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Ancient Greek Alphabet

lambda
  
nu
Μ μ
Ancient Greek: μῦ
Wikipedia article on mu

Etymology 1 edit

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

Pronunciation edit

Noun edit

mu (countable and uncountable, plural mus)

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

Etymology 2 edit

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

Pronunciation edit

Interjection edit

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 edit

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 edit

Used to answer a question that if answered with "yes" or "no" would imply something false.

Synonyms edit

See also edit

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

Etymology 3 edit

From Mandarin ().

Noun edit

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 edit

Albanian edit

Pronoun edit

mu

  1. Dialectal form of mua

Anguthimri edit

Noun edit

mu

  1. (Mpakwithi) buttocks

References edit

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

Asturian edit

Interjection edit

mu

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

Czech edit

Pronunciation edit

Pronoun edit

mu

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

Synonyms edit

Dutch edit

Etymology edit

From Ancient Greek μῦ (). Doublet of mem.

Pronunciation edit

Noun edit

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

  1. mu (letter of the Greek alphabet)

Further reading edit

Estonian edit

Pronoun edit

mu

  1. genitive singular of ma

Usage notes edit

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

Extremaduran edit

Adverb edit

mu

  1. very

See also edit

French edit

Pronunciation edit

Noun edit

mu m (plural mu)

  1. mu (Greek letter)

Participle edit

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

  1. post-1990 spelling of

Further reading edit

Hanga Hundi edit

Noun edit

mu

  1. (a) crocodile

Further reading edit

Hausa edit

Etymology edit

Cognates include Mangas mun, Polci mii, Miship mun.

Pronunciation edit

Pronoun edit

  1. we (1st person plural pronoun)

Ikobi-Mena edit

Noun edit

mu (Mena), mụ (Ikobi)

  1. water

References edit

Indonesian edit

Pronunciation edit

Pronoun edit

mu

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

Italian edit

Pronunciation edit

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

Noun edit

mu m or f (invariable)

  1. the name of the letter M

Japanese edit

Romanization edit

mu

  1. Rōmaji transcription of
  2. Rōmaji transcription of

Jingpho edit

Etymology edit

Borrowed from Burmese မူး (mu:).

Noun edit

mu

  1. two anna bit

References edit

  • Kurabe, Keita (2016-12-31), “Phonology of Burmese loanwords in Jinghpaw”, in Kyoto University Linguistic Research[6], volume 35, →DOI, →ISSN, pages 91–128

Jurchen edit

Noun edit

mu

  1. water

References edit

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

Kituba edit

Pronoun edit

mu

  1. I

Kom (Cameroon) edit

Etymology 1 edit

Noun edit

mu

  1. water

Etymology 2 edit

Adjective edit

mu

  1. old

References edit

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

Lashi edit

Pronunciation edit

Verb edit

mu

  1. to happen

References edit

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

Malay edit

Etymology edit

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

Pronunciation edit

Pronoun edit

mu

  1. you

See also edit

Mandarin edit

Romanization edit

mu

  1. Nonstandard spelling of .
  2. Nonstandard spelling of .
  3. Nonstandard spelling of .
  4. Nonstandard spelling of .

Usage notes edit

  • 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 edit

Pronunciation edit

  • (Kautokeino) IPA(key): /ˈmuː/

Pronoun edit

  1. accusative/genitive of mun

Old Irish edit

Pronunciation edit

Determiner edit

mu (triggers lenition)

  1. Alternative form of mo (my)

Polish edit

Pronunciation edit

Etymology 1 edit

Alternative forms edit

Pronoun edit

mu m

  1. dative singular mute of on

Pronoun edit

mu n

  1. dative singular mute of ono

See also edit

Etymology 2 edit

Onomatopoeic.

Interjection edit

mu

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

Further reading edit

  • mu in Polish dictionaries at PWN

Portuguese edit

Pronunciation edit

  • Rhymes: -u
  • Hyphenation: mu

Etymology 1 edit

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

Noun edit

mu m (plural mus)

  1. mule
    Synonym: mulo
Related terms edit

Etymology 2 edit

Learned borrowing from Ancient Greek μῦ ().

Noun edit

mu m (plural mus)

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

Etymology 3 edit

Onomatopoeic.

Alternative forms edit

Interjection edit

mu

  1. moo (the call of a cow)

Romanian edit

Etymology edit

Onomatopoeic.

Interjection edit

mu

  1. moo (sound made by cows)

Scottish Gaelic edit

Etymology edit

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

Pronunciation edit

Preposition edit

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.

Inflection edit

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 edit

Serbo-Croatian edit

Pronoun edit

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 edit

Spanish edit

Pronunciation edit

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

Etymology 1 edit

Onomatopoeic.

Interjection edit

mu

  1. moo (sound of a cow)
Derived terms edit

Etymology 2 edit

Noun edit

mu f (plural múes)

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

Etymology 3 edit

Adverb edit

mu

  1. (slang) Clipping of muy.

Further reading edit

Sumerian edit

Romanization edit

mu

  1. Romanization of 𒈬 (mu)

Swedish edit

Pronunciation edit

Interjection edit

mu

  1. moo

Noun edit

mu n

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

See also edit

Anagrams edit

Tày edit

Etymology edit

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

Pronunciation edit

Noun edit

mu (𤝕, )

  1. pig

References edit

  • 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 edit

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

Etymology edit

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

Pronunciation edit

Numeral edit

-mu

  1. one
    omuntu omuone person
  2. (in the plural) some
    abantu abamusome people
  3. (in the plural) same
    abantu abamuthe same people

Declension edit

Derived terms edit

References edit

  1. Kaji, Shigeki (2007) A Rutooro Vocabulary[8] (in English), 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] (in English), Kampala: Modrug Publishers, →ISBN, pages 238, 542, 571, 583

Turkish edit

Particle edit

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 edit

  • 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: ?, mi? and ?

Tzotzil edit

Pronunciation edit

Etymology 1 edit

Adjective edit

mu

  1. delicious

Etymology 2 edit

Particle edit

mu

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

(particles)

References edit

Vietnamese edit

Etymology edit

It is not clear which between "pubic region" and "shell" is the more original, although the sense "back" is certainly a derivative.

Compare Zhuang moz.

Pronunciation edit

Noun edit

mu ()

  1. pubes, the pubic region
  2. (of hands and feet) back
    mu bàn tayback of the hand
  3. the shells of some animals
    Synonym: mai

Volapük edit

Etymology edit

Borrowed from Spanish muy (very).

Adverb edit

mu

  1. extremely

West Makian edit

Etymology edit

Compare Ternate omu (ripe).

Pronunciation edit

Verb edit

mu

  1. (stative) to be ripe

Conjugation edit

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 edit

References edit

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

Yoruba edit

Etymology 1 edit

Alternative forms edit

  • mọ (Ọ̀wọ̀, Ìkálẹ̀)

Pronunciation edit

Verb edit

mu

  1. to drink
    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.
Derived terms edit

Etymology 2 edit

Pronunciation edit

Verb edit

  1. to take
  2. to catch
    Àwọn ọlọ́pàá ti wa o.The police have caught us!
    Mo bọ́ọ̀lù.I caught the ball.
  3. to have an effect on (relating to temperature)
    Òtútù ń 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 mi sùn.That drug made me sleep.
    Ó mi mumi.It made me drink water.
  5. to be sharp
    Ọbẹ̀ náà .That knife is sharp.
Derived terms edit

Etymology 3 edit

Pronunciation edit

Verb edit

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

Etymology 4 edit

Cognates with Yoruba mọ̀

Pronunciation edit

Verb edit

  1. (Ijebu) to know
Derived terms edit

Zou edit

Verb edit

mu

  1. see

References edit