Learn Arabic › B1 › بُرْج
بُرْج
tower /ˈburdʒ/
nounB1#2866 most common
Also: zodiac sign, constellation, turret
Example sentences
هذا بُرْجٌ عالٍ.
This is a tall tower.
نَسْكُنُ بِالقُرْبِ مِنْ بُرْجٍ قَدِيمٍ.
We live near an old tower.
ما هو بُرْجُكَ الفَلَكِيّ؟
What is your zodiac sign?
تَمَّ بِنَاءُ هَذَا البُرْجِ فِي القَرْنِ الماضِي.
This tower was built in the last century.
تُحِيطُ بِالمَدِينَةِ القَدِيمَةِ أَبْرَاجٌ حَجَرِيَّةٌ شَامِخَةٌ.
Tall stone towers surround the old city.
يُنْسَبُ ازْدِهَارُ بُرْجِ خَلِيفَةَ إِلَى الطَّفْرَةِ العُمْرَانِيَّةِ الَّتِي شَهِدَتْهَا دُبَيّ فِي مَطْلَعِ الأَلْفِيَّةِ.
The rise of Burj Khalifa is tied to the construction boom Dubai saw at the turn of the millennium.
Declension
| Case | Singular | Plural |
|---|---|---|
| Nominative | بُرْجٌ | أَبْرَاجٌ |
| Genitive | بُرْجٍ | أَبْرَاجٍ |
| Accusative | بُرْجًا | أَبْرَاجًا |
| Vocative | يَا بُرْجُ | يَا أَبْرَاجُ |
Word family
أَبْرَاجtowers (plural)
بُرْج مُرَاقَبَةwatchtower, control tower
تَبَرُّجovert display of adornment or beauty
بُرْجِيّtower-related; tower-keeper
بُرْج الحَمَامdovecote, pigeon tower
Etymology
بُرْج entered Arabic through Aramaic burgā, which in turn came from Greek pyrgos, meaning a tower or fortified structure. The word kept its core sense of a tall defensive or ornamental building as it moved through Aramaic-speaking towns into early Arabic. Because towers marked the twelve sections of the zodiac in old astronomical charts, بُرْج also picked up the sense of zodiac sign. The deeper origin of Greek pyrgos itself is not settled among linguists, so no firm root beyond Greek can be given.
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