Learn Arabic › B2 › غَيْرِيّ
غَيْرِيّ
altruistic /ɣajˈrijj/
adjectiveB2#3625 most common
Also: selfless, other-oriented, unselfish
Example sentences
هُوَ شَخْصٌ غَيْرِيٌّ.
He is an altruistic person.
سُلُوكُهُ غَيْرِيٌّ دَائِمًا.
His behavior is always altruistic.
تَعَلَّمْتُ أَنَّ الْحُبَّ الْغَيْرِيَّ أَجْمَلُ مِنَ الْحُبِّ الْأَنَانِيِّ.
I learned that altruistic love is more beautiful than selfish love.
يُشَجِّعُ الْمُعَلِّمُونَ الطُّلَّابَ عَلَى تَبَنِّي مَوْقِفٍ غَيْرِيٍّ تِجَاهَ زُمَلَائِهِمْ.
Teachers encourage students to adopt an altruistic attitude toward their classmates.
يَرَى بَعْضُ الْفَلَاسِفَةِ أَنَّ السُّلُوكَ الْغَيْرِيَّ الْحَقِيقِيَّ نَادِرٌ لِأَنَّ كُلَّ فِعْلٍ يَحْمِلُ فِي طَيَّاتِهِ مَصْلَحَةً شَخْصِيَّةً وَلَوْ خَفِيَّةً.
Some philosophers believe truly altruistic behavior is rare, because every act carries a personal interest within it, even if hidden.
تُشِيرُ الدِّرَاسَاتُ التَّطَوُّرِيَّةُ إِلَى أَنَّ الِانْتِخَابَ الطَّبِيعِيَّ قَدْ يُفَضِّلُ السُّلُوكَ الْغَيْرِيَّ حِينَ يَخْدُمُ بَقَاءَ الْأَقَارِبِ الْمُشْتَرَكِينَ فِي الْجِينَاتِ.
Evolutionary studies indicate that natural selection may favor altruistic behavior when it serves the survival of relatives who share genes.
Declension
| Case | Singular | Plural |
|---|---|---|
| Nominative | غَيْرِيٌّ | غَيْرِيُّونَ |
| Genitive | غَيْرِيٍّ | غَيْرِيِّينَ |
| Accusative | غَيْرِيًّا | غَيْرِيِّينَ |
| Vocative | يَا غَيْرِيُّ | يَا غَيْرِيُّونَ |
Word family
غَيْرother, else
غَيْرِيَّةaltruism
أَنَانِيّselfish, egoistic (antonym)
أَنَانِيَّةselfishness, egoism
Etymology
غَيْرِيّ is built from the Arabic word غَيْر, meaning "other" or "else," by adding the nisba ending ـِيّ, which turns a noun into a relational adjective. The resulting word means "pertaining to others," and by the twentieth century Arabic writers on ethics and psychology settled on it as the standard term for "altruistic," mirroring the coinage of "altruism" from Latin alter ("other") in European languages. It is a native Arabic formation, not a borrowing.
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