Arabic vocabulary
مَسْجِدmosque in Arabic
مَسْجِد is how you say “mosque” in Arabic. Hear it pronounced and see it used in real example sentences from classical texts below.
Root س ج د (s-j-d)noun (place noun / ism makān)Pronounced masjid
Meaning of mosque in Arabic
- mosque — the ordinary word for a Muslim place of worship
- a place of prostration — literal sense, built on the root's core meaning of bowing down or prostrating oneself
The root سجد centres on lowering and humbling oneself, whether by bending the head and body or, in prayer, by placing the forehead on the ground before God — this specific ritual act is سُجُود. From this literal sense of prostration, masjid denotes the place set aside for it: a mosque. The same root is used tropically of a camel lowering its head to be mounted, a palm tree bending under its fruit, or a ship leaning in the wind — all pictured as a kind of "bowing down."
Words from the same root
- سَجَدَto be lowly, humble; to bend oneself down and put the forehead to the ground (form I verb)
- أَسْجَدَto lower the head; to gaze steadily with lowered, languid eyelids (form IV)
- سَجْدَةٌa single act of prostration
- سِجْدَةٌa particular manner or kind of prostration
- سَجَّادَةٌa small mat or rug spread out to prostrate on; prayer mat
- سَاجِدٌone who is prostrating himself (active participle), plural سُجَّد/سُجُود
- سَجَّادٌa man who prostrates himself often, i.e. very devout in prayer
Common questions
- How do you say "mosque" in Arabic?
- مَسْجِد (masjid).
- What does the root of masjid, س-ج-د, actually mean?
- It means to bow down or prostrate oneself in humility — the same root gives سجد (to prostrate) and سجادة (prayer mat); masjid literally means "a place of prostration."
Definitions synthesised from Lane's Arabic-English Lexicon (E. W. Lane, 1863–1893).
Example sentences
فَلَا يزَال بك حَتَّى يخْرجك من الْمَسْجِد
He persists with you until he drives you out of the mosque.
الْمَسْجِدِ — the mosque. In the genitive after 'from', definite — the mosque. The place of worship he expels you from.
From: The Path to God's Love →فسأل عنه الشعبي، فقال ادخل المسجد، عافاك الله،
He asked about him to Al-Sha'bi, who said: Enter the mosque, may God protect you,
المَسْجِدَ — the mosque. This noun is the place commanded to be entered, so it stands in the object form as the destination of the order. The 'the' makes it the definite, specific mosque.
From: The Grandson's Noble Grief →فَوَجَدْتُهُ عَلَى بَابِ الْمَسْجِدِ،
Related words
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