olahraga

Indonesian

Etymology

Derived from Malay olahraga, compound of olah (“to process”) +‎ raga (“body”), from calque from Japanese 体操(たいそう) (taisō, “gymnastics, exercises, calisthenics”, literally “body exercise”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [olahˈraɡa]

• Audio:

  (file)

• Hyphenation: o‧lah‧ra‧ga

Noun

olahraga

1. exercise; any activity intended to improve physical strength and fitness.
2. sport,
   1. any activity that uses physical exertion or skills competitively under a set of rules that is not based on aesthetics.
   2. something done for fun, regardless of its design or intended purpose.

Usage notes

• The word is part of false friends between Standard Malay and Indonesian due to shared etymology. The Brunei, Malaysia and Singapore usage can be seen in Malay olahraga.
• The sense "exercise" only refers to physical exercise, not mental exercise.
  • However, "mind sports" like chess still fall under olahraga because they are also considered sports, fitting the "sport" sense of the term.

Derived terms

• berolahraga
• keolahragaan
• memberolahragakan
• mengolahragakan
• peolahraga

 

Further reading

• “olahraga” 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.

Malay

Etymology

From compound of olah +‎ raga; from calque from Japanese 体操(たいそう) (taisō, “gymnastics, exercises, calisthenics”, literally “body exercise”).

Pronunciation

• Audio (Malaysia):

  (file)

Noun

olahraga (Jawi spelling اولهراݢ, plural olahraga-olahraga, informal 1st possessive olahragaku, 2nd possessive olahragamu, 3rd possessive olahraganya)

1. athletics, a group of sporting activities including track and field, road running, cross country and racewalking.

Usage notes

The word is part of false friends between Standard Malay and Indonesian due to shared etymology. The Indonesian usage can be seen in Indonesian olahraga.

Synonyms

• atletik (Indonesia)

Hypernyms

• sukan

Further reading

• “olahraga” in Pusat Rujukan Persuratan Melayu | Malay Literary Reference Centre, Kuala Lumpur: Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka, 2017.