How to say "half" in Arabic
New wordMeaninghalf
Arabic · Modern Standard Arabic
نِصْف
niṣfנצף
نصف
Hebrew · Modern Hebrew
חצי
khetsiخِتْسِي
How the two words are related
New word
No Hebrew relative — learn it fresh.
Arabic root
ن-ص-فLearn 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
نُصّ
nuṣṣנץThe f drops and the ṣ doubles: nuṣṣ, as in nuṣṣ sāʿa — half an hour.
Egyptian · Cairo and the Nile Delta
نُصّ
nuṣṣנץCairo says nuṣṣ too: nuṣṣ sāʿa, half an hour.
Moroccan · Morocco — Casablanca, Rabat, Fes
نصّ
neṣṣנץDarija: neṣṣ — neṣṣ sāʿa, half an hour.
In a phrase
نِصْف سَاعَة
niṣf sāʿaנצף סאעהhalf an hour
Plural
أَنْصَاف
anṣāfאנצאףbroken plural aCCāC — like وَلَد→أَوْلَاد.