thing
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Written by a house AI from the entry below, in your language. The entry itself is the source.
thing¹
- /θɪŋ/ US, UK
- /θiŋ/ [θiŋ ~ θɪ̝ŋ]
- /fɪŋ/
- /θɪŋɡ/ Midlands, Northern England
- /fɪŋɡ/
- [t̪ʰɪŋ]
Rhymes with -ɪŋ
Where it comes from
From Middle English thing, from Old English þing, from Proto-West Germanic *þing, from Proto-Germanic *þingą.
Cognate with Saterland Frisian Ding (“thing”), West Frisian ting, ding (“thing”), Dutch ding (“thing”), German Low German Ding (“thing”), German Ding (“thing”), Danish, Norwegian Bokmål, Norwegian Nynorsk, and Swedish ting (“thing”), Faroese ting (“parliament, assembly”), Icelandic þing (“congress, assembly”), Scots hing (“thing”).
The word originally meant "assembly", then came to mean a specific issue discussed at such an assembly, and ultimately came to mean most broadly "an object". Compare Latin rēs, also meaning "legal matter", and same transition from Latin causa (“legal matter”) to "thing" in Romance languages. Modern use to refer to a Germanic assembly is likely influenced by cognates (from the same Proto-Germanic root) like Old Norse þing (“thing”), Danish ting, Swedish ting, and Old High German ding with this meaning.
noun things · thang · thin' · thinge · thynge · ting
- That which is considered to exist as a separate entity, object, quality or concept. Forasmuch as many have taken in hand to set forth in order a declaration of those things which are most surely believed among us...
- A word, symbol, sign, or other referent that can be used to refer to any entity.
- An individual object or distinct entity.
- Whatever can be owned.
- Corporeal object.
- Possessions or equipment; stuff; gear. Hold on, let me just grab my things.
- The latest fad or fashion. To go to bed late, to rise late, to breakfast late, to dine late, and to visit late, is to be “quite the thing,” or in good English, which you may understand better than the first phrase, to be in the fashion.
- A custom or practice. Cheek kissing is a French thing; you get used to it after a while.
- A genuine concept, entity or phenomenon; something that actually exists (often contrary to expectation or belief). Q: Bacon pie? Is that a thing? A: Yes, I checked into it, and it's a thing. Some people are even connoisseurs about it.
- A unit or container, usually containing consumable goods. Could you get me a thing of apple juice at the store?
- A problem, dilemma, or complicating factor. The car looks cheap, but the thing is, I have doubts about its safety.
-
A penis.
“Oh Gertie it’s true. It’s all true. They’ve got a horrid gash instead of a thrilling thing.”
Similar: penis
- A vulva or vagina. ‘They reckon she lets her dogs lick her thing.’
- A living being or creature. you poor thing
- Used after a noun to refer dismissively to the situation surrounding the noun's referent. Oh yeah, I'm supposed to promote that vision thing.
-
That which is favoured; personal preference.
it's not really my thing
Similar: predilection
- One's typical routine, habits, or manner. let me do my thing; I'm here doing my thing
- A public assembly or judicial council in a Germanic country. In accordance with Old Germanic custom men came to the thing fully armed, [...]
- A romantic relationship. I can screw you in front of everyone. I don't care, we have a thing going on, you know. I love you,” she said.
- A romantic couple. Are John and Jennifer a thing again? I thought they broke up.
- Alternative form of ting
- Girl; attractive woman. Look at the nyash on that thing!
verb things · thinging · thinged · thang · thin'
- To express as a thing; to reify.
Thing²
- /θɪŋ/
Rhymes with -ɪŋ
Where it comes from
See thing.
noun Things
- A public assembly or judicial council in a Germanic country. But when the earl held a Thing, then Thorkell spoke on behalf of the freemen, told the need of the men, and bade the earl spare his people.
- Nickname or appellative for numerous "things", including fictional characters.
- Nickname for the Volkswagen 181.
Thesaurus
Closest in meaning: affair, matter, objective, entity, object, concept, notion, phenomenon, thought, characteristic, item, idea, substance, fact, point, reason
Translations
Every language
noun that which is considered to exist as a separate entity, object, quality or concept
| Español | cosa, volancheje, volancheque, volanchete |
|---|---|
| 한국어 | 물건 mulgeon, 것 geot |
| 日本語 | 物 mono, 物件 bukken |
| 中文 | 東西 /东西 dōngxi, 事物 shìwù, 物件 wùjiàn, 物 wù |
| हिन्दी | वस्तु vastu, चीज़ cīz |
| Kiswahili | kitu, vitu |
| Português | coisa |
| Français | chose, truc, machin |
| Deutsch | Ding, Sache, Gegenstand |
| Italiano | cosa |
| Ελληνικά | πράγμα prágma |
| Română | lucru, chestie, obiect |
| Русский | вещь veščʹ, не́что néčto, предме́т predmét |
| Tiếng Việt | vật, điều, thứ |
| العربية | شَيْء šayʔ |
| עברית | דָּבָר davár |
noun word, symbol, sign, or other referent that can be used to refer to any entity
| Русский | не́что néčto |
|---|
noun individual object or distinct entity
| Русский | предме́т predmét |
|---|
Talk about this word "thing." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/thing. Accessed 5 Nov. 2026. thing. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/thing "thing." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 5, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/thing.Cite this
@misc{thing_2026,
title = {thing},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/thing},
urldate = {2026-11-05}
}
