How to say "to kiss" in Arabic
Shifted meaningMeaningto kiss
Arabic · Modern Standard Arabic
qabbalaקבל
قبل
Hebrew · Modern Hebrew
nashakنَاشَاك
How the two words are related
Same root as a Hebrew word, but the meaning drifted over the centuries.
Arabic root
ق-ب-لHebrew root
ק-ב-לqabbala, 'to kiss,' is a denominal verb from the same root ق-ب-ل that gives qibla (the direction one faces) and muqābala (a face-to-face meeting) — literally 'to turn toward.' Hebrew ק-ב-ל, 'to receive, accept,' plausibly shares that old 'facing' sense: to receive is to turn and face what's coming toward you. The meanings drifted apart, but a kiss and a reception both start by facing someone.
Related Hebrew word:קבלkibelكِبِل
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On the street
How people actually say it in the spoken dialects, where it differs from the standard word.
Levantine · Palestine, Jordan, Lebanon, Syria
Casual Levantine often says bās ('smooch') instead of the more formal qabbala.
Egyptian · Cairo and the Nile Delta
Cairo: bās (bōsa — 'a kiss').
Moroccan · Morocco — Casablanca, Rabat, Fes
Darija: bās (būsa — 'a kiss').
In a phrase
He kissed his son on the forehead