Learn Arabic › B1 › إِمْساك
إِمْساك
constipation /ʔɪmˈsaːk/
nounB1#2587 most common
Also: withholding, holding back, the pre-dawn cutoff for eating during a fast, apprehension, seizure (of a person)
Example sentences
عِنْدِي إِمْسَاكٌ.
I have constipation.
يَبْدَأُ الإِمْسَاكُ قَبْلَ أَذَانِ الفَجْرِ فِي رَمَضَانَ.
The pre-dawn fasting cutoff begins before the call to the dawn prayer in Ramadan.
يُسَبِّبُ قِلَّةُ شُرْبِ الماءِ الإِمْسَاكَ.
Drinking too little water causes constipation.
يَعْمَلُ فِي إِمْسَاكِ الدَّفَاتِرِ لِشَرِكَةٍ كَبِيرَةٍ.
He works in bookkeeping for a large company.
تَمَّ الإِمْسَاكُ بِاللِّصِّ أَمَامَ المَحَطَّةِ.
The thief was apprehended in front of the station.
يُعَدُّ الإِمْسَاكُ عَنِ الطَّعَامِ وَالشَّرَابِ مِنْ أَرْكَانِ الصِّيَامِ فِي الإِسْلَامِ.
Abstaining from food and drink is one of the pillars of fasting in Islam.
Declension
| Case | Singular | Plural |
|---|---|---|
| Nominative | إِمْسَاكٌ / الإِمْسَاكُ | None |
| Genitive | إِمْسَاكٍ / الإِمْسَاكِ | None |
| Accusative | إِمْسَاكًا / الإِمْسَاكَ | None |
| Vocative | None | None |
Word family
أَمْسَكَto hold, grasp, withhold
مُمْسِكone who withholds; a miser
تَمَاسُكcohesion, self-control, composure
مُتَمَاسِكcohesive, composed, holding together
إِمْسَاكِيَّةprinted Ramadan calendar showing daily fasting times
Etymology
Imsāk is the verbal noun (maṣdar) of the Form IV verb amsaka, built on the triliteral Semitic root m-s-k, meaning to hold, grasp, or seize. The Form IV pattern adds a causative or intensive shade, so the noun carries the sense of holding something back or in. From this core sense Arabic extended the word to bodily retention (constipation), the moment fasting must be held to (the pre-dawn cutoff), and the act of holding a person (apprehension).
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