លេខ
leek
The English phrase "numbers" is translated into Khmer as លេខ (leek).
លេខ refers to symbols or words used to count or to represent a quantity.
How do you pronounce it?
leek
Did you know?
- In Khmer, the term for 'number' is the same as the term used for 'digit' or 'phone number'. If you ask for someone's លេខ, you are asking for their telephone number.
- In traditional Khmer culture, certain numbers are considered lucky or unlucky, similar to how 13 is viewed in the West, affecting how លេខ are chosen for business or weddings.
- The word លេខ originally referred to 'letters' or 'writing' rather than mathematical digits. This is because, in ancient times, numbers were often thought of as a sequence of written symbols.
Examples in context
- ខ្ញុំចូលចិត្តរៀនលេខ។khnhom chol chet rien lekh.I like learning numbers.
- តើអ្នកអាចសរសេរលេខបានទេ?tae neak ach sor ser lekh ban te?Can you write the numbers?
- សូមឆែកលេខទាំងនេះឡើងវិញ។som chek lekh teang nis laung vinh.Please check these numbers again.
Example conversation
Mali is asking Narong for his phone number.
- ណារ៉ុង Narongតើអ្នកចង់បានអ្វី ម៉ាលី?Tae neak chong ban avei, Mali?What do you want, Mali?
- ម៉ាលី Malyខ្ញុំសុំលេខទូរសព្ទរបស់អ្នកបានទេ?Khnhom som lek tousap robos neak ban te?Can I have your phone number?
- ណារ៉ុង Narongបាទ បាន នេះគឺជាលេខរបស់ខ្ញុំ។Baat, ban. Nis keu chea lek robos khnhom.Yes, sure. This is my number.
- ម៉ាលី Malyអរគុណច្រើន ណារ៉ុង។Orkun chreun, Narong.Thank you very much, Narong.
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry លេខ, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries លេខ, CC BY-SA 4.0.
