ناقِص root: ن-ق-ص / active participle of form I / definition: defective, incomplete Defective verbs are those with either ي or و as their final root letter. For defective verbs, this final root letter appears as one of four letters when conjugated: ا or و or ي or ى. So, how can we tell whatContinue reading “Form I Defective Verbs: ا or و or ي or ى?”
Tag Archives: verbs
Seven Arabic Phrases Meaning “and so on”
مَهارة root: م-ه-ر / noun / plural: مَهارات / definition: skill A great way to hint at your remarkable ability to provide countless examples in a list (thereby convincing whoever’s reading your essay of your expert knowledge of the topic), is to end your lists with a phrase like “and so on”. So, what areContinue reading “Seven Arabic Phrases Meaning “and so on””
Arabic Synonyms Meaning “Resistance”
ثَلْج root: ث-ل-ج / noun / plural: ثُلوج / definition: snow, ice I couldn’t resist wrapping up in all my layers this morning around sunrise to venture out into the garden and ramble through the thick snow blanketing the decking. My mum handed me some dried remnants of the floral arrangements we’ve had displayed aroundContinue reading “Arabic Synonyms Meaning “Resistance””
The Verb يتسبّب and its Prepositions
مُتَنَوِّع root: ن-و-ع / active participle of form V / definition: various In one of the examples in Arabic Observations: Words with Antonymic Meanings, we saw how changing the preposition following a verb could produce two completely opposite meanings. While the meaning of the form V verb تَسَبَّبَ / يَتَسَبَّبُ doesn’t change that drastically, it stillContinue reading “The Verb يتسبّب and its Prepositions”
Six Arabic Words for “Ocean” or “Sea”
ماء root: م-و-ه / noun / plural: مِياه / definition: water Autumn is officially here. And I’m sure of this because I’m wearing two pairs of socks, as I’m forced to every autumn or winter because my feet turn to ice—although my parents always tell me it’s not that cold and walk around as thoughContinue reading “Six Arabic Words for “Ocean” or “Sea””
Three Arabic Verbs for “to Show”
الثُّلاثاء root: ث-ل-ث / noun / definition: Tuesday Tuesday feels a little sleepy this week but I have no time to nap. My weekend was spent packing up the things I had left in my university flat which involved an eight-hour round trip (actually, nine with the traffic on the way back) and no progressContinue reading “Three Arabic Verbs for “to Show””
Root Exploration: م-د-ن
مُصابَة root: ص-و-ب / passive participle of form IV (feminine) / definition: afflicted, ill After more than two years of successfully dodging Covid, it finally caught me—and my parents—out. At least there’s some solidarity. That annoying cough is still plaguing me as I type this and, over the weekend, I was suffering the worst soreContinue reading “Root Exploration: م-د-ن”
Arabic Roots: the Different Types
نَوْع root: ن-و-ع / noun / plural: اَنْواع / definition: type I’ve thought about writing a book about Arabic grammar for a long time. Just because I love it so much. I thought that maybe I’d start off with a small one about Arabic verbs, focusing on the forms perhaps, but when I start makingContinue reading “Arabic Roots: the Different Types”
Passive Form I Quadriliteral Verbs
رُباعي root: ر-ب-ع / adjective / definition: quadriliteral Quadriliterals… we meet again. And this time, we’re looking at how to transform form I quadriliteral verbs from active to passive.
The Causative بـ
ذاكِرة root: ذ-ك-ر / noun / definition: memory Ahh, finally, a grammar post! My brain feels at least somewhat refreshed now that I’ve had a week of doing nothing (except what we can call passive learning: watching Lebanese and Iraqi TV series and having الجزيرة on in the background every day while I play solitaireContinue reading “The Causative بـ”
Some Form VI Verbs for “to Compete with One Another”
مُنافَسة root: ن-ف-س / verbal noun of form III / plural: مُنافَسات / definition: competition Form VI verbs typically refer to some sort of exchange, or mutual action. And competition, by nature, involves mutual participation. So let’s explore some of the form VI verbs that mean “to compete with one another”, and the roots they’reContinue reading “Some Form VI Verbs for “to Compete with One Another””
Eight Ways to Say “to Die” in Arabic
وَفاة root: و-ف-ي / noun / plural: وَفَيات / definition: death There’s life… and there’s death. And we have to know how to talk about both in Arabic. So I thought I’d compile a (non-exhaustive) list of words and phrases we can use to talk about the latter. (On a side note: a pat onContinue reading “Eight Ways to Say “to Die” in Arabic”
Four Arabic Verbs Meaning “to Urge”
مُغامَرة root: غ-م-ر / noun / plural: مُغامَرات / definition: adventure Somehow, my classmates and I are nearly halfway through our Amman adventure, and with all the new words and phrases we’ve been picking up, I couldn’t resist writing a vocabulary-based post this week. Now the specific set of synonyms in this post—which all meanContinue reading “Four Arabic Verbs Meaning “to Urge””
The Case of امّحق: Form VII Assimilation
مُماثَلة root: م-ث-ل / verbal noun of form III / definition: assimilation (phonology) There’s less than three weeks until my study abroad module begins which means I’ll be jetting off very soon for a relaxing break an intensive period of Arabic study in Jordan. It really can’t come soon enough because I’ve forgotten almost allContinue reading “The Case of امّحق: Form VII Assimilation”
Root Exploration: د-ل-ه-م
ضَحْك root: ض-ح-ك / verbal noun of form I / definition: laughter After two hours and countless retakes, my classmate and I finally managed to record 20 minutes of Arabic conversation today for an assessment. Yes, that’s two hours of attempts for 20 minutes of usable footage. Honestly though, most of the retakes started soonContinue reading “Root Exploration: د-ل-ه-م”
Two Arabic Verbs Meaning “to Harbour Feelings”
شُعور root: ش-ع-ر / noun / plural: مَشاعِر / definition: feeling, emotion After writing a 4000-word essay in a matter of days and sleepily submitting it at midnight, I’m finally feeling ready to jump into term two at university! And speaking of feelings (…smooth transition there), this week I wanted to show you two ArabicContinue reading “Two Arabic Verbs Meaning “to Harbour Feelings””
Form I Verb Vowelling Patterns
حَرَكة root: ح-ر-ك / noun / plural: حَرَكات / definition: vowel Have you ever come across some information about Arabic, long after you began studying, and you’re just like: how did I not know this before?! Well, that’s how I felt reading Arabic for Nerds‘ post “What does the vowel on the second root letterContinue reading “Form I Verb Vowelling Patterns”
Three Arabic Words for “Obstacle”
صَعْب root: ص-ع-ب / adjective / definition: difficult Last week’s Wehr Wednesdays post included an Arabic word meaning “obstacle”, which is just one of those words that you’ll use frequently when writing Arabic essays or the like. So I thought why not look at three of the most common Arabic translations for it here? Interestingly,Continue reading “Three Arabic Words for “Obstacle””
Useful Arabic Phrases Meaning “Tantamount to”
عَكَسَ root: ع-ك-س / form I verb / present tense: يَعكِسُ / definition: to reflect I was toying with the title Fancy Ways to Say “Is” in Arabic for this post—which would have been reflective of the content, albeit a little ambiguous. Nevertheless, the phrases we’re going to look at in this post which—by dictionaryContinue reading “Useful Arabic Phrases Meaning “Tantamount to””
Four Arabic Verbs Meaning “to Listen”
أُذن root: ء-ذ-ن / noun / plural: آذان / definition: ear A few months ago, we took a look at a plethora of Arabic words that all mean “to look at”. Now, we’re adding to the synonyms series by exploring another common verb related to one of the senses: “to listen“!
The Arabic Pages 