Learn Arabic › B1 › دَبّ
دَبّ
to crawl, to creep /ˈdab.ba/
verbB1#2937 most common
Also: to creep in (of a feeling, rumor, or trait), to move slowly and quietly
Example sentences
العنكبوت يدبّ على السقف.
The spider crawls on the ceiling.
دبّت الحية بين الحجارة.
The snake crept between the stones.
دبّ التعب في جسدي بعد يوم طويل.
Fatigue crept into my body after a long day.
دبّ الشيب في رأسه وهو لا يزال شابًا.
Gray hair crept into his head while he was still young.
دبّ الخلاف بين الشريكين بعد سنوات من التعاون.
Discord crept in between the two partners after years of cooperation.
ما إن حلّ الظلام حتى دبّت الحياة في أزقة المدينة القديمة، وامتلأت بالباعة والمارة.
As soon as darkness fell, life crept into the alleys of the old city, and it filled with vendors and passersby.
Conjugation
| Present Active | Simple Past Active | Simple Future Active | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1sg | أَدِبُّ | دَبَبْتُ | سَأَدِبُّ |
| 2sg | تَدِبُّ | دَبَبْتَ | سَتَدِبُّ |
| 3sg | يَدِبُّ | دَبَّ | سَيَدِبُّ |
| 1pl | نَدِبُّ | دَبَبْنا | سَنَدِبُّ |
| 2pl | تَدِبّونَ | دَبَبْتُم | سَتَدِبّونَ |
| 3pl | يَدِبّونَ | دَبّوا | سَيَدِبّونَ |
Word family
دبيبa creeping motion, a faint rustle of movement
دابّةa beast, a riding animal or mount
دبّابةtank (military vehicle)
دبّbear (a different, unrelated word, spelled the same without vowel marks)
Etymology
دَبّ comes from the Arabic triliteral root د-ب-ب, a geminate root built around slow, low motion. Classical dictionaries use it for an insect or reptile moving close to the ground, and by extension for a feeling, trait, or rumor that spreads unnoticed, like fear or gray hair. The same root gives دابّة, a beast or mount, and the modern word دبّابة, a tank, coined because it crawls over terrain the way a slow creature does. No secure cognates outside Semitic are established, so none are listed here.
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