ʾIʿrab
System of suffixes of Classical Arabic
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ʾIÊ¿rÄb (Ø¥ÙعÙرÙاب, IPA: [ÊiÊraËb]) is an Arabic term for the declension system of nominal, adjectival, or verbal suffixes of Classical Arabic to mark grammatical case. These suffixes are written in fully vocalized Arabic texts, notably the QurâÄn or texts written for children or Arabic learners, and they are articulated when a text is formally read aloud, but they do not survive in any spoken dialect of Arabic. Even in Literary Arabic, these suffixes are often not pronounced in pausa (Ù±ÙÙÙÙÙÙÙ al-waqf); i.e. when the word occurs at the end of the sentence, in accordance with certain rules of Arabic pronunciation. (That is, the nunation suffix -n is generally dropped at the end of a sentence or line of poetry, with the notable exception of the nuniyya; the vowel suffix may or may not be, depending on the requirements of metre.) Depending on the knowledge of ʾiÊ¿rÄb, some Arabic speakers may omit case endings when reading aloud in Modern Standard Arabic, thus making it similar to spoken dialects. Many Arabic textbooks for foreigners teach Arabic without a heavy focus on ʾiÊ¿rÄb, either omitting the endings altogether or only giving a small introduction. Arabic without case endings may require a different and fixed word order, similar to spoken Arabic dialects.
Etymology
Grammatical cases
Case is not shown in standard orthography, with the exception of indefinite accusative nouns ending in any letter but tÄâ marbÅ«á¹ah (Ø©) or alif followed by hamzah (Ø¡), where the -a(n) "sits" on the letter before an alif added at the end of the word (the alif shows up even in unvowelled texts). Cases, however, are marked in the Qur'an, children's books, and to remove ambiguous situations. If marked, it is shown at the end of the noun. Further information on the types of declensions is discussed in the following section, along with examples. Grammatical case endings are not pronounced in pausa and in less formal forms of Arabic. In vocalised Arabic (where vowel points are written), the case endings may be written even if they are not pronounced. Some Arabic textbooks or children's books skip case endings in vocalised Arabic, thus allowing both types of pronunciation.
Nominative case
The nominative (al-marfÅ«â Ù±ÙÙÙ ÙرÙÙÙÙعÙ) is used in several situations:
- For the subject of a verbal sentence.
- For the subject and predicate of a non-verbal (equational) sentence, with some notable exceptions.
- For certain adverbs.
- For the citation form of words.
For singular nouns and broken plurals, it is marked as a usually unwritten ضÙÙ ÙÙØ© á¸ammah (-u) for the definite or á¸ammah + nunation (-un) for the indefinite. The dual and regular masculine plural are formed by adding ÙÙاÙÙ -an(i) and ÙÙÙÙÙ -Å«n(a) respectively (just ÙÙا -Ä and ÙÙÙ -Å« in the construct state). The regular feminine plural is formed by adding ÙÙات٠-Ät(u) in the definite and ÙÙات٠-Ät(un) in the indefinite (same spelling).
Accusative case
The accusative (al-manṣūb Ù±ÙÙÙ ÙÙÙصÙÙب) has several uses:
- The subject of an equational (non-verbal) sentence, if it is initiated with إ٠inna, or one of its sisters. The particles are subordinating conjunctions which require that the subject of the subordinate (complement) clause be in the accusative case.
- The predicate of ÙÙاÙÙ / ÙÙÙÙÙÙÙ kÄna/yakÅ«nu "be" and its sisters (there are 13 of these verbs).[1] Hence, Ù±ÙÙبÙÙÙت٠جÙÙ ÙÙÙÙØ©Ù al-bintu jamÄ«latun 'the girl is beautiful' but Ù±ÙÙبÙÙÙت٠ÙÙاÙÙت٠جÙÙ ÙÙÙÙØ©Ù al-bintu kÄnat jamÄ«latan 'the girl was beautiful' ("beautiful" is spelled the same way in both cases).
- Both the subject and the predicate of ظÙÙÙ áºanna and its sisters in an equational clause.
- As the complement of verbs of "seeming".
- The object of a transitive verb
- Most adverbs.
- Semi-prepositions.
- Internal object/cognate accusative structure
- The accusative of specification (al-tamyÄ«z, Ù±ÙتÙÙÙ ÙÙÙÙزÙ).
- The accusative of purpose (al-mafâÅ«l li-ajlihi, Ù±ÙÙÙ ÙÙÙعÙÙÙÙ ÙÙØ£ÙجÙÙÙÙÙ).
- The circumstantial accusative (al-ḥÄl, Ù±ÙÙØÙاÙ).
- Objects of (kam, ÙÙÙ Ù) 'how much/how many'.
- Cardinal and ordinal numbers from 11, and 13-19
- Counted nouns of numbers 11â99
- Exclamation of astonishment. i.e.: mÄ ajmalahÄ!, !Ù Ùا Ø£ÙجÙÙ ÙÙÙÙÙا 'Oh, how beautiful she is!'
- Vocative first term of construct. ÙÙا عبد٠اÙÙÙÙ yÄ âabd-a-llah! "Oh, Abdallah!"
- Nouns following exceptive particles in non-negative sentences.
- The noun following the absolute, or categorical, negation ÙÙا lÄ "No".
For singular nouns and broken plurals, it is marked as a usually unwritten ÙÙتÙØÙØ© fatḥah (-a) for the definite or fatḥah + nunation (-an) for the indefinite. For the indefinite accusative, the fatḥah + nunation is added to an ا alif, e.g. ÙÙا, which is added to the ending of all nouns not ending with a alif followed by hamzah or a tÄâ marbÅ«á¹ah. This is the only case (when alif is written), which affects the unvocalised written Arabic (e.g. بÙÙÙتا٠bayt-an). The dual and regular masculine plural are formed by adding ÙÙÙÙÙÙ -ayn(i) and ÙÙÙÙÙ -Ä«n(a) respectively (spelled identically!) (ÙÙÙÙ -ay and ÙÙÙ -Ä« in the construct state, again, spelled identically). The regular feminine plural is formed by adding ÙÙات٠-Ät(i) in the definite and -Ät(in) in the indefinite (spelled identically). Some forms of indefinite accusative are mandatory even for spoken and pausal forms of Arabic, sometimes -an is changed to a simple -a in pausa or spoken Arabic.
Diptotes never take an alif ending in the written Arabic and are never pronounced with the ending -an.
Genitive case
The genitive case (al-majrÅ«r, Ù±ÙÙÙ ÙجÙرÙÙرÙ)
- Objects of prepositions.
- Construct case: the second, third, fourth, etc. term of an iá¸Äfah (Ø¥ÙضÙاÙÙØ©Ù genitive construction).
- The object of a locative adverb.
- Elative (comparative/superlative) adjectives behave similarly: Ø£ÙØ·ÙÙÙÙÙ ÙÙÙÙد٠aá¹walu waladin 'tallest boy'.
For singular nouns and broken plurals, it is marked as a usually unwritten ÙÙسÙرÙØ© kasrah (-i) for the definite or kasrah + nunation (-in) for the indefinite. The dual and regular masculine plural are formed by adding ÙÙÙÙÙÙ -ayn(i) and ÙÙÙÙÙÙ -Ä«n(a) respectively (spelled identically) (ÙÙÙÙ -ay and ÙÙÙ -Ä« in the construct state, again, spelled identically). The regular feminine plural is formed by adding ÙÙات٠-Ät(i) in the definite and ÙÙات٠-Ät(in) in the indefinite (spelled identically in Arabic).
- Note: diptotic nouns receive a fatḥah (-a) in the genitive and are never nunated.
- Note: there is no dative case. Instead, the preposition ÙÙÙ li- is used.
Types of declension
Fully declined nouns (triptotes)
For fully declined nouns, known as "triptote" (âÙ ÙÙÙصÙرÙÙÙâ muná¹£arif), that is, having three separate case endings, the suffixes are -u, -a, -i for nominative, accusative, and genitive case respectively, with the addition of a final /n/ (nunation, or tanwÄ«n) to produce -un, -an, and -in when the word is indefinite.
This system applies to most singular nouns in Arabic. It also applies to feminine nouns ending in Ø© -a/-at (tÄâ marbÅ«á¹ah) and Ø¡ hamzah, but for these, ا alif is not written in the accusative case. It also applies to many "broken plurals". When words end in -a/-at (tÄâ marbÅ«á¹ah) the t is pronounced when the case ending is added; thus رÙسÙاÙÙØ© ("message") is pronounced risÄla in pausal form, but in Classical Arabic it becomes رÙسÙاÙÙØ©Ù risÄlatun, رÙسÙاÙÙØ©Ù risÄlatan, and رÙسÙاÙÙØ©Ù risÄlatin when case endings are added (all usually spelled رساÙØ© when written without the vowel points).
The final /n/ is dropped when the noun is preceded by the definite article al-). The /n/ is also dropped when the noun is used in iá¸Äfah (construct state), that is, when it is followed by a genitive. Thus:
Nominative (Ù
ÙرÙÙÙÙع٠marfÅ«â; literally, "raised"):
- baytun بÙÙÙت٠: a house
- al-baytu Ù±ÙÙبÙÙÙت٠: the house
- baytu r-rajuli بÙÙÙت٠ٱÙرÙÙجÙÙÙ : the house of the man.
Accusative (Ù
ÙÙÙصÙÙب٠manṣūb);
literally, 'erected'):
- baytan بÙÙÙتÙا : a house
- al-bayta Ù±ÙÙبÙÙÙت٠: the house
- bayta r-rajuli بÙÙÙت٠ٱÙرÙÙجÙÙÙ : the house of the man.
Genitive (Ù
ÙجÙرÙÙر٠majrÅ«r; literally, 'dragged'):
- baytin بÙÙÙت٠: a house
- al-bayti Ù±ÙبÙÙÙت٠: the house
- bayti r-rajuli بÙÙÙت٠ٱÙرÙÙجÙÙÙ : the house of the man.
The final /n/ is also dropped in classical poetry at the end of a couplet, and the vowel of the ending is pronounced long.
Diptotes
A few singular nouns (including many proper names and names of places), and certain types of "broken plural", are known as diptotes (Ù±ÙÙÙ ÙÙ ÙÙÙÙع٠٠ÙÙÙ Ù±ÙصÙÙرÙÙÙ al-mamnÅ«â min aá¹£-á¹£arf, literally 'forbidden from inflecting') meaning that they only have two case endings.
When the noun is indefinite, the endings are -u for the nominative and -a for the genitive and accusative with no nunation. The genitive reverts to the normal -i when the diptotic noun becomes definite (preceded by al- or is in the construct state)).
Diptotes never take an alif in the accusative case in written Arabic.
Sound masculine plurals
In the case of sound masculine plurals (جÙÙ Ùع٠ٱÙÙÙ ÙØ°ÙÙÙÙر٠ٱÙسÙÙاÙÙÙ Ù - jamâ al-mudhakkar as-sÄlim), mostly denoting male human beings, the suffixes are respectively ÙÙÙÙÙ -Å«na and ÙÙÙÙÙ -Ä«na. These stay the same whether ا٠al- precedes or not. The final -a is usually dropped in speech. In less formal Arabic only -Ä«na is used for all cases and the final -a is dropped in pausa and in less formal Arabic.
The Ù -na is dropped when the noun is in iá¸Äfah (construct state). Thus:
Nominative:
- ÙÙاÙÙدÙÙÙÙ wÄlidÅ«na: parents (more than two)
- Ù±ÙÙÙÙاÙÙدÙÙÙÙ al-wÄlidÅ«na: the parents
- ÙÙاÙÙدÙÙ Ù±ÙرÙÙجÙاÙÙ wÄlidÅ« r-rijÄli: the parents of the men
Accusative and genitive:
- ÙÙاÙÙدÙÙÙÙ wÄlidÄ«na: parents
- Ù±ÙÙÙÙاÙÙدÙÙÙÙ al-wÄlidÄ«na: the parents
- ÙÙاÙÙدÙÙ Ù±ÙرÙÙجÙاÙÙ wÄlidÄ« r-rijÄli: the parents of the men
Note: ending ÙÙÙÙÙ -Ä«na is spelled identically to ÙÙÙÙÙÙ -ayni (see above).
Sound feminine plurals
In the case of sound feminine plurals (جÙÙ Ùع٠ٱÙÙÙ ÙؤÙÙÙÙØ«Ù Ù±ÙسÙÙاÙÙÙ Ù jamâ al-muâannath as-sÄlim), the suffixes are respectively ÙÙاتÙ, ÙÙات٠-Ätu(n), ÙÙاتÙ, ÙÙات٠-Äti(n) and ÙÙاتÙ, ÙÙات٠-Äti(n) (identical spelling). The n is only there when the noun is indefinite (not preceded by al-). Again the final vowel is dropped in speech and pausa, leaving only ÙÙات -Ät, making all cases pronounced identically.
The final "n" is dropped when the noun is in iá¸Äfah (construct state).
Nominative:
- Ù ÙدÙرÙÙسÙات٠mudarrisÄtun: (female) teachers
- Ù±ÙÙÙ ÙدÙرÙÙسÙات٠al-mudarrisÄtu: the teachers
- Ù ÙدÙرÙÙسÙات٠ٱÙÙØ£ÙÙÙÙÙاد٠mudarrisÄtu l-awlÄdi: the teachers of the children
Accusative and genitive:
- Ù ÙدÙرÙÙسÙات٠mudarrisÄtin: (female) teachers
- Ù±ÙÙÙ ÙدÙرÙÙسÙات٠al-mudarrisÄti: the teachers
- Ù ÙدÙرÙÙسÙات٠ٱÙÙØ£ÙÙÙÙÙاد٠mudarrisÄti l-awlÄdi: the teachers of the children
Other declensional paradigms
The Dual - These nouns denote two of something. They decline very similarly to the sound masculine plurals because they are not marked for definiteness and look the same in both the accusative and genitive cases. For the nominative, the marking is -Äni and for the accusative/genitive, -ayni. An example is "parents," which is wÄlidÄni and wÄlidayni respectively.
ٱسÙÙ Ù Ù±ÙÙÙ ÙÙÙÙÙÙص٠ism al-manqÅ«á¹£ (deficient nouns ending with yÄâ ) - These nouns behave differently due to the instability of the final vowel. When indefinite, these nouns take a final -in in the nominative/genitive, and -iyan in the accusative. When definite, they take a long -Ä« in the nominative/genitive, and -iya in the accusative. These nouns were reckoned by the grammarians to have originally taken the triptotic endings, but through morpho-phonotactic processes, the latter resulted. An example is "judge," which is qÄá¸in, qÄá¸iyan, versus al-qÄá¸Ä«, and al-qÄá¸iya respectively. Also, a noun can be both ism al-manqÅ«á¹£ and diptotal: for example, layÄlin 'nights', is a broken plural with a final unstable vowel. With case endings this noun becomes layÄlin, layÄliya, and al-layÄlÄ«, al-layÄliya.
ٱسÙÙ Ù Ù±ÙÙÙ ÙÙÙصÙÙر٠ism al-maqṣūr (deficient nouns ending with alif or alif maqṣūrah) - These nouns, like their close relative ism al-manqÅ«á¹£, also behave differently due to the instability of a final vowel. These nouns are marked only for definiteness, as morpho-phonotactic processes have resulted in the complete loss of the case distinctions. When indefinite, they take -an, which rests on an alif maqṣūrah or occasionally alif. When definite, they are not marked, and they simply retain their long alif or alif maqṣūrah. An example is "hospital," which is mustashfan and al-mustashfÄ respectively. If a noun is both ism al-maqṣūr and diptotic, then it is completely invariable for case.
Invariable nouns - Invariable nouns are usually those foreign names that end in alif or nouns that end in an additional alif or alif maqṣūrah (when that alif or alif maqṣūrah is not part of the root). Also, nouns that are both ism al-maqṣūr and diptotic fall into this category. Additionally, there are rare invariable nouns which have other endings, like any name ending with "-ayhi," like SÄ«bawayhi (colloquially pronounced, for example, in Egypt: [sebæËweË]. An example of a common invariable noun is fuṣḥá (al-fuṣḥá), meaning 'the most eloquent [Arabic]'. Another example is dunyÄ (al-dunyÄ) 'world'.
Sentence structure
A noun's case depends on the role that the noun plays in the sentence. There are multiple sentence structures in Arabic, each of which demands different case endings for the roles in the sentence. "Subject" does not always correspond to "nominative", nor does "object" always correspond to "accusative". Sentences in Arabic are divided into two branches, of which are the incomplete phrases (jumla inshaiya) and the complete phrases (jumla khabariya). Jumla inshaiya is composed of the descriptive phrase and possessive phrase, while the jumla khabariya is made up of the verbal sentence (jumla fi'lya khabariya) and the nominal sentence (jumla ismiya khabariya). The incomplete phrase cannot be a sentence in itself, and is usually used in the complete phrases.
Verbal sentences
In a verbal sentence (Ù±ÙÙجÙÙ ÙÙÙØ©Ù Ù±ÙÙÙÙعÙÙÙÙÙÙØ©Ù al-jumlah al-fiâlÄ«yah), there is verbâsubjectâobject word order. This is the preferred word order of Classical Arabic.
In a verbal sentence, the subject takes nominative case and the object takes accusative case. Such a sentence ("This writer wrote the written") would be formed as follows (read from right to left):
| Verbal Sentence | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| grammatical role | Object | Subject | Verb |
| Arabic label | Ù
ÙÙÙعÙÙÙ٠بÙÙÙ mafâÅ«l bihi |
ÙÙاعÙÙÙ fÄâil |
ÙÙعÙÙÙ fiâl |
| case | accusative | nominative | (verb) |
| example | Ù±ÙÙÙ
ÙÙÙتÙÙب٠l-maktÅ«ba (the written) |
ÙٰذÙا Ù±ÙÙÙÙاتÙب٠hÄdhÄ al-kÄtibu (this writer) |
ÙÙتÙب٠kataba (wrote) |
Nominal sentences
In a nominal sentence (Ù±ÙÙجÙÙ ÙÙÙØ©Ù Ù±ÙÙاÙسÙÙ ÙÙÙÙØ©Ù al-jumlah al-ismÄ«yah), there is subjectâverbâobject word order.
Equations (no copula verb)
If the verb would be "is" (that is, the predicate merely attributes something to the subjectâsee Predicative (adjectival or nominal)), then there is no verb used. Both the subject and the predicate take nominative case when there is no overt verb. Such a sentence ("This writer is famous") is formed as follows (read from right to left):
| Nominal Sentence without Verb | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| grammatical role | Object | (no verb) | Subject |
| Arabic label | Ø®ÙبÙر khabar |
(no verb) | Ù
ÙبÙتÙدÙØ£Ù mubtadaâ |
| case | nominative | (no verb) | nominative |
| example | Ù
ÙØ´ÙÙÙÙر٠mashhÅ«run (famous) |
(no verb) | ÙٰذÙا Ù±ÙÙÙÙاتÙب٠hÄdhÄ al-kÄtibu (this writer) |
Overt verb
If there is an overt verb, the subject takes nominative and the predicate takes accusative. Such a sentence ("This writer wrote the book") is formed as follows (read from right to left):
| Nominal Sentence with Verb | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| grammatical role | Object | Verb | Subject |
| Arabic label | Ø®ÙبÙر٠khabar |
ÙÙعÙÙÙ fiâl |
Ù
ÙبÙتÙدÙØ£Ù mubtadaâ |
| case | accusative | (verb) | nominative |
| example | Ù±ÙÙÙÙتÙاب٠al-kitÄba (the book) |
ÙÙتÙب٠kataba (wrote) |
ÙٰذÙا Ù±ÙÙÙÙاتÙب٠hÄdhÄ al-kÄtibu (this writer) |
Sisters of inna
There is a class of words in Arabic called the "sisters of inna" (Ø£ÙØ®ÙÙÙات٠إÙÙÙÙ akhawÄt inna) that share characteristics of Ø¥ÙÙÙÙ. Among them are:
- Ø¥ÙÙÙÙ â inna (particle for emphasis, close to "it is the case that")
- Ø£ÙÙÙÙ â anna ('that')
- ÙÙ°ÙÙÙÙÙ â lÄkinna (but)
- ÙÙØ£ÙÙÙÙ â li-anna ('because')
- ÙÙØ£ÙÙÙÙ â ka-anna ('as if', 'as though')
If one of the sisters of Ø¥ÙÙÙÙ begins a clause, then the subject takes accusative case instead of nominative.
Such a sentence using the particle Ø¥ÙÙÙÙ ("Verily, this writer wrote the book") would be formed as follows (read from right to left):
| Nominal Sentence with Verb with Ø¥ÙÙ | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| grammatical role | Object | Verb | Subject | Sister of inna |
| Arabic label | Ø®ÙبÙر٠khabar |
ÙÙعÙÙÙ fiâl |
Ù
ÙبÙتÙدÙØ£Ù mubtadaâ |
Ø£ÙØ®Ùت٠إÙÙÙÙ ukht inna |
| case | accusative | (verb) | accusative | (sister of inna) |
| example | Ù±ÙÙÙÙتÙاب٠al-kitÄba (the book) |
ÙÙتÙب٠kataba (wrote) |
ÙٰذÙا Ù±ÙÙÙÙاتÙب٠hÄdhÄ al-kÄtiba (this writer) |
Ø¥ÙÙÙÙ inna (verily) |
Although there was an overt verb in the above example, a nominal sentence without an overt verb will also have its subject take accusative case because of the introduction of one of inna's sisters. (The predicate of an equation is unaffected and will remain in the nominative.)
Consider the following example ("Verily, this writer is famous"):
| Nominal Sentence without Verb with Ø¥ÙÙÙÙ | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| grammatical role | Object | (no verb) | Subject | Sister of ʼinna |
| Arabic label | Ø®ÙبÙر٠khabar |
ÙÙعÙÙÙ fiâl |
Ù
ÙبÙتÙدÙØ£Ù mubtadaâ |
Ø£ÙØ®Ùت٠إÙÙÙÙ ukht inna |
| case | nominative | (no verb) | accusative | (sister of inna) |
| example | Ù
ÙØ´ÙÙÙÙر٠mashhÅ«run (famous) |
(no verb) | ÙٰذÙا Ù±ÙÙÙÙاتÙب٠hÄdhÄ al-kÄtiba (this writer) |
Ø¥ÙÙÙÙ inna (verily) |
With sisters of kÄna
The verb kÄna (ÙÙاÙÙ) and its sisters (Ø£ÙØ®ÙÙÙات٠ÙÙاÙÙ akhawÄt kÄna) form a class of 13 verbs that mark the time/duration of actions, states, and events.
Sentences that use these verbs are considered to be a type of nominal sentence according to Arabic grammar, not a type of verbal sentence. Although the word order may seem to be verbâsubjectâobject when there is no other verb in the sentence, it is possible to have a sentence in which the order is subjectâverbâobject. Such a non-equation sentence clearly shows subjectâverbâobject word order.
Among the sisters of kÄna are:
- ÙÙاÙÙ â kÄna ('was')
- ÙÙÙÙس٠â laysa ('not')
- Ù Ùا زÙاÙÙ â mÄ zÄla ('still'; literally, 'has not ceased to be')
- Ø£ÙصÙبÙØÙ â aá¹£baḥa ('reached a state, became')
- ظÙÙÙÙ â áºalla ('remained')
If one of the sisters of ÙÙاÙÙ begins a clause, then the subject takes nominative case and the object takes accusative case. (Because of this, Arabic contrasts [The man]NOM is [a doctor]NOM in the present tense with [The man]NOM was [a doctor]ACC in the past tense.)
Such a sentence using the verb ÙÙاÙÙ ("This writer was famous") would be formed as follows (read from right to left):
| Nominal Sentence with Ùا٠| ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| grammatical role | Object | Subject | Sister of kÄna | |
| Arabic label | Ø®ÙبÙر٠khabar |
ٱسÙÙ
Ù ism |
Ø£ÙØ®Ùت٠ÙÙاÙÙ ukht kÄna | |
| case | accusative | nominative | (sister of kÄna) | |
| example | Ù
ÙØ´ÙÙÙÙرÙا mashhÅ«ran (famous) |
ÙٰذÙا Ù±ÙÙÙÙاتÙب٠hÄdhÄ al-kÄtibu (this writer) |
ÙÙاÙÙ kÄna (was) | |
In a sentence with an explicit verb, the sister of kÄna marks aspect for the actual verb. A sentence like ÙÙاÙÙ Ù±ÙÙÙÙاتÙب٠ÙÙÙÙتÙب٠ٱÙÙÙÙتÙاب٠(was the.writer he.writes the.book, 'the writer was writing the book'), for instance, has both a main verb (ÙÙÙÙتÙبÙ) and a sister of kÄna that indicates the non-completed aspect of the main verb.
Verbs
The imperfective tense of the verb also has suffixed vowels, which determine the mood of the verb, There are six moods in the Classical Arabic, Thus:
- yaktubu, indicative (âÙ ÙرÙÙÙÙعÙâ marfÅ«â ), means 'he writes' and sayaktubu means "he will write";
- yaktuba, subjunctive (âÙ ÙÙÙصÙÙبÙâ manṣūb), is used in phrases such as "so that he should write";
- yaktub, jussive (Ù ÙجÙزÙÙÙ Ù majzÅ«m, literally meaning 'clipped off'), means 'let him write'. This can become yaktubi when required for euphony, e.g. when followed by two consonants.
- uktub, Imperative, means "write!";
- yaktuban, short energetic; its meaning is dependent upon the prefix that is attached to it, but it often means "he (should) write";
- yaktubanna, long energetic; its meaning is dependent upon the prefix that is attached to it, but it often means "he (must) write".
All the first three forms are spelled ÙÙتب in unvocalised Arabic, and the final vowel is not pronounced in pausa and in informal Arabic, leaving just one pronunciation: yaktub.
Traditional Arab grammarians equated the indicative with the nominative of nouns, the subjunctive with the accusative, and the jussive with the genitive, as indicated by their names (the only pair that is not borne out in the name is the jussive-genitive pair, probably because the -i vowel is usually dropped). It is not known whether there is a genuine historical connection or whether the resemblance is mere coincidence, caused by the fact that these are the only three short vowels available.