Arabic phrasebook

Contents
The following phrasebook deals with Modern Standard Arabic. See the
Lebanese Arabic phrasebook, Jordanian Arabic phrasebook or the Egyptian
Arabic phrasebook for Arabic dialects relating to those regions/countries.
Arabic is the fourth most widely-spoken language in the world. It is spoken in many
popular destinations in North Africa and the Middle East. There are many regional
dialects but a standard Arabic language is maintained due to religious needs and
region-wide media.
Arabic is written from right to left. It has its own alphabet different from the !oman
alphabet used for English.
"or communication purposes while tra#eling and using this guide it is #ery
important to note that Arabic is di#ided into Classical Arabic $mostly used in print%
and Collo&uial Arabic. Collo&uial Arabic is further subdi#ided into regional collo&uial
accents the main regions being the 'e#ant (ersian )ulf *tates Egypt and North
Africa. These regional collo&uial accents sometimes differ enough to be mutually
incomprehensible.
The pronunciation guide below uses Classical Arabic and 'e#antine Collo&uial
Arabic.
+edit, (ronunciation guide
T!
Arabic pronunciation #aries widely from place to place almost to the e-tent of
making it unintellilgible e#en for nati#e Arabic speakers.
*tandard Arabic will be spoken by most educated people as it is what they hear
fre&uently on T. mostly news.
As a general rule/
0a0 tends to be like that of 0hat0
0aa0 is a longer #ersion of 0a0
0b0 as in English
0t0 as in English
0th0 as in English 0thin0
0dh0 as in English 0them0
010 as in 01am0 0s0 as in 0measure0 in the 'e#ant $'ebanon Israel etc.% and 0g0 as in
0gi#e0 in Egypt.
020 is a pharyngeal fricati#e sound at the back of the throat $though not like
clearing it%. It sounds like you are about to whisper the word 0hello0.
0kh0 as in *cots 0loch0 or )erman 0mach0
0d0 as in English
0r0 a tapped sound like *panish 0pero0 but trilled like *panish 0perro0 when
doubled.
030 as in English
0s0 as in English
0sh0 as in English
0*0 like 0s0 but with the back of the throat constricted. Makes 0a0 further back in the
throat 0i0 into 0e0 and 0u0 into 0o0.
040 like 0d0 but with the back of the throat constricted. *ame #owel changes as 0*0
0T0 like 040 but sometimes e&ui#alent to 0t0
050 #aries/ sometimes like 040 but e&ui#alent to 0th0 but other times e&ui#alent to
030.
0h0 as in English
0&0 like 0k0 but further back in the throat and is often pronounced like 060
0k0 as in English
0l0 as in English
0m0 as in English
0f0 as in English
0n0 as in English
060 as in Cockney 0bottle0 $0bole". A glottal stop.
070 not always pronounced butb is essential in *tandard Arabic. A #oiced #ersion
of 020.
0gh0 a fricati#e sound at the back of the throat or 0kh0 while using the #oice bo-.
+edit, (hrase list
So#e phrases in this phrasebook still need to be translated. $f you know anything
about this language, you can help by plunging forward and translating a phrase.
+edit, Basics
Hello (informal)
89:;<. mar2aban or marhaba <info>
Peace be with you. (formal)
=>?@A BCDEF as-salaamu Galaikum
How are you?
HIE8: J?K
Layfa 2aalukaMLayfa 2aalak6 #ale singular
Layfa 2aalukiMLayfa 2aalik6 fe#ale singular
Layfa 2aalukum plural %depends on the nu#ber and gender spoken to"
Please.
I@NO P<. min fa4lukaMfa4lak #ale min fa4lukiMfa4lik fe#ale
Thank you [very much.
F;>Q shukran +1a3iilan,.
!es.
=RS naGam M
"o.
T. laa
#aybe.
P>U< mumkin.
$%cuse me.
V@WUXY isma2li
the &i& at the beginning is swallowed
&oo' mornin(.
;?ZEF [89\ saba2 al-khair
&oo' evenin(.
;?ZEF ]8D< masa0 al-khair
(oo'
^?_ 1ayyid.
very (oo'
F^_ ^?_ 1ayyid 1iddan.
"ever min'.
=`< a?E mish Muhim.
"one) nothin() nobo'y.
VO 8< Maa fii.
Hello. (informal)
BCX salaam.
*ine) thank you.
F;>Q ;?Zb bi-khair *hukran
+hat is your name?
IUXF 8< sho ismak6
Ma IsmukaMsho Ismak6 to a #ale
Ma IsmukiMsho Ismik6 to a fe#ale
#y name is ,,,,,, .
VUXF ana Ismi ccccccc
"ice to meet you.
8dO;ef tasharafna lit. ghou honor usg
!ou-re welcome.
Ana Aasif $male%
Ana Aasifah $female%
y.
JXF 8SF M ijXF 8SF
Ana Aasif #ale
Ana Aasifah fe#ale
ye
k<CDEF l< maGa as-salaamah
)
BCX salaam
am
F^?_ cc =@>fF T 'aa atakallam gname of languageg +1ayyidan,
h?
4o you speak English6 kmn?@oSTF =@>pf qr 2al tatakallam al-ingli3iyyah6
?
Hkmn?@oSTF =@>pm sZQ tF 8dr qr 2al hunaa ayy shakh* yatakallam al-ingli3iyya6
u^A8D< MusaaGadahv w! u^odEF an-na1dav
t.
i9pSF intabih
;?ZEF x@A y9zf ti*ba2 Galal-khair
)ood night $in response% / ;?ZEF qrF P< {SF| wa anta min ahl al-khair
.
=`OF T laa afham
?
HB8UWEF PmF Ayn al-2ammaam6
'ea#e me alone. $ VdK;fF %M" '( Vd?K;fF %)"%
.
4on0t touch mev $Ma til#isni% or $Ma t&arrabsh%
.
I0ll call the police. $Sa *nadi al+,olice%
.
(olicev $ k};Q%
ief.
*topv Thiefv $-if. /ara#i.%
I need your help. $ {WUX ~E u^A8D< 8p:F%
r(ency.
It0s an emergency."or medical emergency/Is0aff $ 8RXY%for other
emergencies/Taware0 $ F~}%
I0m lost. $ im8f%
.
I lost my bag. $ xp9?: ^O ^E%
t my wallet.
I lost my wallet. $ xpjW< ^O ^E%
k.
I0m sick. $ m;< 8SF %M" '( kNm;< 8SF %)"%
ah $re'.
I0#e been in1ured. 8z< VdSY$$nnani Musabun%
r.
I need a doctor. $ ;pK 8p:F%
/ae?
Can I use your phone6 $ H~j@pEF qURpXF P>U< qr
t,
;j\ *ifr
^:F| waa2id
8dY ithnaan
kC thalaatha
kRbF arbaGa
kDU khamsa
kpX sitta
kR9X sabGa
k?S8U thamaaniya
kRDf tisGa
u;eA Gashara
;eA ^:F a2ad Gashar
;eA 8dF ithnaa Gashar
;eA kC thalaathata Gashar
;eA kRbF arbaGata Gashar
;eA kDU khamsata Gashar
;eA kpX sittata Gashar
;eA kR9X sabGata Gashar
;eA k?S8U thamaaniyata Gashar
;eA kRDf tis0ata Gashar
|;eA ishruun
|;eA| ^:F| waa2id wa-Gashruun
|;eA| 8dF ithnaan wa-Gashruun
|;eA| kC thalaatha wa-Gashruun
~C thalathuun
~RbF arbaGuun
~DU khamsuun
~pX sittuun
~R9X sabGuun
~S8U thamanuun
~RDf tisGuun
k< mi0a
P?p< mitayn
k< C thalaath mi0a
JEF alf $as in The Thousand and wne Nights - k@?E| k@?E JEF Alf 'ayla wa 'ayla%
P?jEF alfayn
~?@UEF al-milyuun
~?@9EF al-bilyuun
~?@m;pEF at-triilyuun
= M !a&m $...%
JzS ni*f
qF a&al
;KF akthar
r dhahaba
a&f
8Dm JE 'if hassar
P?Um JE 'if hameen
~} x@A Ala Tool $Egyptian% or illal amaama B8<TF xEF dughri $ordan% &uduman
$general%
*hway *hway
;pSF $intadhir%
VSF $areni%
8dr huna
8dr hunak
&abla
^Rb ba0da
F al-aan
P< min
xEF ilah
intadhir ahad dakeeka.
8SF ana
{ SF anta
{ SF anti
~r huwa
Vr hiya
PWS na2nu
8UpSF antuma
=pSF antum
PpSF antunna
8Ur huma
=r hum
Pr hunna
P< man
8< maMmadha
ay mata
PmF ayn
8UE li-madha
=>b biLam
Fr =>b biLam 2adha
+here are you from?
{SF PmF P< min ayn anta
Maf 2oom
Hkmn?@oSF =@>pf qr hal tatakallam al-ingli3iya6
+hat is this?
ma haadha6
edit
w ant
wreed
0 'on-t want
'a wreed ^m T
0 have
VE lii M ladeya t^E M andee t^dA
0 'on-t have
leis andee t^dA a?E
0 'on-t un'erstan'
Ana ma fehim =r8O 8< 8S M ana laa afham =`O T 8S M Ana mesh fahem =r8O < 8S
0 work at the ,,,,,.
Ana bashtaghel fi cccccVO qpQ8b 8S M a0mal fi ccccc cccccVO qUA
0 'on-t s1eak 2rabic
k?b;REF =@>fF T laa atkallam al-arabiya M Ma bihki arabi Vb;A V>:8b 8< M Ma batkalemsh
arabi Vb;A U@>f8b8<
+edit, Thin(s
money
~@O fuluus
coffee
u~` &ahwa pronounced ah-way in *yrian Arabic
su(ar
;>X sukr
salt
y@< mil2
car
u8?X sayyaara
hotel
^dO fundu& M q?f|F ooteel
water
]8< maa0
tea
t8Q shay0
milk
?@: 2aliib
work
qQ shughl
air1lane
u;8} Taa0irah
street
8Q shaariG
+edit, Time
now
F $al+&aana%
later
Pm^Rb $ba0adayn%
before
q9 $1abla%
mornin(
[89\ $Sabaa/%
afternoon
;` ^Rb $ba&ada 2uhur%
evenin(
]8D< $#asaa&%
ni(ht
k@?E $laylah%
k time
one o0clock AM $sa&ati wa/ad%
#
two o0clock AM $sa&ati ithnayn%
noon $2u/ur%
P#
one o0clock (M $...%
two o0clock (M $...%
midnight $#untasf al+laylah%
ation
,, minute(s)
ccccc $8% k? $da1ii1ah %da1aa&i1" %
ou
ccccc hour$s%$saa%
(s)
ccccc B8m% B~m $yo# %ayaa#"%
s)
ccccc week$s% $usbuu0%
th(s)
ccccc month$s% $shahr%
s)
ccccc F~dX% kdX$sanah %sanooaat"%
'ay
B~9EF $al+yaw#%a"%
ay
a<F $a#s%i"%
w
F

^ $ghadan%
~9XTF $al+&usbu0%
eek
V8UEF ~9XF $usbu0%u" &l+#aa!i%
B8EF ~9XF $usbu0%u" &l+1aadi#%
of the week
^:F B~m $%yaw#" al&a/ad%
P?dTF B~m $%yaw#" al+ithnayn%
ay
]8CEF B~m $%yaw#" ath+thulaatha%
s'ay
]8RbF B~m $%yaw#" al&arbi0a&%
'ay
a?UZEF B~m $%yaw#" al+kha#iis%
y
kRUoEF B~m $%yaw#" al+3u#0a...%
3
{9DEF B~m $%yaw#" as+sabt%
uary
VS8EF ~S8K $4anoon al thani%
y
"ebruary $.shbat 89Q..%
March $... F Aathar% l
April $..5issan 8D?S.%
May $... 8m Ayyar%
e
F;mn: $/6ayraan%
~Uf $Ta##ou6%
t
F

$Ab%
er
~@mF $Ayloul%
|F ;ef $Tishreen al awwal%
"
VS8EF ;ef $Tishreen al thani%
ber
|F ~S8K $4anoon al awwal%
t
~XF $Aswad%
?bF $Abyadh%
t8< $(a#aadii%
'
;U:F $A/#ar%
e
F $A6ra1%
w
;j\F $Asfar%
n
;NF $Akhdhar%
a
VE8f;b $urtu1aali%
F~_F $*r3uwaan%
Vdb $ony%
adash ta6kara ila 77778 -ekam Ta3kara ila......6
Ta6kara wahida ila 777 law sa#aht
2a3al &itarMbus biyruh ila wayn6 $la Ayn 9a6hab ha6a Alkitar/autobis8
:ein el+1itar/el+bus ila 7778
hal biwa&ef ha6al 1itar/bus fi77 8
e#ta btatla el+1itar/el+bus ila 7778
0emta byusil ha3al &itarMbus ficcc6
2ow do I get to ccccc 6 $4ayf bawsal la 77%
...the train station6 $#ahatet il 1itar8%
...the bus station6 $#aw1if il bassat8%
...8UEF $al+#atar6%
...downtown6 $:est il balad8%
...the youth hostel6 $ayt El Shabab%
...the ccccc hotel6 $otel8/ Al )onduk%
...the AmericanMCanadianMAustralianM-ritish consulate6 $sefara Al A#rikia,
;anadeia, ostralia, beritania%
here are there a lot of... $:ein fi kteer...%
...hotels6 $otelat/ )anadek%
...restaurants6 $#ata&e#%
...bars6 $bars%
...sites to see6 $a#aken seyaheyeh8%
Can you show me on the map6 $#o#ken tfar3eeni ala al khareeta8%
8Q $shar&iah%
8Dm JE $lif yasaar%
P?Um JE $lif ya#een%
8Dm $yasaar%
P?Um $ya#een%
~} x@A$ala tul%
towards the ccccc $bi3ehet il%
past the ccccc $baed il%
before the ccccc $abel il%
atch for the ccccc. $intibeh la%
intersection $ta1ato%
8UQ $sha#aal%
~d_$3anoob%
;Q$shar1%
;$gharb%
uphill $talaa%
downhill $na6leh%
Ta-iv $ta<i.% *ayyara
Take me to ccccc please. $khodni il....., law Sa#aht%
2ow much does it cost to
Take me there please. $khodni ala 77, law sa#aht%
4o you ha#e any rooms a#ailable6 $Endko# ghoraf%alternati=ely+ owad"
edafeyeh8%
2ow much is a room for one personMtwo people6 $Adeish il ghorfeh li
shakhs/shakhsein8%
4oes the room come with... $$l ghorfeh btee3i #a...%
...bedsheets6 $sharashef8%
...a bathroom6 $ha##a#8%
...a telephone6 $tele+phown8%
...a T.6 $tele=is+yon8%
May I see the room first6 $a1dar ashoof il ghorfeh abel8%
4o you ha#e anything &uieter6 $)i eshi ah+da8.%
...bigger6 $akbar8%
...cleaner6 $andaf8%
...cheaper6 $arkhas8%
wL I0ll take it. $'4, bakhodha%
I will stay for ccccc night$s%. $(ah aba&a ka#an 777 yo#%
Can you suggest another hotel6 $0)
4o you ha#e a safe6 $fi kha6neh8%
...lockers6 $...%
0s breakfast4su11er inclu'e'?
Is breakfastMsupper included6 $0)
+hat time is breakfast4su11er?
hat time is breakfastMsupper6 $ay sei+a il ftoor/asha8%
Please clean my room.
(lease clean my room. $#o#ken tanadef il ghorfeh%
/an you wake me at s's,,,,,? 5 /an you wake me at ,,,,,? (momken tfaye'ni al __ )
0 want to check out.
I want to check out. $beddi ashoofha%
#oney
6o you acce1t 2merican42ustralian4/ana'ian 'ollars?
4o you accept AmericanMAustralianMCanadian dollars6 $/al ta1bal bi no1ood
A#reekeyah/'storaleyah/;anadeyah8%
6o you acce1t British 1oun's?
4o you accept -ritish pounds6 $/al Ta1bal bi Jenehat iritaneyeh8%
6o you acce1t cre'it car's?
4o you accept credit cards6 $0)
/an you chan(e money for me?
Can you change money for me6 $Mo#ken tsarefli #asari8%
+here can 0 (et money chan(e'?
here can I get money changed6 $:ein badar asaref #asari8%
/an you chan(e a traveler-s check for me?
Can you change a tra#eler0s check for me6 $...%
+here can 0 (et a traveler-s check chan(e'?
here can I get a tra#eler0s check changed6 $...%
+hat is the e%chan(e rate?
hat is the e-change rate6 $...%
+here is an automatic teller machine (2T#)?
here is an automatic teller machine $ATM%6 $:ein fi ATM8%
+edit, $atin(
2 table for one 1erson4two 1eo1le) 1lease.
A table for one personMtwo people please. $Tawlah la wahed/tenein%
/an 0 look at the menu) 1lease?
Can I look at the menu please6 $Mo#ken ashoof il #enu8%
/an 0 look in the kitchen?
Can I look in the kitchen6 $Mu#ken ashuf il #atbakh8%
0s there a house s1ecialty?
Is there a house specialty6 $...%
0s there a local s1ecialty?
Is there a local specialty6 $...%
0-m a ve(etarian.
I0m a #egetarian. $Ana nabati%
0 'on-t eat 1ork.
I don0t eat pork. $Ma bakol lahe# khan6eer%
0 'on-t eat beef.
I don0t eat beef. $Ma bakol lah#eh%
0 only eat Halal foo'.
I only eat 2alal food. $as bakol akel hallal%
/an you make it 7lite7) 1lease? (less oil/butter/lard)
Can you make it gliteg please6 $khaleeha khafeefeh%
fi%e'81rice meal
fi-ed-price meal $...%
9 la carte
la carte $> la carte%
breakfast
breakfast $ftoor% al iftar
lunch
lunch $...% al ghada
tea (meal)
tea $...% shay0
su11er
supper $...% al isha0
0 want ,,,,,.
.ccccc^m $ooreed%
0 want a 'ish containn( ,,,,,
I want a dish containing ccccc. $...%
n
8_ $da3a3%
;b $ba1ar%
IUX $sa#ak%
m
ham $khan6eer%
sausage $...%
kd9_ $3ubneh%
?b $baid%
salad $...% salata
s
$fresh% #egetables $...% $fresh% khudrawat
t
$fresh% fruit $fawakeh% $fresh% fawakat
bread $...% ayish w! khub3
toast $...%
noodles $#akarona%
$ &ro6%
beans $fool% fasoliyya
0
May I ha#e a glass of ccccc6 $Mo#ken 4aset777%
May I ha#e a cup of ccccc6 $Mo#ken fin3an 777%
#
May I ha#e a bottle of ccccc6 $...%
coffee $1ahweh% kah0wa
)
t8Q $ shay& %
;?zA $Aseer%
r
water $#ay%
r
]8< $ #aa& %
u;?b $beerah%
ne
redMwhite wine $nabeed ah#ar/abyad%
May I ha#e some ccccc6 $#o#ken 7778%
y@< $#alh%
~X qj@O$filfil aswad%
u^b $6ibdeh% )
E-cuse me waiter6 $...%garcoon
I0m finished. $khalast % galaste
It was delicious. $2aki% Al-akl ma3bootv
.
(lease clear the plates. $...%
The check please. $...%'eh0seb min fadlak
4o you ser#e alcohol6 $fi kohool8%
?
Is there table ser#ice6 $...%
t
A beerMtwo beers please. $beerah%
A glass of redMwhite wine please. $kaset nbeed%
.
A pint please. $...%
.
A bottle please. $aneeneh%
,,
ccccc and ccccc please. $...%
whiskey $...%
#odka $...%
rum $...%
]8< $ #aa& %
a
club soda $soda%
er
tonic water $...%
orange 1uice $aseer borto1al%
Coke $cola%
4o you ha#e any bar snacks6 $...%
wne more please. $ka#an wahed%
Another round please. $ka#an wahed%
hen is closing time6 $e#ta bitsakro8%
4o you ha#e this in my si3e6 $)i #a1as8%
HFr =>b $bika# hatha%
That0s too e-pensi#e. $...% gghali katheervg
ould you take ccccc6 $...%
VE8 $ghali%
s?$rakhees%
I can0t afford it. $...%
I don0t want it. $#a beddi%
hou0re cheating me. $hara#i%
I0m not interested. $lust muhtam%
wL I0ll take it. $ok%
Can I ha#e a bag6 $oreedo kees%
4o you ship $o#erseas%6 $...%
I need... $...% Ahta1
...toothpaste. $#a&a3oon asnan%
...a toothbrush. $forshaat asnan%
...tampons. $always%
...soap. $saboon%
...shampoo. $sha#boo%
...pain relie#er. $#ussakin%
...cold medicine. $dawa rash+h%
...stomach medicine. $dawa baten%
...a ra3or. $shafra%
...an umbrella. $sha#seyeh%
...sunblock lotion. $...%
...km^m;b k8b $bita1a bareedia%
...postage stamps. $tawabe& bareed%
...batteries. $batareyat%
...k9p>@E | $wara1 lil+kitaba%
...=@ $1ala#%
...kmn?@oSY pK $kutub ingli6iya%
... kmn?@>SF Co< English-language maga3ines. $#a3alat engili6iya%
...kmn?@oSY ^F;_$3ara&id ingli6iya%
...an English-English dictionary. $1a#oos ingili6i+ingili6i%
I want to rent a car. $beddi asta3er sayarah%
Can I get insurance6 $fi ta#een8%
stop $1if%
one way $tho it3ah wahed%
yield $atti alaolwyeh%
no parking $#a#noo alistifaf%
speed limit $alsuraa alkanooniya%
gas station $#ahatet ban6een%
petrol $betrol%
diesel $diesel%
I ha#en0t done anything wrong. $Ma e#elet eshi ghalat%
It was a misunderstanding. $kan so& tafaho# %
here are you taking me6 $wein akhedni8%
Am I under arrest6 $ana #ota1aleh8%
0 am an 2merican42ustralian4British4/ana'i an citi:en.
I am an AmericanMAustralianM-ritishMCanadian citi3en. $Ana A#erican/...%
0 want to talk to the 2merican42ustralian 4British4/ana'ian embassy4consulate.
I need to talk to the AmericanMAustralianM-ritishMCanadian embassyMconsulate.
$...%
I want to talk to a lawyer. $beddi ahki #a #oha#i%
Can I 1ust pay a fine now6 $ba?dar adfa8%
This is a usable phrasebook. $t e<plains
pronunciation and the bare essentials of tra=el
co##unication. An ad=enturous person could use it
to get by, but please plunge forward and help it grow.
Arabic grammar
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This article contains 2rabic te%t)
written from ri(ht to left in a cursive
style with some letters ;oine'.
ithout proper rendering support you
may see un1oined Arabic letters written
left-to-right instead of right-to-left or
other symbols instead of Arabic script.
.isuali3ation of Arabic grammar from the uranic Arabic Corpus
2rabic (rammar $2rabic< =>?@ ABC nah@ w arabiyy or DE>?FGH DIJGH K@HAL 1awA idu l+luBati l+
arabiyya % is the grammar of the Classical and Modern *tandard Arabic. Arabic is a
*emitic language and its grammar has many similarities with the grammar of other
*emitic languages.
[edit] History
The identity of the oldest Arabic grammarian is disputed with some sources saying Ibn
Abi Isha& and medie#al sources saying Abu-Aswad al-4u0ali the oldest known Arabic
grammarian established diacritical marks and #owels for Arabic in the mid-s. The
schools of -asra and Lufa further de#eloped grammatical rules in the late s with the
rapid rise of Islam.
+,+,
The earliest grammarian who is known is Abd AllAh ibn AbC $sh@ A1 $died A4 M A2
%.
[edit] Division
"or classical Arabic grammarians the grammatical sciences are di#ided into fi#e
branches/
al+luBa k@EF $le-icon% concerned with collecting and e-plaining #ocabulary
at+tas @ rCf Jm;zpEF $morphology% determining the form of the indi#idual words
an+nah@ w ~WdEF $synta-% primarily concerned with inflection $ i rAb % which had
already been lost in dialects.
al+iDti1A1 8pQTF $deri#ation% e-amining the origin of the words
al+balABa kC9EF $rhetoric% which elucidates construct &uality
The grammar or grammars of contemporary #arieties of Arabic are a different &uestion.
*aid M. -adawi an e-pert on Arabic grammar di#ided Arabic grammar into fi#e different
types based on the speaker0s le#el of literacy and the degree to which the speaker
de#iated from Classical Arabic. -adawi0s fi#e types of grammar from the most collo&uial
to the most formal are Illiterate *poken Arabic $P??<F k?<8A mmiyat al- ummiyyn % *emi-
literate *poken Arabic $Pm~dpUEF k?<8A mmiyat al-mutanawwirn % Educated *poken Arabic
$P?jUEF k?<8A mmiyat al-mu a&&afn % Modern *tandard Arabic $;zREF xWzO fush al- asr %
and Classical Arabic $F;pEF xWzO fush at-tur%.
+,
This article is concerned with the
grammar of Classical Arabic and Modern *tandard Arabic e-clusi#ely.
[edit] Phonology
Main article/ Arabic phonology
Classical Arabic has consonantal phonemes including two semi-#owels which
comprise the Arabic alphabet. It also has si- #owel phonemes $three short #owels and
three long #owels%. These appear as #arious allophones depending on the preceding
consonant. *hort #owels are not usually represented in written language although they
may be indicated with diacritics.
/a#6atu l+was @ l $q\~EF unUr% elidable ha#6a is a phonetic ob1ect prefi-ed to the
beginning of a word for ease of pronunciation since literary Arabic doesn0t allow
consonant clusters at the beginning of a word. Elidable ha#6a drops out as a #ocal if a
word is preceding it. This word will then produce an ending #ocal ghelping #ocalg to
facilitate pronunciation. This short #ocal may be depending on the preceding #owel

a
fath@ a $kWpO% MaM a kasra $u;DK% MiM or

a d@ a##a $kU% MuM. If the preceding word ends in a

sukEn $~>X% $i.e. not followed by a short #owel% the /a#6atu l+was @ l assumes a kasra MiM.
*ymbol

Dadda $u^Q% indicates a gemination or consonant doubling. *ee more in Tashkl.

[edit] Noun
MNH is#
[e'it 3tate
Nouns $and their modifying ad1ecti#es% are either definite or indefinite $there is an article
for the definite state only%. A noun is definite if it has the definite article prefi- $EF al-% if it
has a suffi-ed pronoun $;?9>EF 8`9@K kalbu-ha l-kabr gher big dogg% if it is inherently definite
by being a proper noun $kUm^EF ;z< Misru l-&adma gAncient Egyptg% or if it is in a geniti#e
construction $ idfa status constructus% with a definite noun or nouns $I@UEF {db bintu l-
malik$i% gthe daughter of the kingg%.
[e'it 2rticle
Main article/ Al-
The article $OP?FQGH RHST adAtu t+ta rCf % EF al+ is indeclinable and e-presses definite state of a
noun of any gender and number. It is also prefi-ed to each of that noun0s modifying
ad1ecti#es. The initial #owel $UVAGH RWXY ha#6atu+l+was @ l% is #olatile in the sense that it
disappears in sandhi the article becoming mere l+ $although the alif is retained in
orthography in any case as it is based on pausal pronunciation%.
Also the l is assimilated to a number of consonants $dentals and sibilants% so that in
these cases the article in pronunciation is e-pressed only by geminating the initial
consonant of the noun $while in orthography the writing EF alif lA# is retained and the
gemination may be e-pressed by putting Dadda on the following letter%.
The consonants causing assimilation $tri#ially including $l%% are $t% $% $d% $%
$r% $3% $s% $% $s % $d % $t % $3 % $l% $n%. These letters are called
0solar letters0 $DEZX[GH \]?BGH al+h@ urEf aD+Da#siyya% while the remaining are called
0lunar letters0 or 0moon letters0 $DP?X^GH \]?BGH al+h@ urEf al+1a#ariyya%. The solar letters all
ha#e in common that they are dental al#eolar and postal#eolar consonants $all
coronals% in the classical language and the lunar consonants are not. $ C# is
pronounced postal#eolar in most #arieties of Arabic today but was actually a palatali3ed
#oiced #elar plosi#e in the classical language and is thus considered a lunar letter
ne#ertheless in collo&uial Arabic the C# is often spoken as if solar.%
[e'it /ase
This section may re_uire cleanu1 to meet +iki1e'ia-s _uality stan'ar's.
(lease impro#e this section if you can. The talk page may contain suggestions.
%5o=e#ber ?FFG"
Main article/ I rb
Arabic has three grammatical cases $`abc h@ AlAt% roughly corresponding to/ nominati#e
geniti#e and accusati#e. Normally singular nouns take the ending +u%n" in the
nominati#e +i%n" in the geniti#e and +a%n" in the accusati#e. *ome e-ceptional nouns
known as diptotes $\?dGH ef gAhXXGH al+#a#nE u #ina s @ +s @ arf % ne#er take the final n and
ha#e the suffi- +a in the geniti#e e-cept when the diptotic noun is in the definite state
$preceded by al+ or is in the construct state%. hen speaking or reading aloud the case
endings are generally omitted in less formal registers. Technically e#ery noun has such
an ending although at the end of a sentence no inflection is pronounced e#en in formal
speech because of the rules of 0pause0 $J~EF al+wa1f%.
Case is not shown in standard orthography with the e-ception of indefinite accusati#e
nouns ending in any letter but R tA #arbEt @ a or i ham3a where the +a%n" gsitsg upon an
alif added to the end of the word $the alif still shows up in un#owelled te-ts%. Cases
howe#er are marked in the ur n children0s books primers and to remo#e ambiguous
situations. If marked it is shown at the end of the noun.
[e'it "ominative case
The nominati#e case $~O;UEF al+#arfE% is used for/
*ub1ects of a #erbal sentence.
*ub1ects and predicates of an e&uational $non-#erbal% sentence with some
notable e-ceptions.
Certain ad#erbs retain the nominati#e marker.
The citation form of words is $if noted at all% in the nominati#e case.
"or singular nouns and broken plurals it is marked as a d@ a##a $-u% for the definite or
d@ a##a nunation $-un% for the indefinite. The dual and regular masculine plural are
formed by adding -ni and -na respecti#ely $- and - in the construct state%. The
regular feminine plural is formed by adding -tu in the definite and -tun in the indefinite.
[e'it 2ccusative case
The accusati#e case $~zdUEF al+#ans @ Eb% is used for/
The sub1ect of an e&uational $non-#erbal% sentence if it is initiated with 0inna or
one of her sisters.
The predicate of kAna/yakEnu gbeg and its sisters. 2ence k@?U_ {d9EF al+bintu
a#Clatun gthe girl is beautifulg but k@?U_ {S8K {d9EF al+bintu kAnat a#Cla%tan" gthe
girl was beautifulg $spelling k@?U_ is not affected here $letter u% in the un#ocalised
Arabic%. The ending in brackets may not be pronounced in pausa or in informal
Arabic.
-oth the sub1ect and the predicate of 6@ anna and its sisters in an e&uational
clause.
The ob1ect of a transiti#e #erb.
Most ad#erbs.
Internal ob1ectMcognate accusati#e structure.
The accusati#e of specificationMpurposeMcircumstantial.
"or singular nouns and broken plurals it is marked as a fath@ a $-a% for the definite or
fath@ a nunation $-an% for the indefinite. "or the indefinite accusati#e the fath@ a
nunation is added to an alif e.g. 8

which is added to the ending of all nouns $e.g. 8

S89Rf 8K
kna ta bn an ghe was tiredg% not ending with a ham3a or t marbt a . The dual and
regular masculine plural are formed by adding -ayn$i% and -n$a% $both spelled P? in
Arabic% respecti#ely $-ay and - in the construct state both spelled V in Arabic%. The
regular feminine plural is formed by adding -t$i% in the definite and -t$in% in the
indefinite both spelled 8 in Arabic.
[e'it &enitive case
The geniti#e case $|;oUEF al+#arEr% is used for/
wb1ects of prepositions.
All but not necessarily the first member $the first nomen regens% of an id@ Afa
$geniti#e construction% .
The ob1ect of a locati#e ad#erb.
*emi-prepositions if preceded by another $true or semi% preposition
wb1ects of =K ka# ghow muchMmanyg and t ayy ganyg.
Elati#e $comparati#eMsuperlati#e% ad1ecti#es beha#e similarly/ ^E| ~} g at walu
walading gtallest boy$0s%g.
"or singular nouns and broken plurals it is marked as a kasra $-i% for the definite or
kasra nunation $-in% for the indefinite. The dual and regular masculine plural are formed
by adding -ayn$i% and -n$a% respecti#ely $both spelled P? in Arabic% $-ay and - in the
construct state both spelled V in Arabic%. The regular feminine plural is formed by
adding -t$i% in the definite and -t$in% in the indefinite both spelled 8 in Arabic.
5oteH diptotic nouns recei=e a fath@ a %+a" in the geniti=e indefinite and are ne=er
nunated.
5oteH there is no dati=e caseI instead, the preposition E Jli+J is used.
[e'it "umber
Arabic distinguishes between nouns based on number $^A adad %. All nouns are either
singular $;j< #Kfrad% when there is one dual $xd< #u Lnna % when there are two and
plural $lU_ a# % if there are three or more.
The dual is formed by adding 8 +An%i" to the noun stem in the nominati#e and P? +ayn%i"
in the accusati#e and geniti#e.
+,
The final #owel g-ig is not pronounced in pausa and
more collo&uial forms of Arabic $not affecting the Arabic un#ocalised spelling%. The final
ending P g-nig is dropped in the idfa construct form $*tatus constructus% resulting in 8
+A and in the nominati#e and V +ay in the accusati#e and geniti#e $affects the spelling as
well%.
The plurals are formed in two ways. The gsound pluralsg are formed by the addition of a
suffi-. Masculine sound plurals take the forms ~ g-n$a%g in the nominati#e and P? g-
n$a%g in the geniti#e and accusati#e. These do not change whether the noun is definite
or indefinite. Note that in written Arabic $without #ocalisation% dual and sound plural
forms are spelled identically but pronounced differently. The final g-ag is not pronounced
in pausa and in less formal Arabic.
"eminine indefinite sound plurals take 8 g-t$un%g in the nominati#e and 8 g-t$in%g in
the accusati#e and geniti#e. "eminine definite sound plurals take 8 g-t$u%g in the
nominati#e and 8 g-t$i%g in the accusati#e and geniti#e. The broken plurals are formed
by altering the #owel structure according to one of about fi#e established patterns. *ome
nouns ha#e two or more plural forms usually to distinguish between different meanings.
All these feminine forms are spelled identically in Arabic the endings in brackets are not
pronounced in pausa and in less formal Arabic.
[e'it &en'er
Arabic has two genders $ad_ ins % 0masculine0 $;K< #u Lkkar % and 0feminine0 $S<
#u Lnna % e-pressed by pronominal #erbal and ad1ecti#al agreement. )rammatical
gender is generally aligned with natural gender for animate nouns.
Most feminine nouns end in Dj +at but some do not $e.g. B u## 0mother0 ard@
0earth0%.
Already in Classical Arabic the +t marker was not pronounced in pausa. It is written with
a special letter R $Arabic/ DkA>?f ibl tA #arbEt @ a % indicating that a t sound is to be
pronounced in sandhi but not in pausa. *trictly speaking Classical Arabic re&uires this
letter to be pronounced +h, in pausa $hence its form a hA with the two dots of a tA% but
in Modern *tandard Arabic the letter is most often ignored altogether so kdm^< gcityg
gtowng is simply pronounced as #adCna in less formal Arabic $all cases%. ords ending in
bj are usually also feminine and are indeclinable.
The 0feminine0 singular forms are used to e-press 0singulati#es0 which are singulars of
collecti#e nouns.
The ending k ne#er takes an alif marker in the accusati#e indefinite but the ending g-tang
may be still pronounced in non-pausal formal Arabic.
[e'it 2';ective an' a11osition
In Arabic ad1ecti#es and appositions follow the noun and agree with the preceding noun
in state gender and case. "or e-ample/
Ad1ecti#e $mFC na t %/
o 0al+baytu l+kabCr%u" $;?9>EF {?9EF% gthe big houseg
o ra aytu s @ Era%tan" a#Cla%tan" $k@?U_ u~\ {m% gI saw a nice pictureg
Apposition/
o 0ar+rasElu Muh@ a##ad%un" $^UW< ~X;EF% gthe prophet Muhammadg
[e'it "isba
)urther infor#ationH 5isbat %Arabic"
The 5isba $k9DdEF an+nisbah% is a common suffi- to form ad1ecti#es of relation or
pertinence. The suffi- is V +iyy+ for masculine and k? +iyya%t"+ for feminine gender $in
other words it is +iyy+ and is inserted before the gender marker%. E. g. 8d9E LubnAn%u"
g'ebanong VS8d9E lubnAniyy g'ebanese $singular masculine%g k?S8d9E lubnAniyya g'ebanese
$singular feminine%g ~?S8d9E lubnAniyyEn g'ebanese $plural masculine%g 8?S8d9E lubnAniyyAt
g'ebanese $plural feminine%g.
A construct noun and nisba-ad1ecti#e is often e&ui#alent to nominal composition in
English and other languages $solar cell is e&ui#alent to sun cell%.
The Arabic nisba has affected some English ad1ecti#es of Arabic or related origin/ Ira&i
Luwaiti etc.
[e'it 2'verb
\?n 6@ arf
Ad#erbials are e-pressed using ad1ecti#es in the indefinite accusati#e often written with
the ending 8

$e.g. 8N m ayd@ an galsog% but pronounced g-ang e#en if it0s not written $see
accusati#e% e.g./ k?b u]F; 8p>EF ; 1araMa al+kitAba 1irAMatan bat @ C at an literally/ ghe read
the book a slow readingg i.e. g2e read the book slowlyg. This type of construction is
known as the gabsolute accusati#eg $cf. absolute ablati#e in 'atin grammar%.
Ad#erbs can be formed from ad1ecti#es ordinal numerals/ F; ?K ka Cran fre&uently a lot
often F 8S nAdiran rarely T

| awwalan firstly or from nouns/ u

8A Adatan usually F^_

iddan #ery.
The second method to form ad#erbs is to use a preposition and a noun e. g. b bi+ e.g.
k A;Db bi+sur a%ti" swift gwith speedg 9NE8b bi+d@ +d@ abt @ %i" e-actly
[edit] Pronoun
[e'it Personal 1ronouns
In Arabic personal pronouns ha#e forms/ In singular and plural the nd and rd
persons differentiate gender while the st person does not. In the dual there is no st
person and only a single form for each nd and rd person. Traditionally the pronouns
are listed in order rd nd st.
Person 3in(ular 6ual Plural
ost ana $8S% nah@ nu $PWS%
pn' masculine anta ${S% antu#A $8UpS% antu# $=pS%
feminine anti ${S% antunna $P pS%
qr'
masculine huwa $~r%
hu#A %8Ur%
hu# $=r%
feminine hiya $Vr% hunna $P r%
Note/
g anta g is shortened to g ant g in pausa
ghunnag is shortened to ghung in pausa
gnahnug is shortened to gnahng in pausa
g antunna g is shortened to g antun g in pausa
g anti g is shortened to g ant g in pausa
ghuwag is shortened to ghuwg in pausa
ghiyag is shortened to ghiyg in pausa.
4ual forms/ antum 8UpS and hum 8Ur plural feminine antunna P pS and hunna P r are
only used in #ery formal Arabic.
[e'it $nclitic 1ronouns
Enclitic forms of personal pronouns $DJdQXGH ?rbXsGH ad@ +d@ a#A iru l+#uttas @ ila%tu" % may be
affi-ed to nouns $representing geniti#e case possession% and to #erbs $representing
accusati#e a direct ob1ect%. Most of them are clearly related to the full personal
pronouns. They are identical in form in both cases e-cept for the st person singular
which is +C after nouns $geniti#e% and +nC after #erbs $accusati#e%.
Person 3in(ular 6ual Plural
ost +%n"C/+ya V +nA 8d
pn'
masculine +k%a" I
+ku#A 8U>
+ku# =>
feminine +k%i" I
+kunn%a"
P>
qr'
masculine +h%u" i
+hu#A 8U`
+hu# =`
feminine +hA 8`
+hunn%a"
P`
In a less formal Arabic like in many spoken dialects -ka and -ki are pronounced as -ak
and -ik in all case endings thus the case endings $-u -i and -a% are often ignored.
[e'it 6emonstratives
There are two demonstrati#es $RtbuvH ibXNT as#A u al+ iDAra%ti" % near-deictic $0this0% and
far-deictic $0that0%/
hA a Fr f. hA ih%i" r pl. hA ulA %i" ]Tr 0this these0
Alik%a" IE f. tilka I@f pl. ulA ik%a" IE| 0that those0
(lural forms of non-human nouns are treated as feminine singular.
.ery formal Arabic also presents dual forms/
hA Ani/hA ayni %no#./acc.,gen." Fr - Pmr f. hAtAni/hAtayni 8pr - P?pr 0these two0
Anika/ aynika %no#./acc.,gen." ISF - Idm f. tAnika/taynika IS8f - Id?f 0those two0
*ome of the demonstrati#es $h a h ihi h ni hdayni htni htayni huli
lika and ulika should be pronounced with a long gg although the un#ocalised script
doesn0t contain an alif $F%. They ha#e letter gdagger alifg $km;od JE alif an ariyya %
which doesn0t e-ist on Arabic keyboards and is seldom written e#en in the #ocalised
Arabic.
[edit] Numerals
[e'it /ar'inal numerals
Cardinal numerals $DEwJVxH SHK@xH al+a dAd al+as @ liyya % from -. Naught is ifr from which
the words gcipherg and g3erog are ultimately deri#ed.
s @ ifr $;j\%
wAh@ id%un" $^:F|%
i nAn%i" $

8dY%
alA a%tun" $k

C%
arba a%tun" $k

Rb%
a#sa%tun" $k

DU%
sitta%tun" $k

pX%
sab a%tun" $k

R9X%
a#Aniya%tun" $k ?S8U%
7 tis a%tun" $k

RDf%
aDara%tun" $u

;eA%
The endings in brackets are dropped in less formal Arabic and in pausa. Note that R $t
marbt a% is pronounced as simple MaM in this cases. There are cases when -t in R must be
pronounced but not the rest of the ending.
8dY $ i nn$i% % is changed to P?dY $ i nayn$i% % in obli&ue cases. This form is also commonly
used in a less formal Arabic in the nominati#e case.
The numerals and are ad1ecti#es. Thus they follow the noun and agree with gender.
Numerals ha#e a peculiar rule of agreement known as polarity/ A feminine referrer
agrees with a numeral in masculine gender and #ice #ersa e.g. alA u fatayAtin $

C
8?pO% 0three girls0. The noun counted takes indefinite geniti#e plural $as the attribute in a
geniti#e construct.%
Numerals 7 are indeclinable perpetually in the indefinite accusati#e. Numbers
and show gender agreement in the ones and -7 show polarity in the ones. The
gender of ;eA in numbers -7 agrees with the counted noun $unlike the standalone
numeral which shows polarity%. The counted noun takes indefinite accusati#e
singular.
ah@ ada aDara $;eA ^:%
i nA aDara $;eA 8dY%
alA ata aDara $;eA k

C%
The numerals -77 are followed by a noun in the indefinite accusati#e singular as well.
There is agreement in gender with the numerals and and polarity for numerals 7.
iDrEn%a" $|;eA% $dual of %
wAh@ idun wa+ iDrEn%a" $|;eA| ^:F|%
i nAni wa+ iDrEn%a" $|;eA| 8dY%
alA atu wa+ iDrEn%a" $|;eA| kC%
alA En%a" $~fC%
arba En%a" $~Rb%
hole hundreds thousands etc. appear as first terms of geniti#e constructions e.g.
alf%u" layla%tin" wa+layla%tun" $ nights% k@?E| k@?E JE
#i a%tun"/%h" $k< formerly k8<%
alf%un" $JE%
*ractions of a whole smaller than ghalfg are e-pressed by the structure sg. fu l $qRO% pl.
af Al $8RO%.
half nis @ f%un"$JzS%
one-third ul %un" $@%
two-thirds ul An%i" $8@%
one-fourth rub %un" $lb%
three-fourths ala atu arbA %in" $8b kC%
etc.
[e'it yr'inal numerals
wrdinal numerals $DEzEl?QGH SHK@xH al+a dAd at+tartiyabiyyat % higher than gsecondg are formed
using the structure fA il%un" fA ila%tun" /
m. | awwal%u" f. xE| ElA gfirstg
m.

8 Anin $definite form/ VS8EF a + Aniyy % f. k?S8 Aniyya%tun" gsecondg

m. E8 Ali %un" f. kE8 Ali a%tun" gthirdg
m. lbF rAbi %un" f. kRbF rAbi a%tun" gfourthg
m. a<8 A#is%un" f. kD<8 A#isa%tun" gfifthg
m. 8X sAdis%un" f. kX8X sAdisa%tun" gsi-thg
m. lb8X sAbi %un" f. kRb8X sAbi a%tun" gse#enthg
m. P<8 A#in%un" f. kd<8 A#ina%tun" geighthg
m. lX8f tAsi %un" f. kRX8f tAsi a%tun" gninthg
m. ;Q8A ADir%un" f. u;Q8A ADira%tun" gtenthg
etc.
They are ad1ecti#es hence there is agreement in gender with the noun not polarity as
with the cardinal numbers. Note that gsi-thg uses a different older root than the number
si-.
[edit] Verb
UF{ fi l
As in many other *emitic languages Arabic #erb formation is based on a $usually%
triconsonantal root $=|}| t~ i r ulA C % which is not a word in itself but contains the
semantic core. The consonants pK k8t8b for e-ample indicate 0write0 ]; $e.g. ;% _8r8
indicate 0read0 q>] $e.g. qK% 8k8l indicate 0eat0 etc. ords are formed by supplying the
root with a #owel structure and with affi-es. Traditionally Arabic grammarians ha#e used
the root qRO f8 8l 0do0 as a template to discuss word formation. The personal forms a #erb
can take correspond to the forms of the pronouns e-cept that in the rd person dual
gender is differentiated yielding paradigms of forms.
[e'it /on;u(ation) 1refi%es an' suffi%es
H?QLH i1tirAn
In Arabic the grammatical person and number as well as the mood is designated by a
#ariety of prefi-es and suffi-es. Most Arabic #erbs are regular and follow the pattern
detailed below.
"yT$< The Arabic e-ample below is the Arabic #erb kataba $pK% gto writeg. wnly the
prefi-es and suffi-es of the #erb ha#e been #ocalised the #ocalisation of the stems $pK

for the past and p

for the present% has been omitted for reasons of legibility.

(refi-es and suffi-es of the Arabic #erb
Perfective 0m1erfective 3ub;unctive an' ussive
3in(ular
ost
*TEM8t(u) a8*TEM
no written change
{ 9pK pK
pn'
masculine
*TEM8t(a) ta8*TEM
no written change
{ 9pK p>f
feminine
*TEM8ti ta8*TEM8n(a) ta8*TEM8
{ 9pK P ?9

p>f V9

p>f
qr'
masculine
*TEM(8a) ya8*TEM
no written change
pK p>m
feminine
*TEM8at ta8*TEM
no written change
{ 9pK p>f
6ual
pn'
masculine
feminine
*TEM8tum ta8*TEM8n(i) ta8*TEM8
8U

9pK

89p>f 89p>f
qr' masculine
*TEM8 ya8*TEM8n(i) ya8*TEM8
89pK

89p>m 89p>m
feminine
*TEM8at ta8*TEM8n(i) ta8*TEM8
8p9pK

89p>f 89p>f
Plural
ost
*TEM8n na8*TEM
no written change
8d9pK p>S
pn'
masculine
*TEM8tum ta8*TEM8n(a) ta8*TEM8
=p

9pK ~9p>f F~9p>f

feminine
*TEM8tunna ta8*TEM8na
no written change
P p

9pK P 9p>f
qr'
masculine
*TEM8
ya8*TEM8
n(a)
ya8*TEM8
F~9pK ~9p>m F~9p>m
feminine
*TEM8na ya8*TEM8na
no written change
P 9pK P 9p>m
In un#ocalised Arabic {9pK - katabtu katabta katabti and katabat are all written the
same. "orms katabtu and katabta and e#en katabti can be abbre#iated to gkatabtg in
spoken Arabic and in pausa making them also sound the same.
gkatabag can be abbre#iated to gkatabg in spoken Arabic and in pausa.
4ual #erb and feminine plural forms are only used in #ery formal Arabic.
F $alif% in final F~ $-% is silent.
[e'it Perfective41erfect (1ast tense)
=bXGH al+#Ad@ C
In the perfecti#e $occasionally called 0perfect0% form the perfecti#e stem fa al is affi-ed
with a personal ending e. g. kataba 0he wrote0 1ara a 0he read0. The perfecti#e
e-presses a completed action i.e. mostly past tense. The second #owel is MaM in most
#erbs but MiM in some #erbs $especially intransiti#e% and MuM in a few $especially stati#e
#erbs whose meaning is gbe g or gbecome g where is an ad1ecti#e usually naming a
permanent or semi-permanent &uality e.g. kabura 0he became big he grew up0%.
Person 3in(ular 6ual Plural
ost fa al+tu % { @RO" fa al+nA % 8d@RO"
pn'
masculine fa al+ta % { @RO"
fa al+tu#A % 8Up@RO"
fa al+tu# % =p@RO"
feminine fa al+ti $ { @RO" fa al+tunna $ P p@RO"
qr'
masculine fa al+a % qRO" fa al+A % CRO" fa al+E % " F~@RO
+,
feminine fa al+at % { @RO" fa al+atA % 8p@RO" fa al+na % P @RO"
[e'it 0m1erfective (1resent tense)
gtbsXGH al+#ud@ Ari
The imperfecti#e e-presses an action in progress or incompleted i.e. mostly present
tense. There are se#eral #owel patterns $a+a a+u a+i% the root can take. The root takes a
prefi- as well as a suffi- to build the #erb form. E. g. p>m yaktubu 0he is writing0. Note the
co-incidence of rd f. sg. and nd m. sg. To e-plain the future tense it is possible to use
the prefi- X sa- in front of the imperfecti#e forms $or fully written ~X sawfa% e.g. p>?X
sayaktubu or p>m ~X sawfa yaktubu ghe will writeg.
Person 3in(ular 6ual Plural
ost a+f al+u na+f al+u
pn'
masculine ta+f al+u
ta+f al+Ani
ta+f al+Ena
feminine ta+f al+Cna ta+f al+na
qr'
masculine ya+f al+u ya+f al+Ani ya+f al+Ena
feminine ta+f al+u ta+f al+Ani ya+f al+na
[e'it #oo'
DGbc h@ Ala
Modal forms can be deri#ed from the imperfecti#e stem/ the sub1uncti#e $Adhf #ans @ Eb%
by $roughly speaking% replacing the final #owel by a the 1ussi#e $]Wf #a 6E# % by
dropping this a of the sub1uncti#e. In a less formal Arabic and in spoken dialects #erbs in
the indicati#e mood $gA{?f #arfE% ha#e shortened endings identical to sub1uncti#e and
1ussi#e.
The imperati#e $?fxH DIEV s @ CBatu l+ a#r%i" % $positi#e only nd person% is formed by
dropping the #erbal prefi- from the imperfecti#e 1ussi#e stem e.g. B^ 1addi# gpresentvg.
If the result starts with two consonants followed by a #owel $gag or gig% an elidible alif is
added to the beginning of the word usually pronounced as gig e.g. qDF iBsil gwashvg or
qROF if al gdovg if the present form #owel is gug then the alif is also pronounced as gug e.g.
pKF uktub gwritevg. Negati#e imperati#es are formed from 1ussi#e.
Note/ the e-ception to the abo#e rule is the form $or stem% I. #erbs. In these #erbs a
non-elidible alif pronounced as gag is always prefi-ed to the imperfect 1ussi#e form e.g.
qX arsil gsendvg J
, +
ad@ if gaddvg.
The sub1uncti#e is used in subordinate clauses after certain con1unctions. The 1ussi#e is
used in negation in negati#e imperati#es and in the hortati#e li1ussi#e. "or e-ample/ .
sg. m./
imperfect indicati#e taf alu 0you are doing0
sub1uncti#e an taf ala 0that you do0
1ussi#e lA taf al 0do notv0
energic taf alanna
imperati#e if al 0dov0.
[e'it oice
DIEV s @ CBa
Arabic has two #erbal #oices acti#e $AJFXGH DIEV s @ CBatu l+#a lE# % and passi#e $ DIEV
AXGH s @ CBatu l+#a hEl %. The passi#e #oice is e-pressed by a change in #ocali3ation and
is normally not e-pressed in un#ocali3ed writing. "or e-ample/
acti#e qRO fa ala 0he did0 qRjm yaf alu 0he is doing0 q

O
passi#e qRO fu ila 0it was done0 qRjm yuf alu 0it is being done0 q

R O

Notice that acti#e and passi#e forms are spelled identically in Arabic.
[e'it +eak roots
!oots containing one or two of the radicals w $wAw% y $yA% or $ha#6a% often lead to
#erbs with special phonological rules because these radicals can be influenced by their
surroundings. *uch #erbs are called 0weak0 $=erba infir#a 0weak #erbs0% and their
paradigms must be gi#en special attention. In the case of ha#6a these peculiarities are
mainly orthographical since ha#6a is not sub1ect to elision $the orthography of ha#6a
and alif is unsystematic due to confusion in early Islamic times%. According to the
position of the weak radical in the root the root can be classified into four classes/ first
weak second weak third weak and doubled where both the second and third radicals
are identical. *ome roots fall into more than one category at once.
[e'it *ormation of 'erive' stems (7forms7)
Arabic #erb morphology includes augmentations of the root. *ome augmentations are
le-ical deri=ations $they result in gnew wordsg% but others are inflectional/ they are part
of the #erb0s con1ugation. estern scholars ha#e assigned !oman numerals to the
#arious patterns of deri#ation which are called gformsg. Also the root is designated
g"orm Ig. A particular form does not ha#e a consistent meaning across #erbs although it
has a gusualg meaning. In addition no #erb root has all the deri#ations. The forms
numbered beyond !oman numeral are rare and obsolescent for which reason many
elementary grammars omit them.
In the following chart a bol'face' transliteration indicates a word that would actually
e-ist in an Arabic le-icon for this particular root $ - - % $f - - l - right-to-left%.
erbs
+,
6erive' nouns
+,
2ctive voice Passive voice
2ctive
1artici1le
Passive
1artici1le
#as'ar
Past (qr'
s(.
masc.)
Present
(qr' s(.
masc.)
Past
(qr' s(.
masc.)
Present
(qr' s(.
masc.)
3(. masc. nom.
0 fa ala yaf alu fu ila yuf alu f ilun maf lun Many
00 fa ala yufa ilu fu ila yufa alu #ufa ilun #ufa alun taf !lun
000 fA ala yufA ilu fE ila yufA alu #ufA ilun #ufA alun fi Alun
0 af ala yuf ilu uf ila yuf alu #uf ilun #uf alun if Alun
tafa ala yatafa alu tufu ila yutafa alu #utafa ilun #utafa alun tafa ulun
0 taf ala yataf alu tufE ila yutafA alu #utafA ilun #utafA alun taf ulun
00 infa ala yanfa ilu n/a munfa ilun #unfa alun infi lun
000 ifta ala yafta ilu uftu ila yufta alu #ufta ilun mufta alun ifti Alun
0 if alla yaf allu n/a #uf allun n/a if ilAlun
istaf ala yastaf ilu ustuf ila yustaf alu #ustaf ilun #ustaf alun istif Alun
00 if aw ala yaf aw ilu uf ulila yuf aw alu #uf aw ilun #uf aw alun if C Alun
The #owels for the #arious forms are summari3ed in this table/
2ctive voice Passive voice
2ctive
1artici1le
Passive
1artici1le
#as'ar
Past (qr'
s(.
masc.)
Present
(qr' s(.
masc.)
Past
(qr'
s(.
masc.)
Present
(qr' s(.
masc.)
Before first
root
consonant
(if vowel is
1resent)
a in
"orms I.-
.I. In
"orms
.II-II
one has i
when the
ham3a is
not
elided.
a e-cept
in "orms
II-I.
where it0s
u.
u
u and a
after the
t of
"orms .
and .I
u
u e-cept in
"orm I
where it0s
a.
a in "orms II
. and .I. In
"orms .II-
II one has i
when the
ham3a is not
elided.
ust before
pn' root
consonant
a A or
none
a A or
none
u E or
none
a A or
none
a A or
none
a A or
none
i a A or
none
ust before
thir' root
consonant
a "orm I a
i or u. a
in "orms
. .I and
i a i e-cept in
"orm I
where it0s
a.
a e-cept in
"orm I
where it0s
E.
C in "orm II
u in "orms .
and .I A
elsewhere
I i in
others.
2fter final
root
consonant)
qr' 1erson
sin(.
in'icative
a u a u nMa nMa nMa
The middle #ocal in form I acti#e #oice can be a i or u depending on the root applied in
form I. The e-act #ocali3ation depends on the word form. "orms I $if Alla % III
$if awwala % I. $if anlala % and . $if anlA % are #ery rare.
+7,
Common uses of those stems include/
fa ala is often used to make an intransiti#e #erb transiti#e. Eg/ karu#a is gbe
nobleg but karra#a is gmake $someone% to be nobleg or more idiomatically to
ghonorg.
infa ala gi#es a passi#e meaning. Eg/ kasara gbreakg and inkasara gbe brokeng.
if alla is used only to render stati#e #erbs meaning gto be or become g where
is a color or physical defect eg/ ih@ #arra gturn red blushg or it @ raDDa ggo deafg.
A more complete list of meanings is found at iktionary0s appendi- on Arabic #erb
forms.
[e'it Partici1le
E#ery #erb has a corresponding acti#e participle and most ha#e passi#e participles. E.g.
#u alli# 0teacher0 is the acti#e participle to stem II. of the root +l+# $0know0%.
The acti#e participle to *tem I is fA ilun and the passi#e participle is #af Elun .
*tems II- take prefi- #u+ and nominal endings for both the participles acti#e
and passi#e. The difference between the two participles is only in the #owel
between the last two root letters which is +i+ for acti#e and +a+ for passi#e $e.g. II.
acti#e #u+fa il+un and passi#e #u+fa al+un &".
[e'it erbal noun (mas'ar)
In addition to a participle there is a #erbal noun $in Arabic tKdf #as @ dar literally
meaning gsourceg% sometimes called a gerund which is similar to English gerunds and
#erb-deri#ed nouns of #arious sorts $e.g. 0running0 and 0a run0 from 0to run0 0ob1ection0
from 0to ob1ect0%. As shown by the English e-amples its meaning refers both to the act of
doing something and $by fre&uent semantic e-tension% to its result. wne of its syntactic
functions is as a #erbal complement of another #erb and this usage it corresponds to
the English gerund or infiniti#e $/e pre=ented #e fro# running or /e began to run%.
#erbal noun formation to stem I is irregular.
the #erbal noun to stem II is taf Clun . "or e-ample/ ta rC un 0date history0 is the
#erbal noun to stem II. of 8r8 $0date0%.
stem III often forms its #erbal noun with the feminine form of the passi#e
participle so for sA ada ghe helpedg produces the #erbal noun #usA adatun .
There are also some #erbal noun of the form fi Alun / Ahada ghe stro#eg yields
ihAdun $a struggle for a cause or purpose%.
*ome well-known e-amples of #erbal nouns are "at$see "at% $"orm I% Tanm $"orm
II% 1ihd $"orm III% Islm $"orm I.% Intifa $feminine of "orm .III #erbal noun% and
Isti&ll $"orm %.
[edit] "ynta#
[e'it &enitive construction ( i'fa )
A noun may be defined more closely by a subse&uent noun in the geniti#e $kO8Y idfa
literally gan additiong%. The relation is hierarchical the first term $8NUEF al+#ud@ Af% go#erns
the second term $i?EY 8NUEF al+#ud@ Af ilayhi%. E. g. q_ {?b baytu ra ul%in" 0the house of a
man0 0a man0s house0. The construction as a whole represents a nominal phrase the
state of which is inherited from the state of the second term. The first term must gbe in
construct stateg namely it cannot carry the definite article nor the tanween. )eniti#e
constructions of multiple terms are possible. In this case all but the final term take
construct state and all but the first member take the geniti#e case.
This construction is typical for a *emitic language. In many cases the two members
become a fi-ed coined phrase the idfa being used as the e&ui#alent of nominal
composition in some Indo-European languages $which does not e-ist in Arabic%. k9@EF {?b
baytu+t @ +t @ alabati thus may mean either 0house of the $certain known% students0 or 0the
student hostel0.
Note/ R $t marbt a % of the first term must always ha#e a pronounced -t $after MaM%. This
applies to spoken Arabic as well.
[e'it +or' or'er
Classical Arabic tends to prefer the word order .*w $#erb before sub1ect% rather than
*.w $sub1ect before #erb%. 2owe#er the word order is fairly fle-ible since words are
tagged by case endings. *ub1ect pronouns are normally omitted e-cept for emphasis or
when using a participle as a #erb $participles are not marked for person%. Au-iliary #erbs
precede main #erbs and prepositions precede their ob1ects.
Ad1ecti#es follow the noun they are modifying and agree with the noun in case gender
number and state/ "or e-ample k@?U_ {db gbint$un% amla$tun% g ga beautiful girlg but {d9EF
k@?UoEF gal-bintu l- amla$tu% g gthe beautiful girlg. $Compare k@?U_ {d9EF gal-bint$u% amla$tun% g
gthe girl is beautifulg.% Elati#e ad1ecti#es howe#er precede their modifying noun do not
agree with it and re&uire that the noun be in the geniti#e case $see below%.
Note that case endings are dropped in pausal forms in collo&uial Arabic and in less
formal M*A $g"ormal *poken Arabicg% hence *.w is more common in spoken Arabic.
[e'it inna
The sub1ect of a sentence can be topicali3ed and emphasi3ed by mo#ing it to the
beginning of the sentence and preceding it with the word Y inna gindeedg. E-amples
are q?U_ {S ISY g innaka anta amlun g ghou are beautiful indeedg or ]8 ]8UDEF Y g inna s-
sama 3ar&ug gThe sky is blue indeedg. $In older te-ts g inna g was translated g#erilyg.%
g inna g along with its gsisterg terms g anna g $gthatg as in gI think that ...g% g inna g $gthatg
after ~mM8 1Ala/ya1Elu gsayg% P>E| g$wa-%lkin$na%g gbutg and K gkaannag gas ifg re&uire
that they be immediately followed by a noun in the accusati#e case or an attached
pronominal suffi-.
[e'it "umbers
Numbers beha#e in a &uite complicated fashion. gwhid-g goneg and g i nn- g gtwog are
ad1ecti#es following the noun and agreeing with it. g al at- g gthreeg through g aarat- g
gteng re&uire a following noun in the geniti#e plural but agree with the noun in gender
while taking the case re&uired by the surrounding synta-. g ahada aara g gele#eng
through gtis ata aara g gnineteeng re&uire a following noun in the accusati#e singular
agree with the noun in gender and are in#ariable for case e-cept for g i n aaraM i nay
aara g gtwel#eg. Numbers abo#e this beha#e entirely as nouns showing case
agreement as re&uired by the surrounding synta- no gender agreement and a following
noun in a fi-ed case. g irna g gtwentyg through gtis na g gninetyg re&uire the accusati#e
singular gmi at- g ghundredg and up re&uire the geniti#e singular. The numbers
themsel#es decline in #arious fashions for e-ample g irna g gtwentyg through gtis na g
gninetyg decline as masculine plural nouns while gmi at- g ghundredg declines as a
feminine singular noun and g alf- g gthousandg as a masculine singular noun. gmi at- g
ghundredg and g alf- g gthousandg can themsel#es be modified by numbers $to form
numbers such as or % and will be declined appropriately. $gmi atni g and gg
g alfni g gg with dual endings g al atu lfin g gg with g alf g in the plural
geniti#e but g al u mi atin g gg since gmi at- g appears to ha#e no plural.% In compound
numbers the last number dictates the declension of the associated noun. 'arge
compound numbers can be e-tremely complicated e.g./
g alfun wa-tis u mi atin wa-tis u sinn$a% g g77 yearsg
gba da alfin wa-tis i mi atin wa-tis i sinn$a% g gafter 77 yearsg
g arba atun wa-tis na alfan wa- amnu-mi atin wa- al atun wa-sittna
sanat$an%g g7 yearsg
gba da arba atin wa-tis na alfan wa- amn-mi atin wa- al atin wa-sittna
sanat$an%g gafter 7 yearsg
g i n aara alfan wa-mi atni wa- nni wa- irna sanat$an% g g yearsg
gba da i nay aara alfan wa-mi atayni wa- nayni wa- irna sanat$an% g gafter
yearsg
g i n aara alfan wa-mi atni wa-sanatn$i% g g yearsg
gba da i nay aara alfan wa-mi atayni wa-sanatayn$i% g gafter yearsg
[e'it yther
wb1ect pronouns are clitics and are attached to the #erb e.g. arA+hA gI see herg.
(ossessi#e pronouns are likewise attached to the noun they modify e.g. gkitbu-hug ghis
bookg. The definite article gal-g is a clitic as are the prepositions gli-g gtog and gbi-g
ginMwithg and the con1unctions gka-g gasg and gfa-g gthus sog.
[edit] "ee also
Arabic language
Irab $F;AY%
'iterary Arabic
.arieties of Arabic
Arabic alphabet
uranic Arabic Corpus
!omani3ation of Arabic
iki-ook/ 'earn Arabic
[edit] $eferen%es
1. )oodchild (hilip. !ifference in ,hilosophy of (eligion . (age .
2. *ayce Archibald 2enry. $ntroduction to the Science of Language . (age
.
3. Alaa Elgibali and El-*aid M. -adawi. *nderstanding ArabicH Essays in
;onte#porary Arabic Linguistics in /onor of El+Said M. adawi 77. (age .
4. 2aywood and Nahmad $7% 0A new Arabic )rammar0 nd edition p.
5. In Arabic te-ts An Alef $ F" is added after the aw $|" in rd person masculine
pronouns but is not #oiced. It is called m;jpEF JE $distinction Alef%
6. Note/ hen a #erb in Arabic ends with a #owel the #owel is replaced with the
corresponding short #ocal when con#erted into impariti#e.
7. In 0sound0 #erbs the root consonants $radicals% appear unchanged in inflected
forms #erbs which are not sound are called 0weak0 and either ha#e ham3a $%
ww $|% or y $t% as one of their radicals or ha#e the same radical in the middle
and final position.
8. Though not considered #erbs these deri#ed nouns ha#e a meaning related to
the #erb. These are listed under chapters of #erbs in Laren !ydings gA
!eference )rammar of Modern *tandard Arabicg $%
9. . right A Nra##ar of the Arabic Language rd edition 7 #ol. I p. 7.
I*-N $reprint%
[edit] &#ternal links