k

See also:Appendix:Variations of "k"

k	U+006B,k LATIN SMALL LETTER K

←j
[U+006A]

Basic Latin

l →
[U+006C]

Character variations

ᵏ	U+1D4F,ᵏ MODIFIER LETTER SMALL K

←ᵎ
[U+1D4E]

Phonetic Extensions

ᵐ →
[U+1D50]

ｋ	U+FF4B,ｋ FULLWIDTH LATIN SMALL LETTER K

←ｊ
[U+FF4A]

Halfwidth and Fullwidth Forms

ｌ →
[U+FF4C]

Languages (58)

Translingual • English

Afar • Ainu • Azerbaijani • Basque • Catalan • Chinese • Chipewyan • Czech • Dutch • Esperanto • Estonian • Faroese • Finnish • French • Fula • Gothic • Hawaiian • Heiltsuk • Hungarian • Icelandic • Ido • Indonesian • Italian • Kankanaey • Kashubian • Kiowa • Latin • Latvian • Livonian • Lower Sorbian • Lushootseed • Malay • Maltese • Navajo • North Frisian • Norwegian • Nupe • Old Polish • Polish • Portuguese • Romani • Romanian • Serbo-Croatian • Silesian • Skolt Sami • Slovak • Spanish • Swedish • Tagalog • Tlingit • Turkish • Turkmen • Vietnamese • Yele • Yoruba • Zulu

Page categories

Translingual

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EnglishWikipedia has an article on:

Wikipedia

Letter

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k (upper caseK)

The eleventh letter of thebasic modern Latin alphabet.

Pronunciation

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Pronunciation of IPA[kɑː, ɑkkɑː] with the sound[k]: (file)

Symbol

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EnglishWikipedia has an article on:

Voiceless velar plosive

Wikipedia

(IPA) Avoiceless velar plosive.
(geology) Thepermeability of amaterial forfluids.
(physics) Thespring constant of anelastic material.
(thermodynamics) Theheat capacity ratio.
Synonym:γ
(Cyrillic,phonetics) Avoiceless uvular plosive, equivalent to IPA⟨q⟩.

Noun

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(numbers)Abbreviation ofthousand.(1000)(taken from the SI-prefixk- forkilo- meaning 1000's multiplier)
(finance)€500k = 500,000 Euros

Gallery

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Letter styles
Uppercase and lowercase versions ofK, in normal and italic type
Uppercase and lowercaseK inFraktur

English

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Etymology 1

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Pronunciation

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(letter name):IPA^(key):/keɪ/
- Audio(US): (file)
- Audio(UK): (file)
- Rhymes:-eɪ
(phoneme):IPA^(key):/k/

Letter

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k (lower case,upper caseK,pluralksork's)

The eleventhletter of the Englishalphabet, calledkay and written in theLatin script.
The first letter ofcallsigns allocated to American broadcast television and radio stations west of the Mississippi river.

Number

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k (lower case,upper caseK)

Theordinal numbereleventh, derived from thisletter of the Englishalphabet, calledkay and written in theLatin script.

Etymology 2

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Fromkilo-.

Noun

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k (pluralksork's)

(computing) Akilobyte (more formallyKB orkB).
(computing) Akilobit (more formallykb), especially in measuringInternet connection.
(colloquial)kilometre orkilometres.
We drove 15ks before we realised Billy wasn't in the back seat.
(colloquial)thousand orthousands.
Just about 65k of Jack's full salary comes from servicing the Baker account.
TheSI measurement value of 1,000

"k" usually impliesapathy oranger towards the statement it is responding to,^[1] in a lessemphatic way than "K".

Derived terms

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References

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^“Youthsplaining: You’ve Been Texting the Word “Okay” Wrong”, inInside Hook, 2019 July 19

Etymology 4

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Abbreviations.

(Stenoscript)Abbreviation ofcan.
(Stenoscript)Abbreviation ofcomeand inflectionscoming,came.
(Stenoscript) the prefixcon- orcom-.

Usage notes

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Phonetically, /k/ is always ⟨k⟩. ⟨c⟩ is used for /tʃ/.

Afar

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Letter

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The seventhletter of the Afaralphabet, written in theLatin script.

Ainu

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Etymology

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Contraction ofku.

Pronunciation

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IPA^(key):[k]

Pronoun

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k= (Kana spellingㇰ)

(Saru, before vowels)I(first-person singular subject pronoun)

Usage notes

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Used before verbs and adjectives to express the first person. When isolated,kuani is used. They can also be used together, thus:

Kuani k=arpa wa ku=ye. ― I will go and tell him.

Ainu personal pronouns
person	isolated form	affix form
nominative	objective
first	singular	kuani,kani¹	ku=,k=¹(before vowels)	en=
exclusive plural	ciokay,coka¹,ciutari	ci=,c=¹=as	un=
inclusive plural	anokay,aoka¹,anutari	a=,=an	i=
second	singular	eani	e=
plural	eciokay,ecioka¹,eciutari	eci=
singular (polite)	anokay,aoka¹	a=,=an	i=
plural (polite)	anokay,aoka¹,anutari
third	singular	sinuma,anihi	∅=
plural	okay,oka¹
indefinite	singular	asinuma	a=,=an	i=
plural	anokay,aoka¹,anutari

Azerbaijani

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Pronunciation

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(phoneme)IPA^(key):/c/,/ç/,/k/

Letter

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klower case (upper caseK)

The sixteenthletter of the Azerbaijanialphabet, written in theLatin script.

Basque

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Pronunciation

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IPA^(key):/ka/,[ka]

Letter

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k (lower case,upper caseK)

The eleventhletter of the Basquealphabet, calledka and written in theLatin script.

Catalan

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Pronunciation

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IPA^(key):(Central,Balearic,Valencia)[ˈka]

Letter

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k (lower case,upper caseK)

The eleventhletter of the Catalanalphabet, calledca and written in theLatin script.

Chinese

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For pronunciation and definitions ofk – seeK (“karaoke; etc.”).
(This character is a variant form ofK).

Chipewyan

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Pronunciation

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IPA^(key):/kʰ/

Letter

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k (upper caseK)

Aletter of the Chipewyanalphabet, written in theLatin script.

Czech

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Etymology

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Inherited fromOld Czechk, fromProto-Slavic*kъ(n).

Pronunciation

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(before a vowel or a voiceless consonant)IPA^(key):[k]
(before a voiced consonant)IPA^(key):[ɡ]
Audio: (file)

Preposition

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k [withdative]

to,toward,towards (movement towards a person)
Šel jsem sikbratrovi pro půjčku. ―I wentto my brother for a loan.
Měla bysjítklékařovi. ―You should goto a doctor.
to (in the direction of rather than a destination)
V jednéchvíli jsem si uvědomila, že jdusměremk domu. ―At some point, i found myself walkingtowards the house.
to,up to
takže jsem vstala a šlak oknu. ―So I got up and I wentto the window.
Od nevyššíchknejnižším. ―From the highestto the lowest.
for,to (purpose)
Co si dášk obědu? ―What will you havefor lunch?
něcok jídlu. ―Somethingto eat.
všechno zlé je k něčemu dobré. ―Everything bad is goodfor something.

Usage notes

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This preposition is followed by thedative case.

Synonyms

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Dutch

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Etymology 1

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Pronunciation

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Rhymes:-aː
(letter name):IPA^(key):/kaː/

Letter

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k (lower case,upper caseK)

The eleventhletter of the Dutchalphabet, written in theLatin script.

Etymology 2

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Pronoun

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(text messaging)Nonstandard form of'k.

Esperanto

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Pronunciation

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(phoneme):IPA^(key):/k/; before a voicedobstruent,IPA^(key):/ɡ/
Audio: (file)

Letter

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k (lower case,upper caseK)

The fifteenthletter of the Esperantoalphabet, calledko and written in theLatin script.

Conjunction

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Abbreviation ofkaj(“and”).
- 1938, Alardo Prats, translated by Pario,Fronto k Postfronto de Aragonio, page24:
  Io mortis en Hispaniok io egak brilega naskiĝis.
  (pleaseadd an English translation of this quotation)
- 1948,Gaston Waringhien,Leteroj de L.-L. Zamenhof: La Tragedio de Lia Vivo Rivelita de Lia Ĵus Retrovita Korespondo kun la Francaj Eminentuloj, Edlonis S.A.T.,→OCLC, page 9:
  Cetere li bone konsciis sian valoron, tiris el ĝi orgojlon, kompleze flegadis sian « mi »,k rapide senpacienciĝis, se li renkontis kontraŭulon, kiu rifuzis lasi sin persvadi de liaj rezonoj.
  (pleaseadd an English translation of this quotation)
- 2003 January 13, Sebastian Hartwig, “Re: 'Ghisdate pri Esperanto' hodiau en la boksmala”, insoc.culture.esperanto‎^[1] (Usenet), retrieved2017-05-17:
  SAS estas ja nur aerkompanio de tiuj tri landoj. (Feroojk Gr(o)enlando apartenas al Danio, Islando havas propran kompanion Loftleidir (krom pli nova Viking Air).)
  SAS is really just an airline of those three countries. (the Faroe Islandsand Greenland belong to Denmark, Iceland has its own company Loftleidir (besides a newer Viking Air).)

Synonyms

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&
(text messaging)K

Estonian

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EstonianWikipedia has an article on:

Wikipedia^et

Pronunciation

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IPA^(key):/ˈkɑː/

Letter

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k (lower case,upper caseK)

The eleventhletter of the Estonianalphabet, calledkaa and written in theLatin script.

Faroese

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Pronunciation

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IPA^(key):/kʰ/

Letter

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k (upper caseK)

The thirteenthletter of the Faroesealphabet, written in theLatin script.

Finnish

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Etymology

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The Finnish orthography using the Latin script was based on those of Swedish, German and Latin, and was first used in the mid-16th century. No earlier script is known. Seethe Wikipedia article on Finnish for more information, andk for information on the development of the glyph itself.

Pronunciation

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Audio;“koo,kukka,osake,koo”: (file)

Letter

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k (lower case,upper caseK)

The eleventhletter of the Finnishalphabet, calledkoo and written in theLatin script.

Noun

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(housing)Abbreviation ofkeittiö(“kitchen”).

French

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Pronunciation

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IPA^(key):/ka/

Letter

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k (lower case,upper caseK)

The eleventhletter of the Frenchalphabet, written in theLatin script.

Fula

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Pronunciation

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IPA^(key):/k/

Letter

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k (lower case,upper caseK)

Aletter of the Fulaalphabet, written in theLatin script.

Usage notes

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Common to all varieties ofFula (Fulfulde /Pulaar /Pular).

Gothic

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Romanization

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Romanization of𐌺

Hawaiian

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Alternative forms

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(letter name)kē

Pronunciation

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(letter name)IPA^(key):/ˈkeː/
(phoneme) [k ~ t]

Letter

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The seventhletter of the Hawaiianalphabet, written in theLatin script.

Heiltsuk

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Pronunciation

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IPA^(key):/cʰ/ ([cᶜ̧])

Letter

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k (upper caseK)

Aletter of the Heiltsukalphabet, written in theLatin script.

Hungarian

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Pronunciation

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(phoneme):IPA^(key):[ˈk]
(letter name):IPA^(key):[ˈkaː]

Letter

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k (lower case,upper caseK)

The eighteenthletter of the Hungarianalphabet, calledká and written in theLatin script.

Declension

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Inflection (stem in long/high vowel, back harmony)
	singular	plural
nominative	k	k-k
accusative	k-t	k-kat
dative	k-nak	k-knak
instrumental	k-val	k-kkal
causal-final	k-ért	k-kért
translative	k-vá	k-kká
terminative	k-ig	k-kig
essive-formal	k-ként	k-kként
essive-modal	—	—
inessive	k-ban	k-kban
superessive	k-n	k-kon
adessive	k-nál	k-knál
illative	k-ba	k-kba
sublative	k-ra	k-kra
allative	k-hoz	k-khoz
elative	k-ból	k-kból
delative	k-ról	k-król
ablative	k-tól	k-któl
non-attributive possessive – singular	k-é	k-ké
non-attributive possessive – plural	k-éi	k-kéi

Possessive forms ofk
possessor	single possession	multiple possessions
1st person sing.	k-m	k-im
2nd person sing.	k-d	k-id
3rd person sing.	k-ja	k-i
1st person plural	k-nk	k-ink
2nd person plural	k-tok	k-itok
3rd person plural	k-juk	k-ik

Icelandic

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Letter

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k (upper caseK)

The fourteenthletter of the Icelandicalphabet, written in theLatin script.

Ido

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Pronunciation

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(context pronunciation)IPA^(key):/k/
(letter name)IPA^(key):/ke/

Letter

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k (upper caseK)

The eleventhletter of the Idoalphabet, written in theLatin script.

Indonesian

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Pronunciation

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(letter name):IPA^(key):/ka/
(phoneme):IPA^(key):/k/

Letter

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k (lower case,upper caseK)

The eleventhletter of the Indonesianalphabet, written in theLatin script.

Italian

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Letter

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k f or m (invariable,lower case,upper caseK)

the eleventh letter of theLatin alphabet, calledcappa orkappa in Italian

Usage notes

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The letterK is not considered part of the contemporary Italian alphabet. See underK.

Kankanaey

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Etymology

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Borrowed fromTagalogk. Letter pronunciation is influenced byEnglishk.

Pronunciation

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(letter name)IPA^(key):/kej/[k̠ei̯]
- Rhymes:-ej
(phoneme)IPA^(key):/k/[k̠̚]

Letter

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k (lower case,upper caseK)

The eleventhletter of the Kankanaeyalphabet, calledkey and written in theLatin script.

References

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Komisyon ng Wikang Filipino (2016)Ortograpiya di Kankanaëy [Kankanaey Orthography]‎^[2] (in Kankanaey and Tagalog),→ISBN, pages10-11

Kashubian

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Etymology

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The Kashubian orthography is based on the Latin alphabet. No earlier script is known. See theKashubian alphabet article on Wikipedia for more, andk for development of the glyph itself.

Letter

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k (lower case,upper caseK)

The fifteenthletter of the Kashubianalphabet, written in theLatin script.

Kiowa

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Pronunciation

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IPA^(key):/kʰ/

Letter

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k (upper caseK)

A letter of theKiowa alphabet.

Latin

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Letter

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The tenthletter of the Latinalphabet, written in theLatin script.

Latvian

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LatvianWikipedia has an article on:

Wikipedia^lv

Etymology

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Proposed in 1908 as part of the new Latvian spelling by the scientific commission headed byK. Mīlenbahs, which was accepted and began to be taught in schools in 1909. Prior to that, Latvian had been written in GermanFraktur, and sporadically inCyrillic.

Pronunciation

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IPA^(key):[k]
Audio: (file)

Letter

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k (lower case,upper caseK)

The sixteenthletter of the Latvianalphabet, calledkā and written in theLatin script.

Livonian

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Pronunciation

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(phoneme)IPA^(key):/k/

Letter

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k (upper caseK)

The sixteenthletter of the Livonianalphabet, written in theLatin script.

Lower Sorbian

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Pronunciation

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IPA^(key):/k/

Etymology 1

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Letter

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k (upper caseK)

The fifteenthletter of the Lower Sorbianalphabet, calledka and written in theLatin script.

Etymology 2

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FromProto-Slavic*kъ(n).

Alternative forms

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ku(beforech,g, andk)

Preposition

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k (with dative)

Lushootseed

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Pronunciation

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(phoneme)IPA^(key):/k/

Letter

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The seventeenthletter of theLushootseed alphabet, pronounced as a voiceless velar stop.

Malay

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Letter

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k (lower case,upper caseK)

The eleventhletter of the Malayalphabet, written in theLatin script.

Maltese

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Pronunciation

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IPA^(key):/k/
IPA^(key):/ɡ/(per assimilation to a following voiced obstruent)

Letter

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k (lower case,upper caseK)

The fifteenthletter of the Maltesealphabet, written in theLatin script.

Navajo

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Letter

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k (upper caseK)

Aletter of the Navajoalphabet, written in theLatin script.

North Frisian

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Pronunciation

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IPA^(key):[kʰ~k](generally)
IPA^(key):[ɡ̊](Sylt, when intervocalic in an unstressed syllable)

Letter

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k (lower case,upper caseK)

Aletter of the North Frisianalphabet, written in theLatin script.

Norwegian

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Pronunciation

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(letter name):IPA^(key):/kɔː/
(phoneme):IPA^(key):/k/,/ç/
Audio: (file)

Letter

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The eleventhletter of the Norwegianalphabet, written in theLatin script.

Usage notes

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When written before j, k and j merge intovoiceless palatal fricative, the ch sound in Germanich.

Nupe

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Pronunciation

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(phoneme):IPA^(key):/k/

Letter

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k (lower case,upper caseK)

The thirteenthletter of the Nupealphabet, written in theLatin script.

Old Polish

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Pronunciation

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IPA^(key):(10^th–15^th CE)/k/
IPA^(key):(15^th CE)/k/

Preposition

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k[withdative]

Alternative form ofku

References

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B. Sieradzka-Baziur, Ewa Deptuchowa, Joanna Duska, Mariusz Frodyma, Beata Hejmo, Dorota Janeczko, Katarzyna Jasińska, Krystyna Kajtoch, Joanna Kozioł, Marian Kucała, Dorota Mika, Gabriela Niemiec, Urszula Poprawska, Elżbieta Supranowicz, Ludwika Szelachowska-Winiarzowa, Zofia Wanicowa, Piotr Szpor, Bartłomiej Borek, editors (2011–2015), “k”, inSłownik pojęciowy języka staropolskiego [Conceptual Dictionary of Old Polish] (in Polish), Kraków:IJP PAN,→ISBN

Polish

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Etymology 1

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The Polish orthography is based on the Latin alphabet. No earlier script is known. See thehistory of Polish orthography article on Wikipedia for more, andk for development of the glyph itself.

Pronunciation

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IPA^(key):/ˈka/

Letter

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k (upper caseK,lower case)

The fourteenthletter of the Polishalphabet, calledka and written in theLatin script.

Etymology 2

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(Thisetymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at theEtymology scriptorium.)

Pronunciation

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IPA^(key):/k/

Preposition

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k[withdative]

Middle Polish form ofku

Portuguese

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Letter

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k (lower case,upper caseK)

The eleventhletter of the Portuguesealphabet, written in theLatin script.

Romani

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Pronunciation

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IPA^(key):/k/

Letter

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k (lower case,upper caseK)

(International Standard)The fourteenthletter of the Romanialphabet, written in theLatin script.
(Pan-Vlax)The fifteenthletter of the Romanialphabet, written in theLatin script.

Romanian

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Pronunciation

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IPA^(key):/k/

Letter

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k (lower case,upper caseK)

The fourteenthletter of the Romanianalphabet, calledca orcapa and written in theLatin script.

Usage notes

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Used only in loanwords and some proper nouns.

Serbo-Croatian

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Etymology 1

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SeeTranslingual section.

Alternative forms

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K(uppercase)

Pronunciation

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(phoneme)IPA^(key):/k/

Letter

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k (Cyrillic spellingк)

The 15th letter of the Serbo-Croatian Latin alphabet (gajica), preceded byj and followed byl.

Etymology 2

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Inherited fromProto-Slavic*kъ(n), fromProto-Indo-European*kom.

Alternative forms

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ka(see usage notes)

Preposition

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k (Cyrillic spellingк)(+dative case)

Usage notes

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Although bothk andka can be used synonymously,k must take the alternative formka in the following environment:

before /k, g, h/:
ka kući ―to/towards home
ka gradu ―to/towards the city
ka hladu ―to/towards the shade
before consonant clusters with emphasis on /k, g, h/:
ka školi ―to/towards school
ka zgradi ―to/towards the building
ka hladu ―to/towards the shade

Synonyms

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ka (see usage notes)

Silesian

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Etymology

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The Silesian orthography is based on the Latin alphabet. No earlier script is known. See theSilesian language article on Wikipedia for more, andk for development of the glyph itself.

Letter

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k (lower case,upper caseK)

The thirteenthletter of the Silesianalphabet, written in theLatin script.

Skolt Sami

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Pronunciation

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(phoneme)IPA^(key):/k/

Letter

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k (upper caseK)

The eighteenthletter of the Skolt Samialphabet, written in theLatin script.

Slovak

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Alternative forms

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Etymology

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Inherited fromProto-Slavic*kъ(n).

Pronunciation

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IPA^(key):[k]

Preposition

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This term needs a translation to English. Please help out andadd a translation, then remove the text{{rfdef}}.

Spanish

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Etymology 1

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Pronunciation

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IPA^(key):(phoneme)/k/
IPA^(key):(letter name)/ˈka/[ˈka]
- Audio: (file)
- Rhymes:-a

Letter

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k (lower case,upper caseK)

The eleventhletter of the Spanishalphabet, written in theLatin script.

Notes

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Although K is part of the Spanish Alphabet, it is only found in loanwords.

Etymology 2

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Pronunciation

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IPA^(key):/ˈke/[ˈke]
Rhymes:-e

Conjunction

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(slang)Abbreviation ofque.

Pronoun

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(slang)Abbreviation ofque.

Etymology 3

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Pronunciation

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IPA^(key):/ˈka/[ˈka]
Rhymes:-a

Adjective

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(Argentina)Alternativeletter-case form ofK:kirchnerista
Antonyms:anti-K,antikirchnerista

Swedish

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Pronunciation

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Letter name

IPA^(key):/koː/

Phoneme

IPA^(key):/k/,/ɕ/

Letter

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k (lower case,upper caseK)

The eleventhletter of the Swedishalphabet, calledkå and written in theLatin script. Pronounced/k/ in front ofa,o,u andå and/ɕ/ in front ofe,i,y,ä andö (some loan words might ignore this rule).

Tagalog

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Etymology 1

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Borrowed fromSpanishk. Each pronunciation has a different source:

Filipino alphabet pronunciation is influenced byEnglishk.
Abakada alphabet pronunciation is influenced by Baybayin characterᜃ(ka).
Abecedario pronunciation is fromSpanishk.

The use of⟨k⟩ instead of using the Spanish-based⟨c⟩ and⟨q⟩ was promoted in the late 19th century primarily by the educated (such asJosé Rizal andTrinidad Pardo de Tavera) because of the Baybayin character primarily being applicable to all vowels, as well as the ease of usage with Tagalog grammar rules. Its order in the Abakada alphabet was due to the order of the similar sounding⟨c⟩ in the Spanish alphabet.

Pronunciation

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(Standard Tagalog)
- IPA^(key):/ˈkej/[ˈkeɪ̯](letter name, Filipino alphabet)
  - Rhymes:-ej
- IPA^(key):/ˈka/[ˈka](letter name, Abakada alphabet, Abecedario)
  - Rhymes:-a
- IPA^(key):/k/[k](phoneme)
- IPA^(key):/k/[x](phoneme, intervocalic)