Learn Arabic › B1 › رَهِينَة
رَهِينَة
hostage /ra.ˈhiː.na/
nounB1#2164 most common
Also: captive held as security, pledge, collateral
Example sentences
هي رَهِينَة.
She is a hostage.
أُطلِقت الرَهِينَة اليوم.
The hostage was released today.
طلب الخاطفون فِدية مقابل الرَهِينَة.
The kidnappers demanded a ransom for the hostage.
بقيت الرَهِينَة محتجزة لأكثر من شهر قبل الإفراج عنها.
The hostage stayed captive for more than a month before being freed.
تفاوضت الحكومة بحذر خشية أن تتعرض الرَهِينَة للأذى.
The government negotiated carefully, fearing the hostage might be harmed.
ظلت الدولة رَهِينَة لقرارات لا تملك من أمرها شيئاً، تماماً كأسير بيد غيره.
The state remained a hostage to decisions beyond its control, like a captive in another's hands.
Declension
| Case | Singular | Plural |
|---|---|---|
| Nominative | رَهِينَةٌ | رَهَائِنُ |
| Genitive | رَهِينَةٍ | رَهَائِنَ |
| Accusative | رَهِينَةً | رَهَائِنَ |
| Vocative | يا رَهِينَةُ | يا رَهَائِنُ |
Word family
رَهَنَto pledge, mortgage
رَهْنmortgage, pledge, pawnرَهِينhostage, captive (masc.)
رَهَائِنhostages (plural)
مَرْهُونpledged, mortgaged, dependent on
Etymology
The word derives from the triliteral Arabic root r-h-n, which carries the sense of pledging, mortgaging, or giving something as security. A رَهِينَة is a person held as a guarantee, much as an object left as a pledge. The related noun رَهْن still means a pawn or mortgage in modern legal Arabic.
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