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ARABIC ONLINE اللّغة العربيّة |
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Sound Masculine Plural Nouns Irregular Perfective Conjugation Irregular Imperfective Conjugation Inactive Particles Vocative Particles Praise & Disparagement Participle-like Adjectives Place-nouns Tool-nouns Diminutives
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Verb-Like Particles (continued)
Understanding Verb-Like Particles In essence, verb-like particles are three:
The other three particles are based on 'inna as follows: 1. 'anna أَنَّ أَنْ إِنَّ ≡ أَنَّ 'an 'inna ≡ 'anna that it is true that ≡ that
Examples: إِنَّ المَوْعِدَ اليَوْمَ 'inna ('a)l-maw"id(a) ('a)l-yawm(a) = truthfully the appointment/date (is) today Translation: the appointment/date is today
ظَنَنْتُ أَنَّ المَوْعِدَ اليَوْمَ zanant(u) 'anna ('a)l-maw"id(a) ('a)l-yawm(a) = (I) thought that truthfully the appointment/date (is) today Translation: I thought that the appointment/date was today
The meaning of 'anna is a complex meaning which is "'an 'inna" = "that it is true that". The non-reduced form "'an 'inna" cannot be used and it has to be 'anna. Another example: لَقَدْ عُدْتُ la-qad "udt(u) = (I) have returned Translation: I have returned / I am back
إِنِّي قَدْ عُدْتُ 'inn-ee qad "udt(u) = truthfully me have returned Translation: I have returned / I am back
أَلَمْ تَعْلَمُوْا أَنِّي قَدْ عُدْتُ ؟ 'a-lam ta"lamoo 'ann-ee qad "udt(u) = is it that did not (you) know that truthfully me have returned Translation: didn't you know that I am back?
Note: 'an أَنْ is a particle which means "that." However, it is used almost only before verbs (i.e. before verbal sentences) and not before nouns. Therefore, it can't usually be used before a nominal sentence unless combined with 'inna to produce 'anna, like in the already mentioned examples.
'an أَنْ is used in Arabic to produce infinitival phrases just like how "to" is used in English. If the verb after 'an was an imperfective verb, it must be in the subjunctive mood. أُرِيْدُ أَنْ أَتَعَلَّمَ 'ureed(u) 'an 'ata"allam(a) = (I) want that (I) learn Translation: I want to learn
'an أَنْ is used in front of nominal sentences in only one classical case, which is when 'an precedes an "explanatory phrase." فَأَرْسَلَ إِلَيْهِ أَنِ الْحَرْبُ وَشِيْكَةٌ fa-'arsal(a) 'ilay-hi 'an(i) ('a)l-harb(u) washeeka(tun) = then (he) sent to him that the war (is) imminent Translation: so he sent to him a message telling him that war is imminent
2. laakinna لَكِنَّ لَكِنْ إِنَّ ≡ لَكِنَّ laakin 'inna ≡ laakinna but it is true that ≡ but
Examples: الْكَلامُ سَهْلٌ لَكِنَّ الْفِعْلَ صَعْبٌ 'al-kalaam(u) sahl(un) laakinna ('a)l-fi"l(a) sa"b(un) = the talking (is) easy but truthfully the doing (is) hard Translation: talking is easy but doing is hard
The non-reduced form "laakin 'inna" cannot be used and it has to be laakinna. It is very habitual for Arabs to add an unnecessary wa وَ = "and" before both laakin (but) and laakinna (emphasized but) . This "and" means nothing and does nothing.
اْشْتَرَيْتُ الْكِتَاْبَ وَلَكِنِّيْ لَمْ أَقْرَأْهُ بَعْدُ 'ishtarayt(u) ('a)l-kitaab(a) wa-laakinn-ee lam 'aqra'<-h(u) ba"d(u) = (I) bought the book but truthfully me did not read him yet Translation: I bought the book but I haven't read it yet
لَكِنَّكُنَّ قَدْ ذَهَبْتُنَّ laakinna-kunn(a) qad thahabtunn(a) = but truthfully you (plu. fem.) have gone Translation: but you've gone
3. ka'anna كَأَنَّ كَأَنْ إِنَّ ≡ كَأَنَّ ka-'an 'inna ≡ ka'anna like that it is true that ≡ it is like that
Some old Arabian dialects used ka'inna instead of ka'anna. The etymology of ka'inna may be easier to track (ka-'inna). ka'inna is still used in several Arabic spoken dialects today, e.g. in Egyptian Arabic.
Example: كَأَنَّ زَيْدًا أَسَدٌ ka'anna zayda(n) 'asad(un) = it is like that Zayd (is) a lion Translation: Zayd is like a lion
The sentence "Zayd is like a lion" cannot be translated literally to Arabic.
To make such a sentence, we have to use the verb-like particle ka'anna like in the aforementioned example (i.e. ka'anna Zayd is a lion = it is like that Zayd is a lion). However, if the second word were a definite word, we could go without using ka'anna (actually it is better not to use ka'anna in this case, especially in modern Arabic). زَيْدٌ كَالأَسَدِ zayd(un) ka-l-'asad(i) = Zayd (is) like the lion Translation: Zayd is like the lion (Zayd is like a lion)
If we use ka'anna in this case, it will sound like a poetry line. كَأَنَّ زَيْدًا الأَسَدُ ka'anna zayda(n) ('a)l-'asad(u) = it is like that Zayd (is) the lion Translation: Zayd is like the lion (Zayd is like a lion)
Having the second word definite is more commonly used in Arabic to express ideas of the type "something is like a something" or "someone is like a something." Of course, using ka'anna in such sentences is somewhat less affirmative, as the second word will be indefinite (cf. Zayd is a man / Zayd is the man).
Another example, how do we translate to Arabic "life is like a dream" ? There are two possible ways, the first one is: الحَيْاْةُ كَالْحُلُمِ 'al-hayaa(tu) ka-l-hulum(i) = the life (is) like the dream Translation: life is like a dream
This translation gives the exact sense of the original sentence. The other way to translate it is: كَأَنَّ الحَيْاْةَ حُلُمٌ ka'anna ('a)l-hayaa(ta) hulum(un) = it is like that the life (is) a dream Translation: life is like a dream This translation confers a tinge of incertitude on the original sentence.
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