# روعتني Ruatni



## keed

What does   روعتني
  (Ruatni) mean? A friend of mine used this for a nickname. He told me that he invented it by the way of an impression. But I found it when searching in google in arabic texts. Does any one know what it is?


----------



## ayed

It means :
_you feared/scared me_


----------



## keed

Thank you very much! So, it is a verb in past tense, if I understood correctly?


----------



## إسكندراني

yes. it is also a complete sentence


----------



## kifaru

I'm confused about this. your translation seems to be opposites. Dud you mean "you caused me fear/scared me"? 



ayed said:


> It means :
> _you feared/scared me_


----------



## AndyRoo

Yes we don't say "you feared me" here - the correct one is "you scared me".


----------



## kifaru

OK. Thanks AndyRoo. I don't think I have seen this verb in arabic before. Is it common?


----------



## AndyRoo

kifaru said:


> OK. Thanks AndyRoo.


 You're welcome 





kifaru said:


> I don't think I have seen this verb in arabic before. Is it common?


 Yes it's quite common. It's from the same root as رائع - meaning wonderful/awesome.


----------



## kifaru

I don't see the connection between the two words.


----------



## AndyRoo

Awe can mean fear - that's the connection I see anyway.


----------



## kifaru

That's archaic isn't it. Ok well. It seems counter intuitive to me. I would think there would be a word related to يَخَاْفُ that meant "you scared me".


----------



## إسكندراني

AndyRoo said:


> It's from the same root as رائع - meaning wonderful/awesome.


& روعة raw3a - also meaning awesome


----------



## AndyRoo

kifaru said:


> I would think there would be a word related to يَخَاْفُ that meant "you scared me".


 
Well yes there is: أخفتني . I'm not 100% sure of the difference between this and روعتني but I would think أخفتني means you scared me e.g. by jumping out in front of me, whereas روعتني could mean you scare me because you are so good at something (i.e. I am in awe of you). I hope someone can help.


----------



## إسكندراني

روعة is more like shock & awe.
خوف is like sustained fear.


----------



## lukebeadgcf

kifaru said:


> I don't see the connection between the two words.



I think we see the same phenomenon in English. Consider the words:

terrific

and

terrifying

The word "terrific" carries a positive, awe-inspiring, unrelated-to-fear connotation as in:

"That was a terrific party!"

The word terrifying however, carries a negative, dread-inspiring connotation as in:

"What a terrifying sight!"

It seems that only the latter is related to real "terror" while the former distinctly connotes "awe" more than "fear."

Given these examples of usage in the English language, it is not surprising that different derivations from the root ر و ع connote either fear or awe respectively and their specific usage must be learned. For example, according to Hans Wehr:

رائع awesome, wonderful

رَوع fright, alarm, fear

رَوعة fright, fear OR awe, magnificence

روّع to frighten, scare

راع ، يروع ، الرَوع to frighten, scare OR to please, awaken admiration

My point is that in both Arabic and English, a single lexical root can produce words connoting both "awe" and "fear." Can anyone think of why?


----------



## ayed

It may _she scared me_ as well.Of course, it depends on the correctness of the inscription of the word.


----------



## kifaru

Excellent explanation. You made that clear as crystal.


lukebeadgcf said:


> I think we see the same phenomenon in English. Consider the words:
> 
> terrific
> 
> and
> 
> terrifying
> 
> The word "terrific" carries a positive, awe-inspiring, unrelated-to-fear connotation as in:
> 
> "That was a terrific party!"
> 
> The word terrifying however, carries a negative, dread-inspiring connotation as in:
> 
> "What a terrifying sight!"
> 
> It seems that only the latter is related to real "terror" while the former distinctly connotes "awe" more than "fear."
> 
> Given these examples of usage in the English language, it is not surprising that different derivations from the root ر و ع connote either fear or awe respectively and their specific usage must be learned. For example, according to Hans Wehr:
> 
> رائع awesome, wonderful
> 
> رَوع fright, alarm, fear
> 
> رَوعة fright, fear OR awe, magnificence
> 
> روّع to frighten, scare
> 
> راع ، يروع ، الرَوع to frighten, scare OR to please, awaken admiration
> 
> My point is that in both Arabic and English, a single lexical root can produce words connoting both "awe" and "fear." Can anyone think of why?


----------



## Mahaodeh

It can also mean "you startled me".


----------



## keed

Thank you very much to all of you! Your discussion put a great deal of light on my question.


----------

