Learn Arabic › B2 › عَقَبَة
عَقَبَة
obstacle /ˈʕa.qa.ba/
nounB2#4052 most common
Also: mountain pass, steep climb, hindrance
Example sentences
هَذِهِ عَقَبَةٌ.
This is an obstacle.
واجَهْنا عَقَبَةً في الطَّريقِ.
We faced an obstacle on the road.
تَجاوَزَ الفَريقُ العَقَبَةَ بِسُهولَةٍ.
The team got past the obstacle easily.
هُناكَ عَقَباتٌ كَثيرَةٌ أَمامَ المَشْروعِ.
Many obstacles stand in the way of the project.
يَنْحَدِرُ الطَّريقُ عَبْرَ عَقَبَةٍ جَبَلِيَّةٍ شَديدَةِ الِانْحِدارِ.
The road descends through a steep mountain pass.
عَلى الرَّغْمِ مِنَ العَقَباتِ الِاقْتِصادِيَّةِ وَالسِّياسِيَّةِ، تَمَكَّنَتِ الحُكومَةُ مِنْ تَنْفيذِ الإِصْلاحاتِ.
Despite the economic and political obstacles, the government managed to carry out the reforms.
Declension
| Case | Singular | Plural |
|---|---|---|
| Nominative | عَقَبَةٌ | عَقَبَاتٌ |
| Genitive | عَقَبَةٍ | عَقَبَاتٍ |
| Accusative | عَقَبَةً | عَقَبَاتٍ |
| Vocative | يا عَقَبَةُ | يا عَقَبَاتُ |
Word family
عَاقِبَة (ʿāqiba)consequence, outcome
عَقِب (ʿaqib)heel
تَعَاقَبَ (taʿāqaba)to follow in succession, alternate
عُقُوبَة (ʿuqūba)punishment
مُعَقِّب (muʿaqqib)follow-up agent, legal representative
Etymology
The word comes from the Semitic root ʿ-q-b, which carries the core idea of following or coming after, the same root behind ʿaqib, heel, and ʿāqiba, consequence. An ʿaqaba was originally a steep, rugged mountain track, hard going because the ground keeps rising underfoot, and the sense broadened to cover any obstacle or hindrance blocking a path. The Jordanian port city of Aqaba is named after just such a steep coastal pass. Because the root is Semitic rather than Indo-European, it has no PIE ancestor.
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