1
Translation from English into Arabic
With a Profound Consideration to Arabic Syntax
A handy instructional textbook for English language students including fixed
phrases and exercises
ENG3570 (English-Arabic Translation course)
Compiled by:
Muneer Alalamy
Instructor of the course
Naif Alanazi
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Chapter ONE: Arabic Sentences
Source: Basic Arabic Grammar, Saqib Hussain 2009
Online source: http://arabic.tripod.com
1.1. Introduction
Every complete sentence in English must have at least a subject and a verb. This is also
generally true in Arabic. However, the organization of these elements in a sentence can be a bit
different in Arabic.
In English sentences, the subject usually precedes the verb. In Arabic, there are two types of
sentences in regard to subject and verb ordering:


Nominal Sentences: sentences in which the subject precedes the verb.
Verbal Sentences: sentences in which the verb precedes the subject.
Usage of Each Type of Sentences
Unlike in English, where the change in the intonation of the speaker is probably the only
way to emphasize or stress different elements of the sentence, emphasis of different elements can
be achieved in Arabic by alternating between the two types of sentences.
Nominal sentences are used when the SUBJECT is the most important element in the
sentence and which the speaker seeks to emphasize.
Verbal sentences are in fact the normal tone, they are used when the speaker is not stressing
anything in particular, or also when the speaker seeks to stress the verb or the ACTION.
1.2. Nominal Sentences
ْ a sentence that starts with the subject (a noun) and
A nominal sentence in Arabic ُ ‫ال ُج ْملَةُ ا ِالس ِْميَّة‬is
the verb follows. The subject can be a noun, a pronoun, a demonstrative, or a relative clause.
The defining property of a nominal sentence is that the subject precedes the verb. Thus there
are more than one possibility for nominal sentences in the presence of an object, an adverb, a
prepositional phrase, etc. The first one is the standard usual one:
Subject
THE BOY
Standard Structure of Nominal Sentences
Verb
Others
reads
his book
Object
3
THE BOY
THE BOY
THE BOY
reads
reads
is
Fast
in the library
Smart
Adverb
Prepositional Phrase
Adjective
The capitalization is a reference to the fact that the subject is the stressed element in nominal
sentences.
The other possible structures for nominal sentences are rather rare:
Alternative Structure For Nominal Sentences
Others
Subject
in the library
THE BOY
Alternative Structure For Nominal Sentences
Subject
Verb
THE BOY
reads
Others
in the library
Subject
THE BOY
Alternative Structure For Nominal Sentences
Other
in the library
Verb
reads
Others
his book
Verb
reads
So the important point is that the subject always precedes the verb in nominal sentences.
Examples on nominal sentences:
Subject - Verb - Object
ُ‫ْال َولَد ُ يَ ْق َرأ ُ ِكتَاْبَه‬
= the boy reads (the) book (of) him
Translation: THE BOY reads his book
Subject - Verb - Prepositional Phrase
‫ْالبَنَاْتُ يَ ْلعَبْنَ فِ ْي ْال َح ِد ْي َق ِة‬
= the girls play in the yard/park
Translation: THE GIRLS are playing in the yard/park
1.2.1 Be-Sentences
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We talked in a separate section about the fact that nominal, present tense, "be" sentences do
not have verbs in Arabic (the verb "be" is omitted in the present tense). This is the only case in
Arabic in which there is no verb in the sentence. In these verb-less sentences, the stress usually
falls on the predicate not the subject (the part after the "be"); unless the intonation says
otherwise.
Subject - Predicate
ْ ‫سن ُهنَا‬
َ ‫َح‬
= Hassan (is) here
Translation: Hassan is here
Subject - Predicate
‫صيْب‬
ِ ‫ع‬
َ ‫َهذَاْ َي ْوم‬
= this (is) a day a hard
Translation: this is a hard day
Subject - Predicate
‫ي زَ ْو َجةُ َم ْح ُم ْود‬
َ ‫لَ ْيلَ ْى ِه‬
= Layla she (is) (the) wife (of) Mahmud
Translation: Layla is Mahmud's wife
Subject - Predicate
‫ص ِد ْي ِق ْي ُه َو َما ْ ِلكُ ْال َمتْ َج ِر‬
َ
= (the) friend (of) me he (is) (the) owner (of) the shop
Translation: my friend owns the shop
Subject - Predicate
‫ص َر‬
ْ ‫ص َمةُ ِم‬
ِ ْ ‫عا‬
َ ‫ي‬
َ ‫ْالقَا ْ ِه َرة ُ ِه‬
= Cairo she (is) (the) capital (of) Egypt
Translation: Cairo is the capital of Egypt
*Note: ‫صر‬
ْ ‫ ِم‬is a "forbidden to Noonation" ‫ممنوع من الصرف‬word and it takes an irregular sign for
the genitive case.
Sentences that begin with an indefinite word, such as "a man is here" are NOT usually used
in Arabic. The demonstrative "there" will be usually used for such sentences.
‫ب‬
ِ ْ ‫ُهنَا ْ َك َر ُجل ِب ْال َبا‬
= there (is) a man by the door
= there (is) one-some
Translation: there is a man at the door
ْ ‫ث َ َّمةَ أ َ َحد َما‬
Translation: someone is there
Note that such sentences that begin with "there is" will NOT become "there was" when
rendered in the past tense; nor will they become "there will be" when in the future tense. To
change the tense of these sentences from the present to the past of the future, a verbal sentence is
usually used (i.e. "was there a man at the door" or "will be there a man at the door," we will
cover this when we talk about verbal sentences soon).
Be-sentences in the past tense will have the perfective verb َ‫ = َكان‬was or one of its conjugations.
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Subject - Verb - Adverb
ْ ‫س َما ْ ُء َكاْن‬
‫صاْفِيَة‬
َّ ‫ْال‬
َ ‫َت‬
= the sky was/existed clearly
Translation: the sky was clear
*The verb "be" in Arabic requires an adverb after it rather than an adjective as in English. This is
only true when the verb appears but not when it is not apparent (i.e. in the present tense). Such
verbs are called in Arabic the incomplete verbs ُ ‫صة‬
َ ِ‫األ َ ْفعا ُل النَّاْق‬.
Subject - Verb - Adverb
َ‫سيْن َكاْنَ ُهنَاْك‬
َ ‫ُح‬
= Hussein was there
Translation: Hussein was there
Subject - Verb - Adverb
‫صيْبا‬
ِ ‫َهذَاْ َكاْنَ يَ ْوما َع‬
= this was a day a hard
Translation: this was a hard day
*The literal sense: "this existed as a hard day."
In the future tense, "be" verbs will be ُ‫سيَ ُك ْون‬
َ = will be, or ُ‫ف يَ ُك ْون‬
َ = will be.
َ ‫س ْو‬
Subject - Verb - Adverb
‫صاْفِيَة‬
َّ ‫ْال‬
َ ‫س َما ْ ُء‬
َ ُ‫ست َ ُك ْون‬
= the sky will be/exist clearly
Translation: the sky will be clear
Every sentence in English requires a verb. You have to use at least one verb to make any
complete, meaningful, sentence in English. In Arabic and Semitic languages, it is also the same,
but there is one exception; If we have an English sentence in the present tense that contains a
verb "be," the Arabic equivalent will not contain a verb "be." In fact, it will not contain any verb
at all.
Thus, there can be full sentences in Arabic that do not have any verbs. The verb-less
sentences will be those like "Tom is here," "they are in the room," and "where am I?" That is,
again, sentences containing verbs "to be" in the present tense.Examples:
‫صاْفِيَة‬
َّ ‫ْال‬
َ ‫س َما ْ ُء‬
= the sky (is) a clear (sky)
Translation: the sky is clear
ْ ‫ْال ُمعَ ِل ُم ْونَ ُهنَا‬
= the teachers (are) here
Translation: the teachers are here
‫ُم َح َّمد ُم ْستَ ِعد‬
= Muhammad (is) a ready (man)
Translation: Muhammad is ready
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‫س ِع ْيدَة‬
َ ‫لَ ْيلَ ْى‬
= Layla (is) a happy (woman)
= you (are) a person a kind
Translation: Layla is happy
َ ‫أ َ ْنتَ ش َْخص‬
‫ط ِيب‬
Translation: you are a kind person
*Remember that an adjective has to follow its noun in everything, including the state of
definiteness.
‫أَيْنَ ُه ْم ؟‬
= where (are) they
Translation: where are they?
All these sentences belong to the category that is called in Arabic "nominal sentences." Those
are the sentences which begin with a noun word. The part of the sentence that is before the
hidden (be) (i.e. the subject) is called mubtada'< ُ ‫ ≈ ْال ُم ْبتَدَأ‬the start. The part after the (be) is the
predicate, in Arabic khabar ‫ = ْال َخبَ ُر‬the predicate.
َ‫ب ْال َعاْلَ ِم ْين‬
ِ ‫ْال َح ْمدُ ِ َّّلِلِ َر‬
= the thanking/praising (is) for the God (the) lord (of) the worlds
Translation: praise God the lord of the worlds




َّ is in the ablative case ('al-jarr) because it is preceded by a preposition (‫) ِلـ‬.
ِ‫اّلِل‬
َّ . It is also in the construct state.
‫ب‬
ِ ‫ َر‬is in the ablative case because it is an adjective of ِ‫اّلِل‬
ْ
ْ
َ
َ‫ب العَال ِم ْين‬
ِ ‫ َر‬is a genitive construction.
ْ
ْ
َ
َ‫ العَال ِم ْين‬is an annexed masculine plural in the genitive case.
Multiple Predicates
One mubtada'< (starter=subject) can have multiple predicates.
Example:
َّ ‫َهذَاْ ه َُو ْال‬
‫ْف ْالنَّبِ ْي ُل ْالك َِر ْي ُم‬
ُ ‫ش ِري‬
= this he (is) the honest the noble the generous
Translation: this is a very honest, noble, generous man
Huw(a)= he, is a pleonastic pronoun. Employing subject pronouns before the predicate in this
manner will be covered in detail in the pronouns section.
Coordinators may be used between the different predicates:
َّ ‫َهذَاْ ه َُو ْال‬
‫ْف َو ْالنَّ ِب ْي ُل َو ْالك َِر ْي ُم‬
ُ ‫ش ِري‬
= this he (is) the honest and the noble and the generous
Translation: this is a very honest, noble, generous man
The coordinators must be placed between all the predicates, not only before the last one.
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An interesting example of multiple predicates is that of "the Finest Names of God"
Note that the verb "to be" will show up in the past and future tenses. It will be just like English
for those two tenses.Thus, we hereby have covered the only case of verb-less sentences in
Arabic.
1.2.2. Pronoun Subjects
Sentences which start with subject pronouns are nominal sentences. When there is a verb
after the subject pronoun, the pronoun can be kept or omitted. Third person subject pronouns will
always have an emphatic function if they were kept before the verb, the other pronouns (1st &
2nd person) can and cannot have an emphatic function depending on the intonation.
Subject - Verb
‫ف‬
ُ ‫أَنَا ْ أَع ِْر‬
= I know
Translation: I know
In this sentence, the pronoun (a 1st person pronoun) is not emphatic unless the intonation
stressed it.
Verb - Hidden Subject
‫ف‬
ُ ‫أَع ِْر‬
= know (I)
Translation: I know
The second sentence is a verbal sentence because the subject (a hidden pronoun after the verb)
does not precede the verb.
Subject - Predicate
‫أَنَا ْ َجا ْ ِهز‬
= I (am) ready
Translation: I am ready
Subject - Verb - Adverb
‫أَنَا ْ ُك ْنتُ َجا ْ ِهزا‬
= I was ready
Translation: I was ready
Verb - Attached Subject - Adverb
‫ُك ْنتُ َجا ْ ِهزا‬
= was (I) ready
Translation: I was ready
Subject - Verb - Adverb
‫سأ َ ُك ْو ُن َجا ْ ِهزا‬
َ ْ ‫أَنَا‬
= I will be ready
Translation: I will be ready
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Verb - hidden Pronoun - Adverb
‫سأ َ ُك ْو ُن َجا ْ ِهزا‬
َ
= will be (I) ready
Translation: I will be ready
Subject - Verb - Object
ُ ‫ت تَت َ َحد‬
!0َ‫َّث ْالعَ َربِيَّة‬
َ ‫أ َ ْن‬
= you speak the Arabic
Translation: you speak Arabic!
Subject - Verb - Object
‫ص ِدقُ ْو َننِ ْي‬
َ ُ ‫أ َ ْنت ُ ْم ال ت‬
= you not believe me
Translation: you don't believe me
Subject - Verb - Object
ْ‫ُه َو فَ َع َل َهذَا‬
= he did this
Translation: He did this
*Third person pronoun: always emphatic.
Subject - Verb - Object
ْ‫ُه َما ْ قَاْلَتَا ْ َهذَا‬
= they (dual fem.) said this
Translation: THEY said this
Subject - Predicate
‫ُه ْم ُهنَا ْ َك‬
= they (plu. masc.) (are) there
Translation: they are THERE
Here, even though the pronoun is a 3rd person pronoun the stress came on the predicate
because this is a be-sentence without a verb, so the stress falls on the predicate. We mentioned
this earlier.

Nominal sentences can begin with other types of nouns.
Example, a demonstrative:
‫َهذَاْ يَ ْوم َج ِميْل‬
= this (is) a day a beautiful
Translation: this is a nice day
A relative pronoun:
‫من زرع حصد‬
= who planted harvested
Translation: he who plants harvests.
or: he who planted harvested
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*Note that perfective verbs in Arabic can be used as subjunctive verbs, which is somewhat
similar to English.
Others:
‫َمتَ ْى َما ْ أَتَيْتَ ت َِجدُنِ ْي‬
= whenever (you) came (you) will find me
Translation: whenever you come you will find me
A summary for nominal sentences:
The Subject
The Verb
The Stress
A noun
A demonstrative
On the subject
Any verb except "be" in
present tense
A pronoun
A noun
1st & 2nd person: changeable
3rd person: on the subject
"Be" in present tense
A demonstrative
A pronoun
On the predicate
(not apparent)
*** ** * ** ***
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1.3. Verbal Sentences
ْ
A verbal sentence ُ‫ال ُج ْملَةُ ْال ِف ْع ِليَّة‬is
a sentence that starts with the verb and the subject
follows. The subject can be a noun, a pronoun, a demonstrative, or a relative clause.The defining
property of a verbal sentence is that the verb precedes the subject. There are more than one
possibility for verbal sentences in the presence of an object, an adverb, a prepositional phrase,
etc.
The standard usual structure is:
Standard Structure of Verbal Sentences
Verb
Subject
Others
Read
the boy
his book
Object
Read
the boy
fast
Adverb
Read
the boy
in the library
Prepositional Phrase
The other possible structures for verbal sentences occur rather rarely:
Alternative Structure For Nominal Sentences
Others
Verb
in the library
read
Others
in the library
Verb
Read
Alternative Structure For Nominal Sentences
Verb
Subject
read
the boy
Alternative Structure For Nominal Sentences
Others
in the library
Subject
the boy
Others
his book
Subject
the boy
The main point is that the verb always precedes the subject in verbal sentences.
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1.3.1. Subjects of Verbal Sentences
Subjects in verbal sentences may not be always showing up. There can be apparent, attached,
and hiding subjects in verbal sentences.
1.3.1.1. Apparent Singular Subjects
Verb - Subject - Object
ُ‫يَ ْق َرأ ُ ْال َولَدُ ِكتَاْبَه‬
= read the boy (the) book (of) him
Translation: the boy reads his book
Compare this sentence with its nominal alternative, in which the subject is the stressed element:
Subject - Verb - Object
ُ‫ْال َولَدُ يَ ْق َرأ ُ ِكتَاْبَه‬
= the boy reads (the) book (of) him
Translation: THE BOY reads his book
More examples on verbal sentences:
Verb - Subject - Adverb
‫صاْفِيَة‬
ِ َ‫َكاْن‬
َّ ‫ت ْال‬
َ ‫س َما ْ ُء‬
= was/existed the sky clearly
Translation: the sky was clear
*The verb to be in Arabic requires an adverb after it rather than an adjective like in English. This
is only true when the verb appears but not when it is not apparent (i.e. in the present tense). Such
verbs are called in Arabic the incomplete verbs ُ ‫صة‬
َ ِ‫ األ َ ْفعا ُل النَّاْق‬.
Verb - Subject - Adverb
‫صيْبا‬
ِ ‫ع‬
َ ‫َكاْنَ َهذَاْ يَ ْوما‬
= was this a day a hard
Translation: this was a hard day
Verb - Subject - Adverb
ُ ‫سيَ ُك ْو ُن ُم َح َّمد‬
‫هنَا ْ غَدا‬
َ
= will be Muhammad here tomorrow
Translation: Muhammad will be here tomorrow
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Verb - Attached Object - Subject
ْ ‫سرنِ ْي أَنَّكَ ُهنَا‬
ُ َ‫ي‬
= please me that you (are) here
Translation: I am glad that you are here
We mentioned that sentences which begin with an indefinite word, such as "a man is here"
are not usually used in Arabic and that the demonstrative "there" would be usually used for such
sentences.
Example, a nominal sentence:
‫ب‬
ِ ْ ‫ُهنَاْكَ َر ُجل بِ ْالبَا‬
= there (is) a man by the door
Translation: there is a man at the door
If we wanted to change this sentence to the past tense, we can NOT say "there was a man at
the door." To change the tense of sentences which begin in demonstratives in this manner from
the present to the past, a verbal sentence is usually used.
Example:
‫ب‬
ِ ْ ‫َكاْنَ ُهنَاْكَ َر ُجل بِ ْالبَا‬
= was there a man by the door
Translation: there was a man at the door
ْ ‫َكاْنَ ث َ َّمةَ أ َ َحد َما‬
= was there one-some
Translation: someone was there
The same thing about these sentences is true for the future tense. To change the tense of these
sentences to the future, a verbal sentence is usually used. Sentences of the type "there will be"
are NOT the usual way of doing it.
Example:
َ‫ع ِو ْين‬
ُ ‫س َي ُك ْو ُن ُهنَاْكَ ْال َكثِي ُْر ِمنَ ال َم ْد‬
َ
= will be there many of the invited
Translation: there will be many guests
‫س َي ُك ْو ُن‬
َ ‫ث َ َّمةَ َكا ْ ِرثَة‬
= will be there a disaster
Translation: there will be a disaster
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1.3.1.2.Apparent Dual & Plural Subjects
Now we get to the tricky point about verbal sentences. We know that verbs in Arabic are
conjugated in different forms to suit different numbers and genders of the subjects. However, in
verbal sentences, if we had a verb followed by an apparent noun subject, the verb will be
ALWAYS conjugated in the singular form. This will happen only with 3rd person conjugations
of verbs because those are the only ones that can be followed by apparent noun subjects.
Example:
Verb - Subject - Prepositional Phrase
‫ع َم ِل ِه‬
ُ ‫يَ ْذه‬
َ ‫َب ْال َّر ُج ُل إِلَ ْى‬
= go the man to (the) work (of) him
Translation: the man goes to his work
In this sentence, the subject (the man) is singular and the verb was conjugated in the singular
form; so nothing unusual.
Verb - Subject - Prepositional Phrase
‫َب ْال ِر َجا ْ ُل ِإلَ ْى أ َ ْع َما ْ ِل ِه ْم‬
ُ ‫َي ْذه‬
= go the men to (the) works (of) them
Translation: the men go to their works
In this sentence, the subject (the men) is plural, but it is an apparent noun so the verb ought to be
conjugated in the singular from.
Note that in the nominal counterpart the verb must be conjugated in the plural:
Subject - Verb - Prepositional Phrase
‫ْال ِر َجا ْ ُل َي ْذ َهب ُْونَ ِإلَ ْى أ َ ْع َما ْ ِل ِه ْم‬
= the men go to (the) works (of) them
Translation: THE MEN go to their works
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Verb - Subject - Prepositional Phrase
ْ َ‫دَ َخل‬
‫س ِيدَت َا ْ ِن ِإلَ ْى ال َم َح ِل‬
َ ‫ت‬
= entered two ladies to the shop
Translation: two ladies entered the shop
The subject (two ladies) is dual, but since it is an apparent noun, the verb was conjugated in
the singular form. The nominal version for comparison:
Subject - Verb - Prepositional Phrase
‫س ِيدَت َا ْ ِن دَ َخلَتَا ْ ِإلَ ْى ال َم َح ِل‬
َ
= two ladies entered to the shop
Translation: TWO LADIES entered the shop
Verb - Subject
‫سيُ ْهزَ ُم األ َ ْعدَاْ ُء‬
َ
= will be defeated the enemies
Translation: the enemies will be defeated
The verb here is in the passive voice. It is in the singular conjugation even though the subject
is plural because the subject is an apparent noun. If we turn it into a nominal sentence, the
conjugation will have to be changed to the plural:
Subject - Verb
َ‫سيُ ْهزَ ُم ْون‬
َ ‫األ َ ْعدَاْ ُء‬
= the enemies will be defeated
Translation: THE ENEMIES will be defeated
Verb - Subject - Adverb
‫ض َراْت‬
ِ ْ ‫ست َ ُك ْو ُن ْال ُمعَ ِل َماْتُ َحا‬
َ
= will be the teachers (fem.) present
Translation: the teachers will be present
Subject - Verb - Adverb
‫ض َراْت‬
ِ ْ ‫سيَ ُك َّن َحا‬
َ ُ‫ْال ُم َع ِل َماْت‬
= the teachers will be present
Translation: THE TEACHERS will be present
Apparent noun subjects include other things than simple nouns in Arabic.
Example, demonstratives:
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Verb - Subject
‫الء‬
ِ ُ‫سي ُْم ِس ُكهُ هَؤ‬
َ
= will catch him these
Translation: those will catch him
Example, relative pronouns:
Verb - Subject
ْ ‫سا ْ ِعد ُْونَنَا‬
َ ُ ‫سي‬
َ َ‫َجا ْ َء الَّ ِذيْن‬
= came who will help us
Translation: the people who will help us came
1.3.1.3. Attached & Hiding Subjects
We have talked so far about verbal sentences in which the subjects are apparent. However,
subjects of verbs can be omitted in Arabic sentences. Since that every complete sentence must
have a subject, Arabic grammar deals with this issue in the following manner:
►If the verb has a declension, then this is the subject and it is called an "attached subject
pronoun". Examples:
Attached Subject Pronouns
ُ‫فَعَ ْلت‬
‫ت‬
ِ ‫فَعَ ْل‬
‫فَعَلُ ْوا‬
‫يَ ْف َعال ِن‬
َ‫َي ْف َعلُ ْون‬
َ‫َي ْف َع ْلن‬
Did (I)
Did (you sing. fem.)
Did (they plu. masc.)
Do (they dual masc.)
Do (they plu. masc.)
Do (they plu. fem.)
The only exception to that idea is the 3rd person sing. fem. perfective verb which does have a
declension but it is not an attached subject pronoun but rather a feminine marker.
Did .... (NO SUBJECT)
ْ َ‫فَعَل‬
‫ت‬
►If a separate subject pronoun appears after a verb that has an attached subject pronoun, it will
be an emphatic pronoun but not the subject, as far as Arabic grammar is concerned.
16
►If the verb does not have an attached pronoun, the subject will be an unseen pronoun that
follows the verb and that is called a "hiding pronoun" ‫ض ِميْر ُم ْستَتِر‬
َ .
Hiding Pronoun
Verb Without Attached Pronoun
Past: 3rd person sing. masc.
(He)
( ‫) ه َُو‬
(She)
( ‫ِي‬
َ ‫)ه‬
( ‫) أَنا‬
Past: 3rd person sing. fem.
( َ‫) أ ْنت‬
( ‫) ه َُو‬
Present: 2nd person sing. masc.
( ‫ِي‬
َ ‫)ه‬
( ُ‫) نَحْ ن‬
Present: 3rd person sing. fem.
(I)
(You)
(He)
(She)
(We)
Present: 1st person sing.
Present: 3rd person sing. masc.
Present: 1st person plu./dual
‫فَعَ َل‬
ْ ‫َف َع َل‬
‫ت‬
‫أ َ ْفعَ ُل‬
‫ت َ ْف َع ُل‬
‫يَ ْفعَ ُل‬
‫ت َ ْفعَ ُل‬
‫نَ ْف َع ُل‬
Examples:
Verb - Attached Subject - Object
‫َيء‬
ْ ‫لَقَ ْد أ َ َك ْلت ُ ْم ُك َّل ش‬
= have eaten you everything
Translation: you have eaten everything
Verb - Attached Subject - Prepositional Phrase
‫َي ْق َر ُؤ ْونَ ِف ْي ْال َم ْكت َ َب ِة‬
= read (they) in the library

Translation: they read in the library
Note that it is unusual for sentences with only an attached or a hidden 3rd person subject,
but not an apparent noun subject, to be used if they were not preceded by other words or
related sentences. e.g. the last example is not a good sentence in Arabic. Verb-like
particles may be used in such sentences. (Next topic)
Verb - Attached Subject - Adverb
ُ‫َجاْهِزا ُك ْنت‬
= was I ready
Translation: I was ready
Verb - Attached Subject - Object
ْ ‫ع َر ْفنَا‬
َ ‫ب‬
َ ْ‫ْال َج َوا‬
= knew we the answer
Translation: we have found out the answer
Verb - Attached Subject - Verb
‫ب‬
َ ْ‫ف ْال َج َوا‬
ُ ‫كنَّا ْ نَ ْع ِر‬
= were we know the answer
Translation: we knew the answer
17
Examples on hiding (hidden) subjects:
Verb - Hiding Subject - Object
‫ب‬
َ َ‫نُ ِر ْيد ُ أ َ ْن ن َْلع‬
= want (we) that play (we)
Translation: we want to play
Verb - Hiding Subject - Object
‫َيء‬
ْ ‫لَقَ ْد أ َ َكلَ ُك َّل ش‬
= has eaten (he) everything
Translation: he has eaten everything
Object - Verb - Hiding Subject
‫ْال َح َّق أَقُ ْو ُل لَ ُك ْم‬
= the truth say (I) to you (plu. masc.)
Translation: I tell you the truth
Verb - Hiding Subject - Adverb
‫صيْبا‬
ِ ‫ع‬
َ ‫َكاْنَ يَ ْوما‬
= was (he) a day a hard
Translation: it was a hard day
Verb - Hiding Subject - Adverb
‫ف أ َ ُك ْو ُن َجاْهِزا‬
َ
َ ‫س ْو‬
= will be (I) ready
Translation: I will be ready
1.3.1.4. Separate Subject Pronouns in Verbal Sentences
Although separate subject pronouns are apparent words, an important idea in Arabic
grammar is that separate subject pronouns are NOT the subjects in verbal sentences that contain
them (i.e. if they came after the verb). The subjects will still be either the attached subject
pronouns or the hiding pronouns; the separate subject pronouns are only emphatic words. Thus,
adding a separate subject pronoun to a verbal sentence will confer a marked emphatic effect on
the subject. Examples:
Verb - Hiding Subject - S.S.P - Object
‫ب‬
ُ ‫ت َ ْع ِر‬
َ ْ‫ف أ َ ْنتَ ْال َج َوا‬
= know you the answer
Translation: YOU know the answer
Compare with:
Verb - Hiding Subject - Object
‫ب‬
ُ ‫ت َ ْع ِر‬
َ ْ‫ف ْال َج َوا‬
= know (you) the answer
Translation: you know the answer
18
More examples:
Verb - Attached Subject - S.S.P - Adverb
‫ُك ْنتُ أَنَا ْ َجاْهِزا‬
= was I ready
Translation: I was ready
*The I here is stressed as well.
Verb - Attached Subject - S.S.P - Adverb
َ‫ست َ ُك ْونُ ْونَ أ َ ْنت ُ ْم َجاْه ِِز ْين‬
َ
= will be you (plu. masc.) ready
Translation: YOU will be ready
Since that separate subject pronouns are not subjects in verbal sentences, we will see that
verbs will be conjugated in the dual and plural (will have attached pronouns) even if they were
followed by dual or plural apparent subject pronouns. This is contrary to the regular rules of
verbal sentences with apparent plural or dual noun subjects.
Examples:
Verb - Attached Subject - S.S.P - Prepositional Phrase
‫ت َ ْد ُخال ِن ُه َما ْ ِإلَ ْى ال َم َح ِل‬
= enter (dual fem.) they to the shop
Translation: THEY enter the shop
Verb - Attached Subject - S.S.P - Prepositional Phrase
‫يَ ْذ َهبُ ْونَ ُه ْم إِلَ ْى أ َ ْع َما ْ ِل ِه ْم‬
= go (plu. masc.) they to (the) works (of) them
Translation: THEY go to their works
A final grammatical note is that 3rd person singular separate subject pronouns are regarded
differently here, those will be considered subjects if they appeared after verbs.
This has to do with the concept of "optionally hiding pronouns" and "obligatory hiding
pronouns".Examples:
Verb - Subject - Object
َ ‫أ َ َك َل ُه َو‬
ُ‫طعَا ْ َمه‬
= ate he (the) food (of) him
Translation: HE ate his food
Verb - Subject - Object
19
ْ ‫ِي ش ََراْبَ َها‬
ْ َ‫ش َِرب‬
َ ‫ته‬
= drank she (the) drink(s) (of) her
Translation: SHE drank her drinks
Additional: a case in which the verbs of verbal sentences will be conjugated regularly (in the
singular) if they were followed by dual or plural separate subject pronouns is if there was an
exclusive particle before the pronoun. Example:
Negative Verb - Exclusion - Subject
‫َما ْ َجاْء إِال ُه ْم‬
= not came (3rd p. sing. masc.) except/but them
Translation: nobody came except them
Negative Verb - Object - Exclusion - Subject
َ‫َما ْ فَ َعلَ َها ْ ِإال أ َ ْنت‬
= not did her/it except/but you
Translation: nobody did it but you
OR: it is certainly you who did it
In these sentences, the separate subject pronouns are actual subjects not emphatic words.
This includes all of them not only the 3rd person singulars.
1.4. Gender of Verbs
We now know that verbs are always singular in a verbal sentence when the subject is an
apparent 3rd person noun. The gender of these singular verbs would normally be masculine if the
subject was masculine and feminine if the subject was feminine.However, feminine subjects can
in fact equally take masculine or feminine verbs in many situations. Example:
= fell the cup (fem.)
= fell the cup (fem.)
Verb - Subject
‫س‬
ُ ْ ‫َوقَ َع ْالكَأ‬
Translation: the cup fell down
ْ
ْ
OR ‫س‬
ِ َ‫َوقَع‬
ُ ‫ت الكَأ‬
Translation: the cup fell down
The subject (the cup) is a feminine word. In the first sentence the verb was masculine and in
the second one the verb was feminine. Both are correct; this is possible only in verbal sentences
(if the verb precedes the subject). Another example:
Verb - Subject
ُ‫ت ْال َبنَاْت‬
ِ ‫َجا ْ ِء‬
= came the girls
Translation: the girls came
OR ُ‫َجا ْ َء ْالبَنَاْت‬
= came the girls
Translation: the girls came
20
Again, both are correct.
There are two situations in which the verb must be feminine and only feminine:
1. If the subject is an apparent true feminine noun (female person) that is directly following the
verb (without separating words). Broken or irregular plurals are excluded from this rule (the last
example). Example:
Verb - Subject
ْ ‫َر َج َع‬
ُ‫س َعاْد‬
ُ ‫ت‬
= returned Su'ad
Translation: Su'ad returned
In this sentence the verb must be feminine because the subject is a true female person.
2. If the subject is pronoun referring to a feminine noun, whether it was true or figurative
feminine.Example:
Verb - Hiding Subject - Prepositional Phrase
ْ ‫خ ََر َج‬
‫ت ِمنَ ْالغُ ْرفَ ِة‬
= went out (she) from the room
Translation: she went out of the room
We have mentioned that any irregular plural can take masculine verbs. The other way around
is also possible, irregular plurals can always take feminine verbs even if the subject was true
masculine. Thus, irregular plural subjects can take masculine and feminine verbs interchangeably
in verbal sentences. Example:
Verb - Subject
‫الر َجا ْ ُل‬
ِ ‫قَ ْد َجا ْ َء‬
ِ ‫ت‬
= have came the men
Translation: the men have came
In this sentence, the subject was true masculine yet the verb was feminine. This is because
the subject is an irregular plural word.It is always preferred (at least in my view) that the gender
of the verb matches the gender of the subject. A one good reason for that is simply to avoid any
confusion or mistakes.
21
Chapter TWO: Verb-Like Particles
2.1. Introduction
Verb-like particles ‫شبَّ َهةُ بِ ْال ِف ْع ِل‬
َ ‫ف ْال ُم‬
ُ ‫ األَحْ ُر‬are a very important group of particles that is
commonly used in both classical Arabic and modern standard Arabic.
Verb-Like Particles
‫شبَّ َهةُ ِب ْال ِف ْع ِل‬
َ ‫ف ْال ُم‬
ُ ‫األَحْ ُر‬
It is true that
‫ِإ َّن‬
That
‫أ َ َّن‬
But
‫لَ ِك َّن‬
It is like that
‫َكأ َ َّن‬
It is hoped that
‫لَعَ َّل‬
It may be that
It is wished that
َ‫لَيْت‬
The first four of those particles are in fact all based on the same particle 'inna ‫ إِ َّن‬.This word
comes from an unclear origin. However, Arabs regularly used this word as an "opening word" to
start a nominal sentence.
We mentioned in the section about sentences that the "normal" sentence in Arabic is a
sentence in which the verb precedes the subject (e.g. "reads the boy a book"). This kind of
sentences is called "verbal sentences" in opposition to the "nominal sentences." A nominal
sentence is a sentence in which the subject precedes the verb (e.g. "THE BOY reads a book").
Nominal sentences are usually used in Arabic when we wish to emphasize the subject, and this is
why the subject was capitalized in the sentence.
22
In order to "neutralize" the emphatic effect of bringing the subject in front of the verb in
nominal sentences, Arabs use the verb-like particles (especially 'inna) at the beginning of
nominal sentences to confer a "normal tone" on the sentence (counting on their "verb-like"
nature, which in a sense turns the sentence back into a verbal sentence). Although the literal
meaning of 'inna is "it is verified or true that" which is an emphatic meaning, the actual purpose
of using 'inna is to de-emphasize the subject of a nominal sentence.
This is important because most of the speakers of other languages are not familiar with the
usage of verbal sentences, and when they speak Arabic they usually use nominal sentences
without employing the essential 'inna which can make them sound "not very native-like."
2.2. Using 'innaّ‫إن‬
1. A verbal sentence (normal tone)
Verb - Subject - Object
ُ‫يَ ْق َرأ ُ ْال َولَد ُ ِكتَاْبَه‬
= read the boy (the) book (of) him
Translation: the boy reads his book
2. A nominal sentence (emphatic tone)
Subject - Verb - Object
ُ‫ْال َولَد ُ َي ْق َرأ ُ ِكتَا ْ َبه‬
= the boy reads (the) book (of) him
Translation: THE BOY reads his book
3. A nominal sentence with 'inna (normal tone)
V.L.P - Subject - Verb - Object
ُ‫إِ َّن ْال َولَد َ يَ ْق َرأ ُ ِكتَاْبَه‬
= it is true that the boy reads (the) book (of) him
Translation: the boy reads his book
23
Using 'inna requires simple things:

That it be used in front of a nominal sentence (and only a nominal sentence).

That the grammatical case of the subject of the nominal sentence be changed from the
nominative ‫ الرفع‬to the accusative ‫النصب‬.
The changing of the subject's case to the accusative is another reason for why 'inna is called a
"verb-like" particle, because this seems as if the subject has become an object of'inna.
In Arabic, the subject of a sentence that contains a verb-like particle is called "the noun of the
verb-like particle" ‫شبَّ ِه ِب ْال ِف ْع ِل‬
َ ‫ف ْال ُم‬
ِ ‫اِ ْس ُم ْال َح ْر‬. The predicate of the sentence is called "the predicate of
the verb-like particle" ‫شبَّ ِه ِب ْال ِف ْع ِل‬
َ ‫ف ْال ُم‬
ِ ‫ َخبَ ُر ْال َح ْر‬.
More examples on 'inna in different situations:
V.L.P - Subject - Predicate
‫صا ْ ِف َية‬
َّ ‫ِإ َّن ْال‬
َ ‫س َما ْ َء‬
= it is true that the sky (is) clear
Translation: the sky is clear
V.L.P - Subject - Predicate
ْ ‫ِإ َّن َع ِليًّا ُهنَا‬
= truthfully Ali (is) here
Translation: Ali is here
V.L.P - Subject - Predicate
‫صيْب‬
ِ ‫ِإ َّن َهذَاْ يَ ْوم َع‬
= truthfully this (is) a day a hard
Translation: this is a hard day
Not all nominal sentences can have a verb-like particle. For example, conditional sentences,
or sentences that begin with a locational demonstrative can't.
If the subject was a separate subject pronoun, it must be changed to an attached object
pronoun when adding 'inna. (See Attached Object Pronouns for information on how to attach
object pronouns to verb-like particles).
= I (am) a ready
Subject - Predicate
‫أَنَا ْ َجاْهِز‬
Translation: I am ready
24
V.L.P - Subject - Predicate
‫إِنِ ْي َجاْهِز‬
= truthfully me (is) a ready
Translation: I am ready
A must case for using 'inna is when the sentence begins with a 3rd person subject pronoun.
Otherwise it will be very emphatic.
= she (is) a girl a smart
Subject - Predicate
‫ِي فَتَاْة ذَ ِكيَّة‬
َ ‫ه‬
Translation: SHE is a smart girl
V.L.P - Subject - Predicate
‫ِإنَّ َها ْ فَتَاْة ذَ ِكيَّة‬
= truthfully her (is) a girl a smart
Translation: she is a smart girl
Subject - Predicate
‫ص ِد ْي ِق ْي‬
َ ‫ه َُو‬
= he (is) (the) friend (of) me
Translation: HE is my friend
V.L.P - Subject - Predicate
‫ص ِد ْي ِق ْي‬
َ ُ‫ِإنَّه‬
= truthfully him (is) (the) friend (of) me
Translation: he is my friend
V.L.P - Subject - Predicate (Prepositional Phrase)
‫ِإنَّهُ فِ ْي ْالدَّاْ ِخ ِل‬
= it is true that him (is) in the inside
Translation: he's inside
= they (are) people kind
Subject - Predicate
َ ‫ُه ْم أُنَاْس‬
َ‫طيِبُ ْون‬
Translation: THEY are kind people
V.L.P - Subject - Predicate
َ ‫إِنَّ ُه ْم أُنَاْس‬
0 َ‫ط ِيبُ ْون‬
= truthfully them (are) people kind
Translation: they are kind people
25
2.2.1.'inna with Emphatic laA commonly used particle, especially in classical Arabic, is emphatic la- ‫ لَـ‬. This la-precedes
many words for the purpose of emphases. It also precedes nominal sentences.
Example:
‫صاْدِق‬
َ ‫لَزَ يْد‬
= certainly Zayd (is) an honest
Translation: certainly Zayd is telling the truth
‫ص ِد ْي ِق ْي‬
َ ‫لَ ُه َو‬
= certainly he (is) (the) friend (of) me
Translation: certainly he is my friend
When using 'inna with such sentences, the emphatic la- will have to be moved from before the
subject to before the predicate.
‫صاْدِق‬
َ َ‫ِإ َّن زَ يْدا ل‬
= truthfully Zayd (is) certainly an honest
Translation: certainly Zayd is telling the truth
‫ي‬
َ َ‫ِإنَّهُ ل‬
ْ ‫ص ِد ْي ِق‬
= truthfully him (is) certainly (the) friend (of) me
Translation: certainly he is my friend
This moved emphatic la- is called in Arabic the "slipped laam" ُ ‫ الالَّ ُم ْال ُمزَ حْ لَقَة‬, because it slips from
before the subject to after it.
2.3. Why Verb-Like?
►They look like verbs, and end with the perfective verb declension -a .
►They all carry meanings of verbs.
►They affect the subject of the nominal sentence by changing its case to the accusative, which
is what verbs do with their objects.
►They can be attached to object pronouns like verbs. See Attached Object Pronouns.
26
Literal Senses of Verb-Like Particles
It is verified that
'inna
‫ِإ َّن‬
That it is verified that
'anna
‫أ َ َّن‬
But it is verified that
laakinna
‫لَ ِك َّن‬
As/like it is verified that
ka'anna
‫َكأ َ َّن‬
la"all(a)
‫لَ َع َّل‬
layt(a)
َ‫لَيْت‬
It is hoped that
It may be that
It is wished that
2.3.1. Understanding Verb-Like Particles
In essence, verb-like particles are three:
It is true that
It is hoped that
It may be that
It is wished that
Basic Verb-Like Particles
'inna
‫ِإ َّن‬
la"all(a)
‫لَ َع َّل‬
layt(a)
َ‫لَيْت‬
The other three particles are based on 'inna as follows:
1. 'anna ‫أَ َّن‬
‫أ َ ْن إِ َّن ≡ أ َ َّن‬
that it is true that ≡ that
Examples:
‫ِإ َّن ال َم ْو ِعدَ ال َي ْو َم‬
= truthfully the appointment/date (is) today
Translation: the appointment/date is today
َ
‫ظنَ ْنتُ أ َ َّن ال َم ْو ِعدَ ال َي ْو َم‬
= (I) thought that truthfully the appointment/date (is) today
Translation: I thought that the appointment/date was today
The meaning of 'anna is a complex meaning which is "'an 'inna" = "that it is true that". The nonreduced form "'an 'inna" cannot be used and it has to be 'anna.Another example:
27
ُ‫عدْت‬
ُ ْ‫لَقَد‬
= (I) have returned
Translation: I have returned / I am back
ُ‫عدْت‬
ُ ْ‫ِإ ِني قَد‬
= truthfully me have returned
Translation: I have returned / I am back
‫عدْتُ ؟‬
ُ ْ‫أَلَ ْم ت َ ْعلَ ُم ْوا أَنِي قَد‬
= is it that did not (you) know that truthfully me have returned
Translation: didn't you know that I am back?
Note: 'an ‫ أَ ْن‬is a particle which means "that." However, it is used almost only before verbs (i.e.
before verbal sentences) and not before nouns. Therefore, it can't usually be used before a
nominal sentence unless combined with 'inna to produce 'anna, like in the already mentioned
examples.
Two Words for "That"
That
Usage
'an
‫أ َ ْن‬
Verbal Sentences (Verbs)
'anna
‫أ َ َّن‬
Nominal Sentences (Nouns, Pronouns, etc.)
'an ‫ أَ ْن‬is used in Arabic to produce infinitival phrases just like how "to" is used in English. If the
verb after 'an was an imperfective verb, it must be in the subjunctive mood)‫(الرغبات والتشرط‬.
‫أ ُ ِر ْيد ُ أ َ ْن أَتَعَلَّ َم‬
= (I) want that (I) learn
Translation: I want to learn
'an ‫ أَ ْن‬is used in front of nominal sentences in only one classical case, which is
when 'an precedes an "explanatory phrase."
‫س َل ِإ َل ْي ِه أ َ ِن ْال َح ْربُ َو ِش ْيكَة‬
َ ‫َفأ َ ْر‬
= then (he) sent to him that the war (is) imminent
Translation: so he sent to him a message telling him that war is imminent
2. laakinna ‫لَ ِك َّن‬
‫لَ ِك ْن ِإ َّن ≡ لَ ِك َّن‬
but it is true that ≡ but
28
Examples:
‫ص ْعب‬
َ ‫ْالكَال ُم‬
َ ‫س ْهل لَ ِك َّن ْال ِف ْع َل‬
= the talking (is) easy but truthfully the doing (is) hard
Translation: talking is easy but doing is hard
The non-reduced form "laakin 'inna" cannot be used and it has to be laakinna.It is very
habitual for Arabs to add an unnecessary wa ‫َو‬
= "and" before both laakin (but)
and laakinna (emphasized but) . This "and" means nothing and does nothing.
ُ ‫ب َولَ ِكنِ ْي لَ ْم أ َ ْق َرأْهُ َب ْعد‬
َ ْ ‫اْ ْشت ََريْتُ ْال ِكتَا‬
= (I) bought the book but truthfully me did not read him yet
Translation: I bought the book but I haven't read it yet
‫لَ ِكنَّ ُك َّن قَدْ ذَ َه ْبت ُ َّن‬
= but truthfully you (plu. fem.) have gone
Translation: but you've gone
3. ka'anna ‫َكأ َ َّن‬
‫َكأ َ ْن ِإ َّن ≡ َكأ َ َّن‬
like that it is true that ≡ it is like that
Some old Arabian dialects used ka'inna instead of ka'anna. The etymology of ka'inna may be
easier to track (ka-'inna). ka'inna is still used in several Arabic spoken dialects today, e.g. in
Egyptian Arabic.Example:
‫سد‬
َ َ ‫َكأ َ َّن زَ يْدا أ‬
= it is like that Zayd (is) a lion
Translation: Zayd is like a lion
The sentence "Zayd is like a lion" cannot be translated literally to Arabic.
‫سد‬
َ َ ‫زَ يْد َكأ‬
FALSE - NONSENSE
Zayd (is) like a lion
‫سد‬
َ َ ‫ِإ َّن زَ يْدا َكأ‬
FALSE - NONSENSE
Truthfully Zayd (is) like a lion
To make such a sentence, we have to use the verb-like particle ka'anna like in the
aforementioned example (i.e. ka'anna Zayd is a lion = it is like that Zayd is a lion).However, if
the second word were a definite word, we could go without using ka'anna(actually it is better not
to use ka'anna in this case, especially in modern Arabic).
29
‫س ِد‬
َ َ ‫زَ يْد َكاأل‬
= Zayd (is) like the lion
Translation: Zayd is like the lion
(Zayd is like a lion)
If we use ka'anna in this case, it will sound like a poetry line.
ُ ‫سد‬
َ َ ‫َكأ َ َّن زَ يْدا األ‬
= it is like that Zayd (is) the lion
Translation: Zayd is like the lion
(Zayd is like a lion)
Having the second word definite is more commonly used in Arabic to express ideas of the
type "something is like a something" or "someone is like a something." Of course,
usingka'anna in such sentences is somewhat less affirmative, as the second word will be
indefinite (cf. Zayd is a man / Zayd is the man).
1st Word
Definite Word
ka'anna
‫َكأ َ َّن‬
Sentence
2nd Word
Like
‫كَـ‬
Definite Word
Judgment
3rd word
Indefinite
Definite
Indefinite
Definite
Not Good
Good
Good
Poetry
Another example, how do we translate to Arabic "life is like a dream" ?There are two possible
ways, the first one is:
‫ال َح ْياْة ُ َك ْال ُحلُ ِم‬
= the life (is) like the dream
Translation: life is like a dream
This translation gives the exact sense of the original sentence.The other way to translate it is:
‫َكأ َ َّن ال َح ْياْةَ ُحلُم‬
= it is like that the life (is) a dream
Translation: life is like a dream
This translation confers a tinge of incertitude on the original sentence.
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2.3.2. Hoping & Whishing
The remaining two verb-like particles are:
It is hoped that
la"all(a)
‫لَعَ َّل‬
It may be that
It is wished that
layt(a)
َ‫لَيْت‬
la"all(a) ‫ لَعَ َّل‬or "all(a) ‫َع َّل‬
A commonly used verb-like particle, la"all(a) indicates the hope as well as the expectation of
the speaker about something. Sometimes it indicates the mere expectation (including bad
expectations).la"all(a) is used only with nominal sentences, and the subject of the sentence will
be in the accusative case just like for the rest of verb-like particles.Examples:
‫لَعَ َّل ِر ْي َما ْ ت َأْتِ ْي غَدا‬
= it is hoped that Rima come tomorrow
Translation: I hope Rima will come tomorrow
َ‫ْض قَدْ َماْت‬
َ ‫لَ َع َّل ْال َم ِري‬
= maybe the patient has died
Translation: maybe the patient has died
َ‫ْض قَدْ َماْت‬
َ ‫َع َّل ْال َم ِري‬
= maybe the patient has died
Translation: maybe the patient has died
‫لَعَلَّ َها ْ ت ُ ْم ِط ُر ْاليَ ْو َم‬
= it is hoped that her will rain today
Translation: I hope it will rain today
layt(a) َ‫لَيْت‬
layt(a) is also a commonly used word. It indicates that the speaker is whishing that what he
says happen or be true. layt(a) works just like the other verb-like particles as far as grammar is
concerned.Examples:
َّ ‫لَيْتَ ال‬
‫ب يَعُ ْود ُ يَ ْوما‬
َ ْ ‫شبَا‬
= it is wished that the youth returns a day
Translation: I wish if I be young again one day
َ‫لَ ْيت َنِ ْي ُك ْنتُ ُهنَاْك‬
= it is wished that me was there
Translation: I wish I was there
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2.3.3. Verb-Like Particles + maa
Verb-like particles can be used regularly with nominal sentences that begin with relative
pronouns such as that, who, what, etc.Example from classical poetry, the poet is showing pride
of his people:
ْ َ ‫بَيْتا ْ دَ َعاْئِ ُمهُ أَ َعز َوأ‬
ْ ‫س َما ْ َء َبنَ ْى لَنَا‬
‫ط َو ُل‬
َّ ‫س َمكَ ْال‬
َ ‫ي‬
ْ ‫إِ َّن الَّ ِذ‬
= it is true that who raised the heaven built for us a house (the) foundations (of) him (are) more
excellent and taller
Translation: he who raised the heaven has built for us a house, the foundations of which are
higher and more excellent
'al-lathee is a general relative pronoun that can mean who, whom, or which.
Example on other relative pronouns:
‫ب‬
َ ْ ‫صا‬
َ َ ‫ِإ َّن َم ْن فَ َع َل َهذَاْ قَدْ أ‬
= truthfully who did this has done right
Translation: he who did this has done right
ُ‫ص َواْب‬
َّ ‫ِإ َّن َما ْ ت َ ْف َعلُهُ ه َُو ال‬
= truthfully what (you) are doing he (is) the right (thing)
Translation: what you're doing is the right thing
Now to the main point, verb-like particles can be combined with the relative pronoun maa =
"what" to give a single word with a reduced meaning.
Verb-Like Particles With maa
‫شبَّ َهةُ ِب ْال ِف ْع ِل ِب َما ْ ْال َكاْفَّ ِة‬
َ ‫ف ْال ُم‬
ُ ‫صا ْ ُل األَحْ ُر‬
َ ِ‫اِت‬
ْ ‫ َما ْ = ِإنَّ َما‬+ ‫ِإ َّن‬
It is true that what ... → it is true that ...
ْ ‫ َما ْ = أَنَّ َما‬+ ‫أ َ َّن‬
That it is true that what ... → that it is true that ...
ْ ‫ َما ْ = لَ ِكنَّ َما‬+ ‫لَ ِك َّن‬
But it is true that what ... → but ...
‫ َكأ َ َّن‬+ ْ ‫َكأَنَّ َما ْ = َما‬
Like that it is true that what ... → it is like that ...
ْ ‫ َما ْ = لَعَلَّ َما‬+ ‫لَعَ َّل‬
It is hoped that what ... → it is hoped that ...
It is may be that what ... → it is may be that ...
ْ ‫ َما ْ = لَ ْيت َ َما‬+ َ‫لَيْت‬
It is wished that what ... → it is wished that ...
32
Verb-like particles plus maa were so commonly used in classical Arabic that they lost their
primary meanings and became just emphatic versions of the bare verb-like particles. Verb-like
particles plus maa will have no effect what so ever on the case-declensions in the following
sentence, regardless of the syntax. Moreover, VLP plus maa will be used with verbal sentences
just like with nominal sentences.
maa is this case is called in Arabic "inactivating maa" ُ ‫ َما ْ ْال َكاْفَّة‬.Examples:
‫ِإنَّ َما ْ ه َُو ِإلَه َواْ ِحد‬
= truthfully what he (is) (is) a god a one
→ truthfully he (is) a god a one
Translation: he is only one God
‫ِإنَّ َما ْ تَقُ ْو ُل ْال َح َّق‬
= truthfully what (you) say (is) the truth
→ truthfully (you) say the truth
Translation: what you say is nothing but the truth
‫َكأَنَّ َما ْ َوجْ ُه َها ْ ْالبَد ُْر‬
= it is like that what (the) face (of) her (is) (is) the full moon
→ it is like that (the) face (of) her (is) the full moon
Translation: her face is like the full moon (beautiful)
‫ْض‬
ُ ‫لَعَلَّ َما ْ يُ ْشفَ ْى ْال َم ِري‬
= it is hoped that what (he) be healed (is) the patient
= it is hoped that (he) be healed the patient
Translation: I hope the patient will get well
End of Chapters 1 & 2
33
Chapter Three: Special-Fixed Phrases
Main sources: http://www.englishleap.com
http://www.phrasemix.com
3.1. Introduction
As agreed upon, a translator's golden aim is to transfer the meaning of a given
text or speech as closely and accurately as possible from one language to another.
That is why reading the whole text thoroughly, being aware of its components, in
addition to the core or message within, are the foundation of a comprehended,
therefore,a well-translated text. However, any language, at its best, enriches its
writers and readers with a higher level of language. Such decorative linguistic
means are noticed in: idioms, metaphorical and figurative as well as rhetorical
languages in general. Your job lies in going beyond the exact words and phrases
used in the SL. It becomes much more like diving into the ocean of the TL's
treasury to come out with pearls that would preserve the beauty of language in the
TL translated text.
In the next few pages, we will try to study and analyze the essence of each of
the mentioned rhetorical expressions while attempting to provide an equivalent one
for each one, in the other language.
3.2. Idioms (English)
An idiom is an expression whose meaning is different from the meaning of its
constituent words. Knowledge of idioms is an important part of comprehension of
the English language. Below is a list of some commonly used idioms in English
with their meanings and usage. Examples:
TURN OVER A NEW LEAF
Changing for the better
After Ali was released from prison, he decided to turn over a new leaf and
become an honest man.
Translation: ………………………………………………………………………………………
PULL UP ONE’S SOCKS
To make an effort to improve
Ahmad has decided to pull up his socks after failing his first grammar test.
Translation: ………………………………………………………………………………………
34
Idioms Exercise:
HIT BELOW THE BELT
To act in an unfair manner
The candidate of the opposition party spread false rumors about the Minister.
People felt that he was hitting below the belt.
Translation: ……………………………………………………………………………………………..
GIFT OF THE GAB
The ability to speak well
Phillip was able to keep the audiences amused with his stories. He surely has
the gift of the gab.
Translation: ……………………………………………………………………………………………..
WILD GOOSE CHASE
Futile search
Searching for hidden gold in the village field is nothing but a wild goose chase.
Translation: ……………………………………………………………………………………………..
HAVE SECOND
THOUGHTS
Reconsider a decision
Rajiv began to have second thoughts about his decision to study Economics when
he realized that he could not even pay attention during the lectures.
Translation: ……………………………………………………………………………………………..
TAKE TO TASK
To reprimand someone
Lina was taken to task by her mother when she failed her Mathematics exam.
Translation: ……………………………………………………………………………………………..
FACE THE MUSIC
To face the consequences of
one’s action
I lost my father’s pen. I will have to face the music when I reach home.
Translation: ……………………………………………………………………………………………..
35
BREAK THE ICE
Overcome initial shyness
The teacher asked the students to introduce themselves to each other to break the
ice.
Translation: ……………………………………………………………………………………………..
MAKE A MOUNTAIN OUT
OF A MOLEHILL
To give great importance to
minor things
Maher stopped talking to Raj because he did not lend him his notebook. I think he
is making a mountain out of a molehill.
Translation: ……………………………………………………………………………………………..
AT LOGGERHEADS
To differ strongly
The two brothers can never work together. They are always at loggerheads.
Translation: ……………………………………………………………………………………………..
MAKE HAY WHILE THE
SUN SHINES
Make the best of a good
situation while it lasts
Mr. Shaker got the big contract to supply machine parts to a big Japanese
company. He should make hay while the sun shines.
Translation: ……………………………………………………………………………………………..
LET BYGONES BE
BYGONES
Ignore the bad things of the
past
We have not spoken to each other since the time we had a fight a few months
back. We should let bygones be bygones and become friends again.
Translation: ……………………………………………………………………………………………..
36
HIT THE NAIL ON THE
HEAD
Be exact or accurate
Ram is a genius. He hit the nail on the head when he said that the car was
overheating because of a leaking radiator.
Translation: ……………………………………………………………………………………………..
THROW IN THE TOWEL
To accept defeat
I am unable to solve this question. I am ready to throw in the towel.
Translation: ……………………………………………………………………………………………..
NO STONE UNTURNED
Make all possible efforts
Omar has joined two coaching classes. He is leaving no stone unturned in his
efforts to get into an engineering college.
Translation: ……………………………………………………………………………………………..
BORN WITH A SILVER
SPOON IN ONE’S MOUTH
To be born in a very rich
family
Lana was born with a silver spoon in her mouth. Her father gave her an expensive
car on her eighteenth birthday.
Translation: ……………………………………………………………………………………………..
KEEP ONE’S FINGERS
CROSSED
Hope for a positive outcome
My results will come out day after tomorrow. I am keeping my fingers crossed.
Translation: ……………………………………………………………………………………………..
BY HOOK OR BY CROOK
Using any means, fair or foul
There is a cricket match tomorrow. Raj will make sure he gets the day off from
office by hook or by crook.
Translation: ……………………………………………………………………………………………..
37
3.3. Collocation& Phrasal Verbs
A collocation is a combination of words that are commonly used together; the simplest way
of describing collocations is to say that they ‘just sound right’ to native English speakers. Other
combinations that may mean the same thing would seem ‘unnatural’. Collocations include noun
phrases like ‘stiff wind’ and ‘weapons of mass destruction’, phrasal verbs such as ‘to get
together’ and other stock phrases such as ‘the rich and famous’
It is important to learn collocations, because they are important for the naturalization of
one’s speech. Besides, they broaden one’s scope for expression.Here is a list of collocations to
help you get started, do your best to find an equivalent for each main verb according to its
context:
Collocations starting with the verbs ‘do, have, break, and take’
Do me a favor
Do the cooking
Do the housework
Do the shopping
Do the washing up
Do your best
Do your hair
Have a good time
Have a bath
Have a drink
Have a haircut
Have a holiday
Have a problem
Have a relationship
Have lunch
Have sympathy
Break the law
Break a leg
Break a promise
Break a record
Break someone's heart
Break the ice
Break the news to someone
38
Break the rules
Take a break
Take a chance
Take a look
Take a rest
Take a seat
Take a taxi
Take an exam
Take notes
Take someone's place
Collocations starting with the verbs ‘make, catch, pay, keep, and save'
Make a difference
Make a mess
Make a mistake
Make a noise
Make an effort
Make money
Make progress
Make room
Make trouble
Catch the bus
Catch a ball
Catch a cold
Catch a thief
Catch fire
Catch sight of
Catch someone's attention
Catch someone's eye
Catch the flu
Pay respect
Pay a fine
39
Pay attention
Pay by credit card
Pay cash
Pay interest
Pay someone a visit
Pay the bill
Pay the price
Keep the change
Keep a promise
Keep a secret
Keep an appointment
Keep calm
Keep in touch
Keep quiet
Keep someone's place
Save yourself the
trouble
Save electricity
Save energy
Save money
Save someone a seat
Save someone's life
Save somth. to a disk
Save time
Collocations starting with the verbs ‘go, get, and come'
Go bald
Go abroad
Go astray
Go bad
Go bankrupt
Go blind
Go crazy
40
Go fishing
Go mad
Go missing
Go online
Go out of business
Go overseas
Go quiet
Go sailing
Go to war
Come under attack
Come close
Come direct
Come early
Come first
Come into view
Come last
Come late
Come on time
Come prepared
Come right back
Come to a decision
Come to an agreement
Come to an end
Come to a standstill
Come to terms with
Come to a total of
Get the sack
Get a life
Get a job
Get a shock
Get angry
Get divorced
41
Get drunk
Get frightened
Get home
Get lost
Get married
Get permission
Get ready
Get started
Get the impression
Get upset
Get wet
Get worried
Collocations related to time
Bang on time
Dead on time
Free time
From dawn till dusk
Great deal of time
Early/late 15th century
Make time for
Next few days
Past few weeks
Right on time
Run out of time
Time goes by
Time passes
Waste time
Collocations related to business English
Annual turnover
Keep in mind
Break off negotiations
Close a deal
42
Close a meeting
Come to the point
Dismiss an offer
Draw a conclusion
Draw your attention to
Launch a new product
Go bankrupt
Go into partnership
Make a profit/loss
Phrasal verbs
are combinations of words that perform the function of a verb. These
combinations necessarily include a verb and either an adverb or a preposition (or both). They
form one complete semantic unit because the words that comprise a phrasal verb together
describe one action. For example:
Phrasal Verb
Meaning
ask around
To ask the same question from many people
add up to something
To equal/corroborate a fact
ask someone out
To invite someone on a date
blow something up
To exaggerate
back someone up
To support
blow up
To explode
break down
To stop functioning (usually for vehicle, machine, etc.)
break something down
To divide and subdivide
break into something
To enter forcibly/ interrupt
break up
To end a relationship
break out
To escape
break out
To spread
bring someone down
To upset someone or to make someone unhappy
bring someone up
raise a child
43
bring up
To initiate a conversation on a subject
call around
To phone different places/people
call someone back
To return a phone call
call something off
To abandon or cancel
call someone up
To phone someone
calm down
relax after being angry
catch up
To get to the same point as someone else/ or to work hard in
order to equal with someone
check in
To reach and register at a hotel or airport
check out
To leave a hotel
cheer up
Used as an expression to ask someone to be happy
chip in
To contribute/help
clean something up
To tidy a place
come acrosssomething
find unexpectedly
come apart
To separate/ fall down/ break down
come down withsomething
To become sick
come forward
To support/ to take an initiative
come from somewhere
To originate in
count onsomeone/something
To rely on a person or thing
cross something out
To draw a line through something
cut back on something
To use or consume less of something
cut into
To interrupt in between something or someone
cut something off
To cut something with something sharp
cut something off
To stop providing/to break all relations with someone
cut something out
To remove pieces or part of something
do something over
To do something again
do away withsomething
To dispose of or discard something
dress up
To be dressed in a fancier or better way than normal
44
drop back
To move back in a position
drop in/by/over
To come without an appointment
Drop someone/something off
To take someone/something somewhere and leave them/it there
drop out
To quit a class, school, etc.
eat out
To eat outside of home, usually in a restaurant
end up
To do/to eventually reach/to decide
fall apart
To break into pieces
fall down
To fall on the ground/ to fall off from somewhere to the ground
fall out
To separate
figure something out
To study/understand
fill something in
To write information in a form, etc.
fill something up
To fill something completely or to the top
find out
To search/discover
get something across/over
To communicate
get along/on
To like each other
get away
To go on a vacation or a leave
get away with something
do something (usually something wrong) without being noticed
or punished
get back
To return
get back at someone
To retaliate/to take a revenge
get on something
To step onto something
get over something
To recover/overcome
get together
To meet
get up
To stand/get out of bed
give something away
To reveal/give something for free/donate
give something back
To return
give in
To unwillingly stop fighting or arguing
give up
To stop trying
45
go after someone
To follow someone
go after something
To try to achieve something
go against someone or something
To oppose
go ahead
To proceed/start/initiate something
go back
To return to a place
go out
To leave home to go out for an occasion, etc.
go out with someone
To date someone
go over something
To pay a visit to someone/something nearby
go over
To check or review
grow apart
To end a friendship
grow up
To become an adult
grow out of something
To get too big for something, usually a piece of clothing
grow into something
To grow big enough to fit
hand something down
To give something used to someone else
hand something out
To distribute to a group of people
hand something over
To give (usually unwillingly)
hang in
To stay strong and positive
hang on
To wait for a short time
hang out
To spend time relaxing or chilling out
hang up
To end a phone call
Hold someone/something back
To prevent from doing/going
hold something back
To hide an emotion/to be stopped by something or someone
hold on
To wait for a short time
keep on doingsomething
continue doing
keep something from someone
To not tell/not do/to keep a secret
Keep someone/something out
To stop someone or something from entering at a place
keep something up
To continue at the same rate
46
let someone down
To disappoint someone
let someone in
To permit to enter
look after someone/something
To take care of
look down on someone
To belittle someone/ to consider someone inferior to oneself
look forsomeone/something
To try to find
look forward to something
To be excited about some future plan, etc.
look into something
To investigate
look out
To be careful
look out for someone/something
To be extra careful or vigilant
look something over
To check/examine
look up to someone
To respect someone immensely
make something up
To lie about something
make up
To forgive each other
make someone up
To apply cosmetics
mix something up
To get confused
pass away
To die
pass out
To lose consciousness
pay someone back
To return the owed money
pay for something
To be punished for doing something bad
pick something out
To choose
Point someone/something out
To point or indicate using your finger
put something off
To postpone
put something together
To assemble
put up with someone/something
To bear or tolerate something or someone
put something on
To wear a dress/accessories on your body
run into someone/something
To meet someone unexpectedly
run over someone/something
To drive a vehicle over a person or thing
47
run away
To leave unexpectedly/ to escape
run out
To have nothing left of something
send something back
To return
set something up
To arrange/organize
set someone up
To trick/trap someone or something
show off
To act boastfully when people watch
sleep over
To stay somewhere out of home, for the night
sort something out
To organise/ to resolve a situation
stick to something
To continue doing something
switch something off
To turn off
switch something on
To turn on
take something back
To return something
take off
To start flying
take something off
To remove something (usually items of clothing)
take something out
To remove from a place
take someone out
To take someone out with yourself and also to pay for them
tear something up
To rip something into pieces
think back
To recall or remember
think something over
To consider
throw something away
To trash something or to dispose of
turn something down
To decrease the volume
turn something down
To refuse
turn something off
To switch off
turn something on
To switch on
try something out
To test
use something up
To use something entirely or to finish all
wake up
To stop sleeping
48
warm up
To prepare the body for exercise
wear off
To diminish in quality because of frequent use
work out
To exercise
work out
To be successful with something
In each of the above cases, the phrasal verb shares no similarity with the verb that it
replaces. These are ‘idiomatic’ phrasal verbs, commonly used in informal, everyday speech.
Phrasal verbs are not necessarily idiomatic, though; they can be literal as well. For example,
literal phrases such as look up, walk across and switch off are also considered phrasal verbs,
because the action described by each cannot be described if any of the words in the phrase are
omitted. If ‘up’ is taken out of ‘look up’, the description of the action will be incomplete.
Now, work your brains and test your phrasal verbs knowledge:
Example Sentences
Translation into Arabic
1. I am not sure if there are vacancies,
but I will ask around the office.
2. The clues we found at the house and
the museum must add up to something.
3. I wish I could muster the courage to
ask her out.
4. My mother blows my achievements up
in front of guests.
5. You may be wrong but I will back you
up because you are my brother.
6. Our calculations were wrong and the
rocket blew up just after liftoff.
7. He was driving recklessly and the old
car broke down.
8. The detective said they were still
breaking the information down to
make sense of it.
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9. Last night, two thieves broke into the
house next door.
10. After being together for five years they
have decided to break up.
11. Ten inmates broke out of prison in the
southern town yesterday.
12. There was a world panic when SARS
broke out in China in 2002.
13. His pessimistic comments bring down
the whole group.
14. After being abandoned by his parents
in Ghana he was brought up by an
Italian couple.
15. I will bring up the issue of cleanliness
in the meeting today.
16. I have not seen him today but I will
call around and inquire.
17. I could not answer your call earlier but
I will call back shortly.
18. They have decided to call off the
wedding due to financial troubles.
19. She will call you up later to discuss the
issue.
20. The crew asked us to calm down
during turbulence.
21. You have studied a lot more and I need
to catch up.
22. At a hotel, check-in is normally
required in order to obtain a room key.
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23. Please ensure that you are in
possession of all your belongings
before checking-out of the hotel.
24. She cheered up when she heard that
the result was positive.
25. I do not have enough money for a
pizza so all of you need to chip in as
well.
26. You must clean up the room before the
president arrives.
27. While reading this book I came across
new information regarding dinosaurs.
28. The group of friends came apart once
they went to different colleges.
29. My throat is sore; I think I am coming
down with a cold.
30. The hospital is anxious for more
donors to come forward.
31. He resides in Brazil although he comes
from Spain.
32. Most of the stench comes from the
open drain behind the house.
33. Can I count on you to complete this
essay by tonight?
34. Kindly cross out your old telephone
number and write the new one.
35. We need to cut back on driving since
the price of petrol is at an all-time
high.
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36. He asked if could cut in on the dance
between Tim and me.
37. The butter is frozen. Cut off a small
blob and let it rest outside so that it
melts faster.
38. After he was convicted, his family
decided to cut him off.
39. She looked over the article and cut the
introduction out and rewrote it.
40. My homework assignment was
unacceptable, so my teacher asked me
to do it over.
41. My mother asked me to do away with
all the unusable toys.
42. I was asked to dress up for the mayor’s
party.
43. The coach asked the attacking players
to drop back.
44. I was surprised when she dropped in
unannounced at midnight.
45. I will drop him off at the train station
before reaching the venue.
46. He dropped out of the chess club
because it was too difficult for him.
47. I do not feel like cooking today so let’s
eat out?
48. He studied history at college but ended
up working at a bank.
49. The house of cards stood for a minute
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but then fell apart.
50. He was walking carelessly and thus,
fell down.
51. The coach and the player had a fall out
and the latter decided to quit.
52. We need to figure out the route before
commencing the trek.
53. You must fill in the form in order to
obtain a ticket.
54. She wanted to fill up the entire glass
with wine.
55. I need you to find out whether he is
lying or not.
56. He could not get across the message.
57. It is about time you buried the hatchet
and got along with each other
58. We have not travelled in a while so we
are planning a getaway this summer.
59. He will not get away with an abusive
remark like that.
60. The boss needs you to get back from
the Bahamas and complete the report.
61. My brother got back at me for eating
his piece of cake.
62. To reach the chandelier, you must get
on the stool.
63. The stock market is slowly getting
over the recession.
64. Let’s get together at the mall this
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weekend.
65. You are not allowed to sit there, so,
kindly get up.
66. Before dying, he had pledged to give
away half his money to charity.
67. You have her mobile phone and need
it give it back to her.
68. The dictator finally gave in to the
mounting pro-democracy protests.
69. Never give up, never surrender!
70. The police decided to go after the
criminal after he had robbed a bank.
71. She is really working hard going after
the top prize.
72. You cannot go against the coach and
expect to remain with the team.
73. The General wants us to go ahead with
the plan.
74. He needs us to go back to the office
and collect his belongings.
75. I did not wish to talk to him anymore
so I decided to hang up the phone.
76. If you have a complaint, don’t hold
back; you cannot fix the problem if
you do not voice it.
77. He was a great athlete, but he was held
back from succeeding by his parents,
who wanted him to study instead.
78. He has asked you to hold on to his
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book until he returns.
79. The musicians kept on playing even
though it was raining.
80. You have a wonderful voice so you
must not keep from singing.
81. The gate has been installed to keep out
stray dogs.
82. Keep up this speed for the rest of the
journey and we will reach on time.
83. You have let me down with this
disappointing performance.
84. Look out for hurricane alerts on the
island at this time of the year.
85. The teacher wants the student to look
over his answers once again.
86. I look up to my coach because he was
a great sportsman.
87. When asked why I hadn’t done my
homework, I made up a story about
having done it but forgotten that that
day was the day of submission.
88. He returned my money very late, but
tried to make up for it by treating me
to lunch.
89. That actor uses a lot of make up before
shooting a scene.
90. The experienced striker pounced on a
defensive mix-up to fire home into an
open goal.
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91. I took two weeks off work because my
grandfather passed away.
92. Our dog had been ill for a few months
and passed away last night.
93. It was so hot in the examination hall
that one of the students passed out for
a couple of minutes.
94. There should be no money issues
between friends, so when I lend money
to my friends I tell them they can pay
back whenever it is convenient for
them.
95. The police swore that the terrorist
would pay for destroying the building.
96. I always let my mother pick out my
clothes, because she has excellent
taste.
97. I have asked the professor to point out
all the mistakes in my assignment.
98. I was very tired that day, so I put off
the meeting till after the weekend.
99. The different parts have been provided
in order to put together this mountain
bike.
100.
This job will work out only if I
can get my own office.
3.4. English Proverbs
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Every culture has a collection of wise sayings that offer advice about how to live your life.
These sayings are called "proverbs".
It's good to know the really common English proverbs because you hear them come up in
conversation all the time. Sometimes people say the entire proverb to give advice to a friend.
More often, someone will say just part of a proverb like this:
You know what they say: when the going gets tough...
(Read #5 below to learn the rest of this proverb and what it means.)
Learning proverbs can also help you to understand the way that people in English-speaking
cultures think about the world. This is a list of some of the most important and well-known
English proverbs. Below each one, there's a simple explanation. Note that some of the meanings
of these phrases have shifted over the years, so a proverb might have originally had a different
meaning than the current explanation. Try to find an equivalent proverb for each. You might
come up with a poetic verse, a saying by the prophet, or even a verse of the Qur’an to convey the
exact meaning.
1. "Two wrongs don't make a right." When someone has done something bad to you, trying to get
revenge will only make things worse.
………………………………………………………………………………………………………
2. "The pen is mightier than the sword." Trying to convince people with ideas and words is more
effective than trying to force people to do what you want.
………………………………………………………………………………………………………
3. "When in Rome, do as the Romans." Act the way that the people around you are acting. This
phrase might come in handy when you're traveling abroad notice that people do things differently
than you're used to.
………………………………………………………………………………………………………
4. "The squeaky wheel gets the grease." You can get better service if you complain about
something. If you wait patiently, no one's going to help you.
………………………………………………………………………………………………………
5. "When the going gets tough, the tough get going." Strong people don't give up when they
come across challenges. They just work harder.
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………………………………………………………………………………………………………
6. "No man is an island." You can't live completely independently. Everyone needs help from other
people.
………………………………………………………………………………………………………
7. "Fortune favors the bold." People who bravely go after what they want are more successful than
people who try to live safely.
………………………………………………………………………………………………………
8. "People who live in glass houses should not throw stones." Don't criticize other people if
you're not perfect yourself.
………………………………………………………………………………………………………
9. "Hope for the best, but prepare for the worst."
………………………………………………………………………………………………………
10. "Better late than never."
………………………………………………………………………………………………………
11. "Birds of a feather flock together." People like to spend time with others who are similar to them.
………………………………………………………………………………………………………
12. "Keep your friends close and your enemies closer." If you have an enemy, pretend to be
friends with them instead of openly fighting with them. That way you can watch them carefully and
figure out what they're planning.
………………………………………………………………………………………………………
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13. "A picture is worth a thousand words." Pictures convey emotions and messages better than
written or spoken explanations.
………………………………………………………………………………………………………
14. "There's no such thing as a free lunch." Things that are offered for free always have a hidden cost.
………………………………………………………………………………………………………
15. "There's no place like home." Your own home is the most comfortable place to be.
………………………………………………………………………………………………………
16. "Discretion is the greater part of valor." Sometimes it's important to know when to give up and
run away, instead of always acting brave and maybe getting hurt.
………………………………………………………………………………………………………
17. "The early bird catches the worm." You should wake up and start work early if you want to
succeed.
………………………………………………………………………………………………………
18. "Never look a gift horse in the mouth." If someone offers you a gift, don't question it.
………………………………………………………………………………………………………
19. "You can't make an omelet without breaking a few eggs." When you try to do something
great, you'll probably make a few people annoyed or angry. Don't worry about those people; just
focus on the good results.
………………………………………………………………………………………………………
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20. "God helps those who help themselves." Don't just wait for good things to happen to you. Work
hard to achieve your goals.
………………………………………………………………………………………………………
21. "You can't always get what you want."
………………………………………………………………………………………………………
22. "Cleanliness is next to godliness." Be clean.
………………………………………………………………………………………………………
23. "A watched pot never boils." If something takes time to finish, don't watch it too closely because
it will seem like it's taking forever.
………………………………………………………………………………………………………
24. "Beggars can't be choosers." If you're asking for a favor from someone else, you have to take
whatever they give you.
………………………………………………………………………………………………………
25. "Actions speak louder than words." Just saying that you'll do something doesn't mean much.
Actually doing it is harder and more meaningful.
………………………………………………………………………………………………………
26. "If it ain't broke, don't fix it." Don't try to improve something that already works fairly well. You'll
probably end up causing new problems.
………………………………………………………………………………………………………
27. "Practice makes perfect." You have to practice a skill a lot to become good at it.
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………………………………………………………………………………………………………
28. "Too many cooks spoil the broth." When there are too many people trying to lead and give their
opinions, it's confusing and leads to bad results. Jobs and projects should have one or two strong
leaders.
………………………………………………………………………………………………………
29. "Easy come, easy go." When you get money quickly, like by winning it, it's easy to spend it or
lose it quickly as well.
………………………………………………………………………………………………………
30. "Don't bite the hand that feeds you." If someone's paying you or helping you out, you have to be
careful not to make them angry or say bad things about them.
………………………………………………………………………………………………………
31. "All good things must come to an end." You can't keep having good luck or fun forever;
eventually it will stop.
………………………………………………………………………………………………………
32. "If you can't beat 'em, join 'em." When you try to change someone's behavior and it doesn't work,
you might have to change instead. For example, if you're trying to get your classmates to focus on
studying but they want to party, maybe you should just party with them.
………………………………………………………………………………………………………
33. "One man's trash is another man's treasure." Different people have different ideas about what's
valuable.
………………………………………………………………………………………………………
34. "There's no time like the present." If you need to do something, don't wait until later. Do it now.
………………………………………………………………………………………………………
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35. "Beauty is in the eye of the beholder." Different people have different ideas about what's
beautiful.
………………………………………………………………………………………………………
36. "Necessity is the mother of invention." When you're really in need, you think of creative
solutions to your problems.
………………………………………………………………………………………………………
37. "A penny saved is a penny earned." Save your money.
………………………………………………………………………………………………………
38. "Familiarity breeds contempt." When you're around someone for too long, you get tired of them
and annoyed by them.
………………………………………………………………………………………………………
39. "You can't judge a book by its cover." Things sometimes look different than they really are. A
restaurant that looks old and small might have amazing food, for example.
………………………………………………………………………………………………………
40. "Good things come to those who wait." Be patient.
………………………………………………………………………………………………………
41. "Don't put all your eggs in one basket." Have a backup plan. Don't risk all of your money or
time in one plan.
………………………………………………………………………………………………………
42. "Two heads are better than one." When two people cooperate with each other, they come up
with better ideas.
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………………………………………………………………………………………………………
43. "The grass is always greener on the other side of the hill." People tend to want whatever they
don't have.
………………………………………………………………………………………………………
44. "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you." Don't do mean things to people.
………………………………………………………………………………………………………
45. "A chain is only as strong as its weakest link." If one member of a team doesn't perform well,
the whole team will fail.
………………………………………………………………………………………………………
46. "Honesty is the best policy." Don't lie.
………………………………………………………………………………………………………
47. "Absence makes the heart grow fonder." Sometimes it's good to be away from your partner,
because it makes you want to see each other again.
………………………………………………………………………………………………………
48. "You can lead a horse to water, but you can't make him drink." If you try to help someone,
but they don't take your advice or offers, give up. You can't force someone to accept your help.
………………………………………………………………………………………………………
49. "Don't count your chickens before they hatch." Your plans might not work out, so don't start
thinking about what you'll do after you succeed. Wait until you've already succeeded, and then you
can think about what to do next.
………………………………………………………………………………………………………
50. "If you want something done right, you have to do it yourself." Don't trust other people to do
important things for you. You have to do things yourself to control the quality of the results.
………………………………………………………………………………………………………
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The END
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