كَوْن because in Arabic
كَوْن is how you say “because” in Arabic.
Root ك و ن k-w-n. noun (verbal noun / maṣdar). kawn.
Arabic
English
The audio uses AI voices.
Meaning of because in Arabic
- because; since used to introduce a reason, as in constructions like لكون ('because of the fact that')
- being, existence the verbal noun of كَانَ ('to be'); with the article, الكَوْن denotes 'the universe' or 'existence' itself
Example sentence
وَإِن ردّها فلكون مثلهَا لَا يصلح أَن يواجه بِهِ
And if He rejects it, it is because something like it is not fit to be presented to Him.
فَلِكَوْنِ it is because
fa- = 'then'; li- = 'because of'; kawn means 'the being, the fact that' — together 'then it is because'.
The English is machine-translated.
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How it is used
كَوْن is built from كَانَ, the fundamental Arabic verb 'to be,' which acts as a copula and takes its subject in the nominative and its predicate in the accusative (e.g. كَانَ زَيْدٌ قَائِمًا). As a noun, كَوْن carries the root sense of 'being' or 'existence' (hence الكَوْن, 'the universe'), but it is also used functionally to mean 'because/since' when introducing a reason.
Words from the same root
- كَانَ to be (the basic copula verb, e.g. كَانَ زَيْدٌ قَائِمًا 'Zeyd was standing')
- تَكَوَّنَ to come into existence, originate, form
- اِسْتَكَانَ to be humble, submissive, or abased
- كَيْنُونَةٌ being, existence (verbal-noun variant)
- مَكَانَةٌ a place of being; also standing, status, or condition
More example sentences
وأما من كان ليس من أهله لكونه غير جامع لأدواته فحرام عليه التفسير
As for those who are not qualified, because they do not possess the tools, interpretation is forbidden for them.
لِكَوْنِهِ because they are
'li-' plus an action-noun 'being' plus 'his' = 'because of his being / since he is.' Arabic builds 'because' by attaching this causal 'li-' to a 'being'-noun, a tidy way to give the reason: why is he no expert? Because of what comes next.
وأما من كان ليس من أهله لكونه غير جامع لأدواته فحرام عليه التفسير لكن له أن ينقل التفسير عن المعتمدين من أهله
As for those who are not its experts due to lack of tools, it is forbidden for them to interpret, but they can convey interpretation from trusted sources.
لِكَوْنِهِ for his being
Causal 'li-' on a 'being'-noun plus 'his' = 'because of his being / since he is.' It gives the reason he is no expert, spelled out next.
وأقسم على كون القرآن حقًا وصدقًا فقال ﴿إِنَّهُ لَقَوْلٌ فَصْلٌ وَمَا هُوَ بِالْهَزْلِ﴾
And He swore that the Quran is true and real, saying, 'Indeed, it is a decisive word, and it is not light talk.'
كَوْنِ the being
A verbal noun 'the being of', opening an 'of' pairing with the next word, held in the genitive by the preceding 'upon'. It packages 'the Quran's being true' as a noun phrase that the oath can affirm.
وأقسم على كون القرآن حقًا وصدقًا فقال ﴿إِنَّهُ لَقَوْلٌ فَصْلٌ وَمَا هُوَ بِالْهَزْلِ﴾
And He swore to the truth and authenticity of the Qur'an, saying: "Indeed, it is a decisive word, and it is not a jest."
كَوْنِ the truth
A verbal noun 'the being of', opening an 'of' pairing with the next word, held in the genitive by 'upon'. It packages 'the Quran's being true' as a noun phrase the oath can affirm.
وأقسم على كون القرآن حقًا وصدقًا فقال ﴿إِنَّهُ لَقَوْلٌ فَصْلٌ وَمَا هُوَ بِالْهَزْلِ﴾
And He swore concerning the truth and authenticity of the Quran, saying: 'Indeed, it is a decisive word, and it is not a jest.'
كَوْنِ the truth of
This noun 'being/the fact of being' is the front of an 'of' pair, 'the being of the Quran', genitive after the preposition. It names an abstract state and owns the noun after it, setting up 'that the Quran is true'.
السادس أنه لا ذكر للاحليل حتى يتعين كون المرجع إليه
The sixth is that there is no mention of the urethra to justify that it is the referred object.
كَوْنُ that it is
This noun 'being/that-it-is' is a verbal noun, the subject of 'becomes determined', and the front of an 'of' pair, 'its being the referent'. It names the abstract fact and owns the genitive that follows.
فَظَهَرَ أَنَّ مَنْ أَنْكَرَ كَوْنَهُ رَسُولًا نَبِيًّا فَقَدْ قَدَحَ بِاللَّهِ وَنَقَصَهُ وَنَسَبَهُ إِلَى الْجَهْلِ وَالْعَجْزِ وَالسَّفَهِ
It became clear that whoever denies his being a Messenger and Prophet has indeed defamed God, diminished Him, and attributed ignorance, inability, and folly to Him.
كَوْنَهُ his being
This noun names being or status, with an attached possessive pronoun, so 'his being', and it is the object of the denying verb, hence its accusative ending. The owner pronoun points to the Messenger; the noun opens what is denied of him.
Common questions
- How do you say "because" in Arabic?
- كَوْن (kawn), often in the construction لكون ("because of the fact that").
- What is the root meaning of كَوْن?
- It comes from كَانَ ('to be') and literally means 'being' or 'existence' — the same root gives الكَوْن, 'the universe.'
Related words
Definitions summarised from Lane's Arabic-English Lexicon (E. W. Lane, 1863–1893).