The present verb has three endings
The present verb you learned ends in damma. Certain particles in front of it change that ending:
| Mood | Ending | هُوَ | هُمْ | أَنْتِ |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| indicative (مَرْفُوع) | ـُ | يَكْتُبُ | يَكْتُبُونَ | تَكْتُبِينَ |
| subjunctive (مَنْصُوب) | ـَ | يَكْتُبَ | يَكْتُبُوا | تَكْتُبِي |
| jussive (مَجْزُوم) | ـْ | يَكْتُبْ | يَكْتُبُوا | تَكْتُبِي |
What takes the subjunctive
أَنْ (that, to), لَنْ (will not), كَيْ and لِكَيْ (in order to), لِـ (in order to), حَتَّى (until, so that):
- أُرِيدُ أَنْ أَذْهَبَ إِلَى السُّوقِ. — I want to go to the market.
- لَنْ يَكْتُبَ الرِّسَالَةَ. — He will not write the letter.
- دَرَسْتُ كَيْ أَنْجَحَ. — I studied in order to pass.
- اِنْتَظَرْتُ حَتَّى يَصِلَ. — I waited until he arrived.
What takes the jussive
لَمْ (did not), لَا of prohibition (do not), لِـ of command (let):
- لَمْ يَكْتُبِ الرِّسَالَةَ. — He did not write the letter.
- لَا تَذْهَبْ إِلَى هُنَاكَ. — Do not go there.
- لِنَذْهَبْ مَعًا. — Let us go together.
The five verbs lose their nun
Forms ending in ـُونَ, ـِينَ and ـَانِ do not take a vowel change. They simply drop the ن in both the subjunctive and the jussive:
| Indicative | Subjunctive or jussive |
|---|---|
| يَكْتُبُونَ | لَنْ يَكْتُبُوا، لَمْ يَكْتُبُوا |
| تَكْتُبِينَ | أَنْ تَكْتُبِي، لَا تَكْتُبِي |
| يَكْتُبَانِ | لَنْ يَكْتُبَا، لَمْ يَكْتُبَا |
The written alif comes back with the ـوا ending: لَنْ يَكْتُبُوا.
أن plus a verb is the Arabic infinitive
English has "to write". Arabic has أَنْ plus a conjugated verb, which agrees with its own subject:
- أُرِيدُ أَنْ أَدْرُسَ. — I want to study.
- يُرِيدُ أَنْ يَدْرُسَ. — He wants to study.
- أُرِيدُ أَنْ يَدْرُسَ ابْنِي. — I want my son to study.
Watch out as an English speaker
- There is no infinitive. ✗ أُرِيدُ أَذْهَبُ. / ✓ أُرِيدُ أَنْ أَذْهَبَ.
- After لَنْ the ending is fatha, not damma. ✗ لَنْ أَذْهَبُ. / ✓ لَنْ أَذْهَبَ.
- After لَمْ the ending is sukun. ✗ لَمْ يَذْهَبُ. / ✓ لَمْ يَذْهَبْ.
- Do not keep the nun. ✗ أُرِيدُ أَنْ يَذْهَبُونَ. / ✓ أُرِيدُ أَنْ يَذْهَبُوا.
Example dialogue
مَاذَا تُرِيدُ أَنْ تَفْعَلَ غَدًا؟ — What do you want to do tomorrow?
أُرِيدُ أَنْ أَزُورَ الْمَتْحَفَ. — I want to visit the museum.
لِمَاذَا لَمْ تَذْهَبْ أَمْسِ؟ — Why did you not go yesterday?
لِأَنَّ الْمَتْحَفَ كَانَ مُغْلَقًا. لَنْ أَنْتَظِرَ طَوِيلًا هَذِهِ الْمَرَّةَ. — Because the museum was closed. I will not wait long this time.
لِنَذْهَبْ مَعًا إِذَنْ. — Let us go together then.