Introduction to Demonstratives and Their Rules

Read the bilingual lesson for Introduction to Demonstratives and Their Rules and test your understanding with a focused quiz.

Lesson

1. A Basic Introduction to Demonstratives

● In this section, we will study the Arabic nouns used to point to a person or thing. ● We will learn that they are called demonstratives. ● We will study separate forms for near and far, masculine and feminine. ● We will learn the grammatical forms used for singular, dual, and plural.

2. Basic Rules for Pointing

● As in English, Arabic has two kinds of demonstratives: 1. Near demonstratives, such as 'this' and 'these' 2. Far demonstratives, such as 'that' and 'those' ● In Arabic, demonstratives take different forms according to gender, masculine or feminine, and number, singular, dual, or plural. ● Singular and plural demonstratives: These are indeclinable (mabnī); their form does not change. ● Dual demonstratives: These are declinable (muʿrab); they change in the nominative, accusative, and genitive cases.

3. Chart of Near Demonstratives

● The following demonstratives are used to point to nearby persons or things: GenderSingularDual (nominative)Dual (accusative and genitive)Plural Masculineهٰذَاهٰذَانِهَذَيْنِهٰؤُلَاءِ Feminineهٰذِهِهَاتَانِهَاتَيْنِهٰؤُلَاءِ ● The plural demonstrative هٰؤُلَاءِ is used in the same form for both masculine and feminine.

4. Chart of Far Demonstratives

● The following demonstratives are used to point to distant persons or things: GenderSingularDual (nominative)Dual (accusative and genitive)Plural Masculineذٰلِكَذَانِكَذَيْنِكَأُولٰئِكَ Feminineتِلْكَتَانِكَتَيْنِكَأُولٰئِكَ ● The far plural demonstrative أُولٰئِكَ is the same for both masculine and feminine.

5. A Demonstrative as the Subject

● A demonstrative is definite. When it comes at the beginning of a sentence and is followed by an indefinite noun, it forms a nominal sentence. ● In this structure, the demonstrative is the subject (mubtadaʾ) and the indefinite noun is the predicate (khabar), producing the meaning of 'is' or 'are' in English: ○ This is a boy. -> هٰذَا وَلَدٌ ○ This is a girl. -> هٰذِهِ بِنْتٌ ○ That is a door. -> ذٰلِكَ بَابٌ ○ That is a window. -> تِلْكَ نَافِذَةٌ

Practice questions

Question 1

What is the basic case-based classification of demonstratives in Arabic grammar?

  • Singular and plural demonstratives are indeclinable, while dual demonstratives are declinable
  • All demonstratives are always declinable
  • All demonstratives are always indeclinable

Question 2

Which near demonstrative is used for the feminine dual in the nominative case?

  • هَاتَانِ
  • هٰذَانِ
  • هَاتَيْنِ

Question 3

The demonstrative أُولٰئِكَ is used in the same way for both masculine and feminine far plurals.

  • True
  • False

Question 4

Match the following third-person singular demonstratives with their correct gender and distance:

Question 5

Sort the following demonstratives according to whether they are indeclinable or declinable:

Question 6

Which demonstrative is used for the far masculine singular in the nominative case?

  • ذٰلِكَ
  • تِلْكَ
  • هٰذَا

Question 7

Match the following words with their near and far plural forms:

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