Arabic/false friends
From HausaDictionary.com | Hausa English Translations
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here’s a Hausa–Arabic “False Friends” list you can keep handy, especially for Qur’an study so you don’t get tripped up by lookalike words. [1]
Hausa–Arabic False Friends
Words that sound similar but have different meanings.
| Hausa word | Meaning in Hausa | Similar-looking Arabic word | Meaning in Arabic |
|---|---|---|---|
| ashirin | twenty (20) | ʿashrin (عَشْرٍ) | ten (genitive case) |
| kwana | to sleep / spend the night | qanā (قَنَى) | to acquire / possess |
| rana | sun / day | ra’nā (رَعْنَا) | “Be heedless” (Q. 2:104, used negatively) |
| wata | moon / month | waṭan (وَطَن) | homeland |
| gida | house / home | jidār (جِدَار) | wall |
| hanya | road / path | ḥanīf (حَنِيف) | upright, monotheist |
| zuma | honey | zamān (زَمَان) | time / era |
| kai | you (singular) / head | qayy (قَيّ) | vomiting (rare Qur’anic usage in hadith context) |
| maka | to do to you / for you | Makkah (مَكَّة) | the holy city |
| duniya | the world | dunyā (دُنْيَا) | the world (similar meaning, but Arabic has deeper theological nuances) |
| ruwa | water | rawā (رَوَى) | to narrate / to water |
⚠ Tips to avoid confusion
- Check the script — even if the sound is close, the Arabic root and letters may be completely different.
- Remember Hausa’s heavy Arabic borrowing — some words match perfectly (like duniya, mala’iku), but others have shifted in meaning.
- Watch for case endings in Arabic — ashr → ashrin is grammar, not a change in number.
If you want, I can make you a special chart of Hausa words borrowed from Arabic, grouped into:
- Same meaning
- Changed meaning
- Completely different meaning
That way you know which ones to trust and which ones to double-check.