Rafah

//ˈɹæfə// name

name ·Rare ·Advanced level

Definitions

Proper Noun
  1. 1
    Several places in Gaza.; A governorate of Southern Gaza, Gaza Strip, Palestine; in full, Rafah Governorate. Capital: Rafah.
  2. 2
    A female given name.
  3. 3
    Several places in Gaza.; A metropolitan region in Rafah governorate, Southern Gaza, Gaza Strip, Palestine, lying to the south of Khan Younus and to the north of Sinai, Egypt.
  4. 4
    Several places in Gaza.; A city, the capital of Rafah governorate, Southern Gaza, Gaza Strip, Palestine; lying next to the eponymous city in Egypt.
  5. 5
    Several places in Gaza.; A settlement, a refugee camp in the Rafah region, Rafah governorate, Southern Gaza, Gaza Strip, Palestine; in full, Rafah Refugee Camp, lying next to the eponymous city of Rafah.

    "The United States paused a shipment of bombs to Israel amid concerns over their potential use in a Rafah incursion, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin confirmed on Wednesday."

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  1. 6
    A city in North Sinai governate, Sinai, Egypt, lying next to the eponymous city in Gaza.
  2. 7
    Ellipsis of Rafah Crossing: a border gate on the Egypt, — Gaza, Palestine, border in Rafah city. abbreviation, alt-of, ellipsis
  3. 8
    A city in Egypt and Gaza, Palestine, split by an international border, each half a city in their own right, as well.

Synonyms

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raphia

Example

More examples

"Munir took a taxi from Gaza to Rafah."

Etymology

From Arabic رَفَح (rafaḥ), from Ancient Greek Ῥαφία (Rhaphía), from Egyptian rpwḥw r:Z1-p-w-bH:mDAt-xAst

Related phrases

Rafah Border CrossingRafah Border GateRafah CampRafah CrossingRafah GateRafah GovernorateRafah Refugee Camp

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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.