قَائِمَة
qāʔimafeminine
The Arabic word for a restaurant menu is قَائِمَة (qāʔima). If unsure, use قَائِمَة. Wiktionary also lists قَائِمَةُ طَعَام (qāʔimatu ṭaʕām).
Meaning: list of dishes offered in a restaurant (noun)
Ways to say it
| Arabic | Romanization (Wiktionary) | Note |
|---|---|---|
| قَائِمَة | qāʔima | feminine |
| قَائِمَةُ طَعَام | qāʔimatu ṭaʕām | feminine |
In a restaurant you can ask for القائمة, the menu. The fuller phrase قَائِمَةُ طَعَام (qāʔimatu ṭaʕām) makes clear you mean a list of food.
What does it mean word for word?
قَائِمَة literally means list. قَائِمَةُ طَعَام is a construct phrase meaning list of food.
Which one should you use?
In many dialects and casual settings people simply say مِنْيو, borrowed from the English word menu. القائمة الغذائية is a formal term for a food menu in professional settings.
How does it change in a sentence?
قَائِمَة is a feminine noun.
How do you pronounce it?
It is said qāʔima.
Did you know?
- The root of قَائِمَة comes from the word for 'standing'. A list is conceptualized in Arabic as something that 'stands' or remains upright for reference.
- While قَائِمَة means 'list', the same word is used in Arabic to describe a 'balance sheet' or a 'statement' in financial contexts.
- The borrowed word مِنْيو is often used in high-end hotels to signal a Western-style dining experience, whereas قَائِمَة feels more indigenous.
Examples in context
- نعتذر عن عدم وجود القائمة الغذائية لدينا.We apologize for not having our food menu available.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “menu” translations, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
