Arabic: An Essential Grammar

Note: These numbers never precede the noun adjectivally, because the singular

and dual forms of the nouns are sufficient to indicate the number of referents.

34.5 The nouns َأ َح ٌد

ah

̇

adun ‘one’ (masc.) and ِإ ْح َدى

ih

̇

da ̄ ‘one’

(fem.) are used in the

id

̇

a ̄fah construction with a noun or a pronoun,

e.g.

َأ َح ٌد^

ah

̇

adun is also used after a negative particle to mean ‘not... any-

one, nobody, no one, none’, but the feminine form ِإ ْح َدى

ih

̇

da ̄ cannot be

used for the same purpose, e.g.

Masculine Feminine

َوا ِح ٌد wa ̄h

̇

idun, one َوا ِح َد ٌة wa ̄h

̇

idatun

ِإ ْث َنا ِن^

it

̄

na ̄ni, two ِإ ْث َن َتا ِن

it

̄

nata ̄ni

َو َص َل َطاِل ٌب َوا ِح ٌد ر ًة َوا ِح َد ًةََّزا َر ِ ني َم

was

̇

ala t

̇

a ̄libun wa ̄h

̇

idun.za ̄ranı

• marratan wa ̄h
  ̇

idatan.

(Only) one student arrived. He visited me once (only).

َشا َه ْد ُت ِب ْن َت ْي ِن ِب ْن َت ْي ِن  ْث َن َت ْي ِنَشا َه ْد ُت

sˇa ̄hadtu bintayni. OR sˇa ̄hadtu bintayni t

̄

natayni.

I saw (only) two girls. (less commonly used as an adjective)

َو َص َل َطاِل ٌب (Not: َو َص َل َوا ِح ٌد َطاِل ٌب

was

̇

ala t

̇

a ̄libun. was

̇

ala wa ̄h

̇

idun t

̇

a ̄libun.)

One student arrived.

َو َصَل ْت َطاِل َب َتا ِن (Not: َو َصَل ْت  ْث َن َتا ِن َطاِل َب َتا ِن

was

̇

alat t

̇

a ̄libata ̄ni. was

̇

alat t

̄

nata ̄ni t

̇

a ̄libata ̄ni.)

Two female students arrived.

Masculine Feminine

.َأ َح ُد ْ َلأ ْو َلا ِد

ah

̇

adu l-

awla ̄di .ِإ ْح َدى ْل َب َنا ِت

ih

̇

da ̄ l-bana ̄ti

one of the children one of the girls

َأ َح ُد ُه ْم^

ah

̇

adu-hum نَّ ِإ ْح َدا ُه

ih

̇

da ̄-hunna

one of them one of them

258

Cardinal

numbers