How to say "to acquire" in Arabic
Shifted meaningMeaningto acquire
Arabic · Modern Standard Arabic
اِقْتَنَى
iqtanāאקתנא
اقتنى
Hebrew · Modern Hebrew
רכש
rakhashرَاخَاش
How the two words are related
Shifted meaning
Same root as a Hebrew word, but the meaning drifted over the centuries.
Arabic root
ق-ن-يHebrew root
ק-נ-הThe root ق-ن-ي matches Hebrew ק-נ-ה letter for letter (final weak radical, like بنى/בנה). Modern Hebrew קנה narrowed to 'buy'; Arabic iqtanā keeps an older, wider sense — 'to come to own, acquire' — closer to Genesis's קונה שמים וארץ, 'Maker/Owner of heaven and earth,' than to a cash register.
Related Hebrew word:קנהkanaكَانَا
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In a phrase
اِقْتَنَى لَوْحَة نَادِرَة
iqtanā lawḥa nādiraאקתנא לוחה נאדרהHe acquired a rare painting