Tag Archives: vocabulary

From an Airport, into the Blur

مَطار root: ط-ي-ر / noun of place / plural: مَطارات / definition: airport I’m writing this from a quiet(er) corner of Gatwick’s North Terminal after arriving four hours early, burdened with overstuffed cabin bags and guilt from having to throw away an unopened pint of milk before I left home. Even after a sit-down matchaContinue reading “From an Airport, into the Blur”

Arabic Observations: Returning to مُحيط

إعادة root: ع-و-د / form IV verbal noun / definition: return, re- In the past few days, I reconnected with someone I haven’t seen in eleven years. And it made me reflect on the reasons why we return to our past—or why it returns to us. And in terms of ideas, one theme I keepContinue reading “Arabic Observations: Returning to مُحيط”

Dictionary Finds: بقيت دار لقمان على حالها

دار root: د-و-ر / noun / plural: دِيار / definition: home I had this idea a few days ago to vlog a week in my life as a PhD student. And now, every action poses a conundrum. Like, do I record the aftermath of my disastrous attempt to bake a sugar-free brownie without a recipeContinue reading “Dictionary Finds: بقيت دار لقمان على حالها”

A De-Forgotten Song, an Antidote, a Last Post

أَخير root: ء-خ-ر / adjective / definition: last Something usually goes wrong in the first few days of me living alone. This time? I almost got locked out of the house, thanks to a jammed lock (remedied with olive oil, what else?)—oh, and I almost poisoned myself. After messaging my sister to make sure sheContinue reading “A De-Forgotten Song, an Antidote, a Last Post”

Arabic Diptotes: الممنوع من الصرف

اِنْتِظار root: ن-ظ-ر / form VIII verbal noun / definition: waiting Time and tide wait for no man. Yesterday was the first day I came across this English proverb. Its meaning resonated, but what really drew me to this phrase was the word “tide”. You see, I’ve been thinking about the sea a lot lately.Continue reading “Arabic Diptotes: الممنوع من الصرف”

Uncommon Arabic Words for Mankind

البَشَر root: ب-ش-ر / noun / definition: mankind For someone who aspires for a slow-paced life, I sure do seem to be on the go a lot. “Another project?” they ask. Yes, apparently so. I’ve been liaising with venues and thinking of my friend’s article in between organising a family trip on an I’ll-reply-when-I-can groupContinue reading “Uncommon Arabic Words for Mankind”

The Taste of Language

لِسان root: ل-س-ن / noun / plural: أَلسِنة، أَلسُن / definition: tongue, language I’m on day 3 of a five-day run of meetings and meet-ups. TfL continues to fleece me, my average step count continues to rise, and I continue to wonder what kind of rehab my introverted self will need after this. Popping intoContinue reading “The Taste of Language”

Academic Arabic: Bridging, Framing, and Projecting

صَباح root: ص-ب-ح / noun / definition: morning Today, I woke up busy. I spent all my morning hours—and half of my afternoon ones—on my rocking chair with laptop in lap, steadily ticking through my checklist. I’ll become a morning person by force at this rate. Yet, don’t fret, nothing can distract me from writingContinue reading “Academic Arabic: Bridging, Framing, and Projecting”

إيمان: Form IV Verbal Nouns of Hamza-Initial Roots

صُداع root: ص-د-ع / noun / definition: headache I keep forgetting I’m 27. In my head, I’m already 28, and I’m not sure why. It’s slightly ironic that I can’t digest the number 27; it seems I recognise 27 in everything but myself. (I wonder if I lost a year in the time difference betweenContinue reading “إيمان: Form IV Verbal Nouns of Hamza-Initial Roots”