[tlhIngan Hol] Klingon Word of the Day: 'oS

[Steven Boozer]

Klingon Word of the Day for Monday, June 09, 2025

Klingon word: 'oS
Part of speech: verb
Definition: represent
Source: TKD
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toDuj 'oS rol 
A beard is a symbol of courage. TKW

qorDu'Daj tuq 'oS Ha'quj'e' tuQbogh wo'rIv 
The sash that Worf wears is a symbol of his family's house. S20

yay 'oS bey 
This yell is victorious in nature... S31

For years many of us used {'oS} when discussing definitions.  However, now we have more options ... 

(De'vID < MO, 2/17/2018):  For purposes of boQwI' [De'vID's computer program], definition would be {jIyweS} "translation, gloss".  It's not a definition like in an English-only (or any-language-only) dictionary (that explains/describes a word's meaning); it's a quick tag to give you an idea of what the word means.

(qep'a' 2022 < Toki Pona):
   [Q:] By meaning or definition, I assume you mean how a Klingon word would be defined in Klingon (or a Toki Pona word defined in Toki Pona) - that is only one language is involved. Is that correct? 
   [A:] The word for definition (as in a monolingual dictionary) is {Sumlugh}.  To say "X means Y" (where X is a word and Y is its meaning or definition or gloss), use {ghaS}, sometimes along with {mu'} for clarity:  {Y ghaS X (mu').}  A colloquial (or perhaps slang) way of expressing the definition of a word within the same language - not when translating - is to use {'ang} instead of {ghaS}:  {Y 'ang X (mu')."  X could, of course, be a phrase. If so, it can be followed by either {mu'} or {mu'mey}, more frequently the former.

(Lieven, 1/15/2014):  Marc Okrand has said several times that he did not think that anyone would ever have such a close look at the dictionary, so he didn't think very much about the meaning of every single word.

SEE:
Hech 		intend, mean to (v)
mugh 		translate (v)

TREK NOTES:
  GARAK:  "It's the honorable thing to do."
  WORF:   "You use that word, but you have no idea what it means."
  GARAK: "Perhaps not, but you do." [DS9 "In Purgatory's Shadow"]

" 'When I use a word,' Humpty Dumpty said in rather a scornful tone, 'it means just what I choose it to mean-neither more nor less.' 
  'The question is,' said Alice, 'whether you can make words mean so many different things.'
  'The question is,' said Humpty Dumpty, 'which is to be master-that's all.' " (Lewis Carroll, Through the Looking-Glass) 

--
Voragh
Ca'Non Master of the Klingons