Arabic Root List and Dictionary--Lane's Lexicon Ar-En

Quran Research and Learning Tools:Root search, Basic Grammer, Quranic Arabic and explanation of all the words used in the Quran.
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Arabic Root List and Dictionary--Lane's Lexicon Ar-En

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Arabic Root Search and Dictionary, containing a Root List with all roots and verses and a Link to the online Lane's Lexicon AR-EN Dictionary. These can also be downloaded for Free.

Root List Ar-En

If you speak a European language, the root system of Arabic may be an unfamiliar concept. Arabic words are made from a few component letters, commonly called a "root". A root usually consists of three letters (sometimes 2 or 4), which convey a basic idea. By adding various vowels (i.e. changing pronunciation) as affixes*, associated meanings can be derived. For example, the Arabic letters: Siin–Lam–Miim (see above: س ل م and remember Arabic words go from right to left, unlike English) are the root for the following words: salaam (peace), islam (submission/compliance/conformance/surrender), muslim (one who submits/complies/conforms/surrenders). In all these words, you will see the root (component letters) are the same, and in the same order, i.e. Siin-Lam-Miim.

In a root language, words mean what they mean because they are built from other words; these base words are called roots. Now, while most languages are concept languages, there are some words that can be likened to the root system, e.g: if you learn what the word "act" means, you should have no problem when you hear the word "actor" or "action" - you use the root to understand the word built from the root.


Classical Arabic as one of the most primitive Semitic languages is primarily a root language. Almost every word gets its meaning from the roots it is built from rather than by associating a concept with the word. This gives Arabic an almost crystal clear aspect to it; there is little ambiguity or confusion in a classical Arabic sentence. The language is one of clarity, directness, and certainty - qualities that are hard to achieve in other languages.
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