توفي
tuwuffiya
The Arabic phrase for "passed away" is توفي (tuwuffiya).
توفي is the standard respectful way to refer to the death of a person. It is commonly used in formal writing, news reports and when offering condolences.
Which one should you use?
While توفي is a polite and respectful way to say someone passed away, the word مات is a more direct and blunt way to say someone died.
How do you pronounce it?
tuwuffiya
Did you know?
- The root of توفي relates to the concept of 'completing' or 'receiving in full', suggesting that the person's allotted time on earth has been fully fulfilled.
- Arabic has specific terms for death based on the cause, such as استشهد for those who die as martyrs, which carries a vastly different social prestige than توفي.
- When someone passes away, people often use the phrase إنا لله وإنا إليه راجعون to acknowledge the death, meaning 'To God we belong and to Him we shall return'.
Examples in context
- توفي أبي قبل عامين.My father passed away two years ago.This sentence is useful for talking about when a father passed away.Tatoeba #833354 by Samer, translation #318940 by CK
- لورينزو شيخا توفي منذ بضع سنوات.Lorenzo was an old man who passed away a few years ago.This sentence is useful for describing an old man who passed away.Tatoeba #12410844 by dididodo, translation #11708725 by Amastan
- يجب التحدث بأسلوب لائق عن شخص توفي.Speak politely about someone who has passed away.This sentence is useful for discussing the importance of speaking politely about someone who has passed away.Tatoeba #9592192 by issadouba, translation #9593314 by issadouba
- للأسف قد توفي يوم الثلاثاءUnfortunately, he passed away on Tuesday
- نعي للسيد الوزير الذي فقدناهCondolences for the Minister we have lost
- والدتي بالأمس رحلت عناYesterday, my mother passed away
- 3 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Mariam tells Youssef some sad news about a relative.
- مريم Maryamهل سمعت الخبر؟ جدي توفي صباح اليوم.Hal sami'ta al-khabar? Jaddi tuwuffiya sabahan al-yawm.Did you hear the news? My grandfather passed away this morning.
- يوسف Youssefأنا آسف جداً لسماع ذلك يا مريم.Ana asif jiddan li-sama' dhalik ya Maryam.I am very sorry to hear that, Mariam.
- مريم Maryamشكراً لك يا يوسف، كان رجلاً طيباً.Shukran lak ya Youssef, kana rajulan tayyiban.Thank you, Youssef, he was a kind man.
- يوسف Youssefرحمه الله وألهمكم الصبر.Rahimahu Allah wa alhamakum al-sabr.May God have mercy on him and grant you patience.
Sources
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
