Learn Arabic › B1 › بَئِس
بَئِس
to be miserable /ˈba.ʔis/
verbB1#1420 most common
Also: to be wretched, to be in distress, to be badly off
Example sentences
بَئِسَ الرَّجُلُ.
The man became miserable.
بَئِسَ النّاسُ مِنَ الفَقْرِ.
The people became wretched from poverty.
بَئِسَتِ المَدينةُ بَعْدَ الزِّلْزالِ الكَبيرِ.
The city fell into misery after the great earthquake.
كُلَّما بَئِسَ عَيْشُهُ، ازْدادَ صَبْرُهُ.
The more wretched his life became, the more his patience grew.
بَئِسَ القَوْمُ حينَ فَقَدوا أَرْضَهُمْ، فلَمْ يَجِدوا مَأْوًى ولا طَعامًا.
The people fell into misery when they lost their land, finding neither shelter nor food.
ما بَئِسَ قَوْمٌ صَبَروا على الشَّدائِدِ، بَلْ بَئِسَ مَنِ اسْتَسْلَمَ لِلْيَأْسِ.
No people who endured hardships ever became wretched; rather, wretched is the one who surrendered to despair.
Conjugation
| Present Active | Simple Past Active | Simple Future Active | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1sg | أَبْأَسُ | بَئِسْتُ | سَأَبْأَسُ |
| 2sg | تَبْأَسُ | بَئِسْتَ | سَتَبْأَسُ |
| 3sg | يَبْأَسُ | بَئِسَ | سَيَبْأَسُ |
| 1pl | نَبْأَسُ | بَئِسْنَا | سَنَبْأَسُ |
| 2pl | تَبْأَسُونَ | بَئِسْتُمْ | سَتَبْأَسُونَ |
| 3pl | يَبْأَسُونَ | بَئِسُوا | سَيَبْأَسُونَ |
Word family
بُؤْسmisery, wretchedness
بائِسmiserable, wretchedبَئيسdismal, miserable
بَأْساءadversity, hardship
بَأْسmight; harmEtymology
The verb comes from the Semitic root b-ʾ-s, which carries the sense of being bad, foul, or wretched. The same root yields Arabic buʾs, 'misery,' and bāʾis, 'a wretched person.' Related roots appear across Semitic languages with meanings tied to badness and decay.
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