How To Say Please In Arabic (Simple Guide)

Want to be polite when asking for something in Arabic? Start with “please”. There are a few common ways to say this, and they’re pretty easy to learn.

The most common and widely understood way to say “please” in Arabic is:

• To a man: min faḍlaka (مِن فَضْلكَ) (sounds like: min fud-licka)
• To a woman: min faḍliki (مِن فَضْلِكِ) (sounds like: min fud-licki)

Think of min faḍlaka/iki as your go-to “please”.

It literally means something like “from your surplus/excess” or “out of your kindness”.

You can use this in almost any situation, whether you’re speaking formally (Modern Standard Arabic - MSA) or casually in most Arabic dialects (like Egyptian, Levantine, Gulf).

People everywhere will understand you.

Example:

قَلَم، مِن فَضْلك؟

qalam, min faḍlaka?

A pen, please? (to a man)

ماء، مِن فَضْلِكِ؟

mā', min faḍliki?

Water, please? (to a woman)

Variation: “If you please…”

Another really useful phrase for “please” is:

law samaḥt / law samaḥti (لَوْ سَمَحْت)

• To a boy/man: law samaḥt (sounds like: low sa-macht)
• To a girl/woman: law samaḥti (sounds like: low sa-mach-tee)

This one means “if you permit” or “if you please”.

It’s also very common in both MSA and many dialects. It feels very natural to use when making a request.

Examples:

لَوْ سَمَحْت، أَيْنَ الحَمَّام؟

law samaḥt, ayna al-ḥammām?

Excuse me / Please, where is the bathroom? (to a man)

لَوْ سَمَحْتِ، سَاعِدِينِي

law samaḥti, sāʿidīni.

Please, help me. (to a woman)

Another alternative

While min faḍlaka/iki and law samaḥt/ti are widely understood, sometimes you’ll hear slightly different ways in specific regions.

In the Levant (Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, Palestine) and Egypt, it’s common to hear:

baʿd iḏnak / baʿd iḏnik (بَعْد إِذْنَك / إِذْنِك)

This literally means “after your permission”, which is used like “excuse me” or “please” when asking for something or trying to get someone’s attention.

To clarify:

Your main, go-to word for “please” is min faḍlaka (to a man) or min faḍliki (to a woman).

Another great option is law samaḥt (to a man) or law samaḥti (to a woman).

baʿd iḏnak (to a man) / baʿd iḏnik (to a woman) is also common in Egyptian and Levantine, especially in places where you’re trying to get someone’s attention.

What comes after “please”?

“Thank you” -> see this guide to learn how to say it.

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