ទឹកឃ្មុំ
tɨk khmum
Honey in Khmer is ទឹកឃ្មុំ (tɨk khmum).
The word ទឹកឃ្មុំ is used to refer to the sweet substance produced by bees.
Meaning: sweet substance produced by bees (noun)
What does it mean word for word?
The term is composed of ទឹក, meaning water and ឃ្មុំ, meaning bee.
How do you pronounce it?
tɨk khmum
Did you know?
- While English speakers might use 'honey' to address a romantic partner, calling someone ទឹកឃ្មុំ sounds much more literal and slightly unusual in a romantic context.
- The word ទឹក (water) in the phrase reflects the Khmer linguistic tendency to categorize many liquids, including juices and oils, under the umbrella of 'water'.
- Wild honey harvesting in the forests of Mondulkiri is a traditional practice where locals use smoke to calm the ឃ្មុំ.
Examples in context
- ទឹកឃ្មុំនេះមានរសជាតិផ្អែម។tuek khmum nih mean ros cheat pha-em.This honey has a sweet taste.
- តើអ្នកមានទឹកឃ្មុំទេ?tae neak mean tuek khmum te?Do you have honey?
Example conversation
Narong and Mali are preparing tea in the kitchen.
- ណារ៉ុង Narongម៉ាលី តើទឹកឃ្មុំនៅឯណា?Mali, tae teuk khmum nov ae na?Mali, where is the honey?
- ម៉ាលី Malyវាស្ថិតនៅលើតុនោះ។vea sthet nov leu toh noh.It is on that table.
- ណារ៉ុង Narongអរគុណ ខ្ញុំនឹងដាក់ទឹកឃ្មុំក្នុងតែ។orkun, khnhom nung dak teuk khmum knong tae.Thanks, I will put honey in the tea.
- ម៉ាលី Malyបាទ វានឹងមានរសជាតិឆ្ងាញ់។bat, vea nung mean ros cheat chnganh.Yes, it will taste delicious.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “honey” translations and entries ទឹកឃ្មុំ, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
