ਭਾਈ

Punjabi

Etymology

Inherited from Paisaci Prakrit [Term?], from Sanskrit भ्रातृ (bhrā́tṛ), from Proto-Indo-Aryan *bʰráHtā, from Proto-Indo-Iranian *bʰráHtā, from Proto-Indo-European *bʰréh₂tēr (“brother”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /pɑː˩˨.iː/

Noun

ਭਾਈ • (bhāī) m (Shahmukhi spelling بھائی)

1. brother
2. (informal) mister, sir; used to refer to any male person

References

• Singh, Bhai Maya (1895) “ਭਾਈ”, in The Panjabi Dictionary, Lahore: Munshi Gulab Singh and Sons.