3 Malay nationals and a Filipino were killed in the Davao bombing on Mindanao.
Source: tatoeba (958063)
Malay
/ˈmeɪ̯leɪ̯/
Synonyms for "malay" (16 found)
Ranked by relevance and common usage.
Closest matches (4)
Strong matches (4)
Noun(3 words)
malay communitymalay culturalmalay historical
Related words (8)
Choosing the right synonym
- Closest matches in this entry: malayan, bahasa melayu, english, ethnic malay, language.
- Sentence evidence is available for malay, so synonym choice can be checked against real usage rather than a flat word list.
- Ranking signals come from wordnet, opengloss, derived_reverse.
Synonym selection checklist
- Match the part of speech before comparing meanings.
- Check whether the synonym changes intensity, formality, or emotional tone.
- Read the replacement inside the full sentence, not just beside "malay".
- Prefer the clearest word over the most unusual word when writing for speed or comprehension.
When not to replace "malay"
Keep "malay" when the sentence already sounds natural, when a synonym would add unintended emphasis, or when readers need the most familiar wording. A synonym should clarify or sharpen the message, not simply make the sentence look more varied.
If two options seem close, choose the one that best matches the audience and purpose of the sentence.
Replacement workflow
1. Preserve meaning
Choose a synonym only if it keeps the core idea of "malay" intact in the sentence you are editing.
2. Tune tone
Check whether the replacement sounds more formal, casual, emotional, technical, or forceful than the original word.
3. Re-read context
Read the full sentence after the swap. Keep the synonym only when the sentence becomes clearer or more precise.
Review note: Synonym lists are ranked with lexical data and reviewed for practical writing value. Use the comparison notes, sentence evidence, and source labels together; a high-ranking synonym can still be wrong when the audience, register, or grammar changes.
Final fit check
After choosing a replacement for "malay", read the sentence once for meaning and once for rhythm. The best synonym should feel natural in the full sentence, not only accurate in a word list.
If the synonym makes the sentence slower, vaguer, or more dramatic than intended, keep "malay" or choose a simpler alternative from the closest-match group.
Related word relations
OpenGloss and ConceptNet supply richer edges like generalizations, collocations, and derivations.
More general
12 entriesMore specific
16 entriesCollocations
10 entriesMalay PeninsulaMalay archipelagoMalay cuisineMalay cultureMalay dialectsMalay grammarMalay languageMalay peopleMalay scriptStandard Malay
Inflections
3 entriesDerivations
3 entriesTranslations
51 translations across 44 languages.
Afrikaans
1 entries- Maleis name (the Malay language)
Arabic
1 entries- لُغَة مِلَايُو name (the Malay language)
Armenian
1 entries- մալայերեն name (the Malay language)
Asturian
1 entries- malayu name (the Malay language)
Basque
1 entries- malaiera name (the Malay language)
Catalan
1 entries- malai name (the Malay language)
Chinese
1 entries- 馬來語 /马来语 name (the Malay language)
Chinese Cantonese
2 entries- 馬來話 /马来话 name (the Malay language)
- 馬拉話 /马拉话 name (the Malay language)
Chinese Mandarin
1 entries- 馬來語 /马来语 name (the Malay language)
Czech
1 entries- malajština name (the Malay language)
Dutch
1 entries- Maleis name (the Malay language)
Esperanto
1 entries- Malaja name (the Malay language)
Finnish
1 entries- malaiji name (the Malay language)
French
1 entries- malais name (the Malay language)
German
1 entries- Malaiisch name (the Malay language)
Greek
1 entries- μαλαισιανά name (the Malay language)
Hakka Chinese
1 entries- 馬來語 /马来语 name (the Malay language)
Hindi
1 entries- मलय name (the Malay language)
Hungarian
1 entries- maláj name (the Malay language)
Icelandic
1 entries- malajíska name (the Malay language)
Indonesian
2 entries- Melayu name (the Malay language)
- bahasa Melayu name (the Malay language)
Irish
1 entries- Malaeis name (the Malay language)
Italian
1 entries- malese name (the Malay language)
Japanese
1 entries- マレー語 name (the Malay language)
Kazakh
1 entries- малай тілі name (the Malay language)
Korean
2 entries- 마인어 name (the Malay language)
- 말레이어 name (the Malay language)
Latin
2 entries- Malaeorum name (the Malay language)
- Malaicum name (the Malay language)
Macedonian
1 entries- малајски name (the Malay language)
Malay
1 entries- bahasa Melayu name (the Malay language)
Manx
1 entries- Malayish name (the Malay language)
Navajo
1 entries- Maléízha bizaad name (the Malay language)
Norwegian Bokmål
1 entries- malayisk name (the Malay language)
Norwegian Nynorsk
1 entries- malayisk name (the Malay language)
Persian
1 entries- زبان مالایی name (the Malay language)
Polish
1 entries- malajski name (the Malay language)
Portuguese
1 entries- malaio name (the Malay language)
Russian
2 entries- мала́йский name (the Malay language)
- мала́йский язы́к name (the Malay language)
Scottish Gaelic
1 entries- Malaidhis name (the Malay language)
Spanish
1 entries- malayo name (the Malay language)
Swedish
1 entries- malajiska name (the Malay language)
Tagalog
1 entries- Malayo name (the Malay language)
Thai
2 entries- ภาษามลายู name (the Malay language)
- ภาษามาเลย์ name (the Malay language)
Turkish
1 entries- Malayca name (the Malay language)
Vietnamese
2 entries- tiếng Mã lai name (the Malay language)
- tiếng Mã-lai name (the Malay language)
Sample sentences
15 total sentences available.
Singapore is called "Singapura" in Malay.
Source: tatoeba (1815473)
I've heard the Malay for "word" means "a piece of something broken off."
Source: tatoeba (2040111)
"Mata" means "eye" in Malay, "mata mata" is "an indefinite number of eyes"--or the police.
Source: tatoeba (2040115)
Showing 4 of 15 available sentences.
Common questions
What are the closest synonyms for "malay"?
Closest matches include malayan, bahasa melayu, english, ethnic malay, language.
How should I check whether a synonym fits "malay"?
Compare the replacement against real sentence context. This entry includes sample sentences so you can check tone, grammar, and meaning before swapping words.