سَعْدَان
saʕdānmasculine
The English word monkey is سَعْدَان (saʕdān) in Arabic. Wiktionary also lists حِبْن (ḥibn) and نِسْنَاس (nisnās).
Meaning: primate (noun)
Ways to say it
| Arabic | Romanization (Wiktionary) | Note |
|---|---|---|
| سَعْدَان | saʕdān | masculine |
| حِبْن | ḥibn | |
| نِسْنَاس | nisnās | |
| مَيْمُون | maymūn | |
| قِرْد | qird | masculine |
Which one should you use?
While سَعْدَان is the default form, قِرْد is the most common and standard way to say monkey in most Arabic dialects and Modern Standard Arabic. نِسْنَاس is used in colloquial speech, while مَيْمُون is a more classical or literary term.
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
قِرْد is the formal way to say monkey in Arabic, but مَيْمُون is used in literary or classical contexts. For informal or colloquial speech, use نِسْنَاس.
Is it said differently in some regions?
In Levantine Arabic, the term شمبانزي is used specifically to refer to chimpanzees.
How does it change in a sentence?
The plural form of the common word قِرْد is قُرُود.
How do you pronounce it?
saʕdān
Did you know?
- The word مَيْمُون comes from the Arabic root for 'blessed' or 'lucky'. While it refers to a monkey in a literary context, it is also used as a masculine given name meaning 'fortunate'.
- While سَعْدَان is a word for monkey, it is also a traditional male name in some regions, derived from the root for 'happiness'.
- The plural قُرُود follows a 'broken plural' pattern, which is a common but complex feature of Arabic grammar where the internal vowel structure of the word changes entirely.
Examples in context
- بعض الأطباء يدرسون سلوك القردة.Some doctors study monkey behavior.
Example conversation
Yousef and Nour are at the zoo.
- يوسف Youssefانظُرِي يا نُور، هُنَاكَ سَعْدَان!Unẓurī yā Nour, hunāk sa‘dān!Look Nour, there is a monkey!
- نور Nourأَيْنَ هُوَ يا يُوسُف؟Ayna huwa yā Yūsuf?Where is it, Yousef?
- يوسف Youssefإِنَّهُ يَتَسَلَّقُ الشَّجَرَة.Innahu yatasallaqu ash-shajarah.It is climbing the tree.
- نور Nourهذا سَعْدَان مَرِح جِدًّا.Hādhā sa‘dān mariḥ jiddan.This is a very playful monkey.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “monkey” translations, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
