ملک

See also: ملك

Pahari-Potwari

Etymology

Borrowed from Classical Persian (mulk), from Arabic مُلْك (mulk).

Pronunciation

(phr) IPA^(key): /mʊ.ləkə̆/

Noun

مُلَک (mulak) m

country

Pashto

Etymology

Borrowed from Classical Persian (malik), from Arabic مَلِك (malik, “king”), from Proto-Semitic *malk-.

Noun

ملک • (malik) m (plural ملکان (malikân))

king

Declension

Declension of **ملک**
	singular	plural
direct	ملک (malik)	ملکان (malikân)
oblique	ملک (malik)	ملکانو (malikâno)
vocative	ملکه (malika)	ملکانو (malikâno)

Related terms

ملکه (malika, “queen”)

Persian

Etymology 1

Borrowed from Arabic مَلَك (malak, “angel”).

Pronunciation

(Classical Persian) IPA^(key): /ma.ˈlak/

(Dari, formal) IPA^(key): [mä.lák]
- (Kabuli) IPA^(key): [mä.lák]
- (Hazaragi) IPA^(key): [mä.lák]

(Iran, formal) IPA^(key): [mæ.lǽkʰʲ]

(Tajik, formal) IPA^(key): [mä.lák]

Readings
Classical reading^?	malak
Dari reading^?	malak
Iranian reading^?	malak
Tajik reading^?	malak

Noun

ملک • (malak) (plural ملائک (malâ'ek), Tajik spelling малак)

angel
Synonym: فرشته (ferešte)
- c. 1520, Selim I of the Ottoman Empire, edited by Benedek Péri, The Persian Dīvān of Yavuz Sulṭān Selīm, Budapest, Hungary: Research Centre for the Humanities, Eötvös Loránd Research Network, →ISBN, page 226:
  روز چرا چو آید کاعمال من بپرسد
  گرید ملک بصد درد از سوزهای هویم
  rōz čirā čū āyad k-a'māl-i man bipursad
  giryad malak ba-sad dard az sōzhā-yi hōyam
  When the Day [of Judgment] when he inquires my deeds arrives, why
  Does the angel weep from my laments' anguish with a hundredfold pain?
  (Classical Persian transliteration)

Derived terms

ملک‌الموت (malak-ol-mowt)

References

Benzing, Johannes (1983), “mlk”, in Chwaresmischer Wortindex, Wiesbaden: Harrasowitz, page 410

Etymology 2

Borrowed from Arabic مَلِك (malik, “king”).

Pronunciation

(Classical Persian) IPA^(key): /ma.ˈlik/

(Dari, formal) IPA^(key): [mä.lɪ́k]
- (Kabuli) IPA^(key): [mä.lɪ́k]
- (Hazaragi) IPA^(key): [mä.lík]

(Iran, formal) IPA^(key): [mæ.lékʰʲ]

(Tajik, formal) IPA^(key): [mä.lík]

Readings
Classical reading^?	malik
Dari reading^?	malik
Iranian reading^?	malek
Tajik reading^?	malik

Noun

ملک • (malik / malek) (plural ملوک (moluk), Tajik spelling малик)

king

Derived terms

ملوکانه (molukâne)
ملوک‌الطوائفی (moluk-ot-tavâ'efi)
ملکی (maleki)
ملک‌زاده (malek-zâde)

Related terms

ملکه (maleke)
ملکوت (malakut)

Etymology 3

Borrowed from Arabic مِلْك (milk, “property, estate”).

Pronunciation

(Classical Persian) IPA^(key): /ˈmilk/

(Dari, formal) IPA^(key): [mɪlk]
- (Kabuli) IPA^(key): [mɪlk]
- (Hazaragi) IPA^(key): [milk]

(Iran, formal) IPA^(key): [melkʰʲ]

(Tajik, formal) IPA^(key): [milk]

Readings
Classical reading^?	milk
Dari reading^?	milk
Iranian reading^?	melk
Tajik reading^?	milk

Noun

ملک • (milk / melk) (plural املاک (amlâk), Tajik spelling милк)

Derived terms

ملکدار (melkdâr)
ملکی (melki)
ملکیت (melkiyat)

Related terms

تملک (tamallok)
مالک (mâlek)
مملوک (mamluk)

Etymology 4

Borrowed from Arabic مُلْك (mulk, “kingship, royalty, monarchy”).

Pronunciation

(Classical Persian) IPA^(key): /ˈmulk/

(Dari, formal) IPA^(key): [mʊlk]
- (Kabuli) IPA^(key): [mʊlk]
- (Hazaragi) IPA^(key): [mulk]

(Iran, formal) IPA^(key): [molkʰʲ]

(Tajik, formal) IPA^(key): [mulk]

Readings
Classical reading^?	mulk
Dari reading^?	mulk
Iranian reading^?	molk
Tajik reading^?	mulk

Noun

ملک • (mulk / molk) (Tajik spelling мулк)

Derived terms

ملکی (molki)

Descendants

→ Assamese: মুলুক (muluk)
→ Bengali: মুলুক (muluk)
→ Gujarati: મુલક (mulak)
→ Old Hindi: मुलक (mulaka)
- Hindustani:
  Hindi: मुल्क (mulk)
  Urdu: مُلْک (mulk)
→ Maithili
Devanagari script: मुलुक (muluk)

Tirhuta script: 𑒧𑒳𑒪𑒳𑒏 (muluk)
→ Marathi: मुलूख (mulūkh)
→ Marwari: मुलक (mulak)
→ Nepali: मुलुक (muluk)
→ Odia: ମୁଲକ (mulaka)
→ Punjabi:
Gurmukhi script: ਮੁਲਕ (mulak)

Shahmukhi script: مُلَک (mulak)
→ Sindhi:
Arabic script: مُلْڪُ (mulku)

Devanagari script: मुल्कु (mulku)

Etymology 5

Borrowed from Hindustani مونگ / मूँग (mūṅg)

Pronunciation

(Classical Persian) IPA^(key): /ˈmulk/

(Dari, formal) IPA^(key): [mʊlk]
- (Kabuli) IPA^(key): [mʊlk]
- (Hazaragi) IPA^(key): [mulk]

(Iran, formal) IPA^(key): [molkʰʲ]

(Tajik, formal) IPA^(key): [mulk]

Readings
Classical reading^?	mulk
Dari reading^?	mulk
Iranian reading^?	molk
Tajik reading^?	mulk

Noun

ملک • (molk)

(Khorasan) a kind of pea

References

Monchi-Zadeh, Davoud (1990), Wörter aus Xurāsān und ihre Herkunft (Acta Iranica; 29)‎^[1] (in German), Leiden: E. J. Brill, pages 125–126 Nr. 366

Punjabi

Etymology

Borrowed from Classical Persian (mulk), from Arabic مُلْك (mulk).

Pronunciation

(Standard Punjabi) IPA^(key): /mʊ.ləkə̆/

Noun

مُلَک • (mulak) m (Gurmukhi spelling ਮੁਲਕ)

country
Synonym: دیس (des)

References

“مُلک”, in Punjabi-English Dictionary, Patiala: Punjabi University, 2026
Iqbal, Salah ud-Din (2002), “مُلک”, in vaḍḍī panjābī lughat (in Punjabi), Lahore: عزیز پبلشرز [ʻazīz pabliśarz]

Urdu

Etymology

Borrowed from Classical Persian (mulk), from Arabic مُلْك (mulk). First attested as Middle Hindi ملک (mulk).

Pronunciation

(Standard Urdu) IPA^(key): /mʊlk/
(Punjabic Urdu) IPA^(key): /mʊ.lək/

Noun

مُلْک • (mulk) m (formal plural مَمالِک (mamālik), Hindi spelling मुल्क)

country, land
Synonyms: دیس (des), وَطَن (vatan)

نِیُوزی لَین٘ڈ اَور بَرْطانیَہ بَہُت خوش حال مَمالِک ہَیں۔
niyūzī-laiṇḍ aur bartānya bahot xuś-hāl mamālik ha͠i.
New Zealand and the UK are very prosperous countries.

کَئی مُلْکوں میں مَذْہَب کی آزادی فَراہِم نَہِیں ہَے۔
kaī mulkõ mẽ mazhab kī āzādī farāhim nahī̃ hai.
There are many countries where there is no freedom of religion.
(Sufism) realm
مُلْکِ فَنا ― mulk-i fanā ― mortal realm

ہَم کو مُلْکِ عَدَم مِلا ہَمْدَم
ham ko mulk-i 'adam milā hamdam
We got the realm of oblivion, pal.

Declension

Declension of **ملک**
	singular	plural
direct	مُلْک (mulk)	مُلْک (mulk)
oblique	مُلْک (mulk)	مُلْکوں (mulkõ)
vocative	مُلْک (mulk)	مُلْکو (mulko)

Derived terms

اَندَرُونِ مُلْک (andarūn-i mulk, “inland”)
بَیرُونِ مُلْک (bairūn-i mulk, “overseas”)
بَینُ المُلْکی (bain-ul-mulkī, “intranational, inland”)
مَمالِکِ غَیر (mamālik-i ġair, “foreign countries”)
مُلْک دُشْمَن (mulk duśman, “traitor”)
مُلْک گِیر (mulk gīr, “nationwide, countrywide”)
مُلْکی (mulkī, “local, national, indigenous”)

References

“ملک”, in اُردُو لُغَت (urdū luġat) (in Urdu), Ministry of Education: Government of Pakistan, 2017.
Qureshi, Bashir Ahmad (1971), “ملک”, in Kitabistan's 20th Century Standard Dictionary, Lahore: Kitabistan Pub. Co., page 606
“مُلْک”, in ریخْتَہ لُغَت (rexta luġat) - Rekhta Dictionary [Urdu dictionary with meanings in Hindi & English], Noida, India: Rekhta Foundation, 2026.
Platts, John T. (1884), “ملك”, in A dictionary of Urdu, classical Hindi, and English, London: W. H. Allen & Co., page 1065