تم
tamma/tam.ma/
The English word "done" can be expressed in Arabic as تم (tamma).
In modern standard Arabic, تم is frequently used as a standalone response to signal that a requested action or task has been successfully executed.
Meaning: expresses that a task has been completed (intj)
What does it mean word for word?
The word تم literally means "was completed" or "was accomplished". It is the past tense of the verb تمّ, which is used to indicate the completion of an event or state.
Is it said differently in some regions?
In Gulf Arabic, خلصنا is a commonly used phrase for "done". In Egyptian Arabic, people often say خلصت to express "done". The expression خلص (khalas) is a slang way to indicate "done" or "finished" and is popular in Levantine dialects.
How do you pronounce it?
The word is pronounced as /tam.ma/ (tamma). It has 2 syllables.
Did you know?
- The word تم shares an ancient root with the Egyptian word tm, which was used in the time of the Pharaohs to denote completion or perfection.
- In many Arabic dialects, the word خلص (khalas) acts as a verbal 'stop sign' to end a conversation or a topic entirely, not just to signify a task is finished.
- The root of تم is used in the word تمام, which is used across the Middle East to mean 'okay' or 'everything is fine'.
Examples in context
- تم.Done.This example shows how to use تم as a one-word response.Tatoeba #6009451 by damascene, translation #1357603 by etala
- ليس الأمر أنني أكره أفلام الرعب في حد ذاتها. أنا فقط أعتقد أن الكثير منها تمَّ أداؤُها بشكل سيء.It's not that I dislike horror movies per se. I just think many of them are poorly done.This example uses تم to describe an action that was performed poorly.Tatoeba #11636721 by elmassoudi, translation #5992943 by peterius
- لقد انتهيت من العمل.I have finished the work.
- انتهيت من الدرس.I have finished the lesson.
- قمت بتنفيذ المطلوب وانتهيت.I have carried out the required task, and I'm done.
- خلصت من الواجب المنزلي.I'm done with the homework.
- انتهيت من المشوار.I've finished the journey.
- اشتغلنا وانتهينا.We worked, and we're done.
- تم إرسال البريد الإلكتروني.tam irsal al-barid al-iliktroni.The email has been sent.
Example conversation
A workspace where a colleague asks about a task.
- أحمد Ahmedهل تم إصلاح العطل؟hal tam islah al-'utal?Has the malfunction been fixed?
- ليلى Laylaنعم، تم كل شيء بنجاح.na'am, tam kullu shay' bi-najah.Yes, everything was completed successfully.
- أحمد Ahmedأحسنتِ يا ليلى.ahsanti ya Layla.Well done, Layla.
- ليلى Laylaشكراً لك يا أحمد.shukran laka ya Ahmad.Thank you, Ahmad.
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry تم, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries تم, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
