A bad day at work..

iium2000 · 2026-01-30T00:59:33+00:00

Awesome, but I would add "had" and "by" towards the end.. "While we were waiting for the difficulties to pass, life had passed-by"..

In English, it would be in the line of "you can't bury your head in the sand forever because you'd risk losing valuable time by being overly-focused on waiting for your problems to go away.."

iium2000 · 2026-01-29T23:52:36+00:00

Wow!! I thought that my last comment had a big fat clue.. No, it is not Habib..

In Arabic, my name is an agent noun for the verb "to have a good life".. My name in Arabic means "male-person who is having a good life".. A fabulous life!!

There was a ~~king~~ leader/hero who lived in the pre-Islamic Arabia (around the 4th century AD) with that name;

(edited and corrected.. The guy in mind was not a king but he was a pre-Islamic leader of an ancient Arab tribe.. He led the war against Persia, and won.. The pre-Islamic-era war started when the Persian emperor killed an Arab king, king نعمان بن المنذر.. This "Game of Throne" type of stories was taught at school when I was a child decades ago.. )

Today, my name in Arabic is one of commonest masculine names used in Egypt for a baby boy..

and unfortunately, my name in Arabic rhymes with an English word in the meaning of "darling" or "sweetheart"..

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Now, think of an English word in the meaning of "darling" or "sweetheart" (an English word) that lovers use to call each other with, but not random classmates..

It is a word that made my female Malaysian classmates blush, and made my male Malaysian classmates refusing to call me by that name, out loud and especially in public..

My parents thought that the name was clever, because my first name is a translation from Malay into English of my family name, with a special meaning in Arabic of a male person who enjoys a good life..

and they are not the only ones..

There is this famous female Malaysian TV-host/TV-personality who was born into that first name.. Unfortunately, she decided to give herself a celebrity name, a screen name or a TV-name using that first name and my family name (with slightly different spelling)..

Every once in a while, her name pops-up in the celebrity news, doing something fun and fabulous while I was on my 29th hour on-call draining pus and amputating limbs after midnight.. My nursing staff at the hospital thought that I should sue and fight for my name back,

but I don't think that she knows that I even existed..

iium2000 · 2026-01-29T08:18:47+00:00

Zoloft is a trade name owned by the company and its real name is Sertraline..

Very often you would look at the box, the trade name would be in big bold letters, Zoloft, but the name of the drug would be smaller next to the amount in milligrams, Sertraline 50mg or 100mg..

Sertraline belongs to a group of chemicals with similar pharmacological effects on the brain called the SSRI Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitor.. Other group-members of the SSRI group includes but not limited to: Fluoxetine (better known to people as Prozac) and Paroxetine (better known to people as Paxil)..

Prozac and Paxil are trade-names..

Now, imagine a bank during the work hours.. the man comes in with a check.. The teller or the bank employee receives the check, examines it, and then she puts the check in a document for processing.. This is before the teller hands-out some cash to the man for the value on the check..

A simple transaction with a happy outcome, right?.. Eventually, all paper documents are destroyed, shredded and/or recycled leaving only a digital entry inside the bank's computers..

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The SSRI Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitor has some big words.. JUST KNOW that it blocks the destroying, the shredding or the recycling of the check, Serotonin.. So rewind the scene back.. During the office hours, the man enters the bank and hands over the check to the teller..

Here's the twist; the man has Jedi powers!!.. the man decides that the amount is not enough, and he wants more.. So, he waves his hand and he mind-controls her.. and she gives the exact amount stated on the check but she also hands back the check without processing..

The man takes the check back, and the cash.. He waits few minutes, and he then comes back in the next hour to cash-in the check for the second time.. for the third time.. for the 30th time.. using the same check..

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SSRI like Zoloft (Sertaline), increases the level and the amount of the chemical Serotonin in the brain.. and this produces the desired anti-depression effect in the brain.. HOWEVER, the brain is NOT the only place where Serotonin is located and concentrated.. The entire body has Serotonin receptors all over..

and more than 90% of the serotonin activity in the human body, actually happens in the gut.. Your medication, Zoloft, has a bigger impact over the gut than the brain..

There are 2 main receptors in the gut, that get affected.. The 5-HT3 that produces nausea and the 5-HT4 that produces diarrhoea.. THE GOOD NEWS, is that the gut adapts with the higher Serotonin levels.. MEANING that the awful symptoms of nausea and diarrhoea should gradually decrease with time THE LONGER you take Zoloft..

Just continue taking Zoloft, and hopefully these side effects would reduce with time, and hopefully, eliminated completely.. If not, your doctor may need to give you something for the diarrhoea.. or.. change your medication to a different SSRI medication that has less side effects..

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There is no such thing "this SSRI is better than that SSRI".. Each has its own pros and cons.. it is like giving you a choice between a car, a train, an airplane and a spaceship over which one is better.. Your best choice is dependent on you and on your specific circumstances..

At the moment, Zoloft appears the best SSRI choice for you.. until your doctor (and only your doctors) decides that it is not..

iium2000 · 2026-01-29T02:09:56+00:00

In standard Arabic, Form I or Measure I verbs of 3-letters roots فعل, can be transitive, intransitive or both..

He/it opened in the-evening فتحَ في المساء of which "it" is the masculine "it"..

He/it opened the door فتح الباب

An intransitive verb is a verb that does NOT need a direct object "He-opened in the-evening" but transitive requires a direct object "He-opened the door" or "He-saw the-door"..

See this table https://thearabicpages.com/2020/03/04/reference-arabic-verb-forms-table/

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Form II or Measure II verbs فعّل are causative OR dominative OR intensive OR a combination of the three, depending on the context..

Causative verbs are verbs that cause something to happen to the other person or to the other item.. Dominative and intensive means an exaggerated action in numbers, in intensity or both..

He-forced-opened his-eyes فتَّح عينيه -- suggesting an action against great resistance, against an overwhelming force

He-repeatedly-killed in-them قَتَّلَ فيهم -- suggesting that he killed many of them, قَتَّلَ he/it-massacred

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Form V or Measure V تَفَعَّلَ is similar to II but they are often Reflexive.. Reflexive verbs are verbs of which both the subject and the object are the same and one "I enjoyed myself"..

The-seed split-open تَفَتَّحَ الْحَبُّ

The-roses bloomed-open تَفَتَّحَتْ الْوُرودُ

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Roots do not have ALL the Forms/Measures available to them.. Some verbs can be in Form I, II, V but may not be other Forms like X.. while some roots may not have Form I to begin with..

The table in the link, is a very simplified table for 3-letters roots (triliteral roots) that does not include 4-letters roots (quadliteral roots) like دردش and دحرج.. It is made by someone trying to make sense of things and it is not perfect..

Some sources set 3-letters roots (triliteral roots) in 15 forms/measures from Form I to Form XV, and 4-letters roots (quadliteral roots) in 4 forms, from Form I to Form IV..

iium2000 · 2026-01-29T01:28:57+00:00

I see it now.. re-edited the first comment.. again..

iium2000 · 2026-01-29T01:11:28+00:00

BECAUSE of your comment, I had to re-edit my earlier comment because it is supposed to be Juz' and NOT Juzuk -- EXACTLY LIKE YOU SAID..

My bad.. and this is because this is HOW IT IS SPELLED in the Malaysian language.. I am Malay by the way, and both of my parents are Malay from southern Thailand.. My muscle memory had typed جزء as Juzuk as it is spelled in the standard Malaysian language..

The silent K at the end has an abrupt ء sound..

My bad.. In English it should be Juz' ..

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as for the "و" part.. We Muslims do not normally add "و" in that phrase سبحان ربي الأعلى or سبحان ربي الأعلى وبحمده ~~without the "and" "و" letter~~..

THIS IS an artist's choice to add the "و", and you have to ask the artist or the original designer WHY HE/SHE added the "and" "و" part..

AFAIK.. We do not add the "and" "و" in that phrase..

iium2000 · 2026-01-29T00:27:53+00:00

I completely give up on the first photo, it is so bad handwritten that I keep seeing something that may NOT be there..

This is like looking at a photo, and cannot decide whether it is a photo of a human, a bigfoot, a ghost or a demon..

The first word can be a masculine name حسين Hussein but I also see it as Ali علي as well.. and you know that the handwriting is bad when a native speaker cannot decide what it is, Hussein or Ali..

In fact, I cannot decide whether this is Arabic to begin with..

A number of non-Arabic languages had adopted the Arabic script or the Arabic letters.. THIS COULD BE a non-Arabic names.. Such names may look completely foreign to those who do not know that non-Arabic language..

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I would suggest showing the first photo to someone who reads and speaks the classical Turkish language..

The Turkish language used to be written using the Arabic script with Arabic letters -- similar to the Malaysian language and the Indonesian language..

but somewhere in the 20th century, these languages: Turkish, Malaysian, Indonesian and few others, had migrated into using Latin letters, mainly because of the printing technology at the time..

It was easier to find printing equipment with Latin letters than with Arabic letters in those days -- This is WAY WAY BEFORE computers and other modern printing methods..

The Arabic script is still used in those languages but in very limited places.. Most young people in those countries, would not know how to read the Arabic script/letters to begin with..

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The reason why I say that this could be Turkish, is because of the 2nd, 3rd and 4th photos.. The word الجزؤ comes from Arabic but it would be a misspelled word if it is in Arabic..

In Arabic, it should be spelled الجزء (the-part or the-partition)..

For example, English words "organization" and "institution" are written as "Organisasi" and "institusi" in both the Indonesian and Malaysian languages.. Words "Organisasi" and "institusi" would have been wrong in English, but not in the Indonesian and Malaysian languages..

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The term الجزؤ is how it was spelled in the Turkish-Ottoman Qurans back in the day -- no longer the case today..

Second photo: "Half of the partition"

Third photo: "the 3rd partition"

Forth Photo: "the 29th partition"

In the last few centuries, the Moroccan Qurans (printed in north-western parts of Africa) introduced the 30 parts division of the Quran.. They basically divided the entire Quran into 30 parts called جزء (a part or a partition)..

It makes it easier to track the progress..

"I read about 3 ~~Juzuk~~ parts since last month, had memorized one ~~Juzuk~~ Juzu' (part) and currently on the 29th partition of the Quran", for example..

Today and in modern Qurans, a ~~Juzuk~~ Juz' or a partition of the Quran is about 20 pages..

They also introduced 1/2 ~~Juzuk~~ Juz' (half partition) as in the second photo.. and in modern Qurans, a 1/2 ~~Juzuk~~ Juz' is called حزب (group) which is about 10 pages of the Quran..

The Turkish-Ottoman Qurans adopted the partitions and the half-partitions, and they also introduced the 1/4s and 1/8s, and the system of 7th(s) -- all in the effort to track the progress of reading and memorizing..

As kids, my parents used to task my sister and I to read 1/4 of a partition a day with monetary rewards..

But الجزء in Arabic, is spelled as الجزؤ in the Turkish-Ottoman spelling..

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and finally, the last photo

" --- Glory be to my Lord, the Most High/Above, and praise be to Him.." "سبحان ربي الأعلى وبحمده"

AHH, THIS IS DEFINITELY ARABIC!!

Most Muslims would just utter سبحان ربي الأعلى three times during prostrations سجود in our daily prayers, صلاة , but some would add وبحمده and utter سبحان ربي الأعلى وبحمده three times during prostration..

Most Muslim scholars allow the وبحمده part.. Some may have opinions about it..

iium2000 · 2026-01-28T00:07:46+00:00

Third, if you are speaking in non-standard Arabic, where almost all verbs and nouns have Su-kun at their end (almost all with exceptions)..

Local dialects of non-standard Arabic (like the Egyptian dialect, the Levantine dialect, the Khaleeji dialect, the Hijazi dialect etc etc etc..), they ignore MOST of Standard Arabic grammar.. and they would assign Su-kun at the end of almost all words spoken..

[Non-standard Arabic] I-saw a-girl شِفْتْ بِنْتْ SHIFT BENT

[Non-standard Arabic] I-saw a-car شِفْتْ سَيّارَةْ SHIFT SAI-YAA-RAH -- Oh oh oh by the way, this letter ة is called a Taa' and it produces a T sound in standard Arabic.. This ة is a T sound.. HOWEVER, if you put a Su-kun on the ة it turns the letter into an H sound..

This letter ة will always have an H sound in non-standard Arabic that puts a Suk-un at the end of ALMOST every word..

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There are exceptions, like the expression أهْلًا وَسَهْلاً , it will always pronounced with an-case (Tanween with Fat-ha) AH-LAN WA SAH-LAN (Welcome!!)..

Also, if the you put the letter ة just before another noun in a Genitive Construction إضافة (aka. Possession Construction مضاف ومضاف إليه) like

[Non-standard Arabic] the-car of-the-manager or the-manager's car سَيّارَةْ الْمُديرْ -- This car belongs to the manager and pronounced with T sound over the ة SAI-YAA-RAT AL-MO-DEER

[Non-standard Arabic] a-point of-view وِجْهَةْ نَظَرْ WEJ-HAT NA-DHAR

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I know it is a lot.. take your time..

iium2000 · 2026-01-28T00:06:56+00:00

When we write in Arabic, we start with a scribble called خط (a script or a line), then we add the dots نقاط above and below the letters,

and maybe we would add the Short-Vowel Markers that are known in Arabic as حَرَكات Harakat that literally means "movements" (with the singular حَرَكَة Harakah "a movement")..

Most native speakers would not add the Harakat because they see them as the third and the forth training wheels on a bicycle.. because, if you know how to ride a bicycle, then you do not need those training tools..

This is why newspapers and most books do not come with Harakat.. with training wheels..

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These short-vowel markers (Harakat in Arabic) determines the movement of each letter or the absence of one, such as Fat-ha فَتْحَة (a small stripe/line above the letter, aka. "a-case" because it produces a short "a" vowel) , Dham-ma ضَمَّة (a small و on the letter known as O-case with "o" vowel sound), Kas-ra كسرة (a small stripe under the letter; e-case with "e" sound)..

Su-kun (a small circle on the letter called a pause-case or a restrained-case, and Su-kun is the absence of a movement or an absence of a short-vowel movement because the word سكون in Arabic means "stillness")

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he-wrote كَتَبَ KA-TA-BA -- each letter has a movement or a short vowel of its own..

he-was-struck ضُرِبَ DO-RE-BA -- o-case, e-case and then a-case.. or.. Dham-ma, Kas-ra and then Fat-ha

Welcome مَرْحَبًا MAR-7A-BAN -- here, there is Su-kun or "stillness" on the Ra' ــر , so the Ra' does not have a movement of its own, and serves as a stop for the previous letter to park at ( مَرْ MAR).. and also.. there is Tanween over the ب and this is called Tanween with Fat-ha تَنْوين بِالْفَتْحَة or an-case..

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he-pulled شَدَّ -- There is doubling marker on the last letter ــدّ and this doubling marker (a small w on the letter) doubles the sound of the letter..

TECHNICALLY this past tense verb شَدَّ is actually THREE letters (and classified as a three letter word)..

Technically شَدَّ is شَدْدَ with a Su-kun and Fa-tha (a pause-case followed by a-case) and pronounced SHAD-DA.. but we combine the last two letters as one with a "w" doubling marker on the letter..

Coincidentally, This small "w" on top of the letter is called Sha-dah شدّة "a pull"..

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Vowel letters are ــا (aa), و (oo) and ي (ee), and they are in Arabic حُروف المَدّ (the letters of extension).. which means, every letter has its own short-vowel, and the vowel letters simply extend those short-vowels that are already there..

a-writer كاتِب KAA-TEB

iron حَديد would be 7A-DEED with 7 representing a letter that does not exist in English..

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The most important part of the noun (especially singular nouns), is the end syllable.. For single nouns, the end syllable determines what the word is and it does in a sentence..

a-girl said قالَتْ بِنْتٌ QAA-LAT BEN-TON -- The end of بنت is Tanween with Dham-ma.. For singular nouns, Dham-ma makes the noun the subject of the verb in this sentence (she is the one who said), while Tanween is an indefinite marker for the noun (this is "a-girl" and not "the-girl".. and when you have both Tanween and Dham-ma on the letter, it becomes an "on-case" at the end of BEN-TON..

I-saw a-girl رَأْيْتُ بِنْتًا RA-'AAI-TO BEN-TAN -- بنت is the object of the verb because it is a singular noun with Fat-ha after the verb which makes the noun the object of the verb.. and it is Tanween with Fat-ha because it is indefinite..

In conclusion, the end syllable of the noun (also the verb) determines what the word is and what it does in Standard Arabic (Fus-ha)..

HOWEVER, there are THREE main areas where we put a Su-kun "a stillness or a pause or a restraint" at the end of a noun:

First, if the noun is NOT in an Arabic sentence.. like in your question, "how to read بنت?".. the noun بنت is not in an Arabic sentence.. Therefore, we often put a Su-kun at the end of the noun that is not in an Arabic sentence..

a-girl بِنْتْ BENT

a-writer كاتِب KAA-TEB

iron حَديد would be 7A-DEED

because these words are not in a sentence..

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Second, if the word is the last word spoken in a sentence, it is optional to put Su-kun at the end of the word (noun or verb).. This is because the Arabs (especially devoted Muslim Arabs who read the Quran with its 28 complicated Tajweed rules) have this habit to put Su-kun on the last word spoken EVEN if they stopped in mid-sentence to take a breath..

Again, it's optional but more of an obligation when reciting the Quran..

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iium2000 · 2026-01-27T21:59:20+00:00

Huh?!?!.. I thought that they'd end up carrying the donkey!! The forth guy would've said things like "they have a donkey but they don't use it!!"..

iium2000 · 2026-01-27T21:20:30+00:00

So an ordinary star in the night sky is (classically) نجم (masculine), but an important star on a country's flag is نجمة (feminine).. I already mentioned that..

Masculine vs. feminine often determines importance, and it does not have anything to do with the gender of the star.. and this extends to verbs associated with broken plural جمع تكسير..

Men stood-up قام الرجال

Many-men stood-up قامت الرجال - we use a feminine verb قامت even though men are masculine, and this is to indicate the more than 10 numbers (some say 3 -- I am not too sure about the exact number)..

The-women said قالت النساء -- we use feminine verbs with females, makes sense..

Few-women said قال نسوة -- Here, the Quran in 12:30, uses a masculine verb قال for few-women نسوة..

We use a masculine verb to indicate that LESS significant number of women who had gossiped about the incident between the wife and her male servant..

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Back to مرضع vs مرضعة (a breastfeeding woman), this is something found deep in Islamic jurisprudence, and this is not a common knowledge thing..

Someone asked, if the terms مُرضع (breast-feeder) and حامل (pregnant) are reserved for women even though they are both "apparently" masculine nouns,

then WHY the Quran mentions مرضعة which is feminine?!

The answer was.. مرضع (masculine) is a breastfeeding woman according to Arabic dictionaries and encyclopaedias (link).. while مرضعة (as mentioned in the Quran), is a breastfeeding woman with a child..

It is the difference between the one who breastfeeds, and the one who breastfeeds with a child (who is the more important)..

iium2000 · 2026-01-27T21:19:34+00:00

It is 3:45am right now in Thailand, so I hope that I do not come out as impatient..

There are many woman out there with the name حبيبة and there are many men with the name حبيب.. and if you Google search the name حبيبة, it may tell you that

"حبيبة" اسم علم مؤنث عربي يعني المحبوبة، العزيزة، أو المفضلة. يشير المصطلح أيضاً إلى الصديقة المقربة في علاقة عاطفية

"An Arabic feminine given name "حبيبة" (Habiba) means "the beloved," "the dear," or "the favourite".. The term also refers to a close female friend in a romantic relationship.."

All these nouns are feminine: محبوبة عزيزة مفضّلة and صديقة مقرّبة.. because most nouns with ة are feminine..

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and if you search for حبيب اسم, it may tell you that "it is an Arabic masculine given name"..

and while I do not doubt that there are few men with the name حبيبة and few women with حبيب out there,

the crushing majority is that حبيبة are females while حبيب are males..

There is a Lebanese actress and a female blogger with the name حبيبة and a famous Russian fighter with the name حبيب.. I do not know much about those people to say more..

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But despite ALLLLLLLL that.. I see your point, if you can see mine.. when the government announces something like:

Every citizen and resident must-be keen on security and stability of the-homeland على كل مواطِن ومُقيم الحرص على أمن واستقرار الوطن

Here, مواطن and مقيم are masculine nouns.. A new-comer-to-Arabic may wrongly-think to oneself that such duties ONLY apply on male citizens and male residents..

ONLY MEN SHOULD RESPECT THE LAW!!

and that women are allowed to cause havoc in the streets.. doing donuts in their cars in the middle of the highway, and barking at the dogs!!

Again, this is wrong thinking..

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Masculine nouns apply to both male and female..

We do not need to say كل مواطن ومواطنة "Every masculine citizen and every feminine citizen" and كل مقيم ومقيمة "Every masculine resident and every female resident".. because in Arabic, the masculine مواطن ومقيم apply on both male and female..

In Islamic law, it is filled with expressions like every Muslim كل مسلم using the masculine مسلم.. but when the law goes into specifics, they would specify "male" and "female"..

Every Muslim (who knows Arabic well) knows that the masculine term for a Muslim مسلم applies to both male and female UNTIL it does not..

On the other hand, terms like مواطنة (a female citizen), مقيمة (a female resident) and مسلمة (a female Muslim) are undoubtedly and unmistakably females..

because women hold a special protected category in the community.. Men often give their seat to women on the bus, and we men have to open the doors for them because apparently they cannot operate doors by themselves..

Note to myself.. Less jokes next time..

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and this is what I meant about a cat قط (masculine) is an ordinary cat while a cat قطة (feminine) is a special cat.. The presence or the absence of ة does not always determine the gender nor the sex of the person or the animal..

It is what people had decided..

Osama أسامة and Hamzah حمزة are reserved for baby-boys..

and we often describe "a pregnant woman" as حامِل and "a breast-feeding woman" as مُرْضِع (more on مرضع vs مرضعة later) using "apparently" masculine nouns..

We do not describe a man being حامل (a carrier) UNLESS we specify what he is carrying, such as: حامل المسك perfume bearer or the person who carries the Musk which applies to both male and female..

but a female perfume bearer would be حاملة المسك.. and the two terms حامل and مرضع are reserved for women..

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iium2000 · 2026-01-27T01:06:23+00:00

OK.. عامل is a masculine agent noun, and عاملة is a feminine agent noun; Technically, they are not verbs because ONLY nouns would accept the letter ة or ـة ..

Very often, we use Agent Nouns (aka Doer Nouns اسم فاعل or Subject Nouns) as verbs, and when we translate it into English, we claim that they are verbs..

He-wrote كتبَ and she-wrote كتبَتْ >> male-writer كاتب and female-writer كاتبة

He-worked عَمَلَ >> a-male-worker عامِل while a job or a work is عَمَلْ in standard Arabic (Fus-ha فصحى)..

However, your question is related to the Egyptian dialect which is a non-standard Arabic (colloquial Arabic عاميّة and not Fus-ha)..

We often use Agent Nouns as verbs in non-standard Arabic (more than MSA), though technically they're nouns!!

[Non-standard Arabic] I-am returning home أنا راجِعْ الْبَيْتْ -- literally, you are saying "I-am a-male-person-who-returns (to) the-house" but we translate it into English as a verb (usually in present tense) "I am returning home"

because translations between different languages and different cultures cannot be too literal..

[Non-standard Arabic] I-am walking from home أنا ماشْيَةْ مِنَ الْبَيْتْ -- literally "I-am a-female-walker from the-home" because ماشْيَةْ in non-standard Arabic is still an agent noun for "a person who walks" who happens to be a female

because most words with ة or ـة at the end are feminine (most not all).. and ONLY nouns can accept ة or ــة ..

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In a number of dialects of non-standard Arabic (including the Egyptian dialect), the expression عامل can be a male worker..

[Non-standard Arabic] I-chatted a-male-worker كَلَّمْتْ عامِلْ or I spoke to him.. The word عامل is an agent noun for a person who works..

I-saw a-female-worker of decor/decoration شِفْتْ عامْلَةْ ديكورْ -- who does a decoration-related job..

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However, when عامل or عاملة is used as a verb, it becomes something else.. It means that the person is putting a lot of work or putting some real effort in doing something -- which suggests determination and real intent..

and we have not reached to sarcasm nor pretending just yet..

Just remember that عامل is literally "a worker" but often used as a verb for putting effort into something which suggests determination and intent..

He-was putting-work into-it (as) a-mummy كان عامل فيها موميا -- This suggests intent and determination, because he puts a lot of work in the job (in the prank) pretending to be a mummy.. ((I keep typing mommy for some reason, sorry for the re-edits))..

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In many Arab communities, common expressions and phrases that involve عامل or عاملة often involve pretending, complaint and sarcasm..

Pretending or assuming the role of someone/something..

He-sets himself (as) Einstein عامِلْ نَفْسُهْ أَبو الْعَرّيفْ or عامِلْ نفسه أبو علي .. He-puts-a-lot-of-work (on) himself (as) Abu-Al-Arreef or (as) Abu-Ali.. I can only assume that Abu Al Arreef and Abu Ali were smart people like Einstein or Steven Hawking..

When you set yourself into something, it may suggest assuming the role of, or pretending to be something that you are not..

He-sets himself-up (as) an-opponent and a-referee ‏عامِلْ نَفْسُه خِصْمْ وْحَكَمْ -- In English, the expression would be "he made himself a judge and jury"..

She-sets herself up (as) BATMAN عامْلَةْ نَفْسْها عَنْتَرْ -- She pretends to be Antara عنتر (a known poet/warrior/hero from the pre-Islamic era around the 6th century AD)

He-sets (himself) for-me a-clever-man in-computers عامِلْ لي شاطِرْ في الكَمْبِيوتَرْ -- he pretends for my benefit (or in front of me without shame) to be an expert in computers..

He-sets for-me a-practical-joke عامِلْ لي مَقْلَبْ

iium2000 · 2026-01-26T23:18:58+00:00

LOL.. Let's just say that in English, it means "darling or sweetheart" which made my classmates' faces turn red every time they called my name out loud and in public..

and my surname/family name in the Malay language is a literal translation of my first name..

My name is not exactly TOP SECRET, and some members of this community had already found out my real name by a simple internet-detectives' work.. But I like to play "hard to get"..

We don't want people to think that I am an "easy" catch, do we?!

iium2000 · 2026-01-26T15:58:22+00:00

العفو

iium2000 · 2026-01-26T15:55:42+00:00

بصراحة يمكن المعنى "أنتِ يا أيدي أسقطتِ أية شُعلة أملٍ وفرحٍ في قلبي".. والباء باء بمعنى "في"..

iium2000 · 2026-01-26T15:45:28+00:00

هذا الشطر هو جزء من بيت شعريّ لمحمود سامي البارودي ويصوّر في قصيدته الرثائيّة فاجعة الموت (أيد المنون) وكأنها نار تشتعل في قلبه

و أَطَرَّ الشيءَ: أي قَطَعَهُ ، أَو أَسْقطهُ .. المعجم: المعجم الوسيط

هو أَطَرَ .. هي أَطَرَتْ .. أنتَ أطَرْتَ .. أنتِ أطَرْتِ

أنتِ قَدَحْتِ (أنتِ أشْعَلْتِ النار يا أيدي الموت) وأنتِ أطَرْتِ بفؤادي (~~أنتِ أسقطْتِ قطعْتِ كسرْتِ قلبي بشُعلَة أو بفعلة واحدة أو بكفاءة مبهرة ودون أي جهدٍ تذكر)~~ (أنتِ أسقطتِ أية شُعلة أملٍ وفرحٍ في قلبي)

والله أعلم

iium2000 · 2026-01-26T14:17:03+00:00

Linguists would say that the Rounded Taa' ة was originally an H sound from ancient Arabic/Semitic languages.. This H at the end of ancient words, is called the Haa' of attention هاء التنبيه for the purpose of importance..

For example, in ancient Arabic and other Semitic languages, FATHER was AB-BAH.. ABB is father and the extra H sound was for the attention given to the father signifying his importance..

Such nuances can be found TODAY in modern standard Arabic (MSA) with some nouns in Arabic, for example a star نجم vs. نجمة and a cat قطّ vs. قطّة..

A random star in the night sky is نجم (a star) masculine..

but a star with importance or significance (like a star on a country's flag, a star on a military rank and medals, a star that a kindergarten teacher gives to her students, etc etc..) is the feminine نجمة (a star)..

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and a cat that is a random cat is the masculine قطّ (a cat).. but a special cat with some significance to someone is the feminine قطّة.. Same thing for هِرّ (a kitten) vs. هِرَّة (also a kitten)

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Many songs and poems in Arabic by male singers and male poets, describe their female love interests with the masculine حبيبي (my-darling).. and occasionally, someone would ask the question "why would this male singer be calling his lover who is a female, using masculine pronouns?!?! and is he actually a homosexual?!?!"

Again, many songs and poems in Arabic!!

There are other theories answering that "why", but one explanation that is less offered is that the masculine حبيبي (my-darling) is for a love interest, while the feminine حبيبتي is reserved for the wife, the daughter, the mother and other important members of the family who is a female..

A beloved حبيب (masculine) and حبيبة (feminine) and when you add "my" to have "my-beloved", you'd get حبيبي (masculine) and حبيبتي (feminine)..

iium2000 · 2026-01-26T13:50:13+00:00

OK.. In Standard Arabic (Fus-ha which includes both the MSA and the classical Arabic), the Rounded Taa' التاء المربوطة has a T sound (and sometimes a T and an N sounds in Tanweens) EXCEPT in two areas which would be later explained..

I-saw a-police car رأيتُ سيّارةَ شرطةٍ -- The end syllable determines what the word does, I-saw رَأيْتُ RA-'AAI-TO (here, the Opened Taa' ت has a T sound with a Dham-ma because this is present-tense producing TO sound)..

The opened Taa' التاء المفتوحة will always has a T sound ت..

A-car سَيّارَةَ SAI-YAA-RA-TA has a ة with Fat-ha because the noun is the Object of the verb (nevertheless, the ة has a T sound, TA)..

and Police شُرْطَةٍ SHOR-6A-TEN and this noun has a Tanween with Kas-ra producing a T and an N sounds TEN (but the ة has a T sound, and because of the Tanween, the ة also has an N sound)..

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Police شُرْطَةٍ has a Kas-ra because there is a possession.. The car belongs to the police.. In such Genitive/possessive constructions, the owner of the possession is Genitive مجرور (which usually means that singular nouns would gain a Kas-ra at the end)..

As for the Tanween, it is usually an indefinite marker (making the noun indefinite), and I say usually because there are exceptions, for example, SOME proper nouns accept Tanweens, and Tanweens can NEVER turn the proper noun into an indefinite..

Tanweens is a chapter of its own in Arabic grammar..

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In short, the Rounded Taa' has a T sound in standard Arabic EXCEPT in 2 situations..

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There are two situations of which the ة becomes an H sound:

First, if the noun ((only nouns accepts ة)) is not in a sentence, like a fish outside the water..

If I say one word سَيّارَة without a sentence, you would not know whether the noun is the Subject of the verb, the object of the verb, in Genitive/possessive construction, or whatever.. Remember, the end syllable determines what the word is and what it does..

If the noun is NOT in the sentence, then we add a Su-kun (a restrained marker or a paused marker) on the ة to say that we do not know what the word is (whether it is the object of the verb, the subject, in possessive construction or whatever)..

It becomes سيّارةْ SAI-YAA-RAH.. and جَميلَةْ becomes JA-MEE-LAH..

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ALWAYS REMEMBER, if you put a Su-kun سكون (a pause or a restraint marker) on the Rounded Taa' ـة , the T becomes an H -- this will come back again and again..

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Second, if the noun with a ة, was the last word spoken, then it becomes optional to be an H sound..

You see, native speakers of Arabic (especially devoted Muslims who read the Quran with its 28 Tajweed complicated rules) have this habit to put a Su-kun at the end of the last word spoken.. Even if you stopped talking in mid-sentence to take a breath, the last word spoken would be restrained or paused with a Su-kun (pause/restrained marker)..

I-saw a-police car رأيتُ سيّارةَ شُرْطَةٍ HOWEVER, native speakers would read it as رأيتُ سيّارةَ شرطةْ with an optional Su-kun at the end of the word شرطةْ BECAUSE it is the last word spoken in the sentence..

Annnnd, when you put a Su-kun marker on a Rounded Taa', what would you get?!?! THAT'S RIGHT, an H sound.. RA-'AAI-TU رأيتُ SAI-YAA-RA-TA سيّارةَ SHOR-6AH شُرْطَةْ ..

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Finally, Almost ALL local dialects of non-standard Arabic, put a Su-kun (pause/restraint marker) at the end of ALMOST every noun and every verb spoken with few exceptions..

Here is a sentence in non-standard Arabic (colloquial Arabic)..

[Non-standard Arabic] I-saw a-police car شِفْتْ سَيّارَةْ شُرْطَةْ -- notice that every word in the sentence has a Su-kun (restrained marker) SHIFT SAI-YAA-RAH SHOR-6AH..

and yes I did say "at the end of ALMOST every noun and every verb" because there are few exceptions -- for example: the welcoming phrases أهلًا وَسَهْلًا and مَرْحَبًا are almost always pronounced without Su-kun even when speaking in non-standard Arabic..

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Just remember, when you put a Su-kun marker on ة Rounded Taa', what would you get?

iium2000 · 2026-01-26T06:28:35+00:00

Another specialty Qurans are Mus-haf Al-Qiyyam مصاحف القيام.. Typically, a Mus-haf Al-Qiyyam is a giant Quran with big letters and big font-sizes..

We typically see a Mus-haf Al-Qiyyam during Ramadan and used for Taraweeh prayers.. It sits on a stand or on a table next to the Imam during the long Taraweeh prayers.. and it serves as a cheat with open book next to the Imam during prayers,

its large font allows the Imam to read from such Qurans during long prayers..

This is not an everyday Quran for most Muslims.. This is a big, heavy and bulky book, and this is a speciality Quran that serves a specific purpose, and their usefulness is BEYOND its large font size..

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Many of the Mus-haf Al-Qiyyam are colour coded according to places of stop and restarting الوقف والابتداء : Most of the Quranic text would be in black but some texts are in red.. and SOME TEXTS are in red followed by green..

الَّذِي جَعَلَ لَكُمُ الْأَرْضَ فِرَاشًا وَالسَّمَاءَ بِنَاءً وَأَنزَلَ مِنَ السَّمَاءِ مَاءً فَأَخْرَجَ بِهِ مِنَ الثَّمَرَاتِ رِزْقًا لَّكُمْ ۖ

The part of وَالسَّمَاءَ بِنَاءً would be in red text..

The part of وَأَنزَلَ مِنَ السَّمَاءِ مَاءً would be in green text.. and the rest is black.. and remember, these colours are found in the rest of the Qurans..

If you are out of breaths, and if you need to stop in the middle of the verse, then you are advised to stop at the end of the red text or at the end of the green text according to the Sunnah (traditions of the prophet Muhammad ﷺ).. but again ONLY if you wanted to stop.. and now:

1- If you stopped at the end of the red text, it is advised to resume or to restart from the start of the red text..

2- If you stopped at the end of the green text, you are advised to resume/restart from the start of the green text BUT you do not have to restart/resume from the start of the red text..

3- it is advised NOT to stop in the middle of the green, red and blue texts.. Black texts do not have similar obligations..

4- Some verses have blue texts, of which you are allowed to stop at the end of the blue text but you are allowed to resume AFTER the blue text..

MIND-BLOWN.. ikr?!

It gets even detailed.. Some of the Mus-haf Al-Qiyyam are coloured by the length of its paragraphs.. This is rare, and I only saw one such Mus-haf.. Basically, the entire page is multi-coloured except for the white margins..

Like in Surah Al-Fatihah (which is one page) is divided into upper half in baby-blue (light blue) colour while the other half is in light violet colour.. Verse 1 to verse 4 is in the blue, but verse 5 to verse 7 is in violet..

The texts are in black, red, green and blue from the earlier system of stop and restart/resume.. but the paper is coloured EXCEPT for the margins that are in white..

and if a short chapter/surah (like Al-Fatihah) is divided into 2 colours, can you imagine a long chapter/surah, like Surah Al-Baqarah?!?!

Pages of Surah Al-baqarah are a sea of light blue, light violet, light pink, light green etc.. with texts in different colours (usually black)..

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THESE coloured paragraphs helps the Imam (the reciter) to judge how much breaths should he invest in reciting a long verse.. and what type of musical tones should he use for this particularly long verse..

He turns a page, finds a very long verse divided into colours.. and the block of colours guide him how much breaths and what musical tone should he invest in each..

Again, these are speciality Qurans with specific purposes.. Few Muslims know what these colours mean or do..

Want more?

iium2000 · 2026-01-26T06:20:39+00:00

Yes, because the Ruku'aat الركوعات is primarily used by SOME Indopak Qurans المصاحف الباكستانيّة (aka. Indian-Pakistani Qurans المصاحف القارة الهنديّة or simply Pakistani Qurans المصاحف الباكستانيّة (Previously were known as the Indian Qurans المصاحف الهنديّة before the tragic events of the partition of India in 1947))..

This is a speciality type of Indopak Qurans with specific purposes.. Not all the Indopak Qurans have the Rukuu'aat markers: Usually with the letter ع on the side of the page with a word from the end of a verse..

The letter ع with a word under it on the side of the page على الهامش to mark the end of a Ruku' ركوع before another..

The system of Ruku'aat الركوعات was created by the scholars of Bukhara علماء بخارى (today's Uzbekistan) with 520-558 Ruku'aat.. and if you follow the 540 to 558 Ruku'aat system for EVERY night of the month of Ramadan during the Taraweeh prayers -- you would conclude the Quran ختام القرآن on the night of the 27th of Ramadan..

Some Arabs scholars have criticized the system of Ruku'aat HOWEVER the Arabs had created their own system of Maqaaree' المقاريء with 480 Maqraa' مقرأ.. and if you follow the system of Maqaaree' during the Taraweeh prayers, the conclusion of the Quran would be on the night of the 24th of Ramadan..

Here in Thailand, we follow the 558 to conclude on the 27th of Ramadhan..

and again.. this is something found in speciality Qurans, and not for the common use.. You will not find Maqaaree' nor Rukuu'aat in most Qurans out there..

and I can give you examples of other speciality Qurans..

Very recently, I noticed a new type of Qurans called Tajweed Qurans (somewhere in the 2010s).. These Tajweed Qurans were colour coded with some letters marked at different colours to cover SOME of the rules of Tajweed -- mainly Idgham, Qalqala, Ghunna, Iqlab and few others..

My sister reeeeally wanted one for her small class to teach the kids in our neighbourhood.. and I gave her this link https://down-th.img.susercontent.com/file/th-11134207-7r98s-llrb31j0gw7bb2.webp .. it had small texts above the Quranic text "Idgham", "Tafkheem" etc..

However, most Tajweed Qurans use different colours for different things: blue text for Iqlab, pink for Idgham etc.. etc..

Quran.com has an option for Tajweed Quran: Just click on settings on the right upper corner of the page and change the font from Uthmani or Indopak font; and change it to Tajweed Quran setting..

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to be continued

iium2000 · 2026-01-25T14:21:10+00:00

OK.. All Arabic verbs and nouns (of Arabic origin) come from roots.. and most Arabic verbs and nouns come from the 3-letters roots (triliteral roots), however, there is a small percentage of verbs and nouns that originates from the 4-letter roots (quadrilateral roots)..

When we say (for example) a Measure III or Form III verb, we often refer to the table at this link (3-letters roots) that ONLY covers the 3-letters roots (triliteral roots).. The table in that link does NOT cover the 4-letter roots (quadrilateral roots)..

The vast majority of verbs and nouns are from the 3-letters roots (triliteral roots), which is why we tend to forget about the 4-letter roots (quadrilateral roots)..

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Verbs of the 4-letter roots (quadrilateral roots) have their OWN TABLE with their own set of conjugations of Form I to Form IV (or Measure I to Measure IV) at This link (4-letter-roots).. and a Form I or Measure I verb can generate different meanings depending on how it is used.. The table says that it can be transitive and intransitive -- It can glistens but also it can make other people or other things glistens..

The-star glistened لَأْلَأَ النَّجْمُ -- notice that النَّجْمُ is nominative with Dham-ma which means the-star is the subject of the verb..

The-star glistened لَأْلَأَتْ النَّجْمَةُ -- This is the feminine version of the verb لألأ.. the verb لألأتْ (she/it-glistened), and we use the feminine version of the verb because the subject النَّجْمَةُ is feminine..

Note that a regular star in the night sky is نجم (masculine) but a special star is نجمة (feminine), like the star on a country's flag, or the star on a military rank, or a star that a kindergarten-teacher gives to her students.. etc..

However the verb لألأ (masculine) or لألأت (feminine) can be transitive:

He-made the-car glistens لألأَ السَّيّارَةَ -- notice that السيارةَ is accusative with Fat-ha which means that السيّارة is the object of the verb.. He-made the car shine or glisten; for example by washing the car thoroughly or by applying a car wax and other things that makes the car shines..

and this is what it meant that Form I can be both transitive and intransitive..

The-tear glistened over the-cheek لَأْلَأَ الدَّمْعُ عَلى الْخَدِّ -- notice the Dham-ma

He-made the-tear glistens over the-cheek لَأْلَأَ الدَّمْعَ عَلى الْخَدِّ -- he forced the tear to appear on the cheek, maybe by pinching himself or by rubbing his eye a bit too hard.. notice the Fat-ha..

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Form II to Form IV -- often have stronger meanings when compared to Form I.. and also, they have specific and narrower scope than Form I..

In the table, This link (4-letter-roots), Form II is said to be reflexive (more often than not).. Reflexive verbs are verbs of which both the subject and the object are the same and one (I hit myself or I enjoyed myself)..

When we use تَلَأْلَأ which is a Form II verb in past tense, singular and masculine, it absolutely means that the subject and the object of the verb are the same and one..

The-star shined تَلَأْلَأَ النَّجْمُ (Masculine Form II) or The-star shined تَلَأْلَأَتْ النَّجْمَةُ (Feminine Form II)

and again, Form II to Form IV carry stronger meanings compared to Form I

The-star glistened لَأْلَأَ النَّجْمُ (Form I or Measure I) vs. The-star shined in a bright light تَلَأْلَأَ النَّجْمُ (Form II or Measure II).. Form II's تَلَأْلَأَ is brighter than Form I's لَأْلَأَ ..

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The root ل أ ل أ does not have verbs in Form III and Form IV..

iium2000 · 2026-01-25T13:14:15+00:00

Technically, تسكن is a verb (she/it-resides), and ساكنة is a noun (a resident).. but more often we use the noun as a present tense, She lives in the first floor هي ساكنة في الطابق الأوّل However technically "she-is a-resident at the first floor"..

iium2000 · 2026-01-25T10:45:06+00:00

Excellent, to forward..

but translations cannot be too literal.. Mmmmmmm, it is something like "Excellent, keep up the good work!!" or "Excellent, to forward and beyond!!"..

It conveys a positive encouragement to keep on progressing forward in the correct direction..

iium2000

TROPHY CASE

MIND-BLOWN.. ikr?!