Arabic vocabulary
جِهَادstruggle in Arabic
جِهَاد is how you say “struggle” in Arabic. Hear it pronounced and see it used in real example sentences from classical texts below.
Root ج ه د (j-h-d)noun (verbal noun of form III jāhada)Pronounced jihād
Meaning of struggle in Arabic
- the utmost exertion of one's power or effort against an adversary — classically said to apply to a visible enemy, the devil, or one's own self
- fighting, waging war against unbelievers — the extended sense adopted by Muslim usage
- striving in the cause of God or religion — as in the phrase jihād fī sabīl Allāh, 'struggle in the way of God'
Lane traces jihād to the verb jāhada, 'to exert one's utmost power in contending with an object of disapproval' — traditionally a visible enemy, the devil, or the self. From this general sense of striving, Muslims came to use the word specifically for fighting or waging war against unbelievers, especially in the phrase jihād fī sabīl Allāh, 'struggle in the way of God.'
Words from the same root
- جَهَدَto strive, exert oneself to the utmost
- اِجْتَهَدَto strive hard, do one's utmost
- جُهْدٌeffort, power, ability
- جَهْدٌeffort, exertion, or hardship
- مَجْهُودٌthe utmost of one's power or effort
Common questions
- How do you say "struggle" in Arabic?
- جِهَاد (jihād) — literally the exertion of one's utmost effort against an adversary.
- What does jihād literally mean?
- It comes from jahada, 'to strive or exert oneself to the utmost,' and originally covered struggle against a visible enemy, the devil, or one's own self, before also coming to mean fighting in the cause of religion.
Definitions synthesised from Lane's Arabic-English Lexicon (E. W. Lane, 1863–1893).
Example sentences
اعْلَمْ أَنَّهُ إِنَّمَا كَانَ جِهَادُ النَّفْسِ أَكْبَرَ مِنْ جِهَادِ الأَعْدَاءِ
Know that the struggle against one's self is indeed greater than the struggle against enemies.
جِهَادُ — struggle. jihad means 'struggle, striving'; the '-u' ending marks it as the subject, heading an 'of…' phrase with the next word.
From: Resisting Temptation →اعْلَمْ أَنَّهُ إِنَّمَا كَانَ جِهَادُ النَّفْسِ أَكْبَرَ مِنْ جِهَادِ الأَعْدَاءِ
Know that the struggle against one's self is indeed greater than the struggle against enemies.
جِهَادِ — struggle. jihad means 'struggle'; heading an 'of…' phrase with the next word; the noun after 'min'.
From: Resisting Temptation →
Related words
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