How to Say "Bus" in Arabic - How To Say Guide

حَافِلَة

ḥāfilafeminine

The English word "bus" can be translated into Arabic as حَافِلَة (ḥāfila), بَاص, أُتُوبِيس or أُتُوبُوس.

Meaning: vehicle (noun)

Ways to say it

All these terms refer to a bus as a vehicle.

The standard term حَافِلَة is feminine, whereas the loanwords بَاص, أُتُوبِيس and أُتُوبُوس are masculine.

حَافِلَة is the formal term used in Modern Standard Arabic and news media. In contrast, بَاص is a common loanword used in many spoken dialects.

ḥāfila

The root of حَافِلَة is also used in the word حَفْل, which means 'party' or 'celebration', as both imply a large gathering of people.
The word أُتُوبِيس is not a direct loan from English but comes via the French word 'autobus', which blends the Greek 'autos' for 'self' and the Latin 'omnibus' for 'for all'.
While حَافِلَة is the formal word for bus, its root verb حَفَلَ can mean 'to be full' or 'to be crowded', reflecting the typical state of public transport.

بالنسبة لوسيلة النقل في العاصمة، أعتقد أن أفضل خيار هو استخدام الباص.
Regarding transportation in the capital, I think the best option is to use the bus.
هَذِهِ حَافِلَةٌ كَبِيرَةٌ.
hadhihi ḥāfilatun kabīratun.
This is a large bus.
رَكِبْتُ فِي حَافِلَةٍ جَدِيدَةٍ.
rakibtu fī ḥāfilatin jadīdatin.
I rode in a new bus.
الْحَافِلَةُ تَصِلُ الآنَ.
al-ḥāfilatu taṣilu al-āna.
The bus is arriving now.

Ziad and Sarah are waiting at a bus stop.

زياد Ziad

أَيْنَ الْحَافِلَةُ يَا سَارَةُ؟
ayna al-ḥāfilatu yā Sāratu?
Where is the bus, Sarah?
سارة Sara

هِيَ قَادِمَةٌ مِنْ هُنَاكَ.
hiya qādimatun min hunāka.
It is coming from over there.
زياد Ziad

هَلْ هِيَ حَافِلَةُ الْمَدِينَةِ؟
hal hiya ḥāfilatu al-madīnati?
Is it the city bus?
سارة Sara

نَعَمْ، هَذِهِ هِيَ.
na'am, hadhihi hiya.
Yes, this is it.

Sources

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