Learn Arabic in Hundred Step- Arabic Grammar
If you encounter a cluster of nouns, then you should try to find out if it is an Idaafa structure.
23. The Simple Idaafa is made of two nouns. The Complex Idaafa is made of 3 or more. As expected, such sequences will create a Syntactical Environment where some nouns will play double grammatical functions.
a. the university building بناءُ الجامعةِ
b. the door of the university building بابُ بناءِ الجامعةِ
24. The Diptotes is a category of proper names of individuals, countries, cities, and towns. These nouns share the following characteristics:
a. They do not take the definite article.
b. In spite of the absence of the definite article, they do not take Nunation.
c. In the genitive case they take the accusative case marker instead.
a. Omer’s hobbies هواياتُ عمرَ
b. from Baghdad من بغدادَ
25. Demonstrative Pronouns. The use of”this/that & these/those”in Arabic is determined by the number and gender of the noun/adjective they introduce.
a. Singulars are (f) هذهِ، (f)، هذا ،تلك ذلكَ
b. Plurals are هؤلاءِ ، أولئكَ (no gender distinction)
26. The Equational Sentences
26. The Equational Sentences. As indicated earlier, an equational sentence in Arabic is a sentence without a verb. It consists of two parts, a subject and a predicate. The subject could be (a) a demonstrative pronoun, (b) a personal pronoun, or (c) a noun, while the predicate may be either of these, as well as (c) an adjective, (d) an adverb, or (e) a prepositional phrase.
(a) a subject demonstrative pronoun .هذهِ کليَّة ٌ
(b) a subject personal pronoun .أنا محمدٌ
(c) a subject noun الاستاذ ُ في الصفِّ.
(a) a predicate personal pronoun الاستاذ ُ أنا.
(b) a predicate noun .الاستاذ ُ محمدٌّ
(c) a predicate indefinite adjective الاستاذ ُ جديدٌ .
(d) a predicate adverb الاستاذ ُ هناكَ.
(e) a predicate prep. phrase الاستاذ ُ فِي المکتبِ.
A pronoun of separation could be added in example (b) above, where both the subject and the predicate are nouns.
الاستاذ ُ هو محمدٌّ.
27. Interrogative Particles. أ / هلare interrogative particles which are used to introduce questions that may be answered with either Yes or No.
أ ؟هل هذا مکتبٌ؟
Is this an office?
There is some phonological restriction on the use of أwhen the following word starts with a Hamza, such as:
أأنتَ جديدٌ هنا؟
It is better, in fact easier phonetically, to use هل
هل أنتَ جديدٌ هنا؟
28. Indefinite Noun Subject. You cannot start a sentence in Arabic with an indefinite noun subject. Under such circumstances, the subject needs to be moved inside the sentence and, therefore, will take the predicate position, not its syntactical function.
في الصفِّ طالباتٌ مصرياتٌ.
There are Egyptian students (f) in the classroom.
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29. Negating Equational Sentences
29. Negating Equational Sentences. This type of Arabic sentence is negated by using ليسَ. Remember that the predicate noun or adjective has to be in the accuasative case.
The professor is not Egyptian. ليسَ الاستاذ ُ مصريَّاً.
30. The Subject markers for verbs in the past tense are suffixed to the verb stem in order to demonstrate subject/verb agreement.
They are:
هو (-َ) ، هي (ـَتْ) ، أنتَ (ـْتَ) ، أنتِ (ـْتِ) ، أنا (ـْتُ)
هُم (ـوا) ، هنَّ (-ْنَ) ، أنتم (ـْتُم) ، أنتُنَّ (ـْـتُنَّ) ، نحنُ (ـْـنا)
31. The Different Forms ofليسَ . When subject pronouns are attached to ليسَ, it will take the following forms:
أنا لستُ نحنُ لسنا
أنتَ لستَ أنتم لستُم
أنتِ لستِ أنتُنَّ لستُنَّ
هو ليسَ هم ليسوا
هي ليسَتْ هُنَّ لسنَ
32. Interrogative Particles أ / هل (revisited)
32. Interrogative Particles أ / هل (revisited). The Arabic language does not tolerate the use of هل with any form of ليسَ in order to make a question. You have to stick with . أ
أليسَ الطالبُ في المکتبةِ؟
Isn’t the student (m) in the library?
33. The Idaafa (revisited). Arabic grammar does not allow anything to be placed between the first and second term of Idaafa except for a demonstrative pronoun. Therefore,
(a) the student’s book کتابُ الطالبةِ
is correct and
(b) this student’s book کتابُ هذهِ الطالبةِ
is also correct. But,
(c) کتابُها الطالبةِ
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is incorrect due to the fact that the possessivepronoun ( ـها ) is inserted between the first and second terms ofIdaafa.