yes

Clipping of English Yeskwa.

yes

1. (international standards) ISO 639-3 language code for Yeskwa.

• Wiktionary’s coverage of Yeskwa terms

From Middle English yes, from Old English ġīese (“by all means, of course, yes”), derived from the same root as yea. Compare Faroese júsá (“yes, indeed, certainly”).

• IPA^(key): /jɛs/

  • Audio (UK):

    (file)

  • Audio (General American):

    (file)

  • Audio (US):

    (file)

  • Audio (New Zealand); [jes]:

    (file)

• Rhymes: -ɛs

yes

1. Used to show agreement or acceptance.

   Yes, you are correct.

   Yes, you may go play outside now.

   Yes, sir, we have your package right here.

   • 2016, VOA Learning English (public domain)

     Hi, Jonathan. Are you busy? — Yes, I’m busy.

2. Used to indicate disagreement or dissent in reply to a negative statement.

   It was not my fault we lost the race.
   Oh, yes, it was!

3. (humorous) Answer to a question presuming one answer when all answers are correct.

   Do you like cake, or pie?
   Yes.

   (The addition of quotations indicative of this usage is being sought:)

• In Old and Middle English, yes was a more forceful affirmative than yea.
• An example of yes used to disagree with a statement: the questions "You don’t want it, do you?" and "Don’t you want it?" are answered by "yes" if the respondent does want the item, and "no" if not. Many languages use a specific word for this purpose; see translation table below.

• Dialect or archaic forms: arr, ay, aye, yea, yassuh
• Nautical, military, telecommunications: affirmative
• Colloquial or slang forms: ya, yah, yeah, yeh, yep, yeppers, yup, yuppers, yus, ahuh, mhm, uh huh, ye-es
• See also: Thesaurus:yes

• Standard form: no
• Nautical, military, telecommunications: negative
• Dialect or archaic forms: nay
• Colloquial or slang forms: ixnay, nah, naw, nope
• See also: Thesaurus:no

• (expression of agreement or acceptance): nod

yes

1. An exclamation of pleasure or approval, usually transcribed with an exclamation point.

   Antonym: no

   Our second goal of the match! Yes!

2. Response that confirms that the user is paying attention.
3. (interrogative) Used to ask for more information with a request.

   I need some help.
   Yes?

yes (plural yeses or yesses)

1. An affirmative expression; an answer that shows agreement or acceptance.

   Synonyms: aye, yea, nod

   Antonyms: no, nay

   Was that a yes?

   • 1913, Edgar Rice Burroughs, The Return of Tarzan, New York: Ballantine Books, published 1963, page 121:

     Yet a woman’s “yes” would have bound him to that other life forever, and made the thought of this savage existence repulsive.

2. A vote of support or in favor of something.

   Synonyms: aye, yea

   Antonyms: nay, no

   The workers voted on whether to strike, and there were thirty "yeses" and one "no".

yes (third-person singular simple present yeses or yesses, present participle yessing, simple past and past participle yessed)

1. (colloquial, transitive) To agree with, affirm, approve.

   Synonyms: agree, consent, nod

   Did he yes the veto?

   • 1972 Oct, John Barth, “Perseid”, in Harper's Magazine, page 79:

     "That's really what you wanted?" I yessed both; ...

2. (colloquial, intransitive) To say “yes”.
   • 1923 February 25, “Going Up!”, in Sunday State Journal, Lincoln, Neb., →ISSN, →OCLC, page 12—B, column 2:

     The next day another writer asked us: “Didja hear about So-and-So? Got two hundred and fifty bucks for an idea!” We “yessed” and went our way.

   • 1994, Malcolm Ross, “Part Three: The New Woman”, in Kernow & Daughter, London: BCA, →ISBN, page 293:

     “Heaven knows why a woman ‘Noes’!” / Clarrie nodded glumly. “And why she ‘Yesses’ in the end.”

   • 2005, Tyree Campbell, chapter 11, in Nyx, Cedar Rapids, Ia.: Sam’s Dot Publishing, page 93:

     "[…] Are you—?" / ". . . all right?" / We yessed simultaneously. / "At least, I think so."

3. (slang) To attempt to flatter someone by habitually agreeing

• yes to death

yes

1. (humorous) Countering a statement using the determiner no:
   1. There is; indicating the existence of something.
      • 1997 July 9, Marky J, “No Games? … Yes games!!”, in rec.games.video.nintendo‎^[1] (Usenet), archived from the original on 5 December 2025:

        Have you heard this before? "Nintendo 64 has no games!" Well, I did a little researching, and here's what I found: […]

      • 1997 December 15, =^.^=, “No water...”, in alt.home.repair‎^[2] (Usenet), archived from the original on 5 December 2025:

        [Message header:] No water... YES WATER! / We have water again!

      • 2003 February 26, jack, “discussion”, in ne.weather‎^[3] (Usenet), archived from the original on 31 January 2026:

        >> What a silly question, you, momma and the cats.
        >
        > No cats and she's off-topic here, pest.
        Yes cats 4 of them to be exact.

      • 2005 December 1, shadow, “Christians in alt.atheism are going to HELL”, in alt.atheism‎^[4] (Usenet), archived from the original on 5 December 2025:

        > >sure. try faking it. you better be good at it, atheist.
        >
        > No need Christian.
        yes need atheist.

   2. Indicating the possibility or allowance of something.
      • 1973, William Stafford, “Having Become a Writer: Some Reflections”, in Northwest Review, volume XIII, Eugene, Ore.: University of Oregon, →ISSN, →OCLC, page 91:

        When our family left graduate school, it was in a cocoon of our own feelings, with college life behind us and the boys excitedly talking about what was “behead of us,” and our car avoiding no parking signs but aiming for “yes parking.”

      • 2000 February 1, Fulmination, “Brier”, in rec.pets.dogs.behavior‎^[5] (Usenet), archived from the original on 31 January 2026:

        I lived in a no-pets apartment in a house. And my boyfriend and I broke up (that's another installment, too!), and I grabbed the dog, who was always mine, anyway. And my landlord agreed that it was a yes-pets apartment shortly afterward.

      • 2010 November 11, Adam Nagourney, “Las Vegas Casinos Are a Last Bastion for Smokers”, in The New York Times‎^[6], New York, N.Y.: The New York Times Company, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 19 October 2011:

        Smoking is banned in restaurants, shops, public hallways and other nongambling parts of casinos; yet it is hard to tell where the no-smoking area ends and the yes-smoking area begins.

• yee

• Sey., Sye, eys, sye

yes

1. second-person singular present indicative of ser

yes

1. blood

Borrowed from English yes.

yes

1. (colloquial) Expression of triumph, vehement approval, etc.

Borrowed from English yes.

• IPA^(key): /jɛs/

• Audio:

  (file)

• Hyphenation: yes
• Rhymes: -ɛs

yes

1. (colloquial) yay (exclamation of happiness or enthusiasm)

   Synonyms: joepie, jippie, (archaic) hoezee, (archaic) joechei

Borrowed from English yes.

• IPA^(key): /jɛs/

• Audio (France (Vosges)):

  (file)

yes

1. (chiefly North America, colloquial) yes!

   Synonym: oui

From Esperanto jes, from English yes.

• IPA^(key): /jes/

yes

1. yes

   Antonym: no

yes (uncountable)

1. alternative form of is (“ice”)

yes

1. alternative form of yis (“yes”)

yes

1. (East Anglia) alternative form of þes (“these”)

yes

1. (Late Middle English) plural of ye (“eye”)

Unadapted borrowing from English yes. Doublet of iá.

• Rhymes: -ɛs, -ɛjs
• Hyphenation: yes

yes!

1. (colloquial) yes; yeah; expression of pleasure, joy or great excitement

   Synonym: isso!

• Rhymes: -es
• Syllabification: yes

Unadapted borrowing from English yes.

yes

1. (colloquial) yes

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

yes f pl

1. plural of ye

Borrowed from English yes.

• IPA^(key): /jɛs/
• Rhymes: -ɛsː

yes

1. (colloquial) yes

   Yes, det stämmer

   Yep, that's correct

   Yes! Där satt den! Rätt upp i krysset.

   Yes! Nailed it! ["There (just now) it sat!" (where I wanted it – the goal in this case – also used more abstractly for "You've got it!" and the like) – colloquial] Straight into the top corner.

• yes box

• yes in Svenska Akademiens ordbok (SAOB)

yes

1. you (plural), you all

• ñaś
• su
• tuwe
• wes

From English yes.

yes

1. yes (word used to show agreement or acceptance)

yes

1. yes (used to express pleasure, joy, or great excitement)