موضوع

Arabic

Root
و ض ع (w-ḍ-ʕ)

Etymology

Derived from the passive participle of وَضَعَ (waḍaʕa, “to put, lay”). The sense “topic, subject” at first in logical discourse as a loan translation of Ancient Greek ὑποκείμενον (hupokeímenon, literally “that which is laid down, underlying, suggested”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /maw.dˤuːʕ/

• Audio

  (file)

Noun

مَوْضُوع • (mawḍūʕ) m (plural مَوَاضِيع (mawāḍīʕ))

1. topic, subject, theme

Declension

Declension of noun مَوْضُوع (mawḍūʕ)

Singular	basic singular triptote
	Indefinite	Definite	Construct
Informal	مَوْضُوع mawḍūʕ	الْمَوْضُوع al-mawḍūʕ	مَوْضُوع mawḍūʕ
Nominative	مَوْضُوعٌ mawḍūʕun	الْمَوْضُوعُ al-mawḍūʕu	مَوْضُوعُ mawḍūʕu
Accusative	مَوْضُوعًا mawḍūʕan	الْمَوْضُوعَ al-mawḍūʕa	مَوْضُوعَ mawḍūʕa
Genitive	مَوْضُوعٍ mawḍūʕin	الْمَوْضُوعِ al-mawḍūʕi	مَوْضُوعِ mawḍūʕi
Dual	Indefinite	Definite	Construct
Informal	مَوْضُوعَيْن mawḍūʕayn	الْمَوْضُوعَيْن al-mawḍūʕayn	مَوْضُوعَيْ mawḍūʕay
Nominative	مَوْضُوعَانِ mawḍūʕāni	الْمَوْضُوعَانِ al-mawḍūʕāni	مَوْضُوعَا mawḍūʕā
Accusative	مَوْضُوعَيْنِ mawḍūʕayni	الْمَوْضُوعَيْنِ al-mawḍūʕayni	مَوْضُوعَيْ mawḍūʕay
Genitive	مَوْضُوعَيْنِ mawḍūʕayni	الْمَوْضُوعَيْنِ al-mawḍūʕayni	مَوْضُوعَيْ mawḍūʕay
Plural	basic broken plural diptote
	Indefinite	Definite	Construct
Informal	مَوَاضِيع mawāḍīʕ	الْمَوَاضِيع al-mawāḍīʕ	مَوَاضِيع mawāḍīʕ
Nominative	مَوَاضِيعُ mawāḍīʕu	الْمَوَاضِيعُ al-mawāḍīʕu	مَوَاضِيعُ mawāḍīʕu
Accusative	مَوَاضِيعَ mawāḍīʕa	الْمَوَاضِيعَ al-mawāḍīʕa	مَوَاضِيعَ mawāḍīʕa
Genitive	مَوَاضِيعَ mawāḍīʕa	الْمَوَاضِيعِ al-mawāḍīʕi	مَوَاضِيعِ mawāḍīʕi

Descendants

• → Azerbaijani: mövzu
• → Northern Kurdish: mewzû
• → Ottoman Turkish: موضوع (mevzu)
  • Turkish: mevzu
• → Pashto: موضوع (mawzo')
• → Persian: موضوع (mowzu')
• → Swahili: maudhui
• → Turkish: konu (calque)
• → Turkmen: mowzuk
• → Urdu: مَوضُوع (mauzu')
• → Uyghur: ماۋزۇ (mawzu)
• → Uzbek: mavzu

Adjective

مَوْضُوع • (mawḍūʕ) (feminine مَوْضُوعَة (mawḍūʕa), masculine plural مَوْضُوعُونَ (mawḍūʕūna), feminine plural مَوْضُوعَات (mawḍūʕāt))

1. passive participle of وَضَع (waḍaʕ)

   الْقَهْوَةُ مَوْضُوعَةٌ عَلىٰ الطَاوِلَة

   al-qahwatu mawḍūʕatun ʕalā ṭ-ṭāwila

   the coffee is put on the table

2. fabricated

   حَدِيث مَوْضُوع ― ḥadīṯ mawḍūʕ ― fabricated hadith

Declension

Declension of adjective مَوْضُوع (mawḍūʕ)

Singular	Masculine		Feminine
	basic singular triptote		singular triptote in ـَة (-a)
	Indefinite	Definite	Indefinite	Definite
Informal	مَوْضُوع mawḍūʕ	الْمَوْضُوع al-mawḍūʕ	مَوْضُوعَة mawḍūʕa	الْمَوْضُوعَة al-mawḍūʕa
Nominative	مَوْضُوعٌ mawḍūʕun	الْمَوْضُوعُ al-mawḍūʕu	مَوْضُوعَةٌ mawḍūʕatun	الْمَوْضُوعَةُ al-mawḍūʕatu
Accusative	مَوْضُوعًا mawḍūʕan	الْمَوْضُوعَ al-mawḍūʕa	مَوْضُوعَةً mawḍūʕatan	الْمَوْضُوعَةَ al-mawḍūʕata
Genitive	مَوْضُوعٍ mawḍūʕin	الْمَوْضُوعِ al-mawḍūʕi	مَوْضُوعَةٍ mawḍūʕatin	الْمَوْضُوعَةِ al-mawḍūʕati
Dual	Masculine		Feminine
	Indefinite	Definite	Indefinite	Definite
Informal	مَوْضُوعَيْن mawḍūʕayn	الْمَوْضُوعَيْن al-mawḍūʕayn	مَوْضُوعَتَيْن mawḍūʕatayn	الْمَوْضُوعَتَيْن al-mawḍūʕatayn
Nominative	مَوْضُوعَانِ mawḍūʕāni	الْمَوْضُوعَانِ al-mawḍūʕāni	مَوْضُوعَتَانِ mawḍūʕatāni	الْمَوْضُوعَتَانِ al-mawḍūʕatāni
Accusative	مَوْضُوعَيْنِ mawḍūʕayni	الْمَوْضُوعَيْنِ al-mawḍūʕayni	مَوْضُوعَتَيْنِ mawḍūʕatayni	الْمَوْضُوعَتَيْنِ al-mawḍūʕatayni
Genitive	مَوْضُوعَيْنِ mawḍūʕayni	الْمَوْضُوعَيْنِ al-mawḍūʕayni	مَوْضُوعَتَيْنِ mawḍūʕatayni	الْمَوْضُوعَتَيْنِ al-mawḍūʕatayni
Plural	Masculine		Feminine
	sound masculine plural		sound feminine plural
	Indefinite	Definite	Indefinite	Definite
Informal	مَوْضُوعِين mawḍūʕīn	الْمَوْضُوعِين al-mawḍūʕīn	مَوْضُوعَات mawḍūʕāt	الْمَوْضُوعَات al-mawḍūʕāt
Nominative	مَوْضُوعُونَ mawḍūʕūna	الْمَوْضُوعُونَ al-mawḍūʕūna	مَوْضُوعَاتٌ mawḍūʕātun	الْمَوْضُوعَاتُ al-mawḍūʕātu
Accusative	مَوْضُوعِينَ mawḍūʕīna	الْمَوْضُوعِينَ al-mawḍūʕīna	مَوْضُوعَاتٍ mawḍūʕātin	الْمَوْضُوعَاتِ al-mawḍūʕāti
Genitive	مَوْضُوعِينَ mawḍūʕīna	الْمَوْضُوعِينَ al-mawḍūʕīna	مَوْضُوعَاتٍ mawḍūʕātin	الْمَوْضُوعَاتِ al-mawḍūʕāti

Ottoman Turkish

Etymology

From Arabic مَوْضُوع (mawḍūʕ).

Noun

موضوع • (mevzu) (definite accusative موضوعی (mevzuu), plural موضوعات (mevzuat))

1. topic

Adjective

موضوع • (mevzu)

1. put, placed
2. established

Descendants

• Turkish: mevzu

Persian

Etymology

Borrowed from Arabic مَوْضُوع (mawḍūʕ).

Pronunciation

• (Classical Persian) IPA^(key): [maw.zuːʔ]

 

• (Dari, formal) IPA^(key): [mäw.zoːʔ]

• (Dari, formal) IPA^(key): [mäw.zoːʔ]
  • (Kabuli) IPA^(key): [mäw.zoː]
  • (Hazaragi) IPA^(key): [mäw.zʊː]

 

• (Iran, formal) IPA^(key): [mow.zuːʔ]

• (Iran, formal) IPA^(key): [mow.zuːʔ]
  • (Tehrani) IPA^(key): [mow.zuː]

• (Tajik, formal) IPA^(key): [mäw.zɵʔ]

Readings
Classical reading?	mawzū'
Dari reading?	mawzū'
Iranian reading?	mowzu'
Tajik reading?	mavzuʾ

Noun

Dari	موضوع
Iranian Persian
Tajik	мавзуъ

مُوْضوع • (mowzu') (plural موضوعات (mowzu'ât))

1. subject, topic; theme; issue, matter

   موضوعِ درس ― mowzu'-e dars ― topic of the lesson

   • c. 1080, Nāṣir-i Khusraw, “Qaṣīda 104”, in دیوان ناصرخسرو [Dīvān of Nāṣir-i Khusraw]‎^[1]:

     گفتند که «موضوع شریعت نه به عقل است
     زیرا که به شمشیر شد اسلام مقرر»
     گفتم که «نماز از چه بر اطفال و مجانین
     واجب نشود تا نشود عقل مجبر؟»

     guftand ki "mawzu'-i šarī'at na ba aql ast
     zērā ki ba šamšēr⁠ šud islām muqarrar"
     guftam ki "namāz az či bar atfāl u majānīn
     wājib na-šawad tā na-šawad aql mujbar?"

     They said, "Reason is not the subject of the Holy Law,
     Because by the sword was Islam established."
     I said, "Why are the daily prayers for children and the insane
     Not obligatory, so long as reason is not compulsory?"

     (Classical Persian transliteration)

Derived terms

• موضوعی (mowzu'i)

 

Further reading

• Hayyim, Sulayman (1934) “موضوع”, in New Persian–English dictionary, Teheran: Librairie-imprimerie Béroukhim
• Dehkhoda, Ali-Akbar (1931–) “موضوع”, in Dehkhoda Dictionary Institute, editors, Dehkhoda Dictionary (in Persian), Tehran: University of Tehran Press

South Levantine Arabic

Etymology

Learned borrowing from Arabic مَوْضُوع (mawḍūʕ).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /maw.dˤuːʕ/, [mɑwˈdˤuːʕ]

• Audio (Ramallah)

  (file)

Noun

موضوع • (mawḍūʕ) m (plural مواضيع (mawāḍīʕ))

1. subject, topic, theme, issue

Urdu

Etymology

Borrowed from Classical Persian موضوع (mawzū'), from Arabic مَوْضُوع (mawḍūʕ).

Pronunciation

• (Standard Urdu) IPA^(key): /mɔː.zuː(ʔ)/

Noun

مَوضُوع • (mauzū') m (Hindi spelling मौज़ू)

1. subject, topic, issue, matter, discussion
2. object

Adjective

مَوضُوع • (mauzū') (Hindi spelling मौज़ू)

1. manufactured, established, founded
2. placed, situated, located

References

• “موضوع”, in اُردُو لُغَت (urdū luġat) (in Urdu), Ministry of Education: Government of Pakistan, 2017.
• “موضوع”, in ریخْتَہ لُغَت (rexta luġat) - Rekhta Dictionary [Urdu dictionary with meanings in Hindi & English], Noida, India: Rekhta Foundation, 2024.