مَصْرِف
maṣrifmasculine
In Arabic, the word for bank can be expressed as مَصْرِف (maṣrif) or بَنْك.
Meaning: institution (noun)
Ways to say it
| Arabic | Romanization (Wiktionary) | Note |
|---|---|---|
| مَصْرِف | maṣrif | masculine |
| بَنْك | bank | masculine |
Both words refer to a financial institution. One is a classical term, while the other is a widely used loanword from English.
Which one should you use?
مَصْرِف is the formal, classical Arabic word for a financial institution. In contrast, بَنْك is a loanword from English that is very common in everyday spoken Arabic and modern media.
How does it change in a sentence?
The plural of the formal word مَصْرِف is مَصَارِف. The plural of the loanword بَنْك is بُنُوك.
How do you pronounce it?
maṣrif
Did you know?
- If you are looking for a 'river bank' in Arabic, you would not use either of these words, as they are strictly reserved for the financial sense.
- The plural of the loanword بَنْك is بُنُوك, which follows a traditional Arabic plural pattern called 'broken plurals' instead of adding a suffix.
- The root of مَصْرِف is also used to describe the process of 'diverting' water or 'draining' a liquid, reflecting the movement of resources.
Examples in context
- هذا مَصْرِف كَبِير.hadha masrif kabir.This is a large bank.
- أَحْتَاجُ إِلَى مَصْرِفٍ قَرِيبٍ.ahtaju ila masrifin qarib.I need a nearby bank.
Example conversation
Omar and Maryam are walking downtown.
- عمر Omarمَرْيَم، هَلْ تَعْرِفِينَ مَوْقِعَ الْمَصْرِفِ؟Maryam, hal ta'rifina mawqi'a al-masrif?Maryam, do you know where the bank is?
- مريم Maryamنَعَم، هُوَ بِجَانِبِ الْمَكْتَبَةِ.na'am, huwa bi-janibi al-maktaba.Yes, it is next to the library.
- عمر Omarشُكْراً، أَحْتَاجُ لِسَحْبِ بَعْضِ الْمَالِ.shukran, ahtaju li-sahbi ba'di al-mal.Thanks, I need to withdraw some money.
- مريم Maryamحَسَنًا، يُمْكِنُنِي مُرَافَقَتُكَ إِلَى هُنَاكَ.hasanan, yumkinuni murafaqatuka ila hunaka.Okay, I can accompany you there.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “bank” translations, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
