cilvēks
Latvian edit
Etymology edit
Borrowed from Old East Slavic человѣкъ (čelověkŭ) (cf. Russian челове́к (čelovék), from Proto-Slavic *čelověkъ, from earlier *kelověkъ). The word vīrs (“man, male”) had previously been used to mean also “human being,” given the loss of a previous specific term (cf. Lithuanian žmogùs, Latin homo); this polysemy may have motivated the borrowing.[1]
Pronunciation edit
Noun edit
cilvēks m (1st declension)
- person, human being (a member of the Homo sapiens species, capable of thinking and speaking)
- labs, jauns, jautrs cilvēks ― good, young, playful person
- gudrs cilvēks ― wise person
- noslēgts cilvēks ― reserved, reticent person
- cilvēka izcelšanās ― the origin of man (lit. person)
- cilvēka attīstība ― human (lit. person's) development
- cilvēka cieņa ― human (lit. person's) dignity
- cilvēku sabiedrība ― human (lit. people's) society
- precēts cilvēks ― a married person (usually a man)
- ģimenes cilvēks ― a family person (usually a man)
- mieras cilvēks ― a peaceful (lit. of peace) person
- (good) person (one who is not insensitive, who is kindhearted, helpful)
- tie bija cilvēki, tur bērns varēja dzīvot ― those were (good) people, there (= with them) a child could live
- (in plural) people (an undefined group of men and/or women)
- uz ielas cilvēku pūlis ― on the street (there was) a crowd of people
- ē, puiši! ē, meitas! ē, cilvēki! palīgā, palīgā! ― hey, guys! hey, girls! hey, people! help, help!
Declension edit
Declension of cilvēks (1st declension)
| singular (vienskaitlis) | plural (daudzskaitlis) | |
|---|---|---|
| nominative (nominatīvs) | cilvēks | cilvēki |
| accusative (akuzatīvs) | cilvēku | cilvēkus |
| genitive (ģenitīvs) | cilvēka | cilvēku |
| dative (datīvs) | cilvēkam | cilvēkiem |
| instrumental (instrumentālis) | cilvēku | cilvēkiem |
| locative (lokatīvs) | cilvēkā | cilvēkos |
| vocative (vokatīvs) | cilvēk | cilvēki |
Synonyms edit
- (people): ļaudis
Derived terms edit
See also edit
References edit
- ^ Karulis, Konstantīns (1992) “cilvēks”, in Latviešu Etimoloģijas Vārdnīca (in Latvian), Rīga: AVOTS, →ISBN