وقع عقداً

You use this phrase as a standard verb-object pair. The verb وقع changes based on who is doing the signing. If you signed it, you say وقعتُ (waqqa'tu). If a company signed it, you use the third person. It’s a very active phrase. You’ll usually see it followed by a preposition like مع (ma'a - with) to show who the other party is. It’s straightforward and leaves no room for confusion.

Use this when you’ve landed a new job and the HR department hands you a pen. Use it when you’re finally moving into that dream apartment in Dubai or Cairo. It’s also the standard term in sports news when a famous player joins a new team. You might even use it jokingly with friends if you make a 'serious' pact to go to the gym every day. It’s perfect for any situation involving a formal, written promise.

Don't use this for casual verbal promises. If you tell a friend you'll buy them coffee, that's not وقع عقداً. It’s strictly for things involving paper, digital signatures, or legal weight. Also, avoid using it for 'signing' a guestbook or a birthday card; for those, you just use the verb وقع without the 'contract' part. Using it for a birthday card would make you sound like a very intense lawyer!

In many Arab cultures, a person’s word was historically their bond. However, in modern times, the written contract (العقد) has become the gold standard for business. There is a famous Arabic proverb: 'Writing preserves the right.' Signing a contract is seen as a moment of great responsibility and respect. Interestingly, the word وقع literally means 'to make something fall,' as in making your signature 'fall' onto the page.

You might hear توقيع العقد (tawqee' al-'aqd), which is the noun form: 'the signing of the contract.' In some dialects, people might say مضى العقد (mada al-'aqd), using the verb 'to pass' or 'to execute.' If you are talking about a specific type of contract, you just add the word after عقد, like عقد عمل (work contract) or عقد إيجار (rental contract).