See also: آما, اما, and إما

Arabic

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Etymology 1

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Univerbation of أَن (ʔan, that) +‎ مَا (, relative), the original thought being “that this matter be touched”, “be it that”, or just a dialectal variant of disjunctive إِمَّا (ʔimmā, be it that) as أَمَّا (ʔammā) can well be used for positing two alternatives.

Pronunciation

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Conjunction

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أَمَّا (ʔammā)

  1. as for; followed by a noun or pronoun, itself followed by the particle فَـ (fa-)
    • 609–632 CE, Qur'an, 92:4-10:
      إِنَّ سَعْيَكُمْ لَشَتَّى
      فَأَمَّا مَنْ أَعْطَى وَٱتَّقَى
      وَصَدَّقَ بِٱلْحُسْنَى
      فَسَنُيَسِّرُهُ لِلْيُسْرَى
      وَأَمَّا مَن بَخِلَ وَٱسْتَغْنَى
      وَكَذَّبَ بِٱلْحُسْنَى
      فَسَنُيَسِّرُهُ لِلْعُسْرَى
      ʔinna saʕyakum lašattā
      fa-ʔammā man ʔaʕṭā wa-ttaqā
      wa-ṣaddaqa bi-l-ḥusnā
      fa-sanuyassiruhu li-l-yusrā
      wa-ʔammā man baḵila wa-staḡnā
      wa-kaḏḏaba bi-l-ḥusnā
      fa-sanuyassiruhu li-l-ʕusrā
      Indeed, your efforts are diverse.
      As for he who gives and fears Allah
      And believes in the best [reward],
      We will ease him toward ease.
      But as for he who withholds and considers himself free of need
      And denies the best [reward],
      We will ease him toward difficulty.
    • (Can we date this quote?), (Please provide the book title or journal name):
      وَلَمْ أَرَ كَٱلمَعْرُوفِ؛ أَمَّا مَذَاقُهُ / فَحُلْوٌ، وَأَمَّا وَجْهُهُ فَجَمِيلُ
      wa-lam ʔara ka-l-maʕrūfi; ʔammā maḏāquhu / fa-ḥulwun, wa-ʔammā wajhuhu fa-jamīlu
      (please add an English translation of this quotation)
Usage notes
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  • It doesn't affect the case of the noun that follows:
  • أَمَّا ٱلرَّجُلُ فَهُوَ فَقِيرٌ.ʔammā r-rajulu fahuwa faqīrun.As for the man, he is poor.
  • أَمَّا ٱلرَّجُلَ ٱلْفَقِيرَ فَلَا تَقْهَرْ!ʔammā r-rajula l-faqīra falā taqhar!As for the poor man, don't oppress him!
Derived terms
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Descendants
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Etymology 2

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From أَ (ʔa) +‎ مَا ().

Pronunciation

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Particle

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أَمَا (ʔamā)

  1. verily, truly, indeed, oh yes!
    Synonym: أَلَا (ʔalā)

Moroccan Arabic

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Etymology

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From Arabic أَمَّا (ʔammā).

Pronunciation

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  • IPA(key): /ʔam.ma/
  • Audio:(file)

Conjunction

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أما (ʔamma)

  1. as for
  2. but

South Levantine Arabic

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Etymology

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From Arabic أَمَّا (ʔammā).

Pronunciation

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Conjunction

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أما (ʔamma)

  1. whereas, as for, but
    Synonym: بسّ (bass)
    ألف شيكل ممكن اعطيكأمّا ألفين، هلا والله ما بقدر.
    ʔalf šēkel mumken aʕṭīk, ʔamma ʔalfēn halla walla mā baʔdar.
    I can give you a thousand shekels — as for two thousand, I really can't right now.
    كل هادا، معليشأمّا يكذب علي كمان؟
    kull hāda, maʕlēš — ʔamma yikzeb ʕalay kamān?
    All of this is fine — but that he should lie to me too?
  2. used to indicate surprise or other strong feelings in an exclamation
    Synonym: ما (ma)
    دخلنا جولأمّا شو جول!
    daḵalna gōl — ʔamma šū gōl!
    We scored a goal — what a goal!

Usage notes

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  • Note that ما (ma) can only be used in the third sense before an elative adjective, whereas أمّا (ʔamma) is more flexible. Although أمّا (ʔamma) could be used before an elative adjective, it is most commonly seen before a nominal phrase introduced by شو (šū).