How to say "rain" in Arabic

Cognate

Meaningrain

Arabic · Modern Standard Arabic

مَطَر

maṭarמטר

مطر

Hebrew · Modern Hebrew

גשם

geshemگِشِم

How the two words are related

Cognate

Same Semitic root, same meaning — you already know this word.

Arabic root

م-ط-ر

Hebrew root

מ-ט-ר

Biblical Hebrew matar is exactly maṭar. Everyday Hebrew prefers geshem, but you carry this root every rainy day — in מטריה, the umbrella.

Related Hebrew word:מטרmatarمَاتَار

How people actually say it in the spoken dialects, where it differs from the standard word.

Levantine · Palestine, Jordan, Lebanon, Syria

شِتَا

shitaשתא

Levantine uses shita — literally 'winter' — for rain.

Moroccan · Morocco — Casablanca, Rabat, Fes

شْتَا

shtaשתא

Like the Levant, Darija uses 'winter' for rain: shta.

مَطَر غَزِير

maṭar ghazīrמטר ע'זיר

heavy rain