How to say "punishment" in Arabic
Shifted meaningMeaningpunishment
Arabic · Modern Standard Arabic
عِقَاب
ʿiqābעקאב
عقاب
Hebrew · Modern Hebrew
עונש
oneshأُونِش
How the two words are related
Shifted meaning
Same root as a Hebrew word, but the meaning drifted over the centuries.
Arabic root
ع-ق-بHebrew root
ע-ק-בRoot ע-ק-ב/ع-ق-ب means "heel" in both languages — and in both, the heel became a figure for "what follows." Hebrew עֵקֶב is used for "as a consequence of"; Arabic عاقِبة ʿāqiba is "the outcome, the aftermath." عِقاب, "punishment," is just that idea sharpened: the consequence that dogs your heels.
Related Hebrew word:עקבakevأَكِڤ
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In a phrase
خَافَ مِنَ الْعِقَاب
khāfa min al-ʿiqābח'אף מן אל-עקאבHe feared punishment.
Plural
عُقُوبَات
ʿuqūbātעקובאתsound feminine plural -āt; the common legal term for "penalties"