Kalima - كلمة

Language is a living entity: it comes alive when we use it, and it flourishes when we employ it.

On library shelves await great dictionaries—Lisan al-Arab, Al-Sahah, and Muqayis al-Lughah—and collections of poetry that embody the spirit of civilization. Complete treasures, keys to understanding who we are. And the time has come to unlock them.

Kalima brings this heritage closer and places it in your hands: the words of the Arabs as written by their scholars, and their poetry as recited by their poets—in a format befitting the age while preserving the original.

The word and the poem are the two wings of language, and in Kalima, they meet.

— Meanings from the most important dictionaries — Every word carries its story: its meaning as recorded by Ibn Manzur and Ibn Faris centuries ago. The complete texts from Muqayis al-Lughah, Lisan al-Arab, Al-Sahah, Al-Qamus al-Muhit, and others—read what they wrote in their own words, not in abridged versions.

— Root Explorer — Arabic is an inflectional language: every word belongs to a root, and every root is a tree from which dozens of words branch out. Click on any root and watch its words dance around it like a constellation of stars — and discover the hidden connections between words you thought were separate.

— Word Journey — Trace the origin of a word through the Semitic languages ​​— from Akkadian to Syriac to Hebrew — until it reached you today. What you are saying now is an echo of voices thousands of years old, and “Kalima” makes this continuity visible on a map.

— Poetry Collection — Poetry is the Arabs’ record: in it they preserved their wisdom, history, and soul. A verse from the finest poetry appears before you, grammatically correct as the Arabs recited it. Swipe to move from rhyme to rhyme, from Al-Mutanabbi to Al-Farazdaq to Shawqi. If a verse catches your eye, click to read the entire poem. Search for a line that has stuck in your memory, discover a new poet, or download collections from the eras you desire.

— Search by Word and Root —
Search by word to find its definition, or by root to explore its entire linguistic family — and you'll instantly find the meaning and derivatives.

— Your Own Dictionary —
Words that catch your eye stay with you, strung together in a necklace of roots: each pearl is a word you've chosen, and each thread is a root that connects its sisters. A collection you return to because it delights you, not because it demands anything of you.

— The Writing Board —
Language isn't complete with reading alone. Write in Arabic, and the writing board will accompany you with synonyms and rhymes — and you'll discover that the word you're looking for was closer than you thought.

— English Translation —

For those who move between two languages, or want to share the beauty of Arabic with a friend who doesn't read it: an optional English translation for each word.

— A Language Game: Beginning and End —
From the dictionary to the debate. Two letters are before you—a beginning and an end—so come up with a word that starts with the first and ends with the second before time runs out. Three modes, following the tradition of the ancients: thoughtful, spontaneous, and a contest between two players who take turns using the device, just as poets took turns reciting rhymes. Every word allowed in the game is documented in Arabic dictionaries—a game with the language, not against it.

— Share what deserves to be seen—turn the word or verse into an elegant card to give to someone you love. And on your home screen, a widget refreshes with a word and a verse—a gentle reminder that your language is closer than you think.

— At your fingertips —
• Over 45,000 lexical entries from six classical and modern dictionaries
• Thousands of verses of poetry with their original, documented diacritics
• Etymological data linking Arabic to seven Semitic languages
• Works entirely offline — ready from the start
• Completely free, ad-free

Every word is rediscovered, every verse is revived, a thread woven into the fabric of identity.

“Kalima” is a path back — for those who carry Arabic in their hearts and truly want to know it.

A language lives when it is shared.