Arabic vocabulary
قَبِلَaccept in Arabic
قَبِلَ is how you say “accept” in Arabic. Hear it pronounced and see it used in real example sentences from classical texts below.
Root ق ب ل (q-b-l)verb (form I)Pronounced qabila
Meaning of accept in Arabic
- to accept, receive, or take willingly — Implies taking something with approbation rather than mere reception.
- (of a sandal) to have its strap break — A narrow, technical usage referring to the قِبَال (strap) of a sandal.
The root ق ب ل yields two distinct Form I readings from the same letters: qabala (fatḥa), used of facing or fronting something and paired with its opposite دبر ('to turn away'), and qabila (kasra), the word treated here, meaning 'to accept.' Because both branches share one root, later forms built on it split between two families of meaning — facing/meeting/advancing (qābala, aqbala, istaqbala) and willing acceptance (qabila) — so vocalization and context matter for telling them apart.
Words from the same root
- قَابَلَهُto face or be opposite him/it; to correspond to, or requite/compare one thing with another
- أَقْبَلَto come forward, advance; (of fortune) to turn favorable
- تَقَابَلُواto face, or confront, one another
- اِقْتَبَلَهُto begin or commence (an affair)
- اِسْتَقْبَلَهُto face, meet, or go to receive someone; also to anticipate something before it occurs
- قَبْلُbefore (opposite of after)
- إِقْبَالٌadvance, or good fortune
Common questions
- How do you say "accept" in Arabic?
- قَبِلَ (qabila) — to accept, receive, or take something willingly.
- What is the difference between قَبِلَ and قَابَلَ?
- قَبِلَ (Form I) means to accept or receive willingly, while قَابَلَ (Form III) means to face, oppose, or correspond to something, and can also mean to requite one thing with another.
Definitions synthesised from Lane's Arabic-English Lexicon (E. W. Lane, 1863–1893).
Example sentences
فَإِن قبلهَا فمنّة وَصدقَة ثَانِيَة،
So if He accepts it, it is a further favor and charity,
قَبِلَهَا — He accepts it. Past-tense verb 'accepted', 'he' form; the ending '-ha' adds 'it' (the deed) — 'He accepted it'.
From: Returning to God →فإذا ظهر الدليلُ الراجحُ تبِعه، وإن بقي الخلافُ بعد استفراغ الوسع قبِله، لأن اجتماعَ القلوب على العدلِ أرجحُ من انتصارِ لسانٍ على لسان
When the stronger evidence appears, he follows it, and if the disagreement remains after exhausting all efforts, he accepts it, because the unity of hearts upon justice is weightier than the victory of one tongue over another.
قَبِلَهُ — he accepts it. 'he accepted it,' the answer-verb, with '-hu' for the disagreement. After exhausting his effort, he ACCEPTS the remaining difference rather than forcing a resolution — for the reason given next.
From: Mercy in Disagreement →
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