Arabic

Ar·a·bic | \ ˈa-rə-bik

How to pronounce Arabic (audio)

, ˈer-ə- \

Definition of Arabic

(Entry 1 of 2)

: a Semitic language originally of the Arabs of the Hejaz and Nejd that is now the prevailing speech of a wide region of southwestern Asia and northern Africa

Arabic

Definition of Arabic (Entry 2 of 2)

1 : of, relating to, or constituting the language Arabic … Arabic neologisms of the nineteenth century …— Bernard Lewis His bibliography contains no classical Arabic texts and only a handful of dubiously transliterated recent Arabic titles …— Pierre Cachia … edited and reviewed by Arabic scholars in Paris …— Edwin McDowell

2 : expressed in or utilizing Arabic numerals 21 is an Arabic number. Arabic notation

3 : of, relating to, or characteristic of Arabia or the Arabs As Arabic music permeates various other sounds, so are western sounds finding their way into various Arabic musics.— Hank Bordowitz The Middle East meets the Wild West in this variation on Arabic hummus.— Steven Raichlen There still exist some folk instruments in Portugal whose names indicate their Arabic origin.— Alexander Buchner

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Dictionary Entries near Arabic

Arabic alphabet

Arabic architecture

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Cite this Entry

“Arabic.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/Arabic. Accessed 18 Jan. 2021.

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More Definitions for Arabic

Arabic

noun

English Language Learners Definition of Arabic

: the language of the Arab people

See the full definition for Arabic in the English Language Learners Dictionary

Arabic

Ar·a·bic | \ ˈer-ə-bik

\

Kids Definition of Arabic

(Entry 1 of 2)

: a language spoken in the Arabian Peninsula of southwestern Asia, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, Egypt, and parts of northern Africa

Arabic

Kids Definition of Arabic (Entry 2 of 2)

: of or relating to the Arabian Peninsula of southwestern Asia, the Arabs, or Arabic

arabic

Medical Definition of arabic

— see gum arabic

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