Ways to say it
| Khmer | Romanization (Wiktionary) | Note |
|---|---|---|
| មានផ្ទៃពោះ | miən phtɨy pŭəh | |
| ទ្រង់គភ៌ | trŭəng kɔə | |
| ពពោះ | pɔɔ pŭəh | |
| មានគភ៌ | miən kɔə | |
| មានផ្ទៃ | miən phtɨy | |
| មានពោះពុង | miən pŭəh pung | |
| កំផើម | kɑmphaəm | vulgar |
| ទម្ងន់ | tɔɔtumngŭən | |
| ស្ពាយបាត្រ | spiəy baat | colloquial |
All these terms describe the state of carrying developing offspring within the body. In some contexts, such as the phrase ស្រីមានទម្ងន់, speakers use the word for "weight" (ទម្ងន់) to describe a pregnant woman.
Which one should you use?
ពពោះ is a common, direct way to say 'pregnant' used in general speech, often more casual than មានផ្ទៃពោះ.
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
មានផ្ទៃពោះ is the standard, polite way to say someone is pregnant in everyday conversation. ទ្រង់គភ៌ is a formal or literary term for being pregnant, often used in medical or highly respectful contexts. ស្ពាយបាត្រ is a colloquial expression and កំផើម is a vulgar or derogatory way to refer to a pregnant woman and should be avoided.
How do you pronounce it?
miən phtɨy pŭəh
What mistakes should you avoid?
Avoid using កំផើម to describe a pregnant woman, as it is considered vulgar and derogatory.
Did you know?
- The colloquial expression ស្ពាយបាត្រ literally translates to 'carrying an alms bowl'. This refers to the shape of a pregnant belly and evokes the image of a Buddhist monk carrying his bowl.
- The formal term ទ្រង់គភ៌ is a compound of a royal prefix and a Sanskrit-derived word for 'embryo'.
- While ទម្ងន់ means 'weight', using it to describe pregnancy is a form of linguistic cushioning. In Khmer culture, using a word for a physical attribute rather than the state of pregnancy can be a way to be more discreet.
Examples in context
- ស្រីមានទម្ងន់A pregnant womanThis sentence shows how to use the word for weight (ទម្ងន់) to describe a pregnant woman.
- នាងកំពុងមានផ្ទៃពោះ។neang kompong mean phtey pous.She is pregnant.
- តើអ្នកមានផ្ទៃពោះប៉ុន្មានខែហើយ?tae neak mean phtey pous ponman khae haey?How many months pregnant are you?
Example conversation
A couple discussing their future plans.
- សុខា Sokhaណារ៉ុង ខ្ញុំគិតថាខ្ញុំមានផ្ទៃពោះ។Narong, khnom kit tha khnom mean ptei pous.Narong, I think I am pregnant.
- ណារ៉ុង Narongមែនឬ សុខា? ខ្ញុំសប្បាយចិត្តណាស់!men reu Soka? khnom sabbay chet nah!Really, Soka? I am so happy!
- សុខា Sokhaពួកយើងត្រូវទៅជួបគ្រូពេទ្យ។pouk yeung trov tov chuob kru peth.We need to go see a doctor.
- ណារ៉ុង Narongបាទ ខ្ញុំនឹងជូនអ្នកទៅឥឡូវនេះ។bat, khnom nung choun neak tov ey lov nis.Yes, I will take you there now.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “pregnant” translations and entries មានផ្ទៃពោះ, ទ្រង់គភ៌, ពពោះ, មានគភ៌, មានផ្ទៃ, មានពោះពុង, កំផើម, ទម្ងន់, ស្ពាយបាត្រ, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries ទ្រង់គភ៌, ពពោះ, មានគភ៌, មានផ្ទៃ, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Wiktionary CC BY-SA 4.0.
