Learn Arabic › A1 › حَيّ
حَيّ
neighborhood /ˈħajj/
nounA1#684 most common
Also: quarter, district, residential area
Example sentences
أَسْكُنُ في حَيٍّ هادِئ.
I live in a quiet neighborhood.
حَيُّنا قَريبٌ مِن المَدْرَسَة.
Our neighborhood is near the school.
يوجَدُ سوقٌ كَبيرٌ في وَسَطِ الحَيِّ.
There is a big market in the center of the neighborhood.
اِنتَقَلَتْ عائِلَتُنا إلى حَيٍّ جَديدٍ على أَطرافِ المَدينَة.
Our family moved to a new neighborhood on the outskirts of the city.
تَشتَهِرُ أَحْياءُ القاهِرَةِ القَديمَةُ بِأَزِقَّتِها الضَّيِّقَةِ وَبُيوتِها العَتيقَة.
The old neighborhoods of Cairo are famous for their narrow alleys and ancient houses.
لَمْ يَعُدِ الحَيُّ الَّذي نَشَأْتُ فيهِ كَما كانَ؛ فَقَدِ اِبتَلَعَتْهُ أَبْراجُ الإِسْمَنتِ وَمَحَتْ مَلامِحَهُ القَديمَة.
The neighborhood where I grew up is no longer what it was; towers of concrete have swallowed it and erased its old features.
Declension
| Case | Singular | Plural |
|---|---|---|
| Nominative | حَيٌّ | أَحْياءٌ |
| Genitive | حَيٍّ | أَحْياءٍ |
| Accusative | حَيًّا | أَحْياءً |
| Vocative | يا حَيُّ | يا أَحْياءُ |
Word family
Etymology
حَيّ comes from the Semitic root ḥ-y-y, meaning to live. In classical Arabic it named a tribe or clan, a living community of people. The modern sense narrowed to the place where such a community lives: a city quarter or neighborhood. The same root gives حَياة, life.
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