Arabic vocabulary
غَفْلَةٌneglect in Arabic
غَفْلَةٌ is how you say “neglect” in Arabic. Hear it pronounced and see it used in real example sentences from classical texts below.
Root غ ف ل (ġ-f-l)noun (verbal noun / substantive of the form I verb غَفَلَ)Pronounced ġaflah
Meaning of neglect in Arabic
- unmindfulness, heedlessness, inattention — the state of being غَافِل — unaware of, or inadvertent to, something; Lane's sources treat it either as the verbal noun of غَفَلَ or as a substantive in its own right
- willful neglect, disregard — Lane notes the related verb can also mean deliberately leaving a thing and turning away from it, not merely forgetting it
غَفْلَةٌ names the condition of being غَافِل rather than a single act of forgetting: Lane records that the underlying verb can mean overlooking something even while still remembering it, or simply having one's attention wholly absorbed elsewhere — illustrated by a hadith about a hunter so fixed on the chase that he becomes unmindful of everything else.
Words from the same root
- غَفَلَto be unmindful, forgetful, neglectful, or heedless of something
- غفّلto make someone unmindful/heedless; also, to conceal a thing
- أغفلto make someone neglectful of something; to leave an animal unbranded
- تغفّلto watch for someone's inattention, catching them off guard
- تغافلto feign unmindfulness, pretending not to notice
- غافِلunmindful, heedless, inadvertent (one in a state of ġaflah)
- غُفْلunmarked or untouched — e.g. land without waymarks, an unnotched gaming arrow, an unbranded animal
Common questions
- How do you say "neglect" in Arabic?
- غَفْلَةٌ (ġaflah).
- What is the root of غَفْلَةٌ and what does it mean?
- The root is غ ف ل (ġ-f-l), from the verb غَفَلَ 'to be unmindful, forgetful, or heedless of something.'
Definitions synthesised from Lane's Arabic-English Lexicon (E. W. Lane, 1863–1893).
Example sentences
تتولّد من الْمعْصِيَة والغفلة عَن ذكر الله
They arise from sin and neglect of the remembrance of Allah.
وَالْغَفْلَةِ — and neglect. wa- = 'and'; al- = 'the'; ghafla means 'heedlessness' — still governed by 'min' ('from… and heedlessness').
From: Returning to God →اجعل لكل يوم وقفة محاسبة قصيرة ما الذي زادني قربًا من ربي اليوم، وما الذي زاد الغفلة سمكًا حول قلبي
Make a brief accounting each day: What brought me closer to my Lord today, and what increased the thickness of heedlessness around my heart.
الغَفْلَةَ — the heedlessness. 'al-' = 'the'; 'ghafla' = 'heedlessness, neglect'. Object — the '-a' ending marks it.
From: Small Daily Habits →
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