Asking, rather, and the words that work like inna
How a question is asked, bal, "rather", the small words that, like inna, put the noun after them in the accusative, and laysa, "is not".
Written and checked by AI
These lessons were written and checked by AI, and no teacher of Arabic has read them yet. The verses, their meanings and the analysis of every word are taken from their sources, which are named where they are shown.
- Words of the Qur’ān known whole
- 49.2%
- Parts of the Qur’ān’s words taught so far
- 69.3%
Counted from the Quranic Arabic Corpus: a word is known whole when every part of it has been taught. The counts say which words you have met, not how much you understand.
Lesson 5 taught a-, which turns a sentence into a question. This lesson teaches more ways to ask, and bal, "rather". It also teaches the words that work like inna from lesson 4, which put the noun or pronoun after them in the accusative, and laysa, "is not".
The new words
- هَلAs the Qur’ān writes it: هَلْ · هَل · هَلِ
a question that asks yes or no
Times in the Qur’ān: 93
- كَيْفAs the Qur’ān writes it: كَيْفَ
how
Root: ك ي فTimes in the Qur’ān: 83
- أَمAs the Qur’ān writes it: أَمْ · أَ · أَمِ
or (in a question)
Times in the Qur’ān: 137
- بَلAs the Qur’ān writes it: بَلْ · بَل · بَلِ
rather; no, but
Times in the Qur’ān: 127
- لَٰكِنAs the Qur’ān writes it: لَٰكِن · لَٰكِنِ · لَٰكِنْ
but
Times in the Qur’ān: 73
- لَعَلّAs the Qur’ān writes it: لَعَلَّ · لَّعَلَّ
perhaps; so that
Times in the Qur’ān: 123
- لَّيْسَAs the Qur’ān writes it: لَيْسَ · لَّيْسَ · لَسْ
is not
Root: ل ي سTimes in the Qur’ān: 89
Asking
Hal asks a question that is answered "yes" or "no".
- هَلْa question that asks yes or no
Kayfa is "how".
- كَيْفَhow
Am is "or" inside a question: "is it this, or that?". It can also open a question of its own after what was said before: "or …?".
Rather
- بَلْrather; no, but
Bal is "rather": it turns from what was said before to what is said in its place, or to something further. The corpus calls it a particle of retraction.
Like inna
Lākin, "but", is most often said with a single n. Then the corpus marks it as a particle of amendment, and it does not change the ending of what follows. Said with a doubled n, lākinna works like inna; the corpus counts most of those as a word of its own, not as this one.
Laʿalla, "perhaps" or "so that", works like inna: the noun after it is in the accusative, and a pronoun is joined to it. The corpus counts it with inna's kind.
- لَعَلَّperhaps; so that
- هُۥhim, his; it, its
Laʿallahu is laʿalla and hu, "he": "perhaps he".
Is not
Laysa, "is not", works like kāna, "was", from lesson 6: what is said of its subject is in the accusative. It has a past form only, but means "is not".
- لَّسْis not
- تَyou, your (one man)
Lasta is laysa with ta, "you": "you are not". Before ta, laysa is shortened to las-. The corpus marks it as a verb of kāna's kind. What is said of "you" here has bi- in front, bi-muṣayṭirin, and so is in the genitive: bi- is often set before what laysa says.
In a sentence
Is this your pen?
This sentence was written for practice. Hal hādhā qalamuka?: hal, then "this is your pen", and it is a question.
The house is not far.
Laysa l-baytu baʿīdan: "far" is in the accusative, baʿīdan, after laysa.
Reading
The words you know whole after this lesson are marked.
Then We made you their successors in the land to see how you would behave[1].
English Translation - Rowwad Translation Center · QuranEnc.com · version 1.0.20Or have We given them a Book before this [Qur’an], to which they are holding fast?
English Translation - Rowwad Translation Center · QuranEnc.com · version 1.0.20They said, “We have come to you with that [punishment][1] which they have doubted.
English Translation - Rowwad Translation Center · QuranEnc.com · version 1.0.20Recall
- What kind of question does hal ask?
- What case is the noun after laʿalla in?
- How does laysa change what is said of its subject?
Answers: one answered "yes" or "no"; the accusative; it puts it in the accusative, as kāna does, unless bi- stands before it.
Next
The next lesson teaches eight common verbs, and what happens to a verb whose root has a weak letter or a hamzah.
Word analysis: Quranic Arabic Corpus 0.4 (Kais Dukes)