أبى
العربية
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أبى¹
Where it comes from
Supposedly from Proto-Semitic *ʔabay-; according to unifying theory, the meaning of wanting is the original, but came to be always used with negation, such that this is the bulk of attestation of Biblical Hebrew אָבָה (ʔāḇā), and the dialects which standard Arabic has been based on have dropped the negating particle while other dialects continue the older situation. The alternative view assumes mutilated بَغَى (baḡā, “to desire”), well-known, behind the nonstandard meanings. Compare بِى (be, “to will”) too.
verb أَبَى · ʔabā · يَأْبَى · إِبَاء · إِبَاءَة
- to reject, to refuse شِئْتَ أَمْ أَبَيْتَ
- to have an aversion for
- to will, to desire
- to demand, to ask for
- to be in lack, to be necessary
أبى²
Where it comes from
A different form of أَبَا (ʔabā, “to father”)
verb أَبَى · ʔabā · يَأْبِي · أُبُوَّة · آبٍ
- to father
أبى³
verb أَبَّى · ʔabbā · يُؤَبِّي · تَأْبُوّ · تَأْبِيّ
- to call a person father
In English
- refuse (transitive) decline (request, demand)
Talk about this word "أبى." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/ar/%D8%A3%D8%A8%D9%89. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. أبى. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/ar/%D8%A3%D8%A8%D9%89 "أبى." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/ar/%D8%A3%D8%A8%D9%89.Cite this
@misc{micwyn_2026,
title = {أبى},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/ar/%D8%A3%D8%A8%D9%89},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
