Learn Arabic › A1 › قِبَل
قِبَل
power, ability (to face or withstand something) /qɪˈbal/
nounA1#83 most common
Also: side, direction, quarter, on the part of, by (in the phrase مِن قِبَل)
Example sentences
تمّت دعوتي من قِبَلِ صديقي.
I was invited by my friend.
صُمِّمَ الموقع من قِبَلِ شركةٍ صغيرة.
The website was designed by a small company.
لا قِبَلَ لي بهذا العمل الكبير.
I have no capacity to handle this big job.
اتُّخِذَ القرار من قِبَلِ مجلس الإدارة.
The decision was made by the board of directors.
لا قِبَلَ للجيش الصغير بمواجهة قوّةٍ كهذه.
The small army is no match for confronting a force like this.
جاءت الانتقاداتُ من قِبَلِ خصومِه السياسيين، ولم يكن له بها قِبَلٌ.
The criticism came from his political opponents, and he had no power to counter it.
Declension
| Case | Singular | Plural |
|---|---|---|
| Nominative | قِبَلٌ (qibalun) | — |
| Genitive | قِبَلٍ (qibalin) | — |
| Accusative | قِبَلًا (qibalan) | — |
| Vocative | يا قِبَلُ (yā qibalu) | — |
Word family
قَبِلَ (qabila)to accept, receive
قابَلَ (qābala)to meet, face, interview
قِبْلة (qibla)direction of prayer toward Mecca
مُقابِل (muqābil)opposite; counterpart; in return for
اِستِقبال (istiqbāl)reception, welcoming
Etymology
قِبَل comes from the Semitic triliteral root ق-ب-ل (q-b-l), whose core sense is 'to face, front, or receive.' From the idea of 'the side one faces' it developed the meanings 'direction/side' and, by extension, 'the strength one can bring to face something' (power/ability). In the fixed phrase مِن قِبَل it means 'from the quarter of → on the part of, by.' The same root yields قابَلَ 'to meet,' قِبْلة 'prayer-direction,' and مُقابِل 'opposite.'
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