mălai

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mălai

/məˈlaj/

Rhymes with -aj

Where it comes from

Possibly from Late Dacian *mellája, from Dacian *melwá-ja, from Proto-Indo-European *melh₂-wo-yo- (“consisting of flour”), from *melh₂-wo- (“flour”), from *melh₂- (“to grind”), or some other Paleo-Balkanic substrate. Compare Albanian miell and Hungarian málé. Other theories include Latin amylum + the suffix -alium. More likely is some connection with mămăligă, perhaps through contraction of a variant *mămălaie.

noun mălaie · mălai · mălaiul · mălaiele

neuter cornflour
Similar: făină de porumb
neuter, regional millet flour
Similar: făină de mei
neuter any cereal
neuter Romanian cornbread
neuter hairy woodrush (Luzula pilosa)
neuter field woodrush (Luzula campestris)
neuter, regional kochia
Similar: mătură
Transylvania, archaic, neuter millet, millet grains
Similar: mei, boabe de mei
neuter, regional millet, millet grains
Similar: porumb, boabe de porumb
neuter, slang money, dosh, dough

In English

dough money (slang)
cornmeal dried corn milled to a coarse meal
moola informal: money

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Cite this

MLA

"mălai." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/ro/m%C4%83lai. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026.

APA

mălai. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/ro/m%C4%83lai

Chicago

"mălai." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/ro/m%C4%83lai.

BibTeX

@misc{ma_lai_2026,
  title = {mălai},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/ro/m%C4%83lai},
  urldate = {2026-11-06}
}