How to say "how is your family?" in Arabic
Shifted meaningMeaninghow is your family?
Arabic · Modern Standard Arabic
كَيْفَ أَهْلَك؟
kayfa ahlakכיף אהלך
كيف أهلك؟
Hebrew · Modern Hebrew
מה שלום המשפחה?
ma shlom hamishpakha?مَا شْلُوم هَامِشْپَاخَا؟
How the two words are related
Shifted meaning
Same root as a Hebrew word, but the meaning drifted over the centuries.
Arabic root
أ-ه-لHebrew root
א-ה-לAhl, 'family, folks,' is the same root أ-ه-ل behind base-set أهلا وسهلا — and Hebrew אוהל, the tent a clan lived under. A common warm follow-up once you've asked kayfa l-ḥāl, how are you.
Related Hebrew word:אוהלohelأُوهِل
Learn it
On the street
How people actually say it in the spoken dialects, where it differs from the standard word.
Egyptian · Cairo and the Nile Delta
إِزَّيّ أَهْلَك؟
izzayy ahlakאזי אהלךizzayy works before a noun too: izzayy ahlak?, izzayy il-ʿēla? ('the family').
In a phrase
أَهْلِي كُلُّهُم بِخَيْر
ahlī kulluhum bi-khayrאהלי כלהם בח'ירmy family are all well
More words from this root
More in Greetings & Essentials
- God bless you (reply to thanks or a compliment)allāhu yubārik fīkاللَّهُ يُبَارِك فِيكשאלוהים יברך אותך
- the honor is mine (reply to nice-to-meet-you)ash-sharaf līالشَّرَف لِيהכבוד שלי
- safe travels / have a good tripriḥla saʿīdaرِحْلَة سَعِيدَةנסיעה טובה
- peace / hellosalāmسَلَامשלום
- hellomarḥabaمَرْحَبًاשלום
- good morningṣabāḥ al-khayrصَبَاح الْخَيْرבוקר טוב