bi

See also: Appendix:Variations of "bi"

Translingual

Symbol

bi

(international standards) ISO 639-1 language code for Bislama.

English

Etymology 1

Clipping of bisexual and biceps.

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /baɪ/
Audio (US) (file)
Rhymes: -aɪ
Homophones: bye, buy, by

Adjective

bi (not comparable)

(LGBT, slang) Bisexual.[1]
Synonyms: see Thesaurus:bisexual
Coordinate terms: pan, mono
I'm straight, but my oldest sister is bi.
(LGBT, slang, uncommon) Bigender.

Translations

bisexual

Dutch: bi (nl)
Finnish: bi (fi), bisse (fi)
French: bi (fr)
German: bi (de)
Italian: bisex
Japanese: バイ (ja) (bai)
Portuguese: gilete (pt) (Brazil), bi (pt)
Spanish: bi (es)
Swedish: bi (sv)

Noun

bi (plural bis)

(LGBT, slang) A bisexual person.[1]
- 1991 October 10, Ken Jones, “Re: Bisexual privilege? (Was Re: Tom Robinson Concert”, in soc.motss, Usenet‎:
  For some reason, I'm feeling _very_ sensitive to bi-discrimination tonight. I'm really not trying to mock the points being made here, it's just that many of the same arguments can be turned around and used to describe the discrimination that bis face.
Synonyms: bisexual; see also Thesaurus:bisexual person
(bodybuilding, colloquial, uncommon) A biceps muscle.
You cannot train your back without regard to your tris and bis.

Translations

bisexual person

Polish: biseks m (colloquial)

Derived terms

forced bi

Etymology 2

Mandarin 璧 (bì)

Alternative forms

(from Wade-Giles) pi

Pronunciation

(UK, US) enPR: bē, IPA^(key): /biː/
Audio (US) (file)
Rhymes: -iː
Homophones: b, be, Bea, bee

Noun

bi (plural bi)

A type of jade disk produced in ancient China.

References

A. F. Niemoeller, "A Glossary of Homosexual Slang," Fact 2, no. 1 (Jan-Feb 1965): 25

Anagrams

IB, ib.

Aiwoo

Etymology

From Proto-Oceanic *biti.

Verb

bi

to bake

References

Lackey, W.J.. & Boerger, B.H. (2021), “Reexamining the Phonological History of Oceanic's Temotu subgroup”, in Oceanic Linguistics.

Albanian

Etymology

A short form of bijë,from archaic bilë ("daughter, girl").

Interjection

bi

A friendly exclamation to a person (female).
Fol bi, Dritë!
Speak, therefore, Dritë!
An exclamation of surprise (to a female person).
Bi! Po ç'është kjo?
Girl! What is this?
Po ç'është kjo, bi?
What is this, girl?

Related terms

bre
brez
pra

Bambara

Noun

bi

today

Basque

**Basque numbers ^(edit)**
	20
← 1	2	3 →
Cardinal: bi Ordinal: bigarren Multiplier: bikoitz Fractional: erdi

Alternative forms

biga, bida (Upper Navarrese, Navarro-Lapurdian)

Etymology

Probably from Proto-Basque *biga (“two”), given the fact that dialectal forms like biga and bida (with *-g- > -d-) are phonetically more conservative.[1][2] Often compared with Iberian bi (“two”).[3]

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /bi/, [bi]
Audio (file)

Numeral

bi

two

Usage notes

This number can appear after the noun, especially in Biscay; but, just like all other numerals apart from bat, it is much more commonly placed before the noun.

Declension

Declension of bi (numeral, ending in vowel)
		indefinite	singular	plural
absolutive		bi	bia	biak
ergative		bik	biak	biek
dative		biri	biari	biei
genitive		biren	biaren	bien
comitative		birekin	biarekin	biekin
causative		birengatik	biarengatik	biengatik
benefactive		birentzat	biarentzat	bientzat
instrumental		biz	biaz	biez
inessive	anim.	birengan	biarengan	biengan
inessive	inanim.	bitan	bian	bietan
locative	anim.	—	—	—
locative	inanim.	bitako	biko	bietako
allative	anim.	birengana	biarengana	biengana
allative	inanim.	bitara	bira	bietara
terminative	anim.	birenganaino	biarenganaino	bienganaino
terminative	inanim.	bitaraino	biraino	bietaraino
directive	anim.	birenganantz	biarenganantz	bienganantz
directive	inanim.	bitarantz	birantz	bietarantz
destinative	anim.	birenganako	biarenganako	bienganako
destinative	inanim.	bitarako	birako	bietarako
ablative	anim.	birengandik	biarengandik	biengandik
ablative	inanim.	bitatik	bitik	bietatik
partitive		birik	—	—
prolative		bitzat	—	—

References

“bi” in Etymological Dictionary of Basque by R. L. Trask, sussex.ac.uk
Mitxelena, Koldo L. (1961) Fonética histórica vasca [Basque Historical Phonetics] (Obras completas de Luis Michelena; 1) (in Spanish), Diputación Foral de Guipuzkoa, published 1990, →ISBN, page 413
Orduña A., Eduardo (2011), “Los numerales ibéricos y el protovasco [Iberian numerals and Proto-Basque]”, in Veleia‎ (in Spanish), volume 28, pages 125–139

Bislama

Etymology

From English bee.

Noun

bi

bee

Borôro

Verb

bi

to die

Bura

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): [bì]

Noun

bì

bin for grain storage

References

2007. The UCLA Phonetics Lab Archive. Los Angeles, CA: UCLA Department of Linguistics.

Danish

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): [ˈb̥iˀ]
Rhymes: -iː

Etymology 1

From Old Norse bý, from Proto-Germanic *bijō, from Proto-Indo-European *bʰey-. Cognate with English bee.

Noun

bi c (singular definite bien, plural indefinite bier)

bee

Inflection

Declension of bi

common gender	Singular		Plural
common gender	indefinite	definite	indefinite	definite
nominative	bi	bien	bier	bierne
genitive	bis	biens	biers	biernes

Etymology 2

Borrowed from Middle Low German bī, from Proto-Germanic *bi (“near, around”). Related to English by and German bei.

Adverb

bi

by

Usage notes

Only in certain fixed phrases that are borrowed from German, like stå bi (German beistehen).

Etymology 3

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

Verb

bi

imperative of bie

Dongxiang

Etymology

From Proto-Mongolic *bi (“I”), compare Mongolian би (bi).

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /pi/

Pronoun

bi (Xiaojing spelling بی‎)

I (first-person singular personal pronoun)

Drung

Etymology

From Proto-Sino-Tibetan *s-bəj-n/k.

Verb

bi

to give

References

Ross Perlin (2019) A Grammar of Trung‎, Santa Barbara: University of California

Dutch

Etymology

Clipping of biseksueel.

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /bi/
Audio (file)
Hyphenation: bi
Rhymes: -i

Adjective

bi (invariable, comparative meer bi, superlative meest bi)

(colloquial) bisexual

Finnish

Etymology

From English bi.

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /ˈbi/, [ˈbi]
IPA^(key): /ˈbiː/, [ˈbiː]
Rhymes: -i
Syllabification^(key): bi

Noun

bi

(colloquial) bi (bisexual)

Declension

Declension of bi (type maa)

	singular	plural
nominative	bi	bit
genitive	bin	biiden biitten
partitive	bitä	biitä
accusative	bi bin	bit
inessive	bissä	biissä
elative	bistä	biistä
illative	bihin	biihin
adessive	billä	biillä
ablative	biltä	biiltä
allative	bille	biille
essive	binä	biinä
translative	biksi	biiksi
instructive	–	biin
abessive	bittä	biittä
comitative	–	biineen

French

Etymology

From bissexuel, or possibly directly from English bi.

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /bi/
Audio (file)
Audio (CAN) (file)

Noun

bi m or f by sense (plural bis)

bi, bisexual person

Adjective

bi (invariable)

bi, bisexual

German

Etymology

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

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): [biː]
Audio (file)

Adjective

bi (strong nominative masculine singular bier, not comparable)

(informal) bi

Gothic

Romanization

bi

Romanization of 𐌱𐌹

Guerrero Amuzgo

Adjective

bi

green

Isthmus Zapotec

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): [ˈbì]

Noun

bi

wind

Italian

Alternative forms

be (obsolete, regional)

Etymology

From Latin bē (the name of the letter B).

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /ˈbi/
Rhymes: -i
Hyphenation: bì

Noun

bi f (invariable)

The name of the Latin-script letter B.; bee

Japanese

Romanization

bi

Rōmaji transcription of び
Rōmaji transcription of ビ

Kalasha

Etymology

From Sanskrit बीज (bīja), from Proto-Indo-Iranian *bíHȷ́am. Cognate with Konkani बी (bī) and Parachi bīz (“seed-corn”).

Noun

bi

a seed
semen
moth larva

Related terms

bíyak

Kangjia

Etymology

From Proto-Mongolic *bi, compare Mongolian би (bi), Dongxiang bi.

Pronoun

bi

I

Kaure

Noun

bi

water

References

C. L. Voorhoeve, 1975. Languages of Irian Jaya Checklist, Canberra: Pacific Linguistics, p.108
Bill Palmer, editor (2018) The Languages and Linguistics of the New Guinea Area: A Comprehensive Guide, Padua: De Gruyter Mouton, OCLC 1050042990, page 457

Low German

Etymology

From Old Saxon bī, from Proto-Germanic *bi.

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /biː/

Preposition

bi

at, with
Bi us is dat ümmer Feest.
With us it's always a party.
by
Wi wahnt in en Huus bi de Meer.
I live in a house by the lake.
around, about (often in combination with üm)
Dat weer üm bi so'n twintig Johr vör.
It was about twenty years ago.

Inflection

Pronominal adverbs of bi

preposition	bi
postpositional adv.	bi
+ her (hither)	—
+ düt (this)	hierbi
+ dat (that)	dorbi
+ wat (what)	wobi
+ wat (something)	enerwegens bi
+ nix (nothing)	nargens bi
+ allens (everything)	överall bi

Adverb

bi

alongside, with
in order to adjust or improve

Manchu

Romanization

bi

Romanization of ᠪᡳ

Mandarin

Romanization

bi

Nonstandard spelling of bī.
Nonstandard spelling of bí.
Nonstandard spelling of bǐ.
Nonstandard spelling of bì.

Usage notes

English transcriptions of Mandarin speech often fail to distinguish between the critical tonal differences employed in the Mandarin language, using words such as this one without the appropriate indication of tone.

Middle Dutch

Etymology

From Old Dutch bi, from Proto-West Germanic *bī.

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /biː/

Preposition

bi

by, near, around
beside, alongside
at, with
among
during
by (the work of)
because of

Descendants

Dutch: bij
Limburgish: bie

Adverb

bi

by, near, around

Descendants

Dutch: bij
Limburgish: bie

Middle English

Preposition

bi

Alternative form of by

Mirandese

Verb

bi

first-person singular preterite indicative of ber: I saw.
- 2011, Ana Afonso, L Princepico Chapter 1:
  Quando you tenie seis anhos, bi ua beça ua eimaige mi guapa nun lhibro subre la floresta birge que se chamaba "Stórias Bibidas".
  1948 translation by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry
  Once when I was six years old I saw a magnificent picture in a book, called True Stories from Nature, about the primeval forest.

North Frisian

Noun

bi f

(Mooring) bee

Northern Kurdish

Etymology

From Proto-Iranian *pati-.

Pronunciation

Rhymes: -ɪ

Preposition

bi

by
with

Nzadi

Pronoun

bǐ

we (first-person plural pronoun)

Old Dutch

Etymology

From Proto-West Germanic *bī.

Preposition

bī

by, near
at, with

Descendants

Middle Dutch: bi
- Dutch: bij
- Limburgish: bie

Old English

Alternative forms

be

Etymology

From Proto-West Germanic *bī (“near, by, around, about”).

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /biː/

Preposition

bī

about (concerning)
by, in various senses:
1. near or next to
2. not later than
3. based on, according to

Descendants

Middle English: by, be, bi
- English: by
- Scots: by, bye, bi', be, b'
- Yola: bee, bie, be, by

Old High German

Etymology

From Proto-West Germanic *bī, from Proto-Germanic *bi, whence also Old English bi.

Preposition

bī

by
at

Descendants

Alemannic German:
- Alsatian: bii
German: bei
Vilamovian: by
Yiddish: בײַ‎ (bay)

Old Saxon

Etymology

From Proto-West Germanic *bī, whence also Old English bi.

Preposition

bī

by, near, to
beside

Descendants

Low German: bi, by

Phalura

Etymology

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

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /bi/

Particle

bi (discourse, Perso-Arabic spelling بیۡ)

also, too
else, at all
even

References

Liljegren, Henrik; Haider, Naseem (2011) Palula Vocabulary (FLI Language and Culture Series; 7)‎, Islamabad, Pakistan: Forum for Language Initiatives, →ISBN

Portuguese

Pronunciation

(Brazil) IPA^(key): /ˈbi/

(Portugal) IPA^(key): /ˈbi/

Rhymes: -i

Adjective

bi (invariable)

bisexual (sexually attracted to persons of either sex)
Synonym: bissexual

Noun

bi m or f by sense (plural bis)

bisexual (bisexual person)
Synonym: bissexual

Sardinian

Etymology

From Latin ibi.

Pronoun

bi (adverbial)

there (at a place)
there, thither (to there)
Synonym: i, nche

Scots

Preposition

bi

by

Scottish Gaelic

Etymology

From Old Irish bí. Cognate with Irish bí and Manx bee.

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /pi/
Hyphenation: bi

Verb

bi (past bha, future bidh, verbal noun bhith)

(copulative) to be
(intransitive) to exist

Inflection

Conjugation of bi (highly irregular)

			singular			plural
			first	second	third m/f	first	second	third
independent	present		tha mi	tha thu	tha e/i	tha sinn	tha sibh	tha iad
	past		bha mi	bha thu	bha e/i	bha sinn	bha sibh	bha iad
	future	simple	bidh mi	bidh tu	bidh e/i	bidh sinn	bidh sibh	bidh iad
	future	emphatic	bithidh mi	bithidh tu	bithidh e/i	bithidh sinn	bithidh sibh	bithidh iad
	conditional	simple	bhithinn	bhiodh tu	bhiodh e/i	bhiodh sinn bhiomaid	bhiodh sibh	bhiodh iad
	conditional	emphatic	bhithinn	bhitheadh tu	bhitheadh e/i	bhitheadh sinn bhitheamaid	bhitheadh sibh	bhitheadh iad
negative	present		chan eil mi	chan eil thu	chan eil e/i	chan eil sinn	chan eil sibh	chan eil iad
	past		cha robh mi	cha robh thu	cha robh e/i	cha robh sinn	cha robh sibh	cha robh iad
	future		cha bhi mi	cha bhi thu	cha bhi e/i	cha bhi sinn	cha bhi sibh	cha bhi iad
	conditional	simple	cha bhithinn	cha bhiodh tu	cha bhiodh e/i	cha bhiodh sinn cha bhiomaid	cha bhiodh sibh	cha bhiodh iad
	conditional	emphatic	cha bhithinn	cha bhitheadh tu	cha bhitheadh e/i	cha bhitheadh sinn cha bhitheamaid	cha bhitheadh sibh	cha bhitheadh iad
affirmative interrogative	present		a bheil mi?	a bheil thu?	a bheil e/i?	a bheil sinn?	a bheil sibh?	a bheil iad?
	past		an robh mi?	an robh thu?	an robh e/i?	an robh sinn?	an robh sibh?	an robh iad?
	future		am bi mi?	am bi thu?	am bi e/i?	am bi sinn?	am bi sibh?	am bi iad?
	conditional	simple	am bithinn?	am biodh tu?	am biodh e/i?	am biodh sinn? am biomaid?	am biodh sibh?	am biodh iad?
	conditional	emphatic	am bithinn?	am bitheadh tu?	am bitheadh e/i?	am bitheadh sinn am bitheamaid?	am bitheadh sibh?	am bitheadh iad?
negative interrogative	present		nach eil mi?	nach eil thu?	nach eil e/i?	nach eil sinn?	nach eil sibh?	nach eil iad?
	past		nach robh mi?	nach robh thu?	nach robh e/i?	nach robh sinn?	nach robh sibh?	nach robh iad?
	future		nach bi mi?	nach bi thu?	nach bi e/i?	nach bi sinn?	nach bi sibh?	nach bi iad?
	conditional	simple	nach bithinn?	nach biodh tu?	nach biodh e/i?	nach biodh sinn? nach biomaid?	nach biodh sibh?	nach biodh iad?
	conditional	emphatic	nach bithinn?	nach bitheadh tu?	nach bitheadh e/i?	nach bitheadh sinn? nach bitheamaid?	nach bitheadh sibh?	nach bitheadh iad?
relative future		simple	(a) bhios mi	(a) bhios tu	(a) bhios e/i	(a) bhios sinn	(a) bhios sibh	(a) bhios iad
relative future		emphatic	(a) bhitheas mi	(a) bhitheas tu	(a) bhitheas e/i	(a) bhitheas sinn	(a) bhitheas sibh	(a) bhitheas iad
imperative		simple	bitheam	bi	biodh e/i	biomaid	bithibh	biodh iad
imperative		emphatic	bitheam	bi	bitheadh e/i	bitheamaid	bithibh	bitheadh iad
verbal noun			a bhith

Impersonal forms can be found at Template:gd-conj-thathar.

Conjugation of is (highly irregular, defective)

		singular			plural
		first	second	third m/f	first	second	third
independent	present	is mi	is tu	is e/i	is sinn	is sibh	is iad
	past	bu mhi	bu tu	b' e/i	bu sinn	bu sibh	b' iad
	conditional	bu mhi	bu tu	b' e/i	bu sinn	bu sibh	b' iad
negative	present	cha mhi	cha tu	chan e/i	cha sinn	cha sibh	chan iad
	past	cha bu mhi	cha bu tu	cha b' e/i	cha bu sinn	cha bu sibh	cha b' iad
	conditional	cha bu mhi	cha bu tu	cha b' e/i	cha bu sinn	cha bu sibh	cha b' iad
affirmative interrogative	present	am mi?	an tu?	an e/i?	an sinn?	an sibh?	an iad?
	past	am bu mhi?	am bu tu?	am b' e/i?	am bu sinn?	am bu sibh?	am b' iad?
	conditional	am bu mhi?	am bu tu?	am b' e/i?	am bu sinn?	am bu sibh?	am b' iad?
Negative interrogative	present	nach mi?	nach tu?	nach e/i?	nach sinn?	nach sibh?	nach iad?
	past	nach bu mhi?	nach bu tu?	nach b' e/i?	nach bu sinn?	nach bu sibh?	nach b' iad?
	conditional	nach bu mhi?	nach bu tu?	nach b' e/i?	nach bu sinn?	nach bu sibh?	nach b' iad?

Conjugation of thathar (highly irregular, defective, impersonal)

	Present	Past	Future	Conditional
Independent	thathar, thatar, thathas	bhathar, bhatar, bhathas	bithear, bitear, bitheas	bhite(adh), bhithist(e)*
Negative	chan eilear, chan eileas	cha robhas, cha robhar	cha bithear, cha bitear, cha bitheas	cha bhite(adh), cha bhithist(e)*
Affirmative interrogative	am beilear? am beileas? a bheilear? a bheileas?	an robhas? an robhar?	am bithear? am biteas?	am bite(adh)? am bithist(e)?*
Negative interrogative	nach eilear? nach eileas?	nach robhas? nach robhar?	nach bithear? nach bitear? nach bitheas?	nach bite(adh)? nach bithist(e)?*

* Lewis dialect form

Related terms

beò

Mutation

Scottish Gaelic mutation
Radical	Lenition
bi	bhi
Note: Some of these forms may be hypothetical. Not every possible mutated form of every word actually occurs.

References

Colin Mark (2003), “bi”, in The Gaelic-English dictionary, London: Routledge, →ISBN, page 75
Edward Dwelly (1911), “bi”, in Faclair Gàidhlig gu Beurla le Dealbhan [The Illustrated Gaelic–English Dictionary], 10th edition, Edinburgh: Birlinn Limited, →ISBN

Serbo-Croatian

Verb

bi

second-person singular aorist of biti
On bi tamo jučer. (archaic)
He was there yesterday.
third-person singular aorist of biti
On bi u školi tad. (archaic)
She was at school then.
(colloquial, conditional) aorist of biti; would
Ja bi također išao da mogu. ― I would go as well if I could.
Je li bi htio ići s nama? ― Would you like to go with us?
Ivana bi htjela ići s nama. ― Ivana would like to go with us.
Mi/Oni bi voljeli jednog dana posjetiti Japan. ― We/They would like to visit Japan one day.
Voljeli bi jednog dana posjetiti Japan. ― We/They would like to visit Japan one day.

Usage notes

In colloquial Serbo-Croatian, bi is commonly used in place of other aorist forms when forming conditional of biti in both singular and plural if the subject is deducible from context (usually from the conjugated form of the verb). That is, bi is a shared shorthand for bih, bismo, biste and biše.

Solon

Etymology

From Proto-Tungusic *bi. Cognate with Evenki би (bi), Manchu ᠪᡳ (bi).

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /bi/

Pronoun

bi

I

Southern Ndebele

Etymology

From Proto-Bantu *-bɪ́ɪ̀.

Adjective

-bí

bad
evil
ugly

Inflection

This adjective needs an inflection-table template.

Spanish

Adjective

bi (invariable)

bi (bisexual)

Swazi

Etymology

From Proto-Bantu *-bɪ́ɪ̀.

Adjective

-bí

bad
evil
ugly

Inflection

Adjective concord, tone H
	Modifier	Copulative
1st singular	lengimubi	ngimubi
2nd singular	lomubi	umubi
1st plural	lesibabi	sibabi
2nd plural	lenibabi	nibabi
Class 1	lomubi	mubi
Class 2	lababi	babi
Class 3	lomubi	mubi
Class 4	lemibi	mibi
Class 5	lelibi	libi
Class 6	lamabi	mabi
Class 7	lesibi	sibi
Class 8	letimbi	timbi
Class 9	lembi	imbi
Class 10	letimbi	timbi
Class 11	lolubi	lubi
Class 14	lobubi	bubi
Class 15	lokubi	kubi
Class 17	lokubi	kubi

Swedish

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /biː/
Rhymes: -iː

Etymology 1

From Old Swedish bī, bȳ, from Old Norse bý, from Proto-Germanic *bijō, from Proto-Indo-European *bʰī-.

Noun

bi n

bee

Usage notes

More rare spellings of the definite forms are bit/bits (singular) and bien/biens (plural). However, the spellings in the inflection box are the most common.

Declension

Declension of bi
	Singular		Plural
	Indefinite	Definite	Indefinite	Definite
Nominative	bi	biet	bin	bina
Genitive	bis	biets	bins	binas

Derived terms

bikupa
bisvärm

Adjective

bi

(informal) bisexual

Adverb

bi (not comparable)

(in some fixed expressions) by
lyckan står den djärve bi
fortune favors the bold
(literally, “fortune stands by the brave”)

Related terms

stå någon bi

Teke-Tyee

Noun

bi (plural mabi)

egg

Tok Pisin

Etymology

From English bee.

Noun

bi

bee

Turkish

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /bi/

Adjective

bi

Alternative spelling of bi'

Adverb

bi

Alternative spelling of bi'

Numeral

bi

Alternative spelling of bi'

Vietnamese

Pronunciation

(Hà Nội) IPA^(key): [ʔɓi˧˧]
(Huế) IPA^(key): [ʔɓɪj˧˧]
(Hồ Chí Minh City) IPA^(key): [ʔɓɪj˧˧]

Etymology 1

Sino-Vietnamese word from 悲.

Adjective

bi

(only in compounds) sad; sorrowful

Etymology 2

Borrowed from French bille.

Noun

(classifier cục, hòn, viên) bi

a marble (spherical ball)
bắn bi ― to shoot marbles
(billiards, snooker) a ball
bi cái ― a cue ball
(slang) a ball (testicle)
Á! Dập bi tao rồi!
Ow! My bawlls popped!

Volapük

Conjunction

bi

because

Welsh

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /biː/
Rhymes: -iː

Noun

bi f (plural biau)

The name of the Latin-script letter B.

Mutation

This word cannot be mutated.

Xhosa

Etymology

From Proto-Bantu *-bɪ́ɪ̀.

Adjective

-bí

bad
evil
ugly

Inflection

Adjective concord, tone H
	Modifier		Copulative
	positive	negative	positive	negative
1st singular	endimbi	endingembi	ndimbi	andimbi
2nd singular	ombi	ongembi	umbi	awumbi
1st plural	esibabi	esingebabi	sibabi	asibabi
2nd plural	enibabi	eningebabi	nibabi	anibabi
Class 1	ombi	ongembi	mbi	akambi
Class 2	ababi	abangebabi	babi	abababi
Class 3	ombi	ongembi	mbi	awumbi
Class 4	emibi	engemibi	mibi	ayimibi
Class 5	elibi	elingelibi	libi	alilibi
Class 6	amabi	angemabi	mabi	awamabi
Class 7	esibi	esingesibi	sibi	asisibi
Class 8	ezimbi	ezingezimbi	zimbi	azizimbi
Class 9	embi	engembi	imbi	ayiyimbi
Class 10	ezimbi	ezingezimbi	zimbi	azizimbi
Class 11	olubi	olungelubi	lubi	alulubi
Class 14	obubi	obungebubi	bubi	abububi
Class 15	okubi	okungekubi	kubi	akukubi
Class 17	okubi	okungekubi	kubi	akukubi

Yoruba

Pronunciation

(high-tone): IPA^(key): /bí/
(mid-tone): IPA^(key): /bī/
(low-tone): IPA^(key): /bì/

Noun

bí

The name of the Latin-script letter B.

Conjunction

bí

(conditional) if

Derived terms

bí ẹnipé

Conjunction

bí

(subordinating conjunction) how
Wọ́n kọ́ wa bí a ti lè ṣe é.
They taught us how to do it.
Alternative spelling of bíi (“like, as”)

Conjunction

bí

when, as soon as
Bí a ti jáde ni wọ́n dé.
As soon as we left, they arrived.

Conjunction

bí

subordinating conjunction used solely with intensifiers such as àfi, àyàmọ̀, àyàṣe, and àdàmọ̀

Particle

bí

question marker that can be used at the end of a yes-no question
Ẹ̀yin lọ bí? ― Did you go?

Etymology 7

Cognate with Igala bí (“to give birth to”)

Alternative forms

bẹ́ (Ìjẹ̀bú)

Verb

bí

(transitive) to give birth to
Ọmọ mẹ́rin l'ó bí.
She gave birth to four children.
(intransitive) to increase

Derived terms

Àbíbá
Abídèmí
àbígbẹ̀yìn
Àbíìbá
àbíìkọ́
Àbíkẹ́
àbíkú
abínibí
Abíọ́dún
Abíọ́lá
Abíọ̀nà
Abíọ́sẹ̀
àkọ́bí
bíbí
bímọ
ẹbí
ìbí
Ìbídùnmóyè
Ìbídùnọ̀únní
Ìbíkúnlórí
obí
òbí
ọmọ bíbí

Verb

bí

(with inú) to be angry
Synonym: bínú
Inú ń bí mi ― I'm angry

Derived terms

bínú (“to be angry”)

Etymology 9

Likely cognate with Igala bi (“to beg for; to pray for”)

Verb

bi

(transitive) to ask, to interrogate
Mo bi í nípa àwọn ọ̀rẹ́ rẹ̀.
I asked him about his friends.

Derived terms

bi léèrè
bèèrè

Verb

bi

(transitive) to push, to jostle

Verb

bi

(transitive) to cause one to gain an evil reward for a prior evil committed

Verb

bì

(transitive) to vomit, to throw up
Synonyms: dà, pọ̀

Verb

bi

Alternative form of bì (“to vomit”) used before object nouns
Ó ti bi oúnjẹ rẹ̀.
He's thrown up his food.

Derived terms

bíbì, èbíbì, èébì, ìbì

Verb

bì

(intransitive) to sway, to push back

Zaghawa

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /bi/

Noun

bi

water

References

Ehret, Christopher (2001) A Historical-Comparative Reconstruction of Nilo-Saharan (SUGIA, Sprache und Geschichte in Afrika: Beihefte; 12)‎, Cologne: Rüdiger Köppe Verlag, →ISBN, ISSN 0720-0986.
Beria-English English-Beria Dictionary [provisional] ADESK, Iriba, Kobe Department, Chad

Zhuang

Pronunciation

(Standard Zhuang) IPA^(key): /pi˨˦/

Tone numbers: bi¹

Hyphenation: bi

Etymology 1

From Proto-Tai *piːᴬ (“year”). Cognate with Thai ปี (bpii), Northern Thai ᨸᩦ, Lao ປີ (pī), Lü ᦔᦲ (ṗii), Shan ပီ (pǐi), Tai Nüa ᥙᥤ (pi), Phake ပီ (pī), Ahom 𑜆𑜣 (pī), Bouyei bil.

Classifier

bi (Sawndip forms 𭯌 or 𭽨 or 𭙂, 1957–1982 spelling bi)

year
Synonym: nienz
year old

Derived terms

bide
bigeq
bi'gyai
bi'gyaihaenx
bihaenx
bimoq
binaengz
bineix
bi'nyinh
birawz
biriengh
hopbi

Etymology 2

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

Verb

bi (1957–1982 spelling bi)

(intransitive) to swing; to sway; to rock
(transitive) to swing; to rock; to wag
to swing (on a swing)

Zou

Etymology

From Proto-Kuki-Chin *ɓuu, from Proto-Sino-Tibetan *pru(w). Cognates include Mandarin 胞 (bāo, “womb”).

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /bǐ/
Hyphenation: bi

Noun

bí

nest

References

Philip Thanglienmang (2014), “Zou Tonology”, in Indian Linguistics, volume 75, issue 1-2, ISSN 0378-0759

Zulu

Etymology

From Proto-Bantu *-bɪ́ɪ̀.

Adjective

-bí

bad
evil
ugly

Inflection

Adjective concord, tone H
	Modifier		Copulative
	positive	negative	positive	negative
1st singular	engimubi	engingemubi	ngimubi	angimubi
2nd singular	omubi	ongemubi	umubi	awumubi
1st plural	esibabi	esingebabi	sibabi	asibabi
2nd plural	enibabi	eningebabi	nibabi	anibabi
Class 1	omubi	ongemubi	mubi	akamubi
Class 2	ababi	abangebabi	babi	abababi
Class 3	omubi	ongemubi	mubi	awumubi
Class 4	emibi	engemibi	mibi	ayimibi
Class 5	elibi	elingelibi	libi	alilibi
Class 6	amabi	angemabi	mabi	awamabi
Class 7	esibi	esingesibi	sibi	asisibi
Class 8	ezimbi	ezingezimbi	zimbi	azizimbi
Class 9	embi	engembi, engeyimbi	imbi, yimbi	ayiyimbi
Class 10	ezimbi	ezingezimbi	zimbi	azizimbi
Class 11	olubi	olungelubi	lubi	alulubi
Class 14	obubi	obungebubi	bubi	abububi
Class 15	okubi	okungekubi	kubi	akukubi
Class 17	okubi	okungekubi	kubi	akukubi

Derived terms

-bana
isibi
okubi
ububi

[Niemoeller-1] A. F. Niemoeller, "A Glossary of Homosexual Slang," Fact 2, no. 1 (Jan-Feb 1965): 25

[2] “bi” in Etymological Dictionary of Basque by R. L. Trask, sussex.ac.uk

[3] Mitxelena, Koldo L. (1961) Fonética histórica vasca [Basque Historical Phonetics] (Obras completas de Luis Michelena; 1) (in Spanish), Diputación Foral de Guipuzkoa, published 1990, →ISBN, page 413

[4] Orduña A., Eduardo (2011), “Los numerales ibéricos y el protovasco [Iberian numerals and Proto-Basque]”, in Veleia‎ (in Spanish), volume 28, pages 125–139

bi

Translingual

Symbol

English

Etymology 1

Pronunciation

Adjective

Translations

Noun

Translations

Derived terms

See also

Etymology 2

Alternative forms

Pronunciation

Noun

See also

References

Anagrams

Aiwoo

Etymology

Verb

References

Albanian

Etymology

Interjection

Related terms

Bambara

Noun

See also

Basque

Alternative forms

Etymology

Pronunciation

Numeral

Usage notes

Declension

References

Further reading

Bislama

Etymology

Noun

Borôro

Verb

Bura

Pronunciation

Noun

References

Danish

Pronunciation

Etymology 1

Noun

Inflection

See also

Etymology 2

Adverb

Usage notes

Etymology 3

Verb

Dongxiang

Etymology

Pronunciation

Pronoun

Drung

Etymology

Verb

References

Dutch

Etymology

Pronunciation

Adjective

Finnish

Etymology

Pronunciation

Noun

Declension

French

Etymology

Pronunciation

Noun