Arabic Derived Nouns Learn Arabic Free Online
Arabic Derived Nouns
Where these Nouns Fit in
Nouns in Arabic – we actually mean the broader part of speech known as اسم – can be divided into categories based on many considerations such as gender, plurality, grammatical inflection, and more. For example, if we want to divide nouns based on gender, we get the two categories Masculine and Feminine; every noun is either masculine or feminine, but not both and not neither.
Similarly, we can divide nouns based on derivation. When we do this, we get the following three categories:
- جَامِد (static noun): those that are not derived from anything and nothing is derived from them
- مَصْدَر (gerund): those that are not derived from anything, but other words are derived from them
- مُشْتَقّ (derived noun): those that are derived from a gerund
That is to say, any noun in Arabic is either not derived and nothing is derived from it, it is a source of derivation, or it is derived. All nouns must fall into one, and only one, of these categories.
The derived noun is a combination of a root meaning that we are given from its gerund, plus a particular pattern that adds a fixed connotation to that meaning. For example, the gerund “helping”, can be placed on a pattern for the active participle (one of the derived nouns in Arabic). This derived noun will add the connotation of the one who does an action. Hence we get “the one who helps”, or simply “helper”.
Technically, verbs are also derived since they are a combination of a root meaning that we get from the gerund plus a particular pattern that adds a connotation. In the case of verbs, the connotations added are tense (past, present, etc), voice (active, passive), person (first, second, etc), plurality, gender, and perhaps others. But we do not discuss verbs here. For conjugation of verbs, see the tutorial entitled Verb Conjugation.
Introduction
There are seven types of derived nouns. Each one of these is a class of noun that comes with a set of patterns (and perhaps some morphological rules) that tell us how to construct it, as well as a connotation that it adds to the base meaning which helps us understand its meaning.
We will discuss each of these seven nouns in turn by explaining how to take a set of base letters and construct the noun, and we will precisely define the connotation the noun adds to the base meaning. Here we give an overview and loose definitions as a gentle introduction.
- اسم الفاعل (active participle): the one that enacts the base meaning
- اسم المبالغة (hyperbolic participle): the one that enacts the base meaning exaggeratedly
- اسم المفعول (passive participle): the one upon whom the base meaning is enacted
- الصفة المشبهة (resembling participle): the one who enacts (or upon whom is enacted) the base meaning intrinsically
- اسم الآلة (utilitarian noun): the thing used to enact the base meaning
- اسم الظرف (locative noun): the time when or the place where the base meaning is enacted
- اسم التفضيل (comparative & superlative): the one who enacts (or upon whom is enacted) the base meaning the most
Below is a table of examples that will help bring these definitions into perspective. For each type of noun, we have chosen a particular pattern from its inventory of patterns as well as a sample gerund. We place the gerund on that pattern and explain the meaning of the resulting word.
| Example | Derived Noun | |||
| Meaning | Resulting Word | Sample
Gerund |
One of the Patterns | |
| one who hits i.e. hitter |
ضَارِب | ضرب hitting |
فَاعِل | اِسْم الفَاعِل |
| one who travels a lot
i.e. globetrotter |
رَحَّالَة | رحيل traveling |
فَعَّالَة | اِسْم المُبَالَغَة |
| that which is understood
i.e. concept |
مَفْهُوْم | فهم comprehension |
مَفْعُوْل | اِسْم المَفْعُوْل |
| one who knows ipso facto i.e. the all-knowing |
عَلِيْم | علم knowing |
فَعِيْل | الصِفَة المُشَبَّهَة |
| thing that is used to open i.e. key |
مِفْتَاح | فتح opening |
مِفْعَال | اِسْم الآلَة |
| place where people play i.e. playground |
مَلْعَب | لعب playing |
مَفْعَل | اِسْم الظَرْف |
| more/most far i.e. further/furthest |
أَقْصى | قصو being far |
أَفْعَل | اِسْم التَفْضِيْل |
Below is a very similar chart. Here, however, we use the same base letters to illustrate all of the derived nouns. This gives a clear picture of the function of each of them.
| Example | Derived Noun | |||
| Meaning | Resulting Word | Gerund | One of the Patterns | |
| one who knows (scholar, scientist) |
عَالِم | علم knowing |
فَاعِل | اِسْم الفَاعِل |
| one who knows a lot (erudite) |
عَلاَّمَة | فَعَّالَة | اِسْم المُبَالَغَة | |
| that which is known (known, fixed, determined) |
مَعْلُوْم | مَفْعُوْل | اِسْم المَفْعُوْل | |
| one who knows intrinsically (the all-knowing) |
عَلِيْم | فَعِيْل | الصِفَة المُشَبَّهَة | |
| that through which we know (God) (the world) |
عَالَم | فَاعَل | اِسْم الآلَة | |
| where/when we know (landmark) |
مَعْلَم | مَفْعَل | اِسْم الظَرْف | |
| one who knows the most (most learned) |
أَعْلَم | أَفْعَل | اِسْم التَفْضِيْل | |
It is important to note that these are nouns just like any other nouns. When used in a sentence, they have the capacity to become the subject, the predicate, the object of a verb, possessive, and anything else. For example, the active participle in the following sentence is the object of the verb and the passive participle is the subject of that verb:
ضَرَبَ المَضْرُوْبُ الضَارِبَ
the one who was hit .. hit the hitter
Similarly, the locative noun in the following sentence is the subject of the sentence and it is not being used as a location, per se:
المَلْجَأُ لَيْسَ بَيْنَ أَشْدَاقِ التِمْسَاحِ
escape is not between the jaws of the crocodile
Another point to note is that many of these noun types can be used as adjectives just as they can be used as nouns. For example, compare the two uses of the same word in the following sentence:
اِسْتَجَبْتُ الرَجُلَ العَالِمَ وعَالِماً آخَرَ
I interrogated the knowledgeable man as well as another scholar