កាត់សក់
katsɑk
The English phrase 'haircut' is translated to Khmer as កាត់សក់ (katsɑk).
The term កាត់សក់ refers to the act of cutting hair.
Meaning: act of cutting of hair (noun)
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase is composed of the verb កាត់ (cut) and the noun សក់ (hair).
How does it change in a sentence?
In Khmer, the phrase កាត់សក់ is used both for the act of cutting someone else's hair and for the act of receiving a haircut.
How do you pronounce it?
katsɑk
Did you know?
- In Cambodia, many people traditionally shave their entire heads during certain Buddhist ceremonies or periods of mourning. In these contexts, the act of កាត់សក់ is a deeply symbolic ritual of renunciation rather than just a style choice.
- In some traditional Khmer contexts, a child's first significant 'haircut' is a ceremonial event called 'leat sâk'. This marks a transition in the child's life and is treated with much more importance than a standard salon visit.
- The word សក់ (hair) specifically refers to the hair on the human head. If you were talking about animal hair or hair on other parts of the body, you would use different terms, making the phrase very specific to human grooming.
Examples in context
- ខ្ញុំចង់កាត់សក់។khnhom chong kat sok.I want a haircut.
- គាត់ទៅកាត់សក់នៅហាង។koat tov kat sok nov hang.He went to get a haircut at the shop.
- តើការកាត់សក់នេះអស់ប៉ុន្មាន?tae kar kat sok nih os ponman?How much is this haircut?
Example conversation
Mali and Vibol are talking about a new look.
- វិបុល Vibolម៉ាលី អ្នកបានកាត់សក់មែនទេ?Mali, neak ban kat sok men te?Mali, did you get a haircut?
- ម៉ាលី Malyចាស ខ្ញុំទើបតែបានកាត់សក់។chas, khnhom teub tae ban kat sok.Yes, I just got a haircut.
- វិបុល Vibolវាស័ក្តិសមជាមួយអ្នកណាស់។vea sak som cheamuoy neak nah.It suits you very much.
- ម៉ាលី Malyអរគុណ វិបុល!orkun Vibol!Thank you, Vibol!
Sources
- Wiktionary, “haircut” translations, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
