Introduction to grammar

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Arabic has 2 types of sentences:

 

- Nominal

 

 الطَّقْسُ لَطيفٌ 

 

/aTTaqsu laTeefun/

 

The weather is nice

 

- Verbal

 

أَكَلَ الرَّجُلُ التُّفَّاحَةَ 

 

/ʼakala irrajulu ittuffaaHata/

 

The man ate the apple

   
 
 

Verbal sentences begin with a verb (فِعْل) and contain a subject (فاعِلْ)

 

أَكَلَ  الرَّجُلُ التُّفَّاحَةَ 

 

أَكَلَ ----> فِعْل 

 

الرَّجُلُ ----> فاعِلْ 

 
   
   

The subject is a part of a sentence that shows who is performing the action.

 

أَكَلَ الرَّجُلُ التُّفَّاحَةَ

 

الرَّجُلُ

 

Is the subject of the sentence 

 
 
   

The object is a noun (or pronoun) that is governed by a verb or a preposition.

 

أَكَلَ الرَّجُلُ التُّفَّاحَةَ

 

التُّفَّاحَةَ

 

Is the object of the sentence

 
 
   

Example of verbal sentence:

 

أَكَلَ الوَلَدُ التُّفَّاحَةَ

 

/ʼakala ilwaladu ittuffaaHata/

 

The boy ate the apple 

 
 
   

Example of verbal sentence:

 

كَتَبَتْ فَرَحُ رِسالَةً

 

/katabat faraHu risaalatan/

Farah wrote a letter

   
 
   

Arabic tends to prefer the order in the sentence

 

verb + subject + object

 

أَكَلَ الرَّجُلُ التُّفَّاحَةَ

 

Rather than

 

subject + verb + object

 

 الرَّجُلُ أَكَلَ التُّفَّاحَةَ

 
 

Nominal sentences begin with either a noun (اِسْم) or a pronoun (ضَمير).

   

It might have a verb but it will not start with it.

 
   

Example of nominal sentence:

 

الطَّقْسُ لَطيفٌ

 

/aTTaqsu laTeefun/

 

The weather is nice

   
   
   

Nominal sentences have two parts:

 

An indicate and a predicate which are called

 

مُبْتَدَأ وَ خَبَر

 

As in

 

الطَّقْسُ لَطيفٌ

 

The word الطَّقْسُ is the indicate and لَطيفٌ is the predicate.

   
 
   

The indicate is the main component in the sentence.

 

 السَّماءُ صافِيَةٌ 

 

/assamaaʼu Saafiyatun/

 

The sky is clear

   
   
 

Example of nominal sentence:

 

الشَّرْقُ الأَوْسَطُ

 

/asharqu ilʼawsaTu/

 

The Middle East

 
   
   

Arabic has no "Is" or "Are" 

 

As in

 

اسْمي فَرَحُ

 

/ismee faraHu/

 

My name is Farah

 

In Arabic it would be 

 

I Farah

   
   
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