طعام

Arabic

Etymology

From the root ط ع م (ṭ-ʕ-m). Cognate with Hebrew טַעַם (ṭāʿām).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /tˤa.ʕaːm/

• Audio:

  (file)

Noun

طَعَام • (ṭaʕām) m (plural أَطْعِمَة (ʔaṭʕima))

1. (countable, uncountable) food
   • 609–632 CE, Qur'an, 2:259:

     قَالَ بَل لَّبِثْتَ مِائَةَ عَامٍ فَٱنْظُرْ إِلَى طَعَامِكَ وَشَرَابِكَ لَمْ يَتَسَنَّهْ

     qāla bal labiṯta miʔata ʕāmin fa-nẓur ʔilā ṭaʕāmika wa-šarābika lam yatasannah

     He said, “Rather, you have remained one hundred years. Look at your food and your drink; it has not changed with time.”

   • a. 1135, Ibn ʿAbdūn, “Un document sur la vie urbaine et les corps de métiers à Séville au début du XII^e siècle: Le traité d’Ibn ʿAbdūn publié avec une introduction et un glossaire”, in Évariste Lévi-Provençal, editor, Journal asiatique‎^[1], number 2, published 1934, page 243 (٥١) 12:
   1. prepared meal
      • a. 1135, Ibn ʿAbdūn, “Un document sur la vie urbaine et les corps de métiers à Séville au début du XII^e siècle: Le traité d’Ibn ʿAbdūn publié avec une introduction et un glossaire”, in Évariste Lévi-Provençal, editor, Journal asiatique‎^[2], number 2, published 1934, page 235 (٤٣) 12:
2. (verbal noun) feeding
   • 609–632 CE, Qur'an, 89:18:

     وَلَا تَحَاضُّونَ عَلَى طَعَامِ ٱلْمِسْكِينِ

     wa-lā taḥāḍḍūna ʕalā ṭaʕāmi l-miskīni

     And ye urge not on feeding the poor.

3. (countable, uncountable, formerly Ḥijāz, al-Andalus, now South Tunisia) wheat
   • a. 1135, Ibn ʿAbdūn, “Un document sur la vie urbaine et les corps de métiers à Séville au début du XII^e siècle: Le traité d’Ibn ʿAbdūn publié avec une introduction et un glossaire”, in Évariste Lévi-Provençal, editor, Journal asiatique‎^[3], number 2, published 1934, page 229 (٣٧) 2:
   • a. 1135, Ibn ʿAbdūn, “Un document sur la vie urbaine et les corps de métiers à Séville au début du XII^e siècle: Le traité d’Ibn ʿAbdūn publié avec une introduction et un glossaire”, in Évariste Lévi-Provençal, editor, Journal asiatique‎^[4], number 2, published 1934, page 242 (٥٠) 15:
   • c. 1200, يحيى بن محمد بن أحمد بن العوام [yaḥyā ibn muḥammad ibn ʔaḥmad ibn al-ʕawwām], edited by José Antonio Banqueri, كتاب الفلاحة [Book on Agriculture], volume 1, Madrid: Imprenta Real, published 1802^IA, Cap. 16, page 680:

     وقيل إن نضح بقدر جرة من ماء الزيتون قدر مائة جرة من الطعام لم يفسد ولم تصبه آفة وإن نضح عليه ماء الأفسنتين بقي ولم يفسد.

     It is said that when a jar of wheat is dampened with a jar of amurca it does not suffer decay nor damage, and if it is dampened with absinthe water, it stays and does not rot.

   Synonyms: قَمْح (qamḥ), حِنْطَة (ḥinṭa), بُرّ (burr), غَلَّة (ḡalla)

4. (countable, uncountable, Ḥaḍramawt) grain, cereal

Declension

Declension of noun طَعَام (ṭaʕām)

Singular	basic singular triptote
	Indefinite	Definite	Construct
Informal	طَعَام ṭaʕām	الطَّعَام aṭ-ṭaʕām	طَعَام ṭaʕām
Nominative	طَعَامٌ ṭaʕāmun	الطَّعَامُ aṭ-ṭaʕāmu	طَعَامُ ṭaʕāmu
Accusative	طَعَامًا ṭaʕāman	الطَّعَامَ aṭ-ṭaʕāma	طَعَامَ ṭaʕāma
Genitive	طَعَامٍ ṭaʕāmin	الطَّعَامِ aṭ-ṭaʕāmi	طَعَامِ ṭaʕāmi
Dual	Indefinite	Definite	Construct
Informal	طَعَامَيْن ṭaʕāmayn	الطَّعَامَيْن aṭ-ṭaʕāmayn	طَعَامَيْ ṭaʕāmay
Nominative	طَعَامَانِ ṭaʕāmāni	الطَّعَامَانِ aṭ-ṭaʕāmāni	طَعَامَا ṭaʕāmā
Accusative	طَعَامَيْنِ ṭaʕāmayni	الطَّعَامَيْنِ aṭ-ṭaʕāmayni	طَعَامَيْ ṭaʕāmay
Genitive	طَعَامَيْنِ ṭaʕāmayni	الطَّعَامَيْنِ aṭ-ṭaʕāmayni	طَعَامَيْ ṭaʕāmay
Plural	broken plural triptote in ـَة (-a)
	Indefinite	Definite	Construct
Informal	أَطْعِمَة ʔaṭʕima	الْأَطْعِمَة al-ʔaṭʕima	أَطْعِمَة ʔaṭʕimat
Nominative	أَطْعِمَةٌ ʔaṭʕimatun	الْأَطْعِمَةُ al-ʔaṭʕimatu	أَطْعِمَةُ ʔaṭʕimatu
Accusative	أَطْعِمَةً ʔaṭʕimatan	الْأَطْعِمَةَ al-ʔaṭʕimata	أَطْعِمَةَ ʔaṭʕimata
Genitive	أَطْعِمَةٍ ʔaṭʕimatin	الْأَطْعِمَةِ al-ʔaṭʕimati	أَطْعِمَةِ ʔaṭʕimati

Descendants

• Algerian Arabic: طعام (ṭʕām, “couscous”)
• Azerbaijani: taam
• Maltese: tgħam (“wheat”)
• Moroccan Arabic: طعام (ṭʕām, “couscous”)
• Ottoman Turkish: طعام
  • Turkish: taam
• Uyghur: تائام (ta'am)
• Uzbek: taom

Moroccan Arabic

Etymology

From Arabic طَعَام (ṭaʕām, “wheat, grain”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /tˤʕaːm/

• Audio:

  (file)

Noun

طعام • (ṭʿām) m

1. couscous

   Synonyms: سكسو (saksu, suksu), كسكسو (ksaksu, ksuksu)

Urdu

Etymology

From Arabic طَعَام (ṭaʕām).

Pronunciation

• (Standard Urdu) IPA^(key): /t̪ə.(ʔ)ɑːm/

Noun

طَعام • (ta'ām) m (Hindi spelling तआम)

1. food, victuals

References

• “طعام”, in اُردُو لُغَت (urdū luġat) (in Urdu), Ministry of Education: Government of Pakistan, 2017.
• “طعام”, in ریخْتَہ لُغَت (rexta luġat) - Rekhta Dictionary [Urdu dictionary with meanings in Hindi & English], Noida, India: Rekhta Foundation, 2024.