The Five Senses In Arabic, Body Parts and Useful Vocabulary

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Our five senses – sight, hearing, touch, taste and smell – seem to operate independently, as though they are five separate and distinct modes of perceiving the world. However, they collaborate closely to enable the mind to better understand its surroundings. We can become aware of this collaboration under special circumstances, and Arabs seemed to have had an understanding of this a long time ago. The way they perceived their world is shown in their material culture, literature, and fine arts. The beautiful fabrics that make up Arab garments are a feast for the eyes and their textures luxurious to the touch. If you’ve ever indulged in a Middle Eastern meal you will understand why Arabs truly put an emphasis on the sense of smell and taste. In this post, we will talk about the five senses in Arabic, including some information about the different body organs that our senses use.

Here are our examples:

English Transliteration Arabic
Sense in Arabic Hassah حاسة
The five senses in Arabic alhawassu ilkhams الحواس الخمس
Smell in Arabic Haasat isham حاسة الشم
Touch in Arabic Haasat illams حاسة اللمس
Taste in Arabic Haasat iltathawoq حاسة التذوق
Hearing in Arabic Haasat ilsam’ حاسة السمع
Vision in Arabic Haasat ilbasar حاسة البصر
Head in Arabic ra’s رأس
Forehead in Arabic jabeen جبين
Eye in Arabic ‘ayan عين
Ear in Arabic ‘uthon أذن
Nose in Arabic ‘anf أنف
Mouth in Arabic fam فم
Tooth in Arabic sin سن
Lip in Arabic shifah شفة
Tongue in Arabic lisaan لسان
Face in Arabic wajah وجه
Neck in Arabic ‘unuq عنق
Back in Arabic Dhahr ظهر
Chest in Arabic Sadr صدر
Belly in Arabic batn بطن
Skin in Arabic jild جلد
Brain in Arabic dimaagh دماغ
Lung in Arabic ri’ah رئة
Stomach in Arabic mi’dah معدة
Arm in Arabic thirae’ ذراع
Hand in Arabic yad يد
Leg in Arabic rijil رِجِل
Foot in Arabic qadam قدم
Toe in Arabic isba’ ilqadam إصبع القدم
Nail in Arabic ‘uDhofor أُظفُر
Palm in Arabic rahat ilyad راحة اليد
Thumb in Arabic assabbabah السبابة

It’s worth mentioning here that there are some other words in Arabic that may sound close to the word sense (hassah), but mean something different.

For instance:

Instinct in Arabic Hiss حسّ
Sensitive in Arabic Hassass حسّاس
Feeling in Arabic iHsaass إحساس

Also, you might know some expressions that involve the senses, like:

This makes no sense in Arabic / hathaa laysa lahu ‘ay ma’na / هذا ليسَ لهُ أي معنى

This is nonsense in Arabic / hathaa hura’a / هذا هُراء

Now that you’ve made sense of this list, how many words can you remember?

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