Learn Arabic › B1 › زِنْزانَة
زِنْزانَة
prison cell /zɪnˈzaː.nah/
nounB1#2408 most common
Also: jail cell, dungeon cell
Example sentences
هٰذِهِ زِنْزانَةٌ صَغيرَةٌ.
This is a small cell.
السَّجّانُ فَتَحَ بابَ الزِّنْزانَةِ.
The jailer opened the door of the cell.
قَضى السَّجينُ عَشْرَ سَنَواتٍ في زِنْزانَتِهِ.
The prisoner spent ten years in his cell.
كانَتِ الزِّنْزانَةُ بارِدَةً ومُظْلِمَةً طَوالَ الشِّتاءِ.
The cell was cold and dark all winter.
نُقِلَ المُعْتَقَلونَ إلى زَنازينَ انْفِراديَّةٍ بَعْدَ مُحاوَلَةِ الهُروبِ.
The detainees were moved to solitary cells after the escape attempt.
تَحَوَّلَتِ الزِّنْزانَةُ الضَّيِّقَةُ إلى رَمْزٍ لِلْقَمْعِ في رِواياتِ الكاتِبِ.
The cramped cell became a symbol of oppression in the writer's novels.
Declension
| Case | Singular | Plural |
|---|---|---|
| Nominative | زِنْزانَةٌ | زَنازِينُ |
| Genitive | زِنْزانَةٍ | زَنازِينَ |
| Accusative | زِنْزانَةً | زَنازِينَ |
| Vocative | زِنْزانَةُ | زَنازِينُ |
Word family
Etymology
Zinzāna is a loanword in modern Arabic. It most likely came through Ottoman Turkish zindan, which itself came from Persian zindān, meaning prison or dungeon. The word spread through Arabic as contact with Ottoman administrative and penal vocabulary increased, and it settled into standard usage for a single lock-up cell rather than a whole prison.
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