ko

See also: Appendix:Variations of "ko" and کوه

Languages (66)

Translingual • English

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Afar • Äiwoo • Bambara • Boko • Buginese • Cebuano • Central Bikol • Danish • Esperanto • Ewe • Finnish • French • Fula • Gagauz • Guanano • Hawaiian • Hokkien • Indonesian • Ingrian • Japanese • Kalasha • Kamta • Kapampangan • Karelian • Kirikiri • Latvian • Lithuanian • Lower Tanana • Maaka • Malay • Māori • Mapudungun • Mizo • Norman • Nyishi • Nǀuu • Old Javanese • Old Norse • Old Saxon • Pali • Paraguayan Guarani • Rapa Nui • Rawa • Serbo-Croatian • Slovene • Swahili • Swedish • Tagalog • Talysh • Taworta • Tocharian A • Tokelauan • Tooro • Tuvaluan • Vietnamese • Volapük • Votic • West Frisian • West Makian • White Hmong • Wolof • Xhosa • Yoruba • Zazaki

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Page categories

Translingual

Etymology

Clipping of English Korean.

Symbol

ko

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

See also

• Wiktionary’s coverage of Korean terms

English

Etymology

Borrowed from Japanese 劫 (kō).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈkəʊ/

• Audio (Southern England):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -əʊ
• Homophone: Co.

Noun

ko (plural ko)

1. (go) A local shape to which the ko rule applies; a ko shape.

   Black gets an easy game by just filling the ko.

2. (go) ko fight

   Black wins the ko easily.

3. (go) a stone in a ko in atari, a ko stone

   Black recaptures the ko and white has to find another ko threat.

Derived terms

• hanami ko
• ko fight
• ko threat
• ten thousand year ko

Translations

Translations

• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 劫 (zh) (jié)

• Japanese: コウ (ja) (kō), 劫 (ja) (kō)
• Korean: 패 (ko) (pae)

Anagrams

• O. K., OK, OK., Ok, Ok., ok

Afar

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈko/ [ˈkɔ]
• Hyphenation: ko

Pronoun

kó

1. thee, you
   • Saytun Qhuraan kee kay maqnah tarjamaty Qafar afal tani [The clear Qur'an and its explanation translated into the Afar language]‎^[1], Suurat Al-Faatica, verse 5:

     Diggah nanu Ni Rabbow koo inkittosnaah Qibaada dibuk koo caglisna, nanu ni-caagiidah inkih cato koo esserra.

     Our God, with strength we make you whole, only you we give [our] adoration, we as one ask you for help with our afairs.

Usage notes

• The form kóo is used when the pronoun isn't followed by a clitic.

See also

Afar personal pronouns

		1st person	2nd person	3rd person
				m	f
subject	singular	anú	atú	úsuk	ís
	plural	nanú	isín	úsun
object	singular	yó	kó	ká	tét
	plural	né	sín	kén

References

• E. M. Parker; R. J. Hayward (1985), “ko”, in An Afar-English-French dictionary (with Grammatical Notes in English), University of London, →ISBN

Äiwoo

Verb

ko

1. to lie down

References

• Ross, M. & Næss, Å. (2007), “An Oceanic origin for Äiwoo, the language of the Reef Islands?”, in Oceanic Linguistics, volume 46, number 2. Cited in: "Äiwoo" in Greenhill, S.J., Blust, R., & Gray, R.D. (2008). The Austronesian Basic Vocabulary Database: From Bioinformatics to Lexomics. Evolutionary Bioinformatics, 4:271–283.

Bambara

Etymology 1

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [kò]

Verb

ko

1. to say

Etymology 2

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [kó]

Verb

ko

1. to wash

Etymology 3

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [kò]

Noun

ko

1. affair, event, matter

References

• 2007. The UCLA Phonetics Lab Archive. Los Angeles, CA: UCLA Department of Linguistics.
• Ankataa dictionary. Ankataa.com

Boko

Etymology

Cognate with Bokobaru koo

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /kō/

Noun

ko

1. chicken

Derived terms

• koda (“hen”)
• kosa (“rooster”)

Buginese

Pronoun

ko

1. (Sinjai) you, your, yours (casual)

Cebuano

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ko/ [ko]

Etymology 1

Clipping of ako.

Pronoun

ko (Badlit spelling ᜃᜓ)

1. short form of ako (“1st person singular subject”)

Etymology 2

Inherited from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *-ku, from Proto-Austronesian *-ku.

Pronoun

ko (Badlit spelling ᜃᜓ)

1. (uncommon, literary) my, mine, by me (object of verb; possessive marker)

   Synonyms: nako, akò

Usage notes

• In colloquial Cebuano, ko is generally used and understood as a subject (direct) marked pronoun, as a clipping of ako. Its use as the object (indirect) is virtually limited to literary works such as the Bible and in some dialects where there is some influence from Tagalog, which solely uses its ko in the object (indirect) position and as a possessive pronoun.

  (general, colloquial): anak ko ― I am a child

  (literary, dialectal): anak ko ― my child

See also

Cebuano personal pronouns

			direct		indirect (postposed)		indirect (preposed)		oblique
	Length:		full	short1	full	short2	base	suffixed -a	full	short
singular	first person		akó	ko	nakò3	ko3	akò	akoa	kanakò	nakò
	second person		ikáw	ka	nimo	mo	imo	imoha	kanimo	nimo
	third person		siyá		niya		iya	iyaha	kaniya	niya
plural	first person	inclusive	kitá	ta	natò	ta	atò	atoa	kanatò	natò
		exclusive	kamí	mi	namò		amò	amoa	kanamò	namò
	second person		kamó	mo	ninyo		inyo	inyoha	kaninyo	ninyo
	third person		silá		nila		ila	ilaha	kanila	nila

¹ Forms in this column are placed after the verb or predicate they modify, and never used at the start of sentences.
² Forms in this column are literary and rarely used colloquially.
³ Ta is used over nako or ko where the focus is a second-person singular pronoun.

Central Bikol

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ko/

Pronoun

ko

1. by me

   Sinalo ko an bola. ― The ball was caught by me.

2. of me

   An harong ko. ― My house.

3. me

   Sa taas ko. ― Above me.

Danish

Etymology

From Old Norse *kōʀ (east), kýr (west), from Proto-Germanic *kōz.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /koːˀ/, [ˈkʰoˀ]

Noun

ko c (singular definite koen, plural indefinite køer)

1. cow

Declension

Declension of ko

common gender	singular		plural
	indefinite	definite	indefinite	definite
nominative	ko	koen	køer	køerne
genitive	kos	koens	køers	køernes

Derived terms

• ammeko
• elgko
• glo som en ko på en rødmalet port
• hellig ko
• ingen ko på isen
• jerseyko
• kogødning
• komælk
• komøg
• kopatte
• kælveko
• malkeko
• muhko
• sælge nogen en trepattet ko
• taberko
• turboko

See also

• kvæg
• fæ
• tyr
• okse
• stud
• kvie
• kreatur

References

• “ko” in Den Danske Ordbog
• “ko” in Ordbog over det danske Sprog

Esperanto

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ko/

• Audio 1:

  (file)

• Audio 2:

  (file)

• Rhymes: -o
• Syllabification: ko

Noun

ko (accusative singular ko-on, plural ko-oj, accusative plural ko-ojn)

1. The name of the Latin script letter K/k.

See also

• (Latin-script letter names) litero; a, bo, co, ĉo, do, e, fo, go, ĝo, ho, ĥo, i, jo, ĵo, ko, lo, mo, no, o, po, ro, so, ŝo, to, u, ŭo, vo, zo

Ewe

Verb

ko

1. to laugh

Finnish

Alternative forms

• ku
• kö

Etymology

Related to kuka, kun, kuin.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈko/, [ˈko̞]
• Rhymes: -o
• Syllabification^(key): ko
• Hyphenation^(key): ko

Conjunction

ko (dialectal)

1. alternative form of kun
2. alternative form of kuin
3. synonym of koska

Usage notes

In some dialects, ko has become unstressed, subjecting it to vowel harmony and leading to the form kö after front-vowel words.

French

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ki.lo.ɔk.tɛ/

• Audio (France (Toulouse)):

  (file)

• Audio (France (Vosges)):

  (file)

Noun

ko m (invariable)

1. abbreviation of kilooctet (“kilobyte”)

Fula

Suffix

ko

1. Noun class indicator for nouns (singular)

Usage notes

• Common to all varieties of Fula (Fulfulde / Pulaar / Pular).

Article

ko

1. (definite) the (when it follows the noun)

   ñayko ko ― the thatch

Usage notes

• Common to all varieties of Fula (Fulfulde / Pulaar / Pular).

Determiner

ko

1. (used in indicating something)

   ko ñayko ― this/that thatch

Usage notes

• Common to all varieties of Fula (Fulfulde / Pulaar / Pular).

Gagauz

Cyrillic		ко

Alternative forms

• co (pre-1950s spelling)

Etymology

Inherited from Old Anatolian Turkish قو (qo, “put! let go!”), imperative of قومق (qomaq, “to put”), from Proto-Turkic *ko-.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈko/

Conjunction

ko

1. indicates desire, may, let

   ko ayozlasın Allaa seni! ― may god bless you

   ko herzaman olsun güneş! ― may the sun always shine

   ko yaşasın halkımız! ― long live our people!

Related terms

• koymaa

Further reading

• N. A Baskakov, editor (1972), “ko”, in Gagauzsko-Russko-Moldavskij Slovarʹ [Gagauz-Russian-Moldovan Dictionary], Moskva: Izdatelʹstvo Sovetskaja Enciklopedija, →ISBN, page 272
• Ciachir, Mihail (1938), “co”, in Dicționar gagauzo (tiurco)–român pentru gagauzii din Basarabia (in Romanian), Chișinău, page 34

Guanano

Noun

ko

1. water
2. medicine
3. relative, fellow Kotiria

References

• Kristine Stenzel, A Reference Grammar of Kotiria (Wanano)

Hawaiian

Alternative forms

• kō

Etymology

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

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ko/

Preposition

ko

1. of, belonging to first part of possessive constructions, o-type

   ko mākou hale ― our house

   ko ke kumu kaʻa ― the teacher's car

See also

Hawaiian possessive pronouns

			singular	dual	plural
1st person			koʻu, kaʻu kuʻu (affectionate, o- and a-type)	ko māua, kā māua (exclusive) ko kāua, kā kāua (inclusive)	ko mākou, kā mākou (exclusive) ko kākou, kā kākou (inclusive)
2nd person			kou, kāu kō (affectionate, o- and a-type)	ko ʻolua, kā ʻolua	ko ʻoukou, kā ʻoukou
3rd person			kona, kāna	ko lāua, kā lāua	ko lākou, kā lākou

The o-type forms are used for possessions that are inherited, out of personal control, and for things that can be got into (houses, clothes, cars). The a-type forms are used for acquired possessions.

Hokkien

For pronunciation and definitions of ko – see 高 (“tall; high; of high level; above average; etc.”). (This term is the pe̍h-ōe-jī form of 高).

For pronunciation and definitions of ko – see 膏 (“fat; grease; oil; fatty; oily; rich; etc.”). (This term is the pe̍h-ōe-jī form of 膏).

Indonesian

Pronoun

ko

1. (Java, informal) Second-person singular pronoun: you, your, yours

Synonyms

Indonesian informal second-person pronouns:

• anta (informal, mainly used by Muslim community)
• antum (informal, mainly used by Muslim community)
• coen (slang, East Java)
• ente (informal, mainly used by Betawi ethnic group)
• kamu (intimate)
• ko, kowe (informal, Java)
• kon, koen (colloquial, East Java)
• lu, lo, loe, elu (informal, mainly used by Betawi ethnic group)
• mika, mike (informal, Eastern Sumatra)

Ingrian

Pronunciation

• (Ala-Laukaa) IPA^(key): /ˈko/, [ˈko̞]
• (Soikkola) IPA^(key): /ˈko/, [ˈko̞]
• Rhymes: -o
• Hyphenation: ko

Conjunction

ko

1. alternative form of ku
   • 2008, “Läkkäämmä omal viisii [We're speaking [our] own way]”, in Inkeri‎^[2], volume 4, number 69, St. Petersburg, page 12:

     Se oli ko hää ei mahtant vennäheks läätä.

     That was how she couldn't speak Russian.

References

• Ruben E. Nirvi (1971), Inkeroismurteiden Sanakirja, Helsinki: Suomalais-Ugrilainen Seura, page 178

Japanese

Romanization

ko

1. The hiragana syllable こ (ko) or the katakana syllable コ (ko) in Hepburn romanization.

Kalasha

Adverb

ko

1. why

Interjection

ko

1. why

Noun

ko

1. why

Kamta

Etymology

From Sanskrit কথযতি (katháyati). Cognate with Assamese ক (ko), Sylheti ꠇꠅꠀ (xooa), Bengali কওয়া (koōẇa), Hindustani कहना (kahnā) / کہنا (kahnā).

Verb

ko

1. say
2. tell

   Oĩ mök koisil. ― He told me

3. speak

   kotha ko ― speak

Conjugation

impersonal forms of ko

Stem	ko
Gerund	koöa
Conjugative	koia
Infinitive	koibar
Agentive	koure
Converb	koite
Progressive participle	koite koite
Reason	koöat
Conditional participle	koile
Perfect participle	koia
Habitual participle	koia koia

Conjugation forms of ko

Person	First person		Second person			Third person
			informal		formal	informal		formal
	singular	plural	singular	plural		singular	plural
	muĩ	amra	tuĩ	tömra		oĩ	umra
Present
Imperfective	koṅ	koi	koiṣ	kon		koe
Continuous	koia asoṅ	koia asi	koia asiṣ	koia asen		koia ase
Perfective	koisoṅ	koisi	kosiṣ	koisen		koise
Past
Recent	koluṅ	koiloṅ	kolu	koilen		koil ~ koilek
Distant & Habitual	kosiluṅ	koisiloṅ	kosilu	koisilen		koisil ~ koisilek
Continuous	koia asluṅ	koia aisloṅ	koia aslu	koi aislen		koia asil ~ koia aislek
Future
Indicative	koim	komö	kobu	koiben		koibe
Continuous	koia thakim	koia thakmö	koia thakpu	koia thaikpen		koia thaikpe
Others
Imperative	—		ko	kon		kouk

Kapampangan

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈko/ [ˈko]
• Hyphenation: ko

Pronoun

ko

1. alternative spelling of kayu
2. alternative spelling of ku
3. alternative spelling of kula

Kapampangan personal pronouns

		absolute		ergative	oblique
		disjunctive	enclitic
first person	singular	aku/i aku/yaku	ku		kanaku
	plural inclusive	ikatamu	katamu/tamu	tamu/ta	kekatamu
	plural exclusive	ikami, ike	kami/ke	mi	kekami/keke
second person	singular	ika	ka	mu	keka
	plural	ikayu/iko	kayu/ko	yu	kekayu/keko
third person	singular	iya/ya	ya	na	keya/kaya
	plural	ila	la	da/ra	karela

Karelian

Particle

ko

1. like, as

Kirikiri

Noun

ko

1. woman

Further reading

Bill Palmer, The Languages and Linguistics of the New Guinea Area (→ISBN, 2017), page 531, table 95, Comparative basic vocabulary in Lakes Plain Languages

Latvian

Pronoun

ko (interrogative)

1. accusative of kas: what, who

   ko tu gribi apskatīt? ― what would you like to see?

Pronoun

ko (relative)

1. accusative of kas: that

   teksts, ko tu lasi ― the text that you're reading

2. accusative of kas: what, who

   tas ir tas, ko es domāju ― that is what I mean

3. accusative of kas: which

Interjection

ko

1. sorry?
2. pardon?
3. what?

Lithuanian

Pronoun

ko

1. genitive of kas

   Ko tu nori? ― What do you want?

Usage notes

The word ko is the non-possessive genitive.

For the possessive genitive ("whose?") of kas, see kieno.

Further reading

• “ko”, in Lietuvių kalbos žodynas [Dictionary of the Lithuanian language], lkz.lt, 1941–2026
• Vytautas Ambrazas (2006), Lithuanian Grammar, 2nd revised edition, pages 186, 193

Lower Tanana

Etymology

From Proto-Athabaskan *qaˑ. Cognate with Ahtna kaa.

Root

ko

1. A classificatory root for contained objects
2. to dawn

Stem set

Aspect	Imperfective	Perfective	Future	Optative
Momentaneous	koyh	konh	koɬ	koɬ
Neuter	konh	ko'	koɬ	ko'
Reversitative	kox	konh	kox	kox
Continuative	ko'	konh	ko'	ko'
Persistive	kox	kox	kox	kox
Customary	koyh	koyh	koyh	koyh

Derived terms

• bek'wghw yiɬkoyi (“morning light”)
• ch'etekoyi (“fishwheel”)
• dhekonh (“objects in a container are in position”)
• dhekoni (“animal blood, menstrual blood”)
• nekoyi (“short-handled dipnet”)
• tr'ekoɬ (“spoon”)
• yekoyh (“light”)
• yetatlkonh (“it is starting to get light”)
• yoyekoyh (“northern lights”)
• yoɬkoɬ (“it is becoming daylight”)

References

• Kari, James et al. (2024), Kari, James, editor, Lower Tanana Dene Dictionary, Fairbanks, Alaska: Alaska Native Language Center, →ISBN, page 239

Maaka

Noun

ko

1. head

References

• Russell G. Schuh, Maka Wordlist, p. 6

Malay

Pronunciation

• (schwa-variety) IPA^(key): /ˈko/ [ˈko]
• Rhymes: -o
• Hyphenation: ko

Pronoun

ko (colloquial)

1. alternative form of kau

Māori

Particle

ko

1. Placed at the beginning of nominative phrases to signify that they are declarative
   • 2006, Joanne Barker, Sovereignty Matters, page 208:

     Ko te reo te mauri o te mana Maori.

     The language is the life principle of Maori mana.

Mapudungun

Noun

ko (Raguileo spelling)

1. water

References

• Wixaleyiñ: Mapucezugun-wigkazugun pici hemvlcijka (Wixaleyiñ: Small Mapudungun-Spanish dictionary), Beretta, Marta; Cañumil, Dario; Cañumil, Tulio, 2008.
• Estudios de lengua y cultura amerindias II (1998) (spells it có)

Mizo

Etymology

From Proto-Kuki-Chin *kaw, from Proto-Sino-Tibetan *kaw.

Verb

ko (stem II koh)

1. to call [with another entity being called]

Further reading

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

Norman

Alternative forms

• co (Jersey, Guernsey, Normandy)

Etymology

From Old French col, from Latin collum (“neck”).

Noun

ko m (plural kos)

1. (Sark, anatomy) neck

Nyishi

Alternative forms

• ku

Etymology

From Proto-Tani *koː.

Noun

ko

1. child
2. son

References

• P. T. Abraham (2005), A Grammar of Nyishi Language‎^[3], Delhi: Farsight Publishers and Distributors

Nǀuu

Verb

ko

1. to be other, to be another

   Synonym: ǂâa

   ǂoo ke ǃʻhoeʻin mari ng ǂoo a ko

   The man asks the other man for money

   ǂoo ke ǃauka ng ǂoo a ko.

   The man is afraid of the other man.

References

• Güldemann, Tom and Ernszt, Martina and Siegmund, Sven and Witzlack-Makarevich, Alena. 2010.0. A Text documentation of Nǀuu.
• Ernszt, Martina & Güldemann, Tom & Witzlack-Makarevich, Alena. (2015). "Valency in Nǁng.

Old Javanese

Etymology

Inherited from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *(i-)kahu, from Proto-Austronesian *(i-)kaSu.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ko/
• Rhymes: -ko
• Hyphenation: ko

Pronoun

ko

1. you

Alternative forms

• kwa

References

• "ko" in P.J. Zoetmulder with the collaboration of S.O. Robson, Old Javanese-English Dictionary. 's-Gravenhage: M. Nijhoff, 1982.

Old Norse

Etymology

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

Noun

ko ?

1. (East dialect) cow

See also

• kýr

Further reading

• Wikipedia article Old Norse language

Old Saxon

Alternative forms

• kuo

Etymology

Inherited from Proto-West Germanic *kō (“cow”).

Noun

kō f

1. cow

Declension

This noun needs an inflection-table template.

Descendants

• Middle Low German: kô, ko, koo, kou, koe, koh, koy, ku
  • Low German: Koh
    • German Low German: Koh, Kauh, Ko, Koo, Kuh
  • Plautdietsch: Koo

References

Köbler, Gerhard (2014), Altsächsisches Wörterbuch‎^[4] (in German), 5th edition

Pali

Alternative forms

Alternative scripts

• 𑀓𑁄 (Brahmi script)
• को (Devanagari script)
• কো (Bengali script)
• කො (Sinhalese script)
• ကော or ၵေႃ (Burmese script)
• โก (Thai script)
• ᨠᩮᩣ (Tai Tham script)
• ໂກ (Lao script)
• កោ (Khmer script)
• 𑄇𑄮 (Chakma script)

Pronoun

ko

1. masculine nominative singular of ka

Paraguayan Guarani

Pronunciation

• Rhymes: -o

Determiner

ko

1. this

References

• Canese, Natalia Krivoshein de; Alcaraz, Feliciano Acosta (2016), “ko”, in Ñe’ẽryru [Dictionary] (overall work in Spanish), Asunción: Instituto Superior de Lenguas, →ISBN, page 47, column 2

Rapa Nui

Interjection

ko

1. exclamation suggesting a personal reaction

Usage notes

For non-personal judgment, consider using ka.

Particle

ko

1. particle prefixed to names as a determinative

Rawa

Adverb

ko

1. again

References

• Norma Toland, Donald Toland, Reference Grammar of the Karo/Rawa Language (1991)

Serbo-Croatian

Etymology 1

Inherited from Proto-Slavic *kъto, from Proto-Indo-European *kʷos, *kʷid, (compare *kʷís).

Alternative forms

• tkȍ (Croatia)
• kdo, gdo (Kajkavian)

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /kô/

Pronoun

kȍ ? (Cyrillic spelling ко̏)

1. (Bosnia, Serbia, interrogatively) who

   ko si ti? ― who are you?

2. (Bosnia, Serbia, relative and indefinite pronoun)

   bilo ko ― anybody, anyone

   malo ko ― very few people

   onaj ko ― he who, whoever

Declension

Declension of ko

	singular/plural
nominative	tkȍ, kȍ
genitive	kȍg, kòga
dative	kȍm, kòmu, kòme
accusative	kȍg, kòga
vocative	—
locative	kòm, kòme
instrumental	kȋm, kíme

Etymology 2

From kȁo.

Contraction

ko (Cyrillic spelling ко)

1. contraction of kȁo

Related terms

• kȁo

References

• “ko”, in Hrvatski jezični portal [Croatian language portal] (in Serbo-Croatian), 2006–2026
• “ko”, in Hrvatski jezični portal [Croatian language portal] (in Serbo-Croatian), 2006–2026

Slovene

Etymology 1

From Proto-Slavic *jako (“how, in which way”). Cognate with Serbo-Croatian ako. First attested in the 18th century.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /kɔ/

Conjunction

ko

1. when (at the time that)

   pride dan, ko nimas energije - there comes a day when you have no energy

Etymology 2

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

Conjunction

ko

1. (colloquial) alternative form of kot

Swahili

Pronunciation

• Audio (Kenya):

  (file)

Verb

-ko

1. present stem of -wako (“to be (at an indefinite place)”)

   yuko ― he/she is (there)

See also

• -ko: verbal affix
• -wapo (“to be (at a definite place)”)
• -wamo (“to be inside (of a definite place)”)

Swedish

en ko som betar [a cow grazing]

Etymology

From Old Norse ko, from East Old Norse ko, from Proto-Germanic *kōz.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /kuː/

• Audio:

  (file)

Noun

ko c

1. cow; female cattle

   Synonym: (colloquial) kossa

   Kon säger mu

   The cow says moo

   råmande kor

   mooing cows

   mjölka en ko

   milk a cow

   Många kor bor i stall under vinterhalvåret

   Many cows live in stables during the winter

   – Det var en ko på ängen. – Jag fattar inte. – Det var kon som var på ängen. / Det var kon som var poängen.

   – There was a cow in [on] the meadow. – I don't get it. – It was the cow that was in [on] the meadow. / It was the cow that was the point / punch line. [common pun]

   • 1996, Drängarna [The Farmhands], “Kung över ängarna [King of [over] the Meadows]”, in Fint vettö [vettu] [Nice Y'know]‎^[5]:

     Jag är kung över ängarna. Springer utan keps och skor. Dansar och tar ut svängarna. Ropar glatt åt mina kor. Jag är kung över ängarna. Jag skriker högt så folk förstår: Här är en av drängarna. Solen lyser där jag går.

     I am king of the meadows. [I] run without a cap and shoes. [I] dance and take sweeping turns ["take out the turns" – also used figuratively for not holding back, letting loose, and the like]. [I] shout merrily at my cows. I am king of the meadows. I scream out loud so that people understand: Here's one of the farmhands. The sun shines where I walk. [Could also be put in the present continuous. Matches the intuition in Swedish with the [I]s. See the usage notes for -r.]

2. a female member of a number of other species, such as moose and reindeer

   Jag såg en älgko och hennes kalv när jag var i skogen

   I saw a cow moose and her calf when I was in the forest

Declension

Declension of ko

		nominative	genitive
singular	indefinite	ko	kos
	definite	kon	kons
plural	indefinite	kor	kors
	definite	korna	kornas

Derived terms

• kobent
• kodynga
• kofoder
• kofot
• kofångare
• kofösare
• kogalenskap
• kogödsel
• kohage
• kohandel
• kohandla
• kohandlare
• kohorn
• kokoppor
• kolugn
• komjölk
• komocka
• koskit
• koskälla
• koskötare
• kossa
• kosvans
• kovända
• kovändning
• koögd
• mjölkko
• renko
• älgko

See also

• hona
• juver (“udder”)
• kalv
• kossa
• kreatur
• kviga
• mjölk (“milk”)
• mjölka (“to milk”)
• nöt, nötkreatur
• oxe
• råma
• spene (“teat”)
• stut

References

• ko in Svensk ordbok (SO)
• ko in Svenska Akademiens ordböcker
• ko in Svenska Akademiens ordbok (SAOB)

Anagrams

• OK, ok

Tagalog

Alternative forms

• co — obsolete, Spanish-based spelling
• k, q — text messaging slang
• Ko — honorific alternative case

Etymology

Inherited from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *-ku, from Proto-Austronesian *-ku. Compare Malay -ku.

Pronunciation

• (Standard Tagalog) IPA^(key): /ko/ [ko]
• Rhymes: -o
• Syllabification: ko
• Homophones: Co, Kho, Ko

Pronoun

ko (Baybayin spelling ᜃᜓ) (postpositive)

1. my; mine

   Synonym: (prepositive) akin

   ang bahay ko ― my house

   sa taas ko ― above me (literally, “my above”)

2. I; me (indirect)

   Synonym: (prepositive) akin

   Ang bola ay sinalo ko.

   I caught the ball.

   (literally, “The ball was caught by me.”)

See also

Tagalog personal pronouns

Person	Number	Direct (ang)	Indirect (ng)	Oblique (sa)
First	singular	ako	ko	akin
	dual1	kita, kata	nita, nata, ta	kanita, kanata, ata
	plural inclusive	tayo	natin	atin
	plural exclusive	kami	namin	amin
First & Second	singular	kita2
Second	singular	ikaw, ka	mo	iyo
	plural	kayo, kamo	ninyo, niyo	inyo
Third	singular	siya	niya	kaniya
	plural	sila	nila	kanila

¹ First person dual pronouns are not commonly used in Standard Tagalog.
² Replaces ko ikaw.

Further reading

• “ko”, in KWF Diksiyonaryo ng Wikang Filipino, Komisyon sa Wikang Filipino, 2025
• “ko”, in Pambansang Diksiyonaryo | Diksiyonaryo.ph, 2018
• Blust, Robert; Trussel, Stephen; et al. (2023) “*-ku”, in the CLDF dataset from The Austronesian Comparative Dictionary (2010–), →DOI

Talysh

Etymology

Cognate with Persian کار (kâr).

Noun

ko

1. work

Taworta

Noun

ko

1. egg

Further reading

Bill Palmer, The Languages and Linguistics of the New Guinea Area (→ISBN, 2017), page 531, table 95, Comparative basic vocabulary in Lakes Plain Languages

Tocharian A

Etymology

From Proto-Tocharian, from Proto-Indo-European *gʷṓws (“cow”). Compare Tocharian B keu, English cow.

Noun

ko

1. cow

Tokelauan

Etymology

From Proto-Polynesian *ko. Cognates include Hawaiian ʻo and Samoan ʻo.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ko]
• Hyphenation: ko

Particle

ko

1. Marks an equational sentence.
2. Marks the topic of the sentence.
   • 1948, Tūlāfono fakavae a Tokelau [Constitution of Tokelau]‎^[6], page 1:

     Ko kimatou, ia tagata o Tokelau, e takutino

     We, the people of Tokelau, say openly

3. Marks the succeeding noun as in apposition of the preceding noun.
4. Placed after the conjunctions pe or ka.

References

• R. Simona, editor (1986), Tokelau Dictionary‎^[7], Auckland: Office of Tokelau Affairs, page 163

Tooro

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ko/

Pronoun

ko

1. class 12 of -o: it

Derived terms

• -ako (“its (class 12)”)

See also

Tooro personal pronouns

class	person	independent	possessive	subject concord	object concord	combined forms
						na	ni
class 1	first	nyowe, nye	-ange	n-	-n-	nanyowe, nanye	ninyowe, ninye
	second	iwe	-awe	o-	-ku-	naiwe	niiwe
	third	uwe	-e	a-	-mu-	nawe	nuwe
class 2	first	itwe	-aitu	tu-	-tu-	naitwe	niitwe
	second	inywe	-anyu	mu-	-ba-	nainywe	niinywe
	third	bo	-abo	ba-	-ba-	nabo	nubo
class 3		gwo	-agwo	gu-	-gu-	nagwo	nugwo
class 4		yo	-ayo	e-	-gi-	nayo	niyo
class 5		lyo	-alyo	li-	-li-	nalyo	niryo
class 6		go	-ago	ga-	-ga-	nago	nugo
class 7		kyo	-akyo	ki-	-ki-	nakyo	nikyo
class 8		byo	-abyo	bi-	-bi-	nabyo	nibyo
class 9		yo	-ayo	e-	-gi-	nayo	niyo
class 10		zo	-azo	zi-	-zi-	nazo	nizo
class 11		rwo	-arwo	ru-	-ru-	narwo	nurwo
class 12		ko	-ako	ka-	-ka-	nako	nuko
class 13		two	-atwo	tu-	-tu-	natwo	nutwo
class 14		bwo	-abwo	bu-	-bu-	nabwo	nubwo
class 15		kwo	-akwo	ku-	-ku-	nakwo	nukwo
class 16		ho	-aho	ha-	-ha-	naho	nuho
class 17		(kwo)	N/A	ha- (...-yo)	-ha-	N/A	nukwo
class 18		(mwo)	-amwo	ha- (...-mu)	-ha-	N/A	numwo
reflexive		-enyini, -onyini	—		-e-	—

Tuvaluan

Particle

ko

1. present perfect tense marker, inserted immediately before the relevant verb

Vietnamese

Alternative forms

• k°

Adverb

ko

1. (text messaging) abbreviation of không

Anagrams

• OK

Volapük

Etymology

Borrowed from Spanish con (“with”).

Preposition

ko

1. with
   • 1952, Arie de Jong, Diatek nulik: Gospul ma ‚Matthaeus’. Kapit: I:

     Ekö! jivirgan ogrodikof, ed omotof soni, keli onemoy eli ‚Emmanuel’, kela tradutod binon: God binom ko obs.

     Look! the virgin is with child and will give birth to a son whom they will call Immanuel, a name which means „God-is-with-us”.

Votic

Etymology

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

Pronunciation

• (Luutsa, Liivtšülä) IPA^(key): /ˈko/, [ˈko]
• Rhymes: -o
• Hyphenation: ko

Adverb

ko

1. when (at what time; in the case that)
2. than (in comparisons)
3. as, because

Adverb

ko

1. how (in what way)

References

• Hallap, V.; Adler, E.; Grünberg, S.; Leppik, M. (2012), “ko”, in Vadja keele sõnaraamat [A dictionary of the Votic language], 2nd edition, Tallinn

West Frisian

Etymology

From Old Frisian kū, from Proto-West Germanic *kō (“cows”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /koː/

Noun

ko c (plural kij, diminutive koke)

1. cow

Derived terms

• seeko
• kowefleis

Further reading

• “ko”, in Wurdboek fan de Fryske taal (in Dutch), 2011

West Makian

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ko/

Verb

ko

1. (transitive) to carry on one's back

Conjugation

Conjugation of ko (action verb)

		singular	plural
			inclusive	exclusive
1st person		toko	moko	ako
2nd person		noko	foko
3rd person	inanimate	iko	doko
	animate
imperative		noko, ko	foko, ko

References

• Clemens Voorhoeve (1982), The Makian languages and their neighbours‎^[8], Pacific linguistics

White Hmong

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /kɒ˧/

Etymology 1

Noun

ko (classifier: tus)

1. a handle (of any hand tool or implement, etc.)

   ko taus ― axe handle

2. used in ko taw (“foot”) and ko tw (“tail”)

Etymology 2

Particle

ko

1. a final completive particle

   Koj hais li ko... ― Speaking as you do...

   Txhob ua li ko. ― Don't do that.

References

• Heimbach, Ernest E. (1979), White Hmong — English Dictionary‎^[9], SEAP Publications, →ISBN, page 85.

Wolof

Pronoun

ko

1. him/her/it (third-person singular object pronoun)

See also

Wolof personal pronouns

	singular		plural
	subject	object	subject	object
1st person	man	ma	nun	nu
2nd person	yow	la	yeen	leen
3rd person	moom	ko	ñoom	leen

Xhosa

Pronoun

-ko

1. Combining stem of kona.

Yoruba

Etymology 1

Alternative forms

• ò (frequently used after personal pronouns)

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /kò/

Particle

kò

1. not (placed before a verb to negate it)

Etymology 2

Alternative forms

• tó

Pronunciation

IPA^(key): /kō/

Conjunction

ko

1. (Ekiti) that

Etymology 3

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /kó/

Verb

kó

1. to pack

   Ẹ bá mi kó ẹrù yìí sẹ́yìn ọkọ̀ ― Help me pack this load into the boot

2. to collect
3. to capture

   Wọ́n kó wọn lẹ́rú ― They captured them as slaves

Derived terms

• ìkówójẹ (“embezzlement”)
• akódọ̀tí (“garbage collector”)
• akólẹ́tà (“courier”)
• àkójọ (“collection”)

Etymology 4

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /kò/

Verb

kò

1. to touch
2. to meet

Derived terms

• fẹnu kò (“to kiss”)
• gbéjà kò (“to besiege; to attack”)
• foríkorí (“to brainstorm”)

Zazaki

Etymology

From Proto-Iranian *káwfš.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ˈko]
• Hyphenation: ko

Noun

ko m

1. (geography) mountain