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yes

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary

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See also: yés, yɛ́s, and þes
Languages (14)
Translingual • English
Asturian • Coatepec Nahuatl • Danish • Dutch • French • Ido • Middle English • Portuguese • Spanish • Swedish • Tocharian B • Tok Pisin
Page categories

Translingual

Etymology

Clipping of English Yeskwa.

Symbol

yes

  1. (international standards) ISO 639-3 language code for Yeskwa.

See also

English

English Wikipedia has an article on:
Wikipedia

Etymology

From Middle English yes, from Old English ġīese (“by all means, of course, yes”), derived from the same root as yea. Compare Faroese júsá (“yes, indeed, certainly”).

Pronunciation

Particle

yes

  1. Used to show agreement or acceptance.
    Yes, you are correct.
    Yes, you may go play outside now.
    Yes, sir, we have your package right here.
  2. Used to indicate disagreement or dissent in reply to a negative statement.
    It was not my fault we lost the race.
    Oh, yes, it was!
  3. (humorous) Answer to a question presuming one answer when all answers are correct.
    Do you like cake, or pie?
    Yes.
    (The addition of quotations indicative of this usage is being sought:)

Usage notes

  • In Old and Middle English, yes was a more forceful affirmative than yea.
  • An example of yes used to disagree with a statement: the questions "You don’t want it, do you?" and "Don’t you want it?" are answered by "yes" if the respondent does want the item, and "no" if not. Many languages use a specific word for this purpose; see translation table below.

Synonyms

Antonyms

Coordinate terms

  • (expression of agreement or acceptance): nod

Derived terms

Translations

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.
Translations to be checked

Interjection

yes

  1. An exclamation of pleasure or approval, usually transcribed with an exclamation point.
    Antonym: no
    Our second goal of the match! Yes!
  2. Response that confirms that the user is paying attention.
  3. (interrogative) Used to ask for more information with a request.
    I need some help.
    Yes?

Translations

Noun

yes (plural yeses or yesses)

  1. An affirmative expression; an answer that shows agreement or acceptance.
    Synonyms: aye, yea, nod
    Antonyms: no, nay
    Was that a yes?
    • 1913, Edgar Rice Burroughs, The Return of Tarzan, New York: Ballantine Books, published 1963, page 121:
      Yet a woman’s “yes” would have bound him to that other life forever, and made the thought of this savage existence repulsive.
  2. A vote of support or in favor of something.
    Synonyms: aye, yea
    Antonyms: nay, no
    The workers voted on whether to strike, and there were thirty "yeses" and one "no".

Translations

Verb

yes (third-person singular simple present yeses or yesses, present participle yessing, simple past and past participle yessed)

  1. (colloquial, transitive) To agree with, affirm, approve.
    Synonyms: agree, consent, nod
    Did he yes the veto?
    • 1972 Oct, John Barth, “Perseid”, in Harper's Magazine, page 79:
      "That's really what you wanted?" I yessed both; ...
  2. (colloquial, intransitive) To say “yes”.
    • 1923 February 25, “Going Up!”, in Sunday State Journal, Lincoln, Neb., →ISSN, →OCLC, page 12—B, column 2:
      The next day another writer asked us: “Didja hear about So-and-So? Got two hundred and fifty bucks for an idea!” We “yessed” and went our way.
    • 1994, Malcolm Ross, “Part Three: The New Woman”, in Kernow & Daughter, London: BCA, →ISBN, page 293:
      “Heaven knows why a woman ‘Noes’!” / Clarrie nodded glumly. “And why she ‘Yesses’ in the end.”
    • 2005, Tyree Campbell, chapter 11, in Nyx, Cedar Rapids, Ia.: Sam’s Dot Publishing, page 93:
      "[…] Are you—?" / ". . . all right?" / We yessed simultaneously. / "At least, I think so."
  3. (slang) To attempt to flatter someone by habitually agreeing

Derived terms

Translations

Determiner

yes

  1. (humorous) In response to a statement using the determiner no: there is; used to indicate the existence of something.
    • 1997 July 9, Marky J, “No Games? … Yes games!!”, in rec.games.video.nintendo‎ (Usenet), archived from the original on 5 December 2025:
      Have you heard this before? "Nintendo 64 has no games!" Well, I did a little researching, and here's what I found: […]
    • 1997 December 15, =^.^=, “No water...”, in alt.home.repair‎ (Usenet), archived from the original on 5 December 2025:
      [Message header:] No water... YES WATER! / We have water again!
    • 2005 December 1, shadow, “Christians in alt.atheism are going to HELL”, in alt.atheism‎ (Usenet), archived from the original on 5 December 2025:
      > >sure. try faking it. you better be good at it, atheist.
      >
      > No need Christian.
      yes need atheist.

Derived terms

See also

Anagrams

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Asturian

Verb

yes

  1. second-person singular present indicative of ser

Coatepec Nahuatl

Noun

yes

  1. blood

Danish

Etymology

Borrowed from English yes.

Interjection

yes

  1. (colloquial) Expression of triumph, vehement approval, etc.

Dutch

Etymology

Borrowed from English yes.

Pronunciation

Interjection

yes

  1. (colloquial) yay (exclamation of happiness or enthusiasm)
    Synonyms: joepie, jippie, (archaic) hoezee, (archaic) joechei

French

Etymology

Borrowed from English yes.

Pronunciation

Interjection

yes

  1. (chiefly North America, colloquial) yes!
    Synonym: oui

Ido

Etymology

From Esperanto jes, from English yes.

Pronunciation

Adverb

yes

  1. yes
    Antonym: no

Middle English

Etymology 1

Noun

yes (uncountable)

  1. alternative form of is (“ice”)

Etymology 2

Interjection

yes

  1. alternative form of yis (“yes”)

Etymology 3

Determiner

yes

  1. (East Anglia) alternative form of þes (“these”)

Etymology 4

Noun

yes

  1. (Late Middle English) plural of ye (“eye”)

Portuguese

Etymology

Unadapted borrowing from English yes. Doublet of iá.

Pronunciation

 

  • Rhymes: -ɛs, -ɛjs
  • Hyphenation: yes

Interjection

yes!

  1. (colloquial) yes; yeah; expression of pleasure, joy or great excitement
    Synonym: isso!

Spanish

Pronunciation

 

  • Rhymes: -es
  • Syllabification: yes

Etymology 1

Unadapted borrowing from English yes.

Interjection

yes

  1. (colloquial) yes

Etymology 2

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

Noun

yes f pl

  1. plural of ye
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Swedish

Etymology

Borrowed from English yes.

Pronunciation

Interjection

yes

  1. (colloquial) yes
    Yes, det stämmer
    Yep, that's correct
    Yes! Där satt den! Rätt upp i krysset.
    Yes! Nailed it! ["There (just now) it sat!" (where I wanted it – the goal in this case – also used more abstractly for "You've got it!" and the like) – colloquial] Straight into the top corner.

See also

References

Tocharian B

Pronoun

yes

  1. you (plural), you all

See also

Tok Pisin

Etymology

From English yes.

Particle

yes

  1. yes (word used to show agreement or acceptance)

Interjection

yes

  1. yes (used to express pleasure, joy, or great excitement)

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