# jo
## English
### Pronunciation

* (Scotland) IPA: /d͡ʒoː/
* Audio (Southern England):(file)
* Rhymes: -oː

### Etymology 1

From Scots jo (“joy”), from Middle English joye, from Old French joie, from Late Latin gaudia, neuter plural (mistaken as feminine singular) of Latin gaudium (“joy”), from gaudēre (“to be glad, rejoice”). Doublet of joy and gaudy (“Oxford college reunion”).

#### Noun

jo (plural jos)
* (Scotland) Darling, sweetheart.
** 1711, traditional, published by James Watson, Old Long Syne:
    On Old long syne my Jo, on Old long syne, That thou canst never once reflect, on Old long syne.
** My Jo Janet (traditional Scottish song)
    Keek into the draw-well, Janet, Janet; There ye'll see your bonnie sel', My jo, Janet.

##### Alternative forms

* joe

### Etymology 2

Borrowed from Japanese 杖.

#### Noun

jo (plural jo)
* The staff used in the Japanese martial art of jodo or jojutsu.

### Anagrams

* OJ

## Albanian
### Etymology

Likely a babble word, compare Turkish yok (“no”), and its derivates in other Balkanic languages such as Romanian ioc, Macedonian јок (jok). Comparison with German ja (“yes”) is semantically hard to explain.

### Pronunciation

* IPA: /jɔ/
* Audio:(file)

### Determiner

jo
* negates non-verbal phrases: no, not

#### Synonyms

* nauk (Tetova)
* nouk (Gostivar)

#### See also

* mos
* nuk
* s'

### References

* ↑ Orel, Vladimir E. (1998) “jo”, in Albanian Etymological Dictionary, Leiden, Boston, Köln: Brill, →ISBN, page 159

## Basque
### Etymology

Unknown.

### Pronunciation

* Audio:(file)
* IPA: (Navarro-Lapurdian) /ɟo/ [ɟo]
* IPA: (Southern) /xo/ [xo]
* IPA: (Gipuzkoan) /xo/ [xo]
* IPA: (Biscayan) /d͡ʒo/ [d͡ʒo]
* IPA: (Navarrese) /jo/ [jo]
* Rhymes: -o
* Hyphenation: jo

### Verb

jo du (imperfect participle jotzen, future participle joko, short form jo, verbal noun jotze)
* to hit, strike, punch
* (music) to play
    Gitarra jo nahi dut. ― I want to play the guitar.
* to knock, rap
    Gizon itsusi batek etxeko atea jo du. ― An ugly man knocked on the door.
* to crash
* to head, go
* to blow (the wind)
    Synonym: ibili

### Further reading

* “jo”, in Euskaltzaindiaren Hiztegia [Dictionary of the Basque Academy] (in Basque), Euskaltzaindia [Royal Academy of the Basque Language]
* “jo”, in Orotariko Euskal Hiztegia [General Basque Dictionary], Euskaltzaindia, 1987–2005

## Bavarian
### Etymology

Cognate with Icelandic jú, Swedish jo. Equivalent to standard High German doch.

### Pronunciation

* IPA: /joː/

### Particle

jo
* yes (in response to a negative question).
    Woids es ned na fuat heid? Jo, owa's wedda is a weng schlecht.Wolltet ihr nicht noch heute furt? Doch, aber das Wetter is etwas schlecht.

## Catalan
### Etymology

Inherited from Old Catalan jo~io~yo, from Vulgar Latin eō (attested from the sixth century), from Latin ego, from Proto-Italic *egō, from Proto-Indo-European *éǵh₂; akin to Greek εγώ (egó), Sanskrit अहम् (aham), all from Proto-Indo-European *éǵh₂. Compare Occitan jo, Spanish yo, French je, Italian io.

### Pronunciation

* (Central) IPA: /ˈʒɔ/, /ˈjɔ/
* (Valencia) IPA: /ˈjo/, /ˈjɔ/
* Audio:(file)
* Rhymes: -o, -ɔ

### Pronoun

jo (strong)
* I
* (after certain prepositions) me

#### Declension

$^1$ Behaves grammatically as plural.   $^2$ Behaves grammatically as third person. $^3$ Only as object of a preposition.   $^4$ Not before unstressed (h)i-, (h)u-.

#### Synonyms

* mi (after most prepositions)

### Noun

jo m (uncountable)
* ego (the self)
    Synonym: ego

### References

* “jo” in Diccionari de la llengua catalana, segona edició, Institut d’Estudis Catalans.
* “jo”, in Gran Diccionari de la Llengua Catalana, Grup Enciclopèdia Catalana, 2025
* “jo” in Diccionari normatiu valencià, Acadèmia Valenciana de la Llengua.
* “jo” in Diccionari català-valencià-balear, Antoni Maria Alcover and Francesc de Borja Moll, 1962.

## Czech
### Etymology

Compare Polish jo.

### Pronunciation

* IPA: [ˈjo]
* Audio:(file)

### Particle

jo
* (colloquial) yeah, yep
    Synonym: ano
    Antonym: ne

### Further reading

* “jo”, in Příruční slovník jazyka českého (in Czech), 1935–1957
* “jo”, in Slovník spisovného jazyka českého (in Czech), 1960–1971, 1989

## Dalmatian
### Alternative forms

* io

### Etymology

From Latin ubi. Compare Romanian iuo, Italian ove, French où, Old Spanish o.

### Pronunciation

* IPA: /jo/

### Adverb

jo
* where

## Danish
### Etymology 1

Borrowed from Middle Low German jo. Used like Swedish ju, German ja (adverb) / je (conjunction).

#### Pronunciation

* IPA: [jo] (unstressed in context)

#### Adverb

jo
* as you know or should know; sometimes vaguely translatable as after all or obviously
** 2015, Henriette E. Møller, Jelne, Gyldendal A/S, →ISBN:Jeg ved ikke, hvad de talte om, hendes sind blev så mørkt, jeg kunne jo ikke rigtigt snakke med hende.I do not know of what they spoke, her mind became so dark, I could not really talk with her, as you should be able to see.
** 2009, Sven Arvid Birkeland, I krigens kølvand: danske skæbner efter 2. verdenskrig, Gyldendal A/S, →ISBN, page 479:Han gik jo ikke i krig i håb om, at det skulle blive den store sejrAfter all, he did not go to war in the hopes of achieving great victory.
** 2016, Anita Krumbach, Dorte Lilmose, Hanne Kvist, Helle Perrier, Iben Mondrup, Louis Jensen, Ronnie Andersen, Sissel Bergfjord, Svend Åge Madsen, Tomas Lagermand Lundme, Det du ikke ved: Noveller for unge, Gyldendal A/S, →ISBN:Jeg mener, at selv ens eget navn eller alder KAN man jo ikke være 100 procent sikker på er Dennis/17, vel?I mean, one obviously cannot even be 100% sure that one's own name or age are Dennis and 17, can one?

#### Conjunction

jo
* the
    Jo mere jeg løber, desto trættere bliver jeg.
       The more I run, the more tired I become.

##### Usage notes

jo ... desto ..., jo ... des ... are common constructions.

### Etymology 2

From Old Norse jaur, cf. Swedish jo.

#### Pronunciation

* IPA: [ˈjɔʊ̯ˀ]

#### Interjection

jo
* yes (used to contradict a negative statement or negatively phrased question) (often followed by I do, he is, etc. in English to indicate contradiction rather than affirmation); identical in usage to the French si. Contrasts with ja which confirms positive statements or positively phrased questions.
    Du elsker mig ikke, gør du vel? — Jo!You don't love me, do you? — Yes, I do!
    Jeg har ikke gjort noget! — Jo!I didn't do anything! — Yes, you did!

##### Usage notes

Negatively phrased questions like Kommer du ikke?, Du kommer ikke, vel?, Du kommer ikke? ("Are you not coming?", "You are not coming, are you?", "You are not coming?") must be answered with jo to indicate that the speaker is, in fact, coming; they cannot be answered with ja ("yes").

### References

* “jo” in Den Danske Ordbog

## Dutch
### Etymology

From English yo.

### Interjection

jo
* hi
    Ey! - Jo! - Hey! - Hi!
* bye
    Later! - Jo! - Later! - Bye!
* you too
    Fijn weekend! - Jo! - Have a nice weekend! - You too!

## Esperanto
### Pronunciation

* Audio:(file)
* IPA: [jo]
* Hyphenation: jo

### Noun

jo (accusative singular jo-on, plural jo-oj, accusative plural jo-ojn)
* The name of the Latin-script letter J/j.

#### See also

* (Latin-script letter names) litero; a, bo, co, ĉo, do, e, fo, go, ĝo, ho, ĥo, i, jo, ĵo, ko, lo, mo, no, o, po, ro, so, ŝo, to, u, ŭo, vo, zo

## Finnish
### Etymology

From Proto-Finnic *jo (compare Estonian ju, Ingrian jo, Karelian jo, Livonian jo, Veps jo, Votic jo), borrowed from Proto-Germanic *ju (compare Gothic 𐌾𐌿 (ju, “already”), Old High German ju (“already”)).

### Pronunciation

* IPA: /ˈjo/, [ˈjo̞]
* Rhymes: -o
* Hyphenation: jo

### Adverb

jo
* already (prior to some time; so soon)
    Luin kirjan jo loppuun.I already finished (reading) the book.(literally, “I already read the book to the end.”)
    Nytkö jo lähdet?You're already leaving?
* now, already (emphasizer)
    Tule jo! (impatiently)Come now!

#### Derived terms

* johan
* joko
* jopa

### References

* ↑ Itkonen, Erkki, Kulonen, Ulla-Maija, editors (1992–2000), “jo”, in Suomen sanojen alkuperä [The Origin of Finnish Words]‎ (in Finnish) (online version; note: also includes other etymological sources; this source is labeled "SSA 1992–2000"), Helsinki: Institute for the Languages of Finland/Finnish Literature Society, →ISBN
* ↑ “ju”, in [ETY] Eesti etümoloogiasõnaraamat [Estonian Etymological Dictionary] (in Estonian) (online version), Tallinn: Eesti Keele Sihtasutus (Estonian Language Foundation), 2012

### Further reading

* “jo”, in Kielitoimiston sanakirja [Dictionary of Contemporary Finnish]‎ (in Finnish) (online dictionary, continuously updated), Kotimaisten kielten keskuksen verkkojulkaisuja 35, Helsinki: Kotimaisten kielten tutkimuskeskus (Institute for the Languages of Finland), 2004–, retrieved 2023-07-02

## Friulian
### Etymology

Inherited from Late Latin eo, from Classical Latin egō̆.

### Pronoun

jo
* I

#### See also
## German
### Alternative forms

* joa, jö

### Etymology 1

Alteration of ja (“yes”) or the respective dialectal cognates. Compare English yo, Swedish jo.

#### Pronunciation

* IPA: /jɔː/

#### Interjection

jo
* (colloquial, dialectal) yes, yeah, well; expresses agreement in a hesitant or ponderous manner.

### Etymology 2

From the respective dialectal words for yes in about half of Northern and Central Germany and all of Western Germany (compare Low German ja, jo). Possibly from Proto-Germanic *ja (“yes, thus, so”), possibly from an unrecorded root. The form with /oː/ must have existed in the Middle Ages already, since the word often partakes in the same sound shifts as words with /oː/ from other sources, cf. Swedish jo, Middle English yo (> English yo).

#### Pronunciation

* IPA: /joː/

#### Interjection

jo
* (colloquial) yes; expresses firm agreement.

##### Derived terms

* johlen

## Ingrian
### Etymology

From Proto-Finnic *jo. Cognates include Finnish jo and Estonian ju.

### Pronunciation

* (Ala-Laukaa) IPA: /ˈjo/, [ˈjo̞]
* (Soikkola) IPA: /ˈjo/, [ˈjo̞]
* Rhymes: -o
* Hyphenation: jo

### Adverb

jo
* already
** 1936, N. A. Iljin and V. I. Junus, Bukvari iƶoroin șkouluja vart, Leningrad: Riikin Ucebno-pedagogiceskoi Izdateljstva, page 25:Kiko ja Miko jo uijuut.Kiko and Miko are already swimming.
* Emphasises the sentence.
** 1936, N. A. Iljin and V. I. Junus, Bukvari iƶoroin șkouluja vart, Leningrad: Riikin Ucebno-pedagogiceskoi Izdateljstva, page 64:Jo nyt mahan lukkia.Now I can read.

### References

* Ruben E. Nirvi (1971) Inkeroismurteiden Sanakirja, Helsinki: Suomalais-Ugrilainen Seura, page 105

## Italian
### Pronoun

jo
* (obsolete) Alternative form of io

## Japanese
### Romanization

jo
* The hiragana syllable じょ (jo) or the katakana syllable ジョ (jo) in Hepburn romanization.
* The hiragana syllable ぢょ (jo) or the katakana syllable ヂョ (jo) in Hepburn romanization.

## Karelian

Regional variants of jo :
| North Karelian (Viena) | jo |
| South Karelian (Tver) | jo |

### Etymology

From Proto-Finnic *jo. Cognates include Finnish jo and Veps jo.

### Pronunciation

* IPA: /ˈjo/
* Hyphenation: jo

### Adverb

jo
* already

### Interjection

jo
* (North Karelian) yes

#### Synonyms

* (yes): (North Karelian) kyllä, (South Karelian) da

### References

* A. V. Punzhina (1994) “jo”, in Словарь карельского языка (тверские говоры) [Dictionary of the Karelian language (Tver dialects)], →ISBN
* Pertti Virtaranta, Raija Koponen (2009) “jo”, in Marja Torikka, editor, Karjalan kielen sanakirja‎, Helsinki: Kotus, →ISSN
* P. M. Zaykov et al. (2015) Venäjä-Viena Šanakirja [Russian-Viena Karelian Dictionary], →ISBN

## Kashubian
### Etymology

Borrowed from German jo. Compare Slovincian jo (“yes”), Silesian ja (“yes”), regional Polish ja (“yes”).

### Pronunciation

* IPA: /ˈjɔ/
* Rhymes: -ɔ
* Syllabification: jo

### Particle

jo
* yes
    Synonym: tak
    Jo, mògã to zrobic. ― Yes, I can do it.
    Jo, jô jem tam béł. ― Yes, I have been there.

### Further reading

* “jo”, in Internetowi Słowôrz Kaszëbsczégò Jãzëka [Internet Dictionary of the Kashubian Language], Fundacja Kaszuby, 2022
* Eùgeniusz Gòłąbk (2011) “tak”, in Słownik Polsko-Kaszubski / Słowôrz Pòlskò-Kaszëbsczi‎

## Konabéré
### Pronunciation

* (Kouka) IPA: /ɟō/
* (Tansilla Toma) IPA: /ɟû/

### Noun

jo
* water

#### Alternative forms

* zo

### Further reading

* Beatrice Tiendrébéogo, Rapport Sociolinguistique sur la Langue Bobo Madaré (SIL Electronic Survey Reports 2007-005: 55), page 44
* Chiara Alfieri, Bernard Taverne, Ethnophysiologie, règles et précautions chez les Bobo Madare et les Mossi

## Latvian
### Pronunciation

* This entry needs an audio pronunciation. If you are a native speaker with a microphone, please record this word. The recorded pronunciation will appear here when it's ready.

### Conjunction

jo
* because
* for

### Particle

jo
* the... the...
    jo vairāk naudas, jo labāk ― the more money the better

## Lithuanian
### Pronunciation

* IPA: [jo]

### Etymology 1
#### Determiner

jo
* his (3rd person singular masculine possessive)

#### Pronoun

jo m
* third-person singular genitive of jis
* Alternative form of juo

### Etymology 2

From Middle High German ja, possibly via Yiddish יאָ (yo). Compare Latvian jā.

#### Particle

jo
* (colloquial) yeah
    Synonym: (standard term) taip

##### Usage notes

* Formerly considered obsolete, but seems to have been revived, possibly by influence of English yeah.
* Usage discouraged by the VLKK.

### References

* “jo”, in Lietuvių kalbos žodynas [Dictionary of the Lithuanian language], lkz.lt, 1941–2025

## Livonian
### Alternative forms

* juo

### Etymology 1

Perhaps borrowed from Latvian jo (“because, yet (more)”), /juo/.

#### Pronunciation

* IPA: /jo/

#### Preposition

jo
* more; used with adjectives to form comparatives
** Tiit-Rein Viitso, Valts Ernštreits (2012–2013), Līvõkīel-ēstikīel-lețkīel sõnārōntõz, Tartu, Rīga: TÜ, LVA
    pitkā, jo pitkā
       long, longer

### Etymology 2

Perhaps borrowed from Latvian jau (“yet, already, after all”). However, compare also Finnish jo (“already”), thus ultimately a common Finnic borrowing from Proto-Germanic *ju that has likely been contaminated by the more figurative senses of Latvian jau, with the latter ultimately a distant cognate of the initial Germanic borrowing.

#### Pronunciation

* IPA: /jo/

#### Preposition

jo
* yet, already, after all
** Tiit-Rein Viitso, Valts Ernštreits (2012–2013), Līvõkīel-ēstikīel-lețkīel sõnārōntõz, Tartu, Rīga: TÜ, LVA
    mōnigļikizt, ne jo lǟbõd mōzõ
       bumblebees, they are already migrating to their burrows (lit. "going inside of earth")
    amād jo ītist äb peļļõt
       not everyone makes the same [amount of money] (lit. "everyone after all doesn't earn the same")

### Usage notes

* LĒL only lists jo without listing any instances of juo. Livonian-Latvian-Livonian dictionary, in turn, only lists juo for the comparative forming preposition sense.
* LĒL doesn't explicitly list the second sense that seems to exactly mirror Latvian jau (including the more figurative applications.) Such a function, however, is inferred from the many usage examples available in the dictionary. As a translation of Latvian jau (strictly in its temporal sense) LĒL lists jõbā (“already”), cf. Estonian juba.

## Lower Sorbian
### Pronunciation

* IPA: [jɔ]

### Particle

jo
* yes (word used to show agreement or acceptance)

### Verb

jo
* third-person singular present of byś

### Pronoun

jo
* accusative of wóno

#### Alternative forms

* njo (after preposition)

### Further reading

* Muka, Arnošt (1921, 1928) “jo”, in Słownik dolnoserbskeje rěcy a jeje narěcow (in German), St. Petersburg, Prague: ОРЯС РАН, ČAVU; Reprinted Bautzen: Domowina-Verlag, 2008
* Starosta, Manfred (1999) “jo”, in Dolnoserbsko-nimski słownik / Niedersorbisch-deutsches Wörterbuch (in German), Bautzen: Domowina-Verlag

## Luxembourgish
### Pronunciation

* IPA: /jo/, [joː]
* Rhymes: -oː
* Homophone: Jo
* Audio:(file)

### Adverb

jo
* yes

#### See also

* dach

### Verb

jo
* second-person singular imperative of joen

## Murui Huitoto
### Etymology

Cognates include Minica Huitoto jo and Nüpode Huitoto jo.

### Pronunciation

* IPA: [ˈhɔ]
* Hyphenation: jo

### Root

jo
* house

#### Derived terms

* jofo

### References

* Katarzyna Izabela Wojtylak (2017) A grammar of Murui (Bue): a Witotoan language of Northwest Amazonia.‎, Townsville: James Cook University press (PhD thesis), page 127

## North Frisian
### Etymology

Compare West Frisian hja.

### Pronoun

jo (Föhr-Amrum)
* third-person plural personal pronoun
** they (subject case)
** them, themselves (object case)

#### Alternative forms

* 's (reduced form)
* ja, jam (Mooring, Sylt)
* djo (Heligoland), jä (Halligen, Wiedingharde, Hoorning)

### See also

* The reduced forms with an apostrophe are enclitic; they immediately follow verbs or conjunctions. Dü is deleted altogether in such contexts.
* At is not enclitic; it can stand in any unstressed position and refers mostly to things. In reflexive use, only full object forms occur.
* Dual forms wat / onk and jat / jonk are obsolete, as is feminine jü / hör.
* Independent possessives are distinguished from attributive ones only with plural referents.
* The forms üsens, jamens, hörens are used optionally (and decreasingly) when the possessor is a larger community, such as a village, city or nation.

## Northern Sami
### Etymology

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

### Pronunciation

* (Kautokeino) IPA: /ˈjo/

### Adverb

jo
* already
* now

#### Further reading

* Koponen, Eino, Ruppel, Klaas, Aapala, Kirsti, editors (2002–2008), Álgu database: Etymological database of the Saami languages‎, Helsinki: Research Institute for the Languages of Finland

## Norwegian Bokmål
### Pronunciation

* Audio:(file)

### Etymology 1

From Old Norse jaur.

#### Adverb

jo
* yes; in disagreement with the last speaker's negative statement.
    Du har ikke pusset tennene vel? - Jo, det har jeg.You haven't brushed your teeth, have you? - Yes, I have.
* yes or no; expressing doubt. (colloquial)
    Vil du være med? - Jo...Do you want to join? - I'm not sure...

##### Usage notes

Ja can be interpreted as an agreement with the person replied to. Jo is used instead of ja if this agreement could cause ambiguity. In example 1, agreement with the person asking the question would be the opposite of a confirmation that one actually did brush the teeth. As such ja would be ambiguous. The answer jo removes the possibility of agreement with the speaker.

##### Related terms

* jojo
* joda

### Etymology 2

From Old Norse gjóðr.

#### Noun

jo m (definite singular joen, indefinite plural joer, definite plural joene)
* a skua, seabird of family Stercorariidae.

##### Derived terms

* storjo

### References

* “jo” in The Bokmål Dictionary.
* “jo_1” in Det Norske Akademis ordbok (NAOB).
* “jo_2” in Det Norske Akademis ordbok (NAOB).

## Norwegian Nynorsk
### Etymology 1

From Old Norse jór, from Proto-Germanic *ehwaz.

#### Noun

jo m (definite singular joen, indefinite plural joar, definite plural joane)
* a horse (only used in given names)

##### Related terms

Male given names:
* Jo
* Joalv
* Joar
* Jobjørn
* Jofast
* Jofrød
* Jofrøy
* Jogeir
* Jogrim
* Johamar
* Jokjell
* Jole
* Jolv, Julv
* Jomar
* Jorek
* Jostein
Female given names:
* Jo
* Jodis
* Jofrid, Jorid
* Jogjerd
* Joreid

### Etymology 2

From Old Norse gjóðr.

#### Alternative forms

* gjod (alternative spelling)

#### Noun

jo m (definite singular joen, indefinite plural joar, definite plural joane)
* a skua, seabird of family Stercorariidae.

##### Derived terms

* storjo

### Etymology 3

From Norwegian Bokmål jo, from Danish jo.

#### Adverb

jo
* Alternative form of jau

### Etymology 4

Compare Swedish ju.

#### Adverb

jo
* Used to indicate an expectation of common understanding, or that what is said is an obvious fact – “as you well know,” “of course.”
    Synonym: no
    Han kom jo aldriBut he never came though
    Ikkje rart at du fekk ølskummet over heile golvet. Ein skal jo ikkje slå på ølboksen fyri ein opnar den!It’s not weird that you’ve got the beer foam all-over the floor. You shouldn’t punch the beer can before you open it, y’know!

### References

* “jo” in The Nynorsk Dictionary.

## Occitan
### Pronunciation

* IPA: /ʒu/, /ju/

### Etymology 1

Inherited from Late Latin eo, from Classical Latin egō̆.

#### Pronoun

jo (Gascony)
* I

### Etymology 2

Inherited from Latin iugum.

#### Noun

jo m
* yoke

## Old French
### Pronoun

jo
* (Old Northern French) Alternative form of je
** c. 1170, Wace, Le Roman de Rou:Jo di e dirai ke jo suiI say and will say that I am

## Old Frisian
### Pronoun

jō
* Alternative form of jū, accusative/dative of jī

#### Inflection
## Plautdietsch
### Adverb

jo
* yes

## Polabian
### Alternative forms

* joz

### Etymology

Inherited from Proto-Slavic *(j)azъ.

### Pronoun

jo
* first-person pronoun; I

### References

* Polański, Kazimierz (1971) “jo”, in Słownik etymologiczny języka Drzewian połabskich [Etymological Dictionary of the Polabian Drevani Language] (in Polish), number 2 (ďüzd – ľotü), Wrocław, Warszawa etc.: Ossolineum, page 225
* Polański, Kazimierz, James Allen Sehnert (1967) “jo”, in Polabian-English Dictionary, The Hague, Paris: Mouton & Co, page 75
* Olesch, Reinhold (1962) “Je”, in Thesaurus Linguae Dravaenopolabicae [Thesaurus of the Drevani language] (in German), volumes 1: A – O, Cologne, Vienna: Böhlau Verlag, →ISBN, page 374

## Polish
### Pronunciation

* IPA: /ˈjɔ/
* (Greater Poland):
** (Chełmno-Dobrzyń) IPA: /ˈjɔ/
* Rhymes: -ɔ
* Syllabification: jo

### Etymology 1

Inherited from Proto-Slavic *(j)azъ.

#### Pronoun

jo
* (dialectal) Alternative form of ja (“I”)

### Etymology 2

Borrowed from German jo.

#### Particle

jo
* (colloquial or dialectal, Chełmno-Dobrzyń) yeah, yep
    Synonyms: tak, ano, no, hej
    Antonym: nie

##### Alternative forms

* ja (Żywiec)

### Further reading

* jo in Polish dictionaries at PWN
* Antoni Krasnowolski (1879) “jo”, in Album uczącéj się młodzieży polskiéj poświęcone Józefowi Ignacemu Kraszewskiemu z powodu jubileuszu jego pięćdziesięcioletniéj działalności literackiéj (in Polish), Lviv: Czytelni Akademickiéj Lwowskiéj; "Gaz. Narod." J. Dobrzańskiego i K. Gromana, Słowniczek prowincjalizmów zebranych w ziemi chełmińskiej i świeckiej, page 303

## Saterland Frisian
### Etymology

From Old Frisian hiā. Cognates include West Frisian hja and North Frisian jo.

### Pronunciation

* IPA: /joː/
* Hyphenation: jo
* Rhymes: -oː

### Pronoun

jo (oblique hier)
* they

#### See also
### References

* Marron C. Fort (2015) “jo”, in Saterfriesisches Wörterbuch mit einer phonologischen und grammatischen Übersicht, Buske, →ISBN

## Slovincian
### Pronunciation

* IPA: /ˈjɔ/
* Rhymes: -ɔ
* Syllabification: jo

### Etymology 1

Inherited from Proto-Slavic *(j)azъ.

#### Pronoun

jo
* I (first-person pronoun)

### Etymology 2

Borrowed from German ja (“yes; yes!”). Compare Kashubian jo (“yes”), Silesian ja (“yes”), regional Polish ja (“yes”).

#### Particle

jo
* yes

### References

* Lorentz, Friedrich (1908) “jǻu̯”, in Slovinzisches Wörterbuch‎ (in German), volume 1, Saint Petersburg: ОРЯС ИАН, page 389
* Lorentz, Friedrich (1908) “jǻu̯!”, in Slovinzisches Wörterbuch‎ (in German), volume 1, Saint Petersburg: ОРЯС ИАН, page 389

## Spanish
### Pronunciation

* IPA: /ˈxo/ [ˈxo]
* Rhymes: -o
* Syllabification: jo

### Etymology 1
#### Interjection

¡jo!
* stop, whoa (especially when commanding a horse or imitative thereof)

##### Derived terms

* jo, jo, jo

### Etymology 2

Euphemistic clipping of joder (“fuck”).

#### Interjection

¡jo!
* (euphemistic) Used to express surprise, amazement, or confusion
    ¡Jo! ― I never heard anything like that before. / Are you serious? / Boy!

#### Further reading

* “jo”, in Diccionario de la lengua española [Dictionary of the Spanish Language] (in Spanish), online version 23.8, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], 2024 December 10

## Swahili
### Etymology

Possibly from English yo.

### Pronunciation

* Audio (Kenya):(file)

### Interjection

jo
* (Sheng) added for emphasis to the end of a sentence
    Manze jo! ― Oh man!

## Swedish
### Etymology

From Old Swedish iū, from Old Norse jaur.

### Pronunciation

* IPA: /juː/

### Interjection

jo
* yes; used as a disagreement to a negative statement or a negatively phrased question (has no English equivalent, but is similar to French si)
    Du har inte borstat tänderna, eller hur? - Jo, det har jag.You haven't brushed your teeth, have you? - Yes, I have.
* yes (more generally, in a similar vein to jodå – see its usage notes)
    – Är det du som är han? – Jo, det är jag.– Are you that guy? – Yep, that's me.
** yeah
    Ah, jo, det stämmer nog när jag tänker efterAh, yeah, that's probably correct when I think about it
* (with an excited, rising tone) Expresses having an insight; oh
    Jo(ooo)! Nu kom jag på hur man löser pusslet.O(ooo)h! I figured out how to solve the puzzle now.
* A filler, at the start of an utterance (to get someone's attention); listen, so, hey, etc. (compare "yeah")
    Jo, det är så att det är en grej som jag måste berätta för erSo, there is something that I have to tell you ("So, it is such that there is a thing that I have to tell you," with some common stalling wording)

#### Usage notes

Ja (“yes”) can be interpreted as an agreement with the person replied to. Jo is used instead of ja if this agreement could cause ambiguity. In the example above agreement with the person asking the question would be the opposite of a confirmation that one actually did brush the teeth. As such ja would be ambiguous. The answer jo removes the possibility of agreement with the speaker. In Swedish dialects spoken in northern Sweden and Finland, it is however not uncommon for the word jo to be used in place of ja in all cases, at least in spoken language.

#### Related terms

* inandnings-jo
* jodå
* jojo
* jovars

### References

* jo in Svensk ordbok (SO)
* jo in Svenska Akademiens ordlista (SAOL)
* jo in Svenska Akademiens ordbok (SAOB)

### Anagrams

* oj

## Veps
### Etymology

From Proto-Finnic *jo.

### Adverb

jo
* already

### References

* Zajceva, N. G., Mullonen, M. I. (2007) “уж, уже”, in Uz’ venä-vepsläine vajehnik / Novyj russko-vepsskij slovarʹ [New Russian–Veps Dictionary]‎, Petrozavodsk: Periodika

## Votic
### Etymology

From Proto-Finnic *jo.

### Pronunciation

* (Luutsa, Liivtšülä) IPA: /ˈjo/, [ˈʝo]
* Rhymes: -o
* Hyphenation: jo

### Adverb

jo
* already
* (with negative) any more

### Particle

jo
* An emphatic intensifying particle.

### References

* Hallap, V., Adler, E., Grünberg, S., Leppik, M. (2012) “jo”, in Vadja keele sõnaraamat [A dictionary of the Votic language], 2nd edition, Tallinn

## West Frisian
### Pronunciation

* IPA: /joː/
* (unstressed) IPA: /jə/

### Etymology 1

From Old Frisian jū, from Proto-West Germanic *iwwiz, from Proto-Germanic *izwiz, dative/accusative of *jūz, from Proto-Indo-European *yū́.

#### Pronoun

jo
* you (second person singular nominative formal pronoun)

##### Usage notes

Though it is a singular pronoun, jo takes the plural conjugation of verbs.

##### Inflection

$^1$ Now mostly archaic and unused.

#### Further reading

* “jo”, in Wurdboek fan de Fryske taal (in Dutch), 2011

### Etymology 2

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

#### Determiner

jo
* your (second-person singular formal possessive determiner)

##### Further reading

* “jo”, in Wurdboek fan de Fryske taal (in Dutch), 2011

## Ye'kwana
### Pronunciation

* IPA: [hʷo]

### Postposition

jo
* (with following directional suffix -nno) indicates a point of origin

#### Usage notes

This postposition also infrequently occurs without -nno, in which case it is not clear whether it inflects at all and its meaning is difficult to determine.

### References

* Cáceres, Natalia (2011) Grammaire Fonctionnelle-Typologique du Ye’kwana‎, Lyon, pages 277–278

## Yoruba
### Etymology 1

Proposed to be derived from Proto-Yoruboid *jó, compare with Igala jó

#### Pronunciation

* IPA: /d͡ʒó/

#### Verb

jó
* (intransitive) to dance

##### Derived terms

* ijó (“dance”)
* jójó (“to dance [a dance]”)
* àlùjó

### Etymology 2

Possibly from Proto-Yoruboid *jó, cognate with Igala jó

#### Pronunciation

* IPA: /d͡ʒó/

#### Verb

jó
* (ergative) to burn
* (transitive) to sting; to irritate

### Etymology 3
#### Pronunciation

* IPA: /d͡ʒò/

#### Verb

jò
* to drip

##### Derived terms

* jíjò (“leaking”)
* ìjòdànù (“leakage”)
* òjò (“rain”)