أنا جائع
'ana jaeie
أنا جائع ('ana jaeie) is the Arabic way to say "I am hungry".
This phrase is used to express a physical need or a desire for food.
Which one should you use?
While أنا جائع is the standard way to express hunger, you may also encounter أشعر بالجوع to mean "I feel hungry" or the informal عندي جوع which literally translates to "I have hunger".
How does it change in a sentence?
The word أنا is a detached subject pronoun that can be used by both males and females. However, the adjective must change to the feminine form أنا جائعة if the speaker is female.
How do you pronounce it?
'ana jaeie
Did you know?
- In many Arabic dialects, rather than saying 'I am hungry', people say 'The hunger is eating me' to describe an intense craving.
- The Arabic word for 'I' أنا shares a deep ancestral root with the Coptic word ⲁⲛⲟⲕ and the Berber word nekk.
- In many Arabic-speaking cultures, expressing hunger to a host is often met with an immediate, much larger offering of food than what was originally requested.
Examples in context
- أنا جائع.I am hungry.This sentence is useful for practicing the phrase أنا جائع.Tatoeba #404103 by qahwa, translation #409602 by CC
- أنا جائع جداً الآن.ana ja'i' jiddan al-an.I am very hungry now.
- أنا جائع، هل يوجد طعام؟ana ja'i', hal yujad ta'am?I am hungry, is there any food?
Example conversation
Maryam and Ahmed are deciding what to eat for lunch.
- مريم Maryamأنا جائع، لنأكل الآن.Ana ja'i', lana'kul al-aan.I am hungry, let's eat now.
- أحمد Ahmedأنا أيضاً، ماذا تريد؟Ana aydan, madha turid?I am too, what do you want?
- مريم Maryamأريد بيتزا.Urid pizza.I want pizza.
- أحمد Ahmedحسناً، لنطلبها.Hasanan, lanatlubha.Okay, let's order it.
Sources
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries أنا, جائع, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
