Learn Arabic › A1 › مَدِينَة
مَدِينَة
city /maˈdiːna/
nounA1#243 most common
Also: town, urban center, old walled quarter (Maghreb)
Example sentences
هَذِهِ مَدِينَة كَبِيرَة.
This is a big city.
أَسْكُنُ فِي مَدِينَة جَمِيلَة.
I live in a beautiful city.
مَدِينَتُنا قَدِيمَة جِدًّا وَفِيها أَسْواق كَثِيرَة.
Our city is very old and has many markets.
سافَرْنا إِلى مَدِينَة عَلى السّاحِل لِقَضاءِ العُطْلَة.
We traveled to a city on the coast to spend the holiday.
تُعَدُّ هَذِهِ المَدِينَةُ مَرْكَزًا تِجارِيًّا مُهِمًّا مُنْذُ قُرونٍ طَويلَة.
This city has been an important commercial center for many centuries.
رَغْمَ النُّمُوِّ العُمْرانِيِّ المُتَسارِع، حافَظَتِ المَدِينَةُ عَلى طابَعِها التّاريخِيِّ الأَصيل.
Despite rapid urban growth, the city kept its authentic historic character.
Declension
| Case | Singular | Plural |
|---|---|---|
| Nominative | مَدِينَةٌ | مُدُنٌ |
| Genitive | مَدِينَةٍ | مُدُنٍ |
| Accusative | مَدِينَةً | مُدُنًا |
| Vocative | يا مَدِينَةُ | يا مُدُنُ |
Word family
مُدُن (mudun)cities (plural)
مَدَنِيّ (madanī)urban, civil, civilian
مَدَنِيَّة (madaniyya)civilization, urban life
تَمَدُّن (tamaddun)urbanization, becoming civilized
مُتَمَدِّن (mutamaddin)civilized, urbanized
Etymology
Madīna means city. It rests on the Semitic root d-y-n, which carries the sense of judgment and rule, so a city was understood as a seat of law and authority. Arabic shaped or borrowed the word alongside Aramaic medīntā and Hebrew medīnā, both meaning province or district. Modern Hebrew still uses medīnā for 'state'.
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