أَخْبَرَ
ʔaḵbara
The English phrase 'tell' can be translated into Arabic as أَخْبَرَ (ʔaḵbara) or قَالَ.
Meaning: to pass information (verb)
Ways to say it
| Arabic | Romanization (Wiktionary) |
|---|---|
| أَخْبَرَ | ʔaḵbara |
| قَالَ | qāla |
The verb أَخْبَرَ is used to pass information or to inform someone of a fact or news.
Which one should you use?
While both can be translated as 'tell' in some English contexts, there is a distinction in usage. أَخْبَرَ is used specifically for informing someone of a fact or news, whereas قَالَ means 'to say' and is used for direct speech or quoting what someone said.
Is it said differently in some regions?
In Egyptian Arabic, the term 'tell' is often replaced by 2ol.
Related words
How does it change in a sentence?
The verb أَخْبَرَ is a transitive verb that typically takes two objects: the person being told and the information being told.
How do you pronounce it?
The pronunciation of أَخْبَرَ is ʔaḵbara.
Did you know?
- There is a cultural concept in Arabic where 'telling' a story is called حِكايَة, which comes from a root meaning 'to imitate' or 'to mimic'. This implies that telling is an act of recreating a scene.
- Arabic has a distinct set of verbs for 'telling' based on the medium used. There are different roots for telling a story, telling a secret and telling a lie, whereas English often uses 'tell' for all three.
- The verb أَخْبَرَ shares a root with the word خَبَر, which means 'news'. In traditional Arabic grammar, the 'predicate' of a sentence is called the خَبَر because it provides the 'news' or information about the subject.
Examples in context
- أَخْبَرَني الطّبيبُ بِالحَقيقَةِ.akhbarani al-tabibu bi-l-haqiqa.The doctor told me the truth.
Example conversation
Layla is updating Omar about a meeting.
- ليلى Laylaيا عمر، هل أَخْبَرَكَ أحد عن الاجتماع؟Ya Omar, hal akhbaraka ahad 'an al-ijtima'?Omar, did anyone tell you about the meeting?
- عمر Omarلا، لم يُخْبِرني أحد.La, lam yukhbirni ahad.No, nobody told me.
- ليلى Laylaسأُخْبِرُكَ بكل التفاصيل الآن.Sa-ukhbiruka bikulli at-tafasil al-an.I will tell you all the details now.
- عمر Omarشكراً لكِ يا ليلى.Shukran laki ya Layla.Thank you, Layla.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “tell” translations, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
