arab

arab — noun

1. someone whose family roots lie in the Arabic-speaking lands stretching from sout

1.nounB2
Definition

someone whose family roots lie in the Arabic-speaking lands stretching from southwest Asia across northern Africa, and who usually grows up speaking Arabic at home.

Example

Many Arabs in Mariam's neighbourhood gather at the mosque on Fridays.

plural noun: 'Arabs' as a group

Yousef is an Arab from Jordan who teaches Arabic at our local college.

singular: 'an Arab from [country]'

Common collocations
  • young Arab
  • Arabs and Jews
  • Arab from [country]

Usage Note

Always written with a capital A. Refers to ethnic and cultural identity, not religion — many Arabs are Muslim but many are Christian, Jewish, or follow other faiths.

Common Mistakes

Yousef is arab.
Yousef is an Arab.
capitalise the noun and use the article 'an'.
All Arabs speak Muslim.
Most Arabs speak Arabic.
Arabic is the language; Muslim is a follower of Islam.

2. a kind of riding horse first bred long ago on the Arabian Peninsula, known for i

2.nounC1
Definition

a kind of riding horse first bred long ago on the Arabian Peninsula, known for its raised tail, slim legs, and the special curve of its head.

Example

The princess rode a white Arab through the desert at dawn.

Mr. Patel keeps two Arabs on his ranch and races them every spring.

plural form: 'Arabs' for the breed

Common collocations
  • pure-bred Arab
  • young Arab
  • ride an Arab
Synonyms
  • Arabian

    Often the fuller form 'Arabian horse'; more common in formal breeding contexts.

Usage Note

Capitalised when standing alone, but often expanded to 'Arabian horse' in formal or technical writing about horse breeds.

Common Mistakes

I saw an arab at the stables.
I saw an Arab at the stables.
keep the capital A even for the horse breed.

arab — adjective

Word family

  • Arabic
    nounB1
  • Arabic
    adjectiveB1
  • Arabian
    adjectiveB2
  • Arabist
    nounC2

Synonym discussion

Sense: adjective/1

These four words are often confused. 'Arab' describes people, nations, and shared culture — say 'Arab leaders' or 'the Arab world'. 'Arabic' is mainly the language and its writing system — 'She studies Arabic' or 'Arabic numerals'. 'Arabian' points to the geography of the Arabian Peninsula and is also used for the famous horse breed and for the country adjective in 'Saudi Arabian'. 'Middle Eastern' is the widest term and covers Iran, Israel, and Turkey too — places that are not Arab. So you can attend an Arab wedding, hear Arabic spoken, ride an Arabian horse, and eat at a Middle Eastern restaurant — and all four phrases mean different things.

Arab ↗Arabic ↗ArabianMiddle Eastern

Common collocations

Nouns

Phrases

  • the Arab world
  • Arab League
  • Arab Spring
  • Arab country

Prepositions

Etymology

ArabicGreekLatinOld FrenchEnglish

English borrowed 'Arab' through Old French in the late 1300s from Latin Arabs, which itself came from Greek Araps, meaning a person from Arabia. The Greek word traces back to Arabic 'arab, an old self-name of the desert peoples of the peninsula. The horse-breed sense appeared much later, in the 1600s, as European riders came to admire the swift mounts brought west from Arabia.