fa

See also: Appendix:Variations of "fa"

Languages (65)

Translingual • English

---

Akan • Alemannic German • Asturian • Baga Pokur • Catalan • Chichewa • Czech • Dutch • French • Galician • Gothic • Gullah • Gwere • Hadza • Hungarian • Irish • Italian • Japanese • Kabyle • Lala (South Africa) • Latvian • Luganda • Mandarin • Manx • Middle English • Mizo • Neapolitan • Niuean • Norman • Northern Ndebele • Norwegian Nynorsk • Nyole (Uganda) • Nyungwe • Old English • Old Frisian • Old Irish • Old Swedish • Phuthi • Scots • Shambala • Shona • Sotho • South Marquesan • Southern Ndebele • Spanish • Sranan Tongo • Swahili • Swazi • Tarifit • Tooro • Tsonga • Turkish • Tuvaluan • Venda • Venetan • Volapük • West Makian • Woleaian • Wuvulu-Aua • Xhosa • Yoruba • Zigula • Zulu

---

Page categories

Translingual

Etymology

Clipping of English Farsi, from Persian فارسی (fârsi), from Arabic فارسي (fārisiyy).

Symbol

fa

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

See also

• Wiktionary’s coverage of Persian terms

English

Alternative forms

• fah

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /fɑ/

• Audio (Southern England):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɑː

Etymology 1

From Glover's solmization, from Middle English fa (“fourth degree or note of Guido of Arezzo's hexachordal scales”), Italian fa in the solmization of Guido of Arezzo, from the first syllable of Latin famulī (“servants”) in the lyrics of the scale-ascending hymn Ut queant laxis by Paulus Deacon.

Noun

fa (plural fas)

1. (music) A syllable used in solfège to represent the fourth diatonic (or sixth chromatic) note of a major scale.
   • 1749, Henry Fielding, “Containing the Arrival of an Irish Gentleman, with very extraordinary Adventures which ensued at the Inn”, in The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling, volume IV, London: A[ndrew] Millar, […], →OCLC, book X, pages 11–12:

     And now Mrs. Waters (for we muſt confeſs ſhe was in the ſame Bed) being, I ſuppoſe, awakened from her Sleep, and ſeeing two Men fighting in her Bed-chamber, began to ſcream in the moſt violent Manner, crying out Murder! Robbery! and more frequently Rape! which laſt, ſome, perhaps, may wonder ſhe ſhould mention, who do not conſider that theſe Words of Exclamation are uſed by Ladies in a Fright, as Fa, la, la, ra, da, &c. are in Muſic, only as the Vehicles of Sound, and without any fixed Ideas.

   1. (shapenote) Sometimes syllable for both the tonic and the fourth.

Derived terms

sol-fa

Translations

fourth note of a major scale

• Arabic: فَا m (fā)
• Basque: fa (eu)
• Czech: fa (cs)
• Dutch: fa (nl) m
• Finnish: fa (fi)
• French: fa (fr) m
• Galician: fa (gl) m
• Georgian: ფა (ka) (pa)
• Hindi: म (hi) (ma)
• Hungarian: fá (hu)
• Italian: fa (it) m
• Japanese: ファ (ja) (fa)
• Korean: 파 (ko) (pa)
• Latvian: fa (lv) m
• Macedonian: фа (fa)
• Russian: фа (ru) n (fa)
• Spanish: fa (es)
• Thai: ฟา (th) (faa)
• Vietnamese: pha (vi)

See also

musical notes

• do
• la
• mi
• re
• so
• ti

Etymology 2

Preposition

fa

1. (informal) Alternative spelling of for.
   • 2000, Requiem for a Dream, spoken by Harry Goldfarb (Jared Leto):

     Do ya wanna be a dope fiend fa krist’s sake?

Derived terms

• fa shizzle

See also

other terms with "fa", etymologically unrelated

• fa cai
• fa jin
• fa-la
• fi fa
• Pha̍k-fa-sṳ

Anagrams

• AF, Af, af

Akan

Verb

fa (transitive past faa, intransitive past faeɛ, negative mfa, future bɛfa, progressive refa, perfect afa)

1. to give

   Synonym: ma

   Fa me sika ma me. ― Give me my money.

2. to put
3. to pick up (a phone)
4. (reflexive) to be about, concern, revolve around

Derived terms

• fa adwene (“to decide”)
• fa bra
• fa kɔn ho
• fa ma
• fa mu
• fa nyinsɛn (“to get pregnant”)
• fa so
• fa suban foforɔ

Alemannic German

Verb

fa (past participle gfange)

1. alternative form of fah

Asturian

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈfa/ [ˈfa]
• Rhymes: -a
• Syllabification: fa

Verb

fa

1. (obsolete or archaic) alternative form of fai

Baga Pokur

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /fa/

Noun

fa

1. (Baga Binari) child

Alternative forms

• (Baga Mboteni) fal

References

• Neige Rochant, A Bilectal Grammar of Baga Pukur: An Atlantic Language of Guinea (2023)

Catalan

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): (Northern, Balearic, Central, Valencia, Northwestern) [ˈfa]
• Rhymes: -a

Etymology 1

Noun

fa m (plural fas)

1. (music) fa (fourth note of diatonic scale)

Etymology 2

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

Verb

fa

1. third-person singular present indicative of fer

Preposition

fa

1. ago

   fa molts anys...

   many years ago...

Interjection

fa

1. (dialectal) a particle used in some dialects to emphasize a negative sentence

   Fa que no es veu!

   it’s obvious!

   (literally, “it does that it's not seen!”)

Chichewa

Etymology

Inherited from Proto-Bantu *-kúa, potentially from Proto-Atlantic-Congo *kwwú- (“to die”). Cognate with Tumbuka -fwa (“to die”), Yao (Africa) -wa (“to die”), Nsenga -fwa (“to die”), Nyungwe -fa (“to die”), Swahili -fa (“to die”), Zigula -fa (“to die”), Malawi Lomwe -khwa (“to die”), Lomwe -khwa (“to die”).

Verb

-fa (infinitive kufá)

1. to die
2. to have a stroke
3. to be infertile
4. to spend or give out money

Derived terms

• Verbal derivations:
  • Applicative: -fera
  • Causative: -fetsa
  • Negative: -safa
  • Passive: -fedwa
  • Other formations: -fa mutu (“to be amazed, to be stupefied”)

• Nominal derivations:
  • imfa (“death”)
  • kuloŵa kufa (“the practice of making a widow sleep with a man to put her former husband's soul at rest”)

References

• Steven Paas (2016), Oxford Chichewa-English/English - Chichewa Dictionary‎^[1], Oxford University Press, page 138

Czech

Noun

fa

1. abbreviation of firma

Declension

This noun needs an inflection-table template.

Dutch

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin fa.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /faː/

• Audio:

  (file)

• Hyphenation: fa
• Rhymes: -aː

Noun

fa m (plural fa's, diminutive faatje n)

1. (music) fa (fourth diatonic (or sixth chromatic) musical note)
2. (music) F (the musical clef or key)

Derived terms

• fasleutel

French

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /fa/

• Audio (Paris):

  (file)

• Audio (France (Vosges)):

  (file)

• Audio (France (Lyon)):

  (file)

Noun

fa m (invariable)

1. (music) fa, the fourth diatonic (or sixth chromatic) note 'F'

Derived terms

• clef de fa

Further reading

• “fa”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012

Galician

Noun

fa m (plural fas)

1. (music) fa (musical note)
2. (music) F (the musical note or key)

See also

musical solfège notes: notas musicaisedit

• dó
• fa
• la
• mi
• re
• si
• sol

Gothic

Romanization

fa

1. romanization of 𐍆𐌰

Gullah

Etymology

From Mende (Sierra Leone) fa ("A large tree").

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /fɑ/

Noun

fa

1. a tree, especially a cedar or a cedar-resembling tree

See also

• fuh

References

• Lorenzo Dow Turner, Africanisms in the Gullah Dialect (1969)

Gwere

Etymology

Inherited from Proto-Bantu *-kúa

Verb

-fa (infinitive kufa)

1. to die
2. to be dysfunctional

Derived terms

• -fa kimigiriri (“to endure silenty”)
• -fiiriza (“to deprive, to deny”)
• -fiirwa (“to suffer loss”)
• -fiisya (“to be bereaved”)

References

• Lugwere Dictionary‎^[2], SIL International, (Can we date this quote?)

Hadza

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /fa/, [fʷa]

Verb

fa

1. to drink

Hungarian

Etymology

From Proto-Uralic *puwe. Cognates include Finnish puu.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ˈfɒ]

• Audio:

  (file)

• Rhymes: -fɒ

Noun

fa (countable and uncountable, plural fák)

1. tree (large woody plant)

   Meronyms: rügy, hajtás, vessző, gally, ág, törzs, gyökér, levél, lomb, korona, termés, gyümölcs

2. wood (substance beneath the bark of the trunk or branches of a tree)
3. (graph theory) tree (connected graph with no cycles)
4. (computing theory) tree (recursive data structure)
5. (attributive) wooden (made of wood)

Declension

Inflection (stem in long/high vowel, back harmony)

	singular	plural
nominative	fa	fák
accusative	fát	fákat
dative	fának	fáknak
instrumental	fával	fákkal
causal-final	fáért	fákért
translative	fává	fákká
terminative	fáig	fákig
essive-formal	faként	fákként
essive-modal	—	—
inessive	fában	fákban
superessive	fán	fákon
adessive	fánál	fáknál
illative	fába	fákba
sublative	fára	fákra
allative	fához	fákhoz
elative	fából	fákból
delative	fáról	fákról
ablative	fától	fáktól
non-attributive possessive – singular	fáé	fáké
non-attributive possessive – plural	fáéi	fákéi

Possessive forms of fa

possessor	single possession	multiple possessions
1st person sing.	fám	fáim
2nd person sing.	fád	fáid
3rd person sing.	fája	fái
1st person plural	fánk	fáink
2nd person plural	fátok	fáitok
3rd person plural	fájuk	fáik

Derived terms

• fácska
• fás → fáskamra, fáskosár, fásláda;
  fásít; fásul → fásult
• fátlan

Compound words with this term at the beginning

• faalkotmány
• faanyag
• faarc
• faág
• faállomány
• faáru
• fababa
• fabalzsam
• fabatka
• fabáb
• faberakás
• fabetegség
• fabeton
• fabódé
• faburkolat
• facement
• facimbalom
• facipő
• facsavar
• facsemete
• facsiga
• facsiszolat
• facsoport
• fadarab
• fadarázs
• faderék
• fadongó
• fadöntés
• fadugó
• fadúc
• faecet
• faedény
• faeke
• faeper
• faesztergályos
• fafajta
• fafaragás, fafaragó
• fafejű
• fafeldolgozás, fafeldolgozó
• faforgács
• fafúvó → fafúvós
• fafűrész
• fafűtés → fafűtéses
• fagaras
• fagáz
• fagomba
• fagyapot
• fagyöngy
• fahamu
• fahang
• fahasáb
• fahatár
• faháncs
• faház
• fahegy
• fahéj → fahéjszínű
• fahíd
• fahordó
• faipar
• faiskola
• fajankó
• fakabát
• fakalapács
• fakanál
• fakard
• fakátrány
• fakereskedő
• fakereszt
• fakép
• fakéreg
• fakilincs
• fakitermelés
• fakín
• fakopáncs
• fakorona
• fakova
• faköpönyeg
• faköszörűgép, faköszörület
• fakötés
• fakupa
• fakutya
• fakúsz
• faláb → falábú
• faláda
• falemez
• falepárlás
• falevél
• falépcső
• faló
• famaró
• famegmunkálás
• famentes
• fametszés, fametszet, fametsző
• faméh
• famézga
• famozaik
• famunka → famunkás
• fanemesítés
• fanyelű
• fanyelv → fanyelvű
• fanyesés
• fanyűvő
• faodú
• faolaj
• faóriás
• fapad → fapados
• fapapucs
• fapárolás
• fapofa
• fapuska
• faputtony
• farablás
• farakás
• faraktár
• farész
• farontó
• farost → farostlemez → farostlemezgyár
• farönk
• fasor
• faszállítás
• faszeg
• faszent
• faszesz
• faszén → faszéngáz
• faszobor, faszobrász
• fatalp
• fatányér → fatányéros
• fatelep
• fatelítés
• fatemplom
• fatest
• fatetű
• fatornyos
• fatökű
• fatönk
• fatörzs
• fatuskó
• fatüzelés → fatüzeléses
• faúsztatás
• favágás, favágó, favágító
• faválaszték
• faváz → favázas
• favicc
• favilla

Compound words with this term at the end―tree species

• akácfa
• almafa
• aranyfa
• babérfa
• balsafa
• balzsamfa
• banánfa
• barackfa
• barkócafa
• bálványfa
• birsalmafa
• birskörtefa
• bocfa
• bodzafa
• bokrétafa
• borsófa
• bükkfa
• cédrusfa
• ciprusfa
• citromfa
• császárfa
• cserefa
• cseresznyefa
• cserfa
• datolyafa
• dinnyefa
• diófa
• ecetfa
• eperfa
• ezüstfa
• ébenfa
• égerfa
• fahéjfa
• fenyőfa
• fügefa
• fűzfa
• gesztenyefa
• gubacsfa
• gumifa
• gyertyánfa
• gyümölcsfa
• hársfa
• hólyagfa
• istenfa
• jávorfa
• jegenyefa
• juharfa
• júdásfa
• kajszibarackfa
• kaucsukfa
• kámforfa
• kányafa
• kenyérfa
• kékfa
• kininfa
• kínafa
• körtefa
• kőrisfa
• lepényfa
• licsifa
• liliomfa
• majomkenyérfa
• mandulafa
• mangófa
• meggyfa
• mogyorófa
• narancseperfa
• narancsfa
• nyárfa
• nyírfa
• olajfa
• orgonafa
• ostorfa
• ostorménfa
• paliszanderfa
• parafa
• pálmafa
• rózsafa
• sárgabarackfa
• sárkányfa
• somfa
• sóskafa
• sörgyefa
• szederfa
• szelídgesztenyefa
• szilfa
• szilvafa
• szivarfa
• tiszafa
• tíkfa (formerly spelled teakfa)
• tölgyfa
• trombitafa
• tulipánfa
• uborkafa
• vadalmafa
• vadgesztenyefa
• vadkörtefa
• vasfa

Compound words with this term at the end―other

• ajtófa
• ajtófélfa
• ajtószárfa
• akasztófa
• akolófa
• alakfa
• aprófa
• ágasfa
• ágfa
• állásfa
• ászokfa
• bálványfa
• bányafa
• bélfa
• bitófa
• bútorfa
• családfa
• csapófa
• csántérfa
• csemetefa
• díszfa
• dongafa
• dorongfa
• elegyfa
• életfa
• épületfa
• fejfa
• félfa
• főfa
• főtefa
• fű-fa, fűnek-fának
• gallyfa
• gyámfa
• hagyásfa
• hajítófa
• hasábfa
• haszonfa
• határfa
• hámfa
• kandallófa
• kaptafa
• kapufa
• kapufélfa
• karácsonyfa
• karfa
• keményfa
• keresztfa
• kisafa
• konyhafa
• kopjafa
• korfa
• koszorúfa
• lármafa
• látófa
• lemezfa
• lombfa
• májfa
• májusfa
• mesefa
• mintázófa
• műfa
• nemzetségfa
• nótafa
• nyújtófa
• ollófa
• ostorfa
• ölfa
• párnafa
• piszkafa
• puhafa
• rénfa
• rovásfa
• rönkfa
• rúdfa
• sasfa
• sámfa
• sátorfa
• sefűsefa
• simítófa
• sodrófa
• sorfa
• stoppolófa
• süvegfa
• szarufa
• szálfa
• szárazfa
• származásfa
• szegélyfa
• szelemenfa
• szemöldökfa
• szerfa
• szerszámfa
• szégyenfa
• színfa
• szolgafa
• talpfa
• támaszfa
• támfa
• tilalomfa
• tömőfa
• törpefa
• törzsfa
• tüzelőfa
• tűzifa
• ujjafa
• ültetőfa
• ütőfa
• vakfa
• vállfa
• vánkosfa

Expressions

• döntési fa
• fából vaskarika
• nem esik messze az alma a fájától
• nem látja a fától az erdőt

Further reading

• (tree, wood): fa in Géza Bárczi, László Országh, et al., editors, A magyar nyelv értelmező szótára [The Explanatory Dictionary of the Hungarian Language] (ÉrtSz.), Budapest: Akadémiai Kiadó, 1959–1962. Fifth ed., 1992: →ISBN.
• (“fa”, a syllable used in solfège to represent the fourth note of a major scale; alternative form of fá): fa in Géza Bárczi, László Országh, et al., editors, A magyar nyelv értelmező szótára [The Explanatory Dictionary of the Hungarian Language] (ÉrtSz.), Budapest: Akadémiai Kiadó, 1959–1962. Fifth ed., 1992: →ISBN.
• fa in Nóra Ittzés, editor, A magyar nyelv nagyszótára [A Comprehensive Dictionary of the Hungarian Language] (Nszt.), Budapest: Akadémiai Kiadó, 2006–2031 (work in progress; published a–ez as of 2026).

Irish

Etymology 1

Alternative forms

• fá, ba, badh, budh

Particle

fa (triggers h-prothesis)

1. obsolete form of ba (“was”) (past affirmative and relative of is).
   • 2014 [1628–1634], Geoffrey Keating, edited by Beatrix Färber, David Comyn, Patrick S. Dinneen, Foras Feasa ar Éirinn‎^[3], CELT: Corpus of Electronic Texts:

     gurab Alba fá hainm don chrích sin

     that that country’s name was Scotland

   • 1939 [c. 13th century], “Bean ós mhnáibh cáich Cailleach Dé”, in Lambert McKenna, editor, Aithdioghluim Dána‎^[4], Dublin:

     Is leomhan Ó mBriun an bhean / siur ga seoladh [ar] a son, / síol na n-ealta fa díon damh, / síol glan nach ba creachta ar gcrodh.

     A lion-hero of the Í Bhriuin is this lady, a sister that guides them by her words; noble the offspring of that flock, my guardians (ensuring) that all I own be safe from harrying.

     (literally, “(…) the seed of the flock which was protection to me, noble seed (…)”)

Related terms

Irish copular forms

simple copular forms
present/future		affirmative	negative	interrogative	negative interrogative
main clause		is	ní	an	nach, náchd
relative clause	direct		nach, náchd	—
	indirect	ar, arbv
other subordinate clause		gur, gurbv		an	nach, náchd
past/conditional		affirmative	negative	interrogative	negative interrogative
main clause		ba, b’v	níor, níorbhv	ar, arbhv	nár, nárbhv
relative clause	direct	ba, abv	nár, nárbhv	—
	indirect	ar, arbhv
other subordinate clause		gur, gurbhv		ar, arbhv	nár, nárbhv
present subjunctive		affirmative	negative
—		gura, gurabv	nára, nárabv
compound copular forms
base word		present/future		past/conditional
cá		cár, cárbv		cár, cárbhv
cé		cér, cérbv		cér, cérbhv
dá		—		dá mba, dá mb’v
de/do		dar, darbv		dar, darbhv
faoi		faoinar, faoinarbv		faoinar, faoinarbhv
i		inar, inarbv		inar, inarbhv
le		lenar, lenarbv		lenar, lenarbhv
má		más		má ba, má b’v
mura		mura, murabv		murar, murarbhv
ó (preposition)		ónar, ónarbv		ónar, ónarbhv
ó (conjunction)		ós		ó ba, ó b’v
trí		trínar, trínarbv		trínar, trínarbhv

^v Used before vowel sounds ^d Dialectal

Etymology 2

Preposition

fa (plus dative, triggers lenition)

1. obsolete form of faoi (“under”)
2. obsolete form of um (“about, concerning”)

Usage notes

In the meaning about it was followed by a noun in accusative.

Italian

Etymology 1

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈfa/^*
• Rhymes: -a
• Hyphenation: fà
• This word triggers syntactic gemination; hence for example fa freddo (“it's cold”, literally “it makes cold”) is pronounced /ˈfa‿fˈfreddo/.

Verb

fa

1. third-person singular present indicative of fare

Etymology 2

From conjugated form of fare above; literally, “it makes”. Compare Spanish hace (although the latter precedes the number, unlike fa and English ago).

Adverb

fa

1. ago (Note: like in English, fa follows the number.)

   Synonym: prima

   Molto tempo fa ― A long time ago

Etymology 3

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈfa/^°
• IPA^(key): (traditional) /ˈfa/^*
• Rhymes: -a
• Hyphenation: fà

Noun

fa m (invariable)

2. (music) fa (fourth diatonic (or sixth chromatic) musical note)
3. F (musical note or key)

Japanese

Romanization

fa

1. The katakana syllable ファ (fa) in Hepburn romanization.

Kabyle

Etymology

Inherited from Proto-Berber.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /fa/

Verb

fa (verbal noun tufayin or lfawat)

1. to yawn

References

• Association Culturelle Numidya (2025), “Amawal, dictionnaire kabyle-français en ligne”, in Amawal‎^[5], retrieved 2025
• Dallet, Jean-Marie (1982), Dictionnaire kabyle-français: parler des At Mangellat, Algérie (in French), Paris, France

Lala (South Africa)

Etymology

From Proto-Bantu *-kúa.

Verb

-fá

1. to die

Latvian

Noun

fa m (invariable)

1. (music) fa, the fourth diatonic (or sixth chromatic) note 'F'.

Luganda

Etymology

From Proto-Bantu *-kúa.

Verb

-fa (intransitive)

1. to die
2. to be killed; be destroyed
3. to spoil; become useless
4. to get into trouble; be in a jam
5. to go sour (e.g. of milk)

References

• Snoxall, R. A. (1967), Luganda-English Dictionary - with an Introduction on the Tonal System, United Kingdom: Oxford University Press, →ISBN, page 74
• Murphy, John D. (1972), Luganda-English Dictionary, United States: The Catholic University of America Press, →ISBN, page 72
• Entry 2089 at Bantu Lexical Reconstructions 3

Mandarin

Romanization

fa (fa⁵ / fa⁰, Zhuyin ˙ㄈㄚ)

1. Hanyu Pinyin reading of 𠲎

Romanization

fa

1. nonstandard spelling of fā
2. nonstandard spelling of fá
3. nonstandard spelling of fǎ
4. nonstandard spelling of fà

Usage notes

• 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.

Manx

Etymology

From Old Irish fáth, from Proto-Celtic *wātus (“inspired utterance”) (compare Welsh gwawd (“song, praise, poetry”)), from Proto-Indo-European *weh₂t-.

Noun

fa m (plural [please provide])

1. reason, cause

Synonyms

• oyr

Derived terms

• cre'n fa
• gyn fa gyn oyr

Mutation

Mutation of fa

radical	lenition	eclipsis
fa	a	va

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

Middle English

Etymology 1

Noun

fa

1. (AB language; Middlesex, West Riding) alternative form of fo (noun)

Etymology 2

Adjective

fa

1. (Early Middle English) alternative form of fo

Etymology 3

Determiner

fa

1. (County Durham, West Riding) alternative form of fo (“few”)

Pronoun

fa

1. (West Riding) alternative form of fo (“few”)

Mizo

Etymology

From Proto-Kuki-Chin *θaa, from Proto-Sino-Tibetan *tsəʔ.

Noun

fa

1. child (of parent(s))
2. nephew, niece
3. first cousin once removed
4. other people the same age as one's own children

Derived terms

• fahrah
• fanu
• fapa
• nufa

Further reading

• Lorrain, J. Herbert (1940), “fa”, in Dictionary of the Lushai language, Calcutta: Asiatic Society

Neapolitan

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /fa/
• Rhymes: -a

Verb

fa

1. third-person singular present indicative of fà

Niuean

Niuean cardinal numbers

<  3	4	5  >
Cardinal : fa

Etymology

From Proto-Polynesian *fa, from Proto-Oceanic *pat, from Proto-Eastern Malayo-Polynesian *pat, from Proto-Central-Eastern Malayo-Polynesian *pat, from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *əpat, from Proto-Austronesian *Səpat.

Numeral

fa

1. four

Norman

Etymology

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

Pronunciation

• Audio (Jersey):

  (file)

Noun

fa m (plural fas)

1. (Jersey) suit (clothing)

Synonyms

• suit

Northern Ndebele

Etymology

From Proto-Bantu *-kúa.

Verb

-fá

1. to die

Inflection

This verb needs an inflection-table template.

Norwegian Nynorsk

Etymology

From Latin famuli, from the first word of the fourth line of Ut queant laxis, the medieval hymn on which solfège was based because its lines started on each note of the scale successively. Through Italian.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /fɑː/

  • Audio:

    (file)

Noun

fa m (definite singular fa-en, indefinite plural fa-ar, definite plural fa-ane)

2. (music) fa, a syllable used in solfège to represent the fourth diatonic (or sixth chromatic) note of a major scale.

Coordinate terms

• (scale of solfège): do, re, mi, fa, sol or so, la, ti, do

References

• “fa” in The Nynorsk Dictionary.

Nyole (Uganda)

Etymology

Inherited from Proto-Bantu *-kúa.

Verb

-fa (infinitive ohufa)

1. to die

Derived terms

• -fiira (“to loose for good”)
• ehiguudyo hy'ohufa (“death sentence, capital punishment”)
• ohufaaho (“to be unconscious, to be in a coma”)
• ohufaania (“to regain consciousness; to understand, to recognise, to perceive”)
• ohutafa (“to be immortal, to have everlasting life”)

References

• Diprose, Martin; Musimami, Sylvester N. M. (2012), Lunyole–English Dictionary‎^[6], SIL International

Nyungwe

Etymology

Inherited from Proto-Bantu *-kúa.

Verb

-fa (infinitive kufa)

1. to die

Derived terms

• impfa (“death”)

References

• Wycliffe Bible Translators, ciNyungwe Biblyia, 2019

Old English

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /fɑː/
• Rhymes: -ɑː

Adjective

fā

1. alternative form of fāh

Old Frisian

Etymology

From Proto-West Germanic *fą̄han, from Proto-Germanic *fanhaną. Cognates include Old English fōn, Old Saxon fāhan and Old Dutch fān.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈfaː/

Verb

fā

1. (transitive) to catch

Descendants

• North Frisian:

  Föhr-Amrum: fu

  Mooring: füünj

  Sylt: fo

• Saterland Frisian: fange
• West Frisian: fange

References

• Bremmer, Rolf H. (2009), An Introduction to Old Frisian: History, Grammar, Reader, Glossary, Amsterdam: John Benjamins Publishing Company, →ISBN

Old Irish

Alternative forms

• fá, ba, bá

Etymology

Apparently a derivative of some form of the copula is that is from Proto-Indo-European *bʰuH-.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /βa/

Conjunction

fa (triggers lenition)

1. (in indirect interrogative clauses) or

For quotations using this term, see Citations:fa.

Further reading

• Gregory Toner, Sharon Arbuthnot, Máire Ní Mhaonaigh, Marie-Luise Theuerkauf, Dagmar Wodtko, editors (2019), “1 fa, ba, fo”, in eDIL: Electronic Dictionary of the Irish Language
• Thurneysen, Rudolf (1940) [1909], D. A. Binchy and Osborn Bergin, transl., A Grammar of Old Irish, Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies, →ISBN, § 464, page 291, translation of Handbuch des Alt-Irischen (in German); reprinted 2017

Old Swedish

Etymology

From Old Norse fá, from Proto-Germanic *fanhaną.

Verb

fā

1. to seize, take
2. to get, receive

Conjugation

Conjugation of fā (strong)

	present				past
infinitive	fā				—
participle	fāndi, -e				fangin (sup. fāt)
active voice	indicative	subjunctive	imperative		indicative	subjunctive
iæk	fār, fǣr	fā-, -i, -e	—		fik, fæk	fingi, finge
þū	fār, fǣr	fā-, -i, -e	fā		fikt	fingi, finge
han	fār, fǣr	fā-, -i, -e	—		fik, fæk	fingi, finge
vīr	fām, -um, -om	fām, -um, -om	fām, -um, -om		fingum, fingom	fingum, fingom
īr	fān, -in	fān, -in	fān, -in		fingin	fingin
þēr	fā	fān, -in	—		fingu, fingo	fingin
mediopassive voice	indicative	subjunctive	imperative		indicative	subjunctive
iæk	—	—	—		—	—
þū	—	—	—		—	—
han	—	—	—		—	—
vīr	—	—	—		—	—
īr	—	—	—		—	—
þēr	—	—	—		—	—

Descendants

• Swedish: få

Phuthi

Etymology

From Proto-Bantu *-kúa.

Verb

-fá

1. to die

Inflection

This verb needs an inflection-table template.

Scots

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /fa/

Pronoun

fa

1. Doric Scots form of wha (“who”)

   Fa's this quine, en?

   Who's this girl, then?

Shambala

Etymology

Inherited from Proto-Bantu *-kúa, from Proto-Atlantic-Congo *kwwú- (“to die”). Cognate with Swahili -fa (“to die”), Zigula -fa (“to die”), Chichewa -fa (“to die”), Tumbuka -fwa (“to die”), Yao (Africa) -wa (“to die”).

Verb

-fa (infinitive kufa, perfect -file)

1. to die

References

• August Seidel (1895), Handbuch der Shambala-sprache in Usambara, Deutsch-Ostafrika. Mit Texten, einem Shambala-Deutschen und einem Deutsch-Shambala-Wörterbuch‎^[7], Dresden-Leipzig, pages 79, 129

Shona

Etymology

From Proto-Bantu *-kúa.

Verb

-fá (infinitive kufá)

1. to die

Derived terms

• rufu

Sotho

Etymology

From Proto-Bantu *-páa.

Verb

fa

1. to give

South Marquesan

South Marquesan cardinal numbers

<  3	4	5  >
Cardinal : fa

Etymology

From Proto-Polynesian *fa, from Proto-Oceanic *pat, from Proto-Eastern Malayo-Polynesian *pat, from Proto-Central-Eastern Malayo-Polynesian *pat, from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *əpat, from Proto-Austronesian *Səpat.

Numeral

fa

1. four

Southern Ndebele

Etymology

From Proto-Bantu *-kúa.

Verb

-fá

1. to die

Inflection

This verb needs an inflection-table template.

Spanish

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈfa/ [ˈfa]
• Rhymes: -a
• Syllabification: fa

Noun

fa m (plural fa)

1. fa (fourth diatonic (or sixth chromatic) musical note)

Derived terms

• en fa
• ni fu ni fa

Interjection

fa

1. (Argentina) ew, phew (expression of disgust)

   Synonyms: puaj, guácala

Verb

fa

1. inflection of far:
   1. third-person singular present indicative
   2. second-person singular imperative
   3. second-person singular voseo imperative

Further reading

• “fa”, in Diccionario de la lengua española [Dictionary of the Spanish Language] (in Spanish), 24th edition, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], 30 October 2026

Sranan Tongo

Etymology 1

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

Adverb

fa

1. how

Derived terms

• fa a waka

Conjunction

fa

1. as soon as

Etymology 2

Short for a phrase such as fa fu yu? or fa a e go?

Interjection

fa?

1. hi; how are you?; how's it going?

Swahili

Etymology

Inherited from Proto-Sabaki *-fwa, from Proto-Bantu *-kúa, from Proto-Atlantic-Congo *kwwú-.

In Sabaki, cognate with Ngazidja Comorian -fa and Giryama -fwa. Other Bantu cognates include Rwanda-Rundi -pfá and Zulu -fá.

Pronunciation

• (Unguja standard) IPA^(key): /fɑ/

• Audio (Kenya):

  (file)

Verb

-fa (infinitive kufa)

1. to die

   Synonyms: see Thesaurus:fa

2. to stop, come to an end

Conjugation

Conjugation of -fa
Positive present -nakufa Subjunctive -fe Negative -fi Imperative singular kufa
Infinitives
Positive kufa Negative kutokufa
Imperatives
Singular kufa Plural kufeni
Tensed forms
Habitual hufa Positive past positive subject concord + -likufa Negative past negative subject concord + -kufa
Positive present (positive subject concord + -nakufa) Singular Plural 1st person ninakufa/nakufa tunakufa 2nd person unakufa mnakufa 3rd person m-wa(I/II) anakufa wanakufa other classes positive subject concord + -nakufa
Negative present (negative subject concord + -fi) Singular Plural 1st person sifi hatufi 2nd person hufi hamfi 3rd person m-wa(I/II) hafi hawafi other classes negative subject concord + -fi
Positive future positive subject concord + -takufa Negative future negative subject concord + -takufa
Positive subjunctive (positive subject concord + -fe) Singular Plural 1st person nife tufe 2nd person ufe mfe 3rd person m-wa(I/II) afe wafe other classes positive subject concord + -fe
Negative subjunctive positive subject concord + -sife Positive present conditional positive subject concord + -ngekufa Negative present conditional positive subject concord + -singekufa Positive past conditional positive subject concord + -ngalikufa Negative past conditional positive subject concord + -singalikufa
Gnomic (positive subject concord + -afa) Singular Plural 1st person nafa twafa 2nd person wafa mwafa 3rd person m-wa(I/II) afa wafa m-mi(III/IV) wafa yafa ji-ma(V/VI) lafa yafa ki-vi(VII/VIII) chafa vyafa n(IX/X) yafa zafa u(XI) wafa see n(X) or ma(VI) class ku(XV/XVII) kwafa pa(XVI) pafa mu(XVIII) mwafa
Perfect positive subject concord + -mekufa "Already" positive subject concord + -meshakufa "Not yet" negative subject concord + -jafa "If/When" positive subject concord + -kifa "If not" positive subject concord + -sipokufa Consecutive kafa / positive subject concord + -kafa Consecutive subjunctive positive subject concord + -kafe
Object concord (indicative positive) Singular Plural 1st person -nifa -tufa 2nd person -kufa -wafa/-kufeni/-wafeni 3rd person m-wa(I/II) -mfa -wafa m-mi(III/IV) -ufa -ifa ji-ma(V/VI) -lifa -yafa ki-vi(VII/VIII) -kifa -vifa n(IX/X) -ifa -zifa u(XI) -ufa see n(X) or ma(VI) class ku(XV/XVII) -kufa pa(XVI) -pafa mu(XVIII) -mufa Reflexive -jifa
Relative forms General positive (positive subject concord + (object concord) + -fa- + relative marker) Singular Plural m-wa(I/II) -faye -fao m-mi(III/IV) -fao -fayo ji-ma(V/VI) -falo -fayo ki-vi(VII/VIII) -facho -favyo n(IX/X) -fayo -fazo u(XI) -fao see n(X) or ma(VI) class ku(XV/XVII) -fako pa(XVI) -fapo mu(XVIII) -famo Other forms (subject concord + tense marker + relative marker + (object concord) + -kufa) Singular Plural m-wa(I/II) -yekufa -okufa m-mi(III/IV) -okufa -yokufa ji-ma(V/VI) -lokufa -yokufa ki-vi(VII/VIII) -chokufa -vyokufa n(IX/X) -yokufa -zokufa u(XI) -okufa see n(X) or ma(VI) class ku(XV/XVII) -kokufa pa(XVI) -pokufa mu(XVIII) -mokufa
Some forms not commonly seen in modern Standard Swahili are absent from the table. See Appendix:Swahili verbs for more information.

Derived terms

• Verbal derivations:
  • Applicative: -fia
  • Causative: -fisha (“to murder”)
  • Passive: -fiwa (“to mourn, be bereaved”)

• Nominal derivations:
  • kifa (“death”)
  • mafa (“cemetery”)

Related terms

• -fu (“dead”)
• kifo (“death”)
• mfu (“dead person”)
• ufu (“death”)

See also

• -ua (“kill”)

Swazi

Etymology

From Proto-Bantu *-kúa.

Verb

-fá

1. (intransitive) to die

Inflection

This verb needs an inflection-table template.

Tarifit

Etymology

Inherited from Proto-Berber. Cognate with Tashelhit fa.

Pronunciation

• (Nador) IPA^(key): [fɛ]
• Syllabification: fa
• Rhymes: -ɛ

Verb

fa (Tifinagh spelling ⴼⴰ) (intransitive)

1. to yawn

Conjugation

Conjugation of fa

aorist perfective negative perfective imperfective negative imperfective participle ifan ifan ifin yettfan yettfin singular plural 1st person 2nd person 3rd person 1st person 2nd person 3rd person aorist m fiɣ tfid ifa nfa tfam fan f tfa tfant fant perfective m fiɣ tfid ifa nfa tfam fan f tfa tfant fant negative perfective m fiɣ tfid ifi nfi tfim fin f tfi tfint fint imperfective m ttfiɣ tettfid yettfa nettfa tettfam ttfan f tettfa tettfant ttfant negative imperfective m ttfiɣ tettfid yettfi nettfi tettfim ttfin f tettfi tettfint ttfint aorist imperative m fa fam, fat f fant imperfective imperative m ttfa ttfam, ttfat f ttfant injunctive m nfat f nfant

References

• Serhoual (2002)
• Abarrou (2024)

Tooro

Etymology

Inherited from Proto-Bantu *-kúa.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /fa/

Verb

-fa (infinitive okufa) (intransitive)

1. to die

   Near-synonym: -kaba

   Hyponym: (of the king) -tuuza

   Antonym: -omeera

2. to be destroyed
3. to stop working
4. to become useless
   1. (of food or drink) to spoil, to go bad
   2. (of crops) to fail
   3. to become blunt

Usage notes

This verb supports at least two perfective stems: -fiire and -fwire; the former is more widely used.

Conjugation

With -fiire:

Conjugation of -fa

infinitives affirmative okufa negative okutafa imperatives affirmative fa negative (see second-person negative subjunctive forms) tense polarity basic forms relative forms1 present habitual affirmative subject concord + -fa person noun class singular plural first person nfa tufa second person ofa mufa third person 1/2 afa bafa 3/4 gufa efa 5/6 lifa gafa 7/8 kifa bifa 9/10 efa zifa 11/10 rufa 12/14 kafa bufa 13 — tufa 14/6 bufa gafa 15/6 kufa 16 hafa — negative ti- + subject concord + -fa person noun class singular plural first person tinfa titufa second person tofa timufa third person 1/2 tafa tibafa 3/4 tigufa tefa 5/6 tirifa tigafa 7/8 tikifa tibifa 9/10 tefa tizifa 11/10 tirufa 12/14 tikafa tibufa 13 — titufa 14/6 tibufa tigafa 15/6 tikufa 16 tihafa — subject concord + -tafa present continuous affirmative ni- + subject concord + -fa person noun class singular plural first person ninfa nitufa second person noofa nimufa third person 1/2 naafa nibafa 3/4 nigufa neefa 5/6 nirifa nigafa 7/8 nikifa nibifa 9/10 neefa nizifa 11/10 nirufa 12/14 nikafa nibufa 13 — nitufa 14/6 nibufa nigafa 15/6 nikufa 16 nihafa — subject concord + -rukufa negative ti- + subject concord + -rukufa person noun class singular plural first person tindukufa titurukufa second person torukufa timurukufa third person 1/2 tarukufa tibarukufa 3/4 tigurukufa terukufa 5/6 tirirukufa tigarukufa 7/8 tikirukufa tibirukufa 9/10 terukufa tizirukufa 11/10 tirurukufa 12/14 tikarukufa tiburukufa 13 — titurukufa 14/6 tiburukufa tigarukufa 15/6 tikurukufa 16 tiharukufa — subject concord + -tarukufa present continuative affirmative ni- + subject concord + -kyafa person noun class singular plural first person ninkyafa nitukyafa second person nookyafa nimukyafa third person 1/2 naakyafa nibakyafa 3/4 nigukyafa neekyafa 5/6 nirikyafa nigakyafa 7/8 nikikyafa nibikyafa 9/10 neekyafa nizikyafa 11/10 nirukyafa 12/14 nikakyafa nibukyafa 13 — nitukyafa 14/6 nibukyafa nigakyafa 15/6 nikukyafa 16 nihakyafa — subject concord + -rukukyafa negative ti- + subject concord + -kyafa person noun class singular plural first person tinkyafa titukyafa second person tokyafa timukyafa third person 1/2 takyafa tibakyafa 3/4 tigukyafa tekyafa 5/6 tirikyafa tigakyafa 7/8 tikikyafa tibikyafa 9/10 tekyafa tizikyafa 11/10 tirukyafa 12/14 tikakyafa tibukyafa 13 — titukyafa 14/6 tibukyafa tigakyafa 15/6 tikukyafa 16 tihakyafa — subject concord + -takyafa virtual present affirmative subject concord + -afa person noun class singular plural first person nafa twafa second person wafa mwafa third person 1/2 yafa baafa 3/4 gwafa yafa 5/6 lyafa gaafa 7/8 kyafa byafa 9/10 yafa zaafa 11/10 rwafa 12/14 kaafa bwafa 13 — twafa 14/6 bwafa gaafa 15/6 kwafa 16 haafa — negative ti- + subject concord + afa person noun class singular plural first person tinafa titwafa second person tiwafa timwafa third person 1/2 tiyafa tibaafa 3/4 tigwafa tiyafa 5/6 tiryafa tigaafa 7/8 tikyafa tibyafa 9/10 tiyafa tizaafa 11/10 tirwafa 12/14 tikaafa tibwafa 13 — titwafa 14/6 tibwafa tigaafa 15/6 tikwafa 16 tihaafa — subject concord + -taafa present perfect affirmative subject concord + -fiire person noun class singular plural first person nfiire tufiire second person ofiire mufiire third person 1/2 afiire bafiire 3/4 gufiire efiire 5/6 lifiire gafiire 7/8 kifiire bifiire 9/10 efiire zifiire 11/10 rufiire 12/14 kafiire bufiire 13 — tufiire 14/6 bufiire gafiire 15/6 kufiire 16 hafiire — negative ti- + subject concord + -fiire person noun class singular plural first person tinfiire titufiire second person tofiire timufiire third person 1/2 tafiire tibafiire 3/4 tigufiire tefiire 5/6 tirifiire tigafiire 7/8 tikifiire tibifiire 9/10 tefiire tizifiire 11/10 tirufiire 12/14 tikafiire tibufiire 13 — titufiire 14/6 tibufiire tigafiire 15/6 tikufiire 16 tihafiire — subject concord + -tafiire near perfective affirmative subject concord + -akafa person noun class singular plural first person nakafa twakafa second person wakafa mwakafa third person 1/2 yakafa baakafa 3/4 gwakafa yakafa 5/6 lyakafa gaakafa 7/8 kyakafa byakafa 9/10 yakafa zaakafa 11/10 rwakafa 12/14 kaakafa bwakafa 13 — twakafa 14/6 bwakafa gaakafa 15/6 kwakafa 16 haakafa — negative ti- + subject concord + -kafiire person noun class singular plural first person tinkafiire titukafiire second person tokafiire timukafiire third person 1/2 takafiire tibakafiire 3/4 tigukafiire tekafiire 5/6 tirikafiire tigakafiire 7/8 tikikafiire tibikafiire 9/10 tekafiire tizikafiire 11/10 tirukafiire 12/14 tikakafiire tibukafiire 13 — titukafiire 14/6 tibukafiire tigakafiire 15/6 tikukafiire 16 tihakafiire — subject concord + -takafiire near past affirmative subject concord + -fiirege person noun class singular plural first person nfiirege tufiirege second person ofiirege mufiirege third person 1/2 afiirege bafiirege 3/4 gufiirege efiirege 5/6 lifiirege gafiirege 7/8 kifiirege bifiirege 9/10 efiirege zifiirege 11/10 rufiirege 12/14 kafiirege bufiirege 13 — tufiirege 14/6 bufiirege gafiirege 15/6 kufiirege 16 hafiirege — negative ti- + subject concord + -fiirege person noun class singular plural first person tinfiirege titufiirege second person tofiirege timufiirege third person 1/2 tafiirege tibafiirege 3/4 tigufiirege tefiirege 5/6 tirifiirege tigafiirege 7/8 tikifiirege tibifiirege 9/10 tefiirege tizifiirege 11/10 tirufiirege 12/14 tikafiirege tibufiirege 13 — titufiirege 14/6 tibufiirege tigafiirege 15/6 tikufiirege 16 tihafiirege — subject concord + -tafiirege remote past affirmative subject concord + -kafa person noun class singular plural first person nkafa tukafa second person okafa mukafa third person 1/2 akafa bakafa 3/4 gukafa ekafa 5/6 likafa gakafa 7/8 kikafa bikafa 9/10 ekafa zikafa 11/10 rukafa 12/14 kakafa bukafa 13 — tukafa 14/6 bukafa gakafa 15/6 kukafa 16 hakafa — subject concord + -afiire negative subject concord + -tafe person noun class singular plural first person ntafe tutafe second person otafe mutafe third person 1/2 atafe batafe 3/4 gutafe etafe 5/6 litafe gatafe 7/8 kitafe bitafe 9/10 etafe ziitafe 11/10 rutafe 12/14 katafe butafe 13 — tutafe 14/6 butafe gatafe 15/6 kutafe 16 hatafe — subject concord + -tarafiire experiential perfective affirmative subject concord + -rafiire person noun class singular plural first person ndafiire turafiire second person orafiire murafiire third person 1/2 arafiire barafiire 3/4 gurafiire erafiire 5/6 lirafiire garafiire 7/8 kirafiire birafiire 9/10 erafiire zirafiire 11/10 rurafiire 12/14 karafiire burafiire 13 — turafiire 14/6 burafiire garafiire 15/6 kurafiire 16 harafiire — negative ti- + subject concord + -kafaaga person noun class singular plural first person tinkafaaga titukafaaga second person tokafaaga timukafaaga third person 1/2 takafaaga tibakafaaga 3/4 tigukafaaga tekafaaga 5/6 tirikafaaga tigakafaaga 7/8 tikikafaaga tibikafaaga 9/10 tekafaaga tizikafaaga 11/10 tirukafaaga 12/14 tikakafaaga tibukafaaga 13 — titukafaaga 14/6 tibukafaaga tigakafaaga 15/6 tikukafaaga 16 tihakafaaga — subject concord + -takafaaga cessative perfective affirmative subject concord + -aafiire person noun class singular plural first person naafiire twafiire second person waafiire mwafiire third person 1/2 yaafiire baafiire 3/4 gwafiire yaafiire 5/6 lyafiire gaafiire 7/8 kyafiire byafiire 9/10 yaafiire zaafiire 11/10 rwafiire 12/14 kaafiire bwafiire 13 — twafiire 14/6 bwafiire gaafiire 15/6 kwafiire 16 haafiire — past habitual affirmative subject concord + -afaaga person noun class singular plural first person nafaaga twafaaga second person wafaaga mwafaaga third person 1/2 yafaaga baafaaga 3/4 gwafaaga yafaaga 5/6 lyafaaga gaafaaga 7/8 kyafaaga byafaaga 9/10 yafaaga zaafaaga 11/10 rwafaaga 12/14 kaafaaga bwafaaga 13 — twafaaga 14/6 bwafaaga gaafaaga 15/6 kwafaaga 16 haafaaga — negative ti- + subject concord + afaaga person noun class singular plural first person tinafaaga titwafaaga second person tiwafaaga timwafaaga third person 1/2 tiyafaaga tibaafaaga 3/4 tigwafaaga tiyafaaga 5/6 tiryafaaga tigaafaaga 7/8 tikyafaaga tibyafaaga 9/10 tiyafaaga tizaafaaga 11/10 tirwafaaga 12/14 tikaafaaga tibwafaaga 13 — titwafaaga 14/6 tibwafaaga tigaafaaga 15/6 tikwafaaga 16 tihaafaaga — subject concord + -taafaaga near future affirmative subject concord + -raafa person noun class singular plural first person ndaafa turaafa second person oraafa muraafa third person 1/2 araafa baraafa 3/4 guraafa eraafa 5/6 liraafa garaafa 7/8 kiraafa biraafa 9/10 eraafa ziraafa 11/10 ruraafa 12/14 karaafa buraafa 13 — turaafa 14/6 buraafa garaafa 15/6 kuraafa 16 haraafa — negative ti- + subject concord + -aafe person noun class singular plural first person tinaafe titwafe second person tiwaafe timwafe third person 1/2 tiyaafe tibaafe 3/4 tigwafe tiyaafe 5/6 tiryafe tigaafe 7/8 tikyafe tibyafe 9/10 tiyaafe tizaafe 11/10 tirwafe 12/14 tikaafe tibwafe 13 — titwafe 14/6 tibwafe tigaafe 15/6 tikwafe 16 tihaafe — subject concord + -taafe remote future affirmative subject concord + -lifa person noun class singular plural first person ndifa tulifa second person olifa mulifa third person 1/2 alifa balifa 3/4 gulifa erifa 5/6 lirifa galifa 7/8 kirifa birifa 9/10 erifa zirifa 11/10 rulifa 12/14 kalifa bulifa 13 — tulifa 14/6 bulifa galifa 15/6 kulifa 16 halifa — negative ti- + subject concord + -lifa person noun class singular plural first person tindifa titulifa second person tolifa timulifa third person 1/2 talifa tibalifa 3/4 tigulifa terifa 5/6 tiririfa tigalifa 7/8 tikirifa tibirifa 9/10 terifa tizirifa 11/10 tirulifa 12/14 tikalifa tibulifa 13 — titulifa 14/6 tibulifa tigalifa 15/6 tikulifa 16 tihalifa — subject concord + -talifa future habitual affirmative subject concord + -raafaaga person noun class singular plural first person ndaafaaga turaafaaga second person oraafaaga muraafaaga third person 1/2 araafaaga baraafaaga 3/4 guraafaaga eraafaaga 5/6 liraafaaga garaafaaga 7/8 kiraafaaga biraafaaga 9/10 eraafaaga ziraafaaga 11/10 ruraafaaga 12/14 karaafaaga buraafaaga 13 — turaafaaga 14/6 buraafaaga garaafaaga 15/6 kuraafaaga 16 haraafaaga — negative ti- + subject concord + -aafeege person noun class singular plural first person tinaafeege titwafeege second person tiwaafeege timwafeege third person 1/2 tiyaafeege tibaafeege 3/4 tigwafeege tiyaafeege 5/6 tiryafeege tigaafeege 7/8 tikyafeege tibyafeege 9/10 tiyaafeege tizaafeege 11/10 tirwafeege 12/14 tikaafeege tibwafeege 13 — titwafeege 14/6 tibwafeege tigaafeege 15/6 tikwafeege 16 tihaafeege — subject concord + -taafeege subjunctive affirmative subject concord + fe person noun class singular plural first person nfe tufe second person ofe mufe third person 1/2 afe bafe 3/4 gufe efe 5/6 life gafe 7/8 kife bife 9/10 efe zife 11/10 rufe 12/14 kafe bufe 13 — tufe 14/6 bufe gafe 15/6 kufe 16 hafe — negative subject concord + -tafa person noun class singular plural first person ntafa tutafa second person otafa mutafa third person 1/2 atafa batafa 3/4 gutafa etafa 5/6 litafa gatafa 7/8 kitafa bitafa 9/10 etafa zitafa 11/10 rutafa 12/14 katafa butafa 13 — tutafa 14/6 butafa gatafa 15/6 kutafa 16 hatafa — — subjunctive habitual affirmative subject concord + feege person noun class singular plural first person nfeege tufeege second person ofeege mufeege third person 1/2 afeege bafeege 3/4 gufeege efeege 5/6 lifeege gafeege 7/8 kifeege bifeege 9/10 efeege zifeege 11/10 rufeege 12/14 kafeege bufeege 13 — tufeege 14/6 bufeege gafeege 15/6 kufeege 16 hafeege — hypothetical affirmative subject concord + -aakufa person noun class singular plural first person naakufa twakufa second person waakufa mwakufa third person 1/2 yaakufa baakufa 3/4 gwakufa yaakufa 5/6 lyakufa gaakufa 7/8 kyakufa byakufa 9/10 yaakufa zaakufa 11/10 rwakufa 12/14 kaakufa bwakufa 13 — twakufa 14/6 bwakufa gaakufa 15/6 kwakufa 16 haakufa — negative ti- + subject concord + -aakufa person noun class singular plural first person tinaakufa titwakufa second person tiwaakufa timwakufa third person 1/2 tiyaakufa tibaakufa 3/4 tigwakufa tiyaakufa 5/6 tiryakufa tigaakufa 7/8 tikyakufa tibyakufa 9/10 tiyaakufa tizaakufa 11/10 tirwakufa 12/14 tikaakufa tibwakufa 13 — titwakufa 14/6 tibwakufa tigaakufa 15/6 tikwakufa 16 tihaakufa — subject concord + -taakufa conditional affirmative subject concord + -aakufiire person noun class singular plural first person naakufiire twakufiire second person waakufiire mwakufiire third person 1/2 yaakufiire baakufiire 3/4 gwakufiire yaakufiire 5/6 lyakufiire gaakufiire 7/8 kyakufiire byakufiire 9/10 yaakufiire zaakufiire 11/10 rwakufiire 12/14 kaakufiire bwakufiire 13 — twakufiire 14/6 bwakufiire gaakufiire 15/6 kwakufiire 16 haakufiire — negative ti- + subject concord + -aakufiire person noun class singular plural first person tinaakufiire titwakufiire second person tiwaakufiire timwakufiire third person 1/2 tiyaakufiire tibaakufiire 3/4 tigwakufiire tiyaakufiire 5/6 tiryakufiire tigaakufiire 7/8 tikyakufiire tibyakufiire 9/10 tiyaakufiire tizaakufiire 11/10 tirwakufiire 12/14 tikaakufiire tibwakufiire 13 — titwakufiire 14/6 tibwakufiire tigaakufiire 15/6 tikwakufiire 16 tihaakufiire — subject concord + -taakufiire object concords person noun class singular plural first person -nfa -tufa second person -kufa -bafa third person 1/2 -mufa 3/4 -gufa -gifa 5/6 -lifa -gafa 7/8 -kifa -bifa 9/10 -gifa -zifa 11/10 -rufa 12/14 -kafa -bufa 13 — -tufa 14/6 -bufa -gafa 15/6 -kufa 16 -hafa —

¹ The forms in this column are reduced relative forms; full relative forms require an augment before the subject concord.

With -fwire:

Conjugation of -fa

infinitives affirmative okufa negative okutafa imperatives affirmative fa negative (see second-person negative subjunctive forms) tense polarity basic forms relative forms1 present habitual affirmative subject concord + -fa person noun class singular plural first person nfa tufa second person ofa mufa third person 1/2 afa bafa 3/4 gufa efa 5/6 lifa gafa 7/8 kifa bifa 9/10 efa zifa 11/10 rufa 12/14 kafa bufa 13 — tufa 14/6 bufa gafa 15/6 kufa 16 hafa — negative ti- + subject concord + -fa person noun class singular plural first person tinfa titufa second person tofa timufa third person 1/2 tafa tibafa 3/4 tigufa tefa 5/6 tirifa tigafa 7/8 tikifa tibifa 9/10 tefa tizifa 11/10 tirufa 12/14 tikafa tibufa 13 — titufa 14/6 tibufa tigafa 15/6 tikufa 16 tihafa — subject concord + -tafa present continuous affirmative ni- + subject concord + -fa person noun class singular plural first person ninfa nitufa second person noofa nimufa third person 1/2 naafa nibafa 3/4 nigufa neefa 5/6 nirifa nigafa 7/8 nikifa nibifa 9/10 neefa nizifa 11/10 nirufa 12/14 nikafa nibufa 13 — nitufa 14/6 nibufa nigafa 15/6 nikufa 16 nihafa — subject concord + -rukufa negative ti- + subject concord + -rukufa person noun class singular plural first person tindukufa titurukufa second person torukufa timurukufa third person 1/2 tarukufa tibarukufa 3/4 tigurukufa terukufa 5/6 tirirukufa tigarukufa 7/8 tikirukufa tibirukufa 9/10 terukufa tizirukufa 11/10 tirurukufa 12/14 tikarukufa tiburukufa 13 — titurukufa 14/6 tiburukufa tigarukufa 15/6 tikurukufa 16 tiharukufa — subject concord + -tarukufa present continuative affirmative ni- + subject concord + -kyafa person noun class singular plural first person ninkyafa nitukyafa second person nookyafa nimukyafa third person 1/2 naakyafa nibakyafa 3/4 nigukyafa neekyafa 5/6 nirikyafa nigakyafa 7/8 nikikyafa nibikyafa 9/10 neekyafa nizikyafa 11/10 nirukyafa 12/14 nikakyafa nibukyafa 13 — nitukyafa 14/6 nibukyafa nigakyafa 15/6 nikukyafa 16 nihakyafa — subject concord + -rukukyafa negative ti- + subject concord + -kyafa person noun class singular plural first person tinkyafa titukyafa second person tokyafa timukyafa third person 1/2 takyafa tibakyafa 3/4 tigukyafa tekyafa 5/6 tirikyafa tigakyafa 7/8 tikikyafa tibikyafa 9/10 tekyafa tizikyafa 11/10 tirukyafa 12/14 tikakyafa tibukyafa 13 — titukyafa 14/6 tibukyafa tigakyafa 15/6 tikukyafa 16 tihakyafa — subject concord + -takyafa virtual present affirmative subject concord + -afa person noun class singular plural first person nafa twafa second person wafa mwafa third person 1/2 yafa baafa 3/4 gwafa yafa 5/6 lyafa gaafa 7/8 kyafa byafa 9/10 yafa zaafa 11/10 rwafa 12/14 kaafa bwafa 13 — twafa 14/6 bwafa gaafa 15/6 kwafa 16 haafa — negative ti- + subject concord + afa person noun class singular plural first person tinafa titwafa second person tiwafa timwafa third person 1/2 tiyafa tibaafa 3/4 tigwafa tiyafa 5/6 tiryafa tigaafa 7/8 tikyafa tibyafa 9/10 tiyafa tizaafa 11/10 tirwafa 12/14 tikaafa tibwafa 13 — titwafa 14/6 tibwafa tigaafa 15/6 tikwafa 16 tihaafa — subject concord + -taafa present perfect affirmative subject concord + -fwire person noun class singular plural first person nfwire tufwire second person ofwire mufwire third person 1/2 afwire bafwire 3/4 gufwire efwire 5/6 lifwire gafwire 7/8 kifwire bifwire 9/10 efwire zifwire 11/10 rufwire 12/14 kafwire bufwire 13 — tufwire 14/6 bufwire gafwire 15/6 kufwire 16 hafwire — negative ti- + subject concord + -fwire person noun class singular plural first person tinfwire titufwire second person tofwire timufwire third person 1/2 tafwire tibafwire 3/4 tigufwire tefwire 5/6 tirifwire tigafwire 7/8 tikifwire tibifwire 9/10 tefwire tizifwire 11/10 tirufwire 12/14 tikafwire tibufwire 13 — titufwire 14/6 tibufwire tigafwire 15/6 tikufwire 16 tihafwire — subject concord + -tafwire near perfective affirmative subject concord + -akafa person noun class singular plural first person nakafa twakafa second person wakafa mwakafa third person 1/2 yakafa baakafa 3/4 gwakafa yakafa 5/6 lyakafa gaakafa 7/8 kyakafa byakafa 9/10 yakafa zaakafa 11/10 rwakafa 12/14 kaakafa bwakafa 13 — twakafa 14/6 bwakafa gaakafa 15/6 kwakafa 16 haakafa — negative ti- + subject concord + -kafwire person noun class singular plural first person tinkafwire titukafwire second person tokafwire timukafwire third person 1/2 takafwire tibakafwire 3/4 tigukafwire tekafwire 5/6 tirikafwire tigakafwire 7/8 tikikafwire tibikafwire 9/10 tekafwire tizikafwire 11/10 tirukafwire 12/14 tikakafwire tibukafwire 13 — titukafwire 14/6 tibukafwire tigakafwire 15/6 tikukafwire 16 tihakafwire — subject concord + -takafwire near past affirmative subject concord + -fwirege person noun class singular plural first person nfwirege tufwirege second person ofwirege mufwirege third person 1/2 afwirege bafwirege 3/4 gufwirege efwirege 5/6 lifwirege gafwirege 7/8 kifwirege bifwirege 9/10 efwirege zifwirege 11/10 rufwirege 12/14 kafwirege bufwirege 13 — tufwirege 14/6 bufwirege gafwirege 15/6 kufwirege 16 hafwirege — negative ti- + subject concord + -fwirege person noun class singular plural first person tinfwirege titufwirege second person tofwirege timufwirege third person 1/2 tafwirege tibafwirege 3/4 tigufwirege tefwirege 5/6 tirifwirege tigafwirege 7/8 tikifwirege tibifwirege 9/10 tefwirege tizifwirege 11/10 tirufwirege 12/14 tikafwirege tibufwirege 13 — titufwirege 14/6 tibufwirege tigafwirege 15/6 tikufwirege 16 tihafwirege — subject concord + -tafwirege remote past affirmative subject concord + -kafa person noun class singular plural first person nkafa tukafa second person okafa mukafa third person 1/2 akafa bakafa 3/4 gukafa ekafa 5/6 likafa gakafa 7/8 kikafa bikafa 9/10 ekafa zikafa 11/10 rukafa 12/14 kakafa bukafa 13 — tukafa 14/6 bukafa gakafa 15/6 kukafa 16 hakafa — subject concord + -afwire negative subject concord + -tafe person noun class singular plural first person ntafe tutafe second person otafe mutafe third person 1/2 atafe batafe 3/4 gutafe etafe 5/6 litafe gatafe 7/8 kitafe bitafe 9/10 etafe ziitafe 11/10 rutafe 12/14 katafe butafe 13 — tutafe 14/6 butafe gatafe 15/6 kutafe 16 hatafe — subject concord + -tarafwire experiential perfective affirmative subject concord + -rafwire person noun class singular plural first person ndafwire turafwire second person orafwire murafwire third person 1/2 arafwire barafwire 3/4 gurafwire erafwire 5/6 lirafwire garafwire 7/8 kirafwire birafwire 9/10 erafwire zirafwire 11/10 rurafwire 12/14 karafwire burafwire 13 — turafwire 14/6 burafwire garafwire 15/6 kurafwire 16 harafwire — negative ti- + subject concord + -kafaaga person noun class singular plural first person tinkafaaga titukafaaga second person tokafaaga timukafaaga third person 1/2 takafaaga tibakafaaga 3/4 tigukafaaga tekafaaga 5/6 tirikafaaga tigakafaaga 7/8 tikikafaaga tibikafaaga 9/10 tekafaaga tizikafaaga 11/10 tirukafaaga 12/14 tikakafaaga tibukafaaga 13 — titukafaaga 14/6 tibukafaaga tigakafaaga 15/6 tikukafaaga 16 tihakafaaga — subject concord + -takafaaga cessative perfective affirmative subject concord + -aafwire person noun class singular plural first person naafwire twafwire second person waafwire mwafwire third person 1/2 yaafwire baafwire 3/4 gwafwire yaafwire 5/6 lyafwire gaafwire 7/8 kyafwire byafwire 9/10 yaafwire zaafwire 11/10 rwafwire 12/14 kaafwire bwafwire 13 — twafwire 14/6 bwafwire gaafwire 15/6 kwafwire 16 haafwire — past habitual affirmative subject concord + -afaaga person noun class singular plural first person nafaaga twafaaga second person wafaaga mwafaaga third person 1/2 yafaaga baafaaga 3/4 gwafaaga yafaaga 5/6 lyafaaga gaafaaga 7/8 kyafaaga byafaaga 9/10 yafaaga zaafaaga 11/10 rwafaaga 12/14 kaafaaga bwafaaga 13 — twafaaga 14/6 bwafaaga gaafaaga 15/6 kwafaaga 16 haafaaga — negative ti- + subject concord + afaaga person noun class singular plural first person tinafaaga titwafaaga second person tiwafaaga timwafaaga third person 1/2 tiyafaaga tibaafaaga 3/4 tigwafaaga tiyafaaga 5/6 tiryafaaga tigaafaaga 7/8 tikyafaaga tibyafaaga 9/10 tiyafaaga tizaafaaga 11/10 tirwafaaga 12/14 tikaafaaga tibwafaaga 13 — titwafaaga 14/6 tibwafaaga tigaafaaga 15/6 tikwafaaga 16 tihaafaaga — subject concord + -taafaaga near future affirmative subject concord + -raafa person noun class singular plural first person ndaafa turaafa second person oraafa muraafa third person 1/2 araafa baraafa 3/4 guraafa eraafa 5/6 liraafa garaafa 7/8 kiraafa biraafa 9/10 eraafa ziraafa 11/10 ruraafa 12/14 karaafa buraafa 13 — turaafa 14/6 buraafa garaafa 15/6 kuraafa 16 haraafa — negative ti- + subject concord + -aafe person noun class singular plural first person tinaafe titwafe second person tiwaafe timwafe third person 1/2 tiyaafe tibaafe 3/4 tigwafe tiyaafe 5/6 tiryafe tigaafe 7/8 tikyafe tibyafe 9/10 tiyaafe tizaafe 11/10 tirwafe 12/14 tikaafe tibwafe 13 — titwafe 14/6 tibwafe tigaafe 15/6 tikwafe 16 tihaafe — subject concord + -taafe remote future affirmative subject concord + -lifa person noun class singular plural first person ndifa tulifa second person olifa mulifa third person 1/2 alifa balifa 3/4 gulifa erifa 5/6 lirifa galifa 7/8 kirifa birifa 9/10 erifa zirifa 11/10 rulifa 12/14 kalifa bulifa 13 — tulifa 14/6 bulifa galifa 15/6 kulifa 16 halifa — negative ti- + subject concord + -lifa person noun class singular plural first person tindifa titulifa second person tolifa timulifa third person 1/2 talifa tibalifa 3/4 tigulifa terifa 5/6 tiririfa tigalifa 7/8 tikirifa tibirifa 9/10 terifa tizirifa 11/10 tirulifa 12/14 tikalifa tibulifa 13 — titulifa 14/6 tibulifa tigalifa 15/6 tikulifa 16 tihalifa — subject concord + -talifa future habitual affirmative subject concord + -raafaaga person noun class singular plural first person ndaafaaga turaafaaga second person oraafaaga muraafaaga third person 1/2 araafaaga baraafaaga 3/4 guraafaaga eraafaaga 5/6 liraafaaga garaafaaga 7/8 kiraafaaga biraafaaga 9/10 eraafaaga ziraafaaga 11/10 ruraafaaga 12/14 karaafaaga buraafaaga 13 — turaafaaga 14/6 buraafaaga garaafaaga 15/6 kuraafaaga 16 haraafaaga — negative ti- + subject concord + -aafeege person noun class singular plural first person tinaafeege titwafeege second person tiwaafeege timwafeege third person 1/2 tiyaafeege tibaafeege 3/4 tigwafeege tiyaafeege 5/6 tiryafeege tigaafeege 7/8 tikyafeege tibyafeege 9/10 tiyaafeege tizaafeege 11/10 tirwafeege 12/14 tikaafeege tibwafeege 13 — titwafeege 14/6 tibwafeege tigaafeege 15/6 tikwafeege 16 tihaafeege — subject concord + -taafeege subjunctive affirmative subject concord + fe person noun class singular plural first person nfe tufe second person ofe mufe third person 1/2 afe bafe 3/4 gufe efe 5/6 life gafe 7/8 kife bife 9/10 efe zife 11/10 rufe 12/14 kafe bufe 13 — tufe 14/6 bufe gafe 15/6 kufe 16 hafe — negative subject concord + -tafa person noun class singular plural first person ntafa tutafa second person otafa mutafa third person 1/2 atafa batafa 3/4 gutafa etafa 5/6 litafa gatafa 7/8 kitafa bitafa 9/10 etafa zitafa 11/10 rutafa 12/14 katafa butafa 13 — tutafa 14/6 butafa gatafa 15/6 kutafa 16 hatafa — — subjunctive habitual affirmative subject concord + feege person noun class singular plural first person nfeege tufeege second person ofeege mufeege third person 1/2 afeege bafeege 3/4 gufeege efeege 5/6 lifeege gafeege 7/8 kifeege bifeege 9/10 efeege zifeege 11/10 rufeege 12/14 kafeege bufeege 13 — tufeege 14/6 bufeege gafeege 15/6 kufeege 16 hafeege — hypothetical affirmative subject concord + -aakufa person noun class singular plural first person naakufa twakufa second person waakufa mwakufa third person 1/2 yaakufa baakufa 3/4 gwakufa yaakufa 5/6 lyakufa gaakufa 7/8 kyakufa byakufa 9/10 yaakufa zaakufa 11/10 rwakufa 12/14 kaakufa bwakufa 13 — twakufa 14/6 bwakufa gaakufa 15/6 kwakufa 16 haakufa — negative ti- + subject concord + -aakufa person noun class singular plural first person tinaakufa titwakufa second person tiwaakufa timwakufa third person 1/2 tiyaakufa tibaakufa 3/4 tigwakufa tiyaakufa 5/6 tiryakufa tigaakufa 7/8 tikyakufa tibyakufa 9/10 tiyaakufa tizaakufa 11/10 tirwakufa 12/14 tikaakufa tibwakufa 13 — titwakufa 14/6 tibwakufa tigaakufa 15/6 tikwakufa 16 tihaakufa — subject concord + -taakufa conditional affirmative subject concord + -aakufwire person noun class singular plural first person naakufwire twakufwire second person waakufwire mwakufwire third person 1/2 yaakufwire baakufwire 3/4 gwakufwire yaakufwire 5/6 lyakufwire gaakufwire 7/8 kyakufwire byakufwire 9/10 yaakufwire zaakufwire 11/10 rwakufwire 12/14 kaakufwire bwakufwire 13 — twakufwire 14/6 bwakufwire gaakufwire 15/6 kwakufwire 16 haakufwire — negative ti- + subject concord + -aakufwire person noun class singular plural first person tinaakufwire titwakufwire second person tiwaakufwire timwakufwire third person 1/2 tiyaakufwire tibaakufwire 3/4 tigwakufwire tiyaakufwire 5/6 tiryakufwire tigaakufwire 7/8 tikyakufwire tibyakufwire 9/10 tiyaakufwire tizaakufwire 11/10 tirwakufwire 12/14 tikaakufwire tibwakufwire 13 — titwakufwire 14/6 tibwakufwire tigaakufwire 15/6 tikwakufwire 16 tihaakufwire — subject concord + -taakufwire object concords person noun class singular plural first person -nfa -tufa second person -kufa -bafa third person 1/2 -mufa 3/4 -gufa -gifa 5/6 -lifa -gafa 7/8 -kifa -bifa 9/10 -gifa -zifa 11/10 -rufa 12/14 -kafa -bufa 13 — -tufa 14/6 -bufa -gafa 15/6 -kufa 16 -hafa —

¹ The forms in this column are reduced relative forms; full relative forms require an augment before the subject concord.

Derived terms

• Verbal derivations:
  • Applicative: -feera
  • Long causative: -fiisa
  • -yo clitic: -faayo (“to care, to mind”)

• Nominal derivations:
  • omufaakati (“widow”)
  • omufu (“dead person”)
  • orufu (“death; disease”)

References

• Kaji, Shigeki (2007), A Rutooro Vocabulary‎^[8], Tokyo: Research Institute for Languages and Cultures of Asia and Africa (ILCAA), →ISBN, page 269
• Rubongoya, L. T. (2013), Katondogorozi y'Orunyoro-Rutooro n'Orungereza [Runyoro–Rutooro-English and English-Runyoro–Rutooro dictionary]‎^[9], Kampala: Modrug Publishers, →ISBN, page 96

Tsonga

Etymology

From Proto-Bantu *-kúa.

Verb

fa

1. to die

Turkish

Etymology

Borrowed from Italian fa.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /fa/

Noun

fa (definite accusative fayı, plural falar)

2. (music) fa (fourth diatonic (or sixth chromatic) musical note)
3. F (musical note or key)

Tuvaluan

Tuvaluan cardinal numbers

<  3	4	5  >
Cardinal : fa

Etymology

From Proto-Polynesian *fa, from Proto-Oceanic *pat, from Proto-Eastern Malayo-Polynesian *pat, from Proto-Central-Eastern Malayo-Polynesian *pat, from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *əpat, from Proto-Austronesian *Səpat.

Numeral

fa

1. four

Venda

Etymology

Inherited from Proto-Bantu *-kúa.

Verb

fa

1. to die

Venetan

Noun

fa m (invariable)

1. (music) fa (fourth diatonic (or sixth chromatic) musical note)
2. F (musical note or key)

Adverb

fa

1. as, like

Volapük

Preposition

fa

1. by (indicating an agent)

West Makian

Conjunction

fa

1. or

   win edeng fa iunge ― two days or three

References

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

Woleaian

Etymology

From Proto-Micronesian *faasa.

Noun

fa

1. string, cord, band, lace

   Gasi faa yeel!

   Take this string!

References

• Sohn, Ho-Mihn; Tawerilmang, Anthony F. (1976), “fa”, in Woleaian-English Dictionary‎^[11], Honolulu, HI: University of Hawai'i Press, →ISBN, page 17

Wuvulu-Aua

Etymology

From Proto-Oceanic *pat, from Proto-Eastern Malayo-Polynesian *pat, from Proto-Central-Eastern Malayo-Polynesian *əpat, from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *əpat, from Proto-Austronesian *Səpat.

Numeral

fa

1. four

Xhosa

Etymology

From Proto-Bantu *-kúa.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [fá]

Verb

-fá

1. (intransitive) to die

Inflection

This verb needs an inflection-table template.

Derived terms

• umfi

Yoruba

Etymology 1

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /fà/

Verb

fà

1. (transitive, intransitive) to pull

   mo fa aṣọ ― I pulled the clothes

2. (transitive) to suck
3. (intransitive) to subside, to reduce

   eéwó t'ó wú ti fà ― The boil that was swollen has reduced

4. to draw, to sketch

   ó fa ìlà sórí ìwé ― He drew a line on the piece of paper

5. to become sluggish

   ọ̀lẹ́ fà tìì lẹ́nu iṣẹ́ ― The lazy person was sluggish at work

6. to be elastic, to be mucilaginous (as a soup or stew), to draw

   Synonym: yọ̀

   ọbẹ̀ ewédú náàá fà ― This ewedu soup is mucilaginous

7. (intransitive) to crawl

   bí ìgbín fà, ìkarahun á tẹ̀lé e ― When the snail crawls its shell shall follow it

8. (transitive) to cause, to bring about

   ìyà púpọ̀ ni ó fa ẹkún ― Too much suffering is the cause of weeping

9. (transitive) to long for

   ọkàn àwọn ọmọ́ fà mí ― I longed for those children

Usage notes

• fa before a direct object

Synonyms

Yoruba varieties and languages: fà (“to pull, cause”)
view map; edit data
Language family	Variety group	Variety/language	Subdialect	Location	Words
Proto-Itsekiri-SEY	Southeast Yoruba	Ào			fà
			Ìdóàní		fà
		Eastern Àkókó			fà
			Ìkàrẹ́	Ìkàrẹ́ Àkókó (Ùkàrẹ́)	fà
		Ìdànrè (Ùdànè, Ùdànrè)			fà
			Ìdànrè (Ùdànè, Ùdànrè)		fà
		Ìjẹ̀bú			fà
			Ìjẹ̀bú	Ìjẹ̀bú Òde	fà
			Rẹ́mọ	Ẹ̀pẹ́	fà
				Ìkòròdú	fà
				Ṣágámù	fà
		Ìkálẹ̀ (Ùkálẹ̀)			fà
			Òkìtìpupa		fà
		Ìlàjẹ (Ùlàjẹ)			fà
			Mahin		fà
		Oǹdó			fà
			Oǹdó		fà
		Ọ̀wọ̀ (Ọ̀ghọ̀)			fà
			Ọ̀wọ̀ (Ọ̀ghọ̀)		fà
		Usẹn			fà
			Usẹn		fà
	Ìtsẹkírì				fà (“to pull”), lẹ̀ghẹ̀ (“to cause, deceive”)
		Ìwẹrẹ			fà (“to pull”), lẹ̀ghẹ̀ (“to cause, deceive”)
	Olùkùmi				fà
		Ugbódù			fà
Proto-Yoruba	Central Yoruba	Èkìtì	Èkìtì	Àdó Èkìtì	fà
			Àkúrẹ́	Àkúrẹ́	fà
			Mọ̀bà	Ọ̀tùn Èkìtì	fà
		Ifẹ̀ (Ufẹ̀)			fà
			Ilé Ifẹ̀ (Ulé Ufẹ̀)		fà
		Ìjẹ̀ṣà (Ùjẹ̀ṣà)			fà
			Iléṣà (Uléṣà)		fà
		Western Àkókó			fà
			Ọ̀gbàgì Àkókó		fà
	Northwest Yoruba	Àwórì			fà
			Èbúté Mẹ́tà		fà
		Ẹ̀gbá			fà
			Abẹ́òkúta		fà
		Ẹ̀gbádò	Ìjàká		fà
		Èkó			fà
			Èkó		fà
		Ìbàdàn			fà
			Ìbàdàn		fà
		Ìbàràpá			fà
			Igbó Òrà		fà
		Ìbọ̀lọ́			fà
			Òṣogbo (Òsogbo)		fà
		Ìgbómìnà			fà
			Ìlá Ọ̀ràngún		fà
			Ìfẹ́lódùn LGA		fà
			Ìrẹ́pọ̀dùn LGA		fà
			Ìsin LGA		fà
		Ìlọrin			fà
			Ìlọrin		fà
		Oǹkó	Òtù		fà
			Ìwéré Ilé		fà
			Òkèhò		fà
			Ìsẹ́yìn		fà
			Ṣakí		fà
			Tedé		fà
			Ìgbẹ́tì		fà
		Ọ̀yọ́			fà
			Ọ̀yọ́		fà
		Standard Yorùbá	Nàìjíríà		fà
			Bɛ̀nɛ̀		fà
	Northeast Yoruba/Okun	Owé			fà
			Kabba		fà
	Ede languages/Southwest Yoruba	Ana			fà
			Sokode		fà
		Cábɛ̀ɛ́	Cábɛ̀ɛ́ (Ìdàdú)		fà
			Tchaourou		fà
		Ǹcà (Ìcà, Ìncà)			fà
			Baàtɛ		fà
		Ìdàácà			fà
			Benin	Igbó Ìdàácà (Dasa Zunmɛ̀)	fà
		Ọ̀họ̀rí/Ɔ̀hɔ̀rí-Ìjè	Ọ̀họ̀rí/Ɔ̀hɔ̀rí/Ìjè	Ìkpòbɛ́	fà
				Onigbolo	fà
			Kétu/Ànàgó	Kétu	fà
		Ifɛ̀	Akpáré		fà
			Atakpamɛ		fà
			Boko		fà
			Moretan		fà
			Tchetti (Tsɛti, Cɛti)		fà
		Kura			fà
			Aledjo-Koura		fà
			Awotébi		fà
			Partago		fà
		Mɔ̄kɔ́lé			fà
			Kandi		fà
Northern Nago		Kambole		fà
		Manigri		fà
Note: This amalgamation of terms comes from a number of different academic papers focused on the unique varieties and languages spoken in the Yoruboid dialectal continuum which extends from eastern Togo to southern Nigeria. The terms for spoken varieties, now deemed dialects of Yorùbá in Nigeria (i.e. Southeast Yorùbá, Northwest Yorùbá, Central Yorùbá, and Northeast Yorùbá), have converged with those of Standard Yorùbá leading to the creation of what can be labeled Common Yorùbá (Funṣọ Akere, 1977). It can be assumed that the Standard Yorùbá term can also be used in most Nigerian varieties alongside native terms, especially amongst younger speakers. This does not apply to the other Nigerian Yoruboid languages of Ìṣẹkírì and Olùkùmi, nor the Èdè Languages of Benin and Togo.

Derived terms

• afà
• ọfà
• àfọwọ́fà
• ìfà

Etymology 2

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /fá/

Verb

fá

1. (transitive) to scrape or wipe off

   alápatàá fá awọ náà ― The butcher wiped off the skin

2. (transitive) to shave

   mo fá irun abíyá ― I shaved my armpit hair

Derived terms

• ẹ̀fá
• fági
• fálọ́wọ́
• fárí (“to be bald”)
• fáwọ̀
• ìfá
• ìfábẹ̀lá (“index finger”)

Zigula

Etymology

Inherited from Proto-Bantu *-kúa, potentially from Proto-Atlantic-Congo *kwwú- (“to die”). Cognate with Swahili -fa (“to die”), Chichewa -fa (“to die”), Rwanda-Rundi -pfa (“to die”), Tumbuka -fwa (“to die”), Yao (Africa) -wa (“to die”), Nyole (Uganda) -fa (“to die”), Lomwe -khwa (“to die”), Malawi Lomwe -khwa (“to die”).

Verb

-fa (infinitive kufa)

1. to die
2. to be dead
3. to go out (of a fire)
4. to be off (not properly functioning) (technology)
5. to be dull (of sharp objects)

Derived terms

• -fira (“to die for someone”)

References

• Chizigula of Somalia Dictionary‎^[12], SIL International, 2020

Zulu

Etymology

Inherited from Proto-Bantu *-kúa.

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /fá/

Verb

-fá

1. (intransitive) to die

Inflection

tone H (infinitive ukufa)

	positive	negative
infinitive	ukufa	ukungafi
imperative
	simple	+ object concord
singular	yifa	-fe
plural	yifani	-feni
present
	positive absolute	positive relative	positive participial	negative absolute	negative relative	negative participial
1st singular	ngiyafa, ngifa	engifayo, engifa	ngifa	angifi	engingafi	ngingafi
2nd singular	uyafa, ufa	ofayo, ofa	ufa	awufi	ongafi	ungafi
1st plural	siyafa, sifa	esifayo, esifa	sifa	asifi	esingafi	singafi
2nd plural	niyafa, nifa	enifayo, enifa	nifa	anifi	eningafi	ningafi
class 1	uyafa, ufa	ofayo, ofa	efa	akafi	ongafi	engafi
class 2	bayafa, bafa	abafayo, abafa	befa	abafi	abangafi	bengafi
class 3	uyafa, ufa	ofayo, ofa	ufa	awufi	ongafi	ungafi
class 4	iyafa, ifa	efayo, efa	ifa	ayifi	engafi	ingafi
class 5	liyafa, lifa	elifayo, elifa	lifa	alifi	elingafi	lingafi
class 6	ayafa, afa	afayo, afa	efa	awafi	angafi	engafi
class 7	siyafa, sifa	esifayo, esifa	sifa	asifi	esingafi	singafi
class 8	ziyafa, zifa	ezifayo, ezifa	zifa	azifi	ezingafi	zingafi
class 9	iyafa, ifa	efayo, efa	ifa	ayifi	engafi	ingafi
class 10	ziyafa, zifa	ezifayo, ezifa	zifa	azifi	ezingafi	zingafi
class 11	luyafa, lufa	olufayo, olufa	lufa	alufi	olungafi	lungafi
class 14	buyafa, bufa	obufayo, obufa	bufa	abufi	obungafi	bungafi
class 15	kuyafa, kufa	okufayo, okufa	kufa	akufi	okungafi	kungafi
class 17	kuyafa, kufa	okufayo, okufa	kufa	akufi	okungafi	kungafi
recent past
	positive absolute	positive relative	positive participial	negative absolute	negative relative	negative participial
1st singular	ngifile, ngifē	engifile, engifē	ngifile, ngifē	angifanga	engingafanga	ngingafanga
2nd singular	ufile, ufē	ofile, ofē	ufile, ufē	awufanga	ongafanga	ungafanga
1st plural	sifile, sifē	esifile, esifē	sifile, sifē	asifanga	esingafanga	singafanga
2nd plural	nifile, nifē	enifile, enifē	nifile, nifē	anifanga	eningafanga	ningafanga
class 1	ufile, ufē	ofile, ofē	efile, efē	akafanga	ongafanga	engafanga
class 2	bafile, bafē	abafile, abafē	befile, befē	abafanga	abangafanga	bengafanga
class 3	ufile, ufē	ofile, ofē	ufile, ufē	awufanga	ongafanga	ungafanga
class 4	ifile, ifē	efile, efē	ifile, ifē	ayifanga	engafanga	ingafanga
class 5	lifile, lifē	elifile, elifē	lifile, lifē	alifanga	elingafanga	lingafanga
class 6	afile, afē	afile, afē	efile, efē	awafanga	angafanga	engafanga
class 7	sifile, sifē	esifile, esifē	sifile, sifē	asifanga	esingafanga	singafanga
class 8	zifile, zifē	ezifile, ezifē	zifile, zifē	azifanga	ezingafanga	zingafanga
class 9	ifile, ifē	efile, efē	ifile, ifē	ayifanga	engafanga	ingafanga
class 10	zifile, zifē	ezifile, ezifē	zifile, zifē	azifanga	ezingafanga	zingafanga
class 11	lufile, lufē	olufile, olufē	lufile, lufē	alufanga	olungafanga	lungafanga
class 14	bufile, bufē	obufile, obufē	bufile, bufē	abufanga	obungafanga	bungafanga
class 15	kufile, kufē	okufile, okufē	kufile, kufē	akufanga	okungafanga	kungafanga
class 17	kufile, kufē	okufile, okufē	kufile, kufē	akufanga	okungafanga	kungafanga
remote past
	positive absolute	positive relative	positive participial	negative absolute	negative relative	negative participial
1st singular	ngāfa	engāfa	ngāfa	angifanga	engingafanga	ngingafanga
2nd singular	wāfa	owāfa	wāfa	awufanga	ongafanga	ungafanga
1st plural	sāfa	esāfa	sāfa	asifanga	esingafanga	singafanga
2nd plural	nāfa	enāfa	nāfa	anifanga	eningafanga	ningafanga
class 1	wāfa	owāfa	āfa	akafanga	ongafanga	engafanga
class 2	bāfa	abāfa	bāfa	abafanga	abangafanga	bengafanga
class 3	wāfa	owāfa	wāfa	awufanga	ongafanga	ungafanga
class 4	yāfa	eyāfa	yāfa	ayifanga	engafanga	ingafanga
class 5	lāfa	elāfa	lāfa	alifanga	elingafanga	lingafanga
class 6	āfa	āfa	āfa	awafanga	angafanga	engafanga
class 7	sāfa	esāfa	sāfa	asifanga	esingafanga	singafanga
class 8	zāfa	ezāfa	zāfa	azifanga	ezingafanga	zingafanga
class 9	yāfa	eyāfa	yāfa	ayifanga	engafanga	ingafanga
class 10	zāfa	ezāfa	zāfa	azifanga	ezingafanga	zingafanga
class 11	lwāfa	olwāfa	lwāfa	alufanga	olungafanga	lungafanga
class 14	bāfa	obāfa	bāfa	abufanga	obungafanga	bungafanga
class 15	kwāfa	okwāfa	kwāfa	akufanga	okungafanga	kungafanga
class 17	kwāfa	okwāfa	kwāfa	akufanga	okungafanga	kungafanga
potential
	positive absolute	positive relative	positive participial	negative absolute	negative relative	negative participial
1st singular	ngingafa	—	ngingafa	ngingefe	—	ngingefe
2nd singular	ungafa	—	ungafa	ungefe	—	ungefe
1st plural	singafa	—	singafa	singefe	—	singefe
2nd plural	ningafa	—	ningafa	ningefe	—	ningefe
class 1	angafa	—	engafa	angefe	—	engefe
class 2	bangafa	—	bengafa	bangefe	—	bengefe
class 3	ungafa	—	ungafa	ungefe	—	ungefe
class 4	ingafa	—	ingafa	ingefe	—	ingefe
class 5	lingafa	—	lingafa	lingefe	—	lingefe
class 6	angafa	—	engafa	angefe	—	engefe
class 7	singafa	—	singafa	singefe	—	singefe
class 8	zingafa	—	zingafa	zingefe	—	zingefe
class 9	ingafa	—	ingafa	ingefe	—	ingefe
class 10	zingafa	—	zingafa	zingefe	—	zingefe
class 11	lungafa	—	lungafa	lungefe	—	lungefe
class 14	bungafa	—	bungafa	bungefe	—	bungefe
class 15	kungafa	—	kungafa	kungefe	—	kungefe
class 17	kungafa	—	kungafa	kungefe	—	kungefe
immediate future
	positive absolute	positive relative	positive participial	negative absolute	negative relative	negative participial
1st singular	ngizokufa	engizokufa	ngizokufa	angizukufa	engingezukufa	ngingezukufa
2nd singular	uzokufa	ozokufa	uzokufa	awuzukufa	ongezukufa	ungezukufa
1st plural	sizokufa	esizokufa	sizokufa	asizukufa	esingezukufa	singezukufa
2nd plural	nizokufa	enizokufa	nizokufa	anizukufa	eningezukufa	ningezukufa
class 1	uzokufa	ozokufa	ezokufa	akazukufa	ongezukufa	engezukufa
class 2	bazokufa	abazokufa	bezokufa	abazukufa	abangezukufa	bengezukufa
class 3	uzokufa	ozokufa	uzokufa	awuzukufa	ongezukufa	ungezukufa
class 4	izokufa	ezokufa	izokufa	ayizukufa	engezukufa	ingezukufa
class 5	lizokufa	elizokufa	lizokufa	alizukufa	elingezukufa	lingezukufa
class 6	azokufa	azokufa	ezokufa	awazukufa	angezukufa	engezukufa
class 7	sizokufa	esizokufa	sizokufa	asizukufa	esingezukufa	singezukufa
class 8	zizokufa	ezizokufa	zizokufa	azizukufa	ezingezukufa	zingezukufa
class 9	izokufa	ezokufa	izokufa	ayizukufa	engezukufa	ingezukufa
class 10	zizokufa	ezizokufa	zizokufa	azizukufa	ezingezukufa	zingezukufa
class 11	luzokufa	oluzokufa	luzokufa	aluzukufa	olungezukufa	lungezukufa
class 14	buzokufa	obuzokufa	buzokufa	abuzukufa	obungezukufa	bungezukufa
class 15	kuzokufa	okuzokufa	kuzokufa	akuzukufa	okungezukufa	kungezukufa
class 17	kuzokufa	okuzokufa	kuzokufa	akuzukufa	okungezukufa	kungezukufa
remote future
	positive absolute	positive relative	positive participial	negative absolute	negative relative	negative participial
1st singular	ngiyokufa	engiyokufa	ngiyokufa	angiyukufa	engingeyukufa	ngingeyukufa
2nd singular	uyokufa	oyokufa	uyokufa	awuyukufa	ongeyukufa	ungeyukufa
1st plural	siyokufa	esiyokufa	siyokufa	asiyukufa	esingeyukufa	singeyukufa
2nd plural	niyokufa	eniyokufa	niyokufa	aniyukufa	eningeyukufa	ningeyukufa
class 1	uyokufa	oyokufa	eyokufa	akayukufa	ongeyukufa	engeyukufa
class 2	bayokufa	abayokufa	beyokufa	abayukufa	abangeyukufa	bengeyukufa
class 3	uyokufa	oyokufa	uyokufa	awuyukufa	ongeyukufa	ungeyukufa
class 4	iyokufa	eyokufa	iyokufa	ayiyukufa	engeyukufa	ingeyukufa
class 5	liyokufa	eliyokufa	liyokufa	aliyukufa	elingeyukufa	lingeyukufa
class 6	ayokufa	ayokufa	eyokufa	awayukufa	angeyukufa	engeyukufa
class 7	siyokufa	esiyokufa	siyokufa	asiyukufa	esingeyukufa	singeyukufa
class 8	ziyokufa	eziyokufa	ziyokufa	aziyukufa	ezingeyukufa	zingeyukufa
class 9	iyokufa	eyokufa	iyokufa	ayiyukufa	engeyukufa	ingeyukufa
class 10	ziyokufa	eziyokufa	ziyokufa	aziyukufa	ezingeyukufa	zingeyukufa
class 11	luyokufa	oluyokufa	luyokufa	aluyukufa	olungeyukufa	lungeyukufa
class 14	buyokufa	obuyokufa	buyokufa	abuyukufa	obungeyukufa	bungeyukufa
class 15	kuyokufa	okuyokufa	kuyokufa	akuyukufa	okungeyukufa	kungeyukufa
class 17	kuyokufa	okuyokufa	kuyokufa	akuyukufa	okungeyukufa	kungeyukufa
present subjunctive
	positive	negative
1st singular	ngife	ngingafi
2nd singular	ufe	ungafi
1st plural	sife	singafi
2nd plural	nife	ningafi
class 1	afe	angafi
class 2	bafe	bangafi
class 3	ufe	ungafi
class 4	ife	ingafi
class 5	life	lingafi
class 6	afe	angafi
class 7	sife	singafi
class 8	zife	zingafi
class 9	ife	ingafi
class 10	zife	zingafi
class 11	lufe	lungafi
class 14	bufe	bungafi
class 15	kufe	kungafi
class 17	kufe	kungafi
past subjunctive
	positive	negative
1st singular	ngafa	ngangafa, angafa, angangafa
2nd singular	wafa	wangafa, awafa, awangafa
1st plural	safa	sangafa, asafa, asangafa
2nd plural	nafa	nangafa, anafa, anangafa
class 1	wafa	wangafa, akafa, akangafa
class 2	bafa	bangafa, abafa, abangafa
class 3	wafa	wangafa, awafa, awangafa
class 4	yafa	yangafa, ayafa, ayangafa
class 5	lafa	langafa, alafa, alangafa
class 6	afa	angafa, awafa, awangafa
class 7	safa	sangafa, asafa, asangafa
class 8	zafa	zangafa, azafa, azangafa
class 9	yafa	yangafa, ayafa, ayangafa
class 10	zafa	zangafa, azafa, azangafa
class 11	lwafa	lwangafa, alwafa, alwangafa
class 14	bafa	bangafa, abafa, abangafa
class 15	kwafa	kwangafa, akwafa, akwangafa
class 17	kwafa	kwangafa, akwafa, akwangafa

Derived terms

• -fela
• -fisa
• ifa
• isifo
• umufi

References

• C. M. Doke; B. W. Vilakazi (1972), “fa”, in Zulu-English Dictionary, →ISBN: “fa (imper. yifa, 6.3)”