wai

• IPA^(key): /waɪ/, /weɪ/

• Audio (Southern England):

  (file)

• Audio (Southern England):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -aɪ, -eɪ

Borrowed from Thai ไหว้ (wâi, “a gesture of thanks”).

wai (plural wais)

1. A Thai greeting wherein the palms are brought together in front of the face or chest, sometimes accompanied with a bow.

Phonetic respelling of why.

wai (not comparable)

1. (Internet slang) why (a purposeful misspelling)

• IAW, WIA, iwa

wai

1. indeed

• Edward Horace Man, A Dictionary of the South Andaman (Aka-Bea) language (1923)

From Proto-Oceanic *waiʀ, from Proto-Eastern Malayo-Polynesian *waiʀ, from Proto-Central-Eastern Malayo-Polynesian *waiʀ, from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *wahiʀ.

wai

1. fresh water (clear liquid H₂O)

• āsi (“salt water”)

• Blust's Austronesian Comparative Dictionary

From Proto-Oceanic *waiʀ, from Proto-Eastern Malayo-Polynesian *waiʀ, from Proto-Central-Eastern Malayo-Polynesian *waiʀ, from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *wahiʀ.

wai

1. water (clear liquid H₂O)

• Arthur Capell, Arosi grammar (1971), page 59: [Possessives of the] first and second persons precede the noun, whereas all others follow it, e.g. gugua wai, my drinking water, but wai 'ana, his drinking water.
• Sidney Herbert Ray, A Comparative Study of the Melanesian Island Languages (2014), page 481: wai "water"

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

• IPA^(key): /wa.i/

wai (Balinese script ᬯᬳᬶ)

1. day

• “wai” in Balinese–Indonesian Dictionary [Kamus Bahasa Bali–Indonesia], Denpasar, Indonesia: The Linguistic Center of Bali Province [Balai Bahasa Provinsi Bali].

wai

1. eight

• G. Maan, Proeve van een Bulische spraakkunst (1951)

From Proto-Philippine [Term?], from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *wahiʀ.

wai (Tagbanwa spelling ᝯᝡ)

1. water (clear liquid H₂O)

• Robert A. Scebold, Central Tagbanwa: A Philippine Language on the Brink of Extinction : Sociolinguistics, Grammar, and Lexicon (2003)

wai

1. water

• Language Documentation Training Center, Linguistic Society of Hawaii, Duri wordlist

From Proto-Central Pacific *wai, from Proto-Oceanic *waiʀ, from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *wahiʀ.

wai

1. water (clear liquid H₂O)

wai

1. romanization of 𐍅𐌰𐌹

• IPA^(key): /waʔi/

wai ?

1. all (used with a possessive suffix)

• waiko
• waina

• IPA^(key): /ˈwai̯/, [ˈʋɐj], [ˈʋɛj] (rapid speech)

From Proto-Eastern Polynesian *wai, from Proto-Nuclear Polynesian *wai, from Proto-Polynesian *wai, from Proto-Oceanic *waiʀ, from Proto-Eastern Malayo-Polynesian *waiʀ, from Proto-Central-Eastern Malayo-Polynesian *waiʀ, from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *wahiʀ (compare with Malay air).

wai

1. water, especially of fresh sources

• kai

wai

1. rare form of waiho (“to leave, deposit”)

• William Churchill (1911) The Polynesian Wanderings: Tracks of the Migration Deduced
• Pukui, Mary Kawena, Elbert, Samuel H. (1986) “wai”, in Hawaiian Dictionary, Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press
• Elbert, Samuel H., Pukui, Mary Kawena (1979) Hawaiian Grammar, Honolulu: University of Hawaiʻi Press, →ISBN, page 67
• Ross, Malcolm D., Pawley, Andrew, Osmond, Meredith (2008) The lexicon of Proto-Oceanic, volume 2: The Physical Environment, Canberra: Australian National University, →ISBN, pages 58-9

Derived from English why.

• IPA^(key): /wai/

wai

1. why
   • 2012, Di Jamiekan Nyuu Testiment, Edinburgh: DJB, published 2012, →ISBN, Ruoman 11:33:

     […] Uu kyan se wai im mek op im main fi du di sitn dem we im du? […]

     […] You can see why he made up his mind to do the things he does?

• For asking questions, ou kom is used instead.

wai

1. Rōmaji transcription of わい
2. Rōmaji transcription of ワイ

From Proto-Central-Eastern Malayo-Polynesian *waiʀ, from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *wahiʀ.

wài

1. water (clear liquid H₂O)

• Marian Klamer, A Grammar of Kambera

From Proto-Nuclear Polynesian *wai, from Proto-Polynesian *wai, from Proto-Oceanic *waiʀ, from Proto-Eastern Malayo-Polynesian *waiʀ, from Proto-Central-Eastern Malayo-Polynesian *waiʀ, from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *wahiʀ.

wai

1. water (clear liquid H₂O)

• IPA^(key): [wa͡i]

wai

1. chin

• Allahverdi Verdizade (2019) “wai”, in Lamboya word list‎^[2], Leiden: LexiRumah

wai

1. water (clear liquid H₂O)

• Kunio Nishyama, Herman Kelen, A Grammar of Lamaholot, Eastern Indonesia: The Morphology and Syntax of the Lewoingu Dialect (2007)
• ABVD

wai

1. water

• kafo

• Joel Bradshaw, Word order change in Papua New Guinea Austronesian languages (1982), page 126
• Walter George Ivens, Grammar and vocabulary of the Lau language, Solomon Islands (1921), page 55

From Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *wahiʀ. Doublet of air.

• IPA^(key): /wai/
• Rhymes: -ai, -i

wai (Jawi spelling واي, plural wai-wai)

1. river (large stream which drains a landmass)

   Synonyms: alir, alur, batang, bengawan, ci, kali, sungai

• "wai" in Kamus Dewan, Fourth Edition, Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka, →ISBN, 2005.
• “wai” in Pusat Rujukan Persuratan Melayu | Malay Literary Reference Centre, Kuala Lumpur: Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka, 2017.

wai

1. water

• David F. Matti, Mamasa Pronoun Sets (1994)

wai

1. water

• Kari K. Stromme, Person Marking in the Mamuju Language (1994)

wai (wai⁵ / wai⁰, Zhuyin ˙ㄨㄞ)

1. Hanyu Pinyin reading of 𠰻

wai

1. nonstandard spelling of wāi
2. nonstandard spelling of wǎi
3. nonstandard spelling of wài

• 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.

From Proto-Eastern Polynesian *wai, from Proto-Nuclear Polynesian *wai, from Proto-Polynesian *wai,^[1] from Proto-Oceanic *waiʀ, from Proto-Eastern Malayo-Polynesian *waiʀ, from Proto-Central-Eastern Malayo-Polynesian *waiʀ, from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *wahiʀ (compare with Malay air).^[2]

wai

1. water (clear liquid H₂O)
2. liquid
3. juice of plants from fruits etc.^[3]
   1. beverage from such liquids

      wai āporo ― apple juice

• William Churchill, The Polynesian Wanderings: Tracks of the Migration Deduced (1911)

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

wai

1. who?

• Williams, Herbert William (1917) “wai”, in A Dictionary of the Maori Language, pages 556-7
• “wai” in John C. Moorfield, Te Aka: Maori–English, English–Maori Dictionary and Index, 3rd edition, Longman/Pearson Education New Zealand, 2011, →ISBN.

wai

1. water

• ABVD

wai

1. alternative form of way

wai

1. water

• Aone van Engelenhoven, The position of Makuva among the Austronesian languages of Southwest Maluku and East Timor, in Austronesian historical linguistics and culture history: a festschrift, Pacific linguistics 601 (2009)

From Proto-Sino-Tibetan *b(w)ay.

wai

1. left

• Naxi Dictionary by T.M. Pinson, Lijiang 2012

wai

1. water

• Transnewguinea.org, citing McElhanon and Voorhoeve (1970)
• J. Bullock, R. Gray, H. Paris, D. Pfantz, D. Richardson, A Sociolinguistic Survey of the Yabong, Migum, Nekgini, and Neko (2016)

• wäi (Mooring)
• Wai (Sylt)

From Proto-Germanic *wegaz.

• (Föhr-Amrum) IPA^(key): [vaːɪ̯]

wai m (plural waier)

1. (Föhr-Amrum) way

wai

1. alternative spelling of we (“sun, day”)

wai

1. alternative spelling of wwe (“water”)

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

wai

1. water

• Catriona Hyslop, The Lolovoli Dialect of the North-East Ambae Language: Vanuatu (2001)
• William Churchill, The Polynesian Wanderings: Tracks of the Migration Deduced (1911)

wai

1. water

• W. G. Ivens, A Study of the Oroha Language, Mala, Solomon Islands, Bulletin of the School of Oriental Studies, University of London, volume 4, number 3 (1927), page 610

From Proto-Oceanic *waiʀ, from Proto-Eastern Malayo-Polynesian *waiʀ, from Proto-Central-Eastern Malayo-Polynesian *waiʀ, from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *wahiʀ.

wai

1. water (clear liquid H₂O)

• Greg Mellow, A Dictionary of Owa: A Language of the Solomon Islands

wai

1. woman

• Austronesian Comparative Dictionary

wai

1. hey

From Proto-Polynesian *fai, from Proto-Oceanic *paʀi, from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *paʀih, from Proto-Austronesian *paʀiS.

wai

1. stingray (venomous ray of the orders Rajiformes and Myliobatiformes)

• wai kave
• wai lepu

• Te Pukamuna | Pukapuka Dictionary

From Proto-Oceanic *waiʀ, from Proto-Eastern Malayo-Polynesian *waiʀ, from Proto-Central-Eastern Malayo-Polynesian *waiʀ, from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *wahiʀ.

wai

1. water (clear liquid H₂O)

• Malcolm Ross, Andrew Pawley, Meredith Osmond, The Lexicon of Proto-Oceanic (2007, →ISBN

wai

1. water

• wei
• wäi

• ABVD 1, 2, 3, 4 (wai)
• ABVD (wäi)
• Malcolm Ross, Andrew Pawley, Meredith Osmond (editors), The lexicon of Proto-Oceanic: The physical environment, Pacific Linguistics, 545-2 (Australian National University, Canberra, 2003), page 58 (wei)

From Old Frisian wei.

• IPA^(key): /vaːi/

wai m (plural do Wege)

1. way

1. Dr. Fort, Marron, Dät Näie Tästamänt un do Psoolme in ju aasterlauwersfräiske Uurtoal fon dät

Seelterlound, Fräislound, Butjoarlound, Aastfräislound un do Groninger Umelounde

wai

1. water

• William Churchill, The Polynesian Wanderings: Tracks of the Migration Deduced (1911)

wai

1. arm, hand

• Johannes A. Z'Graggen, The Madang-Adelbert Range Sub-Phylum (1975), page 602
• Sjaak van Kleef, Siroi - English dictionary, English - Siroi dictionary (2007), page 10

From Proto-South Sulawesi *wai, from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *wahiʀ.

wai

1. water (clear liquid H₂O)

• ABVD

From Proto-Oceanic *waiʀ, from Proto-Eastern Malayo-Polynesian *waiʀ, from Proto-Central-Eastern Malayo-Polynesian *waiʀ, from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *wahiʀ.

wai

1. water (clear liquid H₂O)

• Malcolm Ross, Andrew Pawley, Meredith Osmond, The Lexicon of Proto-Oceanic (2007, →ISBN

wai

1. already

• Osumi, M. (1995). Tinrin Grammar. Honolulu: University of Hawai'i Press. page 39

wai

1. and

wai

1. (Eastern dialect) a coconut embryo

Wai (eastern dialect) or musu (western dialect) is the first stage of coconut growth. It is followed by giru (eastern dialect) or musu koknat (western dialect).

• musu (western dialect)

wai

1. water

• William Churchill, The Polynesian Wanderings: Tracks of the Migration Deduced (1911)

wai

1. water

• Aone van Engelenhoven, The position of Makuva among the Austronesian languages of Southwest Maluku and East Timor, in Austronesian historical linguistics and culture history: a festschrift, Pacific linguistics 601 (2009)

wai

1. alternative form of ghai

• The Linguistic Situation in the Islands of Yapen, Kurudu, Nau and Miosnum, New Guinea (1961)

• IPA^(key): /wa.ˈi/

wai

1. (sentence-final); not yet

• aiwi

• Clemens Voorhoeve (1982) The Makian languages and their neighbours‎^[3], Pacific linguistics

• IPA^(key): [waj]

wai (possessed waichü)

1. (in ritual chants) synonym of jüwai (“shaman”)

• Gongora, Majoí Fávero (2017) Ääma ashichaato: replicações, transformações, pessoas e cantos entre os Ye’kwana do rio Auaris‎^[4], corrected edition, São Paulo: Universidade de São Paulo, page 424: “Waichö é um termo usado nos cantos aichudi e ädeemi e é sinônimo de föwai, ‘pajé’ ou ‘xamã’.”