Sentence Types in Arabic

In Arabic, there are two types of sentences: 1. The nominal sentence (الجملة الاسمية): It begins with a noun. For example: الشمس مشرقة الطالب يذاكر الفتاة مهذبة

2. The verbal sentence (الجملة الفعلية): It begins with a verb. In a verbal Arabic sentence, the normal order is: Verb- subject- object- other items (e.g. adverbials) فعل- فاعل- مفعول به- (حال،أسماء الزمان والمكان...الخ) For example: يدرس الطالب أكلت التفاحة قدم المسافرون

Arabic verbs Arabic verbs are mostly derived from roots that are composed of three letters. Most roots in Arabic are composed of three letters, for example, كتب، قرأ، جلس However, there are roots that are composed of more than three letters, such as, دحرج The root of a word carries its basic meaning, and all words derived from the same root express similar or related meanings.

كتب: كاتب،يكتب،مكتوب،كتُب،كتابة، مكتبة All words derived from the same root are found under the dictionary entry of the root For example: كتب: كاتب،يكتب،مكتوب،كتُب،كتابة، مكتبة The first and the third letters in a root carry the short vowel symbol of fatha, but the second letter may either carry a fatha, a damma, or a kasra. For example: كبُر،حزِن

Tenses in Arabic Tenses in the Arabic language are not as specific as they are in English. They do not carry accurate time significance. In Arabic, there are only 3 tenses, while in English there are 12 different tenses. The tenses in Arabic are: الماضي the perfect or the past tense because it is used to refer to actions or events completed at the time of reference. For example: كتب الطالب، مرضت الطفلة، احتفل الناس

2. المضارع the imperfect because it is used to refer to actions or events are not completed at the time of reference, whether they are in progress or will happen in the future. For example, يأكل الولد، أذاكر دروسي، سأحضر الاجتماع

3. الأمر the imperative refers to a request or command, so its meaning refers mainly to the future. ذاكر الدرس انظر هناك

Subject-verb agreement in Arabic

First: Verbs preceding subject When the verb is in the 3rd person (الغائب) and it comes before its subject, the verb is always in the singular form The teacher wrote ….. كتب المعلم The two teachers wrote …. كتب المعلمان The teachers wrote ….. كتب المعلمون First: Verbs preceding subject

When the verb precedes its subject, it will agree with it in gender. The boy grew up كبر الولد The girl grew up كبرت البنت The boys grew up كبر الأولاد The girls grew up كبرت البنات The two boys grew up كبر الولدان The two girls grew up كبرت البنتان

With broken plurals, feminine verbs are used unless the broken plural refers to male human beings. For example: ظهرت النجوم ظهر الرجال The actual gender is always taken into consideration even if the form of a noun does not agree. For example: قتل الخليفة الرجل Not قتلت الخليفة الرجل

Second: Verbs following subject When the verb follows its subject, it agrees with it in number and gender. For example The boys opened the door فتح الأولاد الباب الأولاد فتحوا الباب The girls entered دخلت البنات البنات دخلن Second: Verbs following subject

Using the 3rd person plural verb The 3rd person plural verb is used in the following three cases: 1. when the plural subject is not mentioned. For example:ذهبوا، أكلوا، درسوا 2. if the subject is placed first for stress or emphasis. For example:الطلاب ذهبوا عندما انتهى الوقت 3. if the subject has already been mentioned in a previous sentence. For example: وصلت البنات وجلسن في الفصل اختبر الطلاب ثم ذهبوا لمنازلهم. Using the 3rd person plural verb

مطابقة زمن الجمل لما ورد في النص الأجنبي لايجوز تغيير زمن الجملة بأي حال عند الترجمة إلى العربية، فإذا استخدمت في النص الأجنبي أفعال في زمن الماضي سواء كانت أفعال أساسية أو أفعالًا مساعدة فتكون الترجمة العربية على هذا الأساس Few drops of the solution were added to the compound أضيفت قطرات قليلة من المحلول إلى المركب مطابقة زمن الجمل لما ورد في النص الأجنبي

Revision Translate the following: The student came. The two students came. The girl came. The boys came. The women came. The men went to the mosque. The students took their exam. Then, they went home. Revision