synonyms: tipo, tío; see also Thesaurus:tío
    • 2017, “Bella”, performed by Wolfine:
      Me dijeron que andabas un poco triste / Que te pusiste a beber y con un man por ahí te fuiste
      I heard you were feeling down / That you'd been drinking and took off with some guy

Further reading

Sranan Tongo

Etymology

From English man.

Pronunciation
  • IPA(key): /man/, /maŋ/

Noun

man

  1. man, male human
    A man no ben man taki. ― The man could not speak.

Derived terms

Verb

man

  1. to be able to
    A man no ben man taki. ― The man could not speak.
    • 1984, “Nioni”, in Telefôn' mi koe mi koenoe, performed by The Exmo Stars and Boogie:
      Te yu no man fu tyari akata / yu no mu trobi matuku
      If you aren't able to carry a head pad / you shouldn't bother with a basket

Synonyms

Sumerian

Romanization

man

  1. Romanization of 𒎙

Swedish

Etymology 1

From Old Swedish maþer, mander, from Old Norse maðr, from Proto-Germanic *mann-.

Pronunciation
  • IPA(key): /man/
  • audio(file)

Noun

man m

  1. man (adult male human)
    En man går på gatan.
    A man walks on the street.
    Ungefär hundra män deltog i loppet.
    Around one hundred men took part in the race.
    I äldre tider sa man att björnen ägde sju mans styrka men en mans vett.
    In older times, they said the bear has the strength of seven men but the sense of one man.
  2. husband
    Vi går till caféet med våra män.
    We go to the café with our husbands.
  3. a member of a crew, workforce or (military) troop
    Vi var sjuttio man som slet i gruvan.
    We were seventy men who toiled in the mine.
  4. (slang, in the definite "mannen") man (usually friendly term of address)
    Jalla, mannen!
    Hurry up, man!
Usage notes

(adult male human): The unchanged plural man is sometimes used after numerals. It means "men" as a measure for size or strength of a group rather than individuals:

Med tre man kan vi lyfta byrån ― With three people we can lift the cupboard
Military or police personnel, team members, demonstrators and the like are often counted using this unchanged plural. The same goes with German and Dutch where Mann and man can have an unchanged plural form in this particular case.

(husband): Not used in other contexts, where it could be confused with a man in general.

Declension
Declension of man 1, 2, 3
Singular Plural
Indefinite Definite Indefinite Definite
Nominative man mannen män männen
Genitive mans mannens mäns männens
Declension of man 3
Singular Plural
Indefinite Definite Indefinite Definite
Nominative man mannen mannar, man mannarna
Genitive mans mannens mannars, mans mannarnas
Derived terms
See also

(husband): make, gemål

Pronoun

man c

  1. (indefinite) people in general; one, you, they, people, etc.
    • 1984, Adolphson & Falk (lyrics and music), “I fördatorisk tid [In pre-computer times [Literally, "In pre-computerish/computeric time" – sounds ad hoc in Swedish as well. Could also be translated as "In a pre-computer age/time" or the like.]]”, in Över tid och rum [Across time and space]:
      För länge, länge sen såg inte världen ut som nu. Man levde inte alls på samma sätt som jag och du. Man hade ständiga problem med sin kommunikation. För att göra sig hörd var man tvungen att ta ton. Man siktade mot mål, men man träffade bredvid, för inget var exakt i en fördatorisk tid. Man sände sina dokument med män i uniform, som färdades på snö och is i hällregn och storm. Man köpte sina tjänster med papper och metall – ett besynnerligt system som fick imperier på fall. Man sa att grunden var solid, men staten kom på glid, för system var instabila i en fördatorisk tid. Tiderna förändras. Andra ska ta vid. Sanningar föråldras. De formas av sin egen tid. Man byggde stora städer där man trängdes med varann – där man omgav sig med dån och larm och stod i rök och damm. Man sökte efter ledare med styrka och förstånd, som skulle föra folket bort från krig och undergång. En roll alltför komplex för en enda individ, så inget blev beständigt i en fördatorisk tid. Tiderna förändras. Andra ska ta vid. Sanningar föråldras. Man formas av sin egen tid. Man måste stiga upp varje vardag klockan fem, för att stå vid en maskin tills det blev kväll och man gick hem. Man levde under hot, på gränsen till panik, så man sökte efter sanningen i stjärnornas mystik. Man talade om fred, men man låg i ständig strid, för man förlitade sig på människan i fördatorisk tid.
      A long, long time ago, the world was different from today [did not look like now]. People [one] did not at all live in the same way as me and you [literally translated]. You [one] had constant problems with your [one's] communication. To make yourself [oneself] heard, you [one] had to speak up [take tone]. You [one] aimed for goals [or targets], but you [one] hit next to them [hit next-to/beside (the goal/target, missing it)], because nothing was exact in a pre-computer time. You [one] sent your [one's] documents with men in uniform, who traveled on snow and ice in pouring rain and storm. You [one] bought your [one's] services with paper and metal – a peculiar [strange] system that brought empires down ["got empires on fall"]. People [one] said that the foundation was solid, but the state started slipping [went [came] on the slide [on slide]], because systems were unstable in a pre-computer time. [The] times change. Others will follow/ensue [shall pick up]. Truths become outdated ["are en-aged"]. They are shaped by their own time. People [one] built large cities where they [one] crowded together [thronged with one another] – where they [one] surrounded themselves [oneself] with roar and racket and stood in smoke and dust. They [one] sought leaders with strength and reason, that would lead [or bring] the people away from war and ruin [or "doom," or "destruction" in the sense of ruin/doom]. A role much too complex for a single individual, so nothing endured [became enduring] in a pre-computer time. [The] times change. Others will follow/ensue [shall pick up]. Truths become outdated ["are en-aged"]. You [one] are shaped by your [one's] own time. You [one] had to get up every weekday at five, to stand at a machine until the evening and then go home [until it became evening and you [one] went home]. You [one] lived under threat, on the verge of panic, so you [one] searched for the truth in the mystery of the stars [in the stars' mystique]. People [one] spoke of peace, but they [one] were [lay] in constant conflict [battle], because you [one] relied on [and put your trust in] man/humans ["the human" – the human species or humans collectively] in pre-computer times.
  2. (indefinite, often humorous) I (referring to oneself obliquely)
    Synonym: jag
Usage notes

Man does not sound formal the way English one might when used instead of you. Man is usually the only option in cases where either you or one might be used in English, as Swedish du (“you”) and ni (“you (plural)”) read more like "you, specifically." See the quotations for (sense 1) above for various examples of how man might be translated while preserving tone.

See the usage notes for bli and skall for two other examples of words that have a direct translation that is often unidiomatic or a poor match for tone.

Declension

See Template:sv-decl-ppron for more pronouns.

Derived terms
Derived terms
See also

Etymology 2

From Old Swedish man, from Old Norse mǫn, from Proto-Germanic *manō.

Pronunciation
  • IPA(key): /ˈmɑːn/

Noun

man c

  1. mane (of a horse or lion)
Declension
Declension of man 
Singular Plural
Indefinite Definite Indefinite Definite
Nominative man manen manar manarna
Genitive mans manens manars manarnas

References

Anagrams

Tagalog

Etymology

Inherited from Proto-Philippine *man (“particle expressing solidarity, concession, qualification, or emphasis”).

Pronunciation

Adverb

man (Baybayin spelling ᜋᜈ᜔)

  1. even (implying extreme example)
    Hindi man lang siya tumawag.
    She did not even at least call.
  2. although; even if; even though
    Synonyms: kahit, maski, bagaman
  3. even; also; too
    Synonyms: din, pati
    Ang bagong panganak man ay may karapatan.
    Even the newborn has rights.

Usage notes
  • The word cannot be at the start of a sentence.

Derived terms

Further reading
  • “man”, in Pambansang Diksiyonaryo | Diksiyonaryo.ph, Manila, 2018
  • Blust, Robert, Trussel, Stephen (2010–) “*man”, in The Austronesian Comparative Dictionary

Tarpia

Noun

man

  1. bird

References
  • George W. Grace, Notes on the phonological history of the Austronesian languages of the Sarmi Coast, in Oceanic Linguistics (1971, 10:11-37)

Tok Pisin
This entry has fewer than three known examples of actual usage, the minimum considered necessary for clear attestation, and may not be reliable. Tok Pisin is subject to a special exemption for languages with limited documentation. If you speak it, please consider editing this entry or adding citations. See also Help and the Community Portal.

Etymology

From English man.

Noun

man

  1. man (adult male human)
    • 1989, Buk Baibel long Tok Pisin, Port Moresby: Bible Society of Papua New Guinea, Jenesis 2:5:
      ...i no gat diwai na gras samting i kamap long graun yet, long wanem, em i no salim ren i kam daun yet. Na i no gat man bilong wokim gaden.
      →New International Version translation

Adjective

man

  1. male

Antonyms

Derived terms

Torres Strait Creole

Etymology

From English man.

Noun

man

  1. husband
  2. a married man
  3. any man

Venetian

Etymology

From Latin manus.

Noun

man f (invariable)

  1. hand

Vietnamese

Pronunciation

Etymology 1

Sino-Vietnamese word from 瞞 (“to lie”). Also compare 謾／谩 (“to deceive”).

Adjective

man

  1. (only in compounds) dishonest; false; untruthful
Derived terms

Etymology 2

Sino-Vietnamese word from 蠻 (“barbarian; unreasonable”).

Noun

man

  1. (derogatory, chiefly in compounds) a savage; barbarian
Derived terms

Etymology 3

Non-Sino-Vietnamese reading of Chinese 萬 (“ten thousand”, SV: vạn). Doublet of muôn and vạn.

Numeral

man

  1. (archaic) ten thousand; myriad
    một man ― ten thousand
Derived terms

Anagrams

Volapük

Etymology

Borrowed from the descendants of Proto-West Germanic *mann.

Pronunciation
  • IPA(key): [man]

Noun

man (nominative plural mans)

  1. man (adult male human)

Declension
declension of man
singular plural
nominative man mans
genitive mana manas
dative mane manes
accusative mani manis
vocative 1 o man! o mans!
predicative 2 manu manus
  • 1 status as a case is disputed
  • 2 in later, non-classical Volapük only

Coordinate terms

Derived terms
Terms derived from man
  • dolafulaman
  • lüodaman
  • manadigöf
  • manafied
  • manageilot
  • manageilotik
  • manajit
  • manaklot
  • manaklotem
  • manalien (tribütabima)
  • manalunot
  • manamod
  • manamodo
  • mananam
  • mananäm
  • manapenät
  • manapörträt
  • mandragoramanil
  • manef
  • manik
  • manil
  • manisasen
  • man maleditilik
  • manüp
  • man vönädaleguda
  • miligaman
  • pödaman
  • pösod manik
  • visoman
  • vöd manik

Welsh

Pronunciation
  • IPA(key): /man/
  • Audio(file)
  • Rhymes: -an

Etymology 1

From Middle Welsh mann, from Proto-Celtic *mendu (“mark, location”), from Proto-Indo-European *men-dʰh₁u-. Cognate with Old Irish mind (“crown”), and also related to Old Irish mennar (“blemish, stain”); outside of Celtic, cognate with Latin mendum (“fault, blemish”), Hittite [script needed] (mant-, “something harming”).

Noun

man m or f (plural mannau or mannoedd)

  1. place; location
    Synonyms: lle, lleoliad, safle
Derived terms

Etymology 2

Possibly from Latin menda (“defect, blemish, mistake”), from Proto-Indo-European *mend- (“physical defect, fault”); if so, then from the same origin as Etymology 1. See Old Irish mennar (“blemish, stain”).

Noun

man m (plural mannau or mannoedd, diminutive mannyn or mennyn)

  1. speck; blemish
  2. stain
  3. distinguishing mark
  4. birthmark; mole
  5. pimple; spot
  6. (heraldry) mascle

Etymology 3

Learned borrowing from Hebrew מן (mān, “manna”).

Noun

man m

  1. (uncommon) manna
    Synonym: manna

Mutation
Welsh mutation
radical soft nasal aspirate
man fan unchanged unchanged
Note: Some of these forms may be hypothetical. Not every possible mutated form of every word actually occurs.

References
  • R. J. Thomas, G. A. Bevan, P. J. Donovan, A. Hawke et al., editors (1950–present), “man”, in Geiriadur Prifysgol Cymru Online (in Welsh), University of Wales Centre for Advanced Welsh & Celtic Studies
  • Matasović, Ranko (2009) Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Celtic (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 9), Leiden: Brill, →ISBN, page 264

West Frisian

Etymology

From Old Frisian man, from Proto-West Germanic *mann, from Proto-Germanic *mann-.

Pronunciation
  • IPA(key): /mɔn/

Noun

man c (plural manlju or mannen, diminutive mantsje)

  1. man
    Coordinate term: frou
  2. husband
    Coordinate term: frou

Further reading
  • “man (I)”, in Wurdboek fan de Fryske taal (in Dutch), 2011

Wik-Mungkan

Noun

man

  1. neck

Derived terms
  • man awal
  • man ngaat
  • man poonchal

Wolof

Pronunciation
  • Audio(file)

Pronoun

man

  1. I (first-person singular subject pronoun)

See also
Wolof personal pronouns
singular subject plural subject singular object plural object
1st person man nun ma nu
2nd person yow yeen la leen
3rd person moom ñoom ko leen

Yola

Etymology

From Middle English man, from Old English mann, from Proto-West Germanic *mann.

Pronunciation
  • IPA(key): /man/

Noun

man (genitive mannes)

  1. man
  2. husband
    Coordinate term: mawen
    • 1867, “A YOLA ZONG”, in SONGS, ETC. IN THE DIALECT OF FORTH AND BARGY, number 13, page 90:
      He at nouth fade t'zey, llean vetch ee man,
      He that knows what to say, mischief fetch the man,
    • 1867, “THE WEDDEEN O BALLYMORE”, in SONGS, ETC. IN THE DIALECT OF FORTH AND BARGY, number 6, page 96:
      Zoo wough kisth, an wough parthet; earch man took his laave;
      So we kissed and we parted, each man took his leave;
    • 1867, “CASTEALE CUDDE'S LAMENTATION”, in SONGS, ETC. IN THE DIALECT OF FORTH AND BARGY, number 4, page 104:
      Zimaan Haay is a wicked man,
      Simon Hay is a wicked man,

Derived terms

References
  • Jacob Poole (d. 1827) (before 1828) William Barnes, editor, A Glossary, With some Pieces of Verse, of the old Dialect of the English Colony in the Baronies of Forth and Bargy, County of Wexford, Ireland, London: J. Russell Smith, published 1867, page 55

Zealandic

Etymology

From Middle Dutch man, from Old Dutch man, from Proto-West Germanic *mann, from Proto-Germanic *mann-.

Noun

man m (plural mannen)

  1. man
  2. husband
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