ຫຍ້າ
nyā[ɲaː˧˩]
The English word weed is translated into Lao as ຫຍ້າ (nyā).
The word for 'weed' is the same as the word for 'grass' in Lao.
Meaning: unwanted plant (noun)
How do you pronounce it?
The word is romanized as nyā.
Did you know?
- Because ຫຍ້າ means both 'grass' and 'weed', Lao speakers often distinguish a 'weed' from 'grass' by adding descriptors like 'bad' or 'useless'.
- The word ຫຍ້າ is used in Lao idioms to describe things that are common, unremarkable or grow uncontrollably.
- The Lao word ຫຍ້າ is a cognate with the word for 'grass' in many other Tai languages, including Thai หญ้า and Shan ယႃႈ.
Examples in context
- ຖອກຫຍ້າto pull weeds
- ມີຫຍ້າຫຼາຍຢູ່ໃນສວນ.mi ya lai yu nai suan.There are many weeds in the garden.
- ຂ້ອຍຕ້ອງຖອກຫຍ້າອອກໃຫ້ໝົດ.khoy tong thok ya ok hai mot.I need to pull out all the weeds.
- ຫຍ້ານີ້ກໍາລັງຂຶ້ນໄວຫຼາຍ.ya ni kam lang khuen vai lai.This weed is growing very fast.
Example conversation
A and B are working in a small garden.
- Aສວນຂອງເຮົາມີຫຍ້າຫຼາຍແທ້.suan khong hao mi ya lai thae.Our garden has so many weeds.
- Bແມ່ນແລ້ວ, ເຮົາຕ້ອງຖອກມັນອອກ.maen laeo, hao tong thok man ok.Yes, we have to pull them out.
- Aເຈົ້າຢາກໃຫ້ຂ້ອຍຊ່ວຍບໍ?chao yak hai khoy xuay bo?Do you want me to help?
- Bຂອບໃຈຫຼາຍໆ, ຊ່ວຍກັນຖອກຫຍ້າເດີ້.khop chai lai lai, xuay kan thok ya der.Thank you very much, let's pull the weeds together.
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry ຫຍ້າ, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries ຫຍ້າ, CC BY-SA 4.0.
