Arabic: An Essential Grammar

Note: Plural nisbah forms often have a collective meaning, e.g. يا ُتَّل َسا ِنََّأل




al-lisa ̄niyya ̄tu ‘linguistics’, from the noun ِل َسا ٌن ‘tongue, language’.

25.7 In pausal form (at the end of a sentence) the above nisbah suffix

يٌّ ِـ ... /...iyyun/ is pronounced as a long vowel: ِـي ... /...ı ̄/, which does

not take nunation. In pausa the final ta ̄

marbu ̄t

̇

ah (...ـة ة) /...t/ is

pronounced as /...h/, e.g.

25.8 The above relative adjective (nisbah) usually takes the sound

plural, e.g.

Note: The adjective يٌّ َع َر ِب



arabiyyun ‘Arab, Arabic’ does not form the sound

plural, but uses the collective noun َع َر ٌب



arabun ‘the Arabs, Arab’ as the plural

form, e.g.

ِإ ْش ِت َرا ٌك يٌّ ِإ ْش ِت َرا ِك ي ٌةَِّإ ْش ِت َرا ِك




isˇtira ̄kun, co-operation

isˇtira ̄kiyyun,

socialist

isˇtira ̄kiyyatun, socialism

َق ْو ٌم يٌّ َق ْو ِم ي ٌةََّق ْو ِم

qawmun, people, nation qawmiyyun,

nationalist

qawmiyyatun,

nationalism

يٌّ ُل ْب َنا ِن ي ٌةَُّل ْب َنا ِن

lubna ̄nı-, Lebanese (m.) lubna ̄niyyah, (f.)

يٌّ َق ْو ِم ي ٌةََّق ْو ِم

qawmı-, nationalist qawmiyyah, nationalism

Masculine plural Feminine plural

يو َنُّل ُمو َن ْلـ ِم ْص ِرََّأْلـ ُمع يا ُتَّلـ َما ُت ْلـ ِم ْص ِرََّأْلـ ُم َعـ




al-mu



allimu ̄na l-mis

̇

riyyu ̄na

al-mu



allima ̄tu l-mis

̇

riyya ̄tu

the Egyptian teachers the Egyptian teachers

Masculine plural

ل ُمو َن ْل َع َر ُبََّأْلـ ُمع (not: يو َنُّلمو َن ل َع َر ِبََّأْلـ ُمع




al-mu



allimu ̄na l-



arabu

al-mu



allimu ̄na l-



arabiyyu ̄na)

the Arab teachers

184

Adjectival

patterns,

relative

adjectives,

comparative