Learn Arabic › B2 › ضَعَة
ضَعَة
lowliness (of rank or status), baseness /ˈdˤa.ʕah/
nounB2#3026 most common
Also: meanness of standing, abjectness, servility
Example sentences
هذا الفعلُ ضَعَةٌ.
This act is baseness.
لا تَرضَ بالضَّعَةِ.
Do not accept lowliness.
عاشَ الرجلُ في ضَعَةٍ بعدَ أن خسِرَ مالَه.
The man lived in lowliness after he lost his wealth.
الكِبرياءُ الزائفُ قد يُوصِلُ صاحبَه إلى الضَّعَةِ.
False pride can bring its owner down to baseness.
إنَّ الرِّضا بالضَّعَةِ عندَ أصحابِ الهِمَمِ عارٌ لا يُغتَفَر.
Contentment with lowliness, among people of ambition, is an unforgivable shame.
ما زالَ يُجاهِدُ نفسَه كي لا تَنحَدِرَ به ضَعَةُ النَّفسِ إلى مَهاوي الذُّلِّ.
He kept struggling with himself so that baseness of the soul would not drag him down into the depths of humiliation.
Declension
| Case | Singular | Plural |
|---|---|---|
| Nominative | ضَعَةٌ | not used (abstract noun, no plural) |
| Genitive | ضَعَةٍ | not used (abstract noun, no plural) |
| Accusative | ضَعَةً | not used (abstract noun, no plural) |
| Vocative | يا ضَعَةُ | not used (abstract noun, no plural) |
Word family
وَضَعَto put, place, put down
وَضِيعlowly, base, of low rank
مَوْضِعplace, locationمَوْضُوعtopic, subjectوَضْعِيَّةsituation, condition, position
Etymology
The word comes from the triliteral Semitic root waw-dad-ayn (و ض ع), the same root behind wada'a, meaning to put or place something down. Ḍaʿah is a verbal noun (maṣdar) built on this root, with the initial waw dropped, a common pattern in Arabic nouns from waw-initial roots. Its core sense is the state of being placed low, and by extension it means lowliness of rank, character, or social standing. It stands as the opposite of rifʿah, loftiness or high standing.
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