til

See also: Appendix:Variations of "til"

Languages (23)

English

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Crimean Tatar • Danish • Dutch • Dutch Low Saxon • Faroese • Gothic • Icelandic • Ido • Karakalpak • Khalaj • Marshallese • Middle English • Miraya Bikol • Northern Kurdish • Norwegian Bokmål • Norwegian Nynorsk • Old English • Old Norse • Portuguese • Swedish • Uzbek • West Albay Bikol

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Page categories

English

Etymology 1

From Middle English til, from Old English til (“to, until”), possibly from Old Norse til, both from Proto-Germanic *tilą (“goal”), or Proto-Germanic *til (“to, towards”). Compare to Old Frisian til.

Alternative forms

• 'til

Pronunciation

• enPR: tĭl, təl, IPA^(key): /tɪl/, (unstressed) /təl/

• Audio (Southern England):

  (file)

• Audio (Southern England (weak form)):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɪl

Conjunction

til

1. (colloquial) until, till

Preposition

til

1. (colloquial) until, till
   • 2004 Nov, Harper, Gary W., Gannon, Christine, Watson, Susan E., Catania, Joseph A., and Dolcini, M. Margaret, “The Role of Close Friends in African American Adolescents' Dating and Sexual Behavior”, in Journal of Sex Research, volume 41, number 4, pages 351–362:

     I just don't know how to just come out in the blue and say it, so I just wait til it comes up...

   • 2008 Winter, Michael Copperman, “Gone”, in Arkansas Review, volume 39, number 3, Arkansas State University, pages 139–145:

     Let him wander round and kids gone meddle him til he get to fighting again.

   • 2010 May, James Parker, “Revenge of the Wimps”, in The Atlantic Monthly‎^[1], volume 305, number 4, page 38:

     EVEN IF YOU MAKE ME WRITE IN THIS EVERY DAY TIL THEY LET ME OUT OF HERE

Derived terms

• til to

Etymology 2

Borrowed from Hindi तिल (til, “sesame”).

Alternative forms

• teal, teel

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /tɪl/, /tiːl/

Noun

til (plural tils)

1. Sesame (plant: Sesamum indicum)
2. Any of species Ocotea foetens in family Lauraceae, native to Madeira and the Canary Islands.

Derived terms

• til seed

Anagrams

• &lit, Lit, TLI, lit, lit.

Crimean Tatar

Etymology

Inherited from Proto-Turkic *til.

Noun

til (accusative tilni, plural tiller)

1. tongue
2. language

Declension

Declension of til

	singular	plural
nominative	til	tiller
genitive	tilniñ	tillerniñ
dative	tilge	tillerge
accusative	tilni	tillerni
locative	tilde	tillerde
ablative	tilden	tillerden

References

• Mirjejev, V. A., Usejinov, S. M. (2002) Ukrajinsʹko-krymsʹkotatarsʹkyj slovnyk [Ukrainian – Crimean Tatar Dictionary]‎^[2], Simferopol: Dolya, →ISBN
• “til”, in Luğatçıq (in Russian)

Danish

Etymology

From Old Norse til, from Proto-Germanic *tilą (“goal”), cognate with Swedish till (“to”), English till, German Ziel n (“goal”). The preposition has arisen from an adverbial use of the noun, lit. "(with) the goal of something". In Old Norse, the preposition governs the genitive, a usage which is preserved in certain fixed phrases in Danish.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /te(l)/, [tˢel], [tˢe]

Preposition

til

1. to, towards (the direction or goal of a physical movement)
2. towards (the way a thing is turned)
3. to, until (the upper limit)

   Fra 12 til 18 år.

   From 12 to 18 years.

4. for (the purpose or the beneficiary)

   Jeg har en gave til dig.

   I have a gift for you.

5. into, interested in (especially sexually)

   Beklager, jeg er kun til kvinder.

   Sorry, I'm only into women.

   Er du til analsex?

   Are you into anal sex?

6. at (at a certain point in time, with certain nouns)

   De var samlet hele familien til jul.

   The whole family was gathered at Christmas.

7. by (not later than)

   Den er færdig til (på) torsdag.

   It is ready by Thursday.

8. (together) with (e.g., accompanying food)

   De drak vin til maden

   They were drinking wine with their food.

9. on, by (the means of transportation)
10. (in personal names) of (a nobiliary particle denoting residence)

    Jacob Enevoldsen Seefeld til Visborg og Sostrup

    Jacob Enevoldsen [lit. Enevold’s-son] Seefeld of Visborg and Sostrup

Usage notes

• The preposition governed the genitive in Old Norse and Old Danish. This usage is preserved in several fixed phrases (always with the noun in the indefinite singular):

Derived terms

• til bens
• til blods
• til bords
• til bunds
• til dags
• til dels
• til doms
• til fals
• til fods
• til freds
• til gavns
• til havs
• til himmels
• til lands
• til livs
• til låns
• til måls
• til rors
• til råds
• til sengs
• til sinds
• til skovs
• til søs
• til tops
• til torvs
• til vands
• til vejrs
• til vogns
• til vægs
• til værks
• til års

 

• In many phrases, the noun ends in -e, which is either 1) an old genitive plural (Old Norse -a), 2) an old genitive singular in a different declension (Old Norse -ar), or 3) an old dative singular (Old Norse -i), analogically after other case relict phrases:

• til døde
• til fulde
• til grunde
• til hobe
• til huse
• til hånde
• til live
• til orde
• til rette
• til skamme
• til stede
• til syne
• til veje

 

Adverb

til

1. more, additional, another

   Giv mig en kage til.

   Give me another cake.

2. to, having as a destination

   Gå hen til huset.

   Go to the house.

3. such that something is caused to be in a fitting state
   • 2015, Christine Proksch, Turen Går Til Wien, Politikens Forlag, →ISBN:

     Kalkstenen smuldrer og skal erstattes, og uafbrudt skyder stilladser i vejret, så der kan slibes til og skiftes ud.

     The limestone crumbles and must be replaced, and scaffolds pop up unceasingly, so that grinding and replacing can take place.

   • 2008, Selvstyrende team - ledelse og organisation, Samfundslitteratur, →ISBN, page 35:

     Det betyder, at personligheden skal slibes til, sådan at den passer optimalt ind i den konkrete jobprofil, hvilket sker på bekostning af det personlige udtryk.

     This means that personality must be ground down, such that it fits optimally into the job profile in question, which happens at the cost of personal expression.

4. such that some pathway or cavity is blocked

   Kloakken er stoppet til.

   The sewer is blocked.

5. with force

   Tryk til!

   Push forcefully!

Conjunction

til

1. till, until

   Jeg venter til det bliver mørkt.

   I shall wait till it is dark.

References

• “til” in Den Danske Ordbog

Dutch

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /tɪl/

• Audio:

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɪl

Etymology 1

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Noun

til f (plural tillen, diminutive tilletje n)

1. dovecote

   Synonyms: duiventil, columbarium, duivenhuis

2. (dialectal) bridge (typically a small wooden bridge made of planks)
3. (dated) cage trap (for catching birds)

Etymology 2

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

Verb

til

1. inflection of tillen:
   1. first-person singular present indicative
   2. (in case of inversion) second-person singular present indicative
   3. imperative

Dutch Low Saxon

Noun

til

1. bridge

Faroese

Etymology

From Old Norse til, from Proto-Germanic *tila- (“goal”), from Proto-Indo-European *ád (“near, at”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /tʰiːl/
• Rhymes: -iːl

Preposition

til

1. (with accusative or with genitive) to, towards

Derived terms

• til-

Conjunction

til

1. until

Gothic

Romanization

til

1. Romanization of 𐍄𐌹𐌻

Icelandic

Etymology

From Old Norse til, from Proto-Germanic *tila- (“goal”), from Proto-Indo-European *ád (“near, at”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /tʰɪ(ː)l/
• Rhymes: -ɪːl

Preposition

til

1. (governs the genitive) to, towards

   Ég fer til Japans.

   I'm going to Japan.

   Ég er með bréf til þín.

   I have a letter [addressed] to you.

Derived terms

• allir vegir liggja til Rómar
• beina máli til
• beina skrifum til
• koma til dyranna eins og maður er klæddur
• óska til hamingju
• segja til
• segja til syndanna
• taka til
• til að mynda
• til baka
• til dæmis
• til hamingju
• til hamingju með daginn
• til hægri
• til vinstri
• til eða frá
• til vopna!

 

Ido

Etymology

From English till.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /til/

Preposition

til

1. until, till (refers to time)
2. to, up to, as far as (refers to space)

Derived terms

• til rivido! (“goodbye! (lit., until the re-seeing!”)

Interjection

til

1. Short for til rivido (“goodbye”).

Karakalpak

Etymology

From *til (“tongue; language”). Cognate with Turkish and Azerbaijani dil.

Noun

til

1. language

Khalaj

Perso-Arabic		تیل

Etymology

From Proto-Turkic *til (“language”).

Pronunciation

• (Mansûrâbâdî) IPA^(key): [tiˑl]
• (Talxâbî) IPA^(key): [til]
• (Xaltâbâdî) IPA^(key): [c̟ɪl]
• (Xarrâbî) IPA^(key): [tɪ(ˑ)l]

Noun

til (definite accusative tilü, plural tillər)

1. tongue
2. language

Declension

Declension of til

	singular	plural
nominative	til	tillər
genitive	tilü̂ñ	tillərü̂ñ
dative	tilkə	tillərkə
definite accusative	tilü	tillərü
locative	tilçə	tillərçə
ablative	tildə	tillərdə
instrumental	tillə	tillərlə
equative	tilvâra	tillərvâra

References

• Doerfer, Gerhard (1971) Khalaj Materials, Indiana University, →ISBN
• Doerfer, Gerhard (1980) Wörterbuch des Chaladsch (Dialekt von Charrab) [Khalaj dictionary] (in German), Budapest: Akadémiai Kiadó

Marshallese

Etymology

From Proto-Micronesian *sulu, from Proto-Oceanic *suluq, from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *suluq. Cognate with Cebuano sulo, Tagalog sulo, Malay suluh, Palauan tuich.

Pronunciation

• (phonetic) IPA^(key): [tˠilʲ]
• (phonemic) IPA^(key): /tˠilʲ/
• Bender phonemes: {til}

Noun

til

1. torch

References

• Marshallese–English Online Dictionary

Middle English

Alternative forms

• tylle

Etymology

From Old English til (“to, until”), possibly from Old Norse til, both from Proto-Germanic *tila- (“goal”), or Proto-Germanic *til (“to, towards”). Cognate with Old Norse til, Old Frisian til.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /til/

Conjunction

til

1. until, till
   • a. 1400, Geoffrey Chaucer, “The Man of Law's Tale”, in The Canterbury Tales, lines 788–791:

     […] And pleſed hym in al that ever ſhe myghte.
     He drank, and wel his girdel underpighte;
     He ſlepeth, and he fnorteth in his gyſe
     Al nyght, til the ſonne gan aryſe.

     […] and she pleased him with everything she possibly could.
     He drank, and his belt became stuffed well;
     he slept, and snorted like he usually did
     throughout the night, until the sun arose.

Descendants

• English: til, till
• Scots: til

References

• “til, conj.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007.

Preposition

til

1. until, till
   • a. 1382, John Wycliffe, “Ezechiel 1:27”, in Wycliffe's Bible:

     And Y ſiȝ as a licneſſe of electre, as the biholding of fier with ynne, bi the cumpas therof; fro the lendis of hym and aboue, and fro þe lendis of him til to bynethe, Y siȝ as the licneſſe of fier ſchynynge in cumpas, […]

     And I saw something like amber, which had something fire spread around within it. From above his torso and his torso up to the bottom (of him), I saw something like fire shining around him, […]

2. (with "to") as far as; down to; up to, until

   Synonym: vntil

   • a. 1382, John Wycliffe, “Ezechiel 40:14-15”, in Wycliffe's Bible:

     […] and bifore the face of the ȝate that laſtid til to the face of the porche of the ynner ȝate, he mad fifti cubitis.

     And from in front of the gate's front up to the porch of the inner gate, he measured fifty cubits.

Alternative forms

• tille, telle

Descendants

• English: til, till
• Scots: til
• Yola: del, dell, tell, 'tell, till

References

• “til, prep.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007.

Adverb

til

1. to

References

• “til, adv.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007.

Miraya Bikol

Noun

til

1. (anatomy) leg

Northern Kurdish

til

Noun

til f

1. finger (the extremity of the hand)

Norwegian Bokmål

Etymology

From Old Norse til, from Proto-Germanic *tila- (“goal”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /tɪl/
• Rhymes: -ɪl

Preposition

til

1. to (indicating range, direction or destination)

   fra mandag til fredag

   from Monday to Friday

   fra Oslo til Bergen

   from Oslo to Bergen

2. at or on (indicating position or location relative to another reference point)

   Det er til høyre.

   It's on the right.

3. for (used to indicate purpose or suitability)

   Har du nye klær til intervjuet?

   Do you have new clothes for the interview?

4. to (in idiomatic expressions)

   Lykke til!

   Good luck! (lit. "luck to [you]")

Adverb

til

1. another, more, in addition, further

   En kaffe til, takk.

   Another coffee, please.

   Bare tre til!

   Just three more!

Derived terms

• tilflukt
• tilgrensende
• tilkjennegi
• tilnavn
• tilrettelegge
• tilskudd
• tilstøtende

 

References

• “til” in The Bokmål Dictionary.

Norwegian Nynorsk

Alternative forms

• te (dialectal)
• t (SMS slang)

Etymology

From Old Norse til, from Proto-Germanic *tila- (“goal”), from Proto-Indo-European *ád (“near, at”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /tɪlː/

Preposition

til

1. to (indicating destination)

   Dei er på veg til fylkesgrensa.

   They are on their way to the county border.

2. for

   Denne presangen er til deg.

   This present is for you.

3. of (indicating possession)

   Han er faren til guten.

   He is the father of the boy.

4. until

   Me køyrde til me kom fram.

   We drove until we got there.

Adverb

til

1. another, one more

   Eg tek eit kakestykke til.

   I'll take another piece of cake.

Derived terms

• endåtil
• få til
• tilflukt
• tilfrosen

 

References

• “til” in The Nynorsk Dictionary.

Old English

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /til/

Etymology 1

From Proto-Germanic *tila-, whence also Old Frisian til, Old High German zil (German Ziel), Old Norse tilr, Gothic 𐍄𐌹𐌻 (til).

Adjective

til

1. good (morally good; competent; useful, etc.)

   Til sceal mid tilum.

   The good shall be with the good.

Declension

Declension of til — Strong

Singular	Masculine	Feminine	Neuter
Nominative	til	tilu, tilo	til
Accusative	tilne	tile	til
Genitive	tiles	tilre	tiles
Dative	tilum	tilre	tilum
Instrumental	tile	tilre	tile
Plural	Masculine	Feminine	Neuter
Nominative	tile	tila, tile	tilu, tilo
Accusative	tile	tila, tile	tilu, tilo
Genitive	tilra	tilra	tilra
Dative	tilum	tilum	tilum
Instrumental	tilum	tilum	tilum

Declension of til — Weak

Singular	Masculine	Feminine	Neuter
Nominative	tila	tile	tile
Accusative	tilan	tilan	tile
Genitive	tilan	tilan	tilan
Dative	tilan	tilan	tilan
Instrumental	tilan	tilan	tilan
Plural	Masculine	Feminine	Neuter
Nominative	tilan	tilan	tilan
Accusative	tilan	tilan	tilan
Genitive	tilra, tilena	tilra, tilena	tilra, tilena
Dative	tilum	tilum	tilum
Instrumental	tilum	tilum	tilum

Noun

til n (nominative plural tilas)

1. use, service, convenience

   Gewritu secgaþ ðæt seó wiht sý mid moncynne miclum ticlum sweotol and gesýne, sundorcræft hafaþ.

   Writings say that those beings were to mankind of great service; they clearly and obviously had special powers.

2. goodness, kindness

   Me on ðínum tile gelǽr ðæt ic teala cunne ðín sóðfæst weorc healdan.

   Thy goodness teaches me that I should maintain your righteous work.

Etymology 2

Possibly from Old Norse til though the OED has it as "Germanic" and related to Old Norse til and to Old Frisian til

Alternative forms

• ᛏᛁᛚ (til) — Ruthwell Cross

Preposition

til

1. to, until, unto

   Ðá cueð til him ðe Hǽlend

   Then Jesus said unto them,

   • c. 800, Ruthwell Cross:

     ᛣᚱᛁᛋᛏᚹᚫᛋᚩᚾᚱᚩᛞᛁᚻᚹᛖᚦᚱᚫᚦᛖᚱᚠᚢᛋᚫᚠᛠᚱᚱᚪᚾᛣᚹᚩᛗᚢᚫᚦᚦᛁᛚᚫᛏᛁᛚᚪᚾᚢᛗ

     Krist wæs on rōdi, hweþræ þēr fūsæ fearran kwōmu æþþilæ til ānum.

     Christ was on the cross, yet there in haste from afar came noble men unto him.

Descendants

• Middle English: til, tylle
  • English: til, till
  • Scots: til

Old Norse

Etymology

From Proto-Germanic *tilą (“goal”). Cognate with Old English til, Old Frisian til, German Ziel n (“goal”). The preposition has arisen from an adverbial use of the noun, lit. "(with) the goal of something"; this is also the reason it takes the genitive.

Preposition

til

1. (with genitive) to, towards
2. (rare, archaic) too

   mæla til mart

   speak too much

Descendants

• Icelandic: til
• Faroese: til
• Norwegian Bokmål: til
• Norwegian Nynorsk: til
• Runic Old East Norse: ᛏᛁᛚ (til)
  • Old Swedish: til, tel, te
    • Swedish: till
  • Old Danish: til
    • Danish: til

References

• Douglas Harper (2001–2024) “till”, in Online Etymology Dictionary.

• “til”, in Geir T. Zoëga (1910) A Concise Dictionary of Old Icelandic, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• “til” in: Richard Cleasby, Guðbrandur Vigfússon — An Icelandic-English Dictionary (1874)

Portuguese

Examples
não (“no”), cão (“dog”), chão (“floor”), pão (“bread”), mão (“hand”), perdão (“pardon”), limão (“lemon”), irmão (“brother”), irmã (“sister”), pinhão (“pine seed”), algodão (“cotton”), corações (“hearts”), manhã (“morning”), Guimarães, Camões

Etymology

From Old Occitan tille, from Latin titulus. Doublet of título.

Pronunciation

• (Brazil) IPA^(key): /ˈt͡ʃiw/ [ˈt͡ʃiʊ̯]

 

• (Portugal) IPA^(key): /ˈtil/ [ˈtiɫ]

• (Portugal) IPA^(key): /ˈtil/ [ˈtiɫ]
  • (Southern Portugal) IPA^(key): /ˈti.li/

• Homophone: tio (Brazil, ignoring syllable breaks)
• Rhymes: (Portugal) -il, (Brazil) -iw
• Hyphenation: til

Noun

til m (plural tis or tiles)

1. tilde, a diacritic (˜). Used in Portuguese to indicate a nasal vowel.
2. trifle (something of little importance or worth)

Swedish

Etymology

See till.

Preposition

til

1. Archaic form of till.
   • 1611, Johannes Messenius, Disa‎^[3], page 1:

     W Arer alle wälkomne til Vbsala by /
     Och så til thenna Comoedia ny /

     We are all welcome to Uppsala village /
     And so to this new comedy /

   • 1759–1780, Hans Gustaf Rålamb, En Swensk Adelsmans Äfwentyr (2001)‎^[4], page 90:

     Då jag war tolf år, fölgde jag min Farbror första gången til Sjöß på en expedition til America: […]

     When I was twelve years old, I accompanied my Uncle at Sea for the first time on an expedition to America: […]

Uzbek

Other scripts
Yangi Imlo
Cyrillic	тил‍
Latin	til‍
Perso-Arabic (Afghanistan)	تیل

Etymology

Inherited from Chagatai تیل (til /⁠til⁠/), from Proto-Turkic *til. Cognate with Uyghur تىل / til / тил; Turkish dil; etc.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /tɪl/, [t̪ʰɪ̈l]
• Hyphenation: til

Noun

til (plural tillar)

1. (anatomy) tongue
2. language, tongue

Declension

Declension of til

	singular	plural
nominative	til	tillar
genitive	tilning	tillarning
dative	tilga	tillarga
definite accusative	tilni	tillarni
locative	tilda	tillarda
ablative	tildan	tillardan
similative	tildek	tillardek

Possessive forms of til

my	singular	plural
nominative	tilim	tillarim
genitive	tilimning	tillarimning
dative	tilimga	tillarimga
definite accusative	tilimni	tillarimni
locative	tilimda	tillarimda
ablative	tilimdan	tillarimdan
similative	tilimdek	tillarimdek
your	singular	plural
nominative	tiling	tillaring
genitive	tilingning	tillaringning
dative	tilingga	tillaringga
definite accusative	tilingni	tillaringni
locative	tilingda	tillaringda
ablative	tilingdan	tillaringdan
similative	tilingdek	tillaringdek
her/his/its	singular	plural
nominative	tili	tillari
genitive	tilining	tillarining
dative	tiliga	tillariga
definite accusative	tilini	tillarini
locative	tilida	tillarida
ablative	tilidan	tillaridan
similative	tilidek	tillaridek
our	singular	plural
nominative	tilimiz	tillarimiz
genitive	tilimizning	tillarimizning
dative	tilimizga	tillarimizga
definite accusative	tilimizni	tillarimizni
locative	tilimizda	tillarimizda
ablative	tilimizdan	tillarimizdan
similative	tilimizdek	tillarimizdek
your	singular	plural
nominative	tilingiz	tillaringiz
genitive	tilingizning	tillaringizning
dative	tilingizga	tillaringizga
definite accusative	tilingizni	tillaringizni
locative	tilingizda	tillaringizda
ablative	tilingizdan	tillaringizdan
similative	tilingizdek	tillaringizdek
their	singular	plural
nominative	tili	tillari
genitive	tilining	tillarining
dative	tiliga	tillariga
definite accusative	tilini	tillarini
locative	tilida	tillarida
ablative	tilidan	tillaridan	similative	tilidek	tillaridek

Derived terms

• tilsiz
• tilshunoslik

 

West Albay Bikol

Noun

til

1. (anatomy) leg