Learn Arabic › B1 › شَفَة
شَفَة
lip /ˈʃa.fa/
nounB1#2314 most common
Also: rim (of a vessel), edge
Example sentences
شَفَتُهَا حَمْرَاء.
Her lip is red.
عَضَّ الطِّفْلُ شَفَتَهُ.
The child bit his lip.
وَضَعَتِ الْبِنْتُ أَحْمَرَ الشِّفَاهِ عَلَى شَفَتَيْهَا.
The girl put lipstick on her lips.
ظَهَرَتِ ابْتِسَامَةٌ خَفِيفَةٌ عَلَى شَفَتَيْهِ.
A faint smile appeared on his lips.
لَمْ يَنْبِسْ بِبِنْتِ شَفَةٍ طَوَالَ الِاجْتِمَاعِ.
He did not utter a single word throughout the meeting.
كَانَ الْحَقُّ عَلَى طَرَفِ شَفَتِهِ لَكِنَّهُ آثَرَ الصَّمْتَ خَشْيَةَ الْعَوَاقِبِ.
The truth was on the tip of his lip, but he chose silence for fear of the consequences.
Declension
| Case | Singular | Plural |
|---|---|---|
| Nominative | شَفَةٌ | شِفَاهٌ |
| Genitive | شَفَةٍ | شِفَاهٍ |
| Accusative | شَفَةً | شِفَاهًا |
| Vocative | يَا شَفَةُ | يَا شِفَاهُ |
Word family
شِفَاهlips (plural)
شَفَتَانِtwo lips (dual)
شَفَوِيّlabial; oral
مُشَافَهَةoral, face-to-face communication
Etymology
The word descends from a common Semitic term for the lip and, by extension, the edge or rim of a thing. The same root gave Hebrew and Aramaic words that mean both lip and language, since speech comes from the lips. Arabic keeps the sense of a physical edge, so the word can also name the rim of a cup or a wound.
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