نفس self in Arabic
نفس is how you say “self” in Arabic.
Root ن ف س n-f-s. noun. nafs.
Arabic
English
The audio uses AI voices.
Meaning of self in Arabic
- self, soul, person
- blood the older sense said to underlie the root's words for childbirth and menstruation
- avarice, enviousness as a verbal noun of نَفِسَ, envy over something highly prized
Example sentence
وَلَيْسَ بِشَاغِلٍ يَشْغَلُكَ عَنِ اللَّهِ كَنَفْسِكَ الَّتِي هِيَ بَيْنَ جَنْبَيْكَ
And nothing can distract you from Allah like your own self between your sides.
نَفْسِكَ your own self
'nafs' = 'self'; '-ka' = 'your', so 'your self'. Follows 'ka-', so it takes the 'of' ending.
The English is machine-translated.
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How it is used
As an inflected verbal noun it can mean enviousness or avarice over something highly prized, but its everyday use is simply "self" or "soul." Classical lexicographers trace the root's words for childbirth and menstruation to an older sense, "blood."
Words from the same root
- نَفِيسٌ precious, excellent of its kind
- نَافَسَ to vie for, compete over something desirable
- تَنَافَسَ to vie with one another over something
- تَنَفَّسَ to breathe
- نِفَاسٌ childbirth
More example sentences
النَّفْسُ مَجْبُولَةٌ عَلَى سُوءِ الأَدَبِ
The self is inherently inclined towards poor manners.
النَّفْسُ The self
'al-' = 'the'; 'nafs' = 'self'. Subject of the sentence.
فَالنَّفْسُ تَجْرِي بِطَبْعِهَا فِي مَيْدَانِ الْمُخَالَفَةِ
Thus, the self naturally operates in the field of opposition.
فَالنَّفْسُ Thus, the self
'fa-' = 'so, thus'; 'al-' = 'the'; 'nafs' = 'self', so 'so the self'.
أَوَّلُ وِصَالِ الْعَبْدِ لِلْحَقِّ هُجْرَانُهُ لِنَفْسِهِ
The first connection of the servant to the Truth is his abandonment of his self.
لِنَفْسِهِ of his self
'li-' = 'of, for'; 'nafs' = 'self'; '-hi' = 'his', so 'of his self'.
وَأَوَّلُ هُجْرَانِ الْعَبْدِ لِلْحَقِّ مُوَاصَلَتُهُ لِنَفْسِهِ
And the first abandonment of the Truth by the servant is his connection to his self.
لِنَفْسِهِ to his self
'li-' = 'to, for'; 'nafs' = 'self'; '-hi' = 'his', so 'to his self'.
لِأَنَّهُ يَبْعُدُ أَنْ يُفْهَمَ الْمَقْصُودُ مِنْ وَضْعِ الْهَوَى فِي النَّفْسِ
Because it is rare for someone to understand the purpose of placing desire in the soul.
النَّفْسِ the soul
'al-' = 'the'; genitive after 'fi'.
قد أحرزه لنفسه واستوطنه،
which he has taken for himself and inhabited,
لِنَفْسِهِ for himself
'Li-' (for) fused with 'self' plus '-hi' (his) — 'for his own self', genitive after 'li-'. It marks the gain as kept for Satan himself.
احذر نَفسك
Beware of your soul.
نَفْسَكَ your soul
'Self / soul' with '-ka' (your) attached, the direct object of 'beware', accusative ('-a'). What you are told to guard against — your own self.
وَقدمُوا لانفسهم الْجنَّة ترْضى مِنْك بأَدَاء الْفَرَائِض
And they put forward paradise for themselves. It is pleased with you through fulfilling the obligations.
لِأَنْفُسِهِمُ for themselves
'Li-' (for) fused with a plural 'selves' plus '-him' (their) attached, genitive — 'for their own selves'. The 'li-' marks the beneficiary; the suffix is reflexive (their own benefit).
وَأَضَافَهُ إِلَى نَفْسِهِ بِلَفْظِ الْكَلَامِ فِي قَوْلِهِ ﴿حَتَّى يَسْمَعَ كَلَامَ اللَّهِ﴾،
and attributed it to His Own speech in His saying: 'Until he hears the words of Allah',
نَفْسِهِ His Own
This noun names self or essence, with an attached possessive pronoun, 'His own self', governed by the preposition before it. The owner pronoun points to God; the phrase marks the speech as ascribed to God Himself.
سكنت نفسه واطمأن قلبه
his soul is at rest and his heart is assured.
نَفْسُهُ his soul
The thing that comes to rest, 'his soul', with the owner attached as a suffix. As the doer it takes the subject ending, and the suffix reaches back to the believer described in the earlier sentences.
Common questions
- How do you say "self" in Arabic?
- نَفْس (nafs).
- Why is نفس connected to breathing and childbirth?
- Lane's lexicon links نَفْس in the sense "blood" to the words for childbirth and menstruation, while a separate branch of the same root, centred on being "precious, coveted," gives the verbs for envy, rivalry, and breathing.
Related words
Definitions summarised from Lane's Arabic-English Lexicon (E. W. Lane, 1863–1893).