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What are the best Arabic-English dictionaries and mobile Apps?

A list of the best Android and iOS apps and websites for translating Arabic words into English. Most of them are free.

Last updated: 8 months ago

There are many online and offline dictionaries for Arabic. In this article, I will present some dictionaries and show the pros and cons.

Offline: Standard (and Classical) Arabic

Lane's dictionary

by Graeme Andrews

The biggest advantage of this dictionary is that it allows full-text searches in Arabic and English. Furthermore, Greek and Hebrew text is shown and the Arabic font is very nice. This dictionary is a desktop application. It can be used offline.

The program runs on Linux, Mac, and Windows.

lane lexicon
Screenshot by gerald drissner

You can download it here:

Windows, Mac https://github.com/laneslexicon/lexicon/releases

Linux https://laneslexicon.github.io/lexicon/site/dev-guide/build


Arabic Almanac (Arabic -> English) –  Hans Wehr, Hinds/Badawi, etc.

by Abdurahman Erik Taal

This is perhaps the best online version of Hans Wehr's dictionary. The online version refers to the 5th edition. It is fast and it can be downloaded for offline usage.

ejtaal hans wehr
screenshot of the app ejtaal

The website also includes the excellent (but little outdated) Egyptian Arabic dictionary by Martin Hinds/el-Said Badawi as well as many Islamic dictionaries.

There are also many Arabic-Urdu dictionaries available.

WEBSITE – offline and online use http://www.ejtaal.net/aa/


Al-Mawrid (Arabic -> English)

by Abdurahman Erik Taal

Al-Mawrid is a famous and widespread dictionary, authored by Dr. Rohi Baalbaki.

al mawrid
screenshot al mawrid

Al-Mawrid is probably the most advanced contemporary Arabic/English dictionary.

It contains more than 50,000 words with many related appendices. The online version refers to the 7th edition.

WEBSITE online and offline use http://ejtaal.net/mr/


Online tools

Oxford Arabic <-> English

The Oxford dictionary is a very good contemporary lexicon. It gives you many examples. It is highly recommended, however, it is not for free.

There is a subscription model. It costs around 17 GBP per year.

screenshot Oxford

WEBSITE https://premium.oxforddictionaries.com/

There is also a paperback edition – but it is quite expensive (between 80 and 100 US-Dollars). If you have to translate a lot, it is definitely worth buying. But watch out: only buy the 2014 edition!

We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.


Langenscheidt German <-> Arabic

If you know German, the online dictionary of Langenscheidt is actually quite good. The print version used to be totally outdated and lacking many things; the online version, however, is quite up to date.

Since 2015 with the arrival of many refugees from Arab countries, the online dictionary is for free!

langenscheidt
screenshot Langenscheidt

WEBSITE https://de.langenscheidt.com/deutsch-arabisch/


The AraMaster

by Levi Watkins and a team of contributors

The AraMaster wants to combine Hans Wehr and AraTools – but quicker and easier and more comprehensive.

It is perfect for beginners and intermediate learners. The AraMaster gives you all derived forms as well as all verb forms (I to X). Every word is fully vowelled and translated. It will help you to get a better feeling for the mushtaqqat (مُشْتَقّات) – the derived noun forms of the root.

aramaster2
screenshot TheAraMaster

WEBSITE http://thearamaster.com


Classical: Hawrami and baheth.info

Hawrami (formerly known as: lisaan.net) and baheth.info are two good collections of sources.

Both websites are a great resource if you need to translate old texts written in Classical Arabic. You need to have a good command of Arabic to understand the Arabic explanation.

lisaan.net
screenshot of the website lisaan.net

hawramani calls itself the world's largest Arabic lexical resource, made up of the largest and greatest classical Arabic dictionaries, from the earliest authorities (such as Kitab al-Ain of al-Khaleel bin Ahmad) to later dictionaries, such as al-Muhkam of the Andalusian scholar Ibn Seedah and Lisan al-Arab of Ibn Manzur (died 1311 CE / 711 H), all the way to contemporary dictionaries.

Lisaan.net aims to provide a complete dictionary of the Arabic language, “from the dawn of Arabic linguistics to the present day”.

WEBSITE http://arabiclexicon.hawramani.com/ and http://www.baheth.info


Arabterm.org

This is a good database if you need to translate technical and political terms as most of the widespread dictionaries are in fact completely outdated in this regard.

arabterm
scrennshot of arabterm

This database contains more than 150,000 entries (with more than half a million terms).

It covers civil and electrical engineering, water technologies, renewable energies, textile industries and all major scientific disciplines in three languages (Arabic, English, and German).

It is a joint publication of the Arab League Educational, Cultural and Scientific Organization (ALECSO) and the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ).

WEBSITE http://www.arabterm.org


Aratools

This website is very useful for beginners because it gives you the root of a word plus the vowels.

So if you are not sure about the root, just type in the word in Arabic and it will give you the root. Furthermore, it tells you the of a verb, the tense as well as the .

aratools
screenshot aratools

There is also an Android and iPhone version. However, the mobile apps are relatively basic and are not for free. I prefer the web-version (which is for free).

WEBSITE http://www.aratools.com

MOBILE Android Google Play (11 Euro) or iPhone (14,99 USD)


Arabic verb conjugator

The Arabic Verb conjugator is an interesting project. It is easy to use and definitely useful if you get lost or want to check your homework.

conjugator
screenshot conjugator

You can type in the root and the machine will conjugate the verb for you. The website is for free.

WEBSITE http://acon.baykal.be

MOBILE There is also an app for Android phones on Google Play  (5,99 Euro) as well as for the iPhone (8,99 USD).

As of January 2022, the Android app was not available anymore in the Google Play store. A reader informed me that the app only works on Android 4 and that the company could not develop the Android app due to lack of financing.

Arabic dialects

Egyptian Arabic: Lisan Masry

by Mike Green (with the help of a great team!)

This dictionary can be used in both directions

lisan masry
screenshot lisan masry

Words are displayed in Arabic, transliterated and in phonetic writing, with recordings of all the main word forms.  There is also a thesaurus.

What is of great help too, there are audio recordings of most words and examples.

WEBSITE https://eu.lisaanmasry.org

This program can be run on Linux, Windows, and Mac (Java). Note that it requires Java – you can download it here.

MOBILE There is an Android version as well as an iPhone version – both are for free!


Egyptian and Levantine Arabic: Lughatuna

by Lughatuna LLC

This is a great resource for Egyptian Arabic and , including tens of thousands of definitions and examples, sayings and proverbs.

Update Lughatuna includes now North African dialects.

I have interviewed the developer and author Hossam Abouzahr for my series 9273 roots.

lughatuna
screenshot lughatuna

You can use it online (website) or download a mobile

WEBSITE http://www.livingarabic.com/dictionaries.html

MOBILE There is an app for Android (1,99 Euro/Dollar) and iPhone (1,99 Euro/Dollar).

Mobile apps only (Android and Apple iOS)

Many websites have a good responsive layout. For example, https://ejtaal.net/aa/ (Hans Wehr) works very well on your mobile browser.

Android and iOS: Lughatuna

I have covered Lughatuna in the previous section.

MOBILE There is an app for Android (1,99 Euro/Dollar) and iPhone (1,99 Euro/Dollar).


Android: Arabic Dictionaries (for Arabic –> English)

by Flow Technology

This app is for free and does not even include ads.

Almost every serious dictionary is included: Hans Wehr, Lane's Lexicon, Steingass, Brill, A Dictionary and Glossary of the Koran by John Penrice, Vocabulary Of The Holy Quran by Dr. Abdullah Abbas Nadwi, Verbal Idoms of the Quraan by Mustansir Mir, Dictionary Of The Holy Quran, by Malik Ghulam Farid, Dictionary of The Holy Qur'an by Abdul Mannan Omar as well as several Urdu-Arabic dictionaries.

arabic dictionary
screenshot arab dictionary app

Furthermore, it includes almost every important Arabic-Arabic dictionary, such as Lisan al-‘Arab, Tasheeh Lisan ul Arab (Arabic), Al-Munjid, Hind/Badawi (Egyptian), Mufradat al Quran by Raghib (Arabic), Asaas al Balaaghah by Zamakhshari (Arabic), Umdat ul Huffaaz (Arabic), Misbaah ul Muneer by Fuyyumi (Arabic), Muheet al-Muheet (Arabic)

You also find Indonesian / Malaysian dictionaries such as Al-Munawwir, Kamus Arab-Indonesia Terlengkap, oleh KH. Ahmad Warson Munawwir, Kamus Idris Al-Marbawi (Arabic-Malay), Ensiklopedia Al-Quran (Malay): Kajian Kosa Kata, Quraish Shihab.

MOBILE You can get the app for free at the Google Play store.


Android: Assiraj – Arabic verb conjugation

by Assiraj Almonir

This app is perfect if you want to analyze verbs and roots. Not only that the app will conjugate the verb – you can also see where the root is used in the Qu'ran!

arabic verb conjugation1
Screenshot: App Arabic Verb Conjugation

Advantages of Assiraj:

  • Triliteral roots with all possible conjugations
  • Quadriliteral conjugation
  • Active and passive voice
  • All moods (indicative, subjunctive, jussive, and imperative)
  • Qur'an tajweed in color
  • Meaning of the word in an Islamic context

The author offers the app for FREE!

MOBILE You can get the app for free at the Google Play store.


Android: VerbAce (English –> Arabic)

VerbAce is a very good dictionary if you want to translate from English into Arabic. The database includes commonly used phrases (mostly contemporary) which clarify the meanings further.

verbace
screenshot verbace

It is pretty useful for beginners and intermediates who need a quick translation or deal with contemporary texts or newspaper articles.

MOBILE You can get the Android-Version for free, but you have to download the apk-file and install it manually as it is not available on the Google Play Store.


Android and Apple: Hans Wehr

Hans Wehrr app by Gibreel Abdullah

Gibreel Abdullah is a developer from India. He created a new app for the Hans Wehr dictionary because all other available Hans Wehr dictionary apps used scanned pages which made it difficult to navigate. I guess that the 4th edition was used as a database, but I am not sure. It offers full-text search in Arabic and English!

ANDROID You can get it on the Google Play store for free.

Hans Wehr app by Uwais Iqbal (Android) and Omar Jahangir (iPhone)

The Hans Wehr app (ejtaal) is a digital version of the wide-spread Arabic-English Hans Wehr dictionary. You can search through the dictionary by using the root letter of the word and the app will display the corresponding page from the Hans Wehr dictionary.

ANDROID You can get it on the Google Play store for free.

iPhone Download link for Apple iPhones.


iOS: Lane's Lexicon

by Omar Jahangir

Lane's Lexicon is very useful if you deal with old text. This free app works on iPhones and iPads.

iPhone You can download it here.

Automated Translation

Reverso

This is the perfect all-in-one tool! Not only that its translation feature is unique, it also offers synonyms and the conjugation of verbs.

Remark: @Tim Gregory – thanks for telling me!

If you only use it occasionally, the service is for free!

AI translation

Reverso provides machine translation tools for automated translation of texts in various languages, including neural machine translation.

reverso

It offers many languages, among them English, German, Japanese, French, and Spanish (okay, basically all major languages ;-).

Website https://context.reverso.net/translation/arabic-english/

Synonyms

This is a relatively new feature of Reverso – and it works quite well for Arabic.

reverso synonyms

Website https://synonyms.reverso.net/synonym

Conjugation of verbs

Reverso conjugates verbs pretty okay, but it struggles with sophisticated verb forms and patterns. However, it is a good tool for beginners as it gives the masculine and feminine forms.

Transliterated words

Fuzzy Arabic (transliterated words –> Arabic)

by Michelle Fullwood

I often struggled to identify Arabic words because I failed to decode the transliteration.  You sometimes need a lot of imagination – or you use Fuzzy Arabic which does the work for you and gives you almost all possible combinations.

fuzzy arabic
screenshot fuzzy arabic

Thanks to this Arabic dictionary, you can look up words even if you don't know how to spell them in Arabic. It is powered by and the Buckwalter Morphological Analyzer.

WEBSITE http://fuzzyarabic.herokuapp.com

Note: In case you are interested in the code, check out here github-page.


Arabic – Arabic dictionaries

I often use Arabic – Arabic dictionaries. There are many options as well but most of the dictionaries are outdated. I can definitely recommend المنجد (al-Munjid). It is one of the very few comprehensive dictionaries that also list words which you most probably won't find in English – Arabic dictionaries such as medical terms, names of insects, etc.

It is hard to get and you have to watch out to get the correct edition. It is best to copy the following information and ask your book seller.

  • Title: المنجد في اللغة العربية المعاصرة
  • Edition: 2015 or newer
  • Pages: 1680
  • Publisher: دار المشرق

Other useful tools you may wanna have a look at:


Do you know any other good website? Please let me know or share it with our readers by writing a commentary – thanks a lot!

If you are more of an old-school type of person, check out this collection of the best books about Arabic grammar.

Disclaimer: Although care has been taken in preparing the information provided to you, I cannot be held responsible if you encounter copyright issues regarding the dictionaries I have presented. The use of the contents of the respective websites and apps is at your own risk.

Picture credit: Image by Orna Wachman from Pixabay

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Abdullak
Abdullak
3 years ago

Thank you very much, jazaka allah khair

Mohamed Hassan
Mohamed Hassan
4 years ago

Thanks for such a great post. I would like you to read through the features of alqamoos.org dictionary on this post and let me know what you think after comparing to some of the dictionaries listed here.

In terms of powerful search, I believe http://www.alqamoos.org is the best. The same site also hosts http://www.arabicterminology.com which has the same features in the Arabic Arabic dictionary.

http://www.alqamoos.org/blog/alqamoos-english-arabic-dictionary-search-tips-and-tricks

Time Cutter
Time Cutter
4 years ago

There’s also this offline app of Lane’s Arabic Lexicon and Hans Wehr

Mufaddal
Mufaddal
5 years ago
Graeme Andrews
Graeme Andrews
5 years ago

I like the CJKI Arabic Verb Conjugator (CAVE), described here http://www.cjk.org/cjk/arabic/cave/cave.htm

That page only mentions the iOS app, but there is an Android version which I use (it costs 7.99GBP).

Alex
Alex
5 years ago

Living Arabic is also fantastic for Egyptian and Levantine:
http://www.livingarabic.com/

Siraj
Siraj
6 years ago

Try also assiraj app, inculde like aratool plus the conjugation, conjugate all verbs without known exception.
It’s free no adds and offline, no permissions.
Keys: learn arabic, arabic conjugation, arabic dictionary
http://goo.gl/h5Shab

Zein
Zein
6 years ago

Hi there!

There is the Al Manhal app (for iOS & Android) for Arabic books; you can visit Al Manhal Store (which contains Arabic books – available in both print and electronic format), and your ebook purchases from it (or the app itself for that matter) would be accessible from the app.

Main store: http://store.almanhal.com
Links for the apps: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.it.almanhal&hl=en
https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/al-manhal/id961420298?mt=8

Tim Gregory
Tim Gregory
6 years ago

I absolutely recommend Reverso Context. The app (android & iOS) is free with a limited number of search results, but they only ask for $12 a year for more. It works with Arabic and many other languages, providing parallel corpora for your results instead of a dictionary entry. The website (http://context.reverso.net/translation/) also includes a Chrome plugin allowing you to highlight and right-click a word to search, or click a button in the toolbar to manually enter a word.

KaliYuyu
KaliYuyu
6 years ago
Reply to  Tim Gregory

That looks terrific indeed, thanks a lot !

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