Learn Arabic › B2 › سَفِير
سَفِير
ambassador /saˈfiːr/
nounB2#3756 most common
Also: envoy, diplomat
Example sentences
السفير في السفارة.
The ambassador is at the embassy.
يعمل سفير مصر في باريس.
Egypt's ambassador works in Paris.
التقى الرئيس بالسفير الأمريكي أمس.
The president met the American ambassador yesterday.
عيّنت الحكومة سفيرة جديدة لدى الأمم المتحدة.
The government appointed a new ambassador to the UN.
أكد السفير أن بلاده ستواصل دعم عملية السلام.
The ambassador affirmed that his country would keep supporting the peace process.
يُعتبر هذا الفنان سفيرًا للنوايا الحسنة لدى اليونيسف منذ سنوات.
This artist has been a goodwill ambassador for UNICEF for years.
Declension
| Case | Singular | Plural |
|---|---|---|
| Nominative | سفيرٌ | سفراءُ |
| Genitive | سفيرٍ | سفراءَ |
| Accusative | سفيراً | سفراءَ |
| Vocative | يا سفيرُ | يا سفراءُ |
Word family
سفارة (safāra)embassy
سافر (sāfara)to travel
مسافر (musāfir)traveler
سفيرة (safīra)female ambassador
Etymology
Safīr comes from the Semitic root s-f-r, whose core sense covers travel, journeying, and by extension carrying messages between parties. The word follows the faʿīl pattern, which in Arabic often marks a person who performs or embodies an action, so it names one who travels and mediates on behalf of others. From this same root come safar (journey) and safāra (embassy). No Indo-European root is involved, since Arabic is a Semitic language.
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