How to say "to listen" in Arabic
CognateMeaningto listen
Arabic · Modern Standard Arabic
istamaʿaאסתמע
استمع
Hebrew · Modern Hebrew
hikshivهِكْشِيڤ
How the two words are related
Same Semitic root, same meaning — you already know this word.
Arabic root
س-م-عHebrew root
ש-מ-עRoot س-م-ع is Hebrew ש-מ-ע (see 'to hear'). istamaʿa is the stem with an infixed -t- that turns 'hear' into 'make yourself hear', i.e. listen — Hebrew simply lets שמע cover both, as in שמע ישראל.
Related Hebrew word:שמעshamaشَامَا
Learn it
On the street
How people actually say it in the spoken dialects, where it differs from the standard word.
Levantine · Palestine, Jordan, Lebanon, Syria
Spoken Levantine uses plain simiʿ for listening too: ismaʿ! 'listen!'
In a phrase
Listen carefully (all of you).
The root family
س-م-عש-מ-ע· hearing
The exact twin of שמע ישראל: samiʿa is שמע with the regular ש↔س swap. Arabic sumʿa "reputation" is literally what is heard about you — the very logic of Hebrew שמועה "rumor" — while Hebrew spun the same root into משמעת "discipline" (heeding) and משמעות "meaning". Modern Arabic hangs a sammāʿa, an earphone, on the ancient root.
- سَمِعَ samiʿahe heardשָׁמַעhe heard
- سَمْع samʿhearing (the sense)שֵׁמַעhearing — as in חוש השמע
- سُمْعَة sumʿareputation — what is heard about youשְׁמוּעָהrumor — what is heard
- سَمَّاعَة sammāʿaearphone, receiver; stethoscope
- اِسْتَمَعَ istamaʿahe listened (attentively)הִשְׁתַּמַּעwas implied, inferred