2.6: Grammar (1) الجملة الاسمية والفعلية
In this section, you will be able to:
- Learn about basic sentences in Arabic
- Learn about verbal sentences
- Learn verb agreement
Arabic sentences الجمل في اللغة العربية
There are two types of sentences in Arabic: nominal اسمية and verbal فعلية. Nominal sentences الجمل الاسمية begin with a noun or pronoun, and verbal sentences الجمل الفعلية begin with a verb. اسمية is a nisba adjective from the word "اسم" which means noun or name. فعلية is a nisba adjective from the word "فعل" which means verb.
Example for a nominal sentence: الأُسْتاذ جَديدٌ
Example for a verbal sentence: يَدْرُسُ الطالِبُ الحُقوقَ
Parts of Nominal Sentence أجزاء الجملة الاسمية
Nominal sentence الجملة الاسمية starts with a noun or pronoun, and it has two parts a subject المبتدأ and a predicate الخبر. The nominal sentence does not need the verb to "be" like in English, and it is implied. The predicate can be a noun, adjective, adverb, or verb. In this section, we will focus on the function of the verb agreement with the subject in both gender and number. If the subject is singular, the verb will be singular. If the subject is dual, the verb will be dual. If the subject is plural, the verb will be plural.
Examples singular subjects: الطّالِبُ يَدْرُسُ - الطَالِبَة تَدْرُسُ
Examples dual subjects: الطّالِبان يَدْرُسان - الطَالِبتان تَدْرُسان
Examples plural subjects: الطّلابُ يَدْرُسون - الطالِباتُ يَدْرُسنَ
Check this table with examples of nominal sentences.
| The predicate الخبر | The subject المبتدأ | Meaning in English | الجملة الاسمية |
|---|---|---|---|
| (the predicate is an adjective) جَديدٌ | (noun) الطالِبُ | The student is new | الطالِبُ جَديدٌ |
| (the predicate is an adjective) أمريكيون | (pronoun) هُم | They are Americans | هُمْ أَمريكيون |
| (the predicate is a noun) طالِبٌ | (noun) هذا | This is a student | هَذا طالِبٌ |
| (the predicate is a noun) يَدْرُسون | (noun) الطُّلابُ | Students are studying | الطُّلابُ يَدْرِسون |
ِActivity تدريبات الجملة الاسمية
Parts of Verbal Sentence أجزاء الجملة الفعلية
Verbal sentence الجملة الفعلية starts with a verb and is followed by the subject of the verb, or it is implied within the verb if it is not mentioned explicitly. The subject comes after the verb; this is considered a very elegant style in the Arabic language and can't happen in English. In verbal sentences, the verb agrees with the subject in gender and not in number. If the subject is dual or plural, the verb will still be singular. If the subject is feminine, the feminine markers should appear at the beginning and the end of the verb.
Check this table with examples of verbal sentences.
| The subject الفاعل | The verb الفعل | Meaning in English | الجملة الفعلية |
|---|---|---|---|
| الطَّالِبُ | يَـ تَخَرَّج | The male student graduates from the university. | يَـ تَخَرَّج الطَّالِبُ مِنَ الجامِعَة |
| الطَّلابُ | يَـ تَخَرَّج | The male students graduate from the university. | يَـ تَخَرَّج الطَّلابُ مِنَ الجامِعَة |
| الطَّالِبانِ | يَـ تَخَرَّج | The two male students graduate from the university. | يَـ تَخَرَّج الطَّالِبانِ مِنَ الجامِعَة |
| الطَّالِبَةُ | تَـ تَخَرَّج | The female student graduates from the university. | تَـ تَخَرَّج الطَّالِبَةُ مِنَ الجامِعَة |
| الطَّالِبَاتُ | تَـ تَخَرَّج | The female students graduate from the university. | تَـ تَخَرَّج الطَّالِبَاتُ مِنَ الجامِعَة |
| الطَّالِبَتانِ | تَـ تَخَرَّج | The two female students graduate from the university. | تَـ تَخَرَّج الطَّالِبَتانِ مِنَ الجامِعَة |