False friends: English and Arabic

23 English words that look like words used in Arabic but mean something else — common traps for Arabic speakers.

Many everyday words in Arabic dialects — in Egypt, the Levant and the Maghreb — were borrowed from French, English and Italian, then changed meaning along the way. Because they sound like the English word, they feel safe, so nobody checks them: «ليسانس» sounds like license but is a bachelor's degree, and «أوكازيون» sounds like occasion but means a sale.

Many of these words are used in some Arabic-speaking countries and not in others, so you may know one and never have heard another. Each word below has its real meaning in Arabic, the Arabic word it gets confused with, and how to say that word in English.

Test yourself ↓

Words that don't mean what they seem

mark A2

Means: علامة، أثر
Not: ماركة → brand

mark means a spot or sign on something (or a grade at school), not «ماركة» (which is brand in English).

There is a dirty mark on your shirt.

license B1

Means: رخصة، ترخيص
Not: ليسانس → bachelor's degree

license means an official paper that lets you do something, not «ليسانس» (which is a bachelor's degree in English).

You need a license to drive a taxi here.

occasion B1

Means: مناسبة
Not: أوكازيون → sale

occasion means a special event or a time when something happens, not «أوكازيون» (which is a sale in English).

A wedding is a very special occasion.

benzene B2

Means: مادة كيميائية
Not: بنزين → petrol, gasoline

benzene means a chemical liquid used to make plastics, not «بنزين» (which is petrol or gasoline in English).

Benzene is a chemical used to make plastics.

solar B1

Means: شمسي
Not: سولار → diesel

solar means «شمسي», connected with the sun, not «سولار» (which is diesel in English; سولار is the word for diesel fuel in Egypt).

Many houses here use solar panels for electricity.

costume A2

Means: زي تنكري أو مسرحي
Not: كوستيوم → suit

costume means special clothes you wear for a party or a play, not «كوستيوم» (which is a suit in English; كوستيوم is used this way in Egypt and the Levant).

She wore a princess costume to the party.

trapeze B2

Means: أرجوحة معلّقة للألعاب البهلوانية
Not: ترابيزة → table

trapeze means a bar hanging from ropes that circus performers swing on, not «ترابيزة» (which is a table in English).

The acrobat swung from the trapeze high above us.

stage A2

Means: مرحلة، منصة المسرح
Not: ستاج → internship, work placement

stage means a step in a process or the raised area in a theatre, not «ستاج» (which is an internship in English).

The project is now in its final stage.

flannel B1

Means: قماش الفلانيل
Not: فانيلة → undershirt, vest

flannel means a soft warm cloth of cotton or wool (in British English also a small face towel), not «فانيلة» (which is an undershirt or vest in English; فانيلة is used this way in Egypt and the Levant).

He wore a warm flannel shirt in the cold weather.

Words that only sometimes match

These share one meaning with the look-alike, but usually mean something else — see the example.

regime B2 sometimes

Means: نظام حكم
Not: ريجيم → diet

regime means a government, especially a strict one, not «ريجيم» (which is diet in English). In British English it can also mean a regular plan, as in a fitness regime.

The book is about life under the old regime.

chance A2 sometimes

Means: فرصة، احتمال
Not: شانس → luck

chance usually means an opportunity or a possibility, and sometimes luck, as in by chance. «شانس» in the Levant and the Maghreb means luck, so wish someone good luck, not «good chance».

There is a good chance it will rain tomorrow.

pension B1 sometimes

Means: معاش تقاعدي
Not: بنسيون → guesthouse

pension usually means money paid to people who have stopped working, not «بنسيون» (which is a guesthouse in English). English uses pension for a small hotel only when talking about Europe.

My grandfather lives on his pension.

agenda B2 sometimes

Means: جدول أعمال
Not: أجندة → diary, planner

agenda means a list of things to discuss at a meeting, or someone's aims, as in a political agenda. It is not «أجندة» the notebook, which is a diary or planner in English.

The first item on the agenda is the budget.

salon B1 sometimes

Means: صالون تجميل أو حلاقة
Not: صالون → living room

salon means a shop where you get your hair or beauty done, not «صالون» the room at home (which is a living room in English).

I have an appointment at the beauty salon.

lamp A2 sometimes

Means: مصباح
Not: لمبة → light bulb

lamp means the whole device that lights a room, not «لمبة» (which is a light bulb in English).

I need to change the bulb in this lamp.

proof B1 sometimes

Means: دليل، إثبات
Not: بروفة → rehearsal

proof means facts that show something is true, not «بروفة» (which is a rehearsal in English). Only in printing is a proof a test copy.

Do you have proof that he was there?

journal A2 sometimes

Means: دفتر يوميات، مجلة علمية
Not: جورنال → newspaper

journal means a book where you write about your day, or a serious magazine for specialists, not «جورنال» (which is a newspaper in English). Only some newspaper names use the word.

She writes in her journal every night.

petrol A2 sometimes

Means: بنزين
Not: بترول → crude oil, petroleum

petrol means fuel for cars (British English; Americans say gas), not «بترول» in its usual sense (which is crude oil or petroleum in English). The two meet only in phrases like «محطة بترول», a petrol station.

We stopped to buy petrol on the way to the sea.

toast A2 sometimes

Means: خبز محمّص
Not: توست → sliced bread

toast means bread made brown and crisp by heat, not «توست» in its everyday sense (which is soft sliced bread in English; this use is common in Egypt, the Levant and the Gulf). Sliced bread only becomes toast once you toast it.

I had toast and jam for breakfast.

chips A1 sometimes

Means: بطاطس مقلية (في البريطانية)
Not: شيبس → crisps, potato snack

In British English chips means hot fried potato sticks (American fries), not «شيبس» (which is crisps in British English). In American English chips does mean the crunchy snack, like «شيبس».

We had fish and chips for dinner.

gas A2 sometimes

Means: غاز، وبنزين في الأمريكية
Not: غاز → cooking gas, natural gas

gas means a substance like air, as in cooking gas, so «غاز» fits; but in American English it also means fuel for cars, short for gasoline. In British English car fuel is petrol.

We need to stop and buy gas before the trip.

blouse A2 sometimes

Means: قميص نسائي خفيف
Not: بلوزة → sweater, pullover, top

blouse means a light shirt for women only, not «بلوزة» in its wider sense (in some Levantine dialects any top, even a warm sweater or jumper in English).

She wore a light silk blouse to the interview.

service B1 sometimes

Means: خدمة
Not: سرفيس → shared taxi, minibus

service means help or work done for people (including a car service), not «سرفيس» as a vehicle: in the Levant سرفيس is also a shared taxi or minibus in English.

The bus service in this city is very good.

Test yourself: which translation is right?

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Questions

What are false friends?

False friends (in Arabic «الأصدقاء الكاذبون») are words in two languages that look or sound alike but have different meanings, like English «license» (رخصة) and the everyday Egyptian «ليسانس» (a bachelor's degree).

Why does Arabic have so many words like this?

Arabic dialects borrowed many words from French, English and Italian. Over time the meanings drifted apart in each language, and some of these words are used in one Arabic-speaking country but not in another.

How do I stop mixing them up?

Learn each word with an example sentence rather than as a one-word translation, and check familiar-looking words too. Practising the tricky ones a few days apart helps the right meaning stick.

Levels (A1–C2) and translations come from the WordStudy dictionary. Spotted a mistake? Write to words.study.project@gmail.com.