Learn Arabic › B1 › كَفّ
كَفّ
to stop, cease, refrain (from) /ˈkaf.fa/
verbB1#2545 most common
Also: to restrain, hold back, to hem (a garment), to go blind (passive: كُفَّ بصره)
Example sentences
كَفَّ عَنِ الكَلامِ.
He stopped talking.
كُفَّ عَنْ هٰذا!
Stop this!
كَفَّتِ الفَتاةُ عَنِ البُكاءِ.
The girl stopped crying.
لَنْ أَكُفَّ عَنْ مُحاوَلَةِ النَّجاحِ.
I will not stop trying to succeed.
كَفَّ الخَيّاطُ ثَوْبَهُ قَبْلَ أَنْ يَبيعَهُ.
The tailor hemmed his garment before selling it.
كُفَّ بَصَرُ الشَّيْخِ بَعْدَ سَنَواتٍ طَويلَةٍ مِنَ المَرَضِ.
The old man went blind after long years of illness.
Conjugation
| Present Active | Simple Past Active | Simple Future Active | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1sg | أَكُفُّ | كَفَفْتُ | سَأَكُفُّ |
| 2sg | تَكُفُّ | كَفَفْتَ | سَتَكُفُّ |
| 3sg | يَكُفُّ | كَفَّ | سَيَكُفُّ |
| 1pl | نَكُفُّ | كَفَفْنا | سَنَكُفُّ |
| 2pl | تَكُفّونَ | كَفَفْتُم | سَتَكُفّونَ |
| 3pl | يَكُفّونَ | كَفّوا | سَيَكُفّونَ |
Word family
كَفّpalm of the hand
كَفيفblind (person)
انكَفَّto be restrained, to desist
كافَّةall, the entirety
تَكَفُّفbegging (extending the palm for alms)
Etymology
The verb comes from the Semitic root k-f-f, a geminate (doubled) root whose final two consonants merge into one stressed letter. The same root gives the noun for the palm of the hand, since stopping or restraining something was pictured as holding it back with the flat of the hand. From that core sense Arabic extended the verb to cover ceasing an action, restraining someone, and even hemming cloth, where the edge is folded back like a palm closing.
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