Assam ASSEB HSLC Elective Arabic flashcards

34 cards. Read the term and the definition here. The deck at the top of this page is optional.

Ism, fi'l, harf

The three Arabic word classes: noun (ism), verb (fi'l), and particle (harf). Only the noun and verb carry independent lexical meaning; particles function grammatically.

Raf' case marker

The nominative case, marked by damma (ـُ) on singular nouns and sound plurals ـونَ. It marks the subject (fa'il), the mubtada', and the khabar.

Mabni vs mu'rab

Mabni words keep a fixed ending regardless of position (the perfect verb, pronouns, particles). Mu'rab words change endings with grammatical role (the imperfect verb and most nouns).

Form X verb pattern

Istaf'ala pattern, adding س ت prefix and alif before the root, usually meaning to seek or request: istakhraja (to extract), istaghfara (to seek forgiveness).

Diptote (mamnu' min al-sarf)

A noun that refuses tanwin and takes fatha instead of kasra in the genitive. Causes include a feminine ending, the alif of extension, or a foreign pattern.

Idafa construction

A genitive annexation: the first noun takes no al- and no tanwin, and the second stays genitive. Meaning runs right to left, as in kitabu al-talibi (the student's book).

Sound feminine plural

Formed by adding ـات to the singular. It takes damma in the nominative (ـاتٌ) and kasra in the accusative and genitive (ـاتٍ).

Kana and sisters

Verbs like kana, asbaha, amsa, zalla that enter a nominal sentence and make the subject raf' while putting the predicate into nasb.

VSO to SVO reordering

Arabic verbal sentences begin with the verb. English requires subject first, so the fa'il becomes the grammatical subject and the maf'ul becomes the object in translation.

Assamese SOV order

Assamese places the verb at the end of the clause. Arabic prepositions become postpositions, so fi al-bayti renders as ঘৰত (in the house).

Copula insertion

Arabic nominal sentences have no present-tense 'to be'. English translation supplies is or are; Assamese supplies হয় or আছে depending on equation versus existence.

Number gender polarity

For the numbers three to ten, the numeral takes the opposite gender of the counted noun: thalathatu kutubin (three books) with a masculine numeral before a masculine noun.

Inna and sisters

Particles such as inna, anna, ka'anna, la'alla that make the subject of a nominal sentence accusative and keep the predicate nominative.

Haqiqa vs majaz

Haqiqa is literal usage of a word; majaz is figurative extension. Prose explanation questions may ask which is intended in a given expression.

Qala as dialogue marker

The verb qala (he said) and its forms introduce direct speech in prose. The following clause is the quoted utterance, attributed to the stated speaker.

Theme identification

State the central idea in one sentence, then support it with a specific phrase or event quoted from the prescribed passage rather than a general impression.

Matla' of a qasida

The opening couplet, which uniquely carries internal rhyme within the line as well as the end rhyme shared by all subsequent couplets of the poem.

Tashbih vs isti'ara

Tashbih is explicit simile using ka-, ka-anna, or mithl. Isti'ara is metaphor, which drops the comparison particle and transfers the image directly.

Ghazal, madh, ritha'

Three major Arabic poetic genres: ghazal is love poetry, madh is praise of a patron, and ritha' is elegy lamenting the dead.

'Arud metre

The Arabic prosodic system classifying verse into metres such as tawil, basit, kamil, and ramal, each defined by a repeating taf'ila foot pattern.

Formal letter frame

Arabic letters open with sender and addressee, then the greeting al-tahiyya, the body in paragraphs, and close with al-mukhlis (sincerely) plus the signature.

Discourse connectors

Linking words that structure Arabic composition: wa (and), thumma (then), lakin (but), li-dhalika (therefore), min al-jihati al-ukhra (on the other hand).

Narrative composition opener

The phrase yawman min al-ayyam (one day) conventionally opens a narrative essay, while fi ayyamina hadhihi (nowadays) opens an expository one.

Agreement error check

First verify verb and subject agree in gender and number, then check case endings, then check definiteness. Most correction items fail on one of these three.

Fa'il and maf'ul cases

The doer (fa'il) is always nominative raf'; the direct object (maf'ul bihi) is accusative nasb. Reversing them is the most common construction error.

Non-human plural agreement

A plural referring to non-human things is treated as feminine singular: al-kutubu jadidatun (the books are new), with a feminine singular adjective.

Hamzat al-wasl

The connecting hamza, written ٱ and pronounced only at the start of speech, dropped when joined to a preceding word, as in wa-istakhraja.

Gist-first reading

Read an unseen passage once for topic, actors, and tense before attempting questions. This prevents detail questions from derailing comprehension of the whole.

Pronoun reference question

When asked what huwa or hadhihi refers to, locate the nearest preceding noun that matches in gender and number, not the topic of the paragraph.

Root-based inference

For an unknown word, strip affixes to recover the root and match it to a known family (kataba, kitab, katib) before guessing from context alone.

Preposition changes verb meaning

Bahatha 'an means to search for, while bahatha fi means to discuss. Amara bi means to order, while amara 'ala means to appoint over.

Hamza seat selection

The hamza sits on alif for fatha (أ), on waw for damma (ؤ), and on ya' for kasra (ئ). The strongest neighbouring vowel decides the seat.

Sun and moon letters

Before sun letters the lam of al- assimilates in pronunciation (ash-shams); before moon letters it is pronounced (al-qamar). Both are written with lam.

Ta' marbuta versus ha'

Ta' marbuta (ة) marks feminine nouns and becomes pronounced t in idafa. Ha' (ه) marks the possessive pronoun, as in kitabuhu (his book).