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 Words From

• an·ti-Ar·a·bic adjective
• non-Ar·a·bic adjective
• pro-Ar·a·bic 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

The characters speak Hausa, Fulani, and Arabic and could be in Nigeria, Mali or Burkina Faso, where Boko Haram has made headway of late.

From Ozy

See, by then, I had spent two months learning Darija, the Moroccan dialect of Arabic, in addition to the four years of Modern Standard Arabic that I took in college.

From Ozy

The stories are based in the Middle East and North Africa and resemble a tray of assorted Arabic sweets.

From Washington Post

The future for Yemi, a Nigerian former student, was laid out in a contract written in Arabic which she signed in an office in Lagos in June 2019 to enable a recruitment agency bring her to work in Lebanon.

From Quartz

The Israeli Foreign Ministry, on the other hand, operates an Arabic-language Facebook profile to reach people in Iraq, where Facebook is popular.

From Ozy

His discourse is now more detailed: submission, which is the meaning of islam in Arabic, gives him a kind of enjoyment.

From The Daily Beast

Even for Arabic dance no one wears a long dress, just a scarf around the hips.

From The Daily Beast

She attends hip-hop and belly dance classes (known as Arabic dance in Iran) just to shine more at parties.

From The Daily Beast

The group puts out most of its statements—on its Twitter feed, or its numerous websites—in Arabic, as opposed to Baluchi or Farsi.

From The Daily Beast

The outlets giving these pronouncements the most airtime are Arabic news stations in the Gulf.

From The Daily Beast

There is something pleasant in this monk's having had both a Latin and an Arabic name.

From Project Gutenberg

Have ready some very clear and weak gum-arabic water, or some thin starch, or rice-water.

From Project Gutenberg

The princess may love the gems in his turban, his Arabic verses; but not even here in Sicily will she wed an infidel.

From Project Gutenberg

From the benches came countless curses and jeers—Frankish and Arabic; he heeded none.

From Project Gutenberg

It was about this time, too, that the encouragement of the study of Arabic in the university began.

From Project Gutenberg