pal

See also: Pal, PAL, Pál, pał, pâl, päl, Pål, and päl-

Translingual

Symbol

pal

(international standards) ISO 639-2 & ISO 639-3 language code for Middle Persian.

English

Etymology

PIE word
*bʰréh₂tēr

Borrowed from Angloromani pal (“brother, friend”), from Romani phral (“brother”), from Sanskrit भ्रातृ (bhrātṛ, “brother”). Doublet of brother and frater.

Pronunciation

(UK) IPA^(key): /pal/
Audio (UK) (file)
(US) IPA^(key): /pæl/
Rhymes: -æl
Homophone: pow (some regions)

Noun

pal (plural pals)

(colloquial) A friend, buddy, mate, cobber; someone to hang around with.
Little Timmy's out playing with his pals.
(colloquial) An informal term of address, often used ironically in a hostile way.
Don't you threaten me, pal – I'll report you to the police.

Synonyms

See also Thesaurus:friend

Derived terms

anipal
galpal
pals battalion
penpal

Descendants

→ Afrikaans: pêl

Translations

(colloquial) a friend

Bulgarian: приятел (bg) m (prijatel)
Macedonian: при́јател m (príjatel)
Plautdietsch: Schlockat m

Verb

pal (third-person singular simple present pals, present participle palling, simple past and past participle palled)

Be friends with, hang around with.
John plans to pal around with Joe today.

Related terms

palsy-walsy
pal up

Anagrams

ALP, APL, LPA, PLA, Pla, alp, lap

Angloromani

Alternative forms

palla, pel, pral, prala, pralla, pulu

Etymology

Inherited from Romani phral. Cognate with English brother.

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): [ˈpʰæl], [pʰæɫ]

Noun

pal

brother
Sa see pal te pen?
(please add an English translation of this usage example)
friend
Every time I tried to make a pal...
(please add an English translation of this usage example)

Derived terms

stiffa pal

Descendants

→ English: pal
- → Afrikaans: pêl

References

“pal”, in Angloromani Dictionary, The Manchester Romani Project, 2004-2006, page 25
“pal”, in Angloromani Dictionary, The Manchester Romani Project, 2004-2006, page 59

Asturian

Etymology

From a contraction of the preposition pa (“for”) + masculine singular article el (“the”).

Contraction

pal m

for the

Cahuilla

Etymology

From Proto-Uto-Aztecan *pa.

Noun

pál

water

References

Katherine Siva Sauvel; Pamela Munro (1983) Chem'ivillu' (let's speak Cahuilla)

Catalan

Etymology

From Old Catalan pal, from Latin pālus (“stake, pole”), from Proto-Italic *pākslos, from Proto-Indo-European *peh₂ǵ-slos, from *peh₂ǵ-.

Pronunciation

(Balearic, Central, Valencian) IPA^(key): /ˈpal/
Rhymes: -al

Noun

pal m (plural pals)

stake
pole
(field hockey or ice hockey) stick
Synonym: estic
(heraldry) pale
(colloquial) bore, drag
és un pal ― he's a drag

Related terms

empalar
palet
palissada
pallissa

References

“pal” in Diccionari de la llengua catalana, segona edició, Institut d’Estudis Catalans.
“pal”, in Gran Diccionari de la Llengua Catalana, Grup Enciclopèdia Catalana, 2023
“pal” in Diccionari normatiu valencià, Acadèmia Valenciana de la Llengua.
“pal” in Diccionari català-valencià-balear, Antoni Maria Alcover and Francesc de Borja Moll, 1962.

Cupeño

Etymology

From Proto-Uto-Aztecan *pa. Cognate with Cahuilla pál, Luiseño paala, Tübatulabal bal, Northern Paiute paa, Comanche paa, Hopi paahu, Classical Nahuatl atl.

Noun

pál

water

References

Jane H. Hill (2005) A Grammar of Cupeño

Czech

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): [ˈpal]
Rhymes: -al

Interjection

pal!

fire! (a signal to shoot)

Verb

pal

second-person singular imperative of pálit

Dinka

Noun

pal (plural paal)

knife

Dutch

Etymology

From Middle French pal, from Latin pālus. Cognate with paal.

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /pɑl/
Audio (file)
Rhymes: -ɑl

Noun

pal m (plural pallen, diminutive palletje n)

catch (mechanism which stops something from moving the wrong way)

Adverb

pal

firm, firmly
(with a preposition or adverb) right, immediately

Anagrams

lap

French

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin pālus (“stake, pole”). Compare the inherited doublet pieu.

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /pal/
Audio (file)

Noun

pal m (plural pals)

stake
pole
(heraldry) pale

Garo

Etymology

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

Postposition

pal

(follows genitive case -ni) because, on account of

Indonesian

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): [ˈpal]
Hyphenation: pal

Etymology 1

From Dutch paal (“pole”), from Middle Dutch pâel, from Old Dutch pāl, from Latin pālus. Semantic loan from Dutch mijlpaal (“milestone”).

Noun

pal (first-person possessive palku, second-person possessive palmu, third-person possessive palnya)

milestone, one of a series of numbered markers placed along a road at regular intervals, typically at the side of the road or in a median.
Synonyms: batu, mil, tonggak

Derived terms

berpal-pal

Noun

pal (first-person possessive palku, second-person possessive palmu, third-person possessive palnya)

Nonstandard spelling of faal.

Lower Sorbian

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): [pal]

Participle

pal

second-person singular imperative of paliś

Northern Kurdish

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /pɑːl/
Rhymes: -al

Noun

pal ?

side

Occitan

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /pal/
Audio (Languedocien) (file)

Noun

pal m (plural pals)

post, pole, stake
(nautical) mast

Old English

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin pālus (“stake”), possibly through a Proto-West Germanic intermediate *pāl. Compare Old High German pfāl (German Pfahl), Old Dutch pāl (Dutch paal). Doublet of pǣl, from the variant Proto-West Germanic *pāli.

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /pɑːl/

Noun

pāl m

stake

Declension

Declension of pal (strong a-stem)

Case	Singular	Plural
nominative	pāl	pālas
accusative	pāl	pālas
genitive	pāles	pāla
dative	pāle	pālum

Descendants

Middle English: paal, pall, pol, poll, pole
- English: pole
- Scots: pale, pall

Old Frisian

Etymology

Borrowed from either Old Dutch pāl or Old High German pāl, from Proto-West Germanic *pāl, from Latin pālus (“stake, prop”), from Proto-Italic *pākslos, from Proto-Indo-European *peh₂ǵ- (“to attach”). Cognate to Old English pāl. Doublet of pēl.

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /ˈpaːl/

Noun

pāl f

pole

Descendants

North Frisian: pul
West Frisian: peal, poal

References

Bremmer, Rolf H. (2009) An Introduction to Old Frisian: History, Grammar, Reader, Glossary, Amsterdam: John Benjamins Publishing Company, →ISBN

Pipil

Pronunciation

(standard) IPA^(key): /pal/

Noun

-pal

of (genitive relation, also forms genitive pronouns)
Ne pelu ipal ne takat
The dog of the man → The man's dog.
Ashan ini kal mupal
Now this house is yours
for (benefactive relation)
Tikpiat se mupal wan se nupal
We have one for you and one for me

Usage notes

The relational noun -pal is part of a restricted group of relationals that can be used without a possessive marker when it accompanies an explicit complement, thus acting like a preposition:
Ne pelu pal ne takat
The dog of the man → The man's dog.

Declension

Declension of -pal

Person	Number
Person	singular	plural
first	nupal	tupal
second	mupal	anmupal
third	ipal	inpal

Polish

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /pal/
Audio (file)
Rhymes: -al
Syllabification: pal

Etymology 1

Borrowed from Latin pālus (“stake”).

Noun

pal m inan

stake (piece of wood)
pile (for the support of a building)

Declension

Declension of pal

	singular	plural
nominative	pal	pale
genitive	pala	pali
dative	palowi	palom
accusative	pal	pale
instrumental	palem	palami
locative	palu	palach
vocative	palu	pale

Etymology 2

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

Verb

pal

second-person singular imperative of palić

Romanian

Etymology

From French pâle.

Adjective

pal m or n (feminine singular pală, masculine plural pali, feminine and neuter plural pale)

pale

Declension

Declension of pal

		singular			plural
		masculine	neuter	feminine	masculine	neuter	feminine
nominative/ accusative	indefinite	pal		pală	pali	pale
nominative/ accusative	definite	palul		pala	palii	palele
genitive/ dative	indefinite	pal		pale	pali	pale
genitive/ dative	definite	palului		palei	palilor	palelor

Spanish

Contraction

pal

(colloquial) contraction of para (“for”) + el (“the”)

Related terms

pa'

Volapük

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): [pal]

Noun

pal (nominative plural pals)

parent, father or mother
Hyponyms: fat, hipal, jipal, mot

Declension

declension of pal

	singular	plural
nominative	pal	pals
genitive	pala	palas
dative	pale	pales
accusative	pali	palis
vocative ¹	o pal!	o pals!
predicative ²	palu	palus

¹ status as a case is disputed
² in later, non-classical Volapük only

Derived terms

dalepal
lepal
lepal
palalöf
palapär
palef
palik

pal

Translingual

Symbol

English

Etymology

Pronunciation

Noun

Synonyms

Derived terms

Descendants

Translations

Verb

Related terms

Anagrams

Angloromani

Alternative forms

Etymology

Pronunciation

Noun

Derived terms

Descendants

References

Asturian

Etymology

Contraction

Cahuilla

Etymology

Noun

References

Catalan

Etymology

Pronunciation

Noun

Related terms

See also

References

Cupeño

Etymology

Noun

References

Czech

Pronunciation

Interjection

Verb

Further reading

Dinka

Noun

Dutch

Etymology

Pronunciation

Noun

Adverb

Anagrams

French

Etymology

Pronunciation

Noun

Further reading

Garo

Etymology

Postposition

Indonesian

Pronunciation

Etymology 1

Noun

Derived terms

Noun

Further reading

Lower Sorbian

Pronunciation

Participle

Northern Kurdish

Pronunciation

Noun

Occitan

Pronunciation

Noun

Old English

Etymology

Pronunciation