# chai
## English
### Etymology 1

Borrowed from Romani ćhaj (“Romani girl, daughter”).

#### Noun

chai (plural chais)
* A female gypsy.
    Coordinate term: chal

##### Alternative forms

* chie (obsolete)

### Etymology 2

From Hindustani चाय / چائے (cāy, “tea”), from Classical Persian چَای (čāy) (and Turkish çay, and cognates) from Sinitic 茶 (chá). Doublet of tea; see that page for extended history.

#### Pronunciation

* enPR: chī, IPA: /t͡ʃaɪ/
* Audio (US):(file)
* Homophone: Chi (Chichester)
* Rhymes: -aɪ

#### Noun

chai (usually uncountable, plural chais)
* Ellipsis of masala chai, a beverage made with black teas, steamed milk and sweet spices, based loosely on Indian recipes.
** 2023, Santanu Bhattacharya, One Small Voice, Fig Tree, page 350:‘So much for making chai,ʼ she teases, but lets him do the rest of the work. He adds the tea leaves to the boiling milk, then strains the liquid into cups.

##### Synonyms

* chai latte, chai tea, masala chai

##### Derived terms

* chaiwallah
* dirty chai

##### Related terms

* cha
* chai latte
* masala chai

##### Translations
### Etymology 3

Borrowed from Hebrew חַי (kháy, “alive”).

#### Pronunciation

* IPA: [χai̯]

#### Noun

chai
* (Judaism) A Jewish symbol representing life, traditionally worn as an amulet.
** 1995 May 21, Steven Levy, “The Unabomber and David Gelernter”, in The New York Times‎, →ISSN:Nothing hangs on the walls, though a stained-glass Hebrew chai leans against the window.
** 2011 February 18, Mark Marino, “Kosher beef between two rappers”, in CNN‎, archived from the original on 1 February 2023:Today, he [Drake] wears a diamond-studded Chai, a symbol of the Jewish word for life, and has his mother pressuring him to marry "a nice Jewish girl," according to Heeb magazine.

##### Alternative forms

* Chai, Hai, hai

### Etymology 4

Borrowed from French chai, from Occitan.

#### Pronunciation

* IPA: /ʃɛ/

#### Noun

chai (plural chais)
* (winemaking) A place above ground for storing wine casks.
** 2004, Clive Coates, The Wines of Bordeaux, University of California Press, →ISBN, page 302:The Kanon era lasted a mere 10 years, yet he had the château constructed, invested substantially in the vineyard and chais, and established the wine as one of the leading labels in the area.

### References

* ↑ “chai”, in Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster, 1996–present.
* ↑ “chai”, in Dictionary.com Unabridged, Dictionary.com, LLC, 1995–present.

### Further reading

* chai on Wikipedia.Wikipedia
* chai (symbol) on Wikipedia.Wikipedia

### See also

* chai poh

### Anagrams

* achi, Achi, Chia, AHCI, chia

## Caló
### Etymology

Inherited from Romani ćhaj.

### Noun

chai f (plural chais)
* girl
* (antiphrastic) harlot, prostitute

### References

* “chai” in J. Tineo Rebolledo, A Chipicalli (La Llengua Gitana), Granada: Gómez de la Cruz, 1900, →OCLC, page 32.
* “chai” in Francisco Quindalé, Diccionario gitano, Madrid: Oficina Tipográfica del Hospicio.
* “chai” in Vocabulario : Caló - Español, Portal del Flamenco y Universidad.

## Finnish
### Pronunciation

* IPA: /ˈtsɑi̯/, [ˈts̠ɑ̝i̯]
* Rhymes: -ɑi
* Hyphenation: chai

### Noun

chai (colloquial)
* (jargon) Clipping of chai latte (“chai latte”).

#### Declension

Possessive forms of chai (Kotus type 18/maa, no gradation) :
first-person singular possessor
singular
plural
nominative
chaini
chaini
accusative
nom.
chaini
chaini
gen.
chaini
genitive
chaini
chaideni chaitteni
partitive
chaitani
chaitani
inessive
chaissani
chaissani
elative
chaistani
chaistani
illative
chaihini
chaihini
adessive
chaillani
chaillani
ablative
chailtani
chailtani
allative
chailleni
chailleni
essive
chainani
chainani
translative
chaikseni
chaikseni
abessive
chaittani
chaittani
instructive
comitative
—chaineni
second-person singular possessor
singular
plural
nominative
chaisi
chaisi
accusative
nom.
chaisi
chaisi
gen.
chaisi
genitive
chaisi
chaidesi chaittesi
partitive
chaitasi
chaitasi
inessive
chaissasi
chaissasi
elative
chaistasi
chaistasi
illative
chaihisi
chaihisi
adessive
chaillasi
chaillasi
ablative
chailtasi
chailtasi
allative
chaillesi
chaillesi
essive
chainasi
chainasi
translative
chaiksesi
chaiksesi
abessive
chaittasi
chaittasi
instructive
comitative
—chainesi
first-person plural possessor
singular
plural
nominative
chaimme
chaimme
accusative
nom.
chaimme
chaimme
gen.
chaimme
genitive
chaimme
chaidemme chaittemme
partitive
chaitamme
chaitamme
inessive
chaissamme
chaissamme
elative
chaistamme
chaistamme
illative
chaihimme
chaihimme
adessive
chaillamme
chaillamme
ablative
chailtamme
chailtamme
allative
chaillemme
chaillemme
essive
chainamme
chainamme
translative
chaiksemme
chaiksemme
abessive
chaittamme
chaittamme
instructive
comitative
—chainemme
second-person plural possessor
singular
plural
nominative
chainne
chainne
accusative
nom.
chainne
chainne
gen.
chainne
genitive
chainne
chaidenne chaittenne
partitive
chaitanne
chaitanne
inessive
chaissanne
chaissanne
elative
chaistanne
chaistanne
illative
chaihinne
chaihinne
adessive
chaillanne
chaillanne
ablative
chailtanne
chailtanne
allative
chaillenne
chaillenne
essive
chainanne
chainanne
translative
chaiksenne
chaiksenne
abessive
chaittanne
chaittanne
instructive
comitative
—chainenne
third-person possessor
singular
plural
nominative
chainsa
chainsa
accusative
nom.
chainsa
chainsa
gen.
chainsa
genitive
chainsa
chaidensa chaittensa
partitive
chaitaan chaitansa
chaitaan chaitansa
inessive
chaissaan chaissansa
chaissaan chaissansa
elative
chaistaan chaistansa
chaistaan chaistansa
illative
chaihinsa
chaihinsa
adessive
chaillaan chaillansa
chaillaan chaillansa
ablative
chailtaan chailtansa
chailtaan chailtansa
allative
chailleen chaillensa
chailleen chaillensa
essive
chainaan chainansa
chainaan chainansa
translative
chaikseen chaiksensa
chaikseen chaiksensa
abessive
chaittaan chaittansa
chaittaan chaittansa
instructive
comitative
—chaineen chainensa :

## French
### Etymology 1

Via English chai from Urdu چائے (cāe), Hindi चाय (cāy, “tea”). Doublet of thé.

#### Alternative forms

* chaï, tchaï

#### Pronunciation

* IPA: /tʃaj/

#### Noun

chai m (plural chais)
* masala chai (a tea drink)

### Etymology 2

Borrowed from Occitan [Term?].

#### Pronunciation

* IPA: /ʃɛ/
* Homophone: Chaix

#### Noun

chai m (plural chais)
* wine cellar
    Synonym: cave à vin
    Mis en bouteille dans nos chais. ― Bottled in our wine cellars.

### Further reading

* “chai”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.

## Hokkien

* For pronunciation and definitions of chai – see 知 (“to know; to understand; to comprehend; to cause to know; to tell; to inform; etc.”). (This term is the pe̍h-ōe-jī form of 知).

## Mandarin
### Romanization

chai
* Nonstandard spelling of chāi.
* Nonstandard spelling of chái.
* Nonstandard spelling of chǎi.
* Nonstandard spelling of chài.

#### Usage notes

* Transcriptions of Mandarin into the Latin script often do not distinguish between the critical tonal differences employed in the Mandarin language, using words such as this one without indication of tone.

## Maroon Spirit Language
### Etymology

Likely from English carry. Compare Sranan Tongo tyari, Aukan tyai, Saramaccan tja, Jamaican Creole kyari.

### Verb

chai
* to carry
** 1983, Kenneth M. Bilby, “How the "older heads" talk: a Jamaican Maroon spirit possession language and its relationship to the creoles of Suriname and Sierra Leone”, in New West Indian Guide, →ISSN, page 48:sumte tere nait, wen di suma kõ na pre, den suma waka o pas anda pre, suma o pas anda pre, o kisõ dat sonti so, chai dat sonti so, put na da sonti na yu no.Sometime tonight, when the person came to the place, then the person walked and passed that place, the person passed that place, he took that thing so, carried that thing so, put that thing by you now.

## Navajo
### Pronunciation

* IPA: [tʃʰɑj]

### Noun

-chai (inalienable, e.g., shichai "my grandfather/grandson", bichai "her/his/their grandfather/grandson")
* maternal grandfather, mother's father, grandson (from daughter), daughter's son

## Norman
### Alternative forms

* chaer (Guernsey)

### Etymology

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

### Noun

chai f (uncountable)
* (France, Jersey) flesh

## Palauan
### Etymology 1

Inherited from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *qahəlu (“pestle”). Compare Malay alu (“pestle”).

#### Noun

chai
* pestle

### Etymology 2

Inherited from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *qalu (“barracuda”). Compare Malay alu-alu (“barracuda”).

#### Noun

chai
* barracuda

### References

* chai in Palauan Language Online: Palauan-English Dictionary, at tekinged.com.
* chai in Palauan-English Dictionary, at trussel2.com.
* chai in Lewis S. Josephs, Edwin G. McManus, Masa-aki Emesiochel (1977) Palauan-English Dictionary, University Press of Hawaii, →ISBN, page 34.

## Swahili
### Etymology

Borrowed from Classical Persian چای (čāy)

### Pronunciation

* Audio (Kenya):(file)

### Noun

chai class IX (plural chai class X)
* tea
* (Tanzania) breakfast
    Synonyms: chakula cha asubuhi, staftahi, (Kenya) kiamsha kinywa, (Tanzania) kifungua kinywa
* (slang, Kenya) tea money, small bribe, petty bribe (likened to the cost, and function, of a cup of tea)
    Synonyms: rushwa, hongo, (Kenya) kitu kidogo

#### Derived terms

* chai ya rangi
* chai kavu
* mchai

## Tày
### Pronunciation

* (Thạch An – Tràng Định) IPA: [caːj˧˧]
* (Trùng Khánh) IPA: [caːj˦˥]

### Etymology 1
#### Noun

chai
* bottle
    chai lẩu ― bottle of wine

### Etymology 2

Compare Thai เจ (jee).

#### Verb

chai
* to fast
    chai tón nâng ― to fast for one meal

#### Adjective

chai (⿻斋丷)
* vegan, especially in the Buddhist style
    kin chai ― to go vegan
    否容易𫩒{⿻斋丷}地下Bấu doòng dỉ kin chai tỉ giảIt's not easy to be a vegan on Earth.
* in an ordinary, even lackluster, way
    kin khẩu chai ― to eat plain rice
* old, specifically past something's developmental phase
    mảy khửn chaibamboo shoots that grow even when it's too old to grow

### References

* Hoàng Văn Ma, Lục Văn Pảo, Hoàng Chí (2006) Từ điển Tày-Nùng-Việt [Tay-Nung-Vietnamese dictionary] (in Vietnamese), Hanoi: Nhà xuất bản Từ điển Bách khoa Hà Nội
* Lương Bèn (2011) Từ điển Tày-Việt [Tay-Vietnamese dictionary]‎ (in Vietnamese), Thái Nguyên: Nhà Xuất bản Đại học Thái Nguyên
* Lục Văn Pảo, Hoàng Tuấn Nam (2003) Hoàng Triều Ân, editor, Từ điển chữ Nôm Tày [A Dictionary of (chữ) Nôm Tày]‎ (in Vietnamese), Hanoi: Nhà xuất bản Khoa học Xã hội

## Vietnamese
### Pronunciation

* (Hà Nội) IPA: [t͡ɕaːj˧˧]
* (Huế) IPA: [t͡ɕaːj˧˧]
* (Saigon) IPA: [caːj˧˧]
* Homophone: trai

### Noun

(classifier cái) chai • (𥑂)
* a bottle
* (slang) one million dongs
    Synonym: củ

#### Descendants

* → Eastern Mnong: čai
* → Tai Dam: ꪊꪱꪥ

### Adjective

chai
* (of skin) callous
    vết chai ― a callus
    bị chai tay ― to have calluses on one's hand
    chai sạn ― callous; apathetic
* (of a battery) spent
    pin bị chai rồi ― the battery's no good anymore (won't hold a charge)

### Anagrams

* chia

## Ye'kwana
### Pronunciation

* IPA: [t͡ʃaj]

### Suffix

chai
* allomorph of tai used after words that end in i
* allomorph of kwai used after words that end in i