Arabic vocabulary
عَلَّمَ is how you say “teach” in Arabic. Hear it pronounced and see it used in real example sentences from classical texts below.
رجل تعلم العلم وعلمه وقرأ القرآن وأقرأه ليقول الناس هو عالم وقارئ،
A man who learned knowledge, taught it, and recited the Quran, but did so for people's praise, saying: He is a scholar and a reciter,
وَعَلَّمَهُ — and taught it. 'And' plus a past-tense verb of the doubled (causative) shape — not 'learned' but 'made others know' — with '-hu' (it) attached as object. The doubled middle root letter is the very difference between learning and teaching, and the suffix points back to the knowledge.
From: Deeds for God Alone →فإن من تعلم العلم الذي بعث الله به رسله وعلمه لوجه الله كان صديقا،
For whoever learns the knowledge sent by God through His messengers and teaches it for the sake of God is a sincere one,
وَعَلَّمَهُ — and he teaches it. 'And' plus the causative-shape 'taught' (made known), with '-hu' (it) attached as object, subject 'he' inside. Back to the human subject: he both learned it and passed it on.
From: Deeds for God Alone →الَّذِي عَلَّمَ بِالْقَلَمِ
Who taught by the pen.
عَلَّمَ — he taught. A past verb in the doubled-consonant pattern that carries a 'cause to' force, so the act is making someone learn, i.e. teaching; its 'he' subject is the Lord. The intensified shape is what turns 'know' into 'teach'.
From: The Night of Revelation and Consolation →عَلَّمَ الْإِنسَانَ مَا لَمْ يَعْلَمْ
He taught man what he did not know.
عَلَّمَ — he taught. A past verb in the doubled-consonant pattern carrying a 'cause to' force, so the act is teaching, making someone learn; its 'he' subject is God. The intensified shape is what shifts plain 'know' into 'teach'.
From: The Night of Revelation and Consolation →وَعَلَّمَكَ أَسْمَاءَ كُلِّ شَيْءٍ،
And He taught you the names of all things,
وَعَلَّمَكَ — and taught you. Opens with wa- joining it to the run of actions, then a finished-action verb on a doubled-consonant 'teaching' pattern that adds the sense of making someone learn, with -ka ('you') fused on as the object. So 'and taught you' is one word holding link, act, and learner. It still expects a second object, what was taught.
From: Intercession on Judgment Day →قَالَ فَإِنَّهُ جِبْرِيلُ أَتَاكُمْ يُعَلِّمُكُمْ دِينَكُمْ
He said, 'Indeed, it was Gabriel who came to teach you your religion.'
يُعَلِّمُكُمْ — to teach you. A present-tense verb 'he teaches you' with built-in 'he' subject and an attached '-you' (plural) as object. Set after the coming verb, it states the purpose, 'to teach you'. The doubled middle consonant marks the causative 'make you learn' pattern, and the suffix names the taught.
From: When Gabriel Came to Teach →ورجل تعلم العلم وعلمه، وقرأ القرآن، فأتي به، فعرفه نعمه فعرفها قال فما عملت فيها؟
And a man who learned knowledge and taught it, and read the Quran. He will be brought, and Allah will make him recognize His blessings, and he will recognize them. He will say: 'What did you do with them?'
وَعَلَّمَهُ — and taught it. This stacks the connector wa- onto a make-someone-do (causative) verb plus the object -hu ('it'): 'and he taught it'. The wa- adds a second deed, and the doubled-middle pattern turns 'know' into 'make others know'; the suffix ties it to the knowledge.
From: Intentions on Judgment Day →قال تعلمت العلم وعلمته وقرأت فيك القرآن قال كذبت، ولكنك تعلمت ليقال عالم وقرأت القرآن ليقال هو قارئ،
He said, "I learned the knowledge, I taught it, and I recited the Quran in your presence." He said, "You lied. Rather, you learned so that people would call you a scholar, and you recited the Quran so that they would say he is a reciter."
وَعَلَّمْتُهُ — and I taught it. This stacks the connector wa- onto a make-someone-do (causative) verb plus the object -hu ('it'): 'and I taught it'. The wa- adds a second deed, the doubled-middle pattern turning 'know' into 'make known'; the suffix ties it to the knowledge.
From: Intentions on Judgment Day →OpenArabic teaches words like عَلَّمَ through real bilingual reading with native audio and spaced-repetition practice.
Get the app