هُنَاكَ
hunāka
In Arabic, 'there' is expressed as هُنَاكَ (hunāka). Wiktionary also lists هُنَالِكَ (hunālika) and هُنَا (hunā).
Meaning: in or at that place (position) (adv)
Ways to say it
| Arabic | Romanization (Wiktionary) |
|---|---|
| هُنَاكَ | hunāka |
| هُنَالِكَ | hunālika |
| هُنَا | hunā |
In Modern Standard Arabic, هُنَاكَ is frequently used as an existential particle to mean 'there is' or 'there are'.
What does it mean word for word?
The word هُنَاكَ is composed of the adverbial root for 'here' (hunā) combined with a suffix that shifts the direction to 'there'.
Which one should you use?
While هُنَاكَ is used for a general 'there', the form هُنَالِكَ is often used in formal contexts to denote a more distant or specific 'there'. Do not confuse the 'there' forms with هُنَا, which means 'here'.
How do you pronounce it?
hunāka
Did you know?
- In classical Arabic literature, the distance implied by هُنَالِكَ can be so vast that it is used to describe much more than just a physical distance, often implying a sense of remoteness in time as well.
- In certain regional dialects, instead of using a word for 'there', people might simply use a demonstrative pronoun like 'that' to indicate location, making the distinction between 'there' and 'that' very thin.
- If you use هُنَالِكَ in a conversation, you may sound like a character from a classical novel or a news broadcast, as it is quite rare in daily street slang.
Examples in context
- أنا سألت إذا كنت موجودًا هُنَاكَ.I asked if you were there.
Example conversation
Nour and Omar are looking for a parking spot.
- نور Nourانظر يا عمر، يوجد مكان هُنَاكَ.Unẓur yā ‘Umar, yūjadu makān hunāka.Look Omar, there is a spot there.
- عمر Omarنعم، أرى المكان الآن.Na‘am, arā al-makān al-ān.Yes, I see the spot now.
- نور Nourهل يمكنك الركن هُنَاكَ؟Hal yumkinuka ar-rakn hunāka?Can you park there?
- عمر Omarسأفعل ذلك حالاً.Sa-af‘alu dhālika ḥālan.I will do that right away.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “there” translations, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
