ညီမ

Burmese

Etymology

ညီ (nyi, “younger brother”) +‎ -မ (-ma., “female”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ɲìma̰/
• Romanization: MLCTS: nyima. • ALA-LC: ññīma • BGN/PCGN: nyima. • Okell: nyimá

Noun

ညီမ • (nyima.)

1. younger sister (of a female)

Usage notes

The term has largely displaced နှမ (hna.ma.), which in pre-colonial times referenced the younger sister of a male.

Coordinate terms

• ညီ (nyi, “younger brother”)
• အစ်ကို (ackui, “elder brother”)
• အစ်မ (acma., “elder sister”)

Further reading

• “ညီမ” in Myanmar–English Dictionary (Myanmar Language Commission 1993). Searchable online at SEAlang.net.