Learn Arabic › B2 › ماكِر
ماكِر
cunning /ˈmaː.kir/
adjectiveB2#4204 most common
Also: sly, crafty, cunning person
Example sentences
هُوَ ماكِرٌ.
He is cunning.
الثَّعْلَبُ ماكِرٌ جِدًّا.
The fox is very cunning.
لا تَثِقْ بِهِ، إِنَّهُ رَجُلٌ ماكِرٌ.
Don't trust him, he is a cunning man.
كانَتِ ابْتِسامَتُها ماكِرَةً تُخْفي نِيَّةً خَبيثَةً.
Her smile was cunning, hiding a wicked intention.
يَعْرِفُ التُّجّارُ الماكِرونَ كَيْفَ يَسْتَغِلّونَ ضَعْفَ الزَّبائِنِ.
The cunning merchants know how to exploit customers' weaknesses.
الرِّوائِيُّ يَرْسُمُ شَخْصِيَّةً ماكِرَةً تُخادِعُ الْجَميعَ مِنْ خِلالِ حِيَلٍ مُعَقَّدَةٍ لا يُدْرِكُها إِلّا القارِئُ الْمُتَمَرِّسُ.
The novelist draws a cunning character who deceives everyone through elaborate tricks that only the seasoned reader picks up on.
Declension
| Case | Singular | Plural |
|---|---|---|
| Nominative | ماكِرٌ | ماكِرونَ |
| Genitive | ماكِرٍ | ماكِرينَ |
| Accusative | ماكِراً | ماكِرينَ |
| Vocative | يا ماكِرُ | يا ماكِرونَ |
Word family
مَكَرَto scheme, deceive, plot
مَكْرcunning, deceit, trickery
ماكِرةcunning (feminine)
مَكّارvery cunning, sly (intensive form)
مَكيدةtrick, ploy, scheme
Etymology
ماكِر comes from the Arabic root م-ك-ر (m-k-r), whose verb makara means to plot, scheme, or deceive. ماكِر is the active participle of this verb, so it literally denotes one who schemes or deceives, and by extension someone cunning or crafty. The root is native Semitic and has no established Indo-European relatives.
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