بلی

See also: بلى, تلي, and بلي

Ottoman Turkish

Etymology

Borrowed from Persian بلی (bali).

Interjection

بلی • (beli)

1. yes

Descendants

• Turkish: beli

Pahari-Potwari

Etymology

Inherited from Sanskrit विडाली (viḍālī).

Noun

بِلّی (billī)

1. cat

Persian

Alternative forms

• بله (bale) (modern Iranian spelling)

Etymology

Borrowed from Arabic بَلَى (balā). For the vowel change in Classical Persian compare لیکِن (lēkin), from Arabic لَٰكِن (lākin).

Pronunciation

• (Classical Persian) IPA^(key): [ˈba.leː]

 

• (Dari, formal) IPA^(key): [bǽ.leː]

• (Dari, formal) IPA^(key): [bǽ.leː]
  • (Kabuli) IPA^(key): [bǽ.leː]
  • (Hazaragi) IPA^(key): [bǽ.leː]

• (Iran, formal) IPA^(key): [bǽ.liː]

• (Tajik, formal) IPA^(key): [bǽ.le]

Readings
Classical reading?	balē
Dari reading?	balē
Iranian reading?	bali
Tajik reading?	bale

Adverb

Dari	بلی
Iranian Persian	بله
Tajik	бале

بلی • (balê or bali) (Dari and Classical Persian spelling, dated or literary in Iran)

1. yes

Descendants

• Dari: بلی (balē)
• Iranian Persian: بله (bale), بلی (bali) (literary)
• Tajik: бале (bale)
• → Azerbaijani: bəli
• → Ottoman Turkish: بلی (bali)
  • Turkish: beli
• Urdu: بلے (balē)

See also

• آری (ârê, “yes”) (Dari and classical spelling)
• آره (âre, “yes”) (Iranian spelling)

Urdu

Pronunciation

• (Standard Urdu) IPA^(key): /bɪl.liː/
• Rhymes: -iː

Etymology 1

Inherited from Sanskrit विडाली (viḍālī).

Noun

بِلّی • (billī) f (masculine بِلَّا (billā), Hindi spelling बिल्ली)

1. cat

Usage notes

• Although this word is feminine and used for female cats, it is also used to mean domestic cat in general. The masculine form, or the word for tomcat, is بِلَّا (billā).

Declension

Declension of بلی
	singular	plural
direct	بلی (billī)	بلِیاں (billiyā̃)
oblique	بلی (billī)	بلِیوں (billiyō̃)
vocative	بلی (billī)	بلِیو (billiyō)

Etymology 2

Borrowed from Arabic بَلَى (balā).

Adverb

بلیٰ • (balā) (Hindi spelling बला)

1. yes, why not

References

• “بَلیٰ”, in ریخْتَہ لُغَت (rexta luġat) - Rekhta Dictionary [Urdu dictionary with meanings in Hindi & English], Noida, India: Rekhta Foundation, 2025.