Arabic

[ar-uh-bik]

adjective

1. of, belonging to, or derived from the language or literature of the Arabs.

2. noting, pertaining to, or derived from an alphabetic script in which etymologically short vowels are not normally represented, used for the writing of Arabic probably since about the fourth century a.d., and adopted with modifications by Persian, Urdu, and many other languages.

3. of or relating to Arabs.

4. of or relating to Arabia or its inhabitants; Arabian.

noun

1. a Semitic language that developed out of the language of the Arabians of the time of Muhammad, now spoken in countries of the Middle East and North Africa. Ar, Ar.

2. the standard literary and classical language as established by the Quran.

Arabic

/ ˈærəbɪk /

noun

1. the language of the Arabs, spoken in a variety of dialects; the official language of Algeria, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, the Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, Saudi Arabia, the Sudan, Syria, Tunisia, and Yemen. It is estimated to be the native language of some 75 million people throughout the world. It belongs to the Semitic subfamily of the Afro-Asiatic family of languages and has its own alphabet, which has been borrowed by certain other languages such as Urdu

adjective

1. denoting or relating to this language, any of the peoples that speak it, or the countries in which it is spoken

Other Word Forms

• anti-Arabic adjective
• non-Arabic adjective
• pro-Arabic adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of Arabic¹

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English arabik, from Latin Arabicus “Arabian,” equivalent to Arab(ia) + -icus adjective suffix; -ic

Example Sentences

In a post on X on Wednesday, the military's Arabic spokesman Avichay Adraee said families relocating to the south would "receive the most generous humanitarian aid".

From BBC

Driving into Cairo over one of its busiest bridges, a huge electronic billboard flicks from an ice cream advert to a picture of Salah next to the Arabic word 'shukran', which means 'thank you'.

From BBC

It is an unusual Arabic and Kurdish phrase that may perhaps be best translated as "Exclusive".

From BBC

Peggy, on the other hand, was enlarged by her time away; she likes to demonstrate a few words of Arabic.

From Los Angeles Times

One man living in the north of the Strip told BBC Arabic's Middle East Daily the process is "unsafe" and has "caused numerous tragedies".

From BBC