Arabic Grammar and Structure
What the domain tests
This domain assesses control of Arabic morphology and syntax in MSA: sentence types, case endings (إعراب), agreement, verb forms, pronouns, prepositions, idafa and number rules. Questions often ask you to choose the correct form, transform a sentence, or explain why a word carries a particular ending. Accuracy matters more than long answers.
Core rules and concepts
- Nominal sentence (جملة اسمية): مبتدأ + خبر, e.g. الطالبُ مجتهدٌ. The default order is topic then comment; a fronted prepositional phrase can delay the مبتدأ: في الصفِّ طلابٌ.
- Verbal sentence (جملة فعلية): verb + subject + object. The verb agrees with the subject in gender; with a non-human plural subject it normally takes feminine singular: السياراتُ وصلتْ.
- Case: nominative ـُ for subject, accusative ـَ for object, genitive ـِ after prepositions and as the second term of idafa.
- Idafa (إضافة): the first noun takes no definite article and no nunation; definiteness comes from the second: كتابُ الطالبِ.
- Verb forms: form I basic; II intensive or causative; III reciprocal; IV causative; V reflexive of II; VI reciprocal; VII passive or intransitive; VIII reflexive; X seeking or requesting. Recognise the pattern, then the meaning.
- Negation: ما + past; لا + present; لن + subjunctive; لم + jussive.
Worked example
«قرأَ الطالبُ كتابًا في المكتبةِ.» Reasoning: قرأ is past tense, form I; الطالبُ is فاعل, nominative with damma; كتابًا is مفعول به, accusative with fatha and tanwin; في المكتبةِ is a prepositional phrase, so المكتبة takes kasra. If you wrote كتابٌ, the object would carry the wrong case and the sentence would be ungrammatical.
Traps
- Putting a kasra on the subject because it sounds right.
- Adding the definite article to the first term of idafa.
- Making a verb agree in plural with a non-human plural.
- Confusing form VIII and form X patterns.
- Forgetting that لم makes the present jussive, e.g. لم يذهبوا.