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Dictionary › ك-ت-ب › كَتَبَ
Highlights
Present tense
يَكْتُبُ
Active participle
Passive participle
Most common words from the same root
كَتَبَ in English
Verb · Form I
- to mark (symbols, shapes, graphs, glyphs, letters, and the like) on a surface, to write, to inscribe
- to draw (figures) transitive
- to cut (figures) transitive
- to produce or generate by writing
- to write up, to compose, to draw up, to draft transitive
- to set down figures with a typewriter or a keyboard, to typewrite or keyboard, to type transitive
- to put down in writing, to write down; to record; to register; to track transitive
- to write down (an event, such as a destiny or a fatality); to destine or predestine; to foreordain transitiveقُل لَنْ يُصِيبَنَا إِلَّا مَا كَتَبَ اللَّهُ لَنَاSay "Never will we be struck except by what Allah has decreed for us..."609–632 CE, Qur'an, 9:51
- to write down (an ordinance, a law, a commandment, or the like); to prescribe transitiveمِنْ أَجْلِ ذٰلِكَ كَتَبْنَا عَلَىٰ بَنِي إِسْرَائِيلَ أَنَّهُ مَن قَتَلَ نَفْسًا بِغَيْرِ نَفْسٍ أَوْ فَسَادٍ فِي الْأَرْضِ فَكَأَنَّمَا قَتَلَ النَّاسَ جَمِيعًا وَمَنْ أَحْيَاهَا فَكَأَنَّمَا أَحْيَا النَّاسَ جَمِيعًاBecause of that, We decreed upon the Children of Israel that whoever kills a soul unless for a soul or for corruption in the land; it is as if he had slain mankind entirely. And whoever saves one: it is as if he had saved mankind entirely.609–632 CE, Qur'an, 5:32
- to bequeath transitiveيَا قَوْمِ ٱدْخُلُوا ٱلْأَرْضَ ٱلْمُقَدَّسَةَ ٱلَّتِي كَتَبَ ٱللَّهُ لَكُمْ وَلَا تَرْتَدُّوا عَلَى أَدْبَارِكُمْ فَتَنْقَلِبُوا خَاسِرِينَO my people, enter the Holy Land that Allah has assigned to you and do not turn back and become losers.609–632 CE, Qur'an, 5:21
- to write down (an event, such as a destiny or a fatality); to destine or predestine; to foreordain transitive
Word origin
From Proto-West Semitic *katab-, but the sense "to write" has long been considered a borrowing from another Central Semitic language, perhaps denominally from كِتَاب (kitāb).
Words from the root ك-ت-ب
Arabic verbs come in forms; each form's nouns are listed under its verb. See the whole root on one page →
كَتَبَ
· present يَكْتُبُ
Form I · The plain action
to mark (symbols, shapes, graphs, glyphs, letters, and the like) on a surface, to write, to inscribe; to produce or generate by writing; to put down in writing, to write down; to record; to register; to track
كَاتَبَ
· present يُكَاتِبُ
Form III · Done to or with someone
to keep up a correspondence, to correspond with
مُكَاتَبَة
مُكَاتِب
مُكَاتَب
أَكْتَبَ
· present يُكْتِبُ
Form IV · Causative
to dictate something to, to make someone write
إِكْتَاب
مُكْتِب
مُكْتَب
تَكَاتَبَ
· present يَتَكَاتَبُ
Form VI · Mutual action
to write to each other
تَكَاتُب
communication
مُتَكَاتِب
مُتَكَاتَب
اِنْكَتَبَ
· present يَنْكَتِبُ
Form VII · Passive or resultative
to subscribe; to be preordained by fate; to be meant to be
اِنْكِتَاب
مُنْكَتِب
مُنْكَتَب
اِكْتَتَبَ
· present يَكْتَتِبُ
Form VIII · Reflexive, often idiomatic
to write something; to copy something, to make a copy; to enter one’s name
اِكْتِتَاب
مُكْتَتِب
مُكْتَتَب
اِسْتَكْتَبَ
· present يَسْتَكْتِبُ
Form X · Seeking or considering
to ask to write, to make write; to dictate; to have (someone) make a copy
اِسْتِكْتَاب
مُسْتَكْتِب
مُسْتَكْتَب
كَتَبَ conjugation
Active voice. Present, subjunctive and jussive are the three moods of the non-past.
| Pronoun | Past | Present | Subjunctive | Jussive | Imperative |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| أَنَا I | كَتَبْتُ | أَكْتُبُ | أَكْتُبَ | أَكْتُبْ | — |
| أَنْتَ you (m.) | كَتَبْتَ | تَكْتُبُ | تَكْتُبَ | تَكْتُبْ | اُكْتُبْ |
| أَنْتِ you (f.) | كَتَبْتِ | تَكْتُبِينَ | تَكْتُبِي | تَكْتُبِي | اُكْتُبِي |
| هُوَ he | كَتَبَ | يَكْتُبُ | يَكْتُبَ | يَكْتُبْ | — |
| هِيَ she | كَتَبَتْ | تَكْتُبُ | تَكْتُبَ | تَكْتُبْ | — |
| أَنْتُمَا you two | كَتَبْتُمَا | تَكْتُبَانِ | تَكْتُبَا | تَكْتُبَا | اُكْتُبَا |
| هُمَا they two (m.) | كَتَبَا | يَكْتُبَانِ | يَكْتُبَا | يَكْتُبَا | — |
| هُمَا they two (f.) | كَتَبَتَا | تَكْتُبَانِ | تَكْتُبَا | تَكْتُبَا | — |
| نَحْنُ we | كَتَبْنَا | نَكْتُبُ | نَكْتُبَ | نَكْتُبْ | — |
| أَنْتُمْ you all (m.) | كَتَبْتُمْ | تَكْتُبُونَ | تَكْتُبُوا | تَكْتُبُوا | اُكْتُبُوا |
| أَنْتُنَّ you all (f.) | كَتَبْتُنَّ | تَكْتُبْنَ | تَكْتُبْنَ | تَكْتُبْنَ | اُكْتُبْنَ |
| هُمْ they (m.) | كَتَبُوا | يَكْتُبُونَ | يَكْتُبُوا | يَكْتُبُوا | — |
| هُنَّ they (f.) | كَتَبْنَ | يَكْتُبْنَ | يَكْتُبْنَ | يَكْتُبْنَ | — |
| Verbal noun | كِتَابَة، كَتْب، كِتَاب |
|---|---|
| Active participle | كَاتِب |
| Passive participle | مَكْتُوب |
كَتَبَ in a sentence
Dictionary examples
to write down
قُل لَنْ يُصِيبَنَا إِلَّا مَا كَتَبَ اللَّهُ لَنَاSay "Never will we be struck except by what Allah has decreed for us..."609–632 CE, Qur'an, 9:51
to write down
مِنْ أَجْلِ ذٰلِكَ كَتَبْنَا عَلَىٰ بَنِي إِسْرَائِيلَ أَنَّهُ مَن قَتَلَ نَفْسًا بِغَيْرِ نَفْسٍ أَوْ فَسَادٍ فِي الْأَرْضِ فَكَأَنَّمَا قَتَلَ النَّاسَ جَمِيعًا وَمَنْ أَحْيَاهَا فَكَأَنَّمَا أَحْيَا النَّاسَ جَمِيعًاBecause of that, We decreed upon the Children of Israel that whoever kills a soul unless for a soul or for corruption in the land; it is as if he had slain mankind entirely. And whoever saves one: it is as if he had saved mankind entirely.609–632 CE, Qur'an, 5:32
to bequeath
يَا قَوْمِ ٱدْخُلُوا ٱلْأَرْضَ ٱلْمُقَدَّسَةَ ٱلَّتِي كَتَبَ ٱللَّهُ لَكُمْ وَلَا تَرْتَدُّوا عَلَى أَدْبَارِكُمْ فَتَنْقَلِبُوا خَاسِرِينَO my people, enter the Holy Land that Allah has assigned to you and do not turn back and become losers.609–632 CE, Qur'an, 5:21
From a fully vowelled text
وَكَتَبَ رِسَالَةً حَاوِيَةً هذِهِ الصُّورَةَ:And he wrote a letter after this manner:Acts 23:25, Smith & Van Dyke (1865) / KJV
أَجَابَ بِيلاَطُسُ: «مَا كَتَبْتُ قَدْ كَتَبْتُ».Pilate answered, What I have written I have written.John 19:22, Smith & Van Dyke (1865) / KJV
كَتَبْتُ إِلَيْكُمْ هذَا عَنِ الَّذِينَ يُضِلُّونَكُمْ.These things have I written unto you concerning them that seduce you.1 John 2:26, Smith & Van Dyke (1865) / KJV
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