زَبُون
zabūnmasculine
The English word "customer" can be translated into Arabic as زَبُون (zabūn) or عَمِيل.
Meaning: one who purchases or receives a product or service (noun)
Ways to say it
| Arabic | Romanization (Wiktionary) | Note |
|---|---|---|
| زَبُون | zabūn | masculine |
| عَمِيل | ʕamīl | masculine |
Both terms refer to one who purchases or receives a product or service.
Which one should you use?
While both are used for customers, عَمِيل is typically used in professional, corporate or formal business contexts to mean 'client' or 'customer'.
Is it said differently in some regions?
الزبون is used in Egyptian Arabic for customer.
How does it change in a sentence?
To refer to a female customer, you can use the feminine form زَبُونَة. The broken plural form for زَبُون is زَبَائِن, and the broken plural form for عَمِيل is عُمَلَاء.
How do you pronounce it?
The word زَبُون is pronounced as zabūn.
Did you know?
- While عَمِيل means 'client' or 'customer', it is also the standard Arabic word for an 'agent' or 'spy' in intelligence contexts.
- The word عَمِيل comes from the root عَمَل, which means 'work'. In this sense, a client is literally someone who provides 'work' for a professional.
- In Lebanese and Syrian dialects, the word زَبُون is frequently used in markets, but the more formal عَمِيل might sound overly clinical or robotic to a local shopper.
Examples in context
- أنا أبحث عن زَبُون مهتم.ana abhath 'an zabun muhtam.I am looking for an interested customer.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “customer” translations, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
