From Middle Englishis, from Old Englishis, from Proto-Germanic*isti (a form of Proto-Germanic*wesaną(“to be”)), from Proto-Indo-European*h₁ésti(“is”). Cognate with West Frisianis(“is”), Dutchis(“is”), Germanist(“is”), Afrikaansis(“am, are, is”)Old Swedishär, er, Old Norseer, es.
Pronunciation
(UK, US, Canada, General Australian) IPA(key): /ɪz/
(General New Zealand) IPA(key): /ɘz/
Rhymes: -ɪz
Verb
is
Third-person singular simple present indicative form of be
2012, Robert Moore, Where the Gold is Buried, a legend of Old Fort Niagara (→ISBN), page 137:
"It's not two weeks yet," I reminded her, hoping that might somehow cheer her. [...] "Tomorrow is two weeks," Ruth said in a distant voice, staring into the flames.
(now colloquial)Used in phrases with existential there when the semantic subject is a third-person plural.
Quotations
For quotations using this term, see Citations:is.
Alternative forms
ees
's
iz
Synonyms
beeth(archaic)
bes(now AAVE)
Derived terms
as-is
See also
Etymology 2
i + -s.
Pronunciation
(UK, US) IPA(key): /aɪz/
Rhymes: -aɪz
Noun
is
plural of i
remember to dot your i's
Usage notes
There is some difference of opinion regarding the use of apostrophes in the pluralization of references to letters as symbols. New Fowler's Modern English Usage, after noting that the usage has changed, states on page 602 that "after letters an apostrophe is obligatory." The 15th edition of The Chicago Manual of Style states in paragraph 7.16, "To avoid confusion, lowercase letters ... form the plural with an apostrophe and an s". The Oxford Style Manual on page 116 advocates the use of common sense.
Anagrams
S. I., S.I., SI, Si, Si., si
Afar
Pronunciation
IPA(key): /is/
Pronoun
ís
she
thyself, yourself
Synonym:isí
himself, herself
Synonym:isí
(Awash) myself
See also
References
Mohamed Hassan Kamil (2015) L’afar: description grammaticale d’une langue couchitique (Djibouti, Erythrée et Ethiopie)[2], Paris: Université Sorbonne Paris Cité (doctoral thesis)
Afrikaans
Pronunciation
IPA(key): /əs/
Verb
is
am, are, is (present tense, all persons, plural and singular of wees, to be)
Forms the perfect passive voice when followed by a past participle
Bagusa
Noun
is
woman
References
Mark Donohue, Syntactic and Lexical Factors Conditioning the Diffusion of Sound Change, Oceanic Linguistics 44 (2005), page 428
Catalan
Noun
is
plural of i
Cimbrian
Pronoun
is
(Sette Comuni)Alternative form of es(“it”)
References
“is” in Martalar, Umberto Martello; Bellotto, Alfonso (1974) Dizionario della lingua Cimbra dei Sette Communi vicentini, 1st edition, Roana, Italy: Instituto di Cultura Cimbra A. Dal Pozzo
Danish
Etymology
From Old Norseíss, from Proto-Germanic*īsą, from Proto-Indo-European*h₁eyH-.
Pronunciation
IPA(key): /iːs/
Rhymes: -iːs
Rhymes: -iːˀs
Noun
isc (singular definiteisen, plural indefiniteis)
(uncountable) ice (water in frozen form)
(uncountable) ice, ice cream (dessert, not necessarily containing cream)
(countable) ice, ice cream (ice dessert on a stick or in a wafer cone)
Inflection
Dutch
Pronunciation
IPA(key): /ɪs/
Verb
is
third-person singular present indicative of zijn; is, equals
Twaalf min drie is negen — twelve minus three equals nine
Adverb
is
(informal, dialect)Misspelling of 's.
Anagrams
si
Gothic
Romanization
is
Romanization of 𐌹𐍃
Hungarian
Etymology
Doublet of és(“and”).
Pronunciation
IPA(key): [ˈiʃ]
Rhymes: -iʃ
Adverb
is (not comparable) (clitic)
also, too, as well
Synonyms:szintén, ugyancsak, úgyszintén, éppúgy, szintúgy(formal; the others are relatively literary in style)
even, up to, as much as, as long as
(after an interrogative word) again (used in a question to ask something one has forgotten)
Derived terms
See also
egyaránt(equally, alike)
Irish
Etymology 1
From agus.
Pronunciation
IPA(key): /ɪsˠ/, /sˠ/
Conjunction
is
reduced form of agus(“and; as”)
1899, Franz Nikolaus Finck, Die araner mundart, Marburg: Elwert’sche Verlagsbuchhandlung, vol. II, p. 1:
wil nə fatī xō mŭȧ, s dūŕc šē?
conventional orthography:An bhfuil na fataí chomh maith is dúirt sé?
Are the potatoes as good as he said?
1899, Franz Nikolaus Finck, Die araner mundart, Marburg: Elwert’sche Verlagsbuchhandlung, vol. II, p. 1:
ə ʒēĺǵə, l̄aurīr ə gūǵə mūn, ńī h-ønn̥̄ ī s ə ʒēlgə š agń̥ə
conventional orthography:An Ghaeilge a labhraíthear i gCúige Mumhan, ní hionann í is an Ghaeilge seo againne.
The Irish used in Munster isn’t the same as our Irish.
Etymology 2
From Old Irishis(“is”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European*h₁es-(“to be”).
Pronunciation
IPA(key): /ɪsˠ/, /sˠ/(before nouns and adjectives)
IPA(key): /ʃ/(before the pronouns é, í, ea, iad)
Particle
is
Present/future realis copula form
(definition: predicate is indefinite)
(identification: predicate is definite)
(idiomatic noun predicate)
(idiomatic adjective predicate)
(compare Hiberno-English "'Tis I who saw him"; cleft sentence)
(cleft sentence)
Used to introduce the comparative/superlative form of adjectives
Usage notes
Used in the present and future for identification or definition of a subject as the person/object identified in the predicate of the sentence. Sometimes used with noun or adjective predicates, especially in certain fixed idiomatic phrases. Used to introduce cleft sentences, which are extremely common in Irish. It is not a verb.
The copula does not exist in the imperative and does not have a nominal form analogous to the verbal noun. The phrase bíido (literally “be in your”) is used as the imperative instead (e.g. Bí i d’fhear! – “Be a man!” (lit. “Be in your man!”)), and equivalent non-copular nominal constructions must be used in place of their hypothetical copular equivalents: bheithábalta (“to be able”, in place of the non-existent nominal form of is féidir), bheithagiarraidh (“to want”, in place of the non-existent nominal form of is mian), bheithina (“to be”, as with the imperative), etc.
In comparative/superlative formations, is is strictly speaking the relative of the copula, hence an buachaill is mó literally means "the boy who is biggest", i.e. "the biggest boy". The thing compared is introduced by ná(“than”).
Related terms
Kwerba
Noun
is
woman
References
Mark Donohue, Syntactic and Lexical Factors Conditioning the Diffusion of Sound Change, Oceanic Linguistics 44 (2005), page 428 (used in both Kwerba proper and Anggreso Kwerba)
Lacandon
Etymology
From Proto-Mayan*iihs.
Noun
is
sweet potato
Derived terms
References
Baer, Phillip; Baer, Mary; Chan Kꞌin, Manuel; Chan Kꞌin, Antonio (2018) Diccionaro maya lacandón (Serie de vocabularios y diccionarios indígenas “Mariano Silva y Aceves”; 51)[3] (in Spanish), Instituto Lingüístico de Verano, A.C., pages 65–66
Latin
Etymology 1
From Proto-Italic*is, from Proto-Indo-European*éy.
Pronunciation
(Classical) IPA(key): /is/, [ɪs̠]
(Ecclesiastical) IPA(key): /is/
Determiner
is (feminineea, neuterid); demonstrative pronoun
(Third-person singular pronoun) he, it (referring to masculine nouns)
Is mihi rescripsit.
He wrote back to me.
Is amicus est vir bonus.
This friend is a good man.
(demonstrative) this or that man, this or that thing (pronoun referring to masculine nouns)
(demonstrative) this, that (adjective)
Declension
Demonstrative pronoun.
Usage notes
Note that is, ea, id is a determiner that can function as a personal pronoun, demonstrative pronoun or as a demonstrative adjective. The declensions are the exact same whether it functions as a personal pronoun or demonstrative pronoun/adjective.
Derived terms
idcircō
īdem
ideō
Related terms
See also
Etymology 2
Inflected form of eō(“go”).
Pronunciation
(Classical) IPA(key): /iːs/, [iːs̠]
(Ecclesiastical) IPA(key): /is/
Verb
īs
second-person singular present active indicative of eō
References
is in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879) A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
Carl Meissner; Henry William Auden (1894) Latin Phrase-Book[4], London: Macmillan and Co.
is in The Perseus Project (1999) Perseus Encyclopedia[5]
is in Harry Thurston Peck, editor (1898) Harper's Dictionary of Classical Antiquities, New York: Harper & Brothers
is in William Smith, editor (1854, 1857) A Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography, volume 1 & 2, London: Walton and Maberly
(rare, figuratively) That which is short-lived like ice.
(rare) icy conditions
Derived terms
isykle
Iseland
Descendants
English: ice
Scots: ice
References
“īs, n.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007.
Etymology 2
From Old Englishis, third-person present singular of wesan(“to be”), from Proto-Germanic*isti, third-person present singular of *wesaną(“to be, become”), from Proto-Indo-European*h₁ésti.
Alternative forms
es, ys, us
Pronunciation
IPA(key): /is/
Verb
is
third-person singular present indicative of been
Synonym:bith
Descendants
English: is
Scots: is
Etymology 3
Determiner
is
Alternative form of his(“his”)
Pronoun
is
Alternative form of his(“his”)
Etymology 4
Pronoun
is
Alternative form of his(“her”)
Etymology 5
Pronoun
is
Alternative form of his(“them”)
Etymology 6
Noun
is (pluralisnes)
Alternative form of iren(“iron”)
Navajo
Interjection
is
as if, as if it were true, it could be, is it really?, what do you mean by that?, so you say expressing surprise
Usage notes
Usually spelled with the final letter repeated: iss, isss, issss.
Alternative forms
as
isdaʼ
Norwegian Bokmål
Etymology
From Old Norseíss, from Proto-Germanic*īsą, from Proto-Indo-European*h₁eyH-.
Noun
ism (definite singularisen, indefinite pluralisoriser, definite pluralisene)
(uncountable)ice, ice cream
(countable)ice cream on a stick or cone.
Synonyms
iskrem(ice cream)
Derived terms
References
“is” in The Bokmål Dictionary.
Norwegian Nynorsk
Etymology
From Old Norseíss, from Proto-Germanic*īsą, from Proto-Indo-European*h₁eyH-. Akin to Englishice.
Pronunciation
IPA(key): /iːs/
Noun
ism (definite singularisen, indefinite pluralisar, definite pluralisane)
ice
ice cream
Synonyms
iskrem (ice cream)
Derived terms
References
“is” in The Nynorsk Dictionary.
Nyishi
Alternative forms
isi, esi
Etymology
From Proto-Tani*si, from Proto-Sino-Tibetan*si.
Noun
is
water
References
P. T. Abraham (2005) A Grammar of Nyishi Language[6], Delhi: Farsight Publishers and Distributors
Old English
Etymology
From Proto-Germanic*īsą, from Proto-Indo-European*h₁eyH-, *ey-, *ī-(“ice, frost”). Cognate with Old Frisianīs (West Frisianiis), Old Saxonīs (Low GermanIes), Dutchijs, Old High Germanīs (GermanEis), Old Norseíss (Danish and Swedishis), Gothic𐌴𐌹𐍃(eis). There are parallels in many Iranian languages, apparently from the same Indo-European root: Avestan𐬀𐬉𐬑𐬀 (aēxa, “frost, ice”), Persianیخ (yax), Pashtoجح (jaḥ), Ossetianих(ix).
Pronunciation
IPA(key): /iːs/
Noun
īsn
ice
the Legend of St Andrew
the runic character ᛁ (/i/ or /i:/)
Declension
Derived terms
īsċeald
īsiġ
Descendants
Middle English: is, ise, yes, yce, yys, ys, ijs, yse, ysz, hyse, hyys, ice, isse, ysse, yis
English: ice
Scots: ice
Old High German
Etymology
From Proto-Germanic*īsą, from Proto-Indo-European*h₁eyH-. Compare Old Saxonīs, Old Englishīs, Old Norseíss, Gothic𐌴𐌹𐍃(eis).
Noun
īs
ice
Descendants
Middle High German: īs
Alemannic German: Iis, Is, Isch
Alsatian: Iis; Eis(northern)
Italian Walser: isch, éisch
Bavarian: ais
Cimbrian: ais
Mòcheno: ais
Central Franconian: Eis, Ies
Hunsrik: Eis
Luxembourgish: Äis
German: Eis
Rhine Franconian:
Frankfurt: [ais]
Pennsylvania German: Eis
Vilamovian: ajs
Yiddish: אײַז (ayz)
Old Irish
Alternative forms
iss
Etymology
The lemma is itself is from Proto-Celtic*esti, from Proto-Indo-European*h₁ésti; other forms are from either *h₁es- or *bʰuH-.
Verb
is
to be
c.800, Würzburg Glosses on the Pauline Epistles, published in Thesaurus Palaeohibernicus (reprinted 1987, Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies), edited and with translations by Whitley Stokes and John Strachan, vol. I, pp. 499–712, Wb. 14d26
Is i persin Crist da·gníu-sa sin.
It is in the person of Christ that I do that.
Usage notes
This is the so-called "copula", which is distinct from the "substantive verb" at·tá. The copula is used with noun predicates and to introduce a cleft sentence.
Conjugation
See {{sga-conj-is}} for the complete conjugation.
Synonyms
at·tá(substantive verb)
Derived terms
cesu(“although... is”)
condid(“so that... is”)
in(“is... ?”)
masu(“if... is”)
ní(“is not”)
Descendants
Irish: is
Manx: s’
Scottish Gaelic: is
Further reading
Gregory Toner, Maire Ní Mhaonaigh, Sharon Arbuthnot, Dagmar Wodtko, Maire-Luise Theuerkauf, editors (2019) , “1 is”, in eDIL: Electronic Dictionary of the Irish Language
Rudolf Thurneysen (1940, reprinted 2003) D. A. Binchy and Osborn Bergin, transl., A Grammar of Old Irish, Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies, →ISBN, §§ 791–818, pages 483–94
Holger Pedersen (1913) Vergleichende Grammatik der keltischen Sprachen (in German), volume II, Göttingen: Vandenhoeck und Ruprecht, →ISBN, pages 419–431
Old Saxon
Etymology 1
From Proto-Germanic*it.
Pronoun
is (is)
his, its
Declension
Etymology 2
Verb
is
third-person singular present indicative of wesan
Etymology 3
From Proto-Germanic*īsą, from Proto-Indo-European*h₁eyH-(“ice, frost”). Cognate with Old Frisianīs (West Frisianiis), Old Englishīs (Englishice), Dutchijs, Old High Germanīs (GermanEis), Old Norseíss (Danish and Swedishis), Gothic𐌴𐌹𐍃(eis).
Noun
īsn
ice
The runic character ᛁ (/i/ or /i:/)
Declension
Descendants
Middle Low German: îs
Low German:
German Low German: Ies
Plautdietsch: Iess
Portuguese
Pronunciation
(Brazil) IPA(key): /ˈis/
(Carioca) IPA(key): /ˈiʃ/
Noun
is
plural of i
2003, J. K. Rowling, Lya Wyler, Harry Potter e a Ordem da Fênix, Rocco, page 411:
Se você pôs os pingos nos is e cortou os tês então pode fazer o que quiser!
If you've dotted your I's and crossed your T's, then you can do whatever you want!
Scots
Adverb
is (not comparable)
(South Scots) as
Synonyms
es
Conjunction
is
(South Scots) as
Synonyms
es
Pronoun
is (personal, non-emphatic)
(South Scots) me
See also
A
mei(emphatic variant)
Verb
is
third-person singular simple present indicative form of be
See also
ir
Scottish Gaelic
Alternative forms
's
Etymology 1
Clipping of agus(“and”).
Conjunction
is
and
Synonyms
agus
Etymology 2
From Old Irishis, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European*h₁es-(“to be”).
Verb
is
am, are, is
Usage notes
This defective verb doesn't have the infinitive, future tense, subjunctive or conditional moods.
The dependent form, used after particles, is e.
Is is used when linking the subject of a sentence with an object ("somebody is somebody", "somebody is something", "something is something"), otherwise forms of the verb bi are used:
Derived terms
's e
an e...?
bu
chan e
gur e
Swedish
Etymology
From Old Norseíss, from Proto-Germanic*īsą, from Proto-Indo-European*h₁eyH-.
Pronunciation
Noun
isc
(uncountable) Ice; frozen water.
(countable) Ice; a sheet of ice lying on a body of water.
Declension
Related terms
References
is in Svenska Akademiens ordlista (SAOL)
Tok Pisin
Etymology
From EnglishEast.
Noun
is
East
Turkish
Noun
is (definite accusativeisi, pluralisler)
soot
fume (solid deposit)
kohl
Declension
Volapük
Adverb
is
here
Welsh
Etymology
From Middle Welshis, from Proto-Celtic*ɸīssu(“under”), from Proto-Indo-European*pedsú, locative plural of *pṓds(“foot”). Cognate with Old Irishís.