Learn Arabic › A2 › مِثالِيّ
مِثالِيّ
ideal /miˈθaːliː/
adjectiveA2#802 most common
Also: exemplary, model, perfect
Example sentences
هٰذا مَكانٌ مِثالِيٌّ.
This is an ideal place.
هِيَ طالِبَةٌ مِثالِيَّةٌ.
She is a model student.
نَبْحَثُ عَنْ مَكانٍ مِثالِيٍّ لِقَضاءِ الإِجازَة.
We are looking for an ideal place to spend the vacation.
يَحْلُمُ كَثيرونَ بِشَريكٍ مِثالِيٍّ، لٰكِنَّ الكَمالَ نادِر.
Many dream of an ideal partner, but perfection is rare.
يُقَدِّمُ الكِتابُ نَموذَجاً مِثالِيّاً لِمُجْتَمَعٍ خالٍ مِنَ الفَقْر.
The book presents an ideal model for a society free of poverty.
قَدْ يَبْدو الحَلُّ مِثالِيّاً عَلى الوَرَق، غَيْرَ أَنَّ تَطْبيقَهُ عَلى أَرْضِ الواقِعِ يَصْطَدِمُ بِعَقَباتٍ كَثيرَة.
The solution may look ideal on paper, but putting it into practice runs into many obstacles.
Declension
| Case | Singular | Plural |
|---|---|---|
| Nominative | مِثالِيٌّ | مِثالِيّونَ |
| Genitive | مِثالِيٍّ | مِثالِيّينَ |
| Accusative | مِثالِيًّا | مِثالِيّينَ |
| Vocative | يا مِثالِيُّ | يا مِثالِيّونَ |
Word family
مِثالexample, model
مِثالِيَّةidealism, perfection
أَمْثَلoptimal, most exemplary
مُثُلideals, Platonic forms
تَمْثيلacting, representation
Etymology
The adjective comes from مِثال (mithāl), meaning model or example, built on the Semitic root m-th-l for likeness and resemblance. The nisba ending -iyy turns the noun into a relational adjective, literally 'pertaining to a model.' In modern usage it became the standard word for ideal, partly as a calque of the European term. The related noun مِثالِيَّة renders philosophical idealism, echoing the Platonic forms that Arabic thinkers called مُثُل.
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