Arabic vocabulary
How to say “O” in Arabic, with pronunciation and real example sentences from OpenArabic texts.
يا آدم، لا تجزع من قولي لك اخرج منها، فلك ولصالح ذريتك خلّفتها
O Adam, do not grieve over My saying to you: 'Get out of it,' for I created it for you and your righteous descendants.
يَا — O. ya = the call-word 'O', used before a name to address someone.
From: Adam's Descent →ثم دخل به فقال ﵇ أرسله يا عمر، ادن يا عمير
Then he brought him in, and the Prophet ﷺ said: Release him, Umar, come closer, Umair.
يَا — O. ya = the call-word 'O', used to address someone.
From: Early Converts to Islam →ثم دخل به فقال ﵇ أرسله يا عمر، ادن يا عمير
Then he brought him in, and the Prophet ﷺ said: Release him, Umar, come closer, Umair.
يَا — O. ya = the call-word 'O'.
From: Early Converts to Islam →قد كنا يا رسول الله نكذبك بما تأتينا به من خبر السماء،
We used to deny you, O Messenger of Allah, concerning what you brought us from the news of the heavens,
يَا — O. ya = the call-word 'O'.
From: Early Converts to Islam →يَا بُنَيَّ إِنَّ الإِيمَانَ قَائِدٌ
O my son, faith is a guide.
يَا — O. Vocative particle 'ya' = 'O', used to call or address someone directly.
From: Faith as Light →يَا منفقا بضَاعَة الْعُمر فِي مُخَالفَة حَبِيبه
O you who spend the capital of your life in disobeying your Beloved!
يَا — O. The vocative particle 'O', used to call or address. It opens a direct address to the heedless one.
From: Love and Devotion to God →يَا رَسُول الله لَو أَن أحدهم نظر إِلَى مَا تَحت قَدَمَيْهِ لَأَبْصَرنَا تَحت قَدَمَيْهِ
O Messenger of Allah, if one of them were to look beneath his feet, he would see us.
يَا — O. The vocative particle 'O', opening a direct address. Abu Bakr calls upon the Prophet.
From: The Night of the Migration →فَقَالَ رَسُول الله يَا أَبَا بكر مَا ظَنك بِاثْنَيْنِ الله ثالثهما
The Messenger of Allah said, 'O Abu Bakr, what do you think of two with whom Allah is the third?'
يَا — O. The vocative particle 'O', opening the Prophet's address to Abu Bakr.
From: The Night of the Migration →ياعجبا من يُغطي عين ضوء الشَّمْس فِي نصف النَّهَار
How amazing is one who covers the eye of the sun's light at midday!
يَا — O. Normally this particle calls out to someone, but here it launches an exclamation of astonishment rather than addressing a person. That is why the next word wears an accusative ending: Arabic puts the thing wondered at into that case after such a cry.
From: The Prophet's Refuge in the Cave →فَقَالَ يَا غُلَامِ
He said: O boy!
يَا — O. Here the particle is a true vocative, calling out 'O...' to summon the one addressed. The noun it calls takes the special vocative form that follows.
From: Patience and Trust in God →قَالَ اللَّهُ تَعَالَى يَا ابْنَ آدَمَ إِنَّكَ مَا دَعَوْتنِي وَرَجَوْتنِي غَفَرْتُ لَك عَلَى مَا كَانَ مِنْك وَلَا أُبَالِي،
Allah, the Exalted, said: "O son of Adam! As long as you call upon Me and ask of Me, I shall forgive you for what you have done, and I shall not mind.
يَا — O. This is the call-word that flags direct address. The thing called after it — here 'son of Adam' — takes the -a ending because it leads an 'of' phrase, which is how Arabic marks who is being summoned.
From: The Vastness of God's Mercy →يَا ابْنَ آدَمَ لَوْ بَلَغَتْ ذُنُوبُك عَنَانَ السَّمَاءِ ثُمَّ اسْتَغْفَرْتنِي غَفَرْتُ لَك،
O son of Adam! If your sins were to reach the clouds of the sky and then you were to ask for My forgiveness, I would forgive you.
يَا — O. The call-word again opening direct address; whatever follows it is the one summoned. Arabic restarts the appeal each time the speaker turns back to address the listener.
From: The Vastness of God's Mercy →يَا ابْنَ آدَمَ إنَّك لَوْ أتَيْتنِي بِقُرَابِ الْأَرْضِ خَطَايَا ثُمَّ لَقِيتنِي لَا تُشْرِكُ بِي شَيْئًا لَأَتَيْتُك بِقُرَابِهَا مَغْفِرَةً
O son of Adam! Were you to come to Me with sins nearly as great as the earth and were you then to face Me, not associating anything with Me, I would bring you forgiveness nearly as great as it.
يَا — O. The vocative call opens the third and grandest promise. Each fresh 'O son of Adam' resets the listener's attention for a new condition.
From: The Vastness of God's Mercy →لقيني أبو بكر رضي الله عنه فقال كيف أنت يا حنظلة؟
Abu Bakr, may Allah be pleased with him, met me and said: 'How are you, Hanzala?'
يَا — O. This is the call-particle 'O', used to address someone directly by name. It flags that the following word is a vocative — the person being spoken to.
From: Devotion and Daily Life →فقلت نافق حنظلة يا رسول الله فقال رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم وما ذاك؟
I said: 'Hanzala has become a hypocrite, O Messenger of Allah!' So the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said: 'And what is that?'
يَا — O. The call-particle 'O', flagging that a vocative — the person addressed — follows. Hanzala now turns to the Prophet.
From: Devotion and Daily Life →قلت يا رسول الله نكون عندك تذكرنا بالنار والجنة كأنا رأي العين،
I said: 'O Messenger of Allah, when we are with you, you remind us of Hell and Paradise as if we see them with our own eyes.'
يَا — O. The call-particle 'O', marking that the person addressed follows. Hanzala addresses the Prophet directly.
From: Devotion and Daily Life →فقال رسول الله والذي نفسي بيده لو تدومون على ما تكونون عندي وفي الذكر لصافحتكم الملائكة على فرشكم وفي طرقكم، ولكن يا حنظلة ساعة وساعة ثلاث مرات،
The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said: 'By Him in Whose Hand my soul is, if you remained in the state that you are with me and in remembrance, the angels would shake hands with you in your beds and on your paths. But, O Hanzala, a time and a time.' He repeated this three times.
يَا — O. The call-particle 'O', flagging the vocative — the person addressed — that follows.
From: Devotion and Daily Life →قال يقولون لا والله يا رب ما رأوها
He said: They say: No, by Allah, O Lord, they have not seen it.
يَا — O. The call-particle 'O', flagging that an address follows — here they turn to God Himself.
From: Where Angels Gather →ثم يقال يا أيها الناس هلم إلى ربكم ، وقفوهم إنهم مسؤولون ،
Then it will be said: 'O people, come to your Lord, and stop them, for they will be questioned,'
يَا — O. The call-particle 'O', opening an address to the gathered dead. It pairs with the attention-word next before the noun called.
From: The Return of Jesus →قال يقول عمير بن الحمام الأنصاري رضي الله عنه يا رسول الله جنة عرضها السماوات والأرض؟
Umayr bin Al-Humam Al-Ansari (may Allah be pleased with him) said: 'O Messenger of Allah, a paradise as vast as the heavens and the earth?'
يَا — O. This is the call-particle that marks direct address, the word placed before someone's name or title to hail them, like an old English 'O'. Its grammatical job is to flag the following noun as the one being spoken to and to put it in the address form.
From: A Handful of Dates and Paradise →قال يا سيدي، جاري أخذ ناقتي وحبسها عنده
He said: O my lord, my neighbor took my camel and detained it with him.
يَا — O. This is the calling particle 'O', used to address someone directly before naming them. It signals a vocative is coming and marks the following word as the one being called. It is the standard opener for addressing a person.
From: Justice in the Field →قال نعم يا سيدي، ناقته دخلت حائطي وأكلت زرعي، فحبستها حتى يأتي صاحبها
He replied: Yes, my lord, his camel entered my field and ate my crops, so I detained it until its owner comes.
يَا — O. The calling particle 'O', flagging that a direct address is coming and marking the next word as the one being called. It opens the respectful form of address to the governor.
From: Justice in the Field →اعْلَم يَا أخي أَن العَبْد إِذا اعْتصمَ بِحَبل السُّلْطَان الْمَخْلُوق سلم من شَرّ الظَّالِمين
Know, my brother, that if a servant clings to the rope of the created ruler, he is safe from the evil of the oppressors.
يَا — O. This is the call-marker that flags whoever follows as the person being addressed, the way English sets off a name with direct address. It signals that the next word is the one being spoken to, not part of the statement.
From: Ten Daily Supplications →قَالُوا يَا رَسُولَ اللهِ وَمَا الشِّرْكُ الْأَصْغَرُ؟
They said: 'O Messenger of Allah, what is minor shirk?'
يَا — O. A calling particle, 'O', flagging a direct address to whoever follows. It signals the next noun is being spoken to, not about, and forces a particular vocative shape on it.
From: The Hidden Idolatry →OpenArabic teaches words like يَا through real bilingual reading with native audio and spaced-repetition practice.
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