Ways to say it
| Arabic | Romanization (Wiktionary) | IPA | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| مُسْتَشْفًى | mustašfan | masculine | |
| مَارِسْتَان | māristān | masculine | |
| مستشفة | mustašfa | Egyptian Arabic, feminine | |
| قشلة | qašla | /qaʃ.la/ | Egyptian Arabic, obsolete |
| مُسْتَشْفى | mustašfa | Hijazi Arabic | |
| سبيطار | sbīṭār | Moroccan Arabic, masculine | |
| خستخانة | North Levantine Arabic | ||
| إسبيطَار | South Levantine Arabic | ||
| سْبِيتَار | Palestine, South Levantine Arabic |
مُسْتَشْفًى is the word for a hospital in Modern Standard Arabic, used in formal writing, signs and the news. It is understood across the Arab world.
What does it mean word for word?
مُسْتَشْفًى comes from a root linked to healing. It is built as a place word, so it means a place where one seeks healing.
Which one should you use?
مُسْتَشْفًى is the standard term used in writing and news. In daily spoken conversation many regions use local words such as سبيطار or سْبِيتَار. مَارِسْتَان (māristān) is an older word found in historical contexts and older literary styles.
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
مَارِسْتَان is formal or archaic, used for historical hospitals and in older literary styles.
Is it said differently in some regions?
In Egyptian Arabic people say مستشفى. In Moroccan Arabic the word is سبيطار (sbīṭār), and in Palestinian Arabic سْبِيتَار. North Levantine Arabic also has خستخانة, and South Levantine Arabic إسبيطَار.
How does it change in a sentence?
مُسْتَشْفًى is masculine in the standard language, but in Egyptian Arabic the word is treated as feminine.
How do you pronounce it?
It is read mustašfan. In everyday speech the final n is usually dropped and it sounds like mustašfa.
Did you know?
- The word سبيطار is a localized version of the French word 'hôpital'.
- During the Islamic Golden Age, the word مَارِسْتَان described institutions that functioned as both hospitals and medical universities.
- The word قشلة (qashla) is a linguistic oddity because it originally meant 'barracks' in Ottoman Turkish before soldiers began using it as a euphemism for a hospital.
Examples in context
- قَشْلَةُ الصَدَقَةِ“Hospital of Charity”, an almshouse in 19ᵗʰ century Alexandriaقَشْلَةُ الصَدَقَةِ, hospital of charity, was the name of an almshouse in 19th century Alexandria, using an old Egyptian word for hospital.
- أحتاج إلى مستشفىI need a hospital
- أبوي رح يأخذني على مستشفى الأطفالMy father will take me to the Children's Hospital
- هَلْ هَذَا مُسْتَشْفًى كَبِيرٌ؟hal hadha mustashfan kabir?Is this a large hospital?
Example conversation
Ziad and Maryam are talking about where to go for a medical checkup.
- زياد Ziadأَيْنَ الْمُسْتَشْفَى الْقَرِيبُ؟ayna al-mustashfa al-qarib?Where is the nearby hospital?
- مريم Maryamهُنَاكَ مُسْتَشْفًى كَبِيرٌ فِي وَسَطِ الْمَدِينَةِ.hunaka mustashfan kabir fi wasat al-madina.There is a large hospital in the city center.
- زياد Ziadهَلْ هُوَ بَعِيدٌ عَنْ هُنَا؟hal huwa ba'id 'an huna?Is it far from here?
- مريم Maryamلَا، هُوَ قَرِيبٌ جِدًّا.la, huwa qarib jiddan.No, it is very close.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “hospital” translations and entries قشلة, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries قشلة, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Wiktionary CC BY-SA 4.0.
