Ways to say it
| Arabic | Romanization (Wiktionary) | IPA | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| أعمى | ʔáʕma | /ʔaʕ.maː/ | Egyptian Arabic, masculine |
| كَفِيف | kafīf | ||
| أَعْمَى | ʔaʕmā | masculine | |
| عَمْيَاء | ʕamyāʔ | feminine | |
| عميا | ʕámya | Egyptian Arabic, feminine | |
| عمى | ʕomy | /ʕam.maː/ /ʕa.man/ |
Egyptian Arabic, plural |
| مكفوف | makfūf | /mak.fuːf/ | Egyptian Arabic, masculine |
| مكفوفة | makfūfa | Egyptian Arabic, feminine | |
| مكفوفين | makfufīn | Egyptian Arabic, feminine, formal |
أعمى describes a person or animal that cannot see. It is also used in the familiar saying الحب أعمى, love is blind.
Which one should you use?
أَعْمَى is the plain, direct word. كَفِيف (kafīf) is often used as a more polite or respectful way to refer to a blind person. مكفوف (makfūf) is common in formal and administrative language, for example when speaking about services for people with visual impairments.
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
مكفوف (makfūf) is frequently used in formal or administrative contexts. كَفِيف is the more polite, respectful choice when speaking about a blind person and المكفوف is a formal term for someone who is completely blind.
Is it said differently in some regions?
In Egyptian Arabic the masculine is أعمى (ʔáʕma), the feminine عميا (ʕámya) and the plural عمى (ʕomy). Egyptian speakers also use مكفوف and مكفوفة (makfūfa).
Related words
How does it change in a sentence?
The word changes with gender. Use أَعْمَى for a male subject and عَمْيَاء (ʕamyāʔ) for a female subject. The related noun عَمَى (ʕamā) means blindness.
How do you pronounce it?
The IPA is /ʔaʕ.maː/. It starts with a glottal stop, then the deep throat sound written ʕ and ends with a long a.
What mistakes should you avoid?
Do not use أعمى for a woman. Say عَمْيَاء instead. When speaking about someone respectfully, كَفِيف is the kinder choice.
When do people say it?
The saying الحب أعمى, love is blind, is as familiar in Arabic as it is in English.
Did you know?
- Arabic has a specific linguistic category called 'color or defect adjectives' that أعمى belongs to, which follows different patterns than standard adjectives.
- The term مكفوف is a passive participle, a grammatical structure that subtly frames blindness as an external state or condition that has occurred to the person rather than an inherent trait.
- In various Arabic dialects, a person might be called أعمى as a hyperbolic way to insult their intelligence, implying they are intentionally ignoring something obvious or 'playing dumb'.
Examples in context
- يُقال أن الحب أعمى.They say love is blind.الحب أعمى is the saying love is blind, introduced here with they say.Tatoeba #488861 by saeb, translation #1578 by CK
- الحب أعمى.Love is by nature blind.الحب أعمى. is the short form of the same saying.Tatoeba #371450 by saeb, translation #326276 by rul
- زيري أعمى.Ziri is blind.أعمى describes a man named Ziri, so the masculine form is used.Tatoeba #10237267 by Amastan, translation #10213414 by Amastan
- أعمى هو الكلمة المستخدمة للإشارة إلى الشخص الذي يعاني من فقدان البصر.'A'ma' is the word used to refer to a person who suffers from visual impairment.
- يعاني الشخص المكفوف من عدم القدرة على اكتشاف الأشياء بصريًا.A blind person has the inability to visually perceive things.
- يعتبر العميان أعضاء مهمين في المجتمع ويستحقون الدعم والاحترام.Blind people are important members of society and deserve support and respect.
- 7 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Nour and Ahmed are talking about a neighbor.
- نور Nourمين الراجل اللي ساكن هنا؟Meen el ragel elli saken henna?Who is the man living here?
- أحمد Ahmedده جارنا، وهو أعمى.Da garna, we howa a'ma.He is our neighbor, and he is blind.
- نور Nourبجد؟ بيعرف يمشي لوحده؟Begad? Beya'raf yemshi le wahdo?Really? Can he walk by himself?
- أحمد Ahmedأيوه، بيستخدم عصاية.Aywa, beyesta'dem 'asaya.Yes, he uses a cane.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “blind” translations and entries أعمى, عمى, مكفوف, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries أعمى, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
