# کم
## Persian
### Etymology 1

From Middle Persian 𐭪𐭬 (km /⁠kam⁠/, “little, small”), from Proto-Iranian *kam(b)-na- (“small”), from Proto-Iranian *kamb- (“small”), from Proto-Indo-Iranian *kambʰ (“few, small, insignificant”), probably related to Proto-Indo-European *ken- (“to arise, begin; new, fresh”).

#### Pronunciation

* (Classical Persian) IPA: [kam]
* (Dari, formal) IPA: [kʰäm]
* (Dari, formal) IPA: [kʰäm]
** (Kabuli) IPA: [kʰäm]
** (Hazaragi) IPA: [kʰäm]
* (Iran, formal) IPA: [kʰʲæm]
* (Tajik, formal) IPA: [kʰäm]

#### Adjective

کم • (kam) (comparative کم‌تَر (kam-tar), superlative کم‌تَرین (kam-tarin))
| Dari | کم |
| Iranian Persian | کم |
| Tajik | кам |
* few, little
    Synonyms: خجاره (xojâre), اندک (andak)
    Antonyms: زیاد (ziyâd), خیلی (xeyli)
* scarce, rare, lacking

##### Usage notes

Unlike most comparatives and superlatives, کم‌تر (kam-tar), and کم‌ترین (kam-tarin) are frequently written joined, as کمتر (kamtar) and کمترین (kamtarin)

##### Derived terms

(compound verbs)
* کم آمدن (kam âmadan, “to run short, to become lacking”)
* کم دادن (kam dâdan, “to shortchange”)
* کم شدن (kam šodan, “to be diminished, to be reduced”)
* کم کردن (kam kardan, “to reduce, to lessen”)
* کم گرفتن (kam gereftan, “to slight, to look down on”)
(others)
* کمرنگ (kamrang)
* کم‌بخت (kam-baxt)
* کم‌حرف (kam-harf)
* کم‌خوابی (kam-xâbi)
* کم‌خونی (kam-xuni)
* کم‌کم (kam-kam)

##### Descendants

* Indic:
** Assamese: কম (kom)
** Bengali: কম (kom)
** Baluchi: کم
** → Hindustani:
    Hindi: कम (kam), कम- (kam-)
    Urdu: کم (kam)
** Kashmiri: کم (km)
** Marathi: कमी (kamī)
** Nepali: कम (kam)
** Odia: କମ (kama)
** → Punjabi:
    Gurmukhi script: ਕਮ (kam)
    Shahmukhi script: کم (kam)
** Santali: ᱠᱚᱢ (kôm)
** → Tamil: கம்மி (kammi)
* → Azerbaijani: kəm
* → Bashkir: кәм (kəm, “insufficient, scarce; inferior”)
** → Phalura: kam
* → Kazakh: кем (kem)
* → Tatar: ким (kim)
* → Uzbek: kam
* → Yagnobi: кам (kam)

### Etymology 2
#### Noun

کم • (kom)
* (dialectal, Khesht, Konartakhteh, Dashtestan) Alternative form of شکم (šekam, “belly; abdomen; tummy; stomach”)

##### Derived terms

* کم‌گنده (kom-gonde, “potbellied”)

### Etymology 3
#### Pronoun

کم • (kam)
* (dialectal, Khesht, Konartakhteh) Alternative form of کدام (kodâm, “which”)

### References

* ↑ Nourai, Ali (2011) “Kamma, Quômn, Sqombh-no”, in An Etymological Dictionary of Persian, English and other Indo-European Languages, page 208
* ↑ Edelʹman, D. I. (2011) “*kamb- : kab-, *kambna- : kabna-”, in Etimologičeskij slovarʹ iranskix jazykov [Etymological Dictionary of Iranian Languages] (in Russian), volume 4, Moscow: Vostochnaya Literatura, page 193

## Punjabi
### Etymology

Inherited from Prakrit 𑀓𑀫𑁆𑀫 (kamma), from Sanskrit कर्म (karma).

### Pronunciation

* IPA: /kəmːᵊ/

### Noun

کَمّ • (kamm) m (Gurmukhi spelling ਕੰਮ)
* work, job, task

### Further reading

* “کم”, in Punjabi-English Dictionary, Patiala: Punjabi University, 2025

## Southwestern Fars
### Noun

کم (kom)
* (Masarm, Deh Sarv, Kuzarg) belly
* (Masarm, Deh Sarv, Kuzarg) abdomen
* (Masarm, Deh Sarv, Kuzarg) tummy
* (Masarm, Deh Sarv, Kuzarg) stomach

## Urdu
### Etymology

Borrowed from Classical Persian کم (kam, “little, few”).

### Pronunciation

* (Standard Urdu) IPA: /kəm/
* Audio:(file)

### Adjective

کَم • (kam) (indeclinable, comparative کَمْتَر (kamtar), superlative کَمتَرِین (kamtarīn), Hindi spelling कम)
* less (in lower degree; to smaller extent)
    Antonyms: زیادَہ (zyāda), بَہُت (bahut)
* little (not much)
    Synonym: تھوڑا (thoṛā)
    Antonyms: زیادَہ (zyāda), بَہُت (bahut)

#### Derived terms

* کَم اَز کَم (kam az kam)

### Adverb

کَم • (kam) (Hindi spelling कम)
* less (in lower degree; to smaller extent)
    Antonyms: زیادَہ (zyāda), بَہُت (bahut)
* little (not much)
    Synonym: تھوڑا (thoṛā)
    Antonyms: زیادَہ (zyāda), بَہُت (bahut)

### Determiner

کَم • (kam) (Hindi spelling कम)
* few
    Antonym: بَہُت (bahut)