English

Noun

oni ‎(plural onis or oni)

1. A Japanese evil spirit or demon.
   • 1908, Henri L. Joly, Legend in Japanese Art: A Description of Historical Episodes, Legendary Characters, Folk-lore, Myths, Religious Symbolism, Illustrated in the Arts of Old Japan, page 263-264

     ONI 鬼. Generic name for devils, the representation of which in art is quite a common feature. Onis have claws, a square head with two horns, sharp teeth, and malignant eyes surmounted by big eyebrows; occasionally they wear trousers of tiger skin.

   • 1918, William Elliot Griffis, Dutch Fairy Tales for Young Folks

     Across the ocean, in Japan, there once lived curious creatures called Onis. Every Japanese boy and girl has heard of them, though one has not often been caught.

   • 1979, Marian Ury, Tales of Times Now Past: Sixty-Two Stories from a Medieval Japanese Collection, University of California Press, ISBN 0520038649, page 147:

     "That's no human being playing the instrument," he thought in amazement. "It can only be an oni or some such being."

   • 1992, Karl M. Schwarz, Netsuke Subjects: A Study on the Netsuke Themes with Reference to Their Interpretation and Symbolism, Böhlau Verlag Wien, ISBN 3205055152, page 46:

     The standing Shoki holds with his left hand an oni on his leg.

   • 2005, Christopher Hart, Manga Mania Shoujo: How to Draw the Charming and Romantic Characters of Japanese Comics, ISBN 0823029735, page 69

     This is actually a boy bishie in the form of an ogre. It's called an oni in Japanese. Onis have supernatural powers that can command the forces of nature such as wind (to create hurricanes) and lightning (to create thunderbolts).

   • 2011, Mike Shel, "Ecology of the Oni", Jade Regent: The Brinewall Legacy, Paizo Publishing, ISBN 978-1-60125-361-3, page 69:

     The oni are a diverse group of evil spirits who take on the form of humanoid creatures so that they can enjoy the pleasures and vices of the flesh.

Baré

Noun

oni

1. (Guinau) Synonym of ũni

References

• Alfred Russel Wallace, A Narrative of Travels on the Amazon and Rio Negro

Czech

Etymology

From Proto-Slavic *oni < Proto-Indo-European *h₂eno-

Pronunciation

Pronoun

oni pl

1. they (third person, personal, plural)

Dupaninan Agta

Interjection

oni

1. yes

Esperanto

Etymology

From French on or English one, plus the i of personal pronouns.

Pronoun

oni ‎(accusative onin, possessive onia)

1. (indefinite personal pronoun) one

   Oni povas vidi ĝin‎ ― One can see it.

Usage notes

• Comparable to the use of generic "you" in English (e.g. In America, you can do what you want).
• A sentence whose subject is "oni" can often be translated as an English sentence in the passive voice, for example: "Oni ofte referencas al Kimrio kiel la "lando de la kanto" can be translated as "Wales is often referred to as the "land of song"."

Japanese

Romanization

oni

1. rōmaji reading of おに

Polish

Etymology

From Proto-Slavic *oni < Proto-Indo-European *h₂eno-

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ˈõɲi]

Pronoun

oni

1. they (third-person masculine personal nominative)

Declension

See also

• one
• Appendix:Polish pronouns

Serbo-Croatian

Etymology

From Proto-Slavic *oni < Proto-Indo-European *h₂eno-

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ǒni/
• Hyphenation: o‧ni

Pronoun

òni ‎(Cyrillic spelling о̀ни)

1. they (nominative plural of ȏn ‎(“he”))

Declension

Slovak

Etymology

From Proto-Slavic *oni < Proto-Indo-European *h₂eno-

Pronoun

oni

1. they (third person, personal, m pl)

Related terms

• ja
• ty
• on ona ono
• my
• vy
• ony

Slovene

Etymology

From Proto-Slavic *oni.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈɔ̀ːni/
• Tonal orthography: óni

Pronoun

ôni

1. they (masculine plural, more than two)

Declension

Forms between parentheses indicate clitic forms; the main forms are used for emphasis.

See also

Swahili

Noun

oni (ma class, plural maoni)

1. opinion (subjective thought)

Volapük

Pronoun

oni

1. accusative singular of on

Welsh

Alternative forms

• onid (used before a vowel)

Etymology

o ‎(“if”) +‎ ni ‎(“not”)

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈɔni/

Conjunction

oni ‎(triggers mixed mutation except of forms of bod)

1. unless

   oni lwydda‎ ― unless he succeeds

   Oni bai fe yma, bydden ni wedi gwybod.‎

   Unless he were here, we would have known.

2. until

   oni ddaw fe‎ ― until he comes

Synonyms

• (until): nes, hyd oni

Particle

oni ‎(triggers mixed mutation)

1. used to introduce a negative question

   Oni fuom yn proffwydo yn dy enw di?‎

   Did we not prophesy in your name?