Arabic vocabulary
هَلْhave
How to say “have” in Arabic, with pronunciation and real example sentences from OpenArabic texts.
Example sentences
قال قبحها الله من سيوف، وهل أغنت شيئا؟
He said: May Allah curse these swords! Have they ever been of any use?
وَهَلْ — and have. wa- = 'and'; hal = the yes/no question word — together 'and have (they)…?'.
From: Early Converts to Islam →إذا داهمك خاطرٌ يجرّك إلى رياءٍ أو عُجب، اسأله بهدوء هل يزيدني قربًا أم يصنع لي تمثالًا من دخان
If a thought comes to you that leads you to vanity or conceit, ask it calmly: does it bring me closer, or does it create a statue of smoke?
هَلْ — does. 'hal' = a yes/no question marker — it turns a sentence into 'does...?'.
From: On Sincerity →ومن فقهِ المقاصدِ أن يُوزَنَ الفعلُ بثمرتِه هل يدرأ ضررًا أعظم أم يجلبُ نفعًا راجحًا؟
From the understanding of the objectives, an action is weighed by its outcome: does it prevent a greater harm or bring a significant benefit?
هَل — does it. The yes/no question-marker, opening the test the weighing applies: 'does it...?'. It turns the next clauses into the two-way question — ward off harm, or bring benefit?
From: Five Objectives of Islamic Law →فلا يكتفي بصحَّةِ الإجراء، بل يسأل هل يُحصِّلُ المقصد؟
it is not enough to verify the correctness of the procedure; rather, one asks: does it achieve the objective?
هَلْ — does it. The yes/no question-marker, opening the question he really cares about: 'does it...?'. It frames the test that matters — not 'was it valid?' but 'did it work?', as the verb next puts it.
From: Five Objectives of Islamic Law →فأتاه فقال إنه قتل تسعه وتسعين نفساً، فهل له من توبة؟
So he came to him and said, 'He has killed ninety-nine people, is there repentance for him?'
فَهَلْ — is there. This is 'so' plus the yes-or-no question word — 'so is there...?'. Arabic opens a yes/no question with this particle rather than a change in word order. It launches his plea about whether repentance is open to him.
From: Righteous Company →فدل على رجل عالم فقال إنه قتل مائة نفس فهل له من توبة؟
He was directed to a scholar and said, 'He has killed a hundred people; is there repentance for him?'
فَهَلْ — is there. This is 'so' plus the yes/no question word — 'so is there...?'. It re-opens his plea about repentance. Arabic flags a yes/no question with this particle, not a word-order change.
From: Righteous Company →فيقول هل رأوني؟
He says: Have they seen Me?
هَلْ — Have. This is the yes-or-no question particle 'have / do' — 'have they seen Me?'. Arabic opens such a question with this word rather than reordering.
From: Where Angels Gather →فقال وهل يصلح أن أدعو بأن تهوي إليَّ وأنا لست بشيء؟
He said: Is it appropriate for me to pray that they be directed to me while I am nothing?
وَهَلْ — and is it. This is wa- 'and' plus the yes/no question particle 'is it?'; that particle stands at the front to flag a question expecting yes or no, the slot Arabic reserves for asking. So the clause asks 'and is it fitting...?'.
From: Bedouin Manners →قَالَ الرِّيَاءُ، يَقُولُ اللهُ تَعَالَى يَوْمَ يُجَازِي الْعِبَادَ بِأَعْمَالِهِمْ اذْهَبُوا إِلَى الَّذِينَ كُنْتُمْ تُرَاءُونَهُمْ بِأَعْمَالِكُمْ فِي الدُّنْيَا فَانْظُرُوا هَلْ تَجِدُونَ عِنْدَهُمْ جَزَاءً
He said: 'It is showing off. Allah will say on the Day He recompenses people for their deeds: Go to those for whom you showed off in the world and see if you find any reward with them.'
هَلْ — if. A yes-or-no question particle that turns the following statement into a question, 'is there...?'. It is an interrogative marker, signaling that an answer is expected rather than carrying a meaning of its own.
From: The Hidden Idolatry →قل لي هل يكون طالب من خدام السنة يتهاون بالصلوات ،
Tell me, can a seeker among the servants of the Sunnah be negligent in prayers,
هَل — can. This is a question particle that flips the following statement into a yes-or-no question, like a spoken question mark at the front. Arabic does not reorder words to ask; it simply prefixes this particle, so 'a seeker can be...' becomes 'can a seeker be...?'.
From: True Devotion →فَهَلْ أَدَيْتَ حَقَّهَا؟
So, have you fulfilled her right?
فَهَلْ — so is it that. The front fa- gives a 'so / then' linking force, and fused to it is the yes-or-no question particle that turns the clause into a question expecting yes or no. So the word both connects and asks, 'so have you...?'. The question marker is what flips the following statement into an inquiry.
From: Honoring Parents →هَلْ تَكَلَّّمُ،
Did she speak?
هَلْ — did. A question particle placed at the very front to turn the whole clause into a yes/no question. It expects a 'yes' or 'no' answer and is the spoken equivalent of English flipping word order or adding 'did', without changing any other word.
From: Wives of the Prophet →وَهَلْ شَيْءٌ أَقْبَحُ مِنْ شَابٍّ يَخْدِمُ السُّنَّةَ وَلَا يَعْمَلُ بِهَا ؟
Is there anything more disgraceful than a young man who serves the Sunnah and does not act on it?
وَهَلْ — and is there. Two pieces fused here: the connector wa- linking on to the surrounding discourse, and a yes/no question word that flags the whole sentence as a question. So this token both joins and opens an interrogative, expecting the answer to weigh whether anything is more shameful.
From: Humility Over Fame →إِنَّ هَذَا الْحَدِيثَ يَصُدُّكُمْ عَنْ ذِكْرِ اللَّهِ وَعَنْ الصَّلَاةِ فَهَلْ أَنْتُمْ مُنْتَهُونَ ؟ ،
This hadith prevents you from remembering God and from prayer; will you stop?
فَهَلْ — so will. Two pieces: the connector fa- giving 'so', and a yes/no question word, so 'so will you...'. The fa- draws the question as a consequence of the charge, and the question particle flags the whole clause as expecting a yes-or-no answer.
From: Sincerity in Prophetic Knowledge →وَهَلْ يَتْرُكُ الصَّلَاةَ مُحْدَثًا إِلَّا وَهُوَ الرَّذَالَةُ الزَّبَّالَةُ ،
And who would abandon the prayer while ritually impure, except that he is base and filthy?
وَهَلْ — and does. Two pieces are fused here: the 'wa-' that links this sentence to what came before, and 'hal', a yes/no question opener. 'Hal' flags that the whole clause is a question and expects a yes-or-no answer, though here it functions as a rhetorical challenge rather than a genuine request for information.
From: Sincerity in Prophetic Knowledge →فَهَلْ فِي مِثْلِ هَذَا الضَّرْبِ خَيْرٌ؟
So is there any good in people of this sort?
فَهَلْ — so is there. This fuses 'fa-' (so/then), which draws a closing inference from the whole preceding portrait, with 'hal', the yes/no question opener. Marking the clause as a question, it is used here rhetorically, inviting the answer 'none at all' rather than genuinely asking.
From: Sincerity in Prophetic Knowledge →فَهَلْ لَهُ مِنْ تَوْبَةٍ؟
Is there any repentance for him?
فَهَلْ — so is there. This fuses 'fa-' (so/then) with 'hal', the yes/no question opener. 'Hal' flags the whole clause as a question expecting a yes-or-no answer, and the 'fa-' ties this question to the confession just made, so it reads as 'so then, is there...?'.
From: The Joy of Repentance →فَهَلْ لَهُ مِنْ تَوْبَةٍ؟
So is there repentance for him?
فَهَلْ — so is there. This fuses 'fa-' (so/then) with 'hal', the yes/no question opener, asking the same question of the learned man. 'Hal' marks the clause as a yes-or-no question, and the 'fa-' links it to the confession just heard, giving 'so then, is there...?'.
From: The Joy of Repentance →جَزَاءً وِفَاقًا ﴿هَلْ تُجْزَوْنَ إِلَّا مَا كُنْتُمْ تَعْمَلُونَ﴾
A fitting recompense. Will you be recompensed except for what you used to do?
هَلْ — is it the case that. A question particle that turns the following statement into a yes/no question, like adding a question mark by a word. Its only job is to flag the clause as a question; it governs no case. Here it opens a rhetorical question expecting the answer 'no'.
From: The Bridge to Paradise →فَقَالَ هَلْ تَرَوْنَ مَا رَأَيْنَا
He said, "Do you see what we saw?"
هَلْ — do. A particle whose only job is to flip the sentence into a yes/no question, the spoken equivalent of a question mark sitting at the front. It carries no meaning of its own beyond signalling that an answer of yes or no is expected.
From: Sheba's Garden and Destruction →فَقَالَ هَلْ أَنْتَ ذَاهِبٌ فَقُلْتُ وَاللَّهِ مَا بِي أَنْ أَقْتُلَ
He said, "Are you going?" I said, "By God, I have no intention of killing."
هَل — is it that. This is a yes/no question-particle. Its grammatical job is to flag the whole following statement as a question, the way English flips word order to ask. With no change to the words after it, the particle alone turns a statement into 'are you...?'.
From: A Spy in the Enemy Camp →هل تدرون مم ذاك؟
Do you know why that is?
هَلْ — Do. A yes-or-no question particle. It carries no meaning of its own beyond flipping the following statement into a question, the way English inverts word order or adds 'do'. Its whole job is to signal that an answer is expected.
From: The Prophet's Intercession →
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