Wiktionary

mu

See also: μ, Μ, and Appendix:Variations of "mu"
Languages (42)
English
Albanian • Anguthimri • Asturian • Czech • Dutch • Estonian • Extremaduran • French • Hanga Hundi • Hausa • Ikobi-Mena • Indonesian • Italian • Japanese • Jingpho • Jurchen • Kituba • Kom (Cameroon) • Lashi • Malay • Mandarin • Northern Sami • Old Irish • Polish • Portuguese • Romanian • Scottish Gaelic • Serbo-Croatian • Slovak • Spanish • Sumerian • Swedish • Tày • Tooro • Turkish • Tzotzil • Vietnamese • Volapük • West Makian • Yoruba • Zou
Page categories

English

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English Wikipedia has an article on:
Wikipedia
Ancient Greek Alphabet
←
lambda
    →
nu
Μ μ
Ancient Greek: μῦ
Wikipedia article on mu

Etymology 1

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From Ancient Greek μῦ (mû), derived from Phoenician 𐤌𐤌 (mm /⁠mem⁠/, “water”). Doublet of mem.

Pronunciation

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Noun

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mu (countable and uncountable, plural mus)

  1. The 12th letter of the Modern Greek alphabet.
Derived terms
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Translations
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Etymology 2

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From Japanese 無 (mu, “nothing, neither yes nor no”).

Pronunciation

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Interjection

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mu

  1. (Zen Buddhism) Neither yes nor no.
    • 1974, Robert M[aynard] Pirsig, Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance: An Inquiry into Values, New York, N.Y.: William Morrow & Company, →ISBN:
      Mu means "no thing." Like "Quality" it points outside the process of dualistic discrimination. Mu simply says, "No class; not one, not zero, not yes, not no." […] It's a great mistake, a kind of dishonesty, to sweep nature's mu answers under the carpet.
    • 1979, Douglas Hofstadter, Gödel, Escher, Bach: An Eternal Golden Braid:
      Achilles: Oh, but MU is Jōshū’s answer. By saying MU, Jōshū let the other monk know that only by not asking such questions can one know the answer to them.
      Tortoise: Jōshū “unasked” the question. […]
      Achilles: […] And the answer of “MU” here rejects the premises of the question, which are that one or the other must be chosen.
    • 1996, Dan Simmons, “Looking for Kelly Dahl”, in The Year's Best Science Fiction, page 424:
      "Mu," said Kelly Dahl.
      On one level mu means only yes, but on a deeper level of Zen it was often used by the master when the acolyte asked a stupid, unanswerable or wrongheaded question such as "Does a dog have the Buddha-nature?" The Master would answer only, "Mu," meaning—I say "yes" but mean "no," but the actual answer is: Unask the question.
    • 2002, Norman Waddell, Masao Abe, The Heart of Dōgen's Shōbōgenzō, page 72:
      The Fifth Patriarch's utterance You say mu [Buddha-nature] because Buddha-nature is emptiness articulates clearly and distinctly the truth that emptiness is not "no". In uttering Buddha-nature-emptiness one does not say "half a pound." One does not say "eight ounces." One says "mu."
    • 2010, Joan Price, Sacred Scriptures of the World Religions, page 70:
      A monk once asked Master Joshu, 'Has a dog the Buddha Nature or not?' Joshu said, 'Mu!'

Noun

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mu (uncountable)

  1. (Zen Buddhism) Nothingness; nonexistence; the illusory nature of reality.
    • 2012, Omori, Introduction To Zen Training, →ISBN, page 115:
      That being the case, we should naturally choose to contemplate mu from morning to night, forgetting everything.
    • 2012, Dr Robert Wilkinson, Nishida and Western Philosophy, →ISBN:
      Consequently, though mu is mindlike, the likeness to individual consciousness cannot be pushed very far.
    • 2013, Sean Murphy, Natalie Goldberg, One Bird, One Stone: 108 Contemporary Zen Stories, →ISBN, page xvii:
      The monk posed to Chaoi-chou a question: Does a dog have a buddha nature or not?" Chao-chou, without a moment's hesitation, answered, “Mu." (Translated as "No.")
    • 2013, Maura O'Halloran, Pure Heart, Enlightened Mind, →ISBN:
      If mu is mind, consciousness, it is nothing.
Usage notes
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Used to answer a question that if answered with "yes" or "no" would imply something false.

Synonyms
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See also

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  • (non-affirmative, non-negative answer): n/a

Etymology 3

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From Mandarin 畝／亩 (mǔ).

Noun

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mu (plural mu)

  1. A unit of surface area, currently equivalent to two-thirtieths of a hectare.
    • [1959 September, Tung Ta-lin [董大林], “The Inevitability of Quick Transition from Lower to Higher Stage of Agricultural Co-operation”, in Agricultural Co-operation in China [中国农业合作化的道路] (China Knowledge Series)‎[1], 2nd edition, Peking: Foreign Languages Press, →OCLC, page 72:
      The Lucky Star Co-operative in Chuwo County on the plains of southern Shansi had, before the anti-Japanese war, 26 wells, 4 water-wheels and 166.1 mou of irrigated fields, 4.82 per cent of its total arable land.]
    • [1965 July 9 [1965 June 7], “Chienchiang County Reports Increase in Crops”, in Daily Report: Foreign Radio Broadcasts‎[2], number 131, Foreign Broadcast Information Service, sourced from Wuhan Domestic Service, →OCLC, page DDD 2‎[3]:
      Good news on the summer harvest prevailed in the countryside of Chienchiang County, Hupeh. The county reported remarkable increased in its 600,000 mou of summer food crops this year, surpassing the yield in 1962 which was considered as the best year.]
    • 2004, Peter Ho, “The Wasteland Auction Policy in Northwest China: Solving Environmental Degradation and Rural Poverty?”, in Rural Development in Transitional China: The New Agriculture‎[4], →ISBN, →ISSN, →LCCN, →OCLC, →OL, page 125‎[5]:
      Pengyang county was administered by Guyuan before 1988. In contrast to Guyuan, Pengyang is relatively wealthy. Farmers earn a considerable income through tobacco cultivation, which can yield an annual gross income of Rmb 1,500-2,000 per mu. In 1996, the cultivated area of tobacco in Pengyang was 11,000 mu.⁷
    • 2007, Chang Liu, Peasants and Revolution in Rural China: Rural Political Change in the North China Plain and the Yangzi Delta, 1850-1949, page 87:
      Of 114 village farming families, only ten had more than 30 mu of land and only five had more than 60 mu.

Anagrams

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Albanian

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Pronoun

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mu

  1. Dialectal form of mua

Anguthimri

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Noun

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mu

  1. (Mpakwithi) buttocks

References

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  • Terry Crowley, The Mpakwithi dialect of Anguthimri (1981), page 187

Asturian

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Interjection

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mu

  1. moo (sound made by a cow or bull)

Czech

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Pronunciation

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Pronoun

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mu

  1. singular dative of on
    Řekni mu, že jím. ― Tell him, I am eating.
  2. singular dative of ono

Synonyms

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Dutch

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Etymology

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From Ancient Greek μῦ (mû). Doublet of mem and majem.

Pronunciation

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Noun

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mu m (plural mu's, diminutive muutje n)

  1. mu (letter of the Greek alphabet)

Further reading

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Estonian

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Pronoun

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mu

  1. genitive singular of ma

Usage notes

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  • Used unstressed in a sentence. When the pronoun is stressed, minu (genitive of mina) is used.

Extremaduran

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Adverb

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mu

  1. very

See also

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French

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Pronunciation

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Noun

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mu m (plural mu)

  1. mu (Greek letter)

Participle

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mu (feminine mue, masculine plural mus, feminine plural mues)

  1. post-1990 spelling of mû

Further reading

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Hanga Hundi

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Noun

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mu

  1. (a) crocodile

Further reading

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Hausa

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Etymology

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Cognates include Mangas mun, Polci mii, Miship mun.

Pronunciation

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Pronoun

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mū

  1. we (1st person plural pronoun)

Ikobi-Mena

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Noun

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mu (Mena), mụ (Ikobi)

  1. water

References

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Indonesian

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Pronunciation

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Pronoun

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mu

  1. (text messaging, informal) Alternative spelling of -mu.

Italian

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Pronunciation

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  • IPA(key): /ˈmu/
  • Rhymes: -u
  • Hyphenation: mù

Noun

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mu m or f (invariable)

  1. the name of the letter M

Japanese

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Romanization

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mu

  1. The hiragana syllable む (mu) or the katakana syllable ム (mu) in Hepburn romanization.

Jingpho

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Etymology

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Borrowed from Burmese မူး (mu:).

Noun

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mu

  1. two anna bit

References

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  • Kurabe, Keita (2016 December 31) “Phonology of Burmese loanwords in Jinghpaw”, in Kyoto University Linguistic Research‎[6], volume 35, →DOI, →ISSN, pages 91–128

Jurchen

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Noun

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mu

  1. water

References

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  • Gisaburō Norikura Kiyose, A Study of the Jurchen Language and Script: Reconstruction and Decipherment (1977)

Kituba

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Pronoun

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mu

  1. I

Kom (Cameroon)

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Etymology 1

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Noun

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mu

  1. water

Etymology 2

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Adjective

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mu

  1. old

References

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  • Randy Jones, Provisional Kom - English lexicon (2001, Yaoundé, Cameroon)

Lashi

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Pronunciation

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Verb

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mu

  1. to happen

References

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  • Hkaw Luk (2017) A grammatical sketch of Lacid‎[7], Chiang Mai: Payap University (master thesis)

Malay

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Etymology

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Shortened form of kamu, from Proto-Malayic *kamu(ʔ), from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *(i-)kamu, *kamiu, from Proto-Austronesian *(i-)kamu, *kamiu.

Pronunciation

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Pronoun

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mu

  1. you

See also

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Malay personal pronouns
singular plural
1st person standard saya／ساي
aku／اکو, ku-／كو- (informal/towards God)
-ku／-كو (informal possessive)
hamba／همبا (dated) 		kami／کامي (exclusive)
kita orang／كيت اورڠ (informal exclusive)
kita／کيت (inclusive)
royal beta／بيتا
2nd person standard kamu／کامو
anda／اندا (formal)
engkau／اڠکاو, kau-／كاو- (informal/towards God)
awak／اوق (friendly/older towards younger)
-mu／-مو (possessive) 		awak semua／اوق سموا
kamu semua／كامو سموا
kalian／کالين (informal)
kau orang／كاو اورڠ (informal)
royal tuanku／توانكو
3rd person standard dia／دي
ia／اي
beliau／بلياو (honorific)
-nya／-ڽ (possessive) 		mereka／مريک
dia orang／دي اورڠ (informal)
royal baginda／بݢيندا

Mandarin

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Romanization

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mu

  1. Nonstandard spelling of mū.
  2. Nonstandard spelling of mú.
  3. Nonstandard spelling of mǔ.
  4. Nonstandard spelling of mù.

Usage notes

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  • 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.

Northern Sami

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Pronunciation

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  • (Kautokeino) IPA(key): /ˈmuː/

Pronoun

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mū

  1. accusative/genitive of mun

Old Irish

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Pronunciation

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Determiner

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mu (triggers lenition)

  1. Alternative form of mo (“my”)

Polish

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Pronunciation

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  • IPA(key): /ˈmu/
  • Audio:(file)
  • Rhymes: -u
  • Syllabification: mu

Etymology 1

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Alternative forms

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Pronoun

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mu m

  1. dative singular mute of on

Pronoun

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mu n

  1. dative singular mute of ono

See also

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Etymology 2

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Onomatopoeic.

Interjection

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mu

  1. moo (sound made by cows and bulls)
Derived terms
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noun
verb

Further reading

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  • mu in Polish dictionaries at PWN

Portuguese

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Pronunciation

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  • Rhymes: -u
  • Hyphenation: mu

Etymology 1

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Inherited from Old Galician-Portuguese muu, from Latin mūlum (“mule”). Doublet of mulo.

Noun

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mu m (plural mus)

  1. mule
    Synonym: mulo
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Etymology 2

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Learned borrowing from Ancient Greek μῦ (mû).

Noun

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mu m (plural mus)

  1. mu (Greek letter)
  2. Synonym of muão, múon (“muon”)

Etymology 3

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Onomatopoeic.

Alternative forms

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Interjection

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mu

  1. moo (the call of a cow)

Romanian

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Etymology

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Onomatopoeic.

Interjection

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mu

  1. moo (sound made by cows)

Scottish Gaelic

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Etymology

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From Old Irish imb. Cognates include Irish um and Manx mysh.

Pronunciation

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Preposition

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mu (+ dative, triggers lenition, combined with the singular definite article mun)

  1. about, around
    Bha craobhan mu ghàrradh an taighe. ― There were trees around the house's yard.
  2. about, concerning
    Bha sinn a' bruidhinn mu làithean san sgoil againn. ― We were talking about our days at school.
  3. about, approximately
    Bidh a' chuairt a' toirt mu thrì uairean. ― The trip will take about three hours.
  4. (dated) on (of clothes)
    Dè chuireas mi umam? ― What shall I wear?

Inflection

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Personal inflection of mu
Number Person Simple Emphatic
Singular 1st umam umamsa
2nd umad umadsa
3rd m uime uimesan
3rd f uimpe uimpese
Plural 1st umainn umainne
2nd umaibh umaibhse
3rd umpa umpasan

Derived terms

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Serbo-Croatian

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Pronoun

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mu (Cyrillic spelling му)

  1. to him (clitic dative singular of ȏn (“he”))
  2. to it (clitic dative singular of òno (“it”))
  3. (emphatic, possessive, dative) his, of his (clitic dative singular of ȏn (“he”))
    Gdje mu je auto?
    Where is his car?
  4. (emphatic, possessive, dative) its, of its (clitic dative singular of òno (“it”))

Declension

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    Inflection of 3rd-person pronouns
Singular Plural
Masculine Feminine Neuter Masculine Feminine Neuter
nominative ȏn òna òno òni òne òna
genitive njȅga, ga njȇ, je njȅga, ga njȋh, ih njȋh, ih njȋh, ih
dative njȅmu, mu njȏj, joj njȅmu, mu njȉma, im njȉma, im njȉma, im
accusative njȅga, ga, nj njȗ, ju, je njȅga, ga, nj njȋh, ih njȋh, ih njȋh, ih
vocative — — — — — —
locative njȅm, njȅmu njȏj njȅm, njȅmu njȉma njȉma njȉma
instrumental njȋm, njíme njȏm, njóme njȋm, njíme njȉma njȉma njȉma

Slovak

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Alternative forms

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Pronunciation

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Pronoun

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mu

  1. dative of on and ono

Spanish

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Pronunciation

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  • IPA(key): /ˈmu/ [ˈmu]
  • Rhymes: -u
  • Syllabification: mu

Etymology 1

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Onomatopoeic.

Interjection

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mu

  1. moo (sound of a cow)
Derived terms
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Etymology 2

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Noun

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mu f (plural múes)

  1. Misspelling of mi. (mu, the Greek letter Μ, μ)

Etymology 3

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Adverb

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mu

  1. (slang) Clipping of muy.

Further reading

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Sumerian

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Romanization

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mu

  1. Romanization of 𒈬 (mu)

Swedish

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Pronunciation

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Interjection

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mu

  1. moo

Noun

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mu n

  1. moo; the sound of a cow or a bull

See also

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Anagrams

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Tày

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Etymology

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From Proto-Tai *ʰmuːᴬ (“pig”). Cognate with Thai หมู (mǔu), Northern Thai ᩉ᩠ᨾᩪ, Lao ໝູ (mū), Lü ᦖᦴ (ṁuu), Tai Dam ꪢꪴ, Shan မူ (mǔu), Ahom 𑜉𑜥 (mū), Zhuang mou, Bouyei mul.

Pronunciation

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Noun

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mu (𤝕, 牳)

  1. pig

References

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  • Hoàng Văn Ma, Lục Văn Pảo, Hoàng Chí (2006) Từ điển Tày-Nùng-Việt [Tay-Nung-Vietnamese dictionary] (in Vietnamese), Hanoi: Nhà xuất bản Từ điển Bách khoa Hà Nội

Tooro

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Tooro numbers (edit)
10
1 2  → [a], [b] 10  → 
    Cardinal: -mu, (in abstract counting) emu
    Ordinal: -a okubanza
    Adverbial: kubanza, enyalimu, omurundi gumu

Etymology

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From Proto-Bantu *-mòì. Cognate with Kikuyu -mwe and Zulu -nye.

Pronunciation

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Numeral

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-mu

  1. one
    omuntu omu ― one person
  2. (in the plural) some
    abantu abamu ― some people
  3. (in the plural) same
    abantu abamu ― the same people

Declension

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Inflected forms of -mu
Noun class indefinite definite
singular plural singular plural
1/2 omu bamu omu abamu
3/4 gumu emu ogumu emu
5/6 limu gamu erimu agamu
7/8 kimu bimu ekimu ebimu
9/10 emu zimu emu ezimu
11/10 rumu orumu
12/14 kamu bumu akamu obumu
13 tumu otumu
14/6 bumu gamu obumu agamu
15/6 kumu okumu
16 hamu ahamu
18

Derived terms

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References

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  1. Kaji, Shigeki (2007) A Rutooro Vocabulary‎[8], Tokyo: Research Institute for Languages and Cultures of Asia and Africa (ILCAA), →ISBN, page 145
  2. Rubongoya, L. T. (2013) Katondogorozi y'Orunyoro-Rutooro n'Orungereza [Runyoro–Rutooro-English and English-Runyoro–Rutooro dictionary]‎[9], Kampala: Modrug Publishers, →ISBN, pages 238, 542, 571, 583

Turkish

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Particle

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mu

  1. Used to form interrogatives.
    Ona bu soruyu sordun mu?
    Did you ask him/her this question?
    Mutlu musun?
    Are you happy?
    Pikniğe gitmiyor muyuz?
    Aren't we going for a picnic?

Usage notes

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  • Personal suffixes are added to the interrogative particles, as well as the past tense suffixes.
  • This form is used when the last vowel of the previous word is "o" or "u". Other forms used with different vowels are: mı?, mi? and mü?

Tzotzil

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Pronunciation

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Etymology 1

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Adjective

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mu

  1. delicious

Etymology 2

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Particle

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mu

  1. (negation) not
    Mu jna'. ― I do not know him/her/it.
Synonyms
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Derived terms
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(particles)

References

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Vietnamese

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Etymology

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It is not clear which between "mons veneris" and "carapace" is the more original, although the sense "back" is certainly a derivative.

Compare Zhuang moz.

Pronunciation

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Noun

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mu • (模)

  1. mons veneris, pubes, the pubic region
  2. (of hands and feet) back
    mu bàn tay ― back of the hand
  3. the carapaces (dorsal shells) of some animals (e.g. turtles and crustaceans)
    Synonym: mai

Volapük

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Etymology

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Borrowed from Spanish muy (“very”).

Adverb

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mu

  1. extremely

West Makian

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Etymology

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Compare Ternate omu (“ripe”).

Pronunciation

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Verb

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mu

  1. (stative) to be ripe

Conjugation

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Conjugation of mu (stative verb)
singular plural
inclusive exclusive
1st person timu mimu amu
2nd person nimu fimu
3rd person inanimate imu dimu
animate mamu
imperative —, mu —, mu

Alternative forms

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References

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  • Clemens Voorhoeve (1982) The Makian languages and their neighbours‎[10], Pacific linguistics

Yoruba

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Etymology 1

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Pronunciation

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Verb

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mu

  1. to drink
    Má mu ọtí tó o bá fẹ́ wakọ̀. ― Don't drink alcohol if you want to drive.
  2. to suck
    Ọmọ-ọwọ́ ṣì ń mu ọmú. ― The baby is still sucking breast.
  3. to lick (juicy fruits such as oranges, or deserts such as ice cream)
    Ọmọdé ń mu ọsàn. ― The child is licking orange.
  4. to smoke
    Kò kí ń mu sìgá. ― She doesn't smoke cigarettes.
Synonyms
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Yoruba Varieties and Languages - mu (“to drink, suck, smoke”)
view map; edit data
Language FamilyVariety GroupVariety/LanguageLocationWords
Proto-Itsekiri-SEYSoutheast YorubaÌkálẹ̀Òkìtìpupamọ
Ọ̀wọ̀Ọ̀wọ̀mọ
ÌtsẹkírìÌwẹrẹmọ
OlùkùmiUgbódùmọ
Proto-YorubaCentral YorubaÈkìtìÀdó Èkìtìmụ
Àkúrẹ́mụ
Ọ̀tùn Èkìtìmụ
Northwest YorubaÀwórìÈbúté Mẹ́tàmu
Ẹ̀gbáAbẹ́òkútamu
ÈkóÈkómu
ÌbàdànÌbàdànmu
ÌlọrinÌlọrinmu
Ọ̀yọ́Ọ̀yọ́mu
Standard YorùbáNàìjíríàmu
Bɛ̀nɛ̀mu
Northeast Yoruba/OkunÌyàgbàYàgbà East LGAmu
OwéKabbamu
Ede Languages/Southwest YorubaAnaSokodemɔ
Cábɛ̀ɛ́Cábɛ̀ɛ́mɔ
Tchaouroumɔ
ÌcàAgouamɔ
ÌdàácàIgbó Ìdàácàmu
Ọ̀họ̀rí/Ɔ̀hɔ̀rí-ÌjèÌkpòbɛ́mɔ
Kétumu
Onigbolomɔ
Yewamọ
Ifɛ̀Akpárémɔ
Atakpamémɔ
Bokomɔ
Moretanmɔ
Tchettimɔ
KuraAledjo-Kouramɔ
Awotébimɔ
Partagomɔ
Mɔ̄kɔ́léKandimɔ
Northern NagoKambolemɔ
Manigrimɔ
Note: This amalgamation of terms comes from a number of different academic papers focused on the unique varieties and languages spoken in the Yoruboid dialectal continuum which extends from eastern Togo to southern Nigeria. The terms for spoken varieties, now deemed dialects of Yorùbá in Nigeria (i.e. Southeast Yorùbá, Northwest Yorùbá, Central Yorùbá, and Northeast Yorùbá), have converged with those of Standard Yorùbá leading to the creation of what can be labeled Common Yorùbá (Funṣọ Akere, 1977). It can be assumed that the Standard Yorùbá term can also be used in most Nigerian varieties alongside native terms, especially amongst younger speakers. This does not apply to the other Nigerian Yoruboid languages of Ìṣẹkírì and Olùkùmi, nor the Èdè Languages of Benin and Togo.
Derived terms
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Etymology 2

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Pronunciation

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Verb

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mú

  1. to take
  2. to catch
    Àwọn ọlọ́pàá ti mú wa o. ― The police have caught us!
    Mo mú bọ́ọ̀lù. ― I caught the ball.
  3. to have an effect on (relating to temperature)
    Òtútù ń mú mi. ― I feel cold. (Cold is having an effect on me)
  4. (auxiliary verb) to cause something to do something else (must be used with another verb)
    Oògùn yẹn mú mi sùn. ― That drug made me sleep.
    Ó mú mi mumi. ― It made me drink water.
  5. to be sharp
    Ọbẹ̀ náà mú. ― That knife is sharp.
Derived terms
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Etymology 3

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Pronunciation

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Verb

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mù

  1. to be hidden
    Ó mù sábẹ́ igbó. ― It's hidden under the bush.

Etymology 4

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Cognates with Yoruba mọ̀

Pronunciation

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Verb

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mù

  1. (Ijebu) to know
Derived terms
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Zou

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Verb

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mu

  1. see

References

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