كَتَبَ write in Arabic
كَتَبَ is how you say “write” in Arabic.
Root ك ت ب k-t-b. verb (form I). kataba.
Arabic
English
The audio uses AI voices.
Meaning of write in Arabic
- to write, put into writing the primary and most common sense
- to have something written for oneself, or ask another to dictate it e.g. said of writing down what one heard or learned from a teacher
- to prescribe, ordain, decree tropical, used of God/a judge; Qur'anic, as in 'fasting is prescribed for you'
- to draw together, bind, or close up concrete sense underlying phrases like binding a waterskin shut
Example sentence
ما زال يكتب بدم الندم سطور الحزن في القصص،
He never stopped writing with the blood of regret the lines of sadness in the stories.
يَكْتُبُ to write
Present-tense verb 'writes', 'he' form — here 'kept on writing'.
The English is machine-translated.
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How it is used
Beyond literal writing, kataba carries a legal/religious sense of 'to prescribe as obligatory' — the Qur'an uses kutiba ʿalaykum ('it has been prescribed for you') for duties like fasting and retaliation. Kātib likewise extends from 'scribe' to 'a learned man' in Qur'anic usage.
Words from the same root
- كِتَابٌ book; a piece of writing
- كَاتِبٌ writer, scribe; a learned man
- كِتَابَةٌ writing; also used for a scribal contract
- مُكَاتَبَةٌ a written contract, esp. one by which a slave pays to buy his freedom
- كَتِيبَةٌ a troop or squadron, a body of soldiers drawn together
- إِكْتَتَبَ to write for oneself; to enroll or register one's name
- أَكْتَبَ to dictate; to teach the art of writing
More example sentences
اكتب سطرين قبل النوم، سطرًا للشكر على نعمة لاحظتها، وسطرًا للعزم على تصحيح خُلُق واحد غدًا
Write two lines before sleeping: one for expressing gratitude for a blessing you noticed, and another for resolving to correct one character trait tomorrow.
اكْتُبْ write!
Command 'uktub' = 'write!'; 'you' is built in.
اكتب ذنبًا واحدًا تُغلق بابه غدًا، وخُلقًا واحدًا تفتحه لنَفَسٍ أطول
Write down one sin you will close its door to tomorrow, and one virtue you will open for longer breath.
اكْتُبْ write!
Command 'uktub' = 'write!'; 'you' is built in.
وَاعْلَمْ أَنَّ الْأُمَّةَ لَوْ اجْتَمَعَتْ عَلَى أَنْ يَنْفَعُوك بِشَيْءٍ لَمْ يَنْفَعُوك إلَّا بِشَيْءٍ قَدْ كَتَبَهُ اللَّهُ لَك،
Know that if the nation gathered to benefit you with anything, they would not benefit you except with what Allah has decreed for you.
كَتَبَهُ he decreed it
A past verb, 'wrote, decreed', with 'He' (God) built in and '-hu' the object 'it'. It describes the indefinite 'something', attached with no 'which': 'something God has decreed'.
وَإِنْ اجْتَمَعُوا عَلَى أَنْ يَضُرُّوك بِشَيْءٍ لَمْ يَضُرُّوك إلَّا بِشَيْءٍ قَدْ كَتَبَهُ اللَّهُ عَلَيْك؛
And if they gathered to harm you with anything, they would not harm you except with what Allah has decreed against you.
كَتَبَهُ he decreed it
'Wrote, decreed', with God built in as subject and '-hu' the object 'it', describing the indefinite 'something' with no 'which'. 'Something God has decreed'.
ومن اتقى الله فيها وكتب لقضاة العدل وباشر الأيتام والصدقات ومال الأوقاف والمدارس ولزم الأمانة واتقى فيه فهذا محمود مأجور بنيته،
Whoever fears Allah in it, writes for just judges, handles the affairs of orphans and charities, manages endowment and school funds, and adheres to honesty, such a person is praised and rewarded for his intention.
وَكَتَبَ and he wrote
This is 'and he wrote', a past verb with its subject 'he' inside — a second condition in the chain. It pairs with the preposition next to say for whom he writes. The doer is sealed in the verb.
وَقَوْلُهُمْ مَنْ أَعَانَ ظَالِمًا سَلَّطَهُ اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ، مَذْكُورٌ فِي قَوْلِهِ تَعَالَى كَتَبَ عَلَيْهِ أَنَّهُ مَنْ تَوَلَّاهُ فَأَنَّهُ يُضِلُّهُ
And their saying: 'Whoever supports a tyrant, Allah will empower him against them' is mentioned in His saying: 'He has decreed that whoever takes him as an ally, He will misguide him.'
كَتَبَ He has decreed
Past-tense 'he decreed, wrote down', the 'he' subject inside, pointing to God. It carries the sense of fixing something by decree. It reaches its object through a following preposition and sets up the divine ruling being quoted.
وكتب لفناء ساكنيها عمرًا مقدرًا وميقاتا،
And He decreed a lifespan and an appointed time for the demise of its inhabitants,
وَكَتَبَ and He decreed
The 'and' joins the clause, and beneath it a past-tense verb means 'wrote / decreed', with its 'he' subject built in and pointing back to Allah. The verb of decreeing leads into the 'for' phrase and governs the objects that name what was ordained.
وَكَتَبَ البَعْضُ صَحَائِفًا،
And some wrote pages.
وَكَتَبَ and wrote
'Wa-' opens the sentence as another point in the sequence and attaches to a past verb. The verb 'wrote' carries its 'he/some' subject in its form; the actual subject 'some' is spelled out as a separate word right after, for emphasis.
فَكَتَبَ إِبْنُ الْقَصَّابِ إِلَى الْخَلِيفَةِ النَّاصِرِ،
So Ibn al-Qassab wrote to the caliph al-Nasir,
فَكَتَبَ so he wrote
This fuses a 'so/then' connector to a past verb 'wrote', marking the writing as the next step in the sequence. The verb carries its own subject-slot for the name that follows, and the 'so' links the act to the prior events.
Common questions
- How do you say "write" in Arabic?
- كَتَبَ (kataba).
- What does the root ك ت ب (k-t-b) mean?
- It centers on writing, and words from it also carry the related idea of drawing or gathering things together, as seen in katībah ('a troop drawn together').
Related words
Definitions summarised from Lane's Arabic-English Lexicon (E. W. Lane, 1863–1893).