Arabic word sheet
قَلِيلٌ
Few, little
- Type
- adjective
- Root
- ق ل ل
Meaning and usage
Few, little
Said of what is small in number or in amount: few people, little water, little money.
الْمَاءُ قَلِيلٌ فِي الْبِئْرِ
The water in the well is scanty.
A small amount
Used as a noun, it names a little of something: a small share of goods, of food, of time.
أَكَلَ رَامِي قَلِيلًا مِنَ الْخُبْزِ
Rami ate a little bread.
Having little of …
Followed by a noun, it describes someone or something that has little of the thing named: few words, little wealth, little width.
الْجَارُ قَلِيلُ الْكَلَامِ
The neighbour is a man of few words.
Short and slight
In the old language, said of a person who is short and slightly built.
الْحَارِسُ رَجُلٌ قَلِيلٌ
The guard is a short, slight man.
Word family
What the root means ق ل ل
The root carries the idea of small number and small amount, the opposite of abundance. From it come the words for being few, scarcity, making a thing less, finding it too little and being short of means.
to be few, to be little
قَلَّ
fewness, scarcity
قِلَّةٌ
to make less, to reduce
قَلَّلَ
to do or give little
أَقَلَّ
to find too little
اِسْتَقَلَّ
poor, of small means
مُقِلٌّ
Synonyms
slight, small
يَسِيرٌ
Adds the idea that the thing is light or easy to bear, whereas the headword speaks only of amount.
Opposites
many, much