Arabic: An Essential Grammar

Note b: The word َأ ْش َيا ُء

asˇya ̄

u ‘things’ (sing. َش ْي ٌء sˇay

un) is an

exception because it is a diptote in the Quran.

(d) A few nouns and adjectives ending in ـى

ِ

.. are indeclinable (they

have the same form in all cases) in both the definite and indefinite

form, e.g.

22.5 Broken plurals as diptotes

Broken plurals having the pattern of َم َفا ِع ُل mafa ̄



ilu or َم َفا ِعي ُل mafa ̄



ı ̄lu

are diptotes, e.g.

Exercises

Practise your reading:

1

ُتْعَمَتْسِإ

2

) ٌنِّذَؤُم .s ( َّنيِنَ ذَؤُمـِل

3

يِف َنيِزاَتْمُم

4

) ٌدِجْسَم .s ( َدِجاَسَم

5

َةَّ كَم يِف ٍةَديِدَع

6

.ِةَم َّ رَكُمـْل

(1)

istama



tu li-mu

ad

̄

d

̄

inı

• na mumta ̄zı
  
  
  • na fı
    
    
    • masa ̄g ̆ida
    
    
    
    
  
  
  
  



adı

• datin fı
  
  
  • Makkata
  
  
  
  

l-mukarramati.

1

I listened to

3

excellent

2

muezzins (

2

reciters of the Holy Quran) in

5

many

4

mosques in the

6

Honored (Holy) city of Mecca.

را ٌءَُّق (v. َس َما ٌء َق َر َأ (v. ِش َرا ٌء َس َم َو (v. َش َر َي

qurra ̄

un qara

a) sama ̄

un samawa) sˇira ̄

un sˇaraya)

readers heaven purchase, buy(ing)

Indefinite Definite

َم ْق ًهى maqhan, a coffee house َأْلـ َم ْق َهى^

al-maqha ̄

ُس ْك َنى sukna ̄, housing, dwelling س ْك َنىُّ َأل^

as-sukna ̄

دَُّم َوا َأ َصا ِب ُع َأ َكا ِر ُم َم َسا ِج ُد

mawa ̄ddu

as

̇

a ̄bi



u

aka ̄rimu masa ̄g ̆idu

materials fingers nobles mosques

َع َصا ِفي ُر َق َنا ِدي ُل َش َبا ِبي ُك َأ َنا ِشي ُد



as

̇

a ̄fı

• ru qana ̄dı
  
  
  • lu sˇaba ̄bı
    
    
    • ku
    
    
    
    
  
  
  
  

ana ̄sˇı

• du

birds lamps windows songs, hymns

156

Triptotes

and

diptotes