Tag Archives: roots

Root Exploration: م-و-ه

بَسيط root: ب-س-ط / adjective / definition: simple What can we get from the root of a word as simple as “water”? In Arabic, quite a lot! Here we are, with the second post in the Root Exploration series, and this time we’re taking a look at the root م-و-ه.

Four Particles That Mean “So That”

حَرْف root: ح-ر-ف / noun / plural: حُروف / definition: letter, (grammatical) particle It’s never too soon for another synonyms post, so this week we’re taking a look at four different particles we can use to express purpose—they can all be translated as “so that” or “in order to“.

Arabic Observations: the Abstract Noun of a Question?

تَأنيث root: ء-ن-ث / verbal noun of form II / definition: feminisation You might know that, in order to create an abstract noun in Arabic, you can simply feminise a regular noun with the typical ـِيّة ending. Examples include: إنسانِيّة – humanity (derived from إنسان, human) اِشتِراكِيّة – socialism (derived from اِشتِراك, participation) لاشَيئِيّة –Continue reading “Arabic Observations: the Abstract Noun of a Question?”

Arabic Observations: Same Root Letters, Different Sequence

تَرْتيب root: ر-ت-ب / verbal noun of form II / plural: تَرْتيبات / definition: order, sequence I just couldn’t resist another post in the Arabic Observations series this week! (But an in-demand post about the Hans Wehr dictionary is coming soon! Can you guess what it might be?) For this post, we’re taking things downContinue reading “Arabic Observations: Same Root Letters, Different Sequence”

Four Arabic Roots to Express the Phrase “on the Verge of”

أَرْبَعَة root: ر-ب-ع / noun / definition: four We couldn’t go much longer without another synonyms post (even though my posts-to-write list is ever-expanding with other wonderful things)—so this week we’re taking a look at four different roots that we can use to express the meaning of “on the verge of” in Arabic.

Root Exploration: ك-ش-ف

جَذْر root: ج-ذ-ر / noun / plural: جُذور / definition: root I feel a very nerdy rush of excitement as I begin this post, because it’s the first in the new Root Exploration series! In this series of posts, we’re going to take a single Arabic root and explore all of its different forms, derivatives,Continue reading “Root Exploration: ك-ش-ف”

Arabic Observations: Duplicated Roots with Reduplicated Forms

مُلاحَظة root: ل-ح-ظ / noun / plural: مُلاحَظات / definition: observation The title might appear somewhat complex, but this topic is just plain cool. If you’ve been keeping up with the Arabic Observations series, you might remember the post Arabic Observations: Doubled Roots, where we looked at the properties and meanings of roots such as ع-س-ع-سContinue reading “Arabic Observations: Duplicated Roots with Reduplicated Forms”

(Over) Seven Ways to Say “Except” in Arabic–Plus the Grammar

كَثْرة root: ك-ث-ر / noun / definition: large quantity, abundance On The Arabic Pages‘ Instagram this week, I asked everyone what type of post they wanted to see next: an addition to synonyms series or another grammar explanation. It was a 50/50 divide. So, why not hit two birds with one stone and go through aContinue reading “(Over) Seven Ways to Say “Except” in Arabic–Plus the Grammar”

Arabic Observations: Doubled Roots

مُزْدَوِج root: ز-و-ج / active participle of form VIII / definition: double I really love writing these Arabic Observations posts, because the way the Arabic language reveals its beautiful complexities—no matter how “small” they may be—deserves to be recorded.

How to Use (and Love) the Hans Wehr Dictionary

قاموس root: ق-م-س / noun / plural: قَواميس / definition: dictionary If I had started this blog for the purpose of sharing only a single post, it would be this one. You would only have to be studying Arabic for a short while before you’d hear the name “Hans Wehr” flying at you from allContinue reading “How to Use (and Love) the Hans Wehr Dictionary”