بُدّ alternative in Arabic
بُدّ is how you say “alternative” in Arabic.
Root ب د د b-d-d. noun. budd.
Arabic
English
The audio uses AI voices.
Meaning of alternative in Arabic
- alternative, other option Chiefly encountered in the negated phrase لا بُدّ, literally 'no alternative,' used to say something is necessary or unavoidable.
Example sentence
وَأَنْزِلْهَا مَنْزِلَةَ مَنْ لَا حَاجَةَ لَهُ فِيهَا وَلا بُدَّ لَهُ مِنْهَا
Place it in the position of one who has no desire for it yet cannot do without it.
بُدَّ escape
'budd' = 'way out, escape'. With 'la': 'no escape' — i.e. he 'must'.
The English is machine-translated.
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How it is used
Ties to the root's sense of parting or drawing apart: a بُدّ is a separate course open to someone, hence 'alternative.' It appears almost exclusively in negative constructions expressing inevitability.
Words from the same root
- بَدَّ to separate, withdraw, or draw something away
- بدّد to scatter, disperse, or dissipate
- تبدّد to become scattered or dispersed
- أبدّ to divide among people, giving each a share
- بادّ to barter or exchange goods
More example sentences
وَلَا بُدَّ مِنْ تَسْلِيمِ أَنَّ بَعْضَ الْكَبَائِرِ أَكْبَرُ مِنْ بَعْضٍ،
And it must be acknowledged that some major sins are more severe than others.
بُدَّ must
The noun completing 'there is no escape', taking the special ending that the absolute-negation construction puts on it. The pair states a firm necessity.
وَإِنْ كَانَ وَلَا بُدَّ، فَعَلَى سَبِيلِ الإِجْتِيَازِ،
And if it must be, then as an expedient.
بُدَّ it is necessary
This noun completes the set phrase 'no escaping it', meaning the thing is inescapable or must happen. It is the core of an idiom that, with the negator before it, expresses unavoidable necessity. Its ending marks it as the predicate that the necessity rests on.
Common questions
- How do you say "alternative" in Arabic?
- بُدّ (budd). It is most often used in the phrase لا بُدّ, literally 'no alternative,' meaning something is inevitable or unavoidable.
- What does the phrase لا بُدّ mean?
- Literally 'there is no alternative' — it expresses that something must happen or is necessary.
Related words
Definitions summarised from Lane's Arabic-English Lexicon (E. W. Lane, 1863–1893).