Arabic vocabulary
How to say “why” in Arabic, with pronunciation and real example sentences from OpenArabic texts.
قال فلماذا مت حمارتي؟
He said, 'Then why did my donkey die?'
فَلِمَاذَا — then why. A question-word, 'why', built from the connector 'then' plus 'for what'. It asks the cause and ties the question to the exchange just had.
From: Reflections on Literal Obedience →فقالوا له لماذا دعوت بهذا؟
They asked him: Why did you pray for this?
لِمَاذَا — why. A question word 'why', built from li- 'for what' plus the pointing 'that'; it stands at the front of the clause, Arabic's fixed slot for a question, asking the reason.
From: Bedouin Manners →فقال له البائع لماذا لم تحمله مقلوبًا؟
The seller said to him: Why didn't you carry it upside down?
لِمَاذَا — why. A question word 'why', built from li- 'for what' plus 'that'; it sits at the front, the Arabic slot for a question, asking the reason.
From: Heedless Choices →وَلِهٰذَا قَالَ فَلِمَاذَا أَخْرَجْتَنَا وَنَفْسِكِ مِنَ الْجَنَّٰةِ؟
And because of this he said, "So why did you expel us and your self from Paradise?"
فَلِمَاذَا — so why. This fuses a 'so/then' connector to a question word 'why', opening the quoted question as a consequence of what was just claimed. The 'so' ties the question to the prior reasoning, while 'why' demands the cause behind the expulsion.
From: Patience Under Decree →OpenArabic teaches words like لِمَاذَا through real bilingual reading with native audio and spaced-repetition practice.
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