Arabic word sheet
فُلْكٌ
ship
- Type
- noun
- Root
- ف ل ك
Meaning and usage
ship
A large vessel that travels on the sea. It is an old, literary word; everyday language uses another.
رَأَى سَامِي فُلْكًا كَبِيرًا فِي الْمِينَاءِ.
Sami saw a large ship in the harbour.
ships
The same word, unchanged, also names several ships together.
وَقَفَتِ الْفُلْكُ قُرْبَ الشَّاطِئِ مَسَاءً.
The ships stopped near the shore in the evening.
Word family
What the root means ف ل ك
The root carries the idea of something round or turning: the orbit of the stars, the whorl of a spindle. The word for a ship belongs to the same family, though the dictionaries do not say how it is tied to that idea.
orbit of the stars
فَلَكٌ
whorl of a spindle; any round thing
فَلْكَةٌ
Synonyms
ship
سَفِينَةٌ
It is the everyday word and names one ship only; the headword is literary and is said of one ship or of several.
boat, vessel
مَرْكَبٌ
Broader: anything one rides or travels in, and for boats usually a smaller craft.