حمد praise in Arabic
حمد is how you say “praise” in Arabic.
Root ح م د ḥ-m-d. noun (verbal noun / maṣdar of حَمِدَ). ḥamd.
Arabic
English
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Meaning of praise in Arabic
- praise, eulogy, commendation speaking well of someone or mentioning them with approbation; the opposite of ذمّ (blame). Broader than مدح (praise), which is reserved for qualities within one's own choice.
- thanks, gratitude close to شكر but wider in scope: شكر is offered only for a favour received, while ḥamd can be given for other qualities too (e.g. praising someone for their courage) and not only for benefit received
- recompense; giving someone his due a less common sense of the verb حَمِدَهُ: to repay or requite a person
Example sentence
قالوا بلى يا رسول الله، قال تسبحون، وتحمدون، وتكبرون، خلف كل صلاة ثلاثًا وثلاثين
They said: 'Yes, O Messenger of Allah.' He said: 'You should glorify Allah, praise Him, and declare His greatness after every prayer thirty-three times.'
وَتَحْمَدُونَ praise Him
This is 'and' plus a present verb 'praise [God] / say al-hamdu li-llah', sound masculine plural — 'and you praise'. The second of the three phrases to be said.
The English is machine-translated.
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How it is used
Most familiar in the phrase الحَمْدُ لِلّٰهِ ("praise be to God"), the standard expression of praise and gratitude used even in hardship, since it implies magnifying the One praised and humility in the one praising rather than only thanks for a worldly benefit. Classical grammarians distinguish ḥamd from مدح (praise for a chosen quality, e.g. a pearl's clearness is مدح not ḥamd) and from شكر (thanks strictly for a favour received).
Words from the same root
- حَمِدَ to praise, commend, speak well of (verb, form I)
- حَمَّدَ to praise God repeatedly and intensively, with good forms of praise (verb, form II)
- تَحْمِيدٌ the repeated declaring of God's praises
- حَمِيدٌ praiseworthy, laudable; also used as a divine epithet
- مَحْمُودٌ praised, commended (passive participle)
- مُحَمَّدٌ the highly-praised one; the Prophet's name
- أَحْمَدُ more/most praiseworthy; another name of the Prophet
- مَحْمَدَةٌ a praiseworthy quality; a quality for which one is praised
Common questions
- How do you say "praise" in Arabic?
- "Praise" is حَمْد (ḥamd), the verbal noun from the root ح م د (ḥ-m-d).
- What does الحمد لله mean?
- It means "praise be to God," the standard Arabic phrase of praise and gratitude, built on the noun حَمْد (ḥamd).
Related words
Definitions summarised from Lane's Arabic-English Lexicon (E. W. Lane, 1863–1893).