Food and drink in Arabic
177 words in Arabic on the topic “food and drink”: قهوة — coffee, شاي — tea, ماء — water, خبز — bread.
177 words on the topic
- قهوةкахваcoffeeCoffee is one of the oldest Arabic loans in English: qahwa left Arabia with the Ottoman caravan and reached the coffeehouses of Europe. In Arabic the word is feminine
- شايшайteaCame from Chinese by way of Persian — the overland cousin of the same word English picked up at sea. In the cafe they will ask: with sugar?
- ماءмаʾwaterThe hamza on the end is a vowel break: maa-ʾ. In a cafe tap water comes free for the asking — you only have to ask
- خبزхубзbreadThe flat round loaf baked for every table. Khubz is bread in general and the shop loaf at once
- طعامтаʿаамfoodThe t is emphatic — the tongue pulled back, the sound heavy. It stands first on the menu and on the shop sign
- حليبхалибmilkThe h is the breathy throat one (ح), not the scraping kh: a breath out of the throat. Tea with milk is shay bi-haliib
- جبنةджибнаcheeseThe ta marbuta on the end reads simply "a". Arab cheese is most often white and salty, from sheep milk
- لحمляхмmeatLahm is meat and muscle: the body is described in the same word as the dinner
- سمكсамакfishRead short and loud: samak. On the coast the fish is fresh every day, and this word is first on the menu
- سلطةсалатаsaladThe root is salt — the same family as the English word, which made its own round trip through Europe. The ta marbuta on the end
- حساءхисаʾsoupA hamza on the end: the vowel breaks off, hisaa-ʾ. Served at the start of dinner, and it is almost always a lentil puree
- ملحмильхsaltThe h on the end is the light one (ه), almost a breath. The request milh min fadlik is the first phrase at a shared table
- بيرةбираbeerIn half the Arab countries it is simply not sold. Where it is, they say bira — the same word that crossed from the Germanic languages into many others
- نبيذнабизwineA word from the wine-growing lands: in Lebanon and Tunisia it is poured in every restaurant. Where it is not sold, asking for it is not done
- فواكهфавакихfruitA collective: fakiha is one fruit, fawaakih is fruit in general. Grammatically feminine, even though it ends in -ih
- تفاحةтуффахаappleA single made from tuffaah — apples in general. The shadda ff is held long: tuffaa-ha
- برتقالбуртукаальorangeA Portuguese heritage: burtuqaal is their "Portugal" turned into a fruit — the country and the word share one name. One word in three languages
- طماطمтамаатимtomatoBoth t sounds are emphatic. A collective, like fawaakih: one tomato is tamaata
- خضرواتхудраватvegetablesFrom the root "to be green": vegetables are "the greens". The partner of fawaakih, and mixing them up is the usual market mistake
- لذيذлазизtastyA compliment to the cook and to the food at once. Boost it with jiddan — very
- أكلакалаto eatThe past again in the dictionary: akala — he ate. "I eat" is aakul, and the first a in it is long
- شربшарибаto drink"I drink" is ashrab. The same verb covers smoking: one "drinks a cigarette", word for word
- طازجтазижfreshThe t is emphatic — the tongue pulled back. About fish and bread they ask exactly this: samak taazij? — the buyer’s first question at the counter
- ناضجнаадижripeLooks like taazij (fresh) but is another word: ripe is what has reached its fullness. The same word names a mature person
- فطورфутуурbreakfastFrom the root "to break": breakfast breaks the pause of the night. "For breakfast" is fi al-futuur; the same word names the evening meal of the fasting month
- غداءгадааlunchThe main meal of the day, around one or two: the heat sets the schedule. The word shares a root with ghaadan: ghadwa is noon, when the sun stands high
- عشاءʿашааdinnerA kin of masaa — the evening: dinner is the evening meal, and their time is one. In the coffeehouses dinner is light: bread, cheese, tea — and talk until late
- مضغмадагаto chewThe d is emphatic. Slow chewing is the mark of being full and content, and the same verb stands in the name of chewing gum
- بلعбалаʿаto swallowThe ayn on the end stretches: bala-ʿa. "It is hard to swallow" is a phrase at the doctor, and the same verb means "to swallow an insult"
- شهيةшахийяappetiteFrom the root "to desire": appetite is the desire for food. "Bon appetit" an Arab says as bil-saha — "to your health" — setting the food before the guest
- قطعةкитʿаpieceThe counting unit of everyday Arabic: a piece, an item, a bit — all qiṭʿa. Qiṭʿat khubz is a piece of bread, and bills are counted in exactly these pieces
- رائحةрааихаsmellA good smell and a bad one are one word — the adjective tells them apart. The smell of fresh bread in the street calls into the shop better than any sign
- بعد الأكلбаʿд аль-акльafter a mealBaʿd — after — is a short and frequent preposition. "Before the meal" is qabl al-akl, and the pack will have one of the two — read carefully
- زبدةзубдаbutterOnly the butter kind: vegetable oil is zayt, olive oil zayt az-zaytuun — other words. A thin layer of zubda on bread is the breakfast of the whole coastline
- بطاطسбатаатисpotatoThe emphatic t twice: the word is said with a press. A kin of tamaatim — the tomato: both vegetables came from the New World by one route
- دقيقдакиикflourThe same word means "exact": flour is what is ground fine-"exact". Bread is baked from it — yakhbiz — at home and at the bakery alike
- عسلʿасальhoneyIt starts with the ayn — that squeezed throat. Honey in Arab cooking is not a dessert but a medicine: tea with it is drunk against a cold
- مكسراتмаксураатnutsLiterally "the cracked ones": from maksuur — broken, familiar from doors and phones. In the East nuts are a treat for the guest, not a snack
- بصلбасальonionA short everyday word: no sauce begins without it. Cutting it is yaqṭaʿ al-basal, and the kitchen tears are the same in every language
- جزرةджазраcarrotThe same base as jadhr — the root: the carrot is a "little root", and Arabic is precise here. It crunches in salads all year round
- فلفلфульфульpepperThe doubled l makes the word funny to the ear: ful-ful. The black ground one is fulful aswad, and it stands on every dinner table
- فاصولياфасууляbeansThe word circled through Greek and Italian and came home; the English bean went by another road. Beans stewed in tomato are the homemade dish of the whole winter
- بهاراتбахаараатspicesThe plural of bahaar — spice: the spice markets, suuq al-bahaaraat, are a sight in themselves. The little packets are wrapped in front of you there
- يطبخйатбухto cookThe same root as matbakh — the kitchen — and tabbaakh — the cook: one nest, and you hear it at once. In an Arab home the one at the stove is most often she
- يغسلйагсильto washDishes, hands, clothes: one verb, the object speaks for itself. Yaghsil as-suhuun — he washes the dishes — is the evening chore, taken in turns
- سكينсиккиинknifeThe doubled kk holds: sik-kiin. What it does is yaqṭaʿ — the same verb that cuts the phone connection
- يغليйаглиto boilLiterally "makes boil": cooking in Arabic is "bringing to a boil". The water yaghli in the kettle, the egg in the pot — and the verb is one
- يقليйаклиto fryThe partner of yaghlii: one word is "boils", the other "fries in oil". The smell of frying from the window is the mark of the evening in every city
- يخبزйахбизto bakeThe same root as khubz — bread: to bake is "to make bread". Fresh bread from the oven is handed to the neighbours — and that is not a feast, just a Tuesday
- يقطعйактаʿto cutThe ayn on the end stretches: yaq-ṭa-ʿ. The same verb cuts the wire: "the connection dropped" grows from it too — every phone user has heard it
- قدرкидрpotA short word: the q is deep, as in qahwa. A big pot isqidr kabiir, and in an Arab home the soup lives exactly in it
- مقلاةмикляаfrying panFrom the verb "to fry": the mi- turns the action into a thing, as in matbakh. No breakfast goes without it
- فرنфурнstoveThe stove, the oven and the bread oven are one furn — context tells. Fresh bread is baked in it twice a day
- طبقтабакplateA plate, a dish and a category on the menu are one word. Ṭabaq waahid is for one person, and the waiter understands with no clarifications
- فنجانфинджанcupThe word travelled the whole Mediterranean: the Turkish fincan is the same. Coffee is counted in findjans, and the small glass is one too
- كوبкубa glass (drinking)Short and loud: kub. A glass of water is kub maaʾ, and it is brought to the cafe free for the asking
- ملعقةмиляакаspoonFrom the verb "to scoop": the spoon is what one scoops with. The tea spoon and the table spoon differ by saghiira and kabiira — little and big
- شوكةшаукаforkFrom the root "to prick": at the table the fork is a "thorn". The fork tine and the rose thorn are one word — context tells
- زجاجةзуджажаbottleFrom zujaaj — glass: the bottle is named by its material even when it is plastic now. Water is sold from street fridges, and the zujaaja is the queen there
- منديلминдиильnapkinBoth the napkin and the handkerchief: one word for everything that wipes. The paper ones lie on every table and are taken without ceremony
- إبريق الشايибрик аш-шайteapotLiterally "the jug of tea": ibriq is a jug, a word known from the old tales. Tea is poured from it high, in a thin stream — that is how it saturates
- صينيةсинийяtrayFrom Siin — China: the tray is named by the land of porcelain. Tea is served to the guest on it, and to take it with the right hand is a sign of respect
- ساخنсаахинhotYou met it in "hot water" — now the word stands alone. About tea and about soup they say it alike, and about the weather — already haarr
- مثلجмусалладжiced (cold drink)From thalj — ice: a musallaj drink is "iced over". The weather cold is the familiar baarid; the cold of a drink and of ice cream — this one
- جائعджааиʿhungryThe ayn on the end stretches: jaa-i-ʿ. An Arab expresses hunger with an adjective: ana jaaʾiʿ — and without any verb everything is clear
- طعمтаʿмtasteA kin of taʿaam — food: the taste is what the food leaves in the mouth. Ask "what is the taste?" — ayy taʿm? — and you will be answered honestly
- مملحмумалляхsaltyA participle of "to salt": mumallakh is "salted". Too salty is said through jiddan — mumallakh jiddan — and the soup is already hard to save
- حامضхаамидsourFrom "acidity": a lemon is laymuun haamid, and that is its official name. The sour refreshes in the heat, and Arabs knew it long before the lemonades
- مُرّмуррbitterThe doubled rr — a short and hard word: murr. The same is said of the bitter truth — and the coincidence is not accidental
- حارقхарраакhot (spicy)From the verb "to burn": the pepper that burns. Fulful harraaq is the warning at every spice market — and it is worth listening to
- شبعانшибаанfull (not hungry)The partner of jaaʾiʿ: full is "having eaten one’s fill", a participle of the same verb. The refusal of a second helping sounds like this: shukran, ana shibaan
- يجربйаджрибto try (taste)Both to taste and to attempt: yajrib works for both. At the counter they say urid an ajrib — I want to try — and a little piece gets cut off
- قائمة الطعامкааʾимат ат-таʿаамmenuLiterally "the list of food": taʿaam is food, known from the shop signs. The word "menu" will be understood, but in an Arab restaurant they ask for the qaaʾima
- نادلнадильwaiterOne calls him with afwan or a light hail — shouting is not done. A woman is naadila, and in family restaurants she minds her own hall
- طلبталабorderBoth an order and a request: in Arabic it is one word. Talab lives in university applications too: to ask and to order an Arab does not separate
- يطلبйатлубto orderThe same root as talaba: he orders with the menu in his hands and no hurry. Urid an aṭlub — I want to order — and the waiter is already near
- أكلةукляdish (meal)From akala — to eat: the dish is "the eaten thing", and Arabic is straightforward here. The plateware is ṭabaq, and what stands on it — ukla
- وجبةваджбаportionFrom the root "to be owed": the portion is what is "due". One portion is usually generous, and sharing it is the norm, not greed
- طاولة لشخصينтаавила ли-шахсайнtable for twoLiterally "a table for two persons": shakhsayn is the dual, the same as "two hours". The request is said whole — and the table is found
- حلوىхальваdessertThe halva of the sweet shops is a direct cousin: the word means "sweetness". The dessert comes with tea, and refusing it is impolite
- بدون لحمбидуун ляхмwithout meatYou know biduun from "over the counter": the word after it goes without the article. The vegetarian in an Arab restaurant is looked for by this phrase
- كعكةкаʿкаcakeKaʿka is the cake and the pie at once: the filling and the occasion tell them apart. No birthday goes without it, and it is baked more often by mom than by a pastry cook
- مكرونةмакрунаpastaArabic took it from the Italian traders — the same road by which English got the word. A collective noun, as everywhere: you do not order one piece
- زباديзубаадиyogurtIt is eaten with a spoon and in soup, not drunk: zubaadi is thick, like the set kind. At breakfast it is stirred with olive oil — a combination worth trying
- كريمةкриимаcreamThe same root as the name Karim, "generous": cream is the milk's generosity. The same word that gave the kitchen its "cream"
- مثلجاتмусалладжатice creamLiterally "the frozen things" — a relative of the "cold" adjective you know. The word is plural: ice cream among Arabs always comes as a company of scoops
- شوكولاتةшукулаатаchocolateRecognised at first glance: an international word in Arabic spelling, like the mini bar. The hot kind is shukulaata harra, and in winter it is drunk from glasses more often than coffee
- بسكويتбискуитa biscuitYou hear "biscuit" — and it is: the same word, but for Arabs biscuits are not a dessert, they are tea's companion. Counted in pieces: "three biscuits"
- لحم بقريляхм бакариbeefLiterally "cow's meat": Arabic has one word for meat, and the animal is appended by the second word. You know lahm, "meat" — half the word is already yours; the animal's name remains
- لحم غنمляхм ганамlambLiterally "sheep's meat": ghanam, sheep, is a word of the nomadic life, older than any city. The festive pilaf is made of exactly this, not of beef
- روبيانрубьяанshrimpA word of the coast: rubyaan comes from the same nets as are cast in the Red Sea. Only in the plural — shrimp travel in shoals
- عنبʿинабgrapesOne of the oldest words of both cultures: a vineyard earns its line in Arabic poetry. Its leaves are stuffed — warak ʿinab — a dish you already know well
- خيارхийярcucumberIt walks into any Arab salad uninvited: khiyar is the base of the cooking. Do not confuse it by ear with khayr, "good": one syllable more or less, two different worlds
- ملفوفмальфууфcabbageLiterally "the rolled one": cabbage is named for its leaves that wrap — and the stuffed rolls from it, malfuuf, carry the same name
- ثومсаумgarlicThe th of "think" at the start — the same as in "three": hold the tongue between the teeth. A clove of garlic is fasl sawm, and into the soup it goes whole
- يقطينйяктинpumpkinA word of the Quran: the pumpkin is the food a hero was fed in the desert. It is also the sign of the harvest: the pumpkin appears in every village story
- باذنجانбаазинджанeggplantYou hear "badinjan" — so it is called from Turkey to India, and the European names for it rode the same road. Fry it starting with salt: the bitterness leaves by itself
- ليمونлаймуунlemonRecognised at once: laymuun is the very word that gave "lemon" its name. Lemon juice, ʿasiir laymuun, is the Arab water instead of lemonade
- بطيخбаттиихwatermelonThe shadda in the middle doubles the t: battiikh — a word with a thud, like the watermelon on the ground. In summer it is eaten with white cheese — a pairing that is natural there
- فراولةфараауляstrawberryIt sounds almost like the French name for the berry — Arabic took the word from the same drawer. Strawberries are eaten here with salt and cream, and it works, surprisingly
- إجاصиджаасpearThe heavy s at the end comes from the emphatic letter: the pear sounds with pressure here. In Levantine markets the word is daily, and the Egyptian sister is kummathra
- خوخхуухpeachA short word of two h-sounds: the first light, the second from the throat. The peach is named not for softness but for the fuzz you hear as a breath
- طريقة الطبخтариикат ат-табхa recipeLiterally "the way of cooking": Arabic coined no blank form of a recipe — there is a road one walks. Tabkh, cooking, is a relative of matbakh, the kitchen you know
- يقشر الخضرواتйякшур аль-худраватto peel the vegetablesLiterally "flays the vegetables": to peel is to take the skin off, as off an animal — jild. Khudrawat, vegetables, you know from an earlier wave
- يغلي الماءйягли аль-мааʾto boil waterYou know yaghli, "cooks": the same verb about water means "boils". Boiled water is drunk in Arab countries more often than from the tap — that is your first question
- يقلبйукаллибto stirFrom qalb, the heart that turns over: to stir is to turn over, as one turns a page. The same root in intrigues: who stirs, also turns
- يملحйюмаллихto saltFrom milh, "salt", which you know from the "salt town" place name. Over-salted is "the salt exceeded": salt here can pass for excess wealth
- يسخنйусаххинto heat upFrom saakhin, "hot", which you know from "hot water": to heat up is to make hot again. Yesterday's lunch is "yesterday's gadaaʾ", and it is exactly what gets heated up
- يبردйюбарридto coolThe opposite of "to heat up", and both come from one pair, hot and cold. The refrigerator is mubarrid — literally "the cooler": appliances are named after the verb
- يخفق البيضйяхфик аль-байдto whisk the eggsYakhfiq, "to whip", is the same gesture as the fan's: to beat the air. Al-bayd, eggs, is a relative of bayda, "white": the egg is named for its shell
- يضيف ماءйудииф мааʾto add waterYudii f, "to add", is a relative of the idaafa you know from "in addition to that". The honey is too runny — add water
- يشوي على الشوايةйяшвий аля аш-шавааяto grillYashwi, "to roast meat", and shaawaaya, "the grate": one root, like "grill" and "grilling". The Friday barbecue in Arabic is "the family gathering at the grill"
- تاريخ الانتهاءтаарих аль-интихааʾthe expiration dateLiterally "the date of ending": the term is a date, not a span. On the packaging look for taarikh al-intihaaʾ — and do not confuse it with the production date
- فسدфасидаit spoiledWith one verb Arabic spoils milk, a mood and a system: faasada — it spoiled. About food one speaks in the past: it has already spoiled, the question is closed
- برطمانбартумаанa jarThe glass jar with a lid is bartumaan, the tin is ʿulba: two words worth not mixing up. In jars everything is stored here, from olives to spices
- زيادةзияадаa second helpingLiterally "an addition": to ask for a second helping is to "want an addition" — the same word as in adding to the price. An Arab host adds without being asked — but the asking is appreciated
- سفريсафрийto go (takeaway)From safar, "a journey": food "to go" is food for the road, and Arabic says it out loud. Kahwa safriy — "coffee to go" — is a phrase of every street corner
- بدون سكرбидуун суккарwithout sugarYou know "without meat": the rule is one for everything — bidoon plus the noun. Sugar in Arabic coffee is a ritual question: a refusal is a sign too
- أنا نباتيана набаатийI am a vegetarianFrom nabaat, "a plant": a vegetarian is a "plant person". A woman says nabaatiyya, and on the menu it means "no meat at all, chicken included"
- شهية طيبةшахийя тайибаbon appétitLiterally "a good appetite": shahiyya, appetite, you know — now simply wish it. Said to a guest and to a neighbour at the next table alike: the wish is common
- طعام دهنيтаʿаам дахнийfatty foodDahniy is "fatty", from "fat". Fried and fatty is "fatty food" — and the stomach says thank you for less of it
- بونبونбунбунa candyIt came from the French bonbon, out of the same pocket as the European word. In a box they are bonbonaat
- طبق شعبيтабак шаабийa national dish"A plate" is yours — but it is also "a dish"; shaabiy is "of the people". Every country has its national dish
- طعام الشارعтаʿаам аш-шаариʿstreet foodFood from the street: "food" is your word from the first lesson, shaariʿ is "the street". Cheap, hot, and at every feast
- مخبوز حديثاмакхбууз хадисанfreshly bakedLiterally "baked recently": fresh bread. Taaazij — fresh — you know, but about bread an Arab is more precise: just out of the oven
- خبز قديمхубз кадимstaleLiterally "old bread": stale. Arabic built no separate word — the bread that lay around simply "got old", and that is that
- لحم الخنزيرлахм аль-хинзирporkLiterally "the meat of the boar": an Arab avoids naming it in one word. The animal itself is khinziir, and on the shelf few look for the phrase
- دجاجдаджаджchicken (meat)The live bird is dajaaja, the meat on the counter is the collective dajaaj. One root, but on the plate it is always dajaaj
- بطбаттduck (meat)One word for two lives: the duck flying and the duck in sauce are both batt. The doubled tt is heard at once: bat-t
- لحم مفرومлахм мафруумminced meatThere is no separate word: "meat minced", from yafrum — he minces. Cutlets and kibbe are shaped from exactly this
- مرتديلاмуртадилляmortadellaThe word came from the Italian mortadella — the same one the delis sold to the whole world. In a halal shop it is made of turkey or beef
- نقانقнакааникsausage (franks)Plural only — Arabic counts franks as a bundle, the way English counts spaghetti. The word arrived by way of Turkish
- تونةтунаtunaOne word on both shores of the Mediterranean: the Spanish atun and the Arabic tuna. Met in a can more often than on ice
- سلمونсальмунsalmonYou will recognize the English salmon in it at once — the word sailed out of Latin to both shores. In the shop it lies smoked and thinly sliced
- جمبريджамбириshrimpOn the Red Sea counters this word sounds every day. A connoisseur names the large ones rubyaan — that is how they stand in the pricier menus
- ثمار البحرсамаар аль-бахрseafoodLiterally "fruits of the sea". Always plural — there are many fruits of the sea
- برقوقбаркуукplumThe word sailed from Greek the same way the English apricot did. In an Arab shop the plum is more often dried than fresh
- توت العليقтуут аль-ʿаликraspberryLiterally "berry of the height" — raspberry canes grow on mountain slopes. A bare tuut is the mulberry, so the clarification is obligatory
- شمامшаммаамmelonDo not confuse by ear with the watermelon: the watermelon is battiikh, the melon is shammaam. It is yellow, round and smells of honey
- رمانруммаанpomegranatePomegranate juice is pressed on every corner, and the tree is named from the same root. The seeds inside are like rubies — hence the price
- أناناسанаанаасpineappleThe name circled the seas together with the Portuguese; it is cut in rings the way you are used to
- يوسفيйуусуфиtangerineLiterally "Yusuf’s": Arabs named the citrus after Joseph. The European name went the other way, after the Chinese mandarins
- كيويкиивиkiwiBird and fruit share one name in any language. In Arabic it is written short and read almost as in English
- أفوكادوафуукаадоavocadoThe foreign w gets an Arabic coat, so avokaado turns into afuukaado. A word from the languages of the Americas that traveled the whole world
- زبيبзабиибraisinThe same grape, only dried: the name is from the root of withering. In Arab baking raisins appear more often than nuts
- تينтиинfigOne word for everything: the fresh fruit and the dried one. In Arab villages figs are dried on the roofs in whole rows
- فلفل حلوфульфуль хильвbell pepperThe familiar fulfuul is taken by the spice; the garden vegetable is told apart by hilw — sweet. The bell pepper is the same root
- كوساкуусааzucchiniThe word sailed from southern Italy together with the vegetable itself. Cut in rings and fried
- شمندرшамандарbeetThe word came from Persian — together with the root vegetable itself. The beet stains the soup and the hands alike
- فجلфиджльradishThe big radish and the small red one are not separated: fidjl is both. Eaten fresh, crunched with salt
- أعشابаʿшаабherbsLiterally "grasses": herbs are many little plants, not one bunch. A single blade is ʿushba
- شبتшабатdillA word from Persian — and so was the habit of pickling with dill. In the pickle jar it goes in a pair with the garlic you know
- بقدونسбакдуунисparsleyThe word came from Portuguese: sailors brought the parsley together with its name. Without it an Arab table is not a table — it is everywhere, from salad to soup
- زنجبيلзинджабиильgingerThe English ginger and the Arabic zanjabiil sailed from India on one ship: the word is Sanskrit, "the horned root". Put into tea against a cold
- ذرةзурраcornCorn for an Arab is "grain": the same word means a seed in general. Breakfast cereal he calls "leaves of grain"
- سبانخсибаанихspinachA Greek word, like the vegetable itself; English spinach is a cousin of the same root. It cooks faster than any other vegetable
- صمونсаммуунbunA small round loaf; the familiar khubz is bread in general, and samuun is its breakfast sister. Falafel often goes inside — the street sandwich is ready
- فطيرةфатыираpieFrom fatiir — unleavened: dough without yeast, hence fatiira. Every country has its own filling — with cheese, with spinach, with meat
- حلوىхальваpastryThe same word as the halva you know: Arabic calls any dessert halwaa. The exact kind is clear from context
- دوناتдунаатdonutThe ring with a hole keeps its English name: donat. No translation needed
- معجناتмуʿаджжанаатpastriesFrom the familiar dough ʿajiin — literally "things of dough": cheese pies and buns at once. To understand the word you need to know already what they bake from
- مربىмураббааjamLiterally "cooked in syrup": fruit simmered down in sugar is what jam is. Strawberry and fig jam are loved equally
- شرابшараабsyrupThe same root as the English syrup and sherbet: the word left Arabic centuries ago and came back a drink. The syrup is thick — it gets diluted with water
- فشارфушшаарpopcornLiterally "crackling": the kernels of the familiar corn burst with noise. Arabic built its own word instead of borrowing one
- شيبسшийибсchipsSounds almost as in English — the snack stayed global. One packet is shiibs, many packets shiibsaat
- علكةʿилькаchewing gumFrom laka — resin: people chewed resin long before they learned to boil sugar. The pack of gum by the till is the smallest item in the shop
- ليمونادةлаймунаадаlemonadeFrom the familiar lemon — laymuun; for an Arab it is first of all a homemade drink with mint, not a bottle. The mint in it is obligatory
- ماء معدنيмааʾ маʿаданийmineral waterMaʿdan is an ore, a mine: mineral water is "water from the mine". On the bottle look for maʿadaniyy — that is the one
- ماء غازيмааʾ гаазийsparkling waterThe partner of mineral: ghaaziy — with gas; without gas they say biduun ghaz. The negation here comes as a separate word
- كوكتيلкуктайльcocktailAn English word, but it is drunk in every Arab cafe — alcohol-free mixes of mango and strawberry. The layers in the glass are like a sunset
- كاكاوкаакааʾcocoaIn Arabic cocoa is both the hot drink and the powder: it declines like an ordinary word, it does not freeze in place. In winter it is drunk instead of coffee
- قهوة سريعة الذوبانкахва сариʿат аз-зуубаанinstant coffeeLiterally "coffee of quick dissolving": sariʿ you met in express delivery. The jar says exactly that — look for sariʿ
- كيس شايкиис шайtea bagTwo familiar words: kiis — a bag, shay — tea. The tea bag goes into the cup whole, string and all
- ماء مغليмааʾ маглийboiling waterFrom the familiar yaghli — it boils: boiling water is "boiled water". Tea is poured with exactly this, not just hot water
- كحولкухуульalcoholThe same word as "spirit": on a juice pack an Arab writes biduun kuhuul — alcohol-free. Behind the wheel it is not touched
- مشروبмашруубdrink"The thing drunk" — from the familiar shariba; juice, soda and compote are all mashruubaat. On the menu it stands after the food
- عصيرʿасыирjuiceNo loanword here: the word is homegrown, from the root "to squeeze". Orange juice is ʿasiir al-burtuqaal — the belonging is pressed on in the of-form, no preposition
Download the word set (CSV) · Open the printable sheet
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How it sounds in a sentence
A word list is a blank. Conversation is made of sentences, and these are the ones the words fit into most often.
What is worth knowing about these words
قهوة (кахва) — coffee. Coffee is one of the oldest Arabic loans in English: qahwa left Arabia with the Ottoman caravan and reached the coffeehouses of Europe. In Arabic the word is feminine.
شاي (шай) — tea. Came from Chinese by way of Persian — the overland cousin of the same word English picked up at sea. In the cafe they will ask: with sugar?
ماء (маʾ) — water. The hamza on the end is a vowel break: maa-ʾ. In a cafe tap water comes free for the asking — you only have to ask.
خبز (хубз) — bread. The flat round loaf baked for every table. Khubz is bread in general and the shop loaf at once.
Test yourself
Recalling a spelling from meaning is harder than recognizing a familiar word — and therefore more useful.
- How do you say “coffee” in Arabic?
Coffee is one of the oldest Arabic loans in English: qahwa left Arabia with the Ottoman caravan and reached the coffeehouses of Europe. In Arabic the word is feminine
- How do you say “meat” in Arabic?
Lahm is meat and muscle: the body is described in the same word as the dinner
- How do you say “fruit” in Arabic?
A collective: fakiha is one fruit, fawaakih is fruit in general. Grammatically feminine, even though it ends in -ih
- How do you say “to drink” in Arabic?
"I drink" is ashrab. The same verb covers smoking: one "drinks a cigarette", word for word
- How do you say “to swallow” in Arabic?
The ayn on the end stretches: bala-ʿa. "It is hard to swallow" is a phrase at the doctor, and the same verb means "to swallow an insult"
How to learn the set instead of just reading it
A menu, a market, a shop sign, the question “what is this?”. Food is the most frequent subject of the first weeks and the safest excuse to start talking.
A list is read in a minute and forgotten in a day. What works: hide the translation, try to recall, get it wrong — and come back to the same words tomorrow.
- Recalling beats re-reading. Covering the translation and trying to remember it does more than reading it ten more times.checked many timesAdesope, Trevisan & Sundararajan, 2017, Review of Educational Research 87(3) · 188 experiments, 272 comparisons. g = 0.61; against plain re-reading 0.51, against passive review 0.93.
- Study spread over days wins not only in experiments but in ordinary classrooms, with real students.checked many timesMawson & Kang, 2025, Behavioral Sciences 15(6):771 · 22 studies, d = 0.54 (confidence interval 0.31–0.77). The authors warn that individual studies disagree widely.
Frequently asked
How do you say “coffee” in Arabic?
«قهوة», read “кахва”. Coffee is one of the oldest Arabic loans in English: qahwa left Arabia with the Ottoman caravan and reached the coffeehouses of Europe. In Arabic the word is feminine. It is one of 177 words in the set “food and drink” — the rest are in the table above.
How many food words do you need to start?
The whole set on this page is 177 words, but there is no need to start with all of it: the words you will need in the next few days are enough. Take them a few at a time — five to seven new ones per session.