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فِيل
elephant /ˈfiːl/
nounA2#1364 most common
Also: bishop (the chess piece)
Example sentences
هٰذَا فِيلٌ كَبِيرٌ.
This is a big elephant.
لِلْفِيلِ خُرْطُومٌ طَوِيلٌ.
The elephant has a long trunk.
رَأَيْتُ فِيلًا ضَخْمًا فِي حَدِيقَةِ الحَيَوَانِ.
I saw a huge elephant at the zoo.
يُعَدُّ الفِيلُ مِنْ أَذْكَى الحَيَوَانَاتِ فِي البَرِّيَّةِ.
The elephant is considered one of the smartest animals in the wild.
تَسِيرُ الأَفْيَالُ فِي قَطِيعٍ تَقُودُهُ أُنْثَى مُسِنَّةٌ.
Elephants move in a herd led by an old female.
ذَكَرَ القُرْآنُ أَصْحَابَ الفِيلِ فِي سُورَةٍ كامِلَةٍ تَحْمِلُ اسْمَهُ.
The Quran mentions the People of the Elephant in a whole chapter that bears its name.
Declension
| Case | Singular | Plural |
|---|---|---|
| Nominative | فِيلٌ | أَفْيَالٌ |
| Genitive | فِيلٍ | أَفْيَالٍ |
| Accusative | فِيلًا | أَفْيَالًا |
| Vocative | يا فِيلُ | يا أَفْيَالُ |
Word family
أَفْيَالelephants (plural)
فِيَلةelephants (plural)
فَيَّالmahout, elephant keeper
داء الفِيلelephantiasis
Etymology
Arabic فِيل means elephant. The word is a loan, most likely from Persian پیل (pīl), and it spread across the region as a wandering word for the animal. Because it is not native to the Semitic stock, its triliteral shape is a later adaptation. The Quran uses it in the name of a short chapter, Surat al-Fil.
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