صَحِيحٌ authentic in Arabic
صَحِيحٌ is how you say “authentic” in Arabic.
Root ص ح ح ṣ-ḥ-ḥ. adjective (verbal adjective / ṣifa mushabbaha, faʿīl pattern). ṣaḥīḥ.
Arabic
English
The audio uses AI voices.
Meaning of authentic in Arabic
- healthy, sound, free from disease of a body or a person; the physical, literal sense
- sound, valid, true, correct, authentic figurative use: free from any defect, flaw, or ground for doubt — applied to testimony, a claim, a saying, a contract, or a legal ruling being established and unimpeachable
Example sentence
ولهذا ثبت في الصحيح عن النبي ﷺ
And this is why it was affirmed in the authentic narration from the Prophet ﷺ:
الصَّحِيحِ the authentic narration
A noun-from-adjective, 'the Sound (collection)', in the genitive after 'in' and made specific by 'al-'. It names the recognized body of verified reports.
The English is machine-translated.
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How it is used
Ṣaḥīḥ starts from the literal sense of bodily health (opposite of illness) and is extended, by the same logic, to anything free of defect or doubt: a saying that is true, testimony that holds up, a right that is established, a contract properly executed. This figurative use — "sound/valid/authentic" rather than merely "true" — is the sense behind the modern gloss "authentic."
Words from the same root
- صَحَّ to be/become healthy, or to recover from illness; also to be or prove true, valid, sound
- صِحَّةٌ health, soundness of body; also validity/soundness of a claim or statement
- صحّحهُ to restore someone to health; also to correct or rectify a text or an account
- اصحّهُ to find a person to be healthy; or to have one's family or livestock in a healthy state
- صَحْصَحَ for a thing or matter to become distinct, clear, or manifest
More example sentences
هذا هو الصحيح في معنى الآية
This is the correct interpretation of the verse.
الصَّحِيحُ the correct
This noun 'the correct/sound' is the predicate of 'this is the correct', made definite by 'the', in the plain ending. It identifies the interpretation as the sound one and heads into the 'in the meaning' phrase that follows.
فَالنِّيَّاتُ لَا تُغْنِي وَحْدَهَا إِذَا كَانَ الْعَمَلُ غَيْرُ صَحِيحٍ،
So intentions alone do not suffice if the deed is not correct.
صَحِيحٍ correct
An adjective meaning 'sound/correct', governed by the preceding 'other than', which is why it carries the genitive -in ending (the audible tanween). Together they negate the deed's soundness inside the condition: 'if the deed is not correct'.
إِنَّمَا أَرَدْنَا لِلْمَعْرِفَةِ، وَالصَّحِيحُ حَدِيثُ أَبِيْ ذَرٍّ
We intended it only for knowledge, and the authentic report is that of Abu Dharr.
وَالصَّحِيحُ and the authentic
The connector wa- opens the contrasting clause, on the definite noun 'the sound/authentic one'. Here wa- swings to a new, corrective point rather than merely adding, leading into 'but the authentic report is...'.
وَقَدْ ثَبَتَ فِي الصَّحِيحِ أَنَّ جِبْرِيلَ لَمَّا جَاءَ إِلَى النَّبِيِّ ﷺ
It is established in the Sahih that when Gabriel came to the Prophet.
الصَّحِيحِ the Sahih
A definite noun naming the collection, governed by 'in' into the genitive. It is the source where the report is established, completing 'in the Sahih'.
Common questions
- How do you say "authentic" in Arabic?
- صَحِيحٌ (ṣaḥīḥ).
- Does ṣaḥīḥ only mean physically healthy?
- No — it starts from 'healthy, free of disease' but is just as commonly used figuratively for something sound, valid, correct, or authentic, such as a statement, a piece of testimony, or a contract.
Related words
Definitions summarised from Lane's Arabic-English Lexicon (E. W. Lane, 1863–1893).