How to say "lead (metal; pencil lead)" in Arabic
New wordMeaninglead (metal; pencil lead)
Arabic · Modern Standard Arabic
رَصَاص
raṣāṣרצאץ
رصاص
Hebrew · Modern Hebrew
עופרת
oferetأُوفِرِت
How the two words are related
New word
No Hebrew relative — learn it fresh.
Arabic root
ر-ص-صNot a cognate — but a delightful typological echo. Modern Hebrew עיפרון, 'pencil', is built on עופרת, 'lead', and Arabic does the exact same thing: قَلَم رَصَاص, literally 'lead pen', is the ordinary word for pencil. Two unrelated roots, the same everyday metaphor.
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In a phrase
قَلَم رَصَاص
qalam raṣāṣקלם רצאץa pencil (literally 'lead pen')