Arabic word sheet
شَهِيدٌ
Witness
- Type
- noun
- Root
- ش ه د
Meaning and usage
Witness
Someone who has seen or known a thing and can report it. It is said of a person who attests a fact, before a judge or in everyday life.
كَانَ الْجَارُ شَهِيدًا عَلَى الْحَادِثِ.
The neighbour was a witness to the accident.
Present (older usage)
Being on the spot, as opposed to someone who is away. This use belongs mainly to the classical language.
Martyr modern usage
A person killed in a war, in an attack or for a cause. It is the usual word of news reports for those who die in a conflict.
سَقَطَ ثَلَاثَةُ شُهَدَاءَ فِي قَصْفٍ عَلَى الْمَدِينَةِ.
Three martyrs fell in a shelling of the city.
Plural
شُهَدَاءُ
Word family
What the root means ش ه د
The root starts from telling what one has seen with one's own eyes, and also from being present somewhere. From it come the witness, testimony, seeing with one's own eyes, calling someone to testify and presence.
to testify; to be present at
شَهِدَ
to see with one's own eyes, to watch
شَاهَدَ
to call as a witness; to be killed, to fall as a martyr
اِسْتَشْهَدَ
testimony
شَهَادَةٌ
witness
شَاهِدٌ
presence
شُهُودٌ