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أي

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary
See also: إي, آی, ای, ایی, and آیی

Arabic

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Etymology 1

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From Proto-Semitic *ʔayy-.

Pronunciation

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  • IPA(key): /ʔajj/
  • Audio:(file)

Pronoun

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أَيّ (ʔayym or f

  1. which ...? what ...? what kind of ...? (followed by a noun in the genitive or a personal suffix)
    مِنْ أَيِّ بَلَدٍ أَنْتَ؟
    min ʔayyi baladin ʔanta?
    From which country are you?
    أَيًّا مِنْ هٰذِهِ الْأَلْعَابِ تُفَضِّلُ؟
    ʔayyan min hāḏihi l-ʔalʕābi tufaḍḍilu?
    Which of these games do you prefer?
    • 609–632 CE, Qur'an, 31:34:
      وَمَا تَدْرِي نَفْسٌ مَاذَا تَكْسِبُ غَدًا وَمَا تَدْرِي نَفْسٌ بِأَيِّ أَرْضٍ تَمُوتُ
      wa-mā tadrī nafsun māḏā taksibu ḡadan wa-mā tadrī nafsun bi-ʔayyi ʔarḍin tamūtu
      [...] and no soul perceives in what land it will die.
  2. whichever
    أَيَّ كِتَابٍ تَقْرَأْ يُفِدْكَ
    ʔayya kitābin taqraʔ yufidka
    Whichever book you read, it'll benefit you.
    • 609–632 CE, Qur'an, 17:110:
      أَيًّا مَا تَدْعُوا فَلَهُ ٱلْأَسْمَاءُ ٱلْحُسْنَى
      ʔayyan mā tadʕū fa-lahu l-ʔasmāʔu l-ḥusnā
      [... by] whatever [name] you call upon [Him], to Him belongs the best names.
  3. any
    زُرْنِي فِي أَيِّ وَقْتٍzurnī fī ʔayyi waqtinVisit me at any time.
Usage notes
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  • While أَيّ (ʔayy) can be used with masculine as well as feminine nouns, the form أَيَّة (ʔayya) is exclusively used with feminine nouns. Additionally, when used interrogatively by itself, it fully conjugates for dual and sound masculine and feminine plurals:
  1. قُلْتُ لَهُ: لَقْدْ رَأَيْتُ طِفْلَتَيْنِ. سَأَلَ: أَيَّتَيْنِ؟
    qultu lahu: laqd raʔaytu ṭiflatayni. saʔala: ʔayyatayni?
    I told him «I saw two girls». He asked: «Which two [girls]?»
Declension
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Declension of pronoun أَيّ (ʔayy)
singular basic singular triptote
indefinite definite construct
informal أَيّ
ʔayy
أَيّ
ʔayy
nominative أَيٌّ
ʔayyun
أَيُّ
ʔayyu
accusative أَيًّا
ʔayyan
أَيَّ
ʔayya
genitive أَيٍّ
ʔayyin
أَيِّ
ʔayyi
Derived terms
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Etymology 2

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Most probably from Middle Persian ʾy (ay, that is to say). Compare Persian ای (ay, that is to say).

Pronunciation

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Conjunction

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أَيْ (ʔay)

  1. that is to say, namely, i.e.
References
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  • Haywood, J.A., Nahmad, H.M. (1965) “أي”, in A new Arabic grammar, 2nd edition, London: Lund Humphries, →ISBN

Moroccan Arabic

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Etymology

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From Arabic أَيّ (ʔayy).

Pronunciation

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Determiner

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أي (ʔayy)

  1. any
    أي طريق خدتي غتوصلك لاين باغية.
    ʔayy ṭrīq ḵadti ḡatwaṣṣalki lāyin bāḡya.
    Any road you take will lead you to where you want.

South Levantine Arabic

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Etymology

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From Arabic أيّ.

Pronunciation

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Determiner

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أيّ (ʔayy)

  1. which?
  2. any

Pronoun

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أيّ (ʔayy)

  1. which?

Synonyms

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