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Arabic

Pronunciation: /ˈarəbɪk/
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Definition of Arabic

noun

[mass noun]
  • the Semitic language of the Arabs, spoken by some 150 million people throughout the Middle East and North Africa.

adjective

  • relating to the literature or language of Arab people: Arabic literature a fluent Arabic-speaker

Arabic is written from right to left in a cursive script of twenty-eight consonants, the vowels being indicated by additional signs. The classical or literary language is based largely on that of the Koran; colloquial Arabic has many dialects. The script has been adapted for various languages, including Persian, Urdu, Malay, and (formerly) Turkish

Derivatives

Arabicization

(also Arabicisation) noun

Arabicize

(also Arabicise) verb

Origin:

Middle English: via Latin arabicus from Greek arabikos, from Araps, Arab- 'Arab', from the Arabic (see Arab)

Arabic in other Oxford dictionaries

Definition of Arabic in the US English dictionary