Learn Arabic › A2 › حَمَى
حَمَى
to protect /ˈħamaː/
verbA2#1149 most common
Also: to defend, to guard, to shield
Example sentences
الأُمُّ تَحْمِي طِفْلَهَا.
The mother protects her child.
حَمَى الكَلْبُ البَيْتَ مِنَ اللُّصُوصِ.
The dog protected the house from thieves.
يَجِبُ أَنْ نَحْمِيَ البِيئَةَ مِنَ التَّلَوُّثِ.
We must protect the environment from pollution.
حَمَيْنَا حُقُوقَنَا بِالقَانُونِ وَلَمْ نَتَنَازَلْ عَنْهَا.
We protected our rights with the law and did not give them up.
القَلْعَةُ الَّتِي حَمَتِ المَدِينَةَ لِقُرُونٍ ما زَالَتْ قَائِمَةً.
The fortress that protected the city for centuries still stands.
مَنْ حَمَى ظَهْرَكَ فِي السِّرِّ أَحَقُّ بِوَفَائِكَ مِمَّنْ مَدَحَكَ عَلانِيَةً.
Whoever guarded your back in secret is more deserving of your loyalty than whoever praised you openly.
Conjugation
| Present Active | Simple Past Active | Simple Future Active | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1sg | أَحْمِي | حَمَيْتُ | سَأَحْمِي |
| 2sg | تَحْمِي | حَمَيْتَ | سَتَحْمِي |
| 3sg | يَحْمِي | حَمَى | سَيَحْمِي |
| 1pl | نَحْمِي | حَمَيْنَا | سَنَحْمِي |
| 2pl | تَحْمُونَ | حَمَيْتُمْ | سَتَحْمُونَ |
| 3pl | يَحْمُونَ | حَمَوْا | سَيَحْمُونَ |
Word family
حِمَايَةprotection
حَامٍprotector, guardian
مُحَامٍlawyer, defense attorney
مَحْمِيَّةnature reserve, protected area
حَامَىto defend, advocate for (Form III)
Etymology
The verb comes from the Semitic root ḥ-m-y, which holds the idea of guarding and shielding. In Arabic it grew a wide family: حِمَايَة for protection, مَحْمِيَّة for a nature reserve, and مُحَامٍ for the lawyer who defends a client. An older sense survives in حِمًى, the grazing land a tribe placed off limits. The root has no Indo-European origin; its relatives sit within Semitic.
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