Learn Arabic › A1 › نَعَم
نَعَم
yes /naˈʕam/
particleA1#40 most common
Also: yeah, yes indeed, certainly
Example sentences
نَعَمْ، أَنا بِخَيْر.
Yes, I am fine.
ـ هَلْ تُحِبُّ الشّايَ؟ ـ نَعَمْ، كَثيراً.
— Do you like tea? — Yes, very much.
نَعَمْ، سَأَحْضُرُ الاجْتِماعَ غَداً صَباحاً.
Yes, I will attend the meeting tomorrow morning.
قُلْتُ لَهُ نَعَمْ لِأَنَّني لَمْ أُرِدْ أَنْ أُخَيِّبَ أَمَلَهُ.
I told him yes because I didn't want to disappoint him.
نَعَمْ، أَعْتَرِفُ بِأَنّي أَخْطَأْتُ في تَقْديري لِلْمَوْقِفِ بَرُمَّتِهِ.
Yes, I admit that I misjudged the situation entirely.
إِنَّ «نَعَمْ» الَّتي نَطَقَ بِها بِتَرَدُّدٍ حَمَلَتْ في طَيّاتِها رَفْضاً مُبَطَّناً.
The "yes" that he uttered hesitantly carried within it a veiled refusal.
Word family
نِعْمةblessing, grace, favor
ناعِمsoft, smoothنَعيمbliss, comfort (paradise)
أَنْعَمَto bestow, grant a favor
أَجَلْyes, indeed (close synonym)
Etymology
نَعَم is the standard Arabic particle of affirmation, used to answer a question in the affirmative. It shares the triliteral root ن-ع-م (n-ʿ-m), which conveys softness, ease, comfort and grace, the same root behind نِعْمة (blessing) and ناعِم (soft). Classical grammarians class it as a ḥarf jawāb, a response particle, alongside بَلى and أَجَل.
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