Learn Quranic Arabic > Islamic Phrases in Arabic
Islamic phrases in Arabic are a set of fixed expressions used every day across the Arab world: as-salamu ʿalaykum on meeting, bismillah before starting anything, al-hamdu lillah on finishing it, and in shaʾ Allah for anything still to come. Most of them are paired, which means each one has a reply you are expected to give.
The table below gives 29 phrases with full vowel marks, because these are usually learned by ear and usually learned wrong. Transliteration follows the same scheme as our everyday Arabic phrasebook: ʿ is the letter ع, a squeeze from the throat, and ʾ is a glottal stop, the catch in uh-oh. Forms addressed to a person are masculine.
| Phrase | Arabic | Literal meaning | When it is said | The expected reply |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| as-salamu ʿalaykum | السَّلَامُ عَلَيْكُمْ | peace be upon you | Meeting anyone, and on entering a house or room | wa ʿalaykum as-salam وَعَلَيْكُمُ السَّلَامُ |
| as-salamu ʿalaykum wa rahmatu Allahi wa barakatuh | السَّلَامُ عَلَيْكُمْ وَرَحْمَةُ اللَّهِ وَبَرَكَاتُهُ | peace be upon you, and God's mercy and His blessings | The longer greeting, normal between friends and in religious settings | The same, returned in full |
| wa ʿalaykum as-salam | وَعَلَيْكُمُ السَّلَامُ | and upon you be peace | Answering a greeting, which is an obligation | None. This is itself the reply |
| bismillah | بِسْمِ اللَّهِ | in the name of God | Before eating, before driving off, before any task | None |
| bismillahi ar-rahmani ar-rahim | بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمَٰنِ الرَّحِيمِ | in the name of God, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful | Opening a recitation, a speech or a document | None |
| aʿudhu billahi min ash-shaytan ar-rajim | أَعُوذُ بِاللَّهِ مِنَ الشَّيْطَانِ الرَّجِيمِ | I seek refuge in God from Satan the accursed | Before reciting the Quran, and to hold down anger | None |
| in shaʾ Allah | إِنْ شَاءَ اللَّهُ | if God wills | Any sentence about the future, from a bus time to a wedding | None |
| al-hamdu lillah | الْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ | praise be to God | Answering how are you, finishing a meal, good news, and after sneezing | None, except after a sneeze, which takes yarhamuka Allah |
| ma shaʾ Allah | مَا شَاءَ اللَّهُ | what God has willed | On seeing something impressive: a child, a new house, good work. It guards against the evil eye | None |
| subhan Allah | سُبْحَانَ اللَّهِ | glory be to God | Astonishment or shock, and anything that stops you in your tracks | None |
| Allahu akbar | اللَّهُ أَكْبَرُ | God is greater | The call to prayer, every stage of prayer, and moments of awe or relief | None |
| la ilaha illa Allah | لَا إِلَٰهَ إِلَّا اللَّهُ | there is no god but God | The creed. Said in remembrance, whispered to a newborn, and at a deathbed | None |
| la hawla wa la quwwata illa billah | لَا حَوْلَ وَلَا قُوَّةَ إِلَّا بِاللَّهِ | there is no power nor strength except by God | Hardship, frustration, anything outside your control | None |
| astaghfiru Allah | أَسْتَغْفِرُ اللَّهَ | I ask God for forgiveness | After a mistake or a word you regret, and to wave off praise | None |
| jazak Allahu khayran | جَزَاكَ اللَّهُ خَيْرًا | may God reward you with good | Thanking someone. The religious-register alternative to shukran | wa iyyak وَإِيَّاكَ |
| wa iyyak | وَإِيَّاكَ | and to you | Answering jazak Allahu khayran | None. The fuller form is wa antum fa-jazakum Allahu khayran |
| barak Allahu fik | بَارَكَ اللَّهُ فِيكَ | may God bless you | Thanks, praise, or appreciation for a favour | wa fik barakah وَفِيكَ بَرَكَةٌ |
| subhanahu wa taʿala | سُبْحَانَهُ وَتَعَالَى | glorified and exalted is He | Straight after saying or writing the word Allah | None |
| salla Allahu ʿalayhi wa sallam | صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ | may God bless him and grant him peace | After naming the Prophet Muhammad | None |
| ʿalayhi as-salam | عَلَيْهِ السَّلَامُ | peace be upon him | After naming any other prophet, or an angel | None |
| radiya Allahu ʿanhu | رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ | may God be pleased with him | After naming a Companion of the Prophet | None |
| rahimahu Allah | رَحِمَهُ اللَّهُ | may God have mercy on him | After naming someone who has died | None |
| inna lillahi wa inna ilayhi rajiʿun | إِنَّا لِلَّهِ وَإِنَّا إِلَيْهِ رَاجِعُونَ | indeed we belong to God, and to Him we return | On hearing of a death, or any serious misfortune | None |
| yarhamuka Allah | يَرْحَمُكَ اللَّهُ | may God have mercy on you | To someone who has sneezed and said al-hamdu lillah | yahdikumu Allahu wa yuslihu balakum يَهْدِيكُمُ اللَّهُ وَيُصْلِحُ بَالَكُمْ |
| yahdikumu Allahu wa yuslihu balakum | يَهْدِيكُمُ اللَّهُ وَيُصْلِحُ بَالَكُمْ | may God guide you and set your affairs right | The sneezer's answer to yarhamuka Allah | None. The exchange closes here |
| amin | آمِينَ | answer it, amen | After any supplication, and after al-Fatiha in prayer | None |
| ʿid mubarak | عِيدٌ مُبَارَكٌ | blessed feast | On the two Eids | The same greeting returned, or taqabbal Allahu minna wa minkum |
| taqabbal Allahu minna wa minkum | تَقَبَّلَ اللَّهُ مِنَّا وَمِنْكُمْ | may God accept from us and from you | Eid, and at the end of Ramadan | The same phrase returned |
| kull ʿam wa antum bi-khayr | كُلُّ عَامٍ وَأَنْتُمْ بِخَيْرٍ | may every year find you well | Eid, the start of Ramadan, a birthday, a new year | The same phrase returned |
Why the reply column matters
Arabic religious speech is largely paired: a phrase is said to you, and a specific phrase is expected back. Say jazak Allahu khayran to an Arabic speaker and you will hear wa iyyak. Say barak Allahu fik and you will hear wa fik barakah. In September 2026 we went through the pages Google ranks for this query. Most give the phrase and the meaning and stop, so you learn to open an exchange you cannot finish.
Sneezing is the clearest case, because it runs three steps. The sneezer says al-hamdu lillah. Anyone who hears it answers yarhamuka Allah. The sneezer closes with yahdikumu Allahu wa yuslihu balakum. Stop at step two and the exchange sits open.
Where a phrase has no fixed answer, the table says so. Bismillah, subhan Allah and astaghfiru Allah are said out loud to oneself, and nobody is waiting on a response.
Religious register, and where the everyday phrasebook takes over
These phrases are religious in origin and general in use. In any Arabic-speaking country you will hear bismillah from a taxi driver starting the engine, al-hamdu lillah as the answer to how are you, and in shaʾ Allah attached to every plan, from Muslims and Arab Christians alike. Learners need them because they are unavoidable, whatever they believe.
This page covers that register. Our common Arabic phrases in three dialects covers the everyday one: hello, how much is this, where is the bathroom, and how each changes between Modern Standard, Levantine and Egyptian. The split is clean: the phrases here barely move by dialect. As-salamu ʿalaykum is the same in Casablanca and Baghdad. Hello is not.
Four common mistakes with Islamic phrases in Arabic
The most common mistake is treating the run-together English spellings as the words. Inshallah is three Arabic words, in shaʾ Allah. Mashallah is ma shaʾ Allah. Alhamdulillah is al-hamdu lillah. Read as blocks they take the stress in the wrong place, and no dictionary will find them.
Second, watch who you are speaking to. Jazak Allahu khayran to a man is jazaki Allahu khayran to a woman, barak Allahu fik becomes fiki, and wa iyyak becomes wa iyyaki. The table gives the masculine throughout.
Third, ma shaʾ Allah and in shaʾ Allah split by tense. The first is for what has already happened, so it goes with a new baby or a finished house. The second is for what has not happened yet, so it goes with plans. Praising a finished thing with in shaʾ Allah sounds like you doubt it exists.
Last, almost none of this is written with vowel marks in real life. They are here for the few weeks you need them, after which the Arabic alphabet chart is the faster way to stop leaning on transliteration.
Where to go next
Nearly every word above is Quranic vocabulary, so this phrase list doubles as a first reading list. Our guide to learning Quranic Arabic sets out the free and paid routes and says which we would use. The most common words in the Quran is the frequency-ranked list to learn next, and the 99 names of Allah with their meanings takes apart the root families behind hamd, rahma, salam and barakah.
Frequently asked questions
What is the reply to as-salamu alaykum?
Wa alaykum as-salam, and upon you be peace. The greeting and its answer are fixed, and returning a greeting is treated as an obligation rather than a courtesy, so silence reads as a snub. If the person greets you with the longer form, as-salamu alaykum wa rahmatu Allahi wa barakatuh, return it in full.
Can a non-Muslim say Islamic phrases in Arabic?
Yes, and in the Arab world you will need to. These phrases carry the whole register of everyday politeness, so bismillah before a meal, al-hamdu lillah as the answer to how are you, and in shaa Allah attached to any plan are said by Muslims and Arab Christians alike. Returning as-salamu alaykum with wa alaykum as-salam is normal for anyone.
What is the difference between ma shaa Allah and in shaa Allah?
Tense. Ma shaa Allah means what God has willed and is said about something that has already happened, so you say it on seeing a new baby, a finished house or a good piece of work. In shaa Allah means if God wills and is said about something that has not happened yet, so it attaches to plans, appointments and promises.
What do Arabic speakers say when someone sneezes?
It is a three-part exchange. The person who sneezes says al-hamdu lillah, praise be to God. Anyone who hears it answers yarhamuka Allah, may God have mercy on you. The sneezer then closes the exchange with yahdikumu Allahu wa yuslihu balakum, may God guide you and set your affairs right. Skipping the third step leaves it unfinished.
What is the reply to jazak Allahu khayran?
Wa iyyak, meaning and to you. Jazak Allahu khayran means may God reward you with good and is the religious-register alternative to shukran for thank you. The fuller reply is wa antum fa-jazakum Allahu khayran. Speaking to a woman, the thanks is jazaki Allahu khayran and the reply is wa iyyaki.