Significance of Affixes in Arabic words

Affixes ( prefixes and suffixes) are of great importance in Arabic, not only for derivation sake, but also for syntactic purposes. In Arabic, the words are governed by significant affixes to denote both joined subject or object of a verb, masculine or feminine gender of the subject or of the object and singular , dual or plural of the subject or of the object of the verb. Affixes, as well, may indicate demonstrative joined adjectives to the related nouns and finally the syntactic role of the word.

Arabic is a highly inflected language. Inflections can be demonstrated by ending letter vocalized sign or by adding or omitting certain letters in a word.

The wide ability of Arabic words to accept affixes and end-letter sign change indicates the highly symbolic nature of Arabic.

We may study such changes in three categories : Ending-letter sign change, Verb affixes, and Noun affixes:

Ending-letter Sign Change :Words can be arbitrarily built as such or they can be inflected. Verbs in the past tense are open-signed over both the beginning letter and the ending letter of the verb. Arbitrarily built words in Arabic are all words considered as letters, past and imperative tenses, and those joined by assertive (n) letter or the feminine (n) letter. Originally, words that are considered letters, and verbs are to be arbitrarily built while nouns are to be inflected. Built words usually end by a quiescence sign, an opening sign, a rounding sign or a breaking sign, depending on mere arbitrary hearsay of the spoken word.

Inflected words can be nouns or verbs in the present tense. Inflection can be by rounding, opening, breaking, or quieting the ending letter of the word , or by what stand for them.

Rounding or elevating –due to elevating the lower lip when effected-can be laid over the ending letter of the noun when it is a subject of a verb, a subject of a nominal sentence, a predicate of a nominal sentence, a noun of the defective past verbs of( kan) and its sisters, or a predicate of the quasi-verbs (an) and its sisters.

The verb in the present tense is rounded over its ending letter when it is not preceded by any opening or quieting factor.

Opening is effected over the ending letter of the noun when it is a direct object, accusative of time or place, cognate accusative, accusative of cause or reason, concomitate object or the object in connection with which something is done, the exceptional  noun after (aِlّa)ألاّ, denotative of state or circumstantial accusative, specification or accusative of limitation or determination, vocative, predicate of (kan) and its sisters, and the noun of (aِnَّ) and its sisters.

The present tense of the verb is open-ended when it is preceded by anyone of the opening factors: (aَn, lَn, kَy, aِd˙َnْ), (l) of denial, (aw), (htّa) , causative (f), or (w) of accompaniment, (l) or (ky).

Breaking the ending letter of a word is affected only to the nouns when preceded by a preposition, or annexed to a previous governing word.

Quieting the ending letter of a word is affected to the present tense of a verb when preceded by any one of a quieting factors : (lm, lma, l of command, la of prohibition, an, aِd˙ma, mn, ma, mhma , mta, ayan, ana, hyt˙ma, kyfma ay, ad˙a, or when it comes replicative to a request.

Rounding can be effected by its sign over the ending letter or it can be represented by (w) or (an) end instead.

The annexed to what is rounded is also rounded by assimilation. The present of a dual verb is considered rounded by the addition of (n) after the dual (a) at the end of the verb. If the verb ends by a vowel sound of (a,w,or y) , the rounding is not apparent over the (a) sound because of difficulty in pronunciation and over the (w) and (y) because of heaviness.

Opening is usually effected by its open sign over the ending letter of a word. It might be represented by (a) added to the Five Nouns : ab أبٌ– father, ah˙ أخٌ– brother, hm حمٌ– father-in-law, fw فو– mouth, and d˙w ذ و- owning.) And by the breaking sign in the regular feminine plural nouns . And by the (y) in the dual and the regular plural nouns.

Breaking is usually effected by its breaking sign over the ending letter of the noun preceded by a preposition . Prepositions in Arabic are : (b, mِn, aِla, Aَn, Aَla, fy, k, l, w of swearing and its t, mُd˙, mُnd˙, rُbَّ, htّa, kِla, Aَda عد ا, haŝa, ky and mta), what is related to the prepositional, and the annexed.

أحرف الجر هي : الباء، من ،الى ، عن ، على ،في ، الكاف ، اللام ، الواو ، واو القسم ، و تاؤه ، مذ ، منذ ، ربَّ ، حتّى ، كلا ، عدا ، حاشى ، كي ، و متى .

Chapter XV

A List of Effective Governing Words with Their Meaning in English

قائمة بالكلمات التي تؤثر فيما يليها من الكلام و معانيها بالانكليزية

. 1.The Defective Past Verbs (kan and its sisters) : Effect : rounding the end of their nouns and opening the end of their predicate nouns.

They fall into three groups :

1.  كان و أخواتها ترفع المبتدأ و تنصب الخبر :

Group I : verbs that do their effect unconditionally :

Kan – was, amsa – happened in the evening, aSbh – happened in the morning, aDha – happened at forenoon, Zl – happened while there is still light and shade, bat – happened at resting time at night, Sar – became, lys – expressing negation of the effect, mazal – still, manfkَّ – persisted on , maftِaَ – recurring, mabrh – stood still, and madam – as long as ..)

المجموعة الأولى تؤدي عملها بلا شرط و هي : كان، أمسى، أصبح، أضحى، ظلّ، بات، صار، ليس .

Group II: verbs that do their effect only when preceded by negation, prohibition or invocation :

zal -  left, anfk – untied, fta – ceased,and brh – left, e.g. manfk ahmd msafrً ( Ahmad did not quit travelling), ln nbrh Alyh Aakfyn ( We will keep its company )لن نبرح عليه عاكفين

المجموعة الثانية لا تؤدي عملها إلا بشرط أن يتقدمها نفي أو نهي أو دعاء و هي زال ، انفكّ ، فتئ ، برح .

Group III : includes only one verb (dam) which does not perform its effect unless preceded by the adverbial (ma), e.g. madmt hy (As long as I am alive)

المجموعة الثالثة  و تضمّ فعلاً واحداً (دام) الذي لا يرفع الاسم و ينصب الخبر ما لم تسبقه ما المصدريّة الظرفيّة  مثل مادمت حيّاً : التاء اسمها و حياً خبرها .

an and its sisters of quasi-verbs which open the noun that comes after and round the predicate . They are : an and an for assertion, lakn for restriction , kan for resemblance, lyt for wishing , and lAlَّ for begging.

2.  إنّ و أخواتها : إنّ و أنّ للتوكيد ، لكن للاستدراك، كأنّ للتشبيه ، ليت للتمنّي و لعلّ للترجّي و تعتبر حروفاً مشبّهة بالفعل لوجود معنى الفعل في كلّ واحدة منها لأنّ التّوكيد و التّشبيه و الاستدراك و التّمنّي و الترجّي من معاني الأفعال وهي إذ تدخل على المبتدأ و الخبر تنصب الأول و يسمّى اسمها و ترفع الثاني و يسمّى خبرها.

1.        1.      End-openers of the Present Tense : Four of them effect end-opening per se, (an, ln, ky and ad˙n ). Five of them effect end opening by implied (an) obligatorily concealed, (l of denial, aw, htّa, causative (f )and( w )of accompaniment),and one factor which effects opening by implied (an) unnecessarily concealed it is the l of ky (l-ky). aَnْ expresses future expectation, lَnْ for negation of expected action, ky means in order to , on purpose of doing something in the future .Mostly preceded by preposition l for justifying the aim of the verb.and introduces an answering result in the future.

3.  نواصب الفعل المضارع عشرة – أربعة تنصب بنفسها (أن، لن، كي و إذن)، و خمسة تنصب بأن مضمرة بعدها وجوباً و هي لام الجحود،أو،حتّى، فاء السببيّة و واو المعية .ناصب واحد ينصب الفعل المضارع بأن مضمرة جوازاً و هو لام كي .

4. The Breaking Factors : affect the nouns that come after a preposition or when a noun is joined or annexed to another.

The Prepositions are words joining the verbal meanings to their related nouns, they are : (b-with or by, mn-from, ala-to , An-about or of , Ala-on, fy-in , k-like, l-for , w-by for swearing, t-by of swearing, md˙-since, mnd˙-since , rُbَّ-some , hَtّa-until or till, h˙la-except, Aَda-except, haŝa-avoiding, ky-in order to, and mta-when. The preposition and its governed noun are joined or linked to the verb related to them.

2.     2.                   المجرورات :و هي عشرون حرفاً و سمّيت كذلك لأنها تجر معاني الأفعال إلى الأسماء أي تضيفها و توصلها اليها فتربط معنى الفعل بالاسم و هي : ( الباء ، من، إلى، عن، على، في، الكاف، اللام، واو القسم، تاؤه،مذ، منذ، ربّ، حتّى، ، خلا، عدا، حاشا، كي، و متى ) و يتعلّق الجار و المجرور بالفعل أو بما يشبه الفعل .

 The quieting factors are : lm-not ever, lmّa-not yet, l- of the imperative or ordering and la- of prohibiting .Those factors affect only one verb coming after them.Other factors affect two following verbs of conditional sentences the first is called the conditional verb and the other is its answer or result. Those are : an and adma denoting if, others are :mn-he who, ma-what, mhma-whatever, mta-when, ayan-whenever, ayn-wherever, ana-when, hyt˙ma-wherever, kyfma-however and ay-whichever or whatever.

 There are other conditional factors which do not affect the verbs that come after, they are:lw-if, lwla-unless, lwma-if not, ama-as for, lma-not yet, ad˙a-if, klma-whenever and hyt˙ma- wherever.

Chapter XVI

Modulation in Recital

Perfect pronounced Arabic is bound by the rules of modulation. These rules verify the purified sounds of Arabic in a way preserving the special secret of finely musical codes which soften the production of sounds and clarify the implied meaning through modulation.

Letter Outlets :

 Modulation defines the production of each letter sound single or combined.

There are three locations that determine the outlet of the letter sounds. They are : The pharynx, the mouth and the lips.

In the pharynx , there are three outlets :

1.The extremity of the pharynx , thoraxwise, 2.The middle of the pharynx , and

3. The anterior part of the pharynx nearest to the mouth.

On The Tongue, there are ten outlets :

 1.The extremity of the tongue near the pharynx,

1.     3.      The extremity of the tongue nearest to the mouth ,

2.     4.      3. The middle of the tongue,

3.     5.        4. The dorsum of the tongue with the origines of the upper incisors,

4.     6.        5. The dorsum of the tongue with the tips of the upper incisorss,

5.     7.        6.The edge of the tongue,

6.     8.        7. The edge of the tongue next to its dorsum,

7.     9.        8.The tip of the tongue,

8.     10.  9. The anterior edge of the tongue and

9.     11.   l0. the posterior edge of the tongue.

In The Lips, there are two outlets :

The inter-labial and tips of the upper incisors.

There is an outlet for the three letters of prolongation (a, w, and y). It is called the cavity which begins from the thorax and ends by the sound end in the mouth. There is an outlet for nasalisation which is achieved in the nostrils of the nose

Letter Locations :

A . The Pharynx : Has three outlets :

1.     1.      The extremity of the pharynx where the hamza (a ), and the haa (h) come out.

2.     2.      The middle of the pharynx where the (h) and the (A) come out.

3.     3.      The near pharynx where the (h ) and the (g) come out.

B. The Tongue:

1.     1.      The Extremity of the tongue near the pharynx where the (q) comes out.

2.     2.      The Extremity of the tongue near the mouth where the (k) comes out.

3.     3.      The middle of the tongue where the (j), ( s ) and (y) come out.

4.     4.      The Dorsum of the tongue where the (t), (T), and (d) come out.

5.     5.      The Dorsum of the tongue with the tips of the upper incisors where the (t ), (Z) and (d ) come out.

6.     6.      The Edge of the tongue with the roots of the upper incisors where the (n) comes out.

7.     7.      The Edge of the tongue with the roots of the upper incisoers near the dorsum where the (r) comes out.

8.     8.      The tip of the tongue with the roots of the upper incisors where the (z), (S), and (s) come out.

9.     9.      The Edge of the tongue that is its sides with juxtaposition with what are neighbouring of upper molars where the (D) comes out.

10. 10.   The Anterior edge of the tongue with its adhering to what is neighbouring of teeth where the (l) comes out.

C. The Lips :

1.     1.      Interlabial : Where the (b) and the (m) are ocluded, while the (w) is not ocluded.

2.    2.      The Lower lip with adherence to the tips of the upper incisors where the (f) comes out.

The previous outlets in addition to the cavity and nostrils form seventeen letter outlets. (Refer to figures 1 and 2).

Chapter XVII

Letter Sound Quality

Each Arabic letter can have at least five characteristics:

1. Hardness as opposed to softness : hardness comes from capturing the sound in pronouncing the following letters :( a, b, t, j, d, T, q, and k.), softness comes from letting the sound flow as in the letters (s, m, t˙, Z, etc..  2. Elevation or heightening as opposed to lowering : in elevation the letter is pharyngealised. Letters (h˙ ), (S), (D), (g) and (T) are pharyngealized where the tongue and outlet are elevated, while (h), (d), (s), (l)and (k) are softened so as the tongue and the outlet are to be lowered down. Elevation letters are : (h˙, S, D, g, T, q, and Z).

3. Spreading where the air spreads in the outlet. This occurs in the letter (ŝ) only.

4. Repetition where the tip of the tongue moves as in the letter ( r). Repetition should not be more than once.

5. Sibilation or hissing of released air as in letters (S, s, and z).

6. Agitation or instability when the outlety moves as in (q, b, j, and d) where the sound should be slightly moved in a way that it does not become quiescent.

7. Humming , a nasal sound produced as two moves through the nose at five positions :

The Difference between Some Alike Letters

1.(d˙) and (z): (d˙ ) comes out from the dorsum of the tongue while sticking to the tips of the upper incisors, while the (z) comes out from the tip of the tongue while approaching from the roots of the upper incisors. That is , you have to protrude the tongue when pronouncing the (d˙) sound while the (z) has a whistling quality.

2. The difference between the (t˙) and (s) is similar to the difference between the (d ) and (z). The (s) has the quality of whistling, it has a strong juxtaposition while the (t˙ ) and (d˙) has the quality of whispering and softness.

3. The difference between the (s), (ŝ) and ( j ): (ŝ) and (j) come out from the middle of the tongue, they differ in the whispering in (ŝ) and in raising the voice in (j). The (s) has the quality of spreading in a way the air spreads in the middle of the tongue which does not touch the palate , where the air passes in between and spreads out. The (j) , also has tension where the air is trapped in pronouncing and explodes thenafter.

The Difference between the (D) and the (Z). The (Z) gets out from the dorsum of the tongue on its touching the tips of the upper incisors, so thetip of the tongue should come out in pronunciation, bot the (D), comes out from the edge or the sides of the tongue on their touching what is neighbouring of upper molars. The difference between the outlet of the (Z) and that of the (D) is distant. In addition, the (D) has the quality of prolongation which does not happen in the (Z). This prolongation means that the pressing of the letter and its sound has to extend in the whole of its outlet. The sound of the (D) extends along all the edge or side of the tongue.

Rules for Pronouncing Some letters

A. Silenced (n) and Ennation (n).

The silent (n) is annexed to quasi-letters,(mِnْ, aِnْ, lَn ْ ), nouns (Aِnْdَ, aَlaَnbaaْ, al-anbyaaْ) and verbs, (kُntُm, ynaَwْn, aِntَZِrw), but the silent ennation (n), does not follow but the nouns, (Azyzعزيزٌ, gfwrغفورٌ, ahdأحدٌ, azwaj أزواجاً, gasqغاسِقٍ )

The (n) appears in pronunciation though it is not written calligraphically.

There are four rules for the silenced (n) and ennation :

1.Revealing : That is to declare the (n) in pronunciation without singing it out at six letters : (a) hamza, (h), (A) , (h), (g), and (h˙).

Examples :( mn a˜mnمن آمن, mِn hadمن هاد, mn Amlمن عمل, mn hmlمن حمل, mn glمن غلٍّ, mn h˙yr.من خير)

2. Insertion : That is insertion of (n) in the succeedimng letter in a way the succeeding letter becomes stressed without pronouncing it This occurs in six letters joined to be easily memorized in the word (yrmlwnيرملون)  Humming appears with the (y), w, m, and n) . With the (l) and ( r ).Examples : mn yAmlمن يعمل-he who woks, becomes myAmlميَّعمل, mn wld- من ولدhe who breeds, becomes mwldlمِوَّلد, an lw-أن لوthat if, becomes alwألَّو, h˙yrً yrh- the good, he shall see, becomes hyryrhخيرَيَّرهْ, qwl mArwf- قول معروفa good saying, becomes qwlmArwfقولمَّعروف,mn rbhmمن ربِّهم- from their God, becomes mrbhmمِرَّبِّهم, mn ma tAmlwnمن ما تعملون- of what you do, becomes mma tAmlwnممّا تعملون, aِn nُAَd˙ِّb إن نعذِّب- If we torment, becomes anAd˙bإنُّعذِّب. 

The Rule for the similars and the homogeneous : somene has come. ad˙ tatyhmإذ تأتيهم- that it comes to them.. Any two letters in arabic when joined, they must either be similar, homogeneous, similar or apart. If they agreed in outlet and quality , they must besimilar, as in b+b, m+m, l+l.

If they agreed in outlet, but differed in quality, they are homogeneous such as t and T, l and r, t˙ and d˙. The rule for the similars and homogeneous are to be incorporated.

If they are near each other in outlet, but different in qualities, they are to be similar such as the t and T, l and r, m and m

If they agreed in outlet and differed in qualities, they are to be homogeneous such as t and T, l and r, t˙ and d˙.

The rule for the similars and homogeneous is incorporation.

If the letters were near each other in outlet, but different in qualities they are considered approximate.

Epilogue

March 12,2000‏

I do not and cannot claim that my work is or can ever be complete. Arabic is wider than to be confined within the bindings of a book. My work is only a starting point. It needs much expansion and development.

I do not like the passive reader, this is why I have left some work to be achieved by my reader. Some vocalization signs have to be laid over tricky letters to get the correct meaning of the words. This subject is crucial in joining the structure with the meaning and it is not an easy matter even to the Arabs.

It is only a suggestion to the non-Arab Muslims to consider it and see if the work can be of any benefit in rendering them any help in becoming more interested in learning Arabic to attain better understanding of the Holy Qُrْa˜n and enjoy a sensitive and tasteful recital of its verses, the way the first Muslim Arabs got enchanted by its heavenly sweetness as well as the late Arabs even the non Muslims. The Holy Qran includes the magic of the Arabic language.

The idea of fulfilling such a work happened to me four years ago, but it remained unfulfilled in my mind all this period of time. Whenever I see the Qran pronunciation introduced in Latin letters, I get vexed that it is not a scientific way to represent the Qُrْa˜nic words emptied from their true denotation and semantics. Arabic , if presented as meaningless imperfect sounds would lose much of its significance and sweetness. This is why I have tried to introduce its phonetics as a first step in learning Arabic, hoping that such a presentation would facilitate the non-Arabs’ task in their trial to get familiarity with Arabic in a self – taught procedure of easy reach, as I hope.

This work is only a suggestion , a mere sown seed. If it had any benefit to people, I ask God to help others in tending and growing it further ahead. If it were useless , I would like to consider it a mere trial to do good, and he who tries and fails would earn one point bonus , but he who tries and succeeds would earn two.

To a coming pursuance of the subject, and receiving the readers' evaluation of the work. Sincerely yours,

 MُhَmَّdْaِsْmaAyl bَTْrَŝ محَمَّد إسماعيل بطرش

Appendix

Arabic Grammatical Terms :

Hamza : is a stereotype of the first letter (a). It might be turned from an ending (w )after a superfluous (a), e.g. kِsaaْ, an article of clothes. Originally kِsawْ. Or from a (w), e.g. qaْaِlٌ , a sayer. Originally qawِlٌ, from qwl, a saying. Or from an ending (y)after a sperfluous a, e.g. bِnaْaٌ, a building. Originally bِnayٌ. If it were medial , it is written over the a if preceded by an opening sign, and it is written over a (w) when preceded by a rouding sign It is written over a (y) if preceded by a breaking sign. It is written single when preceded by a silenced (a).

aَh˙َd˙َ : a proceding verb like (kan),elevates the noun and rounds the predicate, e.g. aَh˙َd˙َ Tّalِbُ yَqْrَaُ, the student started reading.

aِh˙ْlَwْlَqَ : like (kanَ),means it is time that… e.g. h˙lwlq lkَslanُ aَnْ yَjْtَhِdَ, It is time that the lazy begin hard working.

aِdgam :Laying the stress over a recurrent letter,e.g.md, originally mdd, stretched.

ad˙: at that moment. Denotes surprise.

ad˙a: If, or when, e.g. ada tat, If you come; w lyl ada ygsa, when the night falls.

ad˙ma : relates the conditioned verb to its answer, e.g. ad˙ma tjthd tَnْjَh, whenyou study you will succeed.

ad˙n: refers to a conditional answer with an opening effect of the succeeding verb, e.g. ad˙n tnjh, an answer to a promising statement of studying, then you succeed.

aَra : to reveal or to show, e.g. aryt ahmd lamr waDh, I showd Ahmad the subject clearly.

azaْaَ : Facing to, e.g. jlst azaa lmAlm, I sat facing the teacher.

asbwAa :For a week.e.g. aqmt asbwAa, I stayed for a week.

astt˙naa : exceptionally.

astdrak : Compensating.

astdlal :denotating.

astgat˙ : asked for help.

astfham: asking for getting informed.

astqraa : surveying the details.

asm : A name or a noun.

alasmaa lhmst : ab – a father, ah – a brother, hm – a father-in-law, dw – aperson possessing, dw mal – a rich person, elevated by –w, opened by –a, and broken by –y, e.g. jaa abwk, your father came, rayt ahak, I saw your brother and mrrt babyk, I cama across your father.

Asmaa lasart : Demonstrative nouns refer to objects denoted : da –this for masculine singular ; dy, dh, ty, th,and ta for the feminine singular; dan and dyn for the dual masculine,but tan and tyn for the feminine dual; alaa for the plural. Hna refers to place (here); haanda – here I am.dalk – that one,masculine, dalk for the feminine, dalkma for the dual and dalkm for the plural. Demonstrative nouns are built words.

Asm tfDyl : comparative and superlative nouns e.g. asd It can be derived from the adjectives by the prefix a- e.g. asd – stouter and alasd – the stoutest.krym – generous , akrm – more generous, alakrm – the most generous.

Asm ljamA : Collective noun e.g. jys –an army,

Asm ljns: denotes its kind e.g. rjl – a man, amrat – a woman

Asm dat : a personal noun, e.g. hald – khaled and frs – a mare.

Asm maAna : Abstract noun e.g. asrf -Honour, honesty.

Asm lfaAl : Present participle refers to the performer of the action of the verb e.g. mAlm – a teacher, the person who teaches, qra – a reader, the person who reads.

Asm lfAl : The gerund ,e.g. alakl – eating, formed by the prefix al- before the past form of the derived noun. E.g. sbh – swam, asbaht – swimming.

Asm mfawl : past participle, derived similar to the form mfAwl frm its related verb,e.g. makwl –eaten from akl-ate.

Astqaq : Derivation. From a root past akl – ate, yakl – ha eats (present and kl – Eat ! (imperative) alakl – eating (gerund), akl – eating (present participle) makwl-eaten (past participle, makl- place of eating or for eating (place noun), maklt – where the action of eating occurs, and so on…

Asbh : happened in the morning, of kan sisters.elevates the noun and opens the predicate.

ADaft : addition, or annexation, genitive. AlmDaf is what is annexed and almDaf alyh : what is joined or annexed to. E.g. ktab tlmyd – the book of the student , or the student's book.

ADha : - hahhened at a late hour in the morning of kan sisters.

 Aalm : aknowledged takes three objects.e.g. aAlmt hald lhbr Shyh . I informed Khaled the news correctly.

AArab : Syntax checks application of standard rules of grammar over what is said or written in compliance with heriditary arbuitrary norms of the language.It is of three parts : verbal, estimated and local.

aATa : Gave , a past transitive verb,that takes two objects. E.g. aATyt lwld ktab.

af :A present verbal noun meaning weary.

afAal thwyl :Verbs of changing, Syr-changed into, rd- turned to, trk- left, thd- took, athd-took, jAl-made, whb- granted. They take two objects,e.g. thdt ahmd Sdyq (I took Ahmad as a friend.

  alafAal lhmst: The five verb forms , tfAlan- you do, yfAlan-They (dual) do, tfAlwn- You (masc.pl.) do, tfAlyn- You(fem.sing.)do, are elevated by fixing the final (n) instead of the rounding sign, and are opened and quieted by omitting the final (n),e.g.arjlan ln yktba- the two men shall not write.

  afAal dm: The verbs of dispraise are, bas-debased,saa-bad,lahbda-unrecommended,denoting abhorrence.The abhorred thing must be mentioned,e.g. bas lAml lqmar- debased be the work of gambling.

afAal rjaa:Verbs denoting expecting and hoping that something woud happen, are Asa-might, hra-due, hlwlq- worthy, of kan sisters. They elevate the noun and open the predicate which is a verb in the present.

afAal srwA : Verbs denoting a start of kad sisters,

They are : ansa-constructed,Alq-started, Tfq-carried on, ahd-went on, hb-sprang, bda-began,btda-started,jAl-went on, qam-stood, anbra-took a move.

afAal Zn: Verbs of conjecturing. They are Zn-thought,hal-immagined, and hsb-calculated.They can be verified.Other verbs are unverified. They are, jAl-made a notion, hja-thought,Ad-calculated,zAm-pretended,and hb-sprang to.e.g. znnt hal msafr- I thought khaled was travelling.

AfAal lmdh : Verbs of Praise. They are (nAm-praised be, hb-beliked, hbda- preferred

The verb

The verb is a word indicating a meaning in itself and the time is included in it, e.g. qَrَaَ, yَqْrَaُ, aِqْrَaْ قرأ ، يقرأ ، إقرأ( read , reads, read!)-past, present and imperative. Time in the past has elapsed without ability to recur,in the present it indicates ability, habit, and real present as well. As for the imperative it indicates promptness in request.

The past form of a verb should accept the suffix (tُ ) which indicates the speaker’s joined personal pronoun (I), and the silent ending (tْ ) which indicates the absent feminine singular subject pronoun (she), e.g. qَrَaْtُ قرأتُ- I read, and qratْ  - she read.

The present form of a verb refers to an action happening at the time of speaking, or in the future. It should accept the emphasising (lَ) at its beginning , and the negating (ma) e.g. aِnّy lَyَhْzُnُny aَnْ tَd˙ْhَbw bِhِ إنّي لَيحزنُني أن تذهبوا به( It is to my sorrow that you take him ), w ma tَdْry nَfْsٌ mad˙a tَkْsِbُ gَdً w ma tdry nfs bِaَyِّ aَrْDٍ tَmwtو ما تدري نفسٌ ماذا تكسِبُ غداً و ما تدري نفسٌ بِأيّ أرضٍ تموت ( Not a soul can know what it might earn tomorrow and not a soul can know at what land it might expire.) The present can accept the futurity particle (s- and swf), and ln, an, and an.e.g. sySla narً سيصلى ناراً- he will be inflamed in a fire. Swf yُra سوفَ يُرى-he shall be shown. Ln tَrany لن تراني-you shall never see me, w aَn tSwmw h˙yr lkm و أن تصوموا خير لكم- thatyou fast is for your good.

W aِn ytfrَّqa yُgnِ lّahُ kُlًّ mn sَAَtِh و إن يتفرّقا يغن الله كلّاً من سعته- If they separate, God shall enrich each of them from His bounty welfare. The present can come after lm, e.g. lm yqrَaْ لم يقرأ- He does not read. The present must be begun by any letter of (anyt) where (a) indicates the 1^st. person singular, (n) for the 1^st person plural, (y) for the 3^rd. person masculine singular and plural, and (t) for the 2^nd. Person masculine and feminine, singular, dual and plural.

The imperative indicates something to be excuted after the sreaking time e.g. aِqraْ  إقرَأْRead !

It should accept the emphasising (n) with its indicating request to be fulfilled.e.g aktbَnّْ  أكتبَنّ  Do write !

Verbal Nouns

Verbal nouns are words having verb meanings, but do not accept their moods. They are of three kinds :Past Verbal Noun, e.g. hyhat هيهات-It is far from, Present Verbal Noun, e.g. wy, وي- I wonder, aُfّ, أُفّ- I am bored with, awh أوه, and ah, آه- I suffer.and Imperative Verbal Noun, e.g. Sَh, صه-keep silent! , and amyn, آمين- I beg to be responded.

They can be prompted as before, or transferred after a preposition, e.g. Aَlَyْk nَfsَkَ, عليك نفسك- Do not interfere with others’ business, and alyk Anّy إليكَ عنّي– Give way, or transformed from an adverb, e.g. dwnk lktabدونك الكتابَ, - take the book., and mkank مكانكَ- Stay where you are!, or transformed from an infinitive, e.g. rwydk رويدك, - take your ease, blh lakf بله الأكفَّ,- leave them.

Verbal nouns do not change with the dual or the plural, masculine or feminine except when they are addressed in discourse e.g, Alykَ, Alykِ, Alykma, Alykm, and Alyknَّ.

Sound Nouns

Are utterances either used to urge irrationals e.g. hs هُسto the sheep, hَyْd هيدَto the camel, ha, حاto the donkey hŝt, هشتto the dog..etc.. or are used to imitate their sounds, e.g. gaq  غاقfor the raven Aw  عَوfor the dog, hyq حيقfor the donkey, ِtk tَk for the clok, wyt  ويتfor the train TwT طوطfor the car horn..etc.., all of which are auditory and arbitrary.

The Unaugmented (Bare) Verb Roots and the Augmentive ones

Verb Root is either Bare or Unaugumented, or Augumentive.

Unaugumented Verb Root is Either Triliteral or Quadriliteral.

The Triliteral has six metres :

1. fAl yfAl e,g, nSr ynSr and qtl yqtl

2. fAl yfAl e.g. Drb yDrb and jls yjls

3. fAl yfAl e.g. fth yfth and mnA ymnA

4. fAl yfAl e.g. frh yfrh and Alm yAlm

5. fAl yfAl e.g. krm ykrm and srf ysrf

6. fAl yfAl e.g. hsb yhsb anf nAm ynAm

الوزن : فتح ضمٍّ , فتح كسرٍ ، فتحتان ؛ كسر فتح ، ضمُّ ضمٍّ كسرتان ,

The Quadriliteral has only one metre:

1. fAll yfAll e.g. dhrj ydhrj and wsws ywsws

The Augmentive Verb Root is of two kinds : Augmentive Triliteral and Augmentive Quadriliteral: The Augmentive Triliteral is either augmented by one letter and has three metres

1. afAl yfAl e.g. akrm ykrm and ahsn yhsn,

2. fAl yfAl e.g. qdm yqdm and Azm yAZm,

3. faAl yfaAl e.g. qatl yqatl and DarbyDarb.

Or augmented by two letters and has five metres :

1. anfAl ynfAl e.g. anTlq ynTlq and anksr ynksr,

2. aftAl yftAl e.g. ajtmA yjtmA and aqtdr yqtdr,

3. afAl yfAl e.g. ahmr yhmr and abyD ybyD,

4. tfaAl ytfaAl e.g.tsark ytsark and tsabq ytsabq

5. tfAl ytfAl e.g. tAlm ytAlm and tbSr ytbSr

Or augmented by three letters and has four metres :

1. astfAl ystfAl e.g. astgfr ystgfr and asthrj ysthrj,

2. afAwAl yfAwAl e.g.ahswsn yhswsn and agrwrq ygrwrq

3.afAwl yfAwl e.g. ajlwd yjlwd and aAlwT yAlwT

4. afAal yfAal e.g. ahmar yhmar and abyaD ybyaD

The Augmentive quadriliteral is either augmented by one letter and has one metre :

1.tfAll ytfAll e.g. tdhrj ytdhrj and tbAt r ytbAt r.

Or augmented by two letters and has two metres :

1. afAnll yfAnll e.g.ahrnjm yhrnjm and afrnqA yfrnqA.

2. afAll yfAll e.g. aTman yTman and aqŝAr yqŝAr.

Accordingly the Verb for its root has four kinds : Triliteral, Quadriliteral, Pentaliteral and Hexaliteral, and for its metre, it has 22 metres as displayed above .

All of the metres are arbitrary and accepted by hearing.

If the past of the verb was on the metre fAَl, the (A) of its present can be opened, rounded or broken. If its (A) was broken in its past, its present can be either (Aِ) or (Aَ), and if its past was on the metre fAُl, its present can be yfAُl only.

The verb can be conjugated if we can have its present and its imperative, but it is unconjugated when we can not form them e.g. Asa and lys in the past and hbْ, tAlَّm. The defective verbs can not form their three tenses e.g. zal and brh.

  The verb can be Transitive or Intransitive if it takes an object or it does not . Some verbs can have two objects, e.g. aATa, sal, mnh, mnA, ksa, and albs (the objects were not originally suject and predicate, e.g. aATyt lmAlm ktab

أعطيت المعلِّم كتاباً or Zn, hal, hsb, zam, jAl, Ad, hja , whb, which denote preponderance, or raa, Alm, wj], alfa,dra, and tAlm which denote certainty , and Syr, rd, trk, thd athd jAl whb, which denote change.

When the verb does not take an object , it is considered intransitive if it follows the metre of fAl e.g krm hald.or indicated.