asam

• masam (chiefly dialectal)
• asem (colloquial, Java)

Inherited from Malay asam, masam, from Proto-Malayic *(ma-)hasəm, from earlier *ma-qalsəm, from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *ma- + Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *qaləsəm. The sense “a chemical compound” is a semantic loan from Dutch zuur (“acid”).

• (Standard Indonesian) IPA^(key): /ˈasam/ [ˈa.sam]

• Audio:

  (file)

• Rhymes: -asam
• Syllabification: a‧sam

asam

1. having a sour, acid, acidic, sharp or tangy taste

   Synonym: masam

2. (figurative) sourfaced

   Synonyms: cemberut, masam

   Antonym: cerah

3. (chemistry) acidic (of or pertaining to an acid)

asam (plural asam-asam)

1. tamarind (Tamarindus indica)
2. sour

   Synonym: masam

3. (chemistry) acid

   Synonym: (formal, rare) asid

   • 2018, Rizal H., Bermula dari Makanan, PT Sandiarta Sukses, page 47:

     Ada yang kurang mudah tecerna, apabila makanan mengandung banyak asam, seperti buah yang belum masak.

     There are things that are less easy to digest, if the food contains a lot of acid, such as unripe fruit.

In Indonesian, there are three nearly identical terms of asam, asem, and masam. The word masam is mainly used for sourfaced sense. In the Standard Malay, the prevalent terms is masam with presence of asam as alternative form. The Standard Malay masam has similar senses as in Indonesia with exception of chemistry sense of acid which is asid in Standard Malay. Although asid is listed in Indonesian, it is rarely used.

• “asam” in Kamus Besar Bahasa Indonesia, Jakarta: Agency for Language Development and Cultivation – Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology of the Republic of Indonesia, 2016.

From Middle Irish asum.

• (Munster, Aran) IPA^(key): /ˈɑsˠəmˠ/
• (Connemara, Mayo, Ulster) IPA^(key): /ˈasˠəmˠ/

asam (emphatic asamsa)

1. first-person singular of as

   Ní fhuair siad freagra asam. ― They didn’t get an answer from me.

• Ó Dónaill, Niall (1977) “asam”, in Foclóir Gaeilge–Béarla, Dublin: An Gúm, →ISBN
• Gregory Toner, Sharon Arbuthnot, Máire Ní Mhaonaigh, Marie-Luise Theuerkauf, Dagmar Wodtko, editors (2019), “7 a”, in eDIL: Electronic Dictionary of the Irish Language
• Sjoestedt, M. L. (1938) Description d’un parler irlandais de Kerry [Description of an Irish Dialect of Kerry] (in French), Paris: Librairie Ancienne Honoré Champion, page 95
• de Bhaldraithe, Tomás (1959) “asam”, in English-Irish Dictionary, An Gúm
• “asam”, in New English-Irish Dictionary, Foras na Gaeilge, 2013-2025

āsam

1. accusative singular of āsa

asam

1. dative singular masculine of ass

From Proto-Malayic *(ma-)hasəm, from earlier *ma-qalsəm, from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *ma- + Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *qaləsəm.

asam (Jawi spelling اسم)

1. sour

   Synonym: masam

asam (Jawi spelling اسم, plural asam-asam, informal 1st possessive asamku, 2nd possessive asammu, 3rd possessive asamnya)

1. sour foods

   asam garam ― sour salted foods

• Indonesian: asam
• → Min Nan: 亞森／亚森 (a-som, “tamarind”)

• “asam” in Pusat Rujukan Persuratan Melayu | Malay Literary Reference Centre, Kuala Lumpur: Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka, 2017.

asam

1. third-person plural present indicative of asar

asam

1. door

• Kevin M. Roddy, A Sketch Grammar of Satawalese, The Language of Satawal Island, Yap State, Micronesia (2007)

From Old Irish asum. Cognates include Irish asam and Manx assym.

• IPA^(key): /ˈas̪əm/
• Hyphenation: a‧sam
• Rhymes: -am

asam

1. first-person singular of à: from me

   Cha d' fhuair iad freagairt asam. ― They didn't get an answer from me.

• Colin Mark (2003) “à”, in The Gaelic-English dictionary, London: Routledge, →ISBN, page 2

• (Standard Tagalog) IPA^(key): /ʔaˈsam/ [ʔɐˈsam]
• Rhymes: -am
• Syllabification: a‧sam

asám (Baybayin spelling ᜀᜐᜋ᜔)

1. longing; eager anticipation

   Synonym: pananabik

• masa, amas, sama

• (Sinūgan Parianun) IPA^(key): /ʔasam/ [ʔɑˈsam]
• Rhymes: -am
• Syllabification: a‧sam

asam (Sulat Sūg spelling اَسَمْ)

1. tamarind