om

See also: Appendix:Variations of "om"

Translingual

Symbol

om

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

See also

• Wiktionary's coverage of Oromo terms

English

Om

Etymology 1

Learned borrowing from Sanskrit ओम् (om) (symbol ॐ (oṃ)). The former (om) is used in both Buddhist and Hindu settings, while the latter (aum) is usually used only in Jain and Hindu settings.

Alternative forms

• aum

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /ɒm/, /əʊm/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /oʊm/

• Audio (Southern England):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -əʊm, -ɒm

Noun

om (plural oms)

1. (Hinduism, Buddhism) A sacred, mystical syllable used in prayer and meditation.
   • 1982, Lawrence Durrell, Constance (Avignon Quintet), Faber & Faber, published 2004, page 800:

     In fact it sounded exactly like the voice of Livia, her vanished sister, and, like her, it was intoning the Aum just as she used once to do at the beginning of her yoga sessions.

   • 2001 October 20, Hazel Curry, The Guardian:

     Om is pronounced "a-a-o-o-u-u-m-m" and is repeated slowly for as long as possible.

Derived terms

• om mani padme hum
• Om Namah Shivaya

Translations

sacred syllable

• Assamese: ওঁ (ü̃)
• Bengali: ওঁ (bn) (ō̃)
• Burmese: ဥုံ (my)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 唵 (zh) (ǎn)

• Dzongkha: ཨོཾ (oṃ)
• Gujarati: ૐ (oṃ)
• Hindi: ॐ (hi) (om), ओम (om)
• Ho: 𑣿
• Indonesian: aum (id)
• Kannada: ಓಂ (ōṃ)
• Korean: 옴(唵) (om)
• Malay: ong (ms)
• Malayalam: ഓം (ml) (ōṁ)
• Sanskrit: ॐ (sa) (oṃ)
• Tamil: ஓம் (ta) (ōm)
• Tangut: 𗙫 (*ꞏa)
• Telugu: ఓం (te) (ōṁ)
• Thai: โอม (th) (oom)
• Tibetan: ཨོཾ (oṃ)
• Urdu: اوم m (om)
• Vietnamese: úm (唵)

Verb

om (third-person singular simple present oms, present participle omming, simple past and past participle ommed)

1. (intransitive) To chant the sacred syllable om.
   • 1996, Nora Sayre, Sixties Going on Seventies, page 14:

     Allen Ginsberg omming like a death rattle, his voice ravaged by the days of Hindu chants and gas.

   • 2015, Hilary H. Carter, Number Woman:

     I had to go into church to clear it by chanting the sacred mantra 'Om'. I was omming, loudly and intensely so that the vibration of that sacred mantra would fill every corner.

Etymology 2

Clipping.

Interjection

om

1. (Can we verify⁽⁺⁾ this sense?) (colloquial) Clipping of nom.

Usage notes

Usually seen in the phrase om nom nom.

See also

• tiddly-om-pom-pom

Anagrams

• M.O., mo., mo', m/o, -mo, Mo., MO, Mo, mo, m.o.

Aromanian

Etymology

From Latin homō.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [om]

Noun

om m (plural oaminj)

1. man, person

Derived terms

• niom
• omã, oamã
• uminilji
• uminiri
• uminescu

See also

• bãrbat

Catalan

om

Alternative forms

• orm (Valencia)
• olm

Etymology

From older olm, from Latin ulmus (compare French orme, Spanish olmo). First attested in 1150.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): (Central, Balearic, Valencia) [ˈom]

• Audio:

  (file)

Noun

om m (plural oms)

1. elm (tree)
2. elm (wood)

Further reading

• “om” in Diccionari de la llengua catalana, segona edició, Institut d’Estudis Catalans.
• “om” in Diccionari normatiu valencià, Acadèmia Valenciana de la Llengua.
• “om” in Diccionari català-valencià-balear, Antoni Maria Alcover and Francesc de Borja Moll, 1962.
• “om”, in Gran Diccionari de la Llengua Catalana, Grup Enciclopèdia Catalana, 2024

Central Franconian

Etymology 1

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /om/

Contraction

om

1. (most dialects) Contraction of op/of däm (“on the”).

Etymology 2

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ɔm/

Contraction

om

1. (parts of Eifel) Contraction of on däm (“in the”).

Alternative forms

• öm (some other Eifel dialects)
• em (most dialects)

Chickasaw

Adjective

om

1. on

Chuukese

Determiner

om

1. Alternative spelling of omw (“your”)

Related terms

Chuukese possessive determiners

		Small objects, concepts	Large objects, living things	Suffix
Singular	First person	ai	nei	-ei
	Second person	omw, om	noum	-om
	Third person	an	noun	-an
Plural	First person	äm (exclusive) ach (inclusive)	nöu̇m (exclusive) nöüch (inclusive)	-em (exclusive) -ach (inclusive)
	Second person	ämi, ami	noumi	-emi
	Third person	ar	nour	-er

Danish

Etymology 1

From Old Norse um, from Proto-Germanic *umbi. Cognate with German um (“about”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ˈʌmˀ, ʌm]
• Rhymes: -ɒm

Preposition

om

1. about

   Han viklede dem om sin lillefinger.

   He wrapped them around his pinky finger.

References

• “om,3” in Den Danske Ordbog

Adverb

om

1. such that something changes orientation or has its orientation changed
2. such that something moves or is moved to the far side of something
   • 2015, Karsten H Petersen, To mus på tur: en julekalender og en påskekalender, BoD – Books on Demand, →ISBN:

     De skal om på den mørke side af kirken.

     They are going to the dark side of the church.

3. such that something is surrounded
   • 2016, Ole Henrik Laub, Hovedrollen, Lindhardt og Ringhof, →ISBN:

     Vred kluden op, vaskede fingeren, viklede papir om og begyndte igen at skrælle kartofler.

     Wrung the rag, washed the finger, wrapped paper around [it] and resumed peeling potatoes.

4. in changing, goalless directions
   • 2017, Hjalmar Söderberg (Translated by Jørgen Årup Hansen), Doktor Glas, Gyldendal A/S →ISBN, page 28

     ... hvor længe skal jeg flakke om i denne gådernes og drømmenes og de uransagelige fænomeners verden?

     ... for how long must I wander about in this world of the riddles, the dreams and the inscrutable phenomena?

5. again, returning to the beginning (whence ommer, om igen, tro om igen)
   • 2014, Dennis Jürgensen, Måske, Tellerup A/S, →ISBN:

     „Nej. Hvis du tror jeg vil se passivt til, mens du ødelægger din mands og dit eget liv med dette martyrium, så må du tro om ...“

     "No. If you think I intend to look on passively while you destroy your husband's and your own life with this martyrium, you will have to think again ..."

   • 2016, Terje Nordberg, Det må godt føles rart, Lindhardt og Ringhof, →ISBN:

     Jo, jeg har da haft mine nu'er, men hvis jeg skulle gøre det hele om, ville jeg sørge for at have mange flere af dem.

     Sure, I have had my nows, but if I had to do it all again, I would make sure to have many more of them.

   • 2017, Morten Sabroe, Love Me Do, Politikens Forlag, →ISBN:

     Han skrev den om tre gange.

     He rewrote it three times.

6. such that something is changed (whence lave om
   • 2017, Sacha Batthyany (Translated by Uffe Gardel), Og hvad har det med mig at gøre, Art People →ISBN

     Men verdenskrisen i 1929 lukkede fabrikken, og indenrigsministeriet overtog den og byggede den om til et fængsel.

     But the world crisis in 1929 closed down the factory, and the ministry of internal affairs took it and rebuilt it into a prison.

7. going forwards in a book or similar, reaching some page
   • 2014, Lene Dybdahl, Nøglens Vogtere #2: Visigotens Hjelm, Tellerup A/S, →ISBN:

     Consuela bladrede langsomt om på indholdsfortegnelsen.

     Slowly, Consuela turned the pages till she reached the table of contents.

8. such that something rotates or revolves (either of its own accord or by external influence)

   Hun vendte sig om og så på ham.

   She turned and looked at him.

References

• “om,1” in Den Danske Ordbog

Etymology 2

From Old Danish ef, em, um, from Old Norse ef, from Proto-Germanic *jabai (“when, if”). Cognate with English if, German ob (“if”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ʌm]

Conjunction

om

1. whether (introducing an indirect question)

   Jeg skulle spørge om du havde fem minutter.

   I have been asked to ask [you] if you have five minutes.

2. (formal) if (introducing a conditional clause)

   Fjern om nødvendigt jorden.

   If necessary, remove the dirt.

   Om du bare ville lytte, skal jeg forklare alt.

   If only you would listen, I shall explain everything.

3. if (introducing a concessive clause)

   Hun var om ikke død, så i hvert fald stærkt såret.

   She was, if not dead, then at least seriously wounded.

4. even if
   • 2013, Gyldendal, Breve hjem: Danske soldater i Første Verdenskrig, Gyldendal A/S →ISBN

     ... men du, jeg vil have den; før holder jeg ikke op, om så jeg skal med i en krig til.

     ... but hey, I want [a medal]; I shall not stop before [getting it], even if I shall have to go to another war.

5. if only (introducing a wish)

Synonyms

• (whether): hvorvidt
• (if): hvis
• (irrespective of): selvom, uagtet, på trods af
• (desire): bare, gid

References

• “om,2” in Den Danske Ordbog

Dutch

Etymology

From Middle Dutch ombe, omme, from Old Dutch umbi, umbe, from Proto-West Germanic *umbi.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ɔm/

• Audio:

  (file)

Preposition

om

1. around, about
2. at (a time)

   Ik sta om vijf uur buiten. ― I'll be outside at five.

3. for (some purpose or object), concerning

   Synonyms: over, voor

   Zij vochten om de macht. ― They fought for power.

Declension

Pronominal adverbs of om

preposition	om
postpositional adv.	om
+ het (it)	erom
+ dit (this)	hierom
+ dat (that)	daarom
+ wat (what)	waarom
+ iets (something)	ergens om
+ niets (nothing)	nergens om
+ alles (everything)	overal om

Derived terms

• daarom
• omdat
• waarom

 

Adverb

om

1. around, about
2. around, over (to another state)

   Hij zette de schakelaar om. ― He turned the switch over.

3. over, from an upright to a horizontal position (as in "fall over")

Derived terms

• achterom
• andersom
• omheen
• omtrek
• omweg

 

Related terms

• om-

Descendants

• Afrikaans: om

Conjunction

om

1. (om te) in order to; shortening of om te

   Ik ga naar de winkel om boodschappen te kopen.

   I am going to the shop to buy some groceries.

Adjective

om (used only predicatively, not comparable)

1. convinced, persuaded

   De rechter is om.

   The judge has been persuaded.

   (literally, “The judge is over.”)

2. up; over; gone (time)

   Je tijd is om.

   Your time is up.

Friulian

Alternative forms

• omp

Etymology

From Latin homō.

Noun

om m (plural oms) or umign

1. man, person
2. husband

Synonyms

• (husband): marît, cristian

See also

• femine

Indonesian

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ˈɔm]
• Hyphenation: om

Etymology 1

From Sanskrit ओं (oṃ) or औं (auṃ) or ॐ (oṃ). Cognate with Balinese ᬒᬁ.

Interjection

om

1. (Hinduism, Buddhism) om: a sacred, mystical syllable used in prayer and meditation.

Etymology 2

From Dutch oom (“uncle”), from Middle Dutch oom, from Old Dutch *ōm, from Proto-Germanic *awahaimaz (“maternal uncle”), from Proto-Indo-European *h₂éwh₂os (“maternal uncle, maternal grandfather”).

Noun

om (first-person possessive omku, second-person possessive ommu, third-person possessive omnya)

1. (colloquial) uncle (The brother or brother-in-law of one’s parent)
2. (colloquial) uncle (form of address to a man by young people or children)

Further reading

• “om” in Kamus Besar Bahasa Indonesia, Jakarta: Agency for Language Development and Cultivation – Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology of the Republic of Indonesia, 2016.

Middle Dutch

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /om/

Preposition

om

1. Alternative form of omme

Adverb

om

1. Alternative form of omme

Norwegian Bokmål

Etymology

From Old Norse um, from Proto-Germanic *umbi (“around, about”).

• As a conjunction, um superseded or blended with Old Norse ef and em, taking on their function as well. This is from Proto-Germanic *jabai (“when, if”), whence also English if and German ob.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ɔm/

Preposition

om

1. around

   Bind et rep om halsen hans! (Tie a rope around his neck!)

2. (when speaking of time) in (after a period of time)

   Jeg kommer om ti minutter. (I shall be there in ten minutes)

3. about

   Vi snakket nettopp om deg. (We were just talking about you)

4. during, in (with words for seasons or times of the day)

   om våren

   during the spring, in the springtime

   om kvelden

   in the evening

Conjunction

om

1. whether

   De spurte om jeg ville komme. (They asked whether I would come.)

Derived terms

• selv om

See also

• om-

References

• “om” in The Bokmål Dictionary.

Norwegian Nynorsk

Etymology 1

From the earlier, Old Norse preposition um, from Proto-Germanic *umbi (“around, about”), from Proto-Indo-European *h₂m̥bʰi (“by, around”), from earlier *h₂ntbʰi, instrumental case form to *h₂énts (“face”). Doublet of ambi- and amfi.

• As a conjunction, um superseded or blended with Old Norse ef and em, taking on their function as well. This is from Proto-Germanic *jabai (“when, if”), whence also English if and German ob.

Alternative forms

• um (non-standard since 1938)

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ʊm/, /ɔm/

Preposition

om

1. around

   Bind eit reip om halsen på han!

   Tie a rope around his neck!

2. in (when speaking of time) (after a period of time)

   Eg kjem om ti minutt.

   I shall be there in ten minutes

3. in (with words for seasons or times of the day)

   om våren

   in the spring, in the springtime

   om kvelden

   in the evening

4. about

   Me snakka nettopp om deg.

   We were just talking about you

5. via

   Me køyrde til Bergen om Hardanger

   We drove to Bergen via Hardanger

Derived terms

• attom
• kringom
• utom
• om-

Norwegian Nynorsk terms prefixed with om-

Conjunction

om

1. whether, if

Derived terms

• om enn
• som om

Adverb

om

1. (dialectal, Rogaland) Used to introduce yes-no-questions.

   Om du har sjokolade?

   Do you have chocolate?

Etymology 2

Compare with Old Norse ómun f (“voice”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /uːm/
• Homophones: ohm, óm

Noun

om m (definite singular omen, indefinite plural omar, definite plural omane)

1. a weak sound
2. reverberation

Derived terms

• oma, óma, ome, óme (verb)

References

• “om” in The Nynorsk Dictionary.

Anagrams

• mo, mò, Mo, óm

Old French

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /um/

Noun

om m

1. Alternative form of hom

Old Irish

Etymology

From Proto-Celtic *omos (compare Welsh of), from Proto-Indo-European *h₂eh₃mós.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [oβ̃]

Adjective

om

1. raw

Inflection

o/ā-stem
Singular	Masculine	Feminine	Neuter
Nominative	om	om	om
Vocative	oim* om**
Accusative	om	oim
Genitive	oim	oime	oim
Dative	om	oim	om
Plural	Masculine	Feminine/neuter
Nominative	oim	oma
Vocative	omu oma†
Accusative	omu oma†
Genitive	om
Dative	omaib
Notes	*modifying a noun whose vocative is different from its nominative **modifying a noun whose vocative is identical to its nominative † not when substantivized

Descendants

• Middle Irish: om
  • Irish: amh
  • Scottish Gaelic: amh
  • Manx: aw

Mutation

Mutation of om

radical	lenition	nasalization
om (pronounced with /h/ in h-prothesis environments)	unchanged	n-om

Note: Certain mutated forms of some words can never occur in Old Irish.
All possible mutated forms are displayed for convenience.

Further reading

• Gregory Toner, Sharon Arbuthnot, Máire Ní Mhaonaigh, Marie-Luise Theuerkauf, Dagmar Wodtko, editors (2019), “om”, in eDIL: Electronic Dictionary of the Irish Language

Old Occitan

Noun

om m (oblique plural oms, nominative singular oms, nominative plural om)

1. Alternative form of ome

Polish

Alternative forms

• ohm

Etymology

Named after the German physicist Georg Ohm.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈɔm/

• Audio:

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɔm
• Syllabification: om

Noun

om m inan

1. ohm

Declension

Declension of om

	singular	plural
nominative	om	omy
genitive	oma	omów
dative	omowi	omom
accusative	om	omy
instrumental	omem	omami
locative	omie	omach
vocative	omie	omy

Further reading

• om in Polish dictionaries at PWN

Romanian

om

Alternative forms

• omu — archaic

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈom/

• Audio:

  (file)

Etymology 1

Inherited from Latin homō (nominative). The plural reflects Latin hominēs.

Noun

om m (plural oameni)

1. (dated) man (male)

   Synonym: bărbat

2. (regardless of gender) human

   Synonyms: ființă umană, persoană

Declension

	singular			plural
	indefinite	definite		indefinite	definite
nominative-accusative	om	omul		oameni	oamenii
genitive-dative	om	omului		oameni	oamenilor
vocative	omule			oamenilor

Antonyms

• neom

Derived terms

• omenesc
• omeni
• omenie
• omenire
• omenos

Related terms

• inuman
• neuman
• uman

Etymology 2

Auxiliary verb form

Verb

(noi) om (modal auxiliary, first-person plural form of vrea, used with infinitives to form presumptive tenses)

1. (we) might

   om merge mâine undeva

   we might go somewhere tomorrow

References

• om in DEX online—Dicționare ale limbii române (Dictionaries of the Romanian language)

Swedish

Etymology

From Old Norse um, from Proto-Germanic *umbi, from Proto-Indo-European *h₂m̥bʰi.

• As a conjunction, um superseded or blended with Old Norse ef and em, taking on their function as well. This is from Proto-Germanic *jabai (“when, if”), whence also English if and German ob.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ɔm/

• Audio:

  (file)

Conjunction

om

1. if

Preposition

om

1. about

   en bok om tåg

   a book about trains

   Vi har pratat om dig

   We have talked about you

   Vad pratar de om?

   What are they talking about?

2. in, within (when talking about time)

   om tio minuter

   in ten minutes

   Vem kan komma på festen jag ska ha om en vecka?

   Who can come to the party I will have in a week?

3. around

   Han har ett rep om sin hals

   He's got a rope around his neck

   De flyttade om möblerna

   They moved the furniture around

   Kocken rörde om i grytan

   The chef stirred (moved around) the pan

4. during, in (with words for seasons or times of the day)

   om våren

   during the spring, in the springtime

   om kvällarna

   in the evenings

5. a (only when speaking about frequencies); per

   Han röker fem cigaretter om dagen

   He smokes five cigarettes a day

   Jag jobbar nästan alla dagar om året

   I work nearly every day of the year

   De reser till Finland två gånger om året

   They go to Finland twice a year

6. of

   till vänster om kylskåpet

   to the left of the refrigerator

   norr om staden

   north of the city

   Ta hand om det!

   Take care of it!

Derived terms

• bry sig om
• förutom
• om och men
• tycka om
• utom
• året om
• även om

 

Particle

om

1. Specifies that a verb is done again; compare English re-.

   Hon målade om huset

   She repainted the house

   Sara blev tvungen att göra om läxorna

   Sara had to redo her homework

Related terms

• om-

References

• om in Svensk ordbok (SO)
• om in Svenska Akademiens ordlista (SAOL)
• om in Svenska Akademiens ordbok (SAOB)

Anagrams

• mo

Ternate

Etymology

From the older omu, with word-final vowel deletion.

Verb

om

1. (stative) alternative form of omu (“ripe”)

Conjugation

Conjugation of om
	Singular	Plural
	Inclusive	Exclusive
1st	toom	foom	miom
2nd	noom	niom
3rd	Masculine	oom	iom, yoom†
Feminine	moom
Neuter	iom
† - archaic

References

• Rika Hayami-Allen (2001) A descriptive study of the language of Ternate, the northern Moluccas, Indonesia, University of Pittsburgh

Tocharian B

Adverb

om

1. Alternative form of omp (“there”)

Vietnamese

(1)

Pronunciation

• (Hà Nội) IPA^(key): [ʔɔm˧˧]
• (Huế) IPA^(key): [ʔɔm˧˧]
• (Saigon) IPA^(key): [ʔɔm˧˧]

Etymology 1

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

Verb

om • (𤋾, 堷)

1. (cooking) to simmer

   om cá ― to simmer fish

   om chuối ― to cook (with) banana

   nồi om ― a pot for simmering

Etymology 2

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

Adjective

om • (𫇌, 𬛯, 𦽔, 𫉮)

1. pitch-dark; pitch-black; very much (esp. dark)

   Trời tối om. ― It's pitch dark (outside).

Etymology 3

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

Verb

om • (喑)

1. to make a noise

   Ngày nay, khi nói tới đàn bầu thì người ta nghĩ ngay tới cái bầu, có hình như bầu rượu, được gắn vào cần đàn để om tiếng.

   Today, when talking about the dan bau, people immediately think of a gourd, shaped like a wine gourd, attached to the neck of the instrument to make sounds.

Volapük

Pronoun

om (plural oms)

1. he (third-person masculine)
   • 1952, Arie de Jong, Diatek nulik: Gospul ma ‚Matthaeus’. Kapit: I:

     Omotof soni, keli onemol Yesusi; om ga olelivükom pöpi de sinods onik.

     She will give birth to a son and you must name him Jesus, because he is the one who is to save his people from their sins.

2. (obsolete) it (third-person neuter)

Declension

    declension of om

	singular	plural
nominative	om	oms
genitive	oma	omas
dative	ome	omes
accusative	omi	omis

West Frisian

Etymology

From Old Frisian umbe, from Proto-Germanic *umbi, from Proto-Indo-European *h₂m̥bʰi.

Preposition

om

1. around, about
2. about, regarding

Further reading

• “om (I)”, in Wurdboek fan de Fryske taal (in Dutch), 2011

Adverb

om

1. around, about

Further reading

• “om (I)”, in Wurdboek fan de Fryske taal (in Dutch), 2011

Zou

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /om˧/

Verb

om

1. (transitive) to disengage

References

• Lukram Himmat Singh (2013) A Descriptive Grammar of Zou, Canchipur: Manipur University, page 40