កុហក
kohɑk
To lie in Khmer is to say កុហក (kohɑk). Wiktionary also lists ភរ (phɔɔ) and ភូត (phuut).
Meaning: tell an intentional untruth (verb)
Ways to say it
| Khmer | Romanization (Wiktionary) |
|---|---|
| កុហក | kohɑk |
| ភរ | phɔɔ |
| ភូត | phuut |
| ភរភូត | phɔɔ phuut |
| ភូតភរ | phuut phɔɔ |
The term កុហក means to tell an intentional untruth. It can be used both as a verb ('to lie') and as a noun ('a lie') in Khmer.
Which one should you use?
You may also encounter the forms ភរ, ភូត, ភរភូត and ភូតភរ.
Related words
How do you pronounce it?
kohɑk
Did you know?
- The term ភូត comes from the Pali word bhūta, which in other contexts can refer to beings or ghosts, adding a layer of 'illusion' to the concept of lying.
- Khmer uses 'synonymous compounds' like ភរភូត, where two different words for 'lie' are paired together to create a single intensified meaning.
- In Cambodia, the cultural weight of 'truth' is often tied to Buddhist values, making the act of កុហក a significant moral transgression in traditional teachings.
Examples in context
- កុំកុហកខ្ញុំ!Don't lie to me!This sentence is useful for practicing the verb កុហក in a negative command.Tatoeba #6987295 by angkorsovannnaga, translation #1499123 by weihaiping
- ក្មេងៗតែងតែកុហកមាតាបិតា។kmeng kmeng taeng tae kohok meatabat.Children often lie to their parents.
Example conversation
Narong and Sokha are talking about a missing cake.
- សុខា Sokhaណារ៉ុង តើអ្នកបានញ៉ាំនំរបស់ខ្ញុំមែនទេ?Narong, tae neak ban nham nom robos khnhom men te?Narong, did you eat my cake?
- ណារ៉ុង Narongខ្ញុំមិនបានញ៉ាំទេ។khnhom min ban nham te.I didn't eat it.
- សុខា Sokhaកុំកុហកខ្ញុំ ខ្ញុំឃើញអ្នកញ៉ាំ!kom kohok khnhom, khnhom kheunh neak nham!Don't lie to me, I saw you eat it!
- ណារ៉ុង Narongបាទ ខ្ញុំសុំទោស សុខា។bat, khnhom som tos, Sokha.Yes, I am sorry, Sokha.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “lie” translations and entries កុហក, ភរ, ភូត, ភរភូត, ភូតភរ, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries កុហក, ភរភូត, ភូត, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
