Arabic Language Grammar (Nahw and Sarf) Syllabus

Grammar (Nahw and Sarf) syllabus — full chapter and topic list

Expand any chapter to see its topics and sub-topics. This is the whole examinable outline for Grammar (Nahw and Sarf) in Arabic Language, not a summary of it.

1. 1

   Nouns and Gender

   3 topics

   • Masculine and Feminine Nouns
   • Definite and indefinite (al- and tanwin)
   • Number: Singular, Dual, Plural
2. 2

   The Three Cases (I'rab)

   4 topics

   • Nominative (raf')
   • Accusative (nasb)
   • Genitive (jarr)
   • Indeclinable words
3. 3

   Pronouns

   4 topics

   • Subject (detached) pronouns
   • Attached possessive pronouns
   • Demonstratives (this, that, these)
   • Relative pronouns
4. 4

   The Idafa (Possessive Construction)

   3 topics

   • Forming a basic idafa
   • Definiteness in idafa chains
   • Idafa with adjectives
5. 5

   Adjectives and Agreement

   4 topics

   • Noun-adjective agreement (gender, number, case, definiteness)
   • Comparative and superlative (af'al)
   • Nisba (relative) adjectives
   • Colours and physical descriptions pattern
6. 6

   The Verb System

   5 topics

   • Past Tense (Madi)
   • Present Tense (Mudari')
   • Imperative (Amr) and prohibition
   • Root and pattern system (trilateral roots)
   • Verb Forms I-X
7. 7

   Sentence Structure

   4 topics

   • Nominal Sentences (Jumla Ismiyya)
   • Verbal sentences and word order
   • Kana and its sisters
   • Inna and its sisters
8. 8

   Particles and Connectors

   4 topics

   • Prepositions and their meanings
   • Conjunctions (wa, fa, thumma)
   • Negation across tenses (la, ma, lam, lan, laysa)
   • Question particles (hal, a-, interrogatives)
9. 9

   Advanced Syntax

   5 topics

   • Conditional sentences (idha, in, law)
   • The hal (circumstantial) clause
   • Tamyiz (specification)
   • Passive voice (al-majhul)
   • Exception (istithna') with illa

Grammar (Nahw and Sarf) flashcards for Arabic Language

18 of 50 cards from the Grammar (Nahw and Sarf) deck — real questions with worked answers.

1. In Arabic, how is grammatical gender divided, and what is the default assumption for an unmarked noun?

   Every Arabic noun is either masculine (مذكّر, mudhakkar) or feminine (مؤنّث, mu'annath). The default (unmarked) noun is masculine; feminine nouns are usually marked, most commonly by the ta marbuta (ة).

2. What is the most common feminine marker on Arabic nouns, and give an example pair.

   The ta marbuta (ة). Example: مُعَلِّم (mu'allim, male teacher) → مُعَلِّمة (mu'allima, female teacher). Adding ة to a masculine noun typically forms its feminine.

3. Name three categories of nouns that are feminine even without a ta marbuta (ة).

   1) Names of females and female relatives (e.g., أُمّ 'mother', هِند). 2) Certain body parts that come in pairs (e.g., يَد 'hand', عَيْن 'eye'). 3) Many country/city names, plus a fixed set of words like شَمْس (sun), نار (fire), رِيح (wind), أرْض (earth).

4. What are the two ways Arabic marks a noun as definite (معرفة)?

   1) The definite article الـ (al-) prefixed to the noun, e.g., الكِتاب (the book). 2) The noun being a proper name, a pronoun, or the first term of an idafa construction. Indefinite nouns instead take tanwin.

5. What is tanwin (تنوين), and what does it signal?

   Tanwin is the doubling of a final short-vowel case ending, pronounced as a final -n (ـٌ un, ـً an, ـٍ in). It marks a noun as indefinite (nakira), e.g., كِتابٌ (kitabun, 'a book').

6. Contrast the case endings of a definite vs. indefinite masculine noun in the nominative.

   Indefinite takes tanwin with damma: كِتابٌ (kitabun). Definite takes a single damma with الـ: الكِتابُ (al-kitabu). Tanwin and الـ never occur together.

7. Why is الـ called a 'sun and moon' article, and how does pronunciation differ?

   With 'moon letters' the ل is pronounced (e.g., القَمَر, al-qamar). With 'sun letters' the ل assimilates to the following consonant, which is doubled (e.g., الشَّمْس, ash-shams, not al-shams). Spelling keeps the ل in both cases.

8. What are the three numbers in Arabic grammar?

   Singular (مُفْرَد, mufrad — one), Dual (مُثَنّى, muthanna — exactly two), and Plural (جَمْع, jam' — three or more).

9. How is the dual (مُثَنّى) formed, and how does the ending change with case?

   By adding a suffix to the singular: ـانِ (-ani) in the nominative and ـيْنِ (-ayni) in the accusative/genitive. Example: كِتابانِ (two books, nom.) / كِتابَيْنِ (acc./gen.).

10. Distinguish the sound masculine plural from the sound feminine plural, including case endings.

    Sound masculine plural (جمع مذكّر سالم): ـونَ (-una) nominative, ـينَ (-ina) acc./gen., e.g., مُعَلِّمونَ / مُعَلِّمينَ. Sound feminine plural (جمع مؤنّث سالم): ـاتٌ (-atun) nominative, ـاتٍ (-atin) acc./gen., e.g., مُعَلِّماتٌ / مُعَلِّماتٍ (note: no fatha form in accusative).

11. What is a broken plural (جمع تكسير), and why must it be memorized?

    A broken plural is formed by internally changing the singular's vowel/consonant pattern rather than adding a suffix, e.g., كِتاب → كُتُب (books), رَجُل → رِجال (men). The pattern is irregular and not fully predictable, so each must be learned individually.

12. What are the three grammatical cases in Arabic and their Arabic names?

    Nominative (رَفْع, raf'), Accusative (نَصْب, nasb), and Genitive (جَرّ / خَفْض, jarr). Case is shown mainly through the noun's final vowel ending (i'rab).

13. What are the default case-ending vowels for a fully declinable (منصرف) singular noun in each case?

    Nominative: damma (ـُ / ـٌ). Accusative: fatha (ـَ / ـً). Genitive: kasra (ـِ / ـٍ). Definite forms use single vowels, indefinite forms use tanwin.

14. When is a noun in the nominative case (raf')? Give two typical triggers.

    The nominative is the default 'subject' case. It is used for: the subject (fa'il) of a verb, the subject (mubtada') and predicate (khabar) of a nominal sentence. Example: الوَلَدُ (the boy) as subject → damma ending.

15. When is a noun in the accusative case (nasb)? Give two typical triggers.

    The accusative marks: the direct object (maf'ul bihi) of a verb, and the predicate/noun after certain particles like إنّ (inna). Example: رأيتُ الوَلَدَ (I saw the boy) → fatha ending on الوَلَدَ.

16. When is a noun in the genitive case (jarr)? Give the two main triggers.

    The genitive is triggered by: 1) coming after a preposition (حرف جرّ), e.g., فِي البَيْتِ (in the house); and 2) being the second term (mudaf ilayhi) of an idafa. It is shown by a kasra ending.

17. What does it mean for a word to be indeclinable (مبني), and give three examples of indeclinable word classes.

    An indeclinable (mabni) word has a fixed ending that does NOT change with case. Examples: pronouns (هُوَ، أنا), demonstratives (هذا)، relative pronouns (الَّذي), most particles, and the past-tense verb form. Their opposite is مُعْرَب (declinable).

18. List the singular detached (subject) pronouns for 1st, 2nd (m/f), and 3rd (m/f) person.

    أنا (I), أنتَ (you m.s.), أنتِ (you f.s.), هُوَ (he), هِيَ (she).

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