Arabic vocabulary
عِلْمknowledge
How to say “knowledge” in Arabic, with pronunciation and real example sentences from OpenArabic texts.
Example sentences
فَأقر لَهُ بِالْجَهْلِ فِي علمه، والآفات فِي عمله، والعيوب فِي نَفسه، والتفريط فِي حَقه، وَالظُّلم فِي مُعَامَلَته
So he acknowledges his ignorance in his knowledge, the flaws in his actions, the defects in his self, his negligence in his duty, and the injustice in his dealings.
عِلْمِهِ — his knowledge. ilm means 'knowledge'; the ending '-hi' adds 'his' — 'his knowledge'.
From: Returning to God →ولا يزيدُ الإيمانَ علمًا ولا يقينًا؛ بل قد يفتحُ بابَ التخييلِ والبدع
and it neither increases faith in knowledge nor certainty; rather, it may open the door to delusion and innovations.
عِلْمًا — knowledge. 'in knowledge', accusative as a specifying noun — it pins down HOW faith would grow: 'increase faith knowledge-wise'. Arabic uses this bare accusative where English needs 'in, with respect to'.
From: Words That Nourish the Heart →وَإِذا تجلى بِصفة السّمع وَالْبَصَر وَالْعلم
And when He manifests in the attributes of hearing, seeing, and knowledge.
وَالْعِلْمِ — and knowledge. 'And' plus 'knowledge', parallel genitive owner. The third, completing hearing, sight, and knowing.
From: Humility Before the Divine →والتوكل معنى يلتئم من علم العَبْد بكفاية الله
And reliance is a meaning formed from the servant's knowledge of God's sufficiency.
عِلْمِ — knowledge. 'Knowledge', first term of an 'of' pairing — 'the servant's knowledge' — genitive after 'from'. It owns the noun that follows.
From: Humility Before the Divine →وَلَا تسْقط ورقة إِلَّا بِعِلْمِهِ
Nor does a leaf fall except by His knowledge.
بِعِلْمِهِ — by His knowledge. 'Bi-' (by) fused with 'knowledge' plus '-hi' (His) attached, genitive — only 'with His knowing'. Nothing falls outside His awareness.
From: God's Majesty →وَمَنْ سَلَكَ طَرِيقًا يَلْتَمِسُ فِيهِ عِلْمًا سَهَّلَ اللَّهُ لَهُ بِهِ طَرِيقًا إلَى الْجَنَّةِ،
And whoever follows a path seeking knowledge, Allah will make a path to Paradise easy for him through it.
عِلْمًا — knowledge. 'Knowledge', the object of 'seek', accusative and indefinite, the goal of the journey. It is what one travels the path to obtain.
From: Easing a Believer's Hardship →الشروط علم حسن شرعى،
Contracts are an excellent legal science.
عِلْمٌ — are a science. This indefinite noun is the predicate — 'is a science'. The fresh comment stays indefinite and the 'is' is unwritten. The adjectives that follow will qualify it.
From: Intention in Islam →علم القراءة والتجويد
The science of Qur'anic recitation and Tajweed:
عِلْمُ — The science. This noun, the science-of, is in the nominative and the head of a possessive pairing owning the next word. It owns 'recitation' by adjacency with no word for 'of', so it begins the chain 'the science of recitation'.
From: When Recitation Breeds Pride →فليت شعري أنت ماذا عرفت؟ وما علمك،
I wish to know what you have understood? And what is your knowledge,
عِلْمُكَ — is your knowledge. This noun, your knowledge, is the subject of the new question, in the nominative, with the possessor 'your' attached. The question asks what that knowledge amounts to, the suffix marking it as the addressee's own.
From: When Recitation Breeds Pride →وذكر كذلك الذين اتخذوا العلم وسيلة وغرضا لتحصيل ملذات الدنيا وحطامها الفاني،
He also mentioned those who took knowledge as a means and a goal to acquire the pleasures of the fleeting world and its perishable goods.
الْعِلْمَ — the knowledge. The definite object of 'took', sitting in the form Arabic uses for the thing an action lands on. Its 'the' marks it as knowledge in general, the known body of learning, not just any knowledge.
From: Knowledge and Humility →علماء السوء الذين قصدهم من العلم التنعم بالدنيا والتوصل الى الجاه والمنزلة عند أهلها،
The corrupt scholars whose purpose in knowledge is to indulge in worldly life and attain status among its people.
الْعِلْمِ — the knowledge. The noun governed by the 'from' before it, so it sits in the form a preposition forces. Its 'the' marks it as knowledge as a known whole, the very learning they were meant to pursue for its own sake.
From: Knowledge and Humility →فقال من طلب العلم ليجاري به العلماء، ويماري به السفهاء، ويصرف به وجوه الناس اليه أدخله الله النار
He said: 'Whoever seeks knowledge to compete with the scholars, or to argue with the foolish, or to turn people's faces towards him, Allah will admit him into the Fire.'
العِلْمَ — the knowledge. The definite object of 'seeks', in the form for the thing an action falls on. Its 'the' marks it as knowledge as a known whole, the very thing whose misuse is being condemned.
From: Knowledge and Humility →وقد وصف الله علماء السوء بأكل الدنيا بالعلم،
And Allah described the corrupt scholars as devouring the world with knowledge.
بِالْعِلْمِ — with knowledge. Here 'bi-' is fused on as 'by means of', marking knowledge as the tool used to consume the world. The preposition governs the noun, whose 'the' marks learning as a known whole misused as an instrument.
From: Knowledge and Humility →وأوضح المصنف أن العلم إذا لم يكن للعمل فلا فائدة منه،
The author clarified that knowledge without action is of no benefit.
الْعِلْمَ — the knowledge. The noun right after 'that', forced by that particle into the object-like form even though it is the topic of the clause. Its 'the' marks knowledge as a known whole, the thing being talked about.
From: Knowledge and Humility →وَقَوْلُهُمْ مَنْ جَهِلَ شَيْئًا عَادَاهُ، مَذْكُورٌ فِي قَوْلِهِ تَعَالَى بَلْ كَذَّبُوا بِمَا لَمْ يُحِيطُوا بِعِلْمِهِ وَإِذْ لَمْ يَهْتَدُوا بِهِ فَسَيَقُولُونَ هَذَا إِفْكٌ قَدِيمٌ
And their saying: 'Whoever is ignorant of something, opposes it' is mentioned in His saying: 'But they denied that which they did not encompass in knowledge, and when they have not been guided by it, they will say: This is an ancient falsehood.'
بِعِلْمِهِ — with knowledge of it. This is the preposition 'with, of' merged with 'knowledge' carrying the attached 'it'. The verb of encompassing reaches its object through this preposition, giving 'grasp the knowledge of it'. The suffix points back to the thing denied, so tracking the referent is part of reading it.
From: When Scripture Answers Proverbs →وكلما جاء عرفي شب في العلم وما أنفرك،
Every time my reputation spreads, I grow in knowledge and you do not turn away.
العِلْمِ — the knowledge. The al- makes this definite, 'the knowledge'. As the noun governed by the preposition meaning 'in', it takes the -i ending Arabic assigns to objects of a preposition.
From: Victory Belongs to God →وأرحم من أمر ، وأعلم من أوحى ، وأكرم من هدى ،
And more merciful than those who command, more knowledgeable than those who have revealed, and more generous than those who guide,
وَأَعْلَمُ — and more knowledgeable. This is the bound wa- 'and' plus a superlative, 'and more knowledgeable', adding another divine attribute. The 'more/most' sense lives in the word's pattern, the wa- links it to the prior attribute, and it heads a fresh comparison with the following 'than those who'.
From: True Devotion →ولا تستكبر ، ولا تكن ممن يستكبر بما علم ،
And do not be arrogant, and do not be among those who are arrogant about what they know,
عَلِمَ — he knew,. This is a past-tense verb, 'he came to know', with its subject built in, inside the clause 'what he knows'. The verb supplies the content of 'about what he knows'; the doer is carried within its form.
From: True Devotion →قَلِيلُ الْعِلْمِ بِالْصِّنَاعَةِ ،
He has little knowledge of the craft.
الْعِلْمِ — knowledge. A definite noun carrying al-, sitting as the owner term in 'little of the knowledge', so it takes the 'of'-style (genitive) ending demanded by the adjective in front of it. It names what there is little of, completing the possessive pairing.
From: Humility Over Fame →وَرُبَّمَا ظَنٌّ مَنْ لَا عِلْمَ لَهُ أَنَّ جَوَاذِبَ الْآخِرَةِ أَقْوَى،
And perhaps one who has no knowledge might think that the attractions of the Hereafter are stronger.
عِلْمَ — knowledge. The noun being denied in the 'there is no X' pattern, which is why it takes the special accusative ending that goes with this kind of absolute negation. It is the thing the person is said to lack, and it pairs with the upcoming 'for him' to complete 'has no knowledge'.
From: Guarding the Heart from Heedlessness →أَشْتَغِلُ بِالْعِلْمِ الْيَوْمَ،
I will occupy myself with knowledge today,
بِالْعِلْمِ — with the knowledge. The bi- preposition marks what the busying is with, taking the noun into the genitive, and the al- makes that noun definite ('the knowledge'). Together they name the object of the scholar's intended occupation, the pursuit he says he will throw himself into.
From: Preparing for Death and Repentance →وذلك يشترك فيه أهل اليد والقدرة وأهل العلم والكلام،
This includes both people of power and capability and people of knowledge and speech.
الْعِلْمِ — knowledge. The 'the' makes this noun definite, and it owns the preceding 'people of', giving 'the people of knowledge'. As the owner in that 'of' pairing it takes the genitive ending.
From: Obedience to God and Authority →قال تعلمت العلم وعلمته وقرأت فيك القرآن قال كذبت، ولكنك تعلمت ليقال عالم وقرأت القرآن ليقال هو قارئ،
He said, "I learned the knowledge, I taught it, and I recited the Quran in your presence." He said, "You lied. Rather, you learned so that people would call you a scholar, and you recited the Quran so that they would say he is a reciter."
الْعِلْمَ — the knowledge. This noun is the direct object of 'learned', so it takes the accusative ending; the al- makes it definite, 'the knowledge'. It names what he claims to have acquired, the first deed of his defense.
From: Intentions on Judgment Day →علم الحديث والمحدثون فغالبهم لا يفقهون ولا همة لهم في معرفة الحديث ولا في التدين به، بل الصحيح والموضوع عندهم بنسبة
The science of Hadith and its scholars: most of them do not understand, nor do they care about knowing the Hadith or practicing it; rather, the authentic and the fabricated are the same to them.
عِلْمُ — the science of. A noun 'knowledge/science' heading an 'of' pairing with 'the Hadith' next - 'the science of Hadith'. Two nouns side by side give the possessive with no word for 'of', and this head noun gives up its own 'the', drawing definiteness from its partner. It opens the sentence as the topic being discussed.
From: Sincere Worship →
Learn Arabic vocabulary in context
OpenArabic teaches words like عِلْم through real bilingual reading with native audio and spaced-repetition practice.
Get the app