Arabic: An Essential Grammar

16.4 When the predicate noun is in the

id

̇

a ̄fah construction, or

followed by a suffixed pronoun, or when it is a proper name, the

insertion of the personal pronoun between the demonstrative pronoun

and predicate is optional, e.g.

16.5 When the predicate is a noun in the indefinite form, no personal

pronoun is needed between the demonstrative pronoun and predicate

to act as copula, e.g.

16.6 Demonstrative pronouns qualifying plural nouns referring to

non-human beings take the feminine singular forms, viz. ه ِذ ِه ‘this’ and

ِتْل َك^ ‘that’, e.g.

Note: The adjectives َم ْك ُسو َر ٌة and َم ِري َض ٌة are in the singular because they

refer to non-human beings.

16.7 When a demonstrative pronoun qualifies the first noun (the

annexed) in the

id

̇

a ̄fah construction, the demonstrative pronoun is

placed after the whole phrase, e.g.

(^) ل ُم ْل َوَل ِدُّم َعَ (ُه َو) ه َذا
ا
(^) يا َر ُة ْلـ ُم ِدي ِرََّس (ِه َي ) ه ِذ ِه
ha ̄d
̄
a ̄ (huwa) mu

allimu l-waladi. ha ̄d
̄
ihi (hiya) sayya ̄ratu l-mudı

• ri.

This (is) the boy’s teacher. This (is) the manager’s car.

َب ْي ِتي (ُه َو) ذِل َك

ا

م ٌدَُّم َح (ُه َو ) ه َذا

ا

d

̄

a ̄lika (huwa) baytı-.ha ̄d

̄

a ̄ (huwa) Muh

̇

ammadun.

That (is) my house. This (is) Muhammad.

ه َذا َقَل ٌم

ا

ه ِذ ِه ِب ْن ٌت

ا

ل ُمو َنّه ُؤ َلا ِء ُم َعَ

ا

ذِل َك ِح َصا ٌن

ا

ha ̄d

̄

a ̄ qalamun. ha ̄d

̄

ihi bintun. ha ̄

ula ̄

i mu



allimu ̄na. d

̄

a ̄lika his

̇

a ̄nun.

This (is) a pen. This (is) a girl. These (are) teachers. That (is) a horse

(stallion).

ه ِذ ِه ْلـ َح َي َوا َنا ُت َم ِري َض ٌة

ا

ِتْل َك  ْل َك َر ِسي َم ْك ُسو َر ٌة

ha ̄d

̄

ihi l-h

̇

ayawa ̄na ̄tu marı

• d
  ̇

atun. tilka l-kara ̄sı

• maksu ̄ratun.

These animals (are) ill. Those chairs (are) broken.

100

Demon-

strative,

reflexive

and

reciprocal

pronouns