عمل جيد
amal jayyid
The Arabic phrase for "good work" is عمل جيد (amal jayyid).
عمل جيد is used to praise someone for completing a task successfully or with high quality. If you wish to praise accomplishments or skills in a way that acknowledges divine will, you can use Ma sha' Allah ما شَاءَ اللّٰهُ, which literally means "what God wills".
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase is composed of the noun amal (work) and the adjective jayyid (good).
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
You can use the formal phrase Ahsanta amalan أحْسَنْتَ عَمَلاً to say "well done job." In many Arabic dialects, it is more natural and culturally embedded to use the colloquial phrase يعطيك العافية to acknowledge someone's hard work, which translates to "May God give you health/strength".
How does it change in a sentence?
To increase the intensity of the praise, you can replace the adjective jayyid with mumtaz to say "excellent work" (عمل ممتاز).
How do you pronounce it?
amal jayyid
Did you know?
- While عمل جيد is understood, Arabic speakers frequently use religious phrases like ما شاء الله to praise work to avoid the 'evil eye' or unintentional pride.
- The word عمل (work) has a distant cousin in Hebrew, the word עָמָל (amál), which also refers to labor or deeds.
Examples in context
- هذا عمل جيد جداً.hadha 'amal jayyid jiddan.This is very good work.
Example conversation
Ziyad is praising Maryam for her project report.
- زياد Ziadلقد قرأت التقرير، عمل جيد يا مريم.Laqad qara'tu at-taqrir, amal jayyid ya Maryam.I read the report, good work Maryam.
- مريم Maryamشكراً لك يا زياد.Shukran laka ya Ziyad.Thank you, Ziyad.
- زياد Ziadهل استغرق الأمر وقتاً طويلاً؟Hal istaghraqa al-amr waqtan tawilan?Did it take a long time?
- مريم Maryamنعم، لكن النتيجة كانت تستحق.Na'am, lakin an-natija kanat tastahiq.Yes, but the result was worth it.
Sources
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries جيد, عمل, CC BY-SA 4.0.
