bi

See also: Appendix:Variations of "bi"

Languages (68)

Translingual • English

---

Äiwoo • Albanian • Alemannic German • Bambara • Basque • Bislama • Borôro • Bura • Danish • Dongxiang • Drung • Dutch • Finnish • French • German • Gothic • Guerrero Amuzgo • Iberian • Isthmus Zapotec • Italian • Japanese • Kalasha • Kangjia • Kaure • Low German • Ma'di • Maltese • Manchu • Mandarin • Middle Dutch • Middle English • Mirandese • Namuyi • North Frisian • Northern Kurdish • Nzadi • Old Dutch • Old English • Old High German • Old Saxon • Palula • Portuguese • Romani • Sardinian • Scots • Scottish Gaelic • Serbo-Croatian • Slovak • Solon • Southern Ndebele • Spanish • Swazi • Swedish • Tagalog • Teke-Tyee • Tok Pisin • Tooro • Turkish • Vietnamese • Volapük • Welsh • Xhosa • Yoruba • Zaghawa • Zhuang • Zulu

---

Page categories

Translingual

Etymology

Clipping of English and Bislama Bislama.

Symbol

bi

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

See also

• Wiktionary’s coverage of Bislama terms

English

Etymology 1

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /baɪ/

• Audio (US):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -aɪ
• Homophones: bye, buy, by

Adjective

bi (not comparable)

1. (LGBTQ, slang) Clipping of bisexual.

   Synonyms: see Thesaurus:bisexual

   Coordinate terms: pan, mono

   I'm straight, but my oldest sister is bi.

2. (LGBTQ, slang, uncommon) Clipping of bigender.

Translations

bisexual

• Dutch: bi (nl)
• Finnish: bi (fi), bisse (fi)
• French: bi (fr)
• German: bi (de)
• Italian: bisex
• Japanese: バイ (ja) (bai)
• Portuguese: gilete (pt) (Brazil), bi (pt)
• Russian: би (ru) (bi)
• Spanish: bi (es)
• Swedish: bi (sv)

Noun

bi (plural bis)

1. (LGBTQ, slang) Clipping of bisexual: A bisexual person.

   Synonyms: bisexual; see also Thesaurus:bisexual person

   • 1991 October 10, Ken Jones, “Re: Bisexual privilege? (Was Re: Tom Robinson Concert”, in soc.motss‎^[2] (Usenet):

     For some reason, I'm feeling _very_ sensitive to bi-discrimination tonight. I'm really not trying to mock the points being made here, it's just that many of the same arguments can be turned around and used to describe the discrimination that bis face.

Translations

bisexual person

• Polish: biseks m (colloquial)

Derived terms

• antibi
• bicon
• bi-curious
• bidar
• biphobic
• cisbi
• forced bi

See also

• bi-

Etymology 2

Clipping of biceps.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /baɪ/

• Audio (US):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -aɪ
• Homophones: bye, buy, by

Noun

bi (plural bis)

1. (bodybuilding, colloquial, uncommon) A biceps muscle.

   You cannot train your back without regard to your tris and bis.

Etymology 3

From Mandarin 璧 (bì).

Alternative forms

• pi (Wade–Giles)

Pronunciation

• (UK, US) enPR: bē, IPA^(key): /biː/

• Audio (US):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -iː
• Homophones: b, be, Bea, bee

Noun

bi (plural bi)

1. A type of jade disk produced in ancient China.

See also

• Bi (jade) on Wikipedia.Wikipedia

Anagrams

• IB, ib.

Äiwoo

Etymology

From Proto-Oceanic *biti.

Verb

bi

1. to bake

References

• Lackey, W.J.. & Boerger, B.H. (2021), “Reexamining the Phonological History of Oceanic's Temotu subgroup”, in Oceanic Linguistics.

Albanian

Etymology

A short form of bijë, from archaic bilë ("daughter, girl").

Interjection

bi

1. A friendly exclamation to a person (female).

   Fol bi, Dritë!

   Speak, therefore, Dritë!

2. An exclamation of surprise (to a female person).

   Bi! Po ç'është kjo?

   Girl! What is this?

   Po ç'është kjo, bi?

   What is this, girl?

Related terms

• bre
• brez
• pra

Alemannic German

Etymology

From Middle High German bī, from Old High German bī, from Proto-West Germanic *bī, from Proto-Germanic *bi. Cognate with German bei, English by.

Preposition

bi [with dative]

1. by, near
2. at
3. at the time of
4. during
5. in case of

Bambara

Noun

bi

1. today

See also

• kunùn
• sini

Basque

Basque numbers ^(edit)

	20
←  1	2	3  →
Cardinal: bi     Ordinal: bigarren     Multiplier: bikoitz     Distributive: bina     Collective: bikote     Fractional: erdi

Alternative forms

• biga, bida (Upper Navarre, Navarro-Lapurdian)

Etymology

Probably from Proto-Basque *biga (“two”), given the fact that dialectal forms like biga and bida (with *-g- > -d-) are phonetically more conservative. Often compared with Iberian bi (“two”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /bi/ [bi]

• Audio:

  (file)

• Rhymes: -i
• Hyphenation: bi

Numeral

bi

1. two

Usage notes

• This number can appear after the noun, especially in Biscay; but, just like all other numerals apart from bat, it is much more commonly placed before the noun.

Declension

Declension of bi (numeral V-stem)

		indefinite	singular	plural	proximal plural
absolutive		bi	bia	biak	biok
ergative		bik	biak	biek	biok
dative		biri	biari	biei	bioi
genitive		biren	biaren	bien	bion
comitative		birekin	biarekin	biekin	biokin
causative		birengatik	biarengatik	biengatik	biongatik
benefactive		birentzat	biarentzat	bientzat	biontzat
instrumental		biz	biaz	biez	biotaz
innesive	anim.	birengan	biarengan	biengan	biongan
	inan.	bitan	bian	bietan	biotan
locative	anim.	—	—	—	—
	inan.	bitako	biko	bietako	biotako
allative	anim.	birengana	biarengana	biengana	biongana
	inan.	bitara	bira	bietara	biotara
terminative	anim.	birenganaino	biarenganaino	bienganaino	bionganaino
	inan.	bitaraino	biraino	bietaraino	biotaraino
directive	anim.	birenganantz	biarenganantz	bienganantz	bionganantz
	inan.	bitarantz	birantz	bietarantz	biotarantz
destinative	anim.	birenganako	biarenganako	bienganako	bionganako
	inan.	bitarako	birako	bietarako	biotarako
ablative	anim.	birengandik	biarengandik	biengandik	biongandik
	inan.	bitatik	bitik	bietatik	biotatik
partitive		birik	—	—	—
prolative		bitzat	—	—	—

Derived terms

• bi ahoko ezpata
• bi begietaraino sartu
• bi errealeko
• bi hitz
• bi pareta
• bi plegu egin
• bi puntu (“colon”)
• bi-biak
• bi-bitara
• biak ala biak
• biak bietara
• bibira (“twin”)
• biburdina
• bika
• biki (“twin”)
• bikoitz (“double”)
• bitarte (“interval”)
• bizpahiru (“two or three”)

Further reading

• “bi”, in Orotariko Euskal Hiztegia [General Basque Dictionary], Euskaltzaindia, 1987–2005
• “bi”, in Euskaltzaindiaren Hiztegia [Dictionary of the Basque Academy] (in Basque), Euskaltzaindia [Royal Academy of the Basque Language]
• Azkue, Resurrección María de (1905–1906), “bi”, in Diccionario vasco-español-francés = Dictionnaire basque-espagnol-français [Basque-Spanish-French Dictionary], volume 1 (overall work in Spanish and French), Bilbao, page 162

Bislama

Etymology

From English bee.

Noun

bi

1. bee

Borôro

Verb

bi

1. to die

Bura

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [bì]

Noun

bì

1. bin for grain storage

References

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

Danish

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ˈb̥iˀ]
• Rhymes: -iː

Etymology 1

From Old Norse bý, from Proto-Germanic *bijō, from Proto-Indo-European *bʰey-. Cognate with English bee.

Noun

bi c (singular definite bien, plural indefinite bier)

1. bee

Inflection

Declension of bi

common gender	singular		plural
	indefinite	definite	indefinite	definite
nominative	bi	bien	bier	bierne
genitive	bis	biens	biers	biernes

See also

• hveps c

Etymology 2

Borrowed from Middle Low German bī, from Proto-Germanic *bi (“near, around”). Related to English by and German bei.

Adverb

bi

1. by

Usage notes

• Only in certain fixed phrases that are borrowed from German, like stå bi (German beistehen).

Etymology 3

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

Verb

bi

1. imperative of bie

Dongxiang

Etymology

From Proto-Mongolic *bi (“I”). Compare Mongolian би (bi).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /pi/

Pronoun

bi (Xiaojing spelling بی)

1. I (first-person singular personal pronoun)

Drung

Etymology

From Proto-Sino-Tibetan *Pi(k).

Verb

bi

1. to give

References

• Ross Perlin (2019), A Grammar of Trung‎^[3], Santa Barbara: University of California

Dutch

Etymology

Clipping of biseksueel.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /bi/

• Audio:

  (file)

• Hyphenation: bi
• Rhymes: -i

Adjective

bi (invariable, comparative meer bi, superlative meest bi)

1. (colloquial) bisexual

Finnish

Etymology

From English bi.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈbi/, [ˈbi]
• IPA^(key): /ˈbiː/, [ˈbiː]
• Rhymes: -i
• Syllabification^(key): bi
• Hyphenation^(key): bi

Noun

bi (colloquial)

1. bi (bisexual)

Declension

Inflection of bi (irregular) singular plural nominative bi bit genitive bin biiden biitten partitive bitä biitä accusative bi bin bit inessive bissä biissä elative bistä biistä illative bihin biihin adessive billä biillä ablative biltä biiltä allative bille biille essive binä biinä translative biksi biiksi abessive bittä biittä instructive – biin comitative – biineen

Derived terms

compounds

• bi-mies
• bi-nainen

Further reading

• “bi”, in Kielitoimiston sanakirja [Dictionary of Contemporary Finnish]‎^[4] (in Finnish) (online dictionary, continuously updated), Kotimaisten kielten keskuksen verkkojulkaisuja 35, Helsinki: Kotimaisten kielten tutkimuskeskus (Institute for the Languages of Finland), 2004–, retrieved 2 July 2023

French

Etymology

From bisexuel, or possibly directly from English bi.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /bi/

• Audio (France (Toulouse)):

  (file)

• Audio (Canada (Shawinigan)):

  (file)

• Audio (France (Vosges)):

  (file)

• Audio (France):

  (file)

• Audio (France (Grenoble)):

  (file)

Noun

bi m or f by sense (plural bis)

1. bi, bisexual person

Adjective

bi (invariable)

1. bi, bisexual

Further reading

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

German

Etymology

Clipping of bisexuell, in analogue to English bi from bisexual.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [biː]

• Audio:

  (file)

• Audio (Germany (Berlin)):

  (file)

Adjective

bi (indeclinable)

1. (informal, chiefly predicative) clipping of bisexuell

Usage notes

• Declined forms along the lines of "ein bier Partner, bie Frauen" occasionally occur, but are overall rare and considered nonstandard.

Further reading

• “bi” in Digitales Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache

Gothic

Romanization

bi

1. romanization of 𐌱𐌹

Guerrero Amuzgo

Adjective

bi

1. green

Iberian

Etymology

Connected to Proto-Basque *biga (“two”), compare Basque bi.

Numeral

bi

1. two

References

• Villamor, Fernando (2020) A basic dictionary and grammar of the Iberian language

Isthmus Zapotec

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ˈbì]

Noun

bi

1. wind

Italian

Alternative forms

• be (obsolete, regional)

Etymology

From Latin bē (the name of the letter B).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈbi/
• Rhymes: -i
• Hyphenation: bì

Noun

bi f (invariable)

1. The name of the Latin script letter B/b.; bee

See also

• (Latin-script letter names) lettera; a, bi, ci, di, e, effe, gi, acca, i, gei / i lunga, cappa, elle, emme, enne, o, pi, cu, erre, esse, ti, u, vu / vi, doppia vu, ics, ipsilon / i greca, zeta

Japanese

Romanization

bi

1. The hiragana syllable び (bi) or the katakana syllable ビ (bi) in Hepburn romanization.

Kalasha

Etymology

From Sanskrit बीज (bīja), from Proto-Indo-Iranian *bíHȷ́am. Cognate with Konkani बी (bī) and Parachi bīz (“seed-corn”).

Noun

bi

1. seed
2. semen
3. moth larva

Related terms

• bíyak

Kangjia

Etymology

From Proto-Mongolic *bi. Compare Mongolian би (bi) and Dongxiang bi.

Pronoun

bi

1. I

Kaure

Noun

bi

1. water

References

• C. L. Voorhoeve, 1975. Languages of Irian Jaya Checklist, Canberra: Pacific Linguistics, p.108
• Bill Palmer, editor (2018), The Languages and Linguistics of the New Guinea Area: A Comprehensive Guide, Padua: De Gruyter Mouton, →OCLC, page 457

Low German

Etymology

From Old Saxon bī, from Proto-Germanic *bi.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /biː/

Preposition

bi

1. at, with

   Bi us is dat ümmer Feest.

   With us it's always a party.

2. by

   Wi wahnt in en Huus bi de Meer.

   I live in a house by the lake.

3. around, about (often in combination with üm)

   Dat weer üm bi so'n twintig Johr vör.

   It was about twenty years ago.

Inflection

Pronominal adverbs of bi

preposition	bi
postpositional adverb	bi
+ her (hither)	—
+ düt (this)	hierbi
+ dat (that)	dorbi
+ wat (what)	wobi
+ wat (something)	enerwegens bi
+ nix (nothing)	nargens bi
+ allens (everything)	överall bi

Adverb

bi

1. alongside, with
2. in order to adjust or improve

Ma'di

Etymology

Cognate with Lugbara bbí.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [bí]
• Hyphenation: bi

Noun

bị́

1. ear
2. leaf

Derived terms

• drị̃bị́

References

• Mairi Blackings; Nigel Fabb (2003), A Grammar of Ma'di, New York: Mouton de Gruyter, page 663

Maltese

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /bɪ/
• Rhymes: -ɪ

Preposition

bi

1. alternative form of b’: used before a consonant cluster

Manchu

Romanization

bi

1. romanization of ᠪᡳ

Mandarin

Romanization

bi

1. nonstandard spelling of bī
2. nonstandard spelling of bí
3. nonstandard spelling of bǐ
4. nonstandard spelling of bì

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.

Middle Dutch

Etymology

From Old Dutch bi, from Proto-West Germanic *bī.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /biː/

Preposition

bi

1. by, near, around
2. beside, alongside
3. at, with
4. among
5. during
6. by (the work of)
7. because of

Descendants

• Dutch: bij
• Limburgish: bie

Adverb

bi

1. by, near, around

Descendants

• Dutch: bij
• Limburgish: bie

Further reading

• “bi (I)”, in Vroegmiddelnederlands Woordenboek, 2000
• “bi (II)”, in Vroegmiddelnederlands Woordenboek, 2000
• Verwijs, E.; Verdam, J. (1885–1929), “bi”, in Middelnederlandsch Woordenboek, The Hague: Martinus Nijhoff, →ISBN

Middle English

Preposition

bi

1. alternative form of by

Mirandese

Verb

bi

1. first-person singular preterite indicative of ber

Namuyi

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [bi˧]
• Hyphenation: bi

Verb

bi

1. (intransitive) to go

References

• Štěpán Pavlík (2017), The Description of Namuzi Language‎^[5], Prague: Charles University (PhD Thesis), page 50

North Frisian

Etymology

From Old Frisian bē, from Proto-West Germanic *bijā.

Noun

bi f (plural bi)

1. (Mooring) bee

Northern Kurdish

Etymology

From Proto-Iranian *pati-.

Pronunciation

• Rhymes: -ɪ

Preposition

bi

1. with
2. to
3. by

Usage notes

• In a lot of positions, bi and di may not be read unlike ji and li. When the noun comes after the verb with these prepositions, it becomes an -e instead (eg. gote min, "said to me"; not *got bi min). Coming before nouns, they become -î (eg. nîşanî min da, "showed me"; not *nîşan bi min da).
• Unlike ji and li, which lose the schwa before any vowel; bi and di lose it only before long vowels (ie. a, ê, î).

Nzadi

Pronoun

bǐ

1. we (first-person plural pronoun)

See also

Nzadi personal pronouns

		singular	plural
1st person		mǐ`	bǐ
2nd person		yǎ`	byɛ̌n
3rd person	human	ndé	bɔ̌
	nonhuman	nɔ̌	mɔ̌

Old Dutch

Etymology

From Proto-West Germanic *bī.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /biː/

Preposition

bī

1. by, near
2. at, with

Descendants

• Middle Dutch: bi
  • Dutch: bij
  • Limburgish: bie

Further reading

• “bī”, in Oudnederlands Woordenboek, 2012

Old English

Alternative forms

• be

Etymology

From Proto-West Germanic *bī (“near, by, around, about”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /biː/
• Rhymes: -iː

Preposition

bī

1. about (concerning)
   • late 9th century, translation of Bede's Ecclesiastical History

     Đyssum tidum Ongolcyningas þā æðelestan Ōswēo Norðanhymbra cyning ⁊ Eċġberht Contwarena cyning hæfdon betwēoh him sprǣċe ⁊ ġeþēahte, hwæt tō donne wǣre bī þǣm stealle Ongolcynnes ċiriċan .

     At this time the most noble English kings, Oswiu of Northumbria and Ecgberht of Kent, held a discussion and conference between them about what was to be done about the state of the English church.

2. by, in various senses:
   • 10th century, The Wanderer:

     Wōriað þā wīnsalo; · waldend liċġað
     drēame bidrorene; · duguþ eal ġecrong,
     wlonc bī wealle. · Sume wīġ fornōm,

     The wine-halls ramble; lords lie still,
     deprived of mirth; army completely perished,
     proud by the wall. The war took away some men,

   1. near or next to
   2. not later than
   3. based on, according to

Descendants

• Middle English: by, be, bi
  • English: by
    • → Mandarin: by (bāi), BY (bāi)
  • Scots: by, bye, bi', be, b'
  • Yola: bee, be, bie, by

Old High German

Etymology

From Proto-West Germanic *bī, from Proto-Germanic *bi, whence also Old English bi.

Preposition

bī

1. by
2. at

Descendants

• Alemannic German:
  • Alsatian: bii
• German: bei
• Vilamovian: by
• Yiddish: בײַ (bay)

Old Saxon

Etymology

From Proto-West Germanic *bī, whence also Old English bi.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /biː/

Preposition

bī

1. by, near, to
2. beside

Descendants

• Low German: bi

Palula

Etymology

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

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /bi/

Particle

bi (discourse, Perso-Arabic spelling بیۡ)

1. also, too
2. else, at all
3. even

References

• Henrik Liljegren; Naseem Haider (2011), “bi”, in Palula Vocabulary (FLI Language and Culture Series; 7)‎^[6], Islamabad, Pakistan: Forum for Language Initiatives, →ISBN

Portuguese

Pronunciation

• (Brazil) IPA^(key): /ˈbi/

• (Portugal) IPA^(key): /ˈbi/

• Rhymes: -i

Adjective

bi (invariable)

1. (LGBTQ, colloquial) clipping of bissexual (“sexually attracted to persons of either sex”)

Noun

bi m or f by sense (plural bis)

1. (LGBTQ, colloquial) clipping of bissexual (“bisexual person”)

Noun

bi f (plural bis)

1. (Brazil, LGBTQ, slang) clipping of bicha (“flamer”)

Further reading

• “bi”, in Dicionário Aulete Digital (in Portuguese), Rio de Janeiro: Lexikon Editora Digital, 2008–2026
• “bi”, in Dicionário Priberam da Língua Portuguesa (in Portuguese), Lisbon: Priberam, 2008–2026

Romani

Etymology

Inherited from Sanskrit वि- (vi-). Probably influenced by Classical Persian بی (bi, “without”).

Preposition

bi

1. (with genitive) without, -less

   bi tiro ― without you

   bi krisaqo ― lawless

   bi rromesqo ― without a husband

Sardinian

Etymology

From Latin ibi.

Pronoun

bi (adverbial)

1. there (at a place)
2. there, thither (to there)

   Synonyms: i, nche

Scots

Preposition

bi

1. by

Scottish Gaelic

Etymology

From Old Irish bí. Cognate with Irish bí and Manx bee.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /pi/, lengthened to /piː/ when emphatic.
• Hyphenation: bi

Verb

bi (past bha, future bidh, verbal noun bhith)

1. (copulative) to be
2. (intransitive) to exist
3. (auxiliary) Used with air to form various tenses with perfect meaning

Inflection

Conjugation of bi (highly irregular)

			singular			plural
			first	second	third m/f	first	second	third
independent	present		tha mi	tha thu	tha e/i	tha sinn	tha sibh	tha iad
	past		bha mi	bha thu	bha e/i	bha sinn	bha sibh	bha iad
	future	simple	bidh mi	bidh tu	bidh e/i	bidh sinn	bidh sibh	bidh iad
		emphatic	bithidh mi	bithidh tu	bithidh e/i	bithidh sinn	bithidh sibh	bithidh iad
	conditional	simple	bhithinn	bhiodh tu	bhiodh e/i	bhiodh sinn bhiomaid	bhiodh sibh	bhiodh iad
		emphatic		bhitheadh tu	bhitheadh e/i	bhitheadh sinn bhitheamaid	bhitheadh sibh	bhitheadh iad
negative	present		chan eil mi	chan eil thu	chan eil e/i	chan eil sinn	chan eil sibh	chan eil iad
	past		cha robh mi	cha robh thu	cha robh e/i	cha robh sinn	cha robh sibh	cha robh iad
	future		cha bhi mi	cha bhi thu	cha bhi e/i	cha bhi sinn	cha bhi sibh	cha bhi iad
	conditional	simple	cha bhithinn	cha bhiodh tu	cha bhiodh e/i	cha bhiodh sinn cha bhiomaid	cha bhiodh sibh	cha bhiodh iad
		emphatic		cha bhitheadh tu	cha bhitheadh e/i	cha bhitheadh sinn cha bhitheamaid	cha bhitheadh sibh	cha bhitheadh iad
affirmative interrogative	present		a bheil mi?	a bheil thu?	a bheil e/i?	a bheil sinn?	a bheil sibh?	a bheil iad?
	past		an robh mi?	an robh thu?	an robh e/i?	an robh sinn?	an robh sibh?	an robh iad?
	future		am bi mi?	am bi thu?	am bi e/i?	am bi sinn?	am bi sibh?	am bi iad?
	conditional	simple	am bithinn?	am biodh tu?	am biodh e/i?	am biodh sinn? am biomaid?	am biodh sibh?	am biodh iad?
		emphatic		am bitheadh tu?	am bitheadh e/i?	am bitheadh sinn am bitheamaid?	am bitheadh sibh?	am bitheadh iad?
negative interrogative	present		nach eil mi?	nach eil thu?	nach eil e/i?	nach eil sinn?	nach eil sibh?	nach eil iad?
	past		nach robh mi?	nach robh thu?	nach robh e/i?	nach robh sinn?	nach robh sibh?	nach robh iad?
	future		nach bi mi?	nach bi thu?	nach bi e/i?	nach bi sinn?	nach bi sibh?	nach bi iad?
	conditional	simple	nach bithinn?	nach biodh tu?	nach biodh e/i?	nach biodh sinn? nach biomaid?	nach biodh sibh?	nach biodh iad?
		emphatic		nach bitheadh tu?	nach bitheadh e/i?	nach bitheadh sinn? nach bitheamaid?	nach bitheadh sibh?	nach bitheadh iad?
relative future		simple	(a) bhios mi	(a) bhios tu	(a) bhios e/i	(a) bhios sinn	(a) bhios sibh	(a) bhios iad
		emphatic	(a) bhitheas mi	(a) bhitheas tu	(a) bhitheas e/i	(a) bhitheas sinn	(a) bhitheas sibh	(a) bhitheas iad
imperative		simple	bitheam	bi	biodh e/i	biomaid	bithibh	biodh iad
		emphatic			bitheadh e/i	bitheamaid		bitheadh iad
verbal noun			a bhith

Impersonal forms can be found at thathar.

Conjugation of is (highly irregular, defective)

		singular			plural
		first	second	third m/f	first	second	third
independent	present	is mi	is tu	is e/i	is sinn	is sibh	is iad
	past	bu mhi	bu tu	b' e/i	bu sinn	bu sibh	b' iad
	conditional
negative	present	cha mhi	cha tu	chan e/i	cha sinn	cha sibh	chan iad
	past	cha bu mhi	cha bu tu	cha b' e/i	cha bu sinn	cha bu sibh	cha b' iad
	conditional
affirmative interrogative	present	am mi?	an tu?	an e/i?	an sinn?	an sibh?	an iad?
	past	am bu mhi?	am bu tu?	am b' e/i?	am bu sinn?	am bu sibh?	am b' iad?
	conditional
Negative interrogative	present	nach mi?	nach tu?	nach e/i?	nach sinn?	nach sibh?	nach iad?
	past	nach bu mhi?	nach bu tu?	nach b' e/i?	nach bu sinn?	nach bu sibh?	nach b' iad?
	conditional

Conjugation of thathar (highly irregular, defective, impersonal)

	Present	Past	Future	Conditional
Independent	thathar, thatar, thathas1	bhathar, bhatar, bhathas1	bithear, bitear, bitheas1	bhite(adh), bhithist(e)1
Negative	chan eilear, chan eileas1	cha robhar, cha robhas1	cha bithear, cha bitear, cha bitheas1	cha bhite(adh), cha bhithist(e)1
Affirmative interrogative	am beilear? am beileas?1 a bheilear? a bheileas?1	an robhar? an robhas?1	am bithear? am biteas?1	am bite(adh)? am bithist(e)?1
Negative interrogative	nach eilear? nach eileas?1	nach robhar? nach robhas?1	nach bithear? nach bitear? nach bitheas?1	nach bite(adh)? nach bithist(e)?1

¹ Lewis dialect form

Related terms

• beò

Mutation

Mutation of bi

radical	lenition
bi	bhi

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

References

• Mark, Colin (2003), “bi”, in The Gaelic–English dictionary, London: Routledge, →ISBN, page 75
• Edward Dwelly (1911), “bi”, in Faclair Gàidhlig gu Beurla le Dealbhan [The Illustrated Gaelic–English Dictionary], 10th edition, Edinburgh: Birlinn Limited, →ISBN

Serbo-Croatian

Verb

bi (Cyrillic spelling би)

1. second-person singular aorist of biti

   On bi tamo jučer. (archaic)

   He was there yesterday.

2. third-person singular aorist of biti

   On bi u školi tad. (archaic)

   She was at school then.

3. (colloquial, conditional) aorist of biti; would

   Ja bi također išao da mogu. ― I would go as well if I could.

   Je li bi htio ići s nama? ― Would you like to go with us?

   Ivana bi htjela ići s nama. ― Ivana would like to go with us.

   Mi/Oni bi voljeli jednog dana posjetiti Japan. ― We/They would like to visit Japan one day.

   Voljeli bi jednog dana posjetiti Japan. ― We/They would like to visit Japan one day.

Usage notes

• In colloquial Serbo-Croatian, bi is commonly used in place of other aorist forms when forming conditional of biti in both singular and plural if the subject is deducible from context (usually from the conjugated form of the verb). That is, bi is a shared shorthand for bih, bismo, biste and biše.

Slovak

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /bi/, [ˈbi]
• Rhymes: -i
• Homophone: by

Verb

bi

1. second-person singular imperative of biť

Solon

Etymology

From Proto-Tungusic *bi. Cognate with Evenki би (bi) and Manchu ᠪᡳ (bi).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /bi/

Pronoun

bi

1. I

Southern Ndebele

Etymology

From Proto-Bantu *-bɪ́ɪ̀.

Adjective

-bí

1. bad
2. evil
3. ugly

Inflection

This adjective needs an inflection-table template.

Spanish

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈbi/ [ˈbi]
• Rhymes: -i
• Syllabification: bi

Adjective

bi (invariable)

1. bi (bisexual)

Swazi

Etymology

From Proto-Bantu *-bɪ́ɪ̀.

Adjective

-bí

1. bad
2. evil
3. ugly

Inflection

Adjective concord, tone H

	modifier	copulative
1st singular	lengimubi	ngimubi
2nd singular	lomubi	umubi
1st plural	lesibabi	sibabi
2nd plural	lenibabi	nibabi
class 1	lomubi	mubi
class 2	lababi	babi
class 3	lomubi	mubi
class 4	lemibi	mibi
class 5	lelibi	libi
class 6	lamabi	mabi
class 7	lesibi	sibi
class 8	letimbi	timbi
class 9	lembi	imbi
class 10	letimbi	timbi
class 11	lolubi	lubi
class 14	lobubi	bubi
class 15	lokubi	kubi
class 17	lokubi	kubi

Swedish

ett bi (honungsbi)

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /biː/
• Rhymes: -iː

Etymology 1

From Old Swedish bī, bȳ, from Old Norse bý, from Proto-Germanic *bijō, from Proto-Indo-European *bʰī-.

Noun

bi n

1. bee

   surrande bin

   buzzing bees

   Bin producerar honung

   Bees produce honey

Usage notes

• More rare spellings of the definite forms are bit/bits (singular) and bien/biens (plural). However, the spellings in the inflection box are the most common.
• See the usage notes for geting (“wasp”) for a note on bee stings.

Declension

Declension of bi

		nominative	genitive
singular	indefinite	bi	bis
	definite	biet	biets
plural	indefinite	bin	bins
	definite	bina	binas

Derived terms

• bikupa (“beehive”)
• biodlare (“beekeeper”)
• biodling (“beekeeping”)
• bisvärm (“swarm of bees”)
• blommor och bin (“birds and bees”)
• honungsbi (“honey bee”)

See also

• bålgeting c
• gadd c (“stinger, sting”)
• geting c (“wasp”)
• humla c (“bumblebee”)

Etymology 2

Adjective

bi

1. (informal) bisexual

   Synonym: bisexuell

See also

• hetero
• homo

Etymology 3

Adverb

bi (not comparable)

1. (in some fixed expressions) by

   lyckan står den djärve bi

   fortune favors the bold

   (literally, “fortune stands by the brave”)

Related terms

• stå någon bi

References

• “bi”, in Svensk ordbok [Dictionary of Swedish] (in Swedish)
• “bi”, in Svenska Akademiens ordlista [Wordlist of the Swedish Academy] (in Swedish)
• “bi”, in Svenska Akademiens ordbok [Dictionary of the Swedish Academy] (in Swedish)
• Svensk MeSH

Tagalog

Etymology

Borrowed from English bee, the English name of the letter B / b. Ultimately from Latin bē. Doublet of be.

Pronunciation

• (Standard Tagalog) IPA^(key): /bi/ [bɪ]
• Rhymes: -i
• Syllabification: bi

Noun

bi (Baybayin spelling ᜊᜒ)

1. the name of the Latin script letter B/b, in the Filipino alphabet

   Synonyms: (in the Abakada alphabet) ba, (in the Abecedario) be

See also

• (Latin-script letter names) titik; ey, bi, si, di, i, ef, dyi, eyts, ay, dyey, key, el, em, en, enye, en dyi, o, pi, kyu, ar, es, ti, yu, vi, dobolyu, eks, way, zi

Further reading

• “bi”, in Pambansang Diksiyonaryo | Diksiyonaryo.ph, 2018

Teke-Tyee

Noun

bi (plural mabi)

1. egg

Tok Pisin

Etymology

From English bee.

Noun

bi

1. bee

Tooro

Etymology

From Proto-Bantu *-bɪ́ɪ̀.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /βi/

Adjective

-bi (declinable)

1. bad

   Antonym: -rungi

2. hideous, ugly

   Synonym: -rofu (“dirty, ugly”)

   Antonyms: -ecumi (“clean, pretty”), -rungi (“pretty”)

Declension

Inflected forms of -bi

Noun class	indefinite		definite
	singular	plural	singular	plural
1/2	mubi	babi	omubi	ababi
3/4	mubi	mibi	omubi	emibi
5/6	libi	mabi	eribi	amabi
7/8	kibi	bibi	ekibi	ebibi
9/10	mbi	mbi	embi	embi
11/10	rubi		orubi
12/14	kabi	bubi	akabi	obubi
13	—	tubi	—	otubi
14/6	bubi	mabi	obubi	amabi
15/6	kubi		okubi
16	habi	—	ahabi	—

Derived terms

• kubi (“badly, in a bad way”)

Related terms

• -biiha (“to become bad; to be ugly; to deceive”)

References

• Kaji, Shigeki (2007), A Rutooro Vocabulary‎^[7], Tokyo: Research Institute for Languages and Cultures of Asia and Africa (ILCAA), →ISBN, page 377

Turkish

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /bi/

Adjective

bi

1. alternative spelling of bi'

Adverb

bi

1. alternative spelling of bi'

Numeral

bi

1. alternative spelling of bi'

Vietnamese

Pronunciation

• (Hà Nội) IPA^(key): [ʔɓi˧˧]
• (Huế) IPA^(key): [ʔɓɪj˧˧]
• (Saigon) IPA^(key): [ʔɓɪj˧˧]

Etymology 1

Borrowed from French bille (“marble, ball”).

Noun

(classifier cục, hòn, viên) bi • (碑, 牌)

1. a marble (spherical ball)

   bắn bi ― to shoot marbles

   • 1845, Thiên tự văn (千字文), page 11

     𤽗吕布咍拌弓𤽗宜僚咍捻碑

     Ngươi Lữ Bố hay bắn cung ngươi Nghi Liêu hay ném bi

     Lü Bu was skilled in archery while [Xiong] Yiliao was skilled in juggling balls.

2. (billiards, snooker) a ball

   bi cái ― a cue ball

3. (slang) a ball (testicle)

   Á! Dập bi tao rồi!

   Ow! My bawlls popped!

Derived terms

• bi cái
• bi ve
• bút bi

Etymology 2

Probably from French bille (“tree log, trunk”).

Noun

(classifier cái) bi

1. big concrete sewer
2. (by extension) a type of water tank made from concrete

Etymology 3

Romanization

bi

1. Sino-Vietnamese reading of 悲

See also

• bi ai
• bi hài
• bi kịch
• bi thảm
• bi thương
• bi tráng
• sầu bi
• từ bi

Volapük

Conjunction

bi

1. because

Welsh

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /biː/
• Rhymes: -iː

Noun

bi f (plural biau)

1. The name of the Latin script letter B/b.

See also

• (Latin-script letter names) llythyren; a, bi, ec, èch, di, èdd, e, èf, èff, èg, eng, aetsh, i / i dot, je, ce, el, èll, em, en, o, pi, ffi, ciw, er, rhi, ès, ti, èth, u / u bedol / u gwpan, fi, w, ecs, y, sèd

Mutation

This word cannot be mutated.

Xhosa

Etymology

From Proto-Bantu *-bɪ́ɪ̀.

Adjective

-bí

1. bad
2. evil
3. ugly

Inflection

Adjective concord, tone H

	modifier		copulative
	positive	negative	positive	negative
1st singular	endimbi	endingembi	ndimbi	andimbi
2nd singular	ombi	ongembi	umbi	awumbi
1st plural	esibabi	esingebabi	sibabi	asibabi
2nd plural	enibabi	eningebabi	nibabi	anibabi
class 1	ombi	ongembi	mbi	akambi
class 2	ababi	abangebabi	babi	abababi
class 3	ombi	ongembi	mbi	awumbi
class 4	emibi	engemibi	mibi	ayimibi
class 5	elibi	elingelibi	libi	alilibi
class 6	amabi	angemabi	mabi	awamabi
class 7	esibi	esingesibi	sibi	asisibi
class 8	ezimbi	ezingezimbi	zimbi	azizimbi
class 9	embi	engembi	imbi	ayiyimbi
class 10	ezimbi	ezingezimbi	zimbi	azizimbi
class 11	olubi	olungelubi	lubi	alulubi
class 14	obubi	obungebubi	bubi	abububi
class 15	okubi	okungekubi	kubi	akukubi
class 17	okubi	okungekubi	kubi	akukubi

Yoruba

Pronunciation

• (high-tone): IPA^(key): /bí/
• (mid-tone): IPA^(key): /bī/
• (low-tone): IPA^(key): /bì/

Etymology 1

Noun

bí

1. The name of the Latin script letter B/b.

See also

• (Latin-script letter names) lẹ́tà; á, bí, dí, é, ẹ́, fí, gí, gbì, hí, í, jí, kí, lí, mí, ní, ó, ọ́, pí, rí, sí, ṣí, tí, ú, wí, yí

Etymology 2

Conjunction

bí

1. (conditional) if

Derived terms

• bí ẹnipé

Etymology 3

Conjunction

bí

1. (subordinating conjunction) how

   Wọ́n kọ́ wa bí a ti lè ṣe é.

   They taught us how to do it.

2. alternative spelling of bíi (“like, as”)

Etymology 4

Conjunction

bí

1. when, as soon as

   Bí a ti jáde ni wọ́n dé.

   As soon as we left, they arrived.

Etymology 5

Conjunction

bí

1. subordinating conjunction used solely with intensifiers such as àfi, àyàmọ̀, àyàṣe, and àdàmọ̀

Etymology 6

Particle

bí

1. question marker that can be used at the end of a yes-no question

   Ẹ̀yin lọ bí? ― Did you go?

Etymology 7

Cognate with Igala bí (“to give birth to”)

Alternative forms

• bẹ́ (Ìjẹ̀bú)

Verb

bí

1. (transitive) to give birth to

   Ọmọ mẹ́rin l'ó bí.

   She gave birth to four children.

2. (intransitive) to increase

Derived terms

• Abídèmí
• abínibí
• Abíọ̀nà
• Abíọ́dún
• Abíọ́lá
• Abíọ́sẹ̀
• bíbí
• bímọ
• ẹbí
• obí
• ọmọ bíbí
• Àbíbá
• àbígbẹ̀yìn
• Àbíkẹ́
• àbíkú
• Àbíìbá
• àbíìkọ́
• àkọ́bí
• ìbí
• Ìbídùnmóyè
• Ìbídùnọ̀únní
• Ìbíkúnlórí
• òbí

Etymology 8

Verb

bí

1. (with inú) to be angry

   Synonym: bínú

   Inú ń bí mi ― I'm angry

Derived terms

• bínú (“to be angry”)

Etymology 9

Likely cognate with Igala bi (“to beg for; to pray for”)

Verb

bi

1. (transitive) to ask, to interrogate

   Mo bi í nípa àwọn ọ̀rẹ́ rẹ̀.

   I asked him about his friends.

Derived terms

• bi léèrè
• bèèrè

Etymology 10

Verb

bi

1. (transitive) to push, to jostle

Etymology 11

Verb

bi

1. (transitive) to cause one to gain an evil reward for a prior evil committed

Etymology 12

Verb

bì

1. (transitive) to vomit, to throw up

   Synonyms: dà, pọ̀

Verb

bi

1. alternative form of bì (“to vomit”) used before object nouns

   Ó ti bi oúnjẹ rẹ̀.

   He's thrown up his food.

Derived terms

• bíbì, èbíbì, èébì, ìbì

Etymology 13

Verb

bì

1. (intransitive) to sway, to push back

Zaghawa

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /bi/

Noun

bi

1. water

References

• Ehret, Christopher (2001), A Historical-Comparative Reconstruction of Nilo-Saharan (SUGIA, Sprache und Geschichte in Afrika: Beihefte; 12)‎^[8], Cologne: Rüdiger Köppe Verlag, →ISBN, →ISSN.
• Beria-English English-Beria Dictionary [provisional] ADESK, Iriba, Kobe Department, Chad

Zhuang

Pronunciation

• (Standard Zhuang) IPA^(key): /pi˨˦/
• Tone numbers: bi¹
• Hyphenation: bi

Etymology 1

From Proto-Tai *piːᴬ (“year”). Cognate with Thai ปี (bpii), Northern Thai ᨸᩦ, Lao ປີ (pī), Lü ᦔᦲ (ṗii), Shan ပီ (pǐi), Tai Nüa ᥙᥤ (pi), Phake ပ︀ီ (pī), Ahom 𑜆𑜣 (pī), Bouyei bil.

Classifier

bi (Sawndip forms 𭯌 or 𭽨 or 𭙂, 1957–1982 spelling bi)

1. year

   Synonym: nienz

2. year old

Derived terms

• bide
• bigeq
• bi'gyai
• bi'gyaihaenx
• bihaenx
• bimoq
• binaengz
• bineix
• bi'nyinh
• birawz
• biriengh
• hopbi

Etymology 2

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

Verb

bi (1957–1982 spelling bi)

1. (intransitive) to swing; to sway; to rock
2. (transitive) to swing; to rock; to wag
3. to swing (on a swing)

Zulu

Etymology

From Proto-Bantu *-bɪ́ɪ̀.

Adjective

-bí

1. bad
2. evil
3. ugly

Inflection

Adjective concord, tone H

	modifier		copulative
	positive	negative	positive	negative
1st singular	engimubi	engingemubi	ngimubi	angimubi
2nd singular	omubi	ongemubi	umubi	awumubi
1st plural	esibabi	esingebabi	sibabi	asibabi
2nd plural	enibabi	eningebabi	nibabi	anibabi
class 1	omubi	ongemubi	mubi	akamubi
class 2	ababi	abangebabi	babi	abababi
class 3	omubi	ongemubi	mubi	awumubi
class 4	emibi	engemibi	mibi	ayimibi
class 5	elibi	elingelibi	libi	alilibi
class 6	amabi	angemabi	mabi	awamabi
class 7	esibi	esingesibi	sibi	asisibi
class 8	ezimbi	ezingezimbi	zimbi	azizimbi
class 9	embi	engembi, engeyimbi	imbi, yimbi	ayiyimbi
class 10	ezimbi	ezingezimbi	zimbi	azizimbi
class 11	olubi	olungelubi	lubi	alulubi
class 14	obubi	obungebubi	bubi	abububi
class 15	okubi	okungekubi	kubi	akukubi
class 17	okubi	okungekubi	kubi	akukubi

Derived terms

• -bana
• isibi
• okubi
• ububi