How to say "very" in Arabic
New wordMeaningvery
Arabic · Modern Standard Arabic
جِدًّا
jiddanג'דן
جدا
Hebrew · Modern Hebrew
מאוד
me'odمِئُود
How the two words are related
New word
No Hebrew relative — learn it fresh.
Arabic root
ج-د-دLearn it
On the street
How people actually say it in the spoken dialects, where it differs from the standard word.
Levantine · Palestine, Jordan, Lebanon, Syria
كْتِير
ktīrכתירThe dialect says ktīr (literally "a lot") where MSA says jiddan: ḥilu ktīr — "very sweet".
Egyptian · Cairo and the Nile Delta
قَوِي
ʾawiאויCairo's 'very' is ʾawi (spelled قوي): ḥilw ʾawi — 'very nice'; after a negative, khāliṣ.
Moroccan · Morocco — Casablanca, Rabat, Fes
بزَّاف
bezzāfבזאףDarija's 'very / a lot' is bezzāf: zwīn bezzāf — 'very nice'.
In a phrase
اَلطَّعَام لَذِيذ جِدًّا
aṭ-ṭaʿām ladhīdh jiddanא-טעאם לד'יד' ג'דןThe food is very tasty.