7 Ways to Say You’re Welcome in Arabic

How should you respond to “Shukran”?

Well, first of all, it’s important to note that Arabs will be expecting a reply to this phrase.

This is one of those unwritten rules in Arabic-speaking countries, you must always reply to someone’s thanks.

In fact, it’s more than just a courtesy, it’s more like a reflex response. Whilst in English a simple “you’re welcome” or “no problem” will suffice, there’s a little more to it in Arabic.

When you reply, you could be saying anything from best wishes to claiming that you didn’t do anything that even warrants thanking you for.

Oftentimes, this will then lead to a never-ending loop of praise, warmth, and kindness, so get ready!

In this article, we are going to look at 7 ways to say you’re welcome in Arabic.

On the surface, it may seem a little complicated, but this article is here to help you! So, let’s get started.

Table of Contents

A Quick Look at How to Say You’re Welcome in Arabic

Arabic	English
‘Afwan عفواً	You’re welcome
Al-‘afw العفو	You’re welcome
Aala ar-raHb wa as-si’aa على الرحب و السعة	You’re welcome
Laa shokr ‘aala waajib لا شكر على واجب	You shouldn’t thank me. It’s my duty
Enta Too’mor انت تؤمر	I will do whatever you wish
Wa Jazakom Mithlaho و جزاكم مثله	I hope God brings you all the good in the world
Aala Eih? على ايه؟	For what? (It’s nothing!)

‘Afwan عفواً / Al-‘afw العفو

Throughout all Arabic-speaking countries, the phrase “’afwan عفواً” or al-‘afw العفو” is the most commonly used phrase to say “you’re welcome”.

Read 10 Ways to Say Hello in Arabic & Other Arabic Greetings

Both of these phrases translate into “pardon”, so as well as being used in response to thank you, it can also be used to excuse yourself in addition to saying a brief apology.

When used as a response to thank you, it translates as “no need”.

Aala ar-raHb wa as-si’aa على الرحب و السعة

Our next phrase, “aala ar-raHb wa as-si’aa على الرحب و السعة”, is recognized as part of MSA (Modern Standard Arabic), meaning it’s a phrase that is less commonly used but will still be understood in all Arabic dialects. T

he translation of this phrase is “You’re welcome, there’s plenty of that where it came from”.

Laa shokr ‘aala waajib لا شكر على واجب

Here we have another MSA phrase. It means “You shouldn’t thank me. It’s my duty”.

This is one of the humblest ways to say you’re welcome when speaking in Arabic.

You’re essentially brushing off their thanks as if what you have done is really nothing, not a big deal at all.

However, be warned! Remember at the beginning of this article I said you might get yourself into an endless loop of warmth and kind words?

Well, this is one of those phrases that might prompt the other person to get into this loop, continually thanking you, so if you say this one you should prepare yourself to receive a whole lot of praise!

Enta Too’mor انت تؤمر

The phrase, “enta Too’mor انت تؤمر”, is used in Egyptian Arabic to say you’re welcome.

You should know though, that it’s on the cheeky side, and in fact, you may want to be careful with whom you use it, as it can be somewhat flirtatious!

Read Arabic Alphabet: A Complete Beginner's Guide

The translation of this phrase is “I will do whatever you wish”. When speaking to a female, you should use “enty too’mory انتِ تؤمري”.

Wa Jazakom Mithlaho و جزاكم مثله

Whereas “shukran” is the most common way to say “thank you”, the phrase “jazakoma allah khayran جزاكم الله خيراً” is a phrase that you may hear used by Muslim Arabic speakers to express their thanks.

It translates into “I hope God brings you all the good in the world”.

The response to this phrase is usually “wa jazakom mithlaho و جزاكم مثله”, which means “I hope God will bring the same goodness in your life.”

Aala Eih? على ايه؟

Our last phrase, “aala Eih? على ايه؟”, translates as “For what?”.

Whilst it might sound a little interrogative to an English speaker, rest assured that it doesn’t come across this way to Arabic speakers.

It is actually another very common phrase to say you’re welcome and the idea behind it is to make the other person feel that it was no biggie, similar to saying “it was nothing!” in English.

Though this phrase is considered to be an Egyptian dialect, it’s used and is fairly popular in many places in the Arab world.

In other areas of the Middle East, you may hear variations of this phrase. For example, in dialects from Lebanon and Syria, you may hear the phrase “aala Shoo? علىشو؟”.