Arabic vocabulary
لَغْوٌidle talk in Arabic
لَغْوٌ is how you say “idle talk” in Arabic. Hear it pronounced and see it used in a real example sentence from classical texts below.
Root ل غ و (l-gh-w)noun (verbal noun / maṣdar)Pronounced laghw
Meaning of idle talk in Arabic
- idle, worthless talk; speech of no account — Applied to speech (or similar) that is unprofitable and carries no real value.
- (as an attribute) unintentional, of no legal weight — Used of an oath sworn thoughtlessly and without deliberate intent (al-yamīn al-laghw), which is not held to account.
Laghw marks speech (or an act, like a careless oath) as empty of value or consequence, opposite to deliberate, meaningful speech. The same root gives اللُّغَةُ, the term for the genuine, classical Arabic tongue itself, and لُغَوِىٌّ for anything pertaining to it — so the root spans both "idle talk" and "language" proper.
Words from the same root
- لَاغَاهُhe jested or joked with him (verbal noun: mulāghāh)
- اللُّغَةُthe genuine, classical language of the Arabs; "language"
- لُغَوِىٌّrelating to the genuine/classical Arabic language; linguistic
- لُغَيَّةٌa word of weak authority
- لَاغٍone engaged in idle or vain talk
Common questions
- How do you say "idle talk" in Arabic?
- لَغْوٌ (laghw).
- What does al-yamīn al-laghw (اليَمِينُ اللَّغْوُ) mean?
- An oath sworn thoughtlessly, without real intent — it is treated as inconsequential rather than binding.
Definitions synthesised from Lane's Arabic-English Lexicon (E. W. Lane, 1863–1893).
Example sentences
هكذا يتحوّل الذِّكرُ إلى مدرسةٍ يومية يعلّمك النظرَ الصحيح، يطهّر لسانك من اللغو، ويَشدُّ قلبَك إلى ربّه،
This is how remembrance becomes a daily school: it teaches you correct perception, purifies your tongue from idle talk, and binds your heart to its Lord,
اللَّغْوِ — idle talk. Genitive after 'min' — 'idle, pointless talk'. al- makes it the whole category of empty speech to be washed out.
From: Turning Daily Words into Worship →
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