Definite with al as the subject (mubtadaʾ)

Read the bilingual lesson for Definite with al as the subject (mubtadaʾ) and test your understanding with a focused quiz.

Lesson

1. What Will We Learn in This Level?

● In this section, we will learn to use a noun made definite with al- as the subject instead of an indefinite subject.
● We will learn how adding al- to the beginning of the subject affects tanwīn and the case ending of the predicate.
● We will compare the spelling and structure of 'The boy is righteous' and 'The girl is righteous.'
● We will learn to translate all 15 everyday sentences in the exercise into Arabic.

2. The Rule for a Subject Made Definite with Al-

● We have learned that the subject (mubtadaʾ) is usually definite. One major way to make an indefinite noun definite is to add al- at its beginning.
● When al- is added to a noun, its tanwīn is removed and a single ḍammah remains.
● Important rule: When the subject in a sentence is definite with al-, the predicate remains indefinite and keeps tanwīn. Al- is added only to the subject, not to the predicate.
● Examples:
○ The boy is righteous. -> اَلْوَلَدُ صَالِحٌ
■ Here, اَلْوَلَدُ is the subject. Because of al-, it has a single ḍammah.
■ صَالِحٌ is the predicate. It is indefinite and nominative (marfūʿ), with two ḍammahs.
○ The girl is righteous. -> اَلْبِنْتُ صَالِحَةٌ

3. Practice with Definite Subjects (Part One)

● Study the Arabic translations of the following sentences in which the subject is definite with al-:

English sentence
Arabic translation

The man is truthful.
اَلرَّجُلُ صَادِقٌ

The woman is truthful.
اَلْمَرْأَةُ صَادِقَةٌ

The student is hardworking.
اَلطَّالِبُ مُجْتَهِدٌ

The female student is intelligent.
اَلطَّالِبَةُ ذَكِيَّةٌ

The door is open.
اَلْبَابُ مَفْتُوحٌ

The window is closed.
اَلنَّافِذَةُ مُغْلَقَةٌ

4. Practice with Definite Subjects (Part Two)

● Study the Arabic translations of the following sentences:

English sentence
Arabic translation

The water is cold.
اَلْمَاءُ بَارِدٌ

The tea is hot.
اَلشَّايُ حَارٌّ

The milk is beneficial.
اَللَّبَنُ مُفِيدٌ

Knowledge is beneficial.
اَلْعِلْمُ نَافِعٌ

The weather is hot.
اَلْجَوُّ حَارٌّ (or اَلْمَوْسِمُ حَارٌّ)

5. Practice with Definite Subjects (Part Three)

● Study these sentences about everyday objects:

English sentence
Arabic translation

The car is expensive.
اَلسَّيَّارَةُ ثَمِينَةٌ (Car is feminine, so the predicate is also feminine.)

The clock is beautiful.
اَلسَّاعَةُ جَمِيلَةٌ

The chair is new.
اَلْكُرْسِيُّ جَدِيدٌ

The wall is old.
اَلْجِدَارُ قَدِيمٌ

Practice questions

Question 1

What is the correct Arabic translation of "The boy is righteous."?

اَلْوَلَدُ صَالِحٌ
وَلَدٌ اَلصَّالِحُ
اَلْوَلَدَ صَالِحًا

Question 2

When al- is added to the beginning of the subject in a nominal sentence, al- must also be added to the beginning of the predicate.

True
False

Question 3

Select the correct Arabic translation of "The water is cold."

اَلْمَاءُ بَارِدٌ
اَلْمَاءُ حَارٌّ
مَاءٌ بَارِدٌ

Question 4

Match the following definite objects with their grammatical equivalents:

Question 5

Sort the following sentences into their correct gender groups:

Question 6

Arrange the given Arabic words in the correct order to make the sentence "The wall is old."

Question 7

Sort the given Arabic words into their correct grammatical-order groups to make the sentence "The door is open."

Question 8

Select the words in the correct order to make the Arabic translation of "The car is expensive."

اَلسَّيَّارَةُ ثَمِينَةٌ
سَيَّارَةٌ اَلسَّمِينَةُ
اَلسَّيَّارَةَ ثَمِينَةً

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