ភ្នែក
pnɛɛk
The Khmer word for eye is ភ្នែក (pnɛɛk).
ភ្នែក is the noun used to refer to the organ of sight. You may also encounter the idiomatic phrase ភ្នែកទទេ (pnɛɛk tɔte), which means 'the naked eye' or 'with the naked eye'.
Meaning: organ (noun)
How do you pronounce it?
The romanization is pnɛɛk.
Did you know?
- The ancient word for 'eye' that was replaced by ភ្នែក is preserved in the modern word មាត់, which now means 'mouth'.
- When describing someone's appearance, Khmer speakers might use ភ្នែក to describe the 'shape' or 'character' of the eyes, such as 'phoenix eyes', which is a highly valued aesthetic in many Southeast Asian cultures.
- The term ភ្នែក can be used in compound words to describe various 'openings' or 'perforations' in objects, moving beyond the concept of vision.
Examples in context
- បរិមាណូមិនអាចមើលឃើញដោយភ្នែកទទេបានទេ ។Atoms cannot be seen with your own eye.This sentence is useful for seeing how to use the form ភ្នែក in the context of the naked eye.Tatoeba #2845972 by angkorsovannnaga, translation #680283 by Source_VOA
- ភ្នែករបស់គាត់His/her eye
- គាត់មានភ្នែកពណ៌ខៀវ។koat mean phnek poa khiev.He has blue eyes.
- ភ្នែករបស់ខ្ញុំឈឺខ្លាំងណាស់។phnek robol khnom chheu khlang nah.My eyes hurt very much.
Example conversation
Sokha notices something in Narong's eye.
- ណារ៉ុង Narongខ្ញុំមានអារម្មណ៍ថាមានអ្វីម្យ៉ាងក្នុងភ្នែក។khnhom mean arom tha mean avei m-yang knong phnek.I feel like there is something in my eye.
- សុខា Sokhaចាំខ្ញុំមើលឲ្យ ណារ៉ុង។cham khnhom merl oy Narong.Let me look at it for you, Narong.
- សុខា Sokhaមានធូលីនៅក្នុងភ្នែករបស់អ្នកមែន!mean thuli nov knong phnek robos neak men!There really is dust in your eye!
- ណារ៉ុង Narongអរគុណច្រើន សុខា។or-kun chreun Sokha.Thank you very much, Sokha.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “eye” translations and entries ភ្នែក, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries ភ្នែក, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
