Ways to say it
| Arabic | Romanization (Wiktionary) | Note |
|---|---|---|
| أَرَادَ | ʔarāda | |
| رَغِبَ | raḡiba | |
| شَاءَ | šāʔa | |
| عايز | ʕāyez | Egyptian Arabic, active, participle |
| بِغي | biḡi | Hijazi Arabic |
| بغى | bḡa | Moroccan Arabic |
Which one should you use?
أَرَادَ is the standard formal way to express wanting or intending something. In contrast, رَغِبَ carries a stronger connotation of desire or longing compared to the more neutral أَرَادَ.
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
أَرَادَ is the standard formal way to express wanting or intending something, often used in Modern Standard Arabic. رَغِبَ is also formal. عايز is the most common way to say 'want' in Egyptian Arabic, used in daily conversation instead of the formal أَرَادَ.
Is it said differently in some regions?
عايز is specifically used in the Egyptian dialect, while بِغي is a form used to express wanting in the Hijazi dialect of Saudi Arabia. In Morocco, the standard way to say 'want' is بغى.
How does it change in a sentence?
In Egyptian Arabic, the word عايز changes gender to match the subject: عايز for a male and عايزة for a female.
How do you pronounce it?
ʔarāda
Did you know?
- While رَغِبَ means 'to desire', adding the preposition في creates the meaning 'to want', but using the preposition عن completely reverses it to mean 'to dislike' or 'to shun'.
- In certain contexts, the word شَاءَ is used to refer to the will of God, such as in the phrase 'as God wills'.
- While أَرَادَ is the standard formal verb, using it in a casual street market in Cairo might make you sound like a character in a historical drama.
Examples in context
- أَرَادَ الطِّفْلُ لُعْبَةً جَدِيدَةً.arāda aṭ-ṭiflu lu'batan jadīdah.The child wanted a new toy.
- هَلْ أَرَادَ الرَّجُلُ الْمُسَاعَدَةَ؟hal arāda ar-rajulu al-musā'adah?Did the man want help?
- أَرَادَ الْمُدِيرُ تَغْيِيرَ الْخُطَّةِ.arāda al-mudīru taghyīra al-khuṭṭah.The manager wanted to change the plan.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “want” translations and entries بغى, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
