ស្លឹក
slək
The English word "leaf" is ស្លឹក (slək) in Khmer. Wiktionary also lists ស្លឹកឈើ (slək chəə).
Meaning: part of a plant (noun)
Ways to say it
| Khmer | Romanization (Wiktionary) |
|---|---|
| ស្លឹក | slək |
| ស្លឹកឈើ | slək chəə |
ស្លឹក refers to a part of a plant. This word is also used as a classifier for long, thin, flat objects such as blades, knives or certain types of paper.
What does it mean word for word?
The term ស្លឹកឈើ is a compound where ស្លឹក means leaf and ឈើ means wood or tree.
How do you pronounce it?
The romanization is slək.
Did you know?
- Khmer historically recorded its literature and laws on dried palm leaves, making ស្លឹក essential to the survival of the country's written history.
- The word for 'tea' in Chinese 茶 and Burmese လက်ဖက် likely shares a common ancient ancestor with the Khmer word ស្លឹក.
- In Cambodia, the 'leaf' of the banana tree is not just a plant part but a vital cultural tool used as a plate, a wrapper and a steamed oven.
Examples in context
- ស្លឹកនេះពណ៌បៃតង។sleuk nih poa bai tong.This leaf is green.
- ខ្ញុំឃើញស្លឹកធ្លាក់ច្រើនណាស់។khnhom kheun sleuk thleak chreun nah.I see many fallen leaves.
- ស្លឹកឈើនេះតូចណាស់។sleuk chheu nih toch nah.This leaf is very small.
Example conversation
Chinda and Sok are looking at a plant in the garden.
- សុខ Sokចិន្តា មើលស្លឹកនេះមើល!Chinda, meul sleuk nih meul!Chinda, look at this leaf!
- ចិន្តា Chindaវាមានរាងចម្លែកណាស់។vea mean reang chomlaek nah.It has a very strange shape.
- សុខ Sokតើវាជាប្រភេទអ្វី?tae vea chea propeht avei?What kind of plant is it?
- ចិន្តា Chindaខ្ញុំមិនប្រាកដទេ សុខ។khnhom mun prakod te, Sok.I am not sure, Sok.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “leaf” translations and entries ស្លឹក, ស្លឹកឈើ, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries ស្លឹក, ស្លឹកឈើ, CC BY-SA 4.0.
