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Living completely off the grid comes with harsh realities. When you want to emphasize a difficult situation by adding an even more extreme example, you can use the phrase ناهيك عن.

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### Emphasizing with ناهيك عن

The phrase ناهيك عن translates to "not to mention," "let alone," or "to say nothing of." You use it to bridge two ideas, where the second point proves that the situation is even more intense or demanding than the first point suggests.

It frequently follows verbs of deprivation (like افتقر إلى, "to lack") or descriptions of extreme hardship.

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### What follows ناهيك عن

Because the expression ends with the preposition عن, it must be followed directly by a noun phrase or a verbal noun (masdar).

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You can also use it to contrast complex actions by following it with a verbal noun, such as شراء (buying) in the following example:

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Not to mention (ناهيك عن)

adjective

adverb

conjunction

determiner

interjection

interrogative

noun

numeral

particle

prefix

preposition

pronoun

sentence

verb

The definite article and locatives (الـ)

Basic noun gender (ة)

Sun and moon letters

Singular subject pronouns (أنا، أنت، هو، هي)

Indefinite nouns and nominal sentences (ـٌ)

Demonstrative pronouns for 'this' (هذا / هذه)

Separate prepositions (في، من، إلى، على)

Attributive adjectives

Predicative adjectives

Yes/No questions (هل، أ)

Basic questions (من، ما، أين)

Singular possessive pronouns (ـي، ـك، ـه، ـها)

Plural subject pronouns (نحن، أنتم، هم)

Plural possessive pronouns (ـنا، ـكم، ـهم)

Noun possession

Attached prepositions (بـ، لـ، كـ)

Pronouns with prepositions

Having and possessing (عند، لـ، مع)

Regular plural nouns (ـون، ـين، ـات)

Broken plurals

Dual nouns (ـان / ـين)

Plural and distant demonstratives (هؤلاء، ذلك، تلك)

Non-human plural agreement

Present tense singular verbs

Verbal sentences (VSO)

Present tense plural verbs

Topicalized sentences (SVO)

The indefinite accusative case (ـاً)

Verb object pronouns (-ني، -ك، -ه)

Present tense negation (لا)

Question words with verbs (متى، كيف...)

Adverbs of time and place

The future tense (سـ / سوف)

Intentions and desires (أن)

Negating states and possession (ليس)

Past tense singular suffixes

Past tense plural suffixes

Negating past events (ما)

Singular commands

Numbers 1 to 10

Number agreement for 1 and 2 (واحد، اثنان)

Asking how many (كم)

Numbers 3 to 10 (ثلاثة إلى عشرة)

Ordinal numbers 1 to 10 (الأول، الثاني)

Basic conjunctions (فـ، أو، لكن)

Ordering at a café (واحد، اثنان)

Food and drink with conjunctions (و، ف، أو، لكن)

There is and there are (هناك / ليس هناك)

Direct address (يا)

Giving reasons (لأنّ)

Relative pronouns (الذي / التي)

Quantifiers (كل / بعض)

The past tense of 'to be' (كان)

Past possession

Numbers 11 to 19 and tens to 80

Telling time (الساعة)

This book vs this is a book (هذا الكتاب، هذا كتاب)

Greetings (مرحبا، السلام عليكم)

How are you? and goodbye (كيف حالك، مع السلامة)

Nationalities (مصري، مصرية)

Roots and patterns (كتب، كتاب، مكتب)

Politeness (من فضلك، آسف)

Complex possession chains

Colors and traits (أفعل / فعلاء)

Plural colors and traits (فُعْل)

Comparative adjectives (أفعل من)

Superlative adjectives (أفعل)

Adverbs of manner (ـاً)

The nominative case (ـُ)

The genitive case (ـِ)

The accusative case (ـَ)

Dual noun cases (ـان / ـين)

Masculine plurals and 'the best of' (أفضل النجارين)

Emphasizing sentences (إنّ)

Connecting clauses (أنّ)

Reporting speech (قال إنّ)

Expressing contrast (لكنّ)

Comparison and probability (كأنّ, لعلّ)

Distant plural pointing (أولئك)

Plural relative pronouns (الذين, اللواتي)

Past habits (كان + present)

Ongoing actions (ما زال)

Masculine plurals online (مبرمجون، مؤثرون)

Perfective past (قد)

Probability (قد)

The subjunctive mood (أن)

Question	Answer
isolation	عزلة'uzlah
harsh	قاسيqâsî
remote	نائيnâ'i
Ahmad lives in harsh isolation in this remote place.	يعيش أحمد في عزلة قاسية في هذا المكان النائي.ya'îshu ahmadu fî 'uzlatin qâsiyatin fî hâdhâ al-makâni an-nâ'î
to lack	افتقر إلىiftaqara ilâ
heating	تدفئةtadfi'a
not to mention / let alone	ناهيك عنnâhîka 'an
Her room lacks heating, not to mention electricity.	تفتقر غرفتها إلى التدفئة، ناهيك عن الكهرباء.taftaqiru ghurfatuhâ ilâ at-tadfi'ati, nâhîka 'ani al-kahrabâ'i
primitive	بدائيbidâ'iyy
hardship	عناء'anâ'
There is constant hardship in primitive life, let alone the danger.	في الحياة البدائية عناء دائم، ناهيك عن الخطر.fee al-hayâti al-bidâ'iyyati anâ'un dâ'imun, nâheeka ani al-khatar.
luxury (non-essential item)	كماليةkamâliyya
In this remote forest we lack luxuries, let alone basic food.	في هذه الغابة النائية نفتقر إلى الكماليات، ناهيك عن الطعام الأساسي.fi hâdhihi al-ghâbati an-nâ'iyati naftaqiru ilâ al-kamâliyyâti, nâhika ani at-taâmi al-asâsiyyi.
hunger	جوعjû'
The harsh cold is always a problem for Fatima, not to mention the hunger.	البرد القاسي مشكلة دائما بالنسبة لفاطمة، ناهيك عن الجوع.al-bardu al-qâsî mushkilatun dâ'iman bi-n-nisbati li-fâtimata, nâhîka 'ani al-jû'i.
We do not have heating except a primitive fire.	ليس لدينا تدفئة سوى نار بدائية.laysa ladaynâ tadfi'atun siwâ nârin bidâ'iyyatin
Both options lead to great hardship without any luxuries.	كلا الخيارين يؤدي إلى عناء كبير بدون أي كماليات.kilâ al-khiyârayni yu'addî ilâ 'anâ'in kabîrin bidûni ayyi kamâliyyâtin
We lack water because the well is dry, not to mention the hunger.	نفتقر إلى الماء لأن البئر جافة، ناهيك عن الجوع.naftaqiru ilâ al-mâ'i li'anna al-bi'ra jâffatun, nâhîka 'ani al-jû'i.
No one lives in this remote place except the wild animals.	لا يسكن في هذا المكان النائي سوى الحيوانات البرية.lâ yaskunu fî hâdhâ al-makâni an-nâ'î siwâ al-hayawânâti al-barriyyati
They suffered from the severe hunger, not to mention the lack of heating.	عانين من الجوع القاسي، ناهيك عن نقص التدفئة.ânayna mina al-juui al-qâsi, nâhika an naqsi at-tadfi'ati.
There is hardship in preparing food in a primitive way, let alone buying luxuries.	في تجهيز الطعام بطريقة بدائية عناء، ناهيك عن شراء الكماليات.fi tajhîzi at-ta'âmi bitarîqatin bidâ'iyyatin 'anâ'un, nâhîka 'an shirâ'i al-kamâliyyâti.
Both hands freeze from the bitter frost, not to mention the hunger.	تتجمد كلتا اليدين من الصقيع القارس، ناهيك عن الجوع.tatajammadu kiltâ al-yadayni mina as-saqî'i al-qârisi, nâhîka 'ani al-jû'i.
We lack heating in this remote place, not to mention the isolation.	نفتقر إلى التدفئة في هذا المكان النائي، ناهيك عن العزلة.naftaqiru ilâ at-tadfi'ati fî hâdhâ al-makâni an-nâ'î, nâhîka 'ani al-'uzlati.