The core prepositions
| Preposition | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| فِي | in | فِي الْبَيْتِ (fi l-bayti) in the house |
| عَلَى | on | عَلَى الطَّاوِلَةِ (ʿala ṭ-ṭāwilati) on the table |
| مِنْ | from | مِنَ الْمَدْرَسَةِ (mina l-madrasati) from the school |
| إِلَى | to | إِلَى السُّوقِ (ila s-sūqi) to the market |
| مَعَ | with (together) | مَعَ صَدِيقِي (maʿa ṣadīqī) with my friend |
| عِنْدَ | at, by | عِنْدَ الْبَابِ (ʿinda l-bābi) at the door |
| عَنْ | about | عَنِ الْكِتَابِ (ʿani l-kitābi) about the book |
| بِـ | with (by means of) | بِالْقَلَمِ (bi-l-qalami) with the pen |
| لِـ | for, to | لِلطَّالِبِ (li-ṭ-ṭālibi) for the student |
بِـ and لِـ are single letters and are written joined to the next word. After لِـ, the alif of ال disappears in writing too: لِـ + الْبَيْتِ = لِلْبَيْتِ.
Everything after a preposition is genitive
The noun after a preposition takes the genitive ending: ـِ when definite, ـٍ (tanween kasra) when indefinite.
| Alone | After a preposition |
|---|---|
| الْبَيْتُ the house | فِي الْبَيْتِ in the house |
| بَيْتٌ a house | فِي بَيْتٍ in a house |
| الْمَدِينَةُ the city | مِنَ الْمَدِينَةِ from the city |
| مَكْتَبٌ an office | فِي مَكْتَبٍ in an office |
مِنْ and عَنْ end in sukun, so before ال they take a helping vowel: مِنَ الْبَيْتِ, عَنِ الْبَيْتِ.
"To have"
Arabic has no verb "to have". It uses عِنْدَ (for things you have with you or own) or لِـ (for relationships and belonging), with a pronoun suffix:
| Arabic | Sound | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| عِنْدِي | ʿindī | I have |
| عِنْدَكَ / عِنْدَكِ | ʿindaka / ʿindaki | you have (m / f) |
| عِنْدَهُ / عِنْدَهَا | ʿindahu / ʿindahā | he has / she has |
| عِنْدَنَا | ʿindanā | we have |
| عِنْدَكُمْ | ʿindakum | you have (pl) |
| عِنْدَهُمْ | ʿindahum | they have |
- عِنْدِي سَيَّارَةٌ. — I have a car.
- لَهُ أَخٌ وَأُخْتٌ. — He has a brother and a sister.
- لَيْسَ عِنْدِي وَقْتٌ. — I do not have time.
The thing owned is the subject, so it stays nominative: عِنْدِي كِتَابٌ, not a direct object.
Watch out as an English speaker
- There is no verb "to have". ✗ أَنَا أَمْلِكُ وَقْتًا. (that is "I own time") / ✓ عِنْدِي وَقْتٌ.
- Negate "have" with لَيْسَ, not لَا. ✗ لَا عِنْدِي وَقْتٌ. / ✓ لَيْسَ عِنْدِي وَقْتٌ.
- Keep the genitive ending. ✗ فِي الْبَيْتُ / ✓ فِي الْبَيْتِ.
- بِـ and لِـ are never separate words. ✗ بِ الْقَلَمِ / ✓ بِالْقَلَمِ.
Example dialogue
أَيْنَ أَنْتَ؟ — Where are you?
أَنَا فِي الْمَكْتَبِ مَعَ أَحْمَدَ. — I am in the office with Ahmad.
هَلْ عِنْدَكَ قَلَمٌ؟ — Do you have a pen?
نَعَمْ، الْقَلَمُ عَلَى الطَّاوِلَةِ. — Yes, the pen is on the table.
شُكْرًا، سَأَذْهَبُ إِلَى السُّوقِ. — Thanks, I am going to the market.