Practice
Verbs and pronouns
الأفعال
Who is who, how the person hides inside the verb, the little endings that say whose something is, and how the same sentence moves through time. Nothing to sign up for, and nothing to get wrong.
Pronouns
Who's who
Arabic has twelve words for I, you, he, she, we and they. Step through them one at a time.
أَنَاanaIthe person speaking
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Who is lit up? Pick the word the speaker is saying.
You can tell who’s who in Arabic.
Twelve little words, and you know them all by sight.
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Book a free lessonSee all twelve at once
Me and us
- أَنَاI
- نَحْنُwe
You
- أَنْتَyou (a man)
- أَنْتِyou (a woman)
- أَنْتُمَاyou two
- أَنْتُمْyou all (men, or a mixed group)
- أَنْتُنَّyou all (women)
Them
- هُوَhe
- هِيَshe
- هُمَاthey two
- هُمْthey (men, or a mixed group)
- هُنَّthey (women)
Verbs
The pronoun hides in the verb
You know the people. Now find them hiding inside a verb: أَذْهَبُ means “I go”, but there is no أَنَا in it. The “I” is the letter on the front. Watch it happen, four times.
- أI
- نwe
- يhe
- تyou, she
adh-habu
I go
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Who is going? Look at the front letter.
You can find the person hiding in an Arabic verb.
One letter on the front, and you know who is going.
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Book a free lessonTeachers often remember the four front letters as one word, أَنَيْتُ.
Verb endings
The ending says how many
One person needs only the front letter: يَذْهَبُ, he goes. For two people, or a group, the verb also gets an ending, on the other end of the word.
- ـَانِtwo people
- ـُونَa group
- ـْنَwomen only
tadh-habāni
You two go
yadh-habāni
They two go
The ending ـَانِ means two people. Arabic has its own form for exactly two. تَذْهَبَانِ can also mean “they two go” about two women.
All six together
| تyou | يthey | |
|---|---|---|
| ـَانِtwo people | تَذْهَبَانِtadh-habāni | يَذْهَبَانِyadh-habāni |
| ـُونَa group | تَذْهَبُونَtadh-habūna | يَذْهَبُونَyadh-habūna |
| ـْنَwomen only | تَذْهَبْنَtadh-habna | يَذْهَبْنَyadh-habna |
The front letter says who, the ending says how many.
Verbs in pictures
Match the verb
Look at who is doing it, then pick the verb that fits: he or she, two people, or a group. Then whole sentences, where the verb has to make sense too. Five levels in all.
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Who is doing it?
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Book a free lessonAttached pronouns · الضَّمَائِر المُتَّصِلَة
My, your, his, her: the little endings
In Arabic, “my”, “your”, “his”, “her”, “our” and “their” are small endings on the word: سَيَّارَتُهَا is her car. Seven levels: one owner, two, a group, many things, then in sentences, with verbs, and last, telling a noun's ending from a verb's.
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Whose is it?
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Whose is it?
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Another level done. A free lesson with Esa takes your Arabic further.
Book a free lessonPast, present and future
Yesterday, every day, tomorrow
Same sentence, now move it through time. In the past, the person is an ending. In the present, a letter on the front. For the future, add سَ.
أَذْهَبُإِلَى الْمَدْرَسَةِكُلَّ يَوْمٍ
adh-habu ila al-madrasati kulla yawm
I go to school every day.
Sort the verbs
Did it happen yesterday, or does it happen every day?
Compare each card with its plain verb underneath. A letter added on the front means every day. An ending, or nothing added, means yesterday.
Tap “Deal the cards” to start.
You can tell yesterday from every day in Arabic.
Three verbs, two times, and you sorted them all.
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