Arabic word sheet
صَدْرٌ
Chest, breast
- Type
- noun
- Root
- ص د ر
Meaning and usage
Chest, breast
The front of the body between the neck and the belly, in humans and animals. The word often also stands for the inner self, where thoughts and worries are kept.
وَضَعَتْ لَيْلَى يَدَهَا عَلَى صَدْرِهَا.
Layla put her hand on her chest.
Front, upper part
The front or uppermost part of a thing: the top end of a room where honoured guests sit, the bow of a ship, the upper reaches of a valley.
وَقَفَ سَامِي فِي صَدْرِ الْقَاعَةِ.
Sami stood at the head of the hall.
Beginning
The first part of something: the start of the day, of a season, of an undertaking, the opening of a book or a letter.
قَرَأَتْ سَلْمَى صَدْرَ الرِّسَالَةِ.
Salma read the opening of the letter.
Plural
صُدُورٌ
Word family
What the root means ص د ر
The root carries the idea of the front, of what faces you and comes first. From it come the chest, “to put at the head”, “to take the place of honour”, a short garment covering the upper body, and also “to come back from the water”, whence “the source, the starting point”.
to put at the head, to give (a book) an opening
صَدَّرَ
to take the place of honour
تَصَدَّرَ
to come back, to turn away (from a place)
صَدَرَ
source, starting point
مَصْدَرٌ
short shirt worn next to the body
صِدَارٌ
one who has a chest complaint
مَصْدُورٌ
Synonyms
beginning, first part
Matches only the sense of beginning: it is the general word for what comes first, in order or in time; it never names the chest.
front part
مُقَدَّمٌ
Names only the front of a thing, never the chest nor a beginning in time.