When you want to commend a virtue or condemn a vice in formal Arabic, you use the classical verbs of praise and blame. These elegant, fixed expressions translate roughly to "What an excellent..." and "What a terrible...".
Commending Virtues with نِعْمَ
The verb used to express strong praise is:
| what an excellent | نعمni'ma |
To form a sentence of praise, start with نِعْمَ, follow it with a definite noun representing the general category (such as "the trait" or "the companion"), and finally state the specific thing you are praising.
| What an excellent trait trustworthiness is. | نعم الخلق الأمانة.ni'ma al-khuluqu al-amânatu |
| What an excellent trait sincerity at work is. | نعم الخلق الإخلاص في العمل.ni'ma al-khuluqu al-ikhlâsu fi al-'amali |
| What an excellent companion a friend who helps you so that you do not fail is. | نعم الرفيق صديق يساعدك لئلا تفشل.ni'ma r-rafîqu sadîqun yusâ'iduka li'allâ tafshala |
Condemning Flaws with بِئْسَ
Conversely, to express strong disapproval or condemn a negative trait, use:
| to be wretched / what a terrible | بئسbi'sa |
The sentence structure is exactly the same: the verb of blame, followed by the definite category, and then the specific flaw.
| What a terrible trait betrayal is. | بئس الخلق الخيانة.bi'sa al-khuluqu al-khiyânatu |
| What a terrible trait hypocrisy among friends is. | بئس الصفة النفاق بين الأصدقاء.bi'sa s-sifatu n-nifaqu bayna l-asdiqa' |
Praise and Blame in Context
These classical verbs are frequently used to draw a sharp contrast between noble ethics and flaws within a longer sentence or observation.
| What a terrible trait hypocrisy is, and what an excellent trait loyalty is. | بئس الخلق النفاق ونعم الخلق الإخلاص.bi'sa al-khuluqu an-nifâqu wa ni'ma al-khuluqu al-ikhlâsu |
| People love trustworthiness, whereas betrayal is a terrible trait. | الناس يحبون الأمانة بينما بئس الخلق الخيانة.an-nâsu yuhibbûna al-amânata baynamâ bi'sa al-khuluqu al-khiyânatu. |
| I realized that generosity brings people together, and what a terrible trait stinginess is. | أدركت أن الكرم يجمع الناس، وبئس الخلق البخل.adraktu anna al-karama yajma'u an-nâsa, wa bi'sa al-khuluqu al-bukhlu. |