ماشٍ
māshin
The Arabic word for 'pedestrian' is ماشٍ (māshin).
ماشٍ refers to a person who is walking, particularly in areas where vehicles are present.
What does it mean word for word?
The word is an active participle derived from the verb مشى (mashā), meaning 'to walk', so it literally translates to 'one who is walking'.
Which one should you use?
While ماشٍ is the singular adjective or noun, the collective noun المشاة (al-mushā) is more commonly used when referring to 'pedestrians' in the context of traffic.
How does it change in a sentence?
The plural forms of the active participle ماشٍ change depending on the grammatical case: use الماشون (al-māshūn) in the nominative case, and use الماشين (al-māshīn) in the accusative and genitive cases.
How do you pronounce it?
māshin
Did you know?
- In many Arabic dialects, the formal ماشٍ is replaced by ماشي, and this word is used as a common slang term meaning 'okay' or 'agreed' to end a conversation.
- The collective noun for pedestrians, المشاة, is also the word used to describe 'infantry' in a military context. A soldier's role in many Arabic-speaking armies is described using this exact same term.
- In many Arabic dialects, rather than using the formal ماشٍ, people might use the word راجل (rāgil) to describe a pedestrian. Interestingly, this word is also the standard word for 'man' in several regions.
Examples in context
- يجب على السائقين إعطاء الأولوية للمشاة عند عبور الشارع.Drivers should give priority to pedestrians when crossing the street.
Example conversation
Maryam and Ahmed are standing near a busy road crossing.
- مريم Maryamانظر يا أحمد، هناك ماشٍ يحاول العبور.Unzhur ya Ahmed, hunaka mashin yuhawil al-ubur.Look Ahmed, there is a pedestrian trying to cross.
- أحمد Ahmedنعم، السيارات لا تتوقف هنا.Na'am, as-sayyarat la tatawaqqaf huna.Yes, the cars do not stop here.
- مريم Maryamيجب أن يلتزم كل ماشٍ بإشارات المرور.Yajibu an yaltazim kullu mashin bi-isharat al-murur.Every pedestrian must obey the traffic lights.
- أحمد Ahmedمعك حق، هذا الطريق خطر جداً.Ma'aki haqq, hadha at-tariq khatar jiddan.You are right, this road is very dangerous.
