Arabic vocabulary
خَلْفbehind/pursuit in Arabic
خَلْف is how you say “behind/pursuit” in Arabic. Hear it pronounced and see it used in a real example sentence from classical texts below.
Root خ ل ف (kh-l-f)noun (verbal noun / maṣdar), also used adverbiallyPronounced khalf
Meaning of behind/pursuit in Arabic
- behind, at the back of — used adverbially of position, e.g. جَآءَ خَلْفَهُ "he came behind him"
- the act of following, coming after, or succeeding another — as the verbal noun of خَلَفَ, said especially of one who follows after a person who has died or perished
- posterity, a generation that comes after and succeeds another — Qur'anic usage (7:169, 19:59), often implying an inferior or evil later generation
خَلْف is the basic verbal noun tied to the idea of coming after someone or something; it can function adverbially for 'behind' in place, and in the Qur'an it names a 'posterity' or later generation that succeeds an earlier one, sometimes with a negative shade (an unworthy successor generation).
Words from the same root
- خَلَفَto come after, follow, succeed, or remain after someone (form I verb)
- خَلِيفٌsuccessor, one who takes another's place or acts on their behalf
- خِلَافَةٌsuccession; the office or state of being someone's successor/deputy
- خَلَفٌone who takes another's place, a substitute or successor
- خِلْفَةٌalternation, coming one after another (e.g. night after day, fruit after fruit)
Common questions
- How do you say "behind" in Arabic?
- خَلْف (khalf).
- What does خَلْف mean literally?
- It is the verbal noun of خَلَفَ, meaning the act of coming after or following someone; by extension it also means 'behind' in position, and in the Qur'an can refer to a later, succeeding generation.
Definitions synthesised from Lane's Arabic-English Lexicon (E. W. Lane, 1863–1893).
Example sentences
وما علم أن هبوط الغائص في اللجّة خلف الدرّ صعود
And did not know that the diver's descent into the depth in pursuit of the pearl is an ascent.
خَلْفَ — in pursuit of. khalf means 'behind, after'; here 'in pursuit of'; the noun after it takes the 'of' ending.
From: Adam's Descent →
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