How to say "ambassador" in Arabic
False friendMeaningambassador
Arabic · Modern Standard Arabic
safīrספיר
سفير
Hebrew · Modern Hebrew
shagrirشَاگْرِير
How the two words are related
Sounds like a Hebrew word but means something else — handle with care.
Arabic root
س-ف-رHebrew root
ס-פ-רHebrew's word for ambassador, שגריר, is unrelated — and so, despite the look-alike letters, is Hebrew's ס-פ-ר family (סֵפֶר 'book', סוֹפֵר 'scribe'): the Arabic root's senses are 'travel' and 'uncover, make clear', not counting or writing. Classical Arabic safara also meant 'to mediate, make peace between people'; a safīr was literally that peacemaking go-between, before the word narrowed down to 'ambassador'.
Related Hebrew word:ספרseferسِفِر
Learn 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
Same word on the street; a personal go-between or matchmaker can also be called a safīr informally.
In a phrase
The ambassador is at the embassy.
Plural
broken plural CuCaCāʾ — like وزير→وزراء