Comparing Arabic With English BOOK

Comparing Arabic
with English
A Primary Handbook
Comparing Arabic
with English
A Primary Handbook
Murtadha J. Bakir
‫األردن ـ عـمـان ـ وسط البلد ـ شـارع‬
‫الملك حسين ـ مقابل بنك اإلسكان‬
+962 6 4655877
+962 79 5525494
‫ عمان‬712577
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The Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan

The Deposit Number at The National Library
(1486/3/2021)
Bakirr. Murtadha Jawad

d A Primary Hand Book/ Murtadah
Comparing Arabic With English:
Jawad Badir- Amman : konoz Almarefa Publishers.2021
P)(
Deposit No : 2021/3/148
Descriptors:/ Languistic Research/ Comparative Analysis// Arabic
Language// English Language
1st Edition 2021

Copyright© All Rights Reserved. No part of this book may be
reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any
form or by any means without prior permission in writing of the
publisher
For Mohammad al-Jawad, Shahd, and Hussein, who being bilingual,
have forever engaged in comparing Arabic with English
V
Contents
Preface ........................................................................................................ IX
1. Some basic questions ............................................................................. 1
1.1. Language comparison .................................................................... 2
1.2. What do we compare? ................................................................... 3
1.3. How do we compare? ................................................................... 5
1.4. Why do we compare? .................................................................... 9
2. The noun phrase ..................................................................................... 14
2.1. The noun phrase ............................................................................. 15
2.2. The noun ......................................................................................... 17
2.3. Number ........................................................................................... 20
2.4. Gender ............................................................................................ 24
2.5. Case ................................................................................................ 28
2.6. Determiners .................................................................................... 32
3. The verb phrase ................................................................................... 42
3.1. The verb phrase ............................................................................ 43
3.2. Temporal reference ........................................................................ 49
3.3. Mood ............................................................................................. 60
3.4. Modality ........................................................................................ 65
4. Pronouns ................................................................................................. 70
4.1. Pronouns ........................................................................................ 71
4.2. Personal pronouns .......................................................................... 71
4.3. Possessive pronouns ....................................................................... 77
4.4. Reflexive pronouns ......................................................................... 79
4.5. Demonstrative pronouns ................................................................. 81
4.6. Relative pronouns ........................................................................... 85
5. The adjective phrase .............................................................................. 91
5.1. The adjective phrase ...................................................................... 92
5.2. The adjective ................................................................................. 102
5.3. Comparison of adjectives .............................................................. 113
6. The adverb phrase ................................................................................... 118
6.1. The adverb phrase .......................................................................... 119
6.2. The adverb ...................................................................................... 127
6.3. Comparison of adverbs ................................................................... 130
VII
Comparing Arabic with English
7. The preposition phrase ............................................................................ 133

7.1. The preposition phrase ................................................................... 134
7.2. Prepositions .................................................................................... 145
8. The sentence ........................................................................................ 152
8.1. Sentence structure ........................................................................... 153
8.2. The simple sentence ....................................................................... 153
8.3. Word order variation ....................................................................... 157
8.4. The compound sentence ................................................................. 162
8.5. The complex sentence .................................................................... 166
9. Sentence types and discourse functions ................................................. 180
9.1. Sentence types ............................................................................... 181
9.2.Questions ......................................................................................... 182
9.3. Directives ....................................................................................... 199
9.4. Exclamations .................................................................................. 205
10. Syntactic processes ............................................................................. 208
10.1. Syntactic processes ...................................................................... 209
10.2. Relative clauses ............................................................................ 209
10.3. Ellipsis .......................................................................................... 223
10.4. Passive voice ................................................................................ 230
11. Morphology ........................................................................................... 240
11.1. Morphology: an introduction ........................................................ 241
11.2. Word derivation ............................................................................ 242
VIII
Preface
This is a basic handbook about comparing English with Arabic. It offers examples of
comparison of some areas in the grammar of the two languages via a very simple procedure.
First, a description is given of how a grammatical structure, category, or process is realized
in English and Arabic. This is followed by pointing out where the two languages are similar
and where they differ. This is the essence of comparison between any two entities,
including languages. Participation in this endeavour presumes a working knowledge of
Arabic and English, and familiarity with their grammars.
Now, is the description provided here exclusive, or definitive? The answer is
“Absolutely not.” Is the list of similarities and differences comprehensive? Again, “Not at
all.” The description and analysis of a grammatical point may immensely differ depending
on the grammatical theoretical model on which the description depends. So it is not difficult
to think of other descriptions of each point that differ from the one provided in this book,
as a result of being based on different theoretical orientation.
Besides, descriptions differ in their depth and detail. A more detailed description that
explores the underlying structures of the compared languages will certainly reveal new
aspects of similarity and difference. What is seen as a point of difference in one account
may hide some deeper similarity, if looked at from a different point of view. The opposite
is also true. What may look as a point of similarity may prove false under deeper and more
detailed description.
The purpose of the comparison may also affect the result of the comparison depending
on what we want to do with the comparison. Setting a particular purpose for the comparison
will necessarily focus on whatever is relevant to that purpose, and probably neglect what
is not so relevant. Comparison between languages enters into so many activities and
pursuits, and is utilized in numerous enterprises, from second or foreign language learning
and translation to the study of the history of human culture and language origin. Hence, the
expected variation in the results of the attempted comparison.
In the present work, it was found advisable to take a purely descriptive approach. The
main concern is to juxtapose the description of a grammatical point in the two languages
and to list what might be points of similarity and difference. No deliberate attempt is made
IX
to mention what effect a specific point of difference or similarity will have in language
learning or translation, for example. This, I feel, would keep us focused on the act of
comparison itself with no bias or influence from without.
In this respect, I have chosen to follow the descriptive model expounded by Randolph
Quirk and his collaborators (Quirk et al 1972). In their study of the grammar of English,
they tried hard to stick to the description of the points and to keep away from the discussion
of the different theoretical proposals and analyses made about those points. This model has
been followed in the description of both English and Arabic so as to arrive at comparable
descriptions, an issue that will be discussed in Chapter 1.
But is the comparison of the grammar of two languages the only linguistic aspect that
can be put to comparison? Again, the answer is “Certainly not.” Language is such a life-
enveloping phenomenon that there are infinite angles from which you could look at it, and
hence as many comparisons between languages in terms of those varying views and areas
of interest. Comparing the internal system of languages-, i.e. grammar- concerns just one
of the numerous aspects, in which we would like to see where our two languages differ and
are similar.
I have chosen to investigate those similarities and differences that may be found in
particular areas in the syntax of of English and Arabic. The treated topics represent what
traditionally make the core of syntactic description. After an introductory chapter, there are
nine chapters that deal with the following: the noun phrase, the verb phrase, the pronouns,
the adjective phrase, the adverb phrase, the preposition phrase, the sentence, its structure,
and kinds: simple, compound and complex, the discourse functions of the sentence:
statements, questions, directives, and exclamations, and syntactic processes. A comparison
of how words, the smallest free syntactic units, are derived was felt to be a useful
supplement. This is the subject matter of Chapter 11, which deals with derivational
morphology, the derivation of the various lexical categories in the two languages via
different derivational methoods:affixation, compounding ,etc.
As a primary presentation, limitations have to be imposed on the extent and depth of
the treatments of these topics in the book. Therefore, several structures and processes have
been left out of the discussion. This should not to be taken as a sign of their insignificance.
Rather, it is dictated by the nature and limits of the work at hand.
X
This book is intended to be used as a textbook for a first course in the comparison
between English and Arabic. The classroom discussions need not be confined to issues
discussed in the book. As was said above, the descriptive accounts of the categories,
structures, or processes are not definitive or comprehensive. Nor are the deduced points of
similarity and difference between the two languages. Students should be encouraged to
look deeper into the structures of English and Arabic to produce more detailed descriptions,
so as to make their own comparisons and find more points of similarity and difference
between the two languages than those offered in the book; to see finer and more subtle
points of similarity underlying the broad differences, or finer differences where the two
languages look similar. For this purpose, a number of exercises have been provided at the
end of each chapter. Again, these should only be taken as guidelines for further work.
Finally, the present work represents the outcome of my experience in dealing with the
comparison between English and Arabic both in my research work and in the classroom. It
remains an area of high interest to me.
Consulted sources:
In writing the book, numerous sources were consulted. These are books that deal with the
grammatical description of Arabic, and that of English, and with language comparison.
My indebtedness to them cannot be missed. Among them, those in the following list have
contributed substantially to this work, in providing background information, description
and analysis, a contribution that is highly appreciated. Two of them, (Quirk, et al (1972)
and Cantarino (1975) have also been the source of many of the English and Arabic
examples that are found in this book. Since both works have based their descriptive
accounts on language corpora, borrowing from them was felt to give more authenticity to
the examples in this book.
Cantarino, V. (1975). Syntax of Modern Arabic Prose. Bloomington: Indiana Univ. Press.
Ferguson, Charles. 1959. Diglossia, Word 15, pp 325-340.
Fisiak J. (1990). “On the present status of some metatheoretical and theoretical issues in
contrastive linguistics.” In Fisiak, J. (ed.) (1990). Further Insights into Contrastive
Analysis. Amsterdam: Benjamins, 3-22.
Hassan, A. (1987). Al-naħw Al-waafii. (3rd Ed.) Cairo: Daar Al-Ma’aarif.
XI
Huddleston, R. and Pullum, G. (2002). The Cambridge Grammar of the English Language.
Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
------- (2005). A Student’s Introduction to English Grammar. Cambridge: Cambridge
University Press.
Ibn Hisham, (1964). Mughni al-Labeeb ‘an Kutub al-a‘aareeb. Cairo: Al-Maktaba al-
Tijariyya.
James, C. (1980). Contrastive Analysis. London: Longman.
Katamba, F. (1993). Morphology. New York: St. Martin's Press.
Quirk, R. and Greenbaum, S. (1973). A University Grammar of English. London: Longman.
Quirk, R., Greenbaum, S., Leech. G., and Svartvik, J. (1972). A Grammar of Contemporary
English. London: Longman.
Sibawayh, Abu Bishr Othman. 1317 AH. Al Kitab. Cairo: Boulaq,
Wright, W. (1955). A Grammar of the Arabic Language (3rd ed.). Cambridge: CUP.
XII
Chapter One
Some Basic Questions
1.1. Language comparison

1.2. What do we compare?
1.3. How do we compare?
1.4. Why do we compare?
1
1.1. Language comparison
Have you ever compared between languages? The answer is most certainly, ‘Yes.’ Why?
Because this is something that bilingual people (like you) are always engaged in. Anyone
who knows two languages is bound to ask how a certain expression or construction in one
language is going to be like in the other. He/she may discover that what is said in one
language in this way is said in a differeent way in the other, or be even pleasantly surprised
at seeing that what is said in one language one way is said in exactly the same way in the
other.
General conversations are full of observations about how difficult Arabic is, or how
beautiful French is. Chinese is said to be the most difficult language to learn because of the
different way it is written. Different from what? From the way we write ours. Even English
is problematic! It is also written differently – i.e. from left to right- thought not as difficult
as Chinese is, because in English, like in Arabic, we use letters, not so strange symbols,
each standing for a whole word. We make jokes about how the French speakers would say
‘zis’ instead of ‘this’ and about Arabic speakers saying ‘bray’ instead of ‘pray’. Why?
Because French doesn't have a th sound and Arabic doesn’t have a p sound. You realize
that there are thousands of such jokes, all about the differences between languages.
These questions, discoveries, surprises, and jokes all reflect our awareness of the
differences and similarities between the various human languages and are the result of
comparisons that we make one way or another. It is a result of comparison that we are able
to say that German has the sound /x/ and English doesn’t; or that in English we say door
bell but in Arabic we say ‫ جرس الباب‬, which literally translates to ‘bell door’; or that in
German we have three definite articles : die, das and der, whereas in both Arabic and
English we have one: al, and the respectively. It is the result of some sort of comparison
that one may come to the conclusion (though invalid) that language x is most difficult, or
easy, or beautiful, etc…. . Without comparing how you speak with how others do, you
simply can’t make jokes about the funny way that they speak. Nor would you be able to
brag about how superior your language is to X’s or Y’s language. All presuppose
comparison. It appears that we are engaged in language comparison more often than we
think.
2
However, nothing has been said about the kind of comparison that lies behind such
statements. Language comparison is handled by different people and practiced in different
contexts. The result is that we have statements of varying degrees of accuracy, depth, and
sophistication. Not all comparisons yield accurate or correct results. Folk comparisons
conducted by the layman produce folk statements and systematic ones produce objective
judgements and statements. Thus, we need first to distinguish between the two. What we
will be concerned with in this book is the systematic, objective -i.e. scientific- type of
language comparison from which we hope to deduce objective judgements about the
similarities and differences between human languages. This is a field of research that
enjoys a long history and has played a major role within the general field of linguistics, the
study of human language.
In this chapter, we will attempt to answer three fundumental questions that concern
language comparison:
a. What do we compare,
b. How do we compare, and
c. Why do we compare between languages?
1.2.What do we compare?
Obviously, when we set out to compare between languages, we won’t attempt to compare
between the whole systems of the two. This is near to impossible since the areas that should
be covered would be too vast for any accurate coverage to be attempted. What is usually
done instead, is to choose to compare languages in a particular area of their structure,
function, semantics, pragmatics, use, or even, their social status , literary expression, etc….
This is a more feasible endeavour.
Even when our concern is their grammatical structure, we most probably confine
ourselves to a comparison of one of the grammatical systems, or even a particular
subsystem. Thus we find studies that are concerned with the sound system, comparing the
consonants of language A and language B, their stress patterns, their vowels, their syllabic
structures, or their phonotactics, etc… We may also find studies dealing mainly with
syntactic structure. They set out to compare such things as word order, adjectives, position
of adverbs, conditional clauses, personal pronouns, reflexive verbs, transitivity, expressing
3
past actions, syntactic processes like verb agreement with subject or object, or any other
topic of interest in the syntax of two languages.
Or we find researchers whose main concern is to compare morphological features and
structures between different languages. They compare verb inflections, gender or number
in nouns, verbs and adjectives, or word structure in language A and language B. They could
also look into semantic lexical relations such as antonymy or kinship, or scope relations in
the two languages. Yet others may choose to see how language A and language B are used,
i.e. how they express requests or other performative functions, and compare between them
to see where they differ and where they are similar.
It is important to remember that what we attempt to compare are systems or portions of
systems in the big network of systems which we call language. We also need to remember
that within a language we find variation. Different groups of people within a language
community speak differently – i.e. they use different systems. We call these language
varieties dialects, e.g. American English, Yemeni Arabic, Parisian French, Australian
English, Iberian Spanish, Swiss German, Morrocan Arabic, British English, Canadian
French, Mainland Chinese, etc. Each of these dialects represents a network of systems that
differ to some extent from the systems found in other dialects of the same language. In
Egyptian Arabic there is no sound /ʤ/, /ʧ/, or /ð/, but in Iraqi Arabic we find all these
sounds. In British English you may say: “You haven’t a pen” or “Have you a minute?”
But not in American English. In this dialect of English people say “You don’t have a pen”
and “Do you have a minute?”
This means that the result of a comparison between one language and another will
crucially depend on which varieties of these languages we intend to compare. If we were
to compare American English consonants with those of Egyptian Arabic, we would find
that the two systems differ in that AE has the above three sounds while EA doesn’t. This
is a point of difference. But if we were to conduct the same comparison between AE and
Iraqi Arabic, the result will be that these three sounds constitute a point of similarity. Wider
readership are present in both systems. It is therefore mandatory to decide which forms –
varieties of the languages, and hence systems, we want to compare.
The varieties of English and Arabic that are going to be described and compared in the
following chapters are Standards British English and Standard Arabic. Standard Br E is the
4
language of the educated people in Britain and is used for a wide range of formal functions.
It is the variety used in education, government, administration, church, and the media. It
carries more prestige than any of the local varieties in the country, and is therefore, a
desirable target to the learners of English as a foreign language. In the diglossic situation
of Arabic, where the Arabic-spaking communities have two varieties of the language: a
low regional variety used for everyday life communication that is acquired at home as a
mother tongue, and a high variety that is associated with religion, literature and other
similar functions. Standard Arabic is the high prestigious variety in the Arabic Speaking
world. Though it is not the native language of any Arab community, and is learned at school
it is the language of the religious texts, and is used in all the high functions such as
literature, religion, government and media, and generally in all formal contexts. It is a
variety that crosses the regional borders. Besides being well codified, these two varieties
were chosen for their largly non-local characteristics and their widespread use.
1.3. How do we compare

Like any comparison between any two things, language comparison proceeds in three
steps. The first of these is to provide a description of the area or point chosen for
comparison in the first of the two languages. A person who wants to compare, say, between
relative clauses in British English (BrE) and Standard Arabic (SA) needs first to give an
account of these elements in BrE: their distinctive forms, their position and syntactic
functions, and the processes they undergo, ellipsis, etc.
The second step in comparison is to give a similar account – description, of the chosen
area or topic in the second language. In the present case, an account needs to be given of
relative clauses in SA dealing with the same aspects and covering the same areas that were
discussed the first language. This means that the description should cover their forms, their
syntactic functions, position, movement, etc.
The third step is that of the juxtapositioning of the two descriptions - i.e. putting them
against each other, in order to find where they are similar and where they differ.
The comparison will reveal a number of similarities. For example, as far as their function
is concerned, these clauses function as clausal modifiers in the nouns phrase. As for their
5
position, the comparison will reveal that they occupy a final position in the noun phraseIn
both languages they come after the head noun. Structurally, they begin with relative
pronouns or markers, which are absent in certain contexts. And in both languages, the head
noun, or the antecedent, may be absent and the relative clause fucntions as a noun phrase.
The comparison will reveal that the relative pronouns/markers in trelaitve clauses in
English have distinct forms for human and non-human antecedents – i.e. who and whom
vs. which, while their Arabic counterparts don’t. The same element is used with both,
human and non-human antecedents. On the other hand, the Arabic relative markers show
distinction in their form in the categories of number and gender, and sometimes, case ‫الذي‬
vs. ‫ اللذان‬vs. ‫ الذي ; الذين‬vs. ‫ ; التي‬and ‫ اللذان‬and ‫ اللتان‬vs. ‫ اللذين‬and ‫ اللتين‬in agreement with
the antecedent. English rlative pronouns do not exhibit such distinctions except in the who
vs. whom contrast which represents a case distinction, but not in agreement with the
antecedent. Rather, it marks the case of the relativized noun phrase inside the relative
clause, as the subject or the object. The comparison will also reveal that in Arabic, the
presence of the relative marker is linked to the definiteness of the head noun, antecedent.
In english this is a choice in restrictive relative clauses, and only when the relaltivized
element is noot the subject. And so on..……
We need not forget a very important point in this connection. This concerns the decision
we make about the comparability of the items in the two languages. How do we decide that
point X in language A is equivalent to point Y in language B in order to describe and
compare them? This does not appear to be a problematic issue. As a matter of fact, it is not
so most of the time. But, sometimes, it is rather difficult to answer. Two types of
equivalence need to be discerned: formal equivalence and functional equivalence.
The phoneme /t/ in /BrE and the phoneme /t/ in SA are formally equivalent. They enjoy
the same status in the phonemic inventory of the two languages. If you replace /t/ in English
or Arabic with another sound like /s/ in a word, it will become a different word with a
different meaning. In these two languages /t/ is a distinctive sound, a phoneme, that
contrasts with others. This makes them comparable in the sense that we may find out
aspects of similarity and aspects of difference between them: they both contrast with their
voiced counterparts – i.e. /d/; they can both start syllables and end syllables; the first is
aspirated if it is syllable-initial while the second is not ,etc.
6
We may also find formal equivalence between the verb construction called in English
‘present perfect’ and an identical construction that German exhibits, as is seen in the
following sentences.
English: I have drunk a glass of water
German: Ich habe eine glasse vasser gedrunken.
In both languages the construction consists of verb ‘have’ and the past participle form
of the lexical verb. This correspondence may allow us to compare between these
constructions and see where they differ and where they are similar. Beside their obvious
similarity, they differ, for example, in their contiguity. In English the two constituents of
the construction are not separated by other material except other auxiliaries- i.e. the
progressive and passive ‘be’. In German, the second constituent –i.e. the past participle-
occupies a clause-final position. They may also differ in the functions they realize. One
may be used to refer to certain time and aspect relations which its counterpart in the other
language may not. A situation like this would make a good warning signal against
depending solely on formal equivalence. It is not enough. In addition, we need to look for
functional equivalence.
This is obviously a higher level of equivalence than the formal equivalence that was
mentioned above. Here we do not seek similarities, or better, correspondence, in the form
of specific constructions in the two languages in order to make the decision that they are
comparable. Rather, we look for correspondence in the grammatical function(s) that each
realizes in its language. Languages use different structural methods and devices to signal
specific functions. And the fact that two languages use different forms to signal the same
function should not prevent us from comparing these two dissimilar forms.
A good example is the formation of yes/no questions in your dialect of Arabic and BrE.
In BrE, this type of question is signalled by the exchange of positions between the subject
and the first auxiliary, what has been termed technically as ‘subject-aux inversion’. Now if
you look at your dialect of Arabic, you will not find any construction that formally
corresponds to this one. Does this mean that Iraqi Arabic does not have yes/no questions?
The answer is obviously ‘No.’ It does, but it uses another device to signal this type of
questions. It uses a change in the intonational pattern. Instead of the usual falling intonation
used in statements, Iraqi Arabic yes/no questions are pronounced with rising intonation.
7
As far as the word order is concerned, there is no difference between statements and yes/no
questions in this variety of Arabic .
Another important issue that needs to be attended to is that of the model used in the
description of the two languages compared. Language descriptions vary. A language could
be described in variant ways by using different descriptive models and approaches. If you
look at the grammar books of English you will find that the descriptions they make differ
from one another. Why? Because the model of analysis that is followed differs, and this
inevitably results in a different description. This is why people who attempt to describe the
grammar of a language do this by adopting one and the same approach. They try to keep
their theoretical assumptions uniform so as to get a consistent analysis.
In language comparison, the adherence to one theoretical model in the description of
the compared languges is necessary. We cannot compare two languages, each described in
terms of a different approach or model of description since there will be no unified criteria
for the comparison. Only when we have provided a unified description to the two languages
we can be certain that the comparison will be valid and reliable.
The comparison of sentence structure in BrE and SA make a good example to illustrate
this point. We can only conduct the comparison if the structure of the sentence in both
languages is described in terms of unified analytical units and procedures, say structural
categories like, Noun Phrase, Verb Phrase, Adjective Phrase, etc… In both languages, the
sentence will be described as consisting of units that are structurally distinguishable, e.g. a
noun phrase, a verb phrase, etc.. each differing from the others in syntactic structure, and
position and behaviour in the sentence. If sentences in both English and Arabic are
described in these terms, the resulting structures in the two languages will be comparable
since have been arrived at by using the same criteria.
But imagine the situation where you describe the structure of the sentence in English in
the above terms and that of Arabic in terms of functional units like ‘theme’ and ‘rheme’,
within the framework of Functional Grammar. The description of the sentence in the first
language is made according to a different model from that on which the description of the
other is based. Therefore, they cannot be compared. Comparing between them would be
similar to trying to compare the width of two tables measured in centimeters for one of the
tables, and in inches, for the other. In order to be able to say which one of the tables is
8
bigger, we have to have the measurements of both widths either in centimeters or inches.
As was mentioned in the preface, the model that is going to be followed in the description
of English and Arabic is that of Quirk et.al. (1972). This will ensure that the descriptions
of the two languages are comparable.
1.4. Why do we compare?
There are many reasons why people conduct comparisons between languages. For one,
language comparisons are valuable in finding genealogical relations between languages.
The relationship between any two or more languages is established on the basis of
systematic correspondence between these languages. This is arrived at through comparing
these languages with each other to see where they differ and where they are similar. The
differences indicate the changes that some of these languages have undergone, and when
this is taken into account, the ancestor- parent- language could be reconstructed. By
observing the systematic correspondences between languages linguists will be able to draw
trees representing language families- i.e. groups of related languages that have come into
existence by gradual development from the same ancestor language, to see how each of
these languages has developed into its present form, the laws of language change, and the
reasons and factors lying behind language change. During the nineteenth century the main
trend in linguistic research was the historical investigation of languages. This may give you
an idea of the important place comparison had occupied in this research. Such language
comparisons were even given a name: comparative philology.
Language comparison is also conducted in the search for typological generalizations.
Linguists compare between languages to find what types of languages exist, and what
structural patterns human languages have. Languages pattern differently in almost every
aspect of their structure. Comparison is what helps in deciding what these are. It is through
comparison, for example, that we may make the listing of word order types in human
languages and how frequent each of these orders is in relation to the others; or the position
of the object in relation to the verb, and what orders between other elements may be
inferred from that- e.g. ‘adjective – noun’, and ‘preposition – object’. Thus, generalizations
like: languages are either of this or that pattern in a certain aspect of their structure, and
predictions like: if a language has pattern X in a certain aspect of structure then it will have
9
pattern P in a certain other aspect of its structure cannot be arrived at without language
comparison.
More abstract statements about the structure of human language are also made, or
supported by comparative work. Within the theoretical research on language structure
many studies use comparisons between languages to draw conclusions about the various
structural aspects of language. These could range from how sentences are built and how
constituents are organized within an element, to the validity of a particular analysis, or the
necessity, or otherwise, of a more general methodological hypothesis. In any such study
comparison is used to confirm, support or refute a theoretical claim posited by some
linguist about language on the basis of observation of one particular language. Within the
school of Generative Grammar we find numerous studies that compare between different
languages regarding a specific syntactic construction or process, or investigate the range
of variation along a certain parameter of difference, or the validity of an auxiliary theoretic
hypothesis. Such investigation was called comparative syntax.
However, beside these theoretical pursuits, language comparison is utilized in many
practical activities. It is very useful in the activity of translation, for example. A comparison
between English and Arabic sentences and their elements will tell us what things are similar
and what things are different between the two languages. A translator who is aware of these
similarities and differences will certainly avoid potential mistakes in his/her translation of
a text from one of these languages into the other. A simple example may serve to illustrate
the point.
The comparison between BrE and SA relative clauses will reveal, amongst many other
things, that we can relativize a noun phrase which functions as an object of preposition in
both languages. However, in SA a pronoun must remain in the original place of the noun
phrase that is coreferent with the head noun, while in BE the original place of this noun
phrase will remain vacant.
‫تلك هي الفتاة اليت حتدثت معها أمس‬
That is the girl whom I talked to ø
If the translator is not aware of this fact, which only a comparison of English and Arabic
will make available, he may translate the above Arabic sentence into the ill-formed English
* That is the girl whom I talked to her.
10
This shows us very clearly how essential language comparison is to translation. Training
programs in translation make it obligatory that trainees take courses in language
comparison, like the one you are taking now, in order to raise the degree of their awareness
of the similarities, and more importantly the differences, between the languages they are
being trained to translate from and into.
One activity that language comparison is closely associated with is second language
teaching and learning. This has triggered a very active line of research devoted to the
comparison between the native language of the learners and the second language they are
learning. The purpose of the comparison is to find areas of differences and similarity
between the two because these are assumed to be relevant to various aspects of L2 teaching
such as the designing of the syllabus, the preparation of the teaching material, the points of
emphasis in the teaching program, etc. Let us discuss briefly the nature of this association
between the two activities.
The relationship stems from assumptions in learning theory in psychology. Within the
behaviourist school of psychology language is a specific type of behaviour, and as such, it
is learned, like other kinds of behaviours, as a set of habits. Now in learning any new set
of habits a learner automatically transfers old learning experience into any new situation
that is similar. This is what was believed to happen in learning a second language. The
learner will transfer elements from his L1 to L2. This transfer from L1 is not going to be
harmful in areas where the two languages happen to be similar or identical, but it will in
those points where they differ. In the first case transfer is going to be positive, but in the
latter transfer will be negative, usually called interference.
An Arabic-speaking learner of English will transfer the features of the sound /b/ from
Arabic when he faces the English /b/ in the first stages of his learning of this language.
This is not going to cause any problem. The two languages are similar here. In learning
English preposition phrases he uses the order of the preposition and its object in Arabic.
And because the order of these two elements in English is the same as in Arabic, the transfer
is positive. There is no problem. But look at what happens as a result of transferring the
order of the noun and its modifiers in Arabic into English by the same speaker. He would
be saying ‫‘ كتاب غالي‬book expensive’ , instead of the correct ‘expensive book’ because that
is the order of these two elements in his L1. Here, we have a case of negative transfer .
11
If transfer from L1 into L2 is psychologically inevitable then we could generalize that

it is only the areas where L1 and L2 differ that are going to be difficult to the learners.
Elements in L2, which also exist in L1, are not going to constitute any difficulty in learning
since the transfer from L1 is going to be positive. No one expects Arabic-speaking learners
of English to have any problem in learning the sounds /s/ or /d/ or / g/. The difficulty starts
with the sound /p/ and sometimes /v/. Why? Because these do not exist in their native
language. What they transfer are the features of the nearest sounds in L1 to these : the /b/
and /f/ respectively.
We could take this one step further and propose that if the previous generalization is
true then we can predict where the learning difficulties - and consequently the areas where
the learners will commit errors – lie. They are going to be in those areas where the two
languages differ. It would be fairly straightforward to know where these areas of difference
are by conducting a comparison between L1 and L2 to find out where they differ and where
they do not. This will constitute a great help for L2 teaching in more than one aspect: the
design of the syllabus – inclusion or exclusion of teaching topics- the preparation of
teaching materials – focusing on particular points, etc. But remember that all this depends
on the hypothesis that difficulty in learning L2 stems from the difference between L1 and
L2, and that all errors come from L1 interference. Such a hypothesis gained wide
acceptance amongst people working in the field of L2 learning for some time during and
after World War II, and was behind an enormous amount of comparative studies (termed
contrastive analysis) all conducted with the expressed aim of helping to build L2 teaching
programs and syllabi.
What if it turned out that some of the difficulties that L2 learners meet – and
consequently the errors they commit do not result from difference between L1 and L2, but
are rather caused by other factors? Our hypothesis is going to be weakened. This is exactly
what was discovered. More research in L2 learning has shown that many errors are
common to all L2 learners regardless of what their native languages are; a fact which
indicates that not all errors could be attributed to L1 interference. This hypothesis cannot
be maintained. Only some of the learners’ errors can be attributed to interference from L1
– i.e. presumably resulting from the difference between L1 and L2. This is a weaker, but
more accurate, version of the contrastive hypothesis.
12
But no matter which of the two versions we choose to believe in, we cannot disregard
the strong role that L1 plays in L2 learning, particularly in the first stages. There are some
obvious manifestations of this role: It is, for example, responsible for the foreign accents
of L2 speakers; and most of the jokes that we tell about Arabs speaking English evolve
round the interference of Arabic in their speech. It would be foolish to ignore such influence
in the preparation of our teaching materials, or points of emphasis in the syllabus
organization and implementation in any L2 teaching program.
In its practical applications, language comparison is not restricted to translation and L2
teaching. It enters into a wide range of domains. It is essential in any work on bilingual
dictionaries. Any program in machine translation presupposes a built-in comparison
between the two languages, SL and TL, in syntax and vocabulary. It is sometimes necessary
as a background for comparative literature studies, for the preparation of dialect atlases,
and even for such endeavours as public relation campaigns across national, and hence,
linguistic boundaries.
From the above, we hope that it now clear that language comparison is relevant to the
diverse aims of research in language, and plays a significant role in the innumerable
language-related activities.
Exercise
We mentioned a number of areas and activities where language comparison plays a

crucial role. Can you think of other such areas and activities where such a comparison
is necessary or of use?
13
13
Chapter Two
The Noun Phrase
2.1. The noun phrase

2.1.1. The noun phrase in English
2.1.2. The noun phrase in Arabic
2.1.3. Comparing the noun phrase in English and Arabic
2.2. The noun
2.2.1. The noun in English
2.2.2. The noun in Arabic
2.3. Number
2.3.1.Number in English nouns
2.3.2. Number in Arabic nouns
2.3.3. Comparing number in English and Arabic
2.4. Gender
2.4.1. Gender in English nouns
2.4.2. Gender in Arabic nouns
2.4.3. Comparing gender in English and Arabic
2.5. Case
2.5.1. Case in English nouns
2.5.2. Case in Arabic nouns
2.5.3. Comparing case in English and Arabic
2.6. Determiners
2.6.1. Determiners in English
2.6.2. Determiners in Arabic
2.6.3. Comparing the determiner systems in English and Arabic
2.6.4. Articles
2.6.4.1. Articles in English
2.6.4.2. Articles in Arabic
2.6.4.3. Comparing English and Arabic articles
14
2.1. The noun phrase
Phrases are units that consist of one or more words and that function as constituents of
clauses or other phrases. Like all other phrases, the noun phrase is a unit that is defined in
terms of its central or essential element, in this case the noun. Structurally, the noun phrase
may function, in its role as a clause constituent, as a subject, direct object, indirect object,
subject and object complement, or adverbial. When rank-shifted into a constituent of
another phrase, it may function as a preposition complement, a noun determiner,
appositive, and a noun modifier. This spectrum of functions is shared by NP’s in English
and Arabic. The discussion in this chapter will be focused on those constituents that every
noun phrase must contain: the noun, and the determiner. The noun phrase modifiers: the
adjective phrase, the preposition phrase and the relative clause will be dealt with in
subsequent chapters.
The whole noun phrase may be replaced by a single pronoun. This why we do not want
to consider the pronoun as a constituent of the noun phrase: rather, it makes the whole
phrase.
2.1.1. The noun phrase in English
A noun phrase in English may be exemplified in the underlined groups of words below.
Music is soothing.
They appointed John’s wife a new manager.
This morning, we got a very difficult question, which nobody could answer.
The professor gave the four groups the same set of exercises.
That is my old linguistics professor.
That little porcelain vase from China is priceless.
Dr. Williams, the psychology professor, won a prize.
The structure of the noun phrase in English may thus be represented as:
Det – Pre-Mod – Head – Post-Mod
1. Determiners: These are of three types: pre-determiners (quantifiers), central

determiners (articles, possessive noun phrases and pronouns, demonstratives, and
post-determiners (numerals).
15
2. Pre-modifiers: adjective or noun phrases.

3. Head: a noun, or occasionally an adjective.
4. Post-modifiers: complex adjectives, preposition phrases, or relative clauses.
The noun phrase in English realizes several syntactic functions. The above sentences
exemplify them. As an immediate constituent of the clause, it functions as the subject,
music; direct object, John’s wife; indirect object, the four groups; subject complement, my
old linguistics professor; object complement, a new manager and adverbial this morning.
At the phrase level, the noun phrase may function as a determiner, John’s; a noun modifier,
porcelain; and an appositive, the psychology professor in the noun phrase; and a
preposition phrase complement, China.
2.1.2. The noun phrase in Arabic
Arabic noun phrases may consist minimally of the head noun or could extend to include
any or all the other constituents. They may be exemplified as follows.
. ‫رئيس المجلس‬
َ ‫حسبناه‬ .‫هذا صديقي الذي كنت أرجوه لدهري‬ .‫محمد قادم‬
‫وبأن أكون ضحى وزيرا‬ . ‫ستناقش أرب َع قضايا معقدة عن الحرب في القم ِة القادم ِة‬
‫ في كل مكان‬،‫الضائع‬
ِ ٍ ‫ الصبي‬،ٍ‫ بحثنا عن زيد‬.‫أهديت بنتَ أخي خاتما‬ .‫هذا الخات ٌم الذهب ثمين‬
The structure of the noun phrase in Arabic may be represented as:
Det1 – Head – Det2 - Mod
1. Determiners: These are of two types: pre-determiners (quantifiers demonstratives);

determiners (articles, numerals, possessive NP’s and pronouns)
2. Head: a noun, or an adjective.
3. Determiners: The third slot in the formula is reserved for some determiners that come
after, and not before, the head noun. These are the indefinite suffix /-n/, the clitic
objective pronouns or the genitive noun phrases.
4. Modifiers: noun phrases, adjective phrases, preposition phrases, or relative clauses.
Similar to what we saw in English, the noun phrase in Arabic realizes several syntactic
functions, exemplified in the above sentences. As an immediate constituent of the clause,
it functions as the subject, ‫ ; محم ٌد‬direct object, ‫ ; أرب َع قضايا معقدة عن الحرب‬indirect object,
16
‫ ;بنتَ أخي‬subject complement, ‫ ;صديقي الذي كنت أرجوه لدهري‬object complement, ‫رئيس‬
َ ‫;المجلس‬
and adverbial, ‫ضحى‬. At the phrase level, the noun phrase may function as a determiner,
‫ ;أخي‬a noun modifier, ‫ ;الذهب‬and an appositive, ‫الضائع‬
ِ ٍ ‫ الصبي‬in the noun phrase; and a
preposition phrase complement, ‫القم ِة القادم ِة‬.
2.1.3. Comparing the noun phrase in English and Arabic
The main points of similarity and difference between the noun phrase in English and the
noun phrase in Arabic may be summarized in the following.
1. First, there does not seem to be any difference in the range of the syntactic functions
that NP’s realize in the two languages. In both languages, they may assume the same
functions: subjects, direct and indirect objects, subject and object complements,
adverbials, noun modifiers, appositives, and preposition phrase complements.
2. They have the same range of constituents: determiners, modifiers and heads.
3. Differences can be observed in the order of the constituents. In English, determiners
occupy an initial place in the noun phrase. In Arabic, there seem to be two positions that
determiners occupy: before and after the head. After the head, these determiners enter
into a construct state relation with the head noun. The system of determiners in the two
languages will be discussed in more detail below.
4. All noun phrase modifiers in Arabic occupy a post-head position, whereas their
English counterparts occupy both, pre-head and post-head positions. Simple adjective
phrases (one-word or compound adjectives) and noun phrases occur before the head
noun. PP’s, adjective phrases and relative clauses come after the head noun.
In the sections below, we will give a description of the main constituents of the noun
phrases in English and Arabic, i.e. the noun. The discussion will include the grammatical
categories of number, gender and case. We will also deal with another constituent of the
noun phrase; this is the closed system of determiners. Other constituents of the noun phrase,
which belong to open systems, e.g. adjective phrases, preposition phrases, or relative
clauses, will be dealt with separately in later chapters.
2.2. The noun
17
The noun is defined in terms of three criteria: Semantic criteria: nouns are words that refer
to substances, e.g. things, persons, places; morphological: they are formed in certain ways
and according to specific patterns, i.e. they are formally distinguishable; and syntactic: they
occupy specific positions within the clause and the noun phrase. In English, they are
formed by adding certain suffixes, and they are inflected with inflections like plurality and
the genitive case. In Arabic, they are formed according to a number of specific morpho-
syntactic patterns, and are inflected for plurality, gender, and case in certain ways.
Nouns are usually subdivided into classes. First amongst these is the distinction between
proper and common nouns. Proper nouns are names of specific things, places, persons,
etc.., whereas common nouns make reference to members of categories of entities.
Common nouns, in turn, are divided into count and mass (non-count) nouns, on the one
hand, and into concrete and abstract nouns on the other. This sub-classification is usually
associated with determiner or article selection, and with the category of number.
2.2.1. The noun in English
In English, we may divide nouns into proper and common nouns. The first do not show
number distinction and therefore, they do not usually take an article. If they are made plural,
or co-occur with an article, then they are no longer proper; they are taken to be common
nouns, e.g. Peter, Joan, and Euphrates. However, notice also that there are proper names
in which the definite article makes an inseparable element like The Sudan, The Hilton, etc.
Common nouns are either countable or uncountable. Examples of the first are book,
idea, boy, etc. The latter usually refer to indivisible masses like sugar, water, honey, and
information. Count nouns are distinguishable in that they may be found in the singular or
plural number, and consequently, they may co-occur with the indefinite article, when
singular, e.g. book > books > a book. On the other hand, common nouns are divided into
concrete and abstract nouns. Each class subsumes the earlier distinction. So, we have
concrete countable and uncountable nouns, e.g. table and dirt; and abstract countable and
uncountable nouns like sadness and concept.
2.2.2. The noun in Arabic
18
In Arabic the same distinction is observed between nouns: proper nouns ‫ إسم العلم‬and
common nouns ‫إسم الجنس‬. Like its English counterpart, the proper noun in Arabic does not
show number distinction. There is no singular plural contrast. A note must be added here
concerning the traditional treatment of these nouns. The Arab grammarians emphasized
the fact that, like all other nouns, proper nouns, may show number contrast. However, it
seems that pluralizing a proper noun in Arabic changes it immediately into a common noun,
e.g. ‫ زيدان‬، ‫ محمدون‬. The presence of a definite article with proper nouns is quite common,
but as was the case with the English proper nouns, this article is no longer a determiner of
reference. Rather, it is part of the name, e.g. ‫ الحسين‬، ‫ النيل‬، ‫ العراق‬.
Arabic common nouns are sub-classified into concrete nouns, e.g. ‫ شجرة‬،‫ كأس‬, and
abstract nouns, e.g. ‫ أمل‬،‫( شجاعة‬called by Arab grammarians ‫ذات‬/‫ إسم عين‬and ‫إسم معنى‬
respectively). As for countability and non-countability, it seems that all Arabic common
nouns are countable in the sense that they show number contrast. Both nouns referring to
units and those that refer to indivisible masses seem to show this contrast. Thus, we
distinguish between ‫ قلم‬and ‫أقالم‬, and between ‫ ماء‬and ‫مياه‬.There are very few words which
do not show this number contrast, e.g. ‫ حليب‬.
It is appropriate in the discussion of nouns in Arabic to draw attention to the fact that
adjectives, according to traditional studies of Arabic grammar are classified as nouns. This
was probably because the adjective in Arabic shares the same inflections with the noun. It
is also because the adjective frequently replaces the head noun that it modifies in the noun
phrase and acts as the head of this phrase. In other words, these adjectives are
substantivized. This is the case of many adjectives which have developed a direct reference
to entities and have become referring expressions, e.g. ،‫ محامي‬،‫ ممرض‬،‫ عامل‬،‫ معلم‬،‫ مؤمن‬،‫كافر‬
..... ‫ الجئ‬،‫ طالب‬،‫ خطيب‬More about this phenomenon will be said in the discussion of
adjectives in Chapter Five.
Not much can be said about differences between English and Arabic nouns as far as the
above classification is concerned, except for the fact that mass nouns are generally
countable, i.e. show number distinction in Arabic. English mass nouns are uncountable
except in very specific contexts. As for the claim that proper nouns in Arabic show number
distinction, we may repeat what was said above that by becoming plural they lose their
unique reference since they have become common nouns. Therefore, we do not see any
19
real difference between English and Arabic proper nouns in this feature. The main point of
difference is the nominalization, or ‘substantivization’ of many participles and adjectives
in Arabic, which is clearly realized in their use as heads of noun phrases. In English, the
use of adjectives as nouns is not so frequent.
2.3. Number
The category of number is said to be an inherent category of the noun. A noun may refer
to a single entity or to more than one member of that entity. However, languages differ in
how they treat this property and exhibit different number systems. This is the case in
English and Arabic.
2.3.1. Number in English nouns
Nouns in English are distinguished for number. The number system in English is a binary
system. Nouns are either singular or plural. The singular form is the base unmarked form
with no inflection. Plurality is indicated by a change in the form of the noun (either by
suffixation, mutation, or by ø change (no change)). As far as number is concerned, English
nouns are sub-classified into variable and invariable nouns. Invariable nouns do not show
number contrast. They are either in the singular or in the plural. The nouns water, gold,
and sadness are always in the singular, and are followed by singular verbs when they are
subjects. On the other hand, there are invariable plural nouns. These are summation plurals
like pajamas and jeans, plurals like contents and goods, and certain unmarked plurals like
people and cattle. They are replaced by plural pronouns, and are followed by plural verbs
when they are subjects.
Variable nouns are those that show number contrast. As was said above, pluralization
is marked on the noun. We distinguish between regular plurals and irregular plurals.
Those plurals that show the inflectional {S}-suffix, with its variants, are considered regular
plurals. Others, which exhibit other forms of plurality marking, are irregular. Some exhibit
mutation, internal vowel change, like men<man, mice<mouse, etc. Others show the
unusual plural suffix {(r)en}, like children<child, oxen<ox. Yet others do not have any
obvious marking like sheep<sheep. To this we should add those nouns which retain their
original foreign plural patterns like, syllabi<syllabus, curricula<curriculum, and the like.
20
2.3.2. Number in Arabic nouns
Number contrast in Arabic is a ternary system. Nouns in Arabic are singular, dual, and
plural. The singular is the unmarked form. The dual and the plural forms are marked with
inflection, e.g. ‫كافر > كافران > كافرون‬.
Arabic nouns are sub-classified into variable and invariable. Invariable ones do not
show number contrast. They are either always in the singular or in the plural. Invariable
singular nouns are like ‫ خل‬، ‫ شجاعة‬and ‫حليب‬. We do not find plural forms for them. We also
have invariable plural nouns, like ‫ ناس‬and ‫نساء‬, for which there are no singular forms and
which always occur as plural nouns, a fact that could easily be discerned from the plural
verb forms that co-occur with them.
Variable nouns constitute the majority of common nouns in Arabic. The first thing we
note in this connection is the fact that while plurality is marked either regularly or
irregularly, duality is regular. The dual number is always a suffix that has two variants
indicating case differences. These are /-aa(ni)/ for the nominative and /-ay(ni)/ for the
accusative and genitive, e.g. ‫ والدين‬/ ‫ والدان‬، ‫ شجرتين‬/ ‫ شجرتان‬. Plurality is marked regularly
as a suffix. We call nouns that are regularly pluralized ‘sound plurals’. Other nouns are
pluralized by mutation, i.e. a change in their inner vowel pattern. These plurals are
traditionally called ‘broken plurals’.
Sound, or ‘regular’, plurals, are used with ‘human’ nouns, and are sub-divided in turn
into two types: masculine sound plurals and feminine sound plurals. Masculine singular
nouns that refer to humans are commonly pluralized by an inflectional suffix that denotes
both the masculine gender and the plural number. This suffix has two variants exhibiting
case differences: /-uu(na)/ for the nominative, and /-ii(na)/ for the accusative and the
genitive, e.g. ‫ معلمين‬/ ‫ معلم < معلمون‬and ‫مؤمنين‬/ ‫مؤمن < مؤمنون‬
Feminine singular nouns are commonly pluralized by the inflectional suffix /-aat/ that
shows no case–related variation. Case is signalled here by a further suffix coming right
after the plural suffix: /-u(n) / for the nominative, and /-i(n)/ for the accusative and genitive,
e.g. ‫ طبيبة < طبيبات‬، ‫هبة < هبات‬
Beside these regular plurals, we have the irregular broken plurals. In this case,
pluralization is achieved via change in the internal vowel pattern, as was mentioned above.
21
The patterns used are 29. Four of these are used to show plurality of no more than ten items
in number. They are called paucity plurals ‫جموع قلة‬. Others are abundance plurals ‫جموع‬
‫كثرة‬. This distinction is applicable only in those cases where a lexical item may have more
than one plural form, e.g. ‫حروف‬/ ‫ حرف < أحرف‬, paucity and abundance plurals, respectively.
There is no full prediction as to what pattern an item will choose for its plural. These
patterns are:
1. CuCaC ‫غرفة < غرف‬ 16. CwaaCiC ‫قافلة < قوافل‬

2. CuCC ‫أسمر < سمر‬ 17. CaCaa?iC ‫خسارة < خسائر‬
3. CuCuC ‫كتاب < كتب‬ 18. CiCCaan ‫جار < جيران‬
4. CiCaC ‫حرفة < حرف‬ 19. CuCCaan ‫جرذ < جرذان‬
5. CiCaaC ‫ثمرة < ثمار‬ 20. CuCaCaa? ‫سفيه < سفهاء‬
6 . CuCuuC ‫شهر < شهور‬ 21. ?aCCiCaa? ‫بريء < أبرياء‬
7. CuCCaC ‫راكع < ركّع‬ 22. CaCCaa ‫جريح < جرحى‬
8. CuCCaaC ‫عامل < ع ّمال‬ 23. CaCaaC ‫ليل < ليال‬
9. CaCaCa(t) ‫كافر < كفرة‬ 24. CaCaaCaa ‫يتيم < يتامى‬
10. CuCaCa(t) ‫قاضي < قضاة‬ 25. CaCiiC ‫عبد < عبيد‬
11. CiCaCa(t) ‫قرد < قردة‬ 26. CuCuuCa(t) ‫أم < أمومة‬
12. CiCCa(t) ‫أخ < أخوة‬ 27. CiCaaCa(t) ‫حجر < حجارة‬
13. ?aCCuC ‫شهر < أشهر‬ 28. CaCaC ‫هامل < همل‬
14. ?aCCaaC ‫فلك < أفالك‬ 29. CaCC ‫صاحب < صحب‬
15. ?aCCiCa(t) ‫لباس < ألبسة‬
The last point we need to mention here is the fact that the number system in Arabic
nouns influences other categories. As was mentioned above, pronouns show number
contrast similar to that found in nouns. Therefore, when nouns or noun phrases are replaced
by pronouns these preserve the number distinction. However, we need to be aware of the
work of another factor here. This has to do with whether the noun is personal or
nonpersonal: i.e. referring to humans or non-humans.
Nonpersonal plural nouns behave differently from the personal ones. Nonpersonal
plural nouns, e.g. ‫ كتب‬, are replaced by the singular feminine pronoun ‫ هي‬. Plural personal
nouns, such as ‫ نساء‬، ‫جنود‬, are regularly replaced by the appropriate plural pronouns ، ‫هم‬
22
‫هن‬. This is also clear in the demonstrative ‫هؤالء‬، and the relative pronouns they choose.
Personal plurals will choose the masculine or feminine plural forms، ‫ اللواتي‬/‫ الذين‬.
Nonpersonal plurals will chose the singular feminine ‫ هذه‬and ‫ التي‬. No such distinction is
noticeable in the dual forms.
Number distinction in nouns affects the form of the adjective that modifies the noun
head, or functions as complement to it in copular verbless sentences. Adjectives in Arabic
agree with nouns in number. Again, the distinction we drew between personal and
nonpersonal nouns is at work here too. Personal plural nouns take plural adjectives of the
appropriate gender, e.g. ‫ فتيات جميالت‬، ‫رجا ٌل قادمون‬. Nonpersonal plurals take singular
feminine adjectives: ‫خروق واسعة‬. Again, dual forms behave similarly in this case too.
Number contrast in nouns is also reflected in the form of the verb. Verbs agree in number
with their subjects if these precede them, e.g. ‫الرجال ذهبوا‬. When the verb precedes the
subject, there is no such agreement, as in ‫ذهب الرجال‬. Again, the personal/nonpersonal
distinction is at work here. It is only with plural personal subjects that verbs agree in
number. With nonpersonal plural subjects, the verb is in the feminine singular form
Compare between ‫ األوالد ناموا‬، ‫ البنات نمن‬، ‫العقبات زالت‬. No distinction is noticeable in the
behaviour of dual personal and nonpersonal nouns as far as subject-verb agreement is
concerned.
2.3.3. Comparing number in English and Arabic
1. Nouns in both languages show number contrast.

2. In both Arabic and English, the singular is the unmarked form.
3. They both employ several methods to signal plurality: suffixation, mutation, etc.
4. In both languages, the number contrast is restricted to common nouns. Proper nouns
are not susceptible to inflection with number. Those proper nouns that are found in the
plural are no longer proper. They have lost their unique reference and are, therefore,
common nouns.
5. In both English and Arabic, we find the nouns sub-classified into variable and
invariable. The first may be further subdivided into regular and irregular, depending on
the method they use for pluralization. The exception here is the dual form in Arabic,
which is always regular.
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23
6. Number in English is a binary system. Nouns are either singular or plural. In Arabic,
it is a ternary system. Nouns in Arabic are singular, dual, referring to two, and plural
referring to more than two.
7. In Arabic, the number contrast governs the form of the personal, demonstrative, and
relative pronoun that replaces the noun. It also determines the form of the adjective that
modifies it and the verb that follows it when it is a subject. However, we have to be
aware of the distinction made in this connection between the personal and nonpersonal
plural nouns.
2.4. Gender
Nouns also show gender distinctions. This is the distinction we see between nouns in their
reference to things male, female, animate, etc. in the outside world. Although the
distinction is originally biologically based, or in more general terms, based on outside
world categories and distinctions, it is obvious that it has outgrown that in many natural
languages. Nouns in both English and Arabic exhibit gender distinction. However, the two
languages differ in how gender is signalled, and the basis of this distinction.
2.4.1. Gender in English nouns
Gender distinction in English nouns is biologically based. Only some nouns, usually those
that refer to humans, high animals and pets, where sex differentiation is taken for granted,
are distinguished for gender. The distinction is mainly observed through replacement with
pronouns, which are differentiated for gender, i.e. he-she-it.
A number of these nouns are formally marked for gender. Here, the masculine form is
the unmarked one, and the feminine form is derived one via suffixation. Feminine gender
suffixes are /-ine/, as in hero<heroine, /-ess/ in prince<princess, actor<actress, and the
like. One noun shows ‘inflection’ with a prefix, i.e. man < woman, and two others represent
the reverse procedure. The pairs widow<widower and bride >bridegroom have the
feminine form as the unmarked base and the masculine form as the derived one. Few others
exhibit separate lexical items like boy/girl, ram/ ewe, stallion/ mare, etc., and in some
others, compounding is used to signal gender distinction as in boyfriend, girlfriend,
policewoman, male-nurse, she-leopard.
24
Other nouns referring to humans and high animals may not signal any specific gender
distinction and are therefore replaceable by the appropriate pronoun depending on the sex
of their referent in the relevant context. These are said to have dual gender, e.g. doctor,
lawyer, servant, professor, astronaut, etc. Another group of nouns referring to humans
may be treated differently in different situations. Sometimes they are treated as personal
nouns and are therefore replaced by the personal pronouns he or she. At others they are
treated impersonally, and are replaced by the pronoun it. The two nouns baby and child
stand as examples of such a group. These are said to be of common gender. Some linguists
add another gender category in English nouns. This is the collective gender to which nouns
denoting groups, such as police, team, family, etc.., belong to. This can be seen in their
replacement, sometimes, with the plural pronoun they, and personal relative who, instead
of the impersonal it, and which.
Nouns referring to inanimate entities are not marked for gender. They are regularly
replaced with the impersonal it. Exceptions arise when the factor of human concern enters
into the picture. A car may be referred to by the pronoun she by its owner. It was mentioned
above that pets are also ‘personified’ by their owners and are adorned with gender
distinction by referring to them with personal pronouns exhibiting gender contrast.
Sometimes these nonpersonal nouns are alluded to as having a neuter or nonpersonal
gender.
2.4.2. Gender in Arabic nouns
Gender distinction in Arabic nouns may be partly biologically based, but this is not the
whole story. All nouns in Arabic exhibit gender – no matter what they refer to. The
overwhelming majority are overtly inflected for gender, and are therefore replaced with
pronouns accordingly. However, there are also those that do not show inflection for this
category. Nevertheless, they do belong to either of the two genders in Arabic, and are
accordingly replaced by the appropriate pronouns indicating their gender.
The two genders of Arabic nouns are masculine and feminine. The masculine gender
is morphologically unmarked. Nouns of masculine gender are the basic unmarked forms.
Gender inflections represent the feminine gender. These are the inflectional suffix /-a(t)/
25
like ‫ شاعرة‬، ‫ سيدة‬، a change in the vowel pattern /-a- -aa?/ like, ‫ علياء‬،‫ صحراء‬، or /-u- - aa/
as in ‫بشرى‬، ‫حبلى‬
However, there are exceptions. Some masculine nouns do end with feminine gender
marker, e.g. ‫ طلحة‬، ‫حذيفة‬. These are not treated as feminine nouns except in pluralization.
They are pluralized as ‫ طلحذذذات‬،‫حذذذذيفذذذات‬. When replaced by pronouns they take the usual
singular masculine pronoun ‫هو‬. On the other hand, there are many feminine nouns which
do not show any overt inflection for the feminine, e.g. ‫ هند‬،‫عين‬. These are regularly replaced
by the feminine singular pronoun ‫هي‬. Therefore, overt inflection with a feminine marker is
not to be taken as the only criterion for the gender determination of the noun.
Not only does the gender of the noun govern its replacement with the appropriate
personal pronouns ‫ هي‬، ‫ هو‬and their derivatives, it also governs its replacement with the
relative and demonstrative pronouns ‫ التي‬،‫ الذذذذي‬and ‫ هذذذذه‬، ‫هذذذذا‬. In addition, modifying
adjectives agree in gender with their head nouns e.g. ‫ الكتاب الرخيص‬، ‫ العين الدامعة‬. Gender
distinction is also reflected in the agreement of the verb with its subject. Compare between:
‫ ضاقت الرقعة‬and ‫اتسع الخرق‬
However, we need to add one important remark here concerning the relation between
gender and plural number. Nouns referring to human and non-human entities- i.e. personal
vs. nonpersonal nouns- seem to differ grammatically. Plural personal masculine nouns are
replaced by plural masculine personal pronouns, demonstrative pronouns, and relative
markers ‫ الذين‬،‫ هؤالء‬، ‫هم‬. They also take plural masculine adjectives, and are followed by
plural masculine verbs، e.g. ‫ الرجال ذهبوا‬، ‫الجنود البواسل‬
Plural personal feminine nouns behave similarly. They are substituted by plural
feminine personal and relative pronouns ‫ الذذلذذواتذذي‬،‫ هذذن‬, are modified by plural feminine
adjectives, e.g. ‫البنات الجميالت‬, and are followed by plural feminine verbs, e.g ‫ النسذذذاء أتين‬.
Plural demonstratives referring to humans do not exhibit gender distinction and therefore,
the same plural demonstratives are used with personal plurals of either gender ‫ أولئك‬، ‫هؤالء‬.
Nonpersonal plurals, e.g. ‫ أشذذذذهر‬، ‫ كتب‬behave like singular feminine nouns in all these
respects. The pronoun they are replaced with is ‫ ;هي‬the demonstrative that comes with, or
replaces them is ‫ تلك‬/‫ ;هذه‬and the relative pronoun they take is ‫التي‬. The difference between
personal/nonpersonal plurals is duly reflected in subject-verb agreement and in head noun-
adjective agreement too. Nonpersonal plural subjects occur with singular feminine verbs,
26
26
e.g. ‫ الرؤوس أينعذذذت‬، ‫بذذذارت الكتذذذب‬. They are also followed by singular feminine adjectives
‫ المناضد الكبيرة‬، ‫الكتب الرخيصة‬
2.4.3. Comparing gender in English and Arabic
1. Both English and Arabic exhibit gender distinction.

2. In English, gender distinction seems to be generally restricted to personal nouns. High
animals and pets may also be included via the so-called personification effect.
Therefore, it is safe to say that gender distinction in English is biologically based.
3. On the other hand, all nouns in Arabic, personal and nonpersonal, are distinguished for
gender. They are either masculine and feminine. This indicates that gender in Arabic is
generally a grammatical distinction.
4. In English, gender distinction is revealed by replacement with a pronoun. Nouns,
themselves, do not generally carry gender markers, allowing for some exceptions. In
Arabic, gender distinction is marked on the noun in the form of inflection by a suffix.
5. In both languages, it is the feminine form that is generally marked for gender. The
masculine form is the base unmarked form.
6. In Arabic, gender distinction has further grammatical consequences. It is not only
reflected in the replacement of the noun with a specific personal pronoun showing
gender, it is also reflected in the choice of the demonstrative, and relative pronouns, and
in the agreement of the adjective with its head noun, and the verb with its subject.
Adjectives and verbs agree with their noun heads and subjects in gender. Here, we have
to take note of the distinction between plural personal and nonpersonal nouns in the
gender-related forms of the pronouns, demonstratives, adjectives, and verbs they
choose.
7. In English, some personal nouns have dual gender, depending on the context. This is
generally not the case in Arabic, though we do find nouns referring to positions, e.g.
‫ وزير‬،‫ نائب‬and military ranks like ‫ فريق‬،‫ نقيب‬، ‫ مالزم‬that are used with no gender-based
variation to refer to both male and female referents.
8. English nonpersonal nouns are said to be of neuter gender. This differs from the
situation in Arabic, in which nouns are either of masculine and feminine gender.
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2.5. Case
Case is a grammatical category related to the grammatical function of the noun phrase in
the sentence, i.e. its relation to the other elements in the sentence. This grammatical relation
is realized as a change in the form of mainly the head noun, but may affect other
constituents of the noun phrase. This is why it is quite common to read about ‘nouns’ in
the nominative, accusative, genitive, etc… case. In many languages, this change in form
is overt and indicates the grammatical relation of the noun phrase to other constituents, e.g.
subject, direct object, object of preposition, indirect object, determiner, etc. However, there
are languages, in which there is no overt realization of the case inflection in the noun
phrase.
2.5.1. Case in English nouns

The inflection for case in noun phrases in English is only realized on the head noun, which
alternates between two forms depending on their grammatical functions. The first is the
unmarked form that the head noun has when the noun phrase is a subject, a direct or indirect
object or a prepositional complement. The other is the /-’s/ form of the noun which we
notice when it functions as a determiner within the noun phrase. When it appears in this /-
’s/ form, the noun(phrase) is said to be in the genitive case. The other form, which is
unmarked, is given the vague term of common case, since it is the form of the noun in all
the other functions of the noun phrase. Look at the following sentences.
The doctor gave me some medicine.

I had to see the doctor yesterday.
I have an appointment with the doctor tomorrow.
The lab sent the doctor the test results.
The doctor’s car is parked there.
In the first four sentences the noun doctor is in its unmarked ‘common case’ form, in
contrast to its ‘genitive case’ form in the last sentence. Alternatively, it has been suggested
that, besides the overtly marked genitive case, noun phrases in English are assigned the
nominative case when they function as subjects, and the accusative case in their other
functions. However, the nominative and accusative cases are non-overt or not spelled-out
28
phonologically. Evidence for their case marking comes from the replacement of these noun
phrases by subjective and objective pronouns.
Case inflection in the genitive form of the noun is that of an inflectional suffix realized
as the following variants (allomorphs):
1. /-s/ after a singular noun ending with a voiceless consonant other than
a sibilant, e.g. student’s book
2. /-z/ after a singular noun ending with a voiced sound other than a sibilant, e.g. dog’s
collar
3. /-iz/ after a singular noun ending with a sibilant, e.g. judge’s gown.
4. /-ø/ after regular plural nouns and foreign singular names ending with a sibilant, e.g.
boys’ bicycles, Socrates’ lamp
5. Irregular plurals not ending with the usual plural suffix are treated like singular nouns,
e.g. women’s scarves, children’s toys.
The genitive construction - that of a genitive noun phrase followed by the head noun-
is linked to another construction that is similar to it in meaning. This is the ‘of-
construction’, e.g. the door of the house. In many cases, either construction can be used,
but the two are not totally substitutable. Nouns that are high on the gender scale – referring
to humans and animates prefer the /-’s/ genitive construction. Inanimate nouns prefer the
‘of- construction’, though the first may be used with such inanimate nouns as geographical
names, e.g. Britain’s history, or temporal nouns, e.g. a month’s salary.
The genitive construction exhibits various grammatical relations between its two
elements: the genitive NP and the head noun. This difference is the basis of the difference
in the meanings expressed by genitive constructions. Some of these are:
subjective: the suspect’s death = The suspect died.

objective: the suspect’s arrest = Someone arrested the suspect.
possessive: John’s car = John has a car.
descriptive: a student’s edition = The edition is made for students.
origin: Iraq’s dates = The dates come from Iraq.
measurement: a week’s delay = The delay lasted for a week.
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2.5.2. Case in Arabic nouns
Arabic noun phrases exhibit three cases; the nominative, the accusative, and the genitive.
These cases are realized as different suffix inflections on the head noun, and its adjective
modifier in agreement with it. The nominative case is realized as /-u/ in singular and in
sound feminine and broken plurals, e.g. ‫ المساجد‬،‫ البنات‬،‫ الكلمة‬. In dual nouns, the nominative
case is indicated by the /-aa(ni)/ variant of the dual number suffix, e.g. ‫ الفرقتان‬, and in sound
masculine plurals by the /-uu(na)/ variant of the plural number suffix, e.g. ‫المؤمنون‬.
The accusative case is realized as /-a/ in singular and broken plural nouns, e.g. ، ‫الرج َل‬
‫الرجا َل‬. In sound feminine plural nouns it shows up as /-i/, e.g. ‫ت‬
ِ ‫البنا‬, and in dual nouns and
sound masculine plurals, by the /-ay(ni)/ and /-ii(na)/ variants of the dual and plural
number suffixes respectively, e.g. ‫ المعلمين‬،‫المعلمتين‬.
The genitive case is realized as the inflectionl suffix /-i/ in singular nouns and in sound
feminine and broken plural nouns, e.g. ‫السهام‬
ِ ،‫ت‬
ِ ‫ الساحرا‬، ‫السوق‬.
ِ In dual and sound masculine
plural nouns, it is realized as /-ay(ni)/ and /-ii(na)/ respectively, e.g. ‫ المدرسين‬، ‫ الكتابين‬. This
is the same as the suffix used in these two forms for the accusative case.
Nouns that end with the vowel /aa/, e.g. ‫ مرضى‬، ‫ مصطفى‬، ‫ بشرى‬do not show these case
inflections at their end. Those that end with the vowel /ii/ show the inflection for the
accusative case. The other two cases are not overt, e.g.
.‫ سلمت على القاضي‬.‫ جاء القاضي‬.‫القاضي‬
َ ‫مدحت‬
In addition, there are nouns that have the suffix /-a/ for both the accusative and the genitive.
These are called diptotes, e.g. َ‫ مررت بفاطمة‬، َ‫عاتبت فاطمة‬.
Five more nouns stand as exceptions to the regular pattern of case inflection. These are
the bi-consonantal ‫ فو‬، ‫ ذو‬،‫ حمو‬، ‫ أخو‬، ‫ أبو‬. The long back vowel /-uu/ that we see them
ending with here indicates the nominative case. For the accusative case, this vowel is /-aa/,
e.g.‫ أخا‬،‫ أبا‬, and for the genitive case, it is /-ii/, e.g. ‫ ذي‬،‫حمي‬
We may list the main grammatical functions of the noun phrase that each case signals.
The nominative case: This is the case that the noun phrase exhibits when it is:
1. The subject of the sentence, both verbal and non-verbal.

.‫لطف الهواء‬ .‫ الزجاجة انكسرت‬. ‫ ق ِطع الرجاء‬.‫الجو جميل‬ .‫كان البيت صغيرا‬
30
2. The nominal predicate of a non-verbal sentence, e.g. . ‫مهندس‬

ٌ ‫حسين‬
3. The nominal predicate of a clause preceded by the complementizer ّ‫ إن‬and other
members of its group, e.g. ‫إن الصالة دعا ٌء‬
The accusative case: This appears to be the default case that noun phrase complements
and adverbials are inflected for. The following are the main functions that are assigned the
accusative case. We will use some terms from Traditional Arabic Grammar in the hope
that this will help readers who are familiar with those terms.
1. Verb objects and complements: direct object, indirect object, ‘participial of condition’,
‘cognate object’, ‘object of specification’, ‘object of accompaniment’.
.‫ جاء محمد ضاحكا‬.‫الطالب كتابه‬
َ ‫أعطيت‬ .َ‫كسر الطفل اللعبة‬
.‫والنهر‬
َ ‫سرت‬ .‫ اشتعل الرأس شيبا‬. ‫شكرته شكرا جزيال‬
2. Complement of linking verbs ‫ كان‬and others.
.‫كان العيش رغدا‬
3. Subject of clause preceded by the complementizer ّ‫ إن‬and other members of its group.
.‫إن الساعةَ آتية‬
4. Noun phrase adverbial of time, place, or purpose.

. ‫سجدنا هلل تعبدا‬ . ‫سرنا جنوبا‬ .‫موعدكم يوم الزينة ضحى‬
5. Complement of vocative particle ‫يا‬, complement of exception particle ‫إال‬, complement

of generic negative particle ‫ ال‬.
.‫ال عاص َم اليوم من أمر هللا‬ .‫ما رأيت إال سرابا‬ . ‫يا زمانَ الوصل باألندلس‬
The genitive case: This is the case that a noun phrase is inflected for in the following
functions:
1. Preposition complement, e.g. ‫باق على العه ِد‬
2. Determiner of a noun phrase. This is the second place in the construct state, ‫ اإلضافة‬a
construction composed of two elements: a head noun and a noun phrase functioning
as a determiner, similar to the genitive construction in English, The construct state
construction expresses a variety of deep grammatical relations between its two
elements: the head noun and the genitive noun phrase. Amongst these relations are:
subjective : ‫ = ضحك األطفا ِل‬.‫يضحك األطفال‬

objective: ‫ = حب الوالدين‬.‫يحب الولد والديه‬
possessive: ‫ = دراجة محم ٍد‬.‫لدى محمد دراجة‬
31
descriptive: ‫الحشر‬
ٍ ‫يوم‬ = .‫يوم يحشر فيه الناس‬
measurement: ‫شهر‬ ٍ ‫مسيرة‬ = .‫سرنا شهرا‬
time: ‫الظهر‬
ِ ‫صالة‬ = .‫صالتنا في الظهر‬
origin: ‫اليمن‬
ِ ‫عقيق‬ = .‫العقيق يأتي من اليمن‬
2.5.3. Comparing case in English and Arabic
1. Case inflection is found in both Arabic and English. These mark the various
grammatical functions that the noun phrases have in their sentences.
2. Both languages show inflection for case in the form of suffixes. In English, only the
genitive case is overtly marked, the nominative and the accusative cases are not
phonologically spelled-out. In Arabic, the three cases that the noun phrases are inflected
for are overtly marked on the head noun and its modifiers.
3. Arabic noun phrases exhibit systematic changes in their case inflections depending on
their different grammatical functions in the sentence. Each grammatical function is
signalled by one of the three case inflections: nominative, accusative, and genitive. In
English, noun phrases show this variation in form only when they function as
determiners of other nouns. In this function, they are in the genitive case signalled by
the suffix /’s/.
4. Though Arabic and English noun phrases share the inflection for the genitive case, this
case does not characterize identical grammatical functions in the two languages. In
English, only noun phrases functioning as determiners are inflected for this case. In
Arabic, noun phrases functioning both as determiners of other nouns, i.e. one of the two
constituents of the construct state, and those functioning as complements of prepositions
are inflected for this case.
5. The two languages share a similar range of deep grammatical relations between the
elements of their genitive/‘construct state’ constructions. These range from the basic
possessive relation to the more abstract subjective, objective, measurement, adverbial,
or purely descriptive relations.
2.6. Determiners
32
Determiners are a closed set of elements that function as specifiers of the reference of the
noun. They limit or generalize the reference of a noun. As such, determiners are an
obligatory constituent of the noun phrase. Determiners may be classified into different sub-
classes depending on their semantic referential properties, their syntactic behaviour, and
the order they assume when they co-occur with each other.
Languages differ as to the position that determiners occupy in the noun phrase. English
and Arabic determiners exhibit many similarities, but there are also points where they
differ. The most common class of determiners is that of the articles, therefore, our
discussion will be focused on their use and distribution in the two languages.
2.6.1. Determiners in English
Determiners in English are divided into three sub-classes depending on their co-
occurrence. These are the pre-determiners (1), the central determiners (2), and the post-
determiners (3). They all occupy an initial position in the noun phrase, i.e. they occur
before the modifiers. The following sentence exemplifies the whole system.
All the four girls sitting there are my daughters.

1 2 3
Pre-determiners are a sub-class that comprises the quantifiers all, any, each, both, half,
and the multipliers and fractions: double, half, etc. When any of these occurs in a noun
phrase, it may precede another set of determiners, which are conventionally called central
determiners. These may be articles (definite, indefinite, or zero), possessive pronouns and
genitive noun phrases, e.g. my, their, John’s, the postman’s, etc. These, in turn, may be
followed by another sub-class of determiners comprising quantifiers like few, many, little;
and numerals (both ordinals and cardinals) like four, eighth, hundred, twenty first, etc.
These are the post-modifiers. The following are examples of the system of determiners.
all those fifteen books that I read these few examples
none of John’s many friends everyone of the thirty participants
2.6.2. Determiners in Arabic
33
Using the same criterion of co-occurrence, we may divide determiners in Arabic into two
sub-classes: pre-determiners and central determiners. These may further be sub-divided
into pre-head determiners and post-head determiners. Some determiners may occupy
either of the two positions with slight differences in meaning.
Central determiners are the definite article ‫ الـ‬, the indefinite /-n/ ‫التنوين‬, ‘possessive’
clitic pronouns and genitive noun phrases. The definite article ‫ الـ‬is a bound morpheme that
is prefixed to the head noun. Thus, it occupies a pre-head position. As for the indefinite
signal /-n/ ‫التنوين‬, and the clitic pronouns, these are suffixed to the head noun. The genitive
noun phrase follows the head noun too. They occupy a post-head position. Observe the
bracketed noun phrases in the following sentences.
‫[باب النجار] مخلوع‬ ‫سيارتي القديمة‬ ]‫يمشي على [مه ٍل‬ ‫استبشر [الناس] بما حدث‬
Other determiners come before the head noun. When they co-occur with the definite
article ‫الـ‬, they precede it. Let us call them the pre-determiners. These are quantifiers like
...،‫ جميع‬، ‫ نصف‬،‫ بعض‬،‫ أي‬،‫ ;كل‬demonstratives: ،‫ هاتان‬،‫ هذين‬، ‫ هذان‬،‫ تيك‬،‫ تلك‬،‫ هاته‬،‫ هذه‬،‫ذاك‬،‫ ذلك‬، ‫هذا‬
...،‫أولئك‬،‫ هؤالء‬،‫ تينك‬،‫ تانك‬،‫ ;هاتين‬and numerals (ordinals and cardinals) like ‫ ثاني‬، ‫ خمس‬،‫ثالثة‬
...، ‫رابع‬.
‫أي المدارس‬ ‫سابع المستحيالت‬ ‫أربعة الرجال‬ ‫هذا الكتاب‬
‫خامس خطو ٍة‬ ‫أول إخواني‬ ‫كل فتا ٍة‬ ٍ ‫ست سنوا‬
‫ت‬
Since we do find noun phrases with both a quantifier and a demonstrative, or a numeral,
we may conclude that there are two positions for the pre-determiners, or two sub-classes
of pre-determiners: Pre-det 1 and Pre-det 2, e.g. ‫ كل ثالثة رجال‬، ‫بعض تلك الكتب‬. Quantifiers
belong to Pre-det 1, while demonstratives and numerals belong to the sub-class Pre-det 2.
These pre-determiners may also occur after the head noun; they are post-head
determiners. When they do, they come after the indefinite ‫التنوين‬, the genitive clitic
pronouns, or the genitive noun.
‫الناس جميعهم‬ ‫الجيل الخامس‬ ‫الكتاب هذا‬ ‫الرجال األربعة‬

‫أساتذة الجامع ِة كلهم‬ ‫صديقي هذا‬ ٌ
‫فائز أول‬ ‫طالباتٌ ثالث‬
We may even find noun phrases where the pre-determiners may be positioned both before
and after the head, e.g. ‫كل أولئك الرجال المائة‬
34
34
Quantifiers and ordinal numerals in pre-head position are followed by a head noun in
the genitive case, ‫ث‬
ِ ‫ أول الغي‬، ‫كل الرجا ِل‬. They form a construct state construction with the
following noun head. So are the cardinal numerals (from three to ten).
These cardinals exhibit inverted gender agreement with their head nouns. If the head
noun is masculine, the pre-head cardinal is inflected for the feminine gender, and if it is a
feminine noun, the cardinal is not so inflected. Hence, we have ‫أعوام‬
ٍ ‫ ثمانية‬،‫ أربعة رجا ٍل‬and
ٍ ‫ سبع بقرا‬، ٍ‫عشر نساء‬.Tens have regular agreement with their head, e.g. ‫ أحد عشر كوكبا‬and
‫ت‬
‫اثنتي عشرة طالبة‬. However, from 11-19, we have the same inverted agreement, with the first
part. ‫ خمس عشرة سنة‬،‫ثالثة عشر عاما‬. Notice that these cardinals are always inflected for the
accusative case. Besides, all cardinals above 10 are followed by a singular head noun in
the accusative case. This not the case with demonstrative pre-determiners. Demonstratives
do not affect the case of their head noun. They agree with the head noun in number and
gender, and case in the duals.
Pre-determiners may have another status in the sentence, when they have a pronominal
or substantive function. Demonstratives and other pre-determiners may occur without a
following head noun.
.‫ظن البعض أنه األول‬ .‫الكل يعرف من أنكرت‬ .‫هذا ذهب وجاء أولئك‬ .‫فيقولون ثالثة‬
Here they form the head of noun phrase. Notice that these quantifiers and numerals take
the definite article in the same way a noun does. We will discuss the pronominal function
of the demonstratives in more detail in the Chapter Four, on pronouns.
We have to note here that demonstrative pre-determiners can co-occur only with definite
nouns. They cannot be used with indefinite head nouns. Note also that numerals occurring
in post-head positions agree with their head nouns in number, gender, and definiteness.
This makes them very similar to adjective modifiers, which agree with their preceding head
nouns in these three features. It may be more appropriate to treat them as such.
Furthermore, we also need to note that this change from pre-head to post-head positions
results in slight changes in meaning.
2.6.3. Comparing the determiner systems in English and Arabic
1. The system of determiners in both Arabic and English, represents a closed set and may
be divided into sub-classes based on their type of reference, their syntactic behaviour,
35
and co-occurrence with each other. We may distinguish quantifiers, demonstratives,

articles, possessive pronouns and nouns, and cardinal and ordinal numerals.
2. Based on co-occurrence criteria, English determiners may be grouped into three sub-
classes, pre-determiners, central determiners, and post-determiners. In Arabic, the
system of determiners comprises only two such sub-classes: pre-determiners and central
determiners, which are inseparable from the head noun.
3. All determiners in English occupy a pre-head position, occurring before the modifiers
of the head noun. In Arabic, they may occupy a pre-head and a post-head position. Some
may occur in either position with slight changes in form and meaning. Numerals in post-
head position behave like adjectives syntactically.
4. Determiners in English do not have any effect on the case of the head noun. In Arabic,
some determiners: quantifiers and numerals, require the following head noun to be
inflected for the genitive or the accusative case.
5. In both languages, demonstratives and quantifiers may function pronominally by
occurring alone and without a following head noun.
6. With regards to the Arabic quantifier ‫ كل‬, we need to mention that it may occur with a
plural definite noun or with a singular indefinite noun, e.g. ‫ كل يوم‬، ‫كل الجنود‬. It has a
different meaning in each of these two uses. With plural definite nouns, it is equivalent
to the English all. In its second use, it means every or each.
2.6.4. Articles
Articles constitute the central part of the determiner systems in English and Arabic. They
are used to indicate three types of reference: specific, generic, and unique. In this
discussion, we will point out what the articles in each of the two languages are, what types
of nouns each occurs with, and what types of reference they are used to indicate.
2.6.4.1. Articles in English
We can distinguish three articles in English; the definite article the; the indefinite article
a (and its variant an); and the absence of article, which is conventionally called the zero
[ø] article. The indefinite article is used with count singular nouns only, e.g. a book, an
egg, a sentence. The definite article may be used with all three-noun types: singular and
36
plural countable nouns, and uncountable mass nouns, e.g. the man, the songs, the coffee.
The zero article may be used with plural countable nouns, uncountable nouns and singular
countable nouns, e.g. books, water, college. As for reference, these articles cover all the
above-mentioned types of reference.
Generic reference:
1. The definite article is used for generic reference with singular count nouns, plural
nouns indicating nationalities, and adjectives standing as heads of noun phrases:
The book is his best companion.
The Japanese have done a lot for their country.
The rich will definitely help the poor in this situation.
2. The indefinite article is used with singular countable nouns to indicate generic
reference, e.g. He is looking for a house. A horse is more useful than a camel
We need to note here that the indefinite article has a limited role in conveying generic
reference since it carries a partitive implication. That is, it is equivalent to any. This is
why it cannot be used in all instances of generic reference. The definite article is used
instead.
3. The zero [ø] article is used for generic reference with plural countable and
uncountable mass nouns, e.g. I like cats. Sugar is not good for your health.
Specific reference:
1. The definite article is used with singular, plural countable and uncountable nouns to
indicate specific reference.
The man was standing outside the shop.
The books you lent me were very useful.
The sadness that I see in her eyes is deep.
It refers to something that is identified by the speaker and the hearer depending on their
knowledge of the linguistic context or the outside situation. Contextually, the use of the
definite article is determined by previous mention of the noun in the text. As such, it is
used with the ‘given’ element.
Yesterday I saw a man. The man was wearing a trench coat.
37
As for its use with nouns referring to entities identified in the situation, this could
depend on the immediate situation of the speech act,
Did you notice the blood stain on her shirt?
Or it could depend on the larger situation that involves any shared knowledge that the
interlocutors have, e.g. the moon, the kitchen, the car, etc..
2. The indefinite article is used with singular countable nouns for specific unidentified
reference, e.g. Mary got a surprise. The phrase a surprise refers to a certain instance
of surprise.
3. The zero article may be used with plural countable and uncountable mass nouns to
indicate specific unidentified reference. In this case, the quantifiers some or few may
be used, e.g. I bought (some) sugar and milk.
Unique reference:
Proper nouns have unique reference. They are generally preceded by the zero article. As
for those that are preceded by the definite article the, as in The Ritz Carlton, The Sudan,
The Bahamas, etc…, the article that precedes them is felt to be part of the name and not a
determiner of its reference. We may also notice instances where a proper noun is preceded
by an article, contrary to its usual use. In such a case, the proper noun is no longer proper,
e.g.
This is the William I know. I met with a Malcolm in the conference.
2.6.4.2. Articles in Arabic
In Arabic we have the definite article /al-/ ‫ الـ‬prefixed to nouns, and the indefinite marker
/-n/ ‫التنوين‬, which is a suffix. The definite article is used with all common nouns, singular,
dual and plural, e.g. ‫ الثقالن‬،‫ االستعمار‬،‫ الرجال‬،‫الكتاب‬. The indefinite marker is used with
singular, sound feminine plural, and irregular plural nouns, e.g. ٌ‫ معلمات‬،ٌ‫ رجا ٌل فرح‬، ‫ح‬
ٌ ‫ لو‬.
Dual and sound masculine plural nouns are not suffixed with this marker. There is no overt
marker of indefiniteness in their case.
The different types of reference are associated with the use of the definite article, the
indefinite marker and the zero article.
38
Generic reference
1. The definite article is used for generic reference with all nouns.
.‫الحب أعمى‬ .‫الشعراء يتبعهم الغاوون‬ .‫الكتاب خير صديق‬
2. We may also find instances of indefinite nouns indicating generic reference, though
the reference here is more of a partitive one, i.e. equivalent to any and not all
.‫ظلمت إذن عفافا‬ .‫أريد حال‬ .‫وخير جليس في الزمان كتاب‬
3. Nouns in the construct state construction may indicate generic reference too.
.‫أرباب السوابق متهمون دوما‬ .‫حامل الهوى تعب‬
These may be considered finite nouns since a genitive noun determiner may achieve
definiteness instead of the definite article, as was mentioned above.
Specific reference
1. The definite article is used with all nouns to indicate specific identified reference. The
use of the definite article here is to refer to an identified element or thing. This
identification is based on the knowledge of the interlocutors of the linguistic context, or
the immediate or general situation. In the first instance, the definite article is used with
nouns referring to ‘given’ things, i.e. things previously mentioned in the text or
situation. This is why we seem to move from the indefinite marker, /-n/ or zero, to the
definite article. Observe the following where the underlined noun has specific reference
in both of its occurrences, e.g.
.‫ وكان الرجل يضع يده على عينه‬.‫رأيت أمس رجال يصرخ مستنجدا‬
Identification may depend on the outside situation. The definite article is used here
with nouns identified from the speech situation, e.g. .‫ أنظر إلى اللوحة‬Or it may depend
on the shared knowledge of the general outside world situation, as in nouns like:
‫ المطار‬، ‫ الشمس‬، ‫ الحكومة‬for people in the same community , or even ، ‫ الحديقة‬، ‫المطبخ‬
.. ‫ السيارة‬for members of the family that owns them.
2. Specific unidentified reference is indicated by the indefinite marker /-n/ suffixed to

singular and sound feminine and irregular plural nouns, e.g.
. ‫شربوا حليبا‬ .ٍ‫التقيت بثالث شاعرات‬ .‫سمعت صوتا هاتفا‬ . ‫اشتريت كتبا‬
Specific unidentified reference of dual and sound masculine plural nouns, is not
overtly signalled by any marker, e.g.
39
.‫كان في المسجد مصلون‬ . ‫غرس شجرتين‬
Unique reference
Nouns that have unique reference are proper nouns. In Arabic, many of these occur with
zero article. Others may be preceded by the definite article /al-/. It was said before that this
is part of the noun and not a proper definite article. Proper nouns in Arabic, whether they
appear with the article or not, are treated like definite nouns as far as adjective–noun
agreement is concerned. Notice that the adjectives in the following noun phrases are
definite, e.g.
‫محم ٌد النبيه‬ ‫حلب الشهباء‬ ‫البصرة الفيحاء‬
2.6.4.3. Comparing English and Arabic articles
1. All three types of reference are achieved by the use of articles in both languages.
2. English has three articles (the definite article, the indefinite article, and the ø article),
whereas Arabic has one fully-fledged article, the definite article. Besides, it has a marker
which indicates indefiniteness in the shape of the suffix /-n/.
3. The two languages exhibit differences in the distribution of their articles over the
different classes of nouns. The indefinite article in English is restricted to singular count
nouns. Its counterpart, the indefinite marker /-n/ in Arabic is used with singular nouns,
feminine and broken plural nouns, and mass nouns. The definite article in English is
used with all categories of nouns and so is the Arabic definite article. The English zero
article is used with plural count nouns and uncountable nouns. In Arabic, dual and plural
masculine nouns are not suffixed with the indefinite marker. When indefinite, they may
not carry any such marking
4. The articles in the two languages exhibit differences in their indication of the different
types of reference. Generic reference in Arabic is achieved by the use of the definite
article with all classes of nouns. In English, the definite article occurs only with singular
count nouns to indicate generic reference. To indicate generic reference in plural and
mass nouns, the zero article is used. The indefinite article and the indefinite marker are
also used in English and Arabic to indicate generic reference with singular count nouns.
However, the reference here is more of a partitive than truly generic one. The construct
state construction in Arabic may also indicate generic reference.
40
5. Specific identified reference in Arabic is achieved by the use of the definite article
with all nouns (singular, dual, and plural count nouns and uncountable nouns). This
specific definite reference to identified things depends on contextual or situational
knowledge. English is similar here. The definite article is used with all nouns to indicate
this specific reference with the same features as those characterizing the use of the
definite article in Arabic. The indefinite marker in Arabic may be used to indicate
specific unidentified reference with singular, feminine plural and broken plural nouns.
In English, the use of the indefinite article to indicate specific unidentified reference is
restricted to singular count nouns. With plural countable and uncountable nouns, the
zero article is used to achieve specific unidentified reference. In such cases, quantifiers
like some and few may be used before the noun.
6. Unique reference is found in proper names that may, or may not, occur with the
definite article. However, it is suggested that this is not really a definite article indicating
a certain type of reference. Rather, it is part of the name. The reference of the name is
derived from its reference to a unique referent, and not from any article that may occur
with it. In both English and Arabic, these names behave like definite nouns. In English,
proper names that come without an article, e.g. John, London, etc.., may sometimes be
preceded by the definite or indefinite articles. In these cases, they are not treated as
proper names and have no unique reference. Rather, they are taken as common nouns.
Exercises
1. After reading the comparison sections in this chapter, what additional point(s) of
similarity and/or difference can you find between English and Arabic in the
concerned topics: noun phrases and their function, the noun and its inflections, the
determiners, and the articles?
2. Try to think of a point that concerns the noun and the noun phrase that we have not
discussed in our description, (Don’t worry. There are so many of them!) Provide a
description of this point in the two languages, and conduct a comparison. Follow,
if you like, our steps in the description and comparison (Hint: order of modifiers in
the noun phrase.)
3. Describe the distribution of the quantifiers in English and Arabic and find out their
aspects of similarity and difference. What happens when they occur after, and not
before, the head noun?
41
Chapter Three
The Verb Phrase
3.1. The verb phrase

3.1.1. The verb phrase in English
3.1.2. The verb phrase in Arabic
3.1.3. Comparing the verb phrase in English and Arabic
3.2. Temporal reference
3.2.1. Reference to past time
3.2.2. Reference to present time
3.2.3. Reference to future time
3.2.4. Comparing temporal reference in English and Arabic
3.3. Mood
3.3.1. Mood in English
3.3.2. Mood in Arabic
3.3.3. Comparing mood in English and Arabic
3.4. Modality
3.4.1. Modality in English
3.4.2. Modality in Arabic
3.4.2. Comparing English and Arabic modality
42
3.1. The verb phrase
The verb phrase is the second major constituent that will be under discussion here. It is the
phrase that is headed by a verb. Two views prevail in the literature as to what this phrase
consists of, or what its constituents are. One sees the verb phrase as consisting of the verb
head, its specifiers (the auxiliary system), its complements, and adverbials. The other view,
which will be adopted here, sees the verb phrase as consisting of the head verb and the
system of auxiliaries, and other elements that precede it and the particles that are associated
with the head verb. Those phrasal categories that follow the verb like the object noun
phrases, subject and object complements of different categories, preposition phrase
complements and verb-related adverbials are treated as independent and immediate
constituents of the clause, as will be discussed in Chapter Eight. These constituents will be
discussed independently. From a functional point of view, they will form the ‘predicate’ of
the sentence together with the verb and its specifiers.
A number of grammatical categories are associated with the verb phrase, such as tense,
aspect, mood, and modality. These may be realized in different ways on the verb form and
the structure of the verb phrase. Because they are closely related, the categories of tense
and aspects and how they are realized in the two languages will be discussed together first.
The categories of mood and modality will be dealt with separately afterwards.
3.1.1. The verb phrase in English

A verb phrase in English may be exemplified by the underlined words in the following
sentences.
They lived happily ever after.
Simon takes the train to work every morning.
They were trying to help.
John has done it before.
We have been opening new channels.
Mary will have copied the documents by next week.
The verb phrase consists of:

1. the lexical main verb which may take different forms
2. tense inflection
3. the modal auxiliary
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4. the auxiliary have + en

5. the auxiliary be + ing
These elements appear in the following order
Tense - (Modal) – (have+en) - (be+ing) - V
To these we may add another auxiliary element (be+en) which signals the passive voice.
While Tense signals reference to time, the (have+en) and (be+ing) signal the perfect and
progressive aspects respectively. The modal element signals different ways of viewing the
action referred to by the verb, whether it is possible, necessary or obligatory. We may have
verb phrases of different forms depending on the various combinations we make from the
elements above. Each is traditionally given a name and is used to convey specific temporal
and aspectual references, as will be discussed in detail below.
The head verb

Lexical verbs in English show up in various forms. Besides the base form that has no
inflection, and which we find after modal auxiliaries and in non-finite clauses, a verb may
have the following forms: the present tense form, the present third person singular form,
the past tense form, the present participle (-ing) form, and the past participle (-en) form.
The first three forms signal tense, while the fourth and fifth forms are associated with
aspect, another verbal category.
cook : cook cooks cooked cooking cooked
write : write writes wrote writing written
cut : cut cuts cut cutting cut
In morphologically regular verbs, the past simple and he past participle forms are
identical as the first example shows. Some verbs, like cut in the third example, show
identical present simple, past simple and past participle forms. Verb be, on the other hand,
has seven different forms: is, am, are, was, were, being, been, in addition to a distinct
uninflected base form be.
Before proceeding to discuss the grammatical categories of tense, aspect, mood and
modality that are associated with the different verb phrase forms, we feel that a note on
verb complementation is in order. Verbs are classified into different classes depending on
the constituents that follow them and are determined by them. Some verbs, like laugh, need
44
not be followed by elements like a noun phrase. Others select one or two noun phrases like
love and give. There are verbs that select a preposition phrase with a specific preposition,
like depend on, others that take adjective phrases like taste, or select a noun phrase and a
preposition phrase like place, etc. The subcategorization of verbs is a very important
feature of the verb and plays a significant role in various syntactic processes.
Tense
Tense is a category that is principally associated with time reference. Verbs, and
consequently verb phrases, in English show a binary tense contrast. They are in either the
past or present tense. Tense, in English, is signalled in a change on the form of the lexical
verb, or the auxiliary. The present tense form of the verb is the unmarked form, and is
therefore similar to its base form in shape, except when the subject is a third person
singular, in which case the verb will agree with it and show its agreement by the suffixation
of {-s}, e.g. write-writes, go-goes, push-pushes. These are the same variants we saw of the
plural marker on the noun, and are similarly conditioned.
The past tense is realized as another inflectional suffix in the so-called ‘regular verbs’,
e.g. play-played, work-worked, visit-visited. As you may have noticed, the past tense suffix
{-d} has three variants depending on the final sound of the stem: /d/ if it ends with a voiced
sound, with the exception of /d// or /t/. /t/ if it is voiceless, again with the exception of /d//
or /t/, and /id/ when the stem ends with the sounds /d/ or /t/. In ‘irregular’ verbs past tense
marking takes the form of internal change in the verb form, e.g. sing-sang, fly-flew, write-
wrote, etc., or has a zero realization as in verbs like cut.
Modal auxiliaries may only show past tense, as in the contrast between, e.g. will-would,
may-might, etc… but do not show agreement with the third person singular subject.
Primary auxiliaries, be and have, are inflected for both past tense and agreement with the
third person singular subject, as in: is-was, is-are, and have-had, have-has.
Present tense generally indicates present time actions and states, and past tense indicates
past actions and states. Compare between
Susan looks happy. She looked sad.
However, the picture is much more complex than what is implied, and there is a great
deal of diversity and overlapping in the uses of the verb forms because of the various
combinations of tense, aspect and mood. This is the reason why we have opted not to
45
45
compare the different forms of the verb phrases in the two languages but, rather, to find
out how each of the two languages refers to this or that specific notion, using different
combinations of available elements within the verb phrase.
Aspect
English verb phrases exhibit two aspects: the progressive and the perfect aspects. The
progressive aspect refers to the continuation of an action or state. It is signalled by the
primary auxiliary be and the use of a specific form of the lexical verb – i.e. the ing-form
in which the base form is inflected for the suffix {-ing}. Notice the difference between the
following sentences, where the second sentence shows that the action of talking is in
progress, the first gives no such interpretation.
She responds to messages regularly.
She is talking on the phone right now.
The perfect aspect encodes the termination of an action or state. It is signalled by the use
of the auxiliary have and the en-form of the lexical verb- the base form+the inflectional
suffix {-en}. Compare the following:
Sue writes novels.
Sue has written a novel.
Note here that the auxiliaries that we find in the above sentences are marked for tense.
They can be in the present or pat tense. Furthermore, the verb phrase may be carry both
aspects, e.g.
She had been shopping from that store for years.
3.1.2. The verb phrase in Arabic
We may exemplify the verb phrase in Arabic by the following.

.‫طلع الفجر‬ .‫تصدح الموسيقى كل صباح‬
. ‫نهبت الدار حين كانت نائمة‬ .‫كان يعمل في المساء‬
.‫ديار أنت فيها‬
ٍ ‫سأرحل عن‬ .‫سوف تنجلي الغمة قريبا‬
.‫حين جاءوه كان قد حزم أمتعته‬ .‫قد عظم البالء‬
.‫كانوا سيرحلون لوال إقناعي لهم بالبقاء‬ .‫لوالي لكان قتل نفسه‬
.‫أنا سائ ٌل رحمتك وغفرانك‬
The elements that constitute the verb phrase are:
46
46
1. the tense element

2. the particle )‫قد(لقد‬
3. the future particle ‫ سوف‬and the future prefix -‫س‬
4. ‫يكون‬/‫كان‬
5. the head verb
They may appear in the following order.
Tense – (sawfa/sa/qad) – (kaana/yakuunu) - Verb
The verb phrase in Arabic may consist of the verb in any of its forms or a combination
of the above elements. Conveying temporal reference is the principal function of tense.
Aspectual reference may be signalled by the lexical verb forms or by the addition of the
particle )‫ قد (لقد‬and the verb ‫كان‬. In each case, the combination conveys one or more
temporal and aspectual references, as will be detailed bellow. The verb phrase may also
contain the future particle ‫ سوف‬and the prefix {-‫ }س‬to indicate futurity.
The head verb

Lexical verbs in Arabic assume different forms. These various forms represent differences
in tense/aspect: present/imperfect and past/perfect. The difference is in the kind and pattern
of the vowels that are inserted between the discontinuous consonants of the root. Similarly,
verbs in Arabic assume a specific form signalling their imperative mood.
Besides, the verbs show agreement with the subject in number, gender and person. As
you will note below, the present/imperfect verb signals person and gender agreement with
its subject in the form of a prefix. However, the agreement in number takes the form of a
suffix inflection. In the past/perfect verb, agreement in person, gender, and number is
achieved via suffix inflection.
Present/imperfect forms
1st 2nd 3rd
M&F M F. M F
singular ‫أكتب‬ ‫تكتب‬ ‫تكتبين‬ ‫يكتب‬ ‫تكتب‬
dual ------ ‫تكتبان‬ ‫تكتبان‬ ‫يكتبان‬ ‫تكتبان‬
Plural ‫نكتب‬ ‫تكتبون‬ ‫تكتبن‬ ‫يكتبون‬ ‫يكتبن‬
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Past/perfect forms:
1st 2nd 3rd
M&F M F. M F
singular ‫كتبت‬ َ‫كتبت‬ ‫ت‬
ِ ‫كتب‬ ‫كتب‬ ‫كتبت‬
dual ------ ‫كتبتما‬ ‫كتبتما‬ ‫كتبا‬ ‫كتبتا‬
Plural ‫كتبنا‬ ‫كتبتم‬ ‫كتبتن‬ ‫كتبوا‬ ‫كتبن‬
Like English, verbs in Arabic are subcategorized in terms of what constituents they
select to co-occur with. There are those that do not require anything to follow them like
‫صاح‬, some are followed by an object noun phrase like ‫كتب‬, or two noun phrases like ‫أعطى‬,
an object noun phrase and an object complement like ‫ ظن‬, or a preposition phrase ‫أشار‬, etc.
Verb subcategorization into the kind of complements they take is very important in
understanding the variation that verbs show in their syntactic behaviour.
Tense
Arabic shows a binary tense distinction: past and present, manifested in the two basic forms
of the verb: the past ‫الماضي‬, and the present ‫المضارع‬, as is seen in the above paradigms. The
first refers principally to past time actions or states, and the second to present time actions
and states. This is mainly the difference between the following sentences.
.‫أكتب رسالة‬ ‫ماذا تفعل؟‬

.‫كتبت رسالة‬ ‫ماذا فعلت أمس؟‬
However, they are also used for other references, as will be seen shortly.
A note is in order here. Tense is not absolute in Arabic. For instance, the present tense
form refers not only to present time; it is used to refer to present time actions in relation to
other actions.. In the sentence: ‫ حين نظرت إليه وجدته يلعب‬the underlined verb ‫ يلعب‬is in the
present tense. It does not refer to present time. Rather, it refers to present time in relation
to the time reference of another action – i.e. ‫ نظرت‬in this case.
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Aspect
Arabic shows two aspects: a perfect aspect referring to the termination of an action, and a
progressive one indicating the continuity of an action or state. The same two forms of the
verb, which indicate tense distinction, express these two aspects. The form of the verb
called ‫ الماضي‬denotes the termination of an action, while the ‫ المضارع‬form is used to denote
incomplete, ongoing actions or states. This is why they were given the names perfect and
imperfect in the Western descriptions of Arabic grammar. To this, we may add another
form. This is the active participle ‫( إسم الفاعل‬as in the last sentence in the examples above),
which is sometimes used to indicate ongoing actions at the present moment, as will be
shown presently. The particle )‫ قد (لقد‬and the verb ‫ كان‬may also appear before the verb in
both of its two forms, to signal the various aspects as the examples above show, and will
be discussed below.
A detailed comparison between the verb phrases in English and Arabic will be
conducted in terms of their specific functions and uses and the forms they assume to
indicate those uses. Two points need to be made here about the verb phrases in the two
languages. First, in both languages, the verb phrase exhibits tense and aspect contrasts.
English does it by using inflection for tense, and insertion of primary auxiliaries have and
be for aspect. Arabic, on the other hand, uses two forms of the verb to indicate both tense
and aspect contrasts in addition to the use of the verb ‫ كان‬and the particle )‫ قد (لقد‬. Second,
in both languages time reference is reinforced by adverbials of temporal and aspectual
reference, e.g. tomorrow, last week, then, now, these days, in two hours, just, already, etc.,
and their Arabic cognates.
3.2. Temporal and aspectual reference
Time is looked at as a continuum that may be arbitrarily divided into three sectors: the
present moment, the time previous to it, and the time following it. Conventionally, these
divisions are called: present, past and future time. Reference to the time in which a certain
action or state takes place is mainly handled by the verb phrase. So is the distinction
between actions or states that have terminated or are in progress, which we term as
aspectual reference. Verbs in both languages, in fact in all languages, are the principal
elements that are associated with such distinctions and references.
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As was said above, in both English and Arabic, verbs undergo changes in their forms to
achieve this. Besides, temporal reference may be carried out by a combination of changes
in the verb forms and the presence of other elements: the use of primary auxiliaries have
and be in English, and the particle )‫ قد (لقد‬and the verb ‫ كان‬in Arabic. What we are going to
deal with now is how the different temporal and aspectual references are realized in each
language. We will see that in many cases, there are more than one possible form of the verb
phrase that indicate the same reference.
3.2.1. Reference to past time
In speaking about past time, English and Arabic employ various methods to indicate the
statement by the speaker that a certain state or action has obtained at a point that is previous
to the present moment.
English may use
a. Different VP forms, traditionally called ‘tenses’: past simple (V-ed), present perfect
(have + V-en), past perfect (had + V-en), past progressive (was/were + V-ing),
present simple (V), and past perfect progressive (had + be-en + V-ing);
b. Specific verbal constructions: past tense be + used to/going to/ about to
As for Arabic, it uses
a. Different VP forms : perfect, imperfect, and participle;

b. Pre-verbal particle )‫ قد (لقد‬+ perfect V, and ‫ كان‬+ perfect/ imperfect/participle
c. Specific verbal constructions: ‫ على وشك أن‬،‫ يوشك أن‬.
Reference to past time events and states may be classified into the following sub-
headings. Notice that this reference may sometimes be combined with reference to the
termination or progress of the action or state at a certain point of time in the past.
1. Reference to past events and states that occurred at a definite moment

E: past simple, e.g.
She left two hours ago.
A: perfect, e.g.
.‫اشترينا هذا البيت قبل سنتين‬
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2. Reference to past activities that took place at an indefinite moment in the past, where
the emphasis is on the action itself.
E: present perfect, e.g.
This is nothing new. We have all come across it before.
A: i. perfect, e.g.
‫هل سمعت بما حصل؟‬
ii. )‫ قد (لقد‬+ perfect, e.g.
.‫قد دقت ساعة العمل‬
3. Reference to past states that started in the past but that extend to the present
E. present perfect, e.g.
They have lived in Amman for years (and are still there).
(Note the difference between this and the same sentence with the verb in the past
simple indicating that they no longer live there.)
A. imperfect, e.g.
.1960 ‫نعيش في بغداد منذ عام‬
4. Reference to past actions that are relevant to the present in their result.
E: present perfect, e.g.
I have taken two aspirins. I feel better now.
A: perfect+ )‫ قد (لقد‬e.g.
. ‫ لقد وصل الضيوف‬.‫قدموا الطعام‬
5. Reference to recent past actions.
E: present perfect , e.g.
I have just typed the manuscript.
A: perfect+ )‫قد (لقد‬, e.g.
.)‫لقد وصلت الطائرة اآلن (توا‬
6. Reference to past habitual or iterative actions
E: i. past simple, e.g.
Bill swam long distances when he was young.
ii. used to +V, e.g.
John used to watch football matches every Sunday afternoon.
A: i. perfect, e.g.
.‫كلما دخل عليها زكريا المحراب وجد عندها رزقا‬
ii. imperfect + ‫كان‬, e.g.
.‫كنا نقطع النهر سباحة حين كنا صغارا‬
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7. Reference to a past action or state with the continuation of this action or state by
relating them to other past actions.
E: past progressive, e.g.

He pointed to the door while she was talking on the phone.
A: perfect + ‫كان‬, e.g.
.‫وجدت الصورة بينما كنت أقلب صفحات أحد الكتب‬
8. Reference to past time actions or states combined with reference to the termination of
these actions and states in relation to other past activities.
E. past perfect, e.g.

They had taken all the necessary steps before they announced the decision.
A: perfect + )‫ (قد‬+ ‫ كان‬,e.g.
.‫حين وصل رجال الشرطة كان قد أحرق الوثائق كلها‬
9. Reference to past hypothetical action
E: past perfect, e.g.
I wish you had made your decision before.
A: perfect + ‫ كان‬, e.g.
.‫لو عرفت برغبتك لكنت أعطيتك الكتاب‬
10. Reference to past actions that are brought into focus. (historical present)
E: present simple, e.g.
Caesar enters the senate house, and raises his voice.
A: imperfect, e.g.
.‫ ويستهلها بحمد هللا‬،‫ تدَق الطبول ويبدأ الوالي خطبته‬.‫هذا ما كان يحدث كل جمعة‬
11. Reference to past actions in newspaper headlines.
May arrives in Washington and holds talks with Trump.
A: imperfect, e.g.
.‫قوات التحالف تدخل كابل وتعلن سقوط نظام طالبان‬
12. Reference to future actions seen from a certain point in the past.
E: would + V (particularly in reported speech), e.g.
He told her he would visit them the next day.
be (past) + going to + V, e.g.
She was going to leave within two hours.
A: imperfect +_‫ س‬+ ‫ كان‬, e.g.
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.‫كان سيغادر المدينة صباح اليوم التالي‬

)Note here the relative sense of the Arabic tense system, where the imperfect is used
even when the reference is to past time.(
13. Reference to recent future actions seen from a certain point in the past.
E. be (past) + about to + V, e.g.
The wall was about to fall.
A: imperfect + ‫ أن‬+ ‫ أوشك‬/ ‫كان يوشك‬, e.g.
. ‫أوشك الوضع أن ينفجر لوال رحمة هللا‬ . ‫كان الجدار يوشك أن يقع‬
14. Reference to negated past time activities
Negation in English is achieved via the insertion of the particle not, after the auxiliary
verb, if there is one. If there is no auxiliary, then the the auxiliary verb ‘do’ , in its
different tense froms- do/does, did- depending on the tense of the lexical verb, is inserted
before not, and the lexical verb retains its base form. e.g.
She did not see him when he entered.
Arabic uses the particle ‫ لم‬to negate past time activities. The verb form that follows is
the imperfect in the jussive mood, e.g.
‫ألم تر كيف فعل ربك بعاد؟‬
3.2.2. Reference to present time
Arabic and English use different verb phrase forms in referring to activities and states
taking place at present, the current point in the time spectrum. Besides, the two languages
may utilize more than one form for the different sub-classes of such reference.
In English, the reference to present time is achieved through the use of two forms: the
present simple and the present progressive. In Arabic, the reference to present time is
achieved through the use of verb forms too. These are the perfect, the imperfect, and the
participle forms.
Reference to present time may be modified by a variety of notions and concepts, such
as universality, habituality, continuity, specificity of the present moment, etc. Each of
these notions will be dealt with separately by showing how each language expresses it.
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1. Reference to general facts and all time truths applying at a wide stretch of time including
the present moment (neutral present)
Power corrupts.
A: i. imperfect, e.g.
.‫سفَن‬
َ ‫تجري الرياح بما ال تشتهي ال‬
ii. perfect, e.g.

.‫فاز باللذة الجسور‬
2. Reference to iterative activities taking place at the present time. This may include
habits, customs, repeated actions, etc.
E: i. present simple, e.g.
She calls her mother every Friday evening.
ii. present progressive, e.g.
She is always doing her homework when I call.
A: imperfect, e.g.
. ٍ‫نستمع إلى نشرة األخبار كل مساء‬
3. Reference to actions and states occurring at the present moment.
E: i. present progressive, e.g.
I can’t hear you. I am washing my hair.
ii. present simple, e.g.
I want a bigger share.
The present simple is used with stative verbs: verbs of sensory (see) and mental
(think) perception, volition (want), affection (love), measurement (weigh, and
relation (possess)
A: i. imperfect, e.g.
.‫يجري فرز األصوات اآلن‬
ii. participle, e.g.
.‫أنا قاد ٌم الساعة‬
4. Reference to present time in indirect speech.
E: In English reported (indirect) speech we have what is called backshift in the tense
of the VP if the reporting verb is in the past. Thus, statements made with a VP in
the present simple may have this tense shifted to the past simple. However, they
still indicate the present time, e.g.
54
He said he went there every morning.

A: No backshift is displayed in Arabic indirect speech. So, the imperfect is used to
indicate present time there too. Remember the note we mentioned about the relative
sense of the tenses in Arabic, e.g.
.‫قال إنه يذهب إلى هناك كل يوم‬
5. Reference to wishes and other hypothetical activities.
a. Present wishes, unexpected conditions
E: past simple (hypothetical past), e.g.
I wish you stated it more forcefully.
If I had a car, I would paint it purple.
A: i. perfect, e.g.
.‫أود لو تكتبها بشكل أفضل‬/‫أتمنى‬
ii. imperfect, e.g.
.‫لو كان عندي شيء لصرفته في وجوه الخير‬
b. Reference to present or future time in prayers
E: i. present subjunctive, e.g.
God bless you.
ii. may + V, e.g.
May God bless you.
A: perfect, e.g.
.‫حفظك هللا ووفقك‬
c. Use of performative verbs.
I hereby pronounce you man and wife.
A: perfect, e.g.
.‫ قبلت التزويج‬.‫زوجتك نفسي‬
d. Reference to present time in polite requests.
E: past simple, e.g.
Did you want to see me?
A: imperfect, e.g.
‫أتريد مني شيئا آخر ؟‬
6. Reference to negated present time activities.
5555
In English, the same negation pattern mentioned in the previous section is used, and
the choice of the form of the auxiliary do depends on the tense of the lexical verb.
John does not like fish. They do not encourage speculations.
In Arabic the negation of sentneces with an imperfect verb is achieved via the insertion
of the particle ‫ ال‬before the verb.
.‫ال يسلم الشرف الرفيع من األذى‬
3.2.3. Reference to future time

Reference to activities and states that take place in the future is usually combined with
other notions, or more explicitly, intervening factors- human and non-human. Reference to
future time actions, states, wishes, etc. is realized in Arabic and English differently, and
each language uses a variety of methods to achieve this. Mainly, the basic verb phrase, i.e.
the head verb, in its various forms, is utilized to do this. However, the two languages may
also resort to the modification of the verb phrase with the use of modals and particles, or
the use of independent structures.
In English, reference to future time events is achieved by the following devices:
1. use of specific VP forms: present simple ; present progressive

2. use of independent structures: be going to ; be to ; be about to
3. use of the modals : will , shall, etc..
In Arabic, reference to future time events or states is by:
1. use of specific verb forms : imperfect ; perfect ; active participle

2. use of modal ‫كان‬
3. use of preverbal particles: ‫ قد‬/ -‫ س‬/ ‫سوف‬
Futurity could be modified by other notions: temporal proximity or distance; intention;
arrangement and planning; progression; termination; conditionality; causality, etc.. We
shall take each of these and see how it is realized in each language.
1. Neutral reference to futurity
E: modal will + V (base form) e.g.

I’ll be here tomorrow.
A: imperfect + ‫ سوف‬or -‫ س‬, e.g.
56
. ‫سنراه صباحا‬ .‫سوف يكلمك مساء‬
2. Reference to futurity combined with intention

E: be going to + V (base form) e.g.,
We are going to fix that.
With non-volitional verbs, e.g. rain, the reference will be to a consequence of a present
cause, e.g.
It is going to rain.
A: imperfect + -‫ س‬, e.g.

. ‫ستسيل الدماء أنهارا‬ . ‫سنأتي بهم‬
3. Reference to future activities with prior arrangement and planning
a. Reference to pre-planned future activities
E: present progressive, e.g.
We are leaving for Berlin next week.
A: i. imperfect + -‫ س‬, e.g.

.‫سنسافر يوم الجمعة‬
ii. participle, e.g.

.‫مسافر غدا إن شاء هللا‬
ٌ ‫إني‬
b. Reference to future activities running according to schedules and timetables,

Our plane leaves in twenty minutes.
A: imperfect, e.g.
.‫تغادر طائرتنا الساعة السادسة‬
c. Reference to future activities believed to have been pre-arranged.
E: be to + V (base form), e.g.

She is to take the course again next semester.
A: imperfect + -‫ س‬, e.g.

.‫سيتولى إدارة المصنع‬
4. Reference to activities in the very near future
E: be about to + V (base form), e.g.

The plane is about to take off.
57
A: imperfect + ‫يوشك أن‬, e.g.

.‫توشك الطائرة أن تقلع‬
5. Futurity may be combined with conditionality. An action or a state may (or may not)
take place in the future depending on another action or state. In both languages, this is
expressed in complex sentences with conditional clauses. The verb phrase forms used differ
according to how realistic or unrealistic the conditions of the activity are.
In English, we have the following sequence of VP’s for realistic conditions
conditional clause main clause

present simple modal + V (base form)
If you ring the bell, someone will answer you.
For unrealistic hypothetical conditions, English uses the following sequence.

past simple past-modal + V (base form)
If she weren’t happy with that, she would make that obvious.
In Arabic, we may use either of the following patterns for realistic conditions.

i. imperfect imperfect +) _‫(س‬
.‫إن تدرس تنجح‬
ii. perfect+ ‫إذا‬ perfect / imperfect

.‫ يصوم الناس‬/‫إذا جاء رمضان صام‬
As for unrealistic hypothetical conditions, the following pattern is usually used:
perfect perfect
.‫لو جاءني لنبهته‬
6. Reference to futurity may also be combined with the progressive and perfect aspects, i.e.
the progression or termination of the action. We could talk about an action that will be in
progress at a certain point in the future. Similarly, we could make reference to an action
that is going to be terminated at a certain point in the future.
a. Reference to future activities in progress at a specific point in the future.
58
E: modal + be + V-ing , e.g.

In two weeks time, I will be lying in the sun in Hawaii.
A: participle +‫ يكون‬+_‫ س‬, e.g.

.‫حين تحين ساعة العمل سأكون حامال فأسي بيدي‬
b. Reference to future actions that will be terminated at a specific point in the future.
E: modal + have + V-en , e.g.

By the time you will see me tomorrow I’ll have sent all the reports.
A: perfect + ‫ قد‬+ ‫ يكون‬+ _‫ س‬, e.g.

.‫غدا صباحا سأكون قد أنجزت العمل‬
7. Negation of future activities
While English does not impose any particular method for this, Arabic employs the
negative particle ‫ لن‬followed by the imperfect to indicate negation of future actions or
states. We may look at this particle as the negative counterpart of the future prefix -‫ س‬.
Besides, we may use the standard negative particle ‫ ال‬before the imperfect in constructions
with preverbal ‫ سوف‬.
.‫سوف ال تجد فيها إال ما تشتهي‬ .‫لن تنالوا البر حتى تنفقوا مما تحبون‬
3.2.4. Comparing temporal reference in English and Arabic
The previous detailed account of the correspondences between the English and Arabic
shows how they express the different notions and concepts of temporal reference. They
may be summarized below.
1. The two languages are capable of expressing all the various notions and concepts of
temporal reference with their additional aspectual overtones.
2. Both languages offer more than one way of expressing these notions. In many
instances, a certain temporal reference can equally be conveyed by two or more
constructions.
3. In expressing these notions, the verb phrase components may not be limited to the
verb and the primary auxiliaries in English or the verb and the particle ‫ قذذذد‬and the
auxiliary ‫ كان‬in Arabic. More complex structures are sometimes used, as is seen in the
59
use of the modal will, or the (be-going-to) construction in English. Similarly, in Arabic
we find similar complex constructions such as those in which we use the verb ‫يوشذذذذك‬
followed by ‫ أن‬before an imperfect verb.
3.3. Mood
Another category that characterizes verb phrases is the category of mood. This refers to the
attitude of the speaker towards the events that he/she talks about, how real or hypothetical
they are, or how he/she intends them as statements, demands, wishes, etc. In both
languages, it is realized in particular changes in the form of the verb.
3.3.1. Mood in English
English verbs realize three moods: the indicative, the subjunctive, and the imperative
moods. The indicative mood is the most frequent and “unmarked” mood of the verb. It is
used when the speaker states some action or event, etc. In the expression of wishes and
hypothetical actions, the verb may take a different form (it assumes the base form) and is
said to be in the subjunctive mood. Compare between:
When he leaves, everybody will. (indicative: note the /–s/ inflection)

I demand that he leave now. (subjunctive: note the absence of the /–s/)
In modern English, the subjunctive mood is very limited in use. It is only used in:
a) subordinate that-clauses, after verbs, nouns, and adjectives indicating suggestion,

recommendation, demand, and resolution. In all these contexts, the modal should
followed by the verb in its base form may be used instead, e.g.
They suggest that she be / should be taken to the hospital.
b) formulaic expressions, e.g.

Long live the King . God bless you , So be it.
c) unlikely, hypothetical conditions and wishes, mainly realized by the use of were
instead of was.
If I were an apple on the tree, would you have a bite of me?
I wish I were a millionaire.
60
In imperative sentences, the verb is said to be in the imperative mood. The speaker is
not stating anything. Rather, he/she requests that some action be done in response. Again,
the verb in such sentences assumes its base form with no inflections.
Drop the gun from your hand.
3.3.2. Mood in Arabic
Four moods may be distinguished in Arabic. These are: the indicative, the subjunctive,
the jussive, and the energetic. They are restricted to the imperfect verb and are all realized
as inflectional suffixes on the basic imperfect form of this verb, mainly /-u/ ‫ يكتب‬for the
indicative, /-a/ ‫يكتذذب‬
َ for the subjunctive, /-ϕ/ ‫ يكتذذب‬for the jussive, /-nna/ ‫ يكتبَن‬for the
energetic. To these we may add a fifth mood, i.e. the imperative, in which the verb assumes
a distinct form from that of the imperfect form. In traditional Arabic grammar, it is
considered one of the three morpho-syntactic forms that the verb may assume: the perfect,
imperfect, and imperative. The subjunctive, jussive, and energetic moods are associated
with the use of specific particles that precede each, though the jussive may also be used in
certain types of clauses- e.g. conditional clauses - without such particles. These moods
generally indicate how the speaker psychologically sees and describes the action.
The indicative mood: This is the most frequently used, unmarked (neutral) mood that
the imperfect verb assumes. It is signalled by the inflectional suffix /-u/ on verbs that are
not inflected with number suffixes. As for the verb forms that end with inflectional suffixes
/-ni/, and /-na/, or those verbs with a final long vowel, the indicative mood suffix is zero,
e.g.
.‫في القرأن آيات تدل على الجبر وأخرى تدل على االختيار‬
‫إنما يخشى هللاَ من عباده العلماء‬ .‫يريدون ليطفئوا نور هللا‬
The subjunctive mood: This mood is used when the speaker subordinates the state or
action to another state or action. Thus, the subjunctive mood marks the verb in subordinate
clauses, e.g.
.‫يزور صديقه‬
َ ‫أراد محمد أن‬
One exception is that of the use of the subjunctive after the particle ‫ لن‬in main clauses,
e.g. ‫أذهب معك‬
َ ‫ لن‬. As was said above, it is signalled by the suffix /-a/ on imperfect verbs
61
that do not show number suffixes, by zero suffix if they end with the vowel/-a:/, and by
the deletion of /-na/ in 2m.s., 2f.s., 2m.p., and 3m.p. forms, and the deletion of /-ni/ in 2d.,
and 3d. forms. This mood is associated with the use of certain particles that are said to
‘govern’ it. These are:
a. ‫ أن‬that, )‫ أال (أن ال‬lest, e.g.

.‫يريد أن يرضى عنه كل الناس‬ ‫مامنعهم أال يؤمنوا ؟‬ .‫تأبى المروؤة أن تكونَ عليال‬
b. resultative ‫ لكي‬، ‫ كي‬، -‫ ل‬in order that ، ‫ لئال‬in order not, e.g.
.‫بكر في الحضور لئال تفوتَه المحاضرة‬ .‫سافروا إلى بغداد ليطمئنوا على أهليهم‬
.‫جاؤوا لكي ينتفعوا بعلمه‬ .‫تقر عينها‬
َ ‫ورجعناك إلى أمك كي‬
c. causative - ‫ فـ‬so that, e.g.

.‫ال تجالس الحمقى فتند َم‬
d. ‫ حتى‬until , e.g.
.‫لن تنالوا البر حتى تنفقوا‬
e. ‫ أو‬otherwise, e.g.
.‫فأقسم ليدخلَنها أو يقت َل‬
f. additive ‫ و‬, e.g.

.‫ال تنه عن خلق وتأت َ َي مثله‬
g. negative ‫ لن‬used to indicate negation of future actions, e.g.

.‫لن تقو َم لهم قائمة أبدا‬
The jussive mood: This mood is signalled by the absence of a suffix in those forms that
are otherwise inflected with /-u/ for the indicative, and/-a/ for the subjunctive. In forms
ending with /-na/ and /-ni/, the jussive mood is marked by the deletion of these inflections,
as is the case in the subjunctive mood. As for verbs that end with vowels, it is marked by
the shortening of that vowel. There are three contexts where the verb may be marked for
the jussive mood:
a. after the negative particles ‫ لم‬and ‫ لما‬.

.‫جعل يبكي ولما تصل القافلة‬ ‫ألم نجعل له عينين؟‬
b. in sentences expressing commands or wishes, with - ‫ لـ‬let, and negative ‫ ال‬.

.‫ال تنهَ عن خلق وتأتي مثله‬ .‫ليذهب كل منكم حيث يشاء‬
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c. in sentences showing conditions, usually with conditional particles: ،‫ مهما‬،‫ ما‬،‫ من‬،‫إن‬
‫ كيفما‬، ‫ حيثما‬،‫ متى‬،‫ أينما‬. In such sentences, both verbs (main and subordinate) will be
marked with the jussive mood.
.‫أينما تكونوا يصلكم الخبر‬ .‫ت منكن بفاحشة يضاعف لها العذاب‬
ِ ‫من يأ‬ .‫إن تدرس تنجح‬
The energetic mood: It is marked on the verb with the suffix /-nna/ on the subjunctive
form of the verb. In this mood, the verb conveys certainty and emphasis. It is used in the
following contexts.
a. Emphasis, usually with the prefix particle - ‫ لـ‬, e.g.

. ‫فلنأتينكم بجنود ال قبل لكم بها‬
b. In sentences expressing commands and prohibitions, with the particles - ‫ لـ‬and ‫ال‬
.‫ال تأمنَن لشيطان يلعب بهواك‬ .‫لتردن أموال الناس أو أقتلك‬
The imperative mood: A verb in this mood expresses the various shades of a directive:
commands, requests, orders, etc. As was said above, the verb in this mood assumes a
distinct form that differs from the perfect and imperfect. It is restricted to 2nd person forms
of the verb: s.m, s.f, d, p.m, and p.f. In basic, trilateral consonant roots, the morpho-
syntactic pattern used to derive this form is similar to that of the imperfect- i.e. a vowel
between the second and third radical consonants. To avoid beginning with a consonant
cluster the prefix /?i-/ is added, e.g. .‫ إقرأ باسذذذم ربك الذي خلق‬The usual number and gender
suffixes are also added.
َ‫العب – العبي – العبا – العبوا – العبن‬
In case no such cluster emerges, the prefix is not added. This is what we find in imperative
form of verbs like, ‫ عد‬، ‫ قل‬، ‫كل‬, e.g.
.‫كلوا مما رزقناكم‬ .‫اسعوا في مناكبها‬
In augmented (derived) verb stems, the same pattern obtains, e.g.

.‫احتفلوا بنصركم‬ .‫استخرجي معاني الكلمات‬
.‫تنبّها إلى الخطر‬ .‫تشاور مع من تثق به‬
The imperative mood does not mark the verbs in negative commands or prohibitions.
In such contexts, the imperfect verb in the jussive mood is used preceded by the negative
particle ‫ال‬, e.g. .‫ال تدخلوا من باب واحد‬
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3.3.3. Comparing mood in English and Arabic
In comparing mood in English and Arabic, the following points stand out.
1. In both languages, the verb may exhibit variation in form that is mainly determined by
the attitude of the speaker toward the activity that the verb expresses, which is termed
as mood.
2. In English and Arabic, besides the unmarked verb form, there are a number of other
forms, which are rather marked in that they are more restricted in their use.
3. In English, we may distinguish three moods. Besides the indicative, we have the
subjunctive, indicating hypothetical, unrealistic activities, found in wishes and
conditional contexts, and the imperative indicating requests, commands, and orders.
What differentiates these two forms of the verb from the neutral – indicative - form is
their lack of inflection for number, person or tense. They retain the bare base form of
the verb.
4. On the other hand, we may distinguish five moods in Arabic: the indicative,
subjunctive, energetic, jussive, and imperative. The first three are signalled by a specific
inflection on the imperfect verb form. The inflections are the suffixes: /-u/ or /-na/ for
the indicative, /-a/ or absence of /-na/ for the subjunctive, and the /-nna/ for the
energetic. The verb form in the jussive mood shows no suffix. Verbs whose final radical
is a long vowel have zero inflection for the indicative, and the subjunctive, and the
shortening of the final vowel in the jussive. Verb forms ending in the number
inflectional suffixs lose their final /-na/ or /-ni/ in the subjective and the jussive. The
verb in the imperative mood has a different pattern of inflection as was discussed above
in more detail.
5. The subjunctive mood indicates subordination of an activity to other activities in
general, the jussive mood indicates commands and conditional acts, the energetic mood
indicates emphasis, and the imperative indicates requests, orders, and commands.
6. In both languages, the use of specific verbal forms is associated with particular
syntactic constructions. In English, the use of the subjunctive form is restricted to
particular contexts: wishes, conditional clauses, and the like. The imperative is used in
a specific sentence type, which differs in its syntactic properties from the other types:
lack of subject, occurrence of reflexives, etc. In Arabic, the uses of the subjunctive and
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jussive verbal forms are similarly associated with the certain types of syntactic
constructions, e.g. conditional clauses, and with the presence of a particular set of
particles that are said to ‘govern’ the mood of the verb that they precede. Likewise, the
verb in the energetic mood is usually associated with vows, and again, with certain
lexical items indicating emphasis. The imperative verbal form is restricted in its use to
specific sentence type, i.e. imperative sentences.
3.4. Modality
This category concerns the formal characteristics of structures that reflect the speaker’s
attitude towards what he says, whether it is certain, possible, necessary, permissible,
obligatory, etc. Three types of modality may be distinguished. First, we have epistemic
modality, which involves only human judgements about what is possible or necessary, i.e.,
the notions of possibility and necessity. The second type is deontic modality, which
involves what is permitted or required, i.e. permission and obligation. The third type is
dynamic modality, which concerns some attribute or characteristic of the person or entity
involved in the action, i.e. ability and volition. Such notions are not conveyed by the
moods, i.e. the formal changes, of the verb, discussed above. Rather, they require the use
of other devices, such as the use of a specific sub-class of verbs (called modal auxiliaries),
or the subordination of the activity to PP’s, AdjP’s, and NP’s, in more complex structures.
We shall deal with each of the notions separately and see the various methods the two
languages employ to express it.
3.4.1. Modality in English
In English, the burden of expressing these notions falls mainly on the verb phrase- i.e. via
the use of the various modal auxiliary verbs within the verb phrase. Besides, English makes
use of other constructions to express these notions. One such method is the subordination
of the intended proposition to such adjectives as necessary, possible, obligatory, etc.., or
adverbs as possibly, necessarily, maybe etc…
We may add a small note here concerning the so-called ‘past tense’ modals like might,
would, could, etc. Generally, these do not indicate reference to past time modalities. Rather,
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they express a more tentative attitude towards the activity; which would render them as a
more polite method of expressing the modalities.
3.4.2. Modality in Arabic
To express such notions as the ones under discussion, Arabic uses particles like ‫ قد‬and
others before the verb. However, most of these notions are expressed by verbs or
preposition phrases, which subordinate the intended proposition, i.e. take the sentence as
their complement. We have verbs like ‫ يجب‬،‫ ينبغي‬،‫ يحتمل‬،‫ يجوز‬and preposition phrases like
‫ لك‬،‫ عليك‬،‫ من الواجب‬،‫ ربما‬،‫ من الجائز‬،‫ من الممكن‬. Again, it is possible, in both Arabic and English,
to express a specific notion in more than one construction.
The following is a detailed account of how these different modality notions are
expressed in English and Arabic.
1. Epistemic modality
possibility
E: a. can, e.g.
Everybody can make mistakes.
b) may, e.g.
You may encounter some problems.
c) (maybe , it is possible, possibly)
Maybe you are right.
(could and might express more tentative statements)
A: a. imperfect +‫قد‬, e.g.
. ‫قد يصل الكتاب غدا‬
b. verbs: ‫ يمكن‬, e.g.
. ‫يمكن أن يكون قد وصل‬
c. particles :‫ ربما‬، ‫; لعل‬e.g.
.‫لعلها تنجح هذه المرة‬
d. PP’s : ‫ من المحتمل‬،‫من الممكن‬, e.g.
.‫من الممكن أن تجدها في تلك الرفوف‬
necessity (logical necessity)
E: a. must ( it is necessary, necessarily),e.g.
She must be sick. I don’t have any other explanation for her absence.
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bd. can’t (neg), e.g.

She can’t be here. I‘d have seen her. (impossible)
ce. need, have(got)to, e.g.
Need you talk to him?
A: a. ‫ البد‬e.g.
.‫البد أنها في البيت‬
b. ‫ من المستحيل‬e.g.
. ‫من المستحيل أن يكون نائما اآلن‬
c. ‫ من الضروري‬e.g.
‫هل من الضروري أن نذهب سوية؟‬
2. Deontic modality
permission
E: modal can , may e.g.
You may / can leave now if you want to.
A: ‫ بإستطاعتك‬، ‫ تستطيع‬، ‫ بإمكانك‬، ‫لك‬
. ‫ تستطيعون جلب قواميسكم‬/‫ باستطاعتكم‬/‫بإمكانكم‬ .‫لك أن تغادر اآلن إن شئت‬
obligation
E: modal must , have (got) to , should, ought to, e.g.
You must leave at once.
You have to be there at 7 am.
They should present two papers.
They ought to know what is expected of them.
Negation of obligation is with needn’t, don’t have-to, e.g. You don’t have to type it.
Compare this with You mustn’t type it, which is still an obligation but not to do something.)
A: a. verbs: ‫ ينبغي‬، ‫ يجب‬, e.g.
.‫ينبغي أن تقدم أوراقك بدون تأخير‬ .‫يجب عليها القيام بكل ذلك‬
b. PP’s: ‫ من الواجب‬، ‫ عليك‬, e.g.
.‫عليك أن تهذب نفسك‬
Negation is with ‫ ال يلزم‬، ‫ ليس عليك‬, e.g.
.‫ال يلزم أن تصور الشهادة‬
3. Dynamic modality
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ability
E: modal can , e.g.
He can easily do it if he wants to.
(could refers usually to ability in the past.)
A: a. verbs : ، ‫ يمكن‬، ‫ يستطيع‬, e.g.
. ‫يستطيع محمد أن يقود هذه الشاحنة‬
. ‫يمكنها التحدث باإلنجليزية بطالقة‬
b. PP : . ‫ بإمكانه‬, e.g.
.‫بإمكانهم المبيت هنا‬
volition ( intention and willingness)
E: modal will, shall
Don’t worry. I’ll find a way to solve it. We shall overcome.
We’ll repay you for any malfunctions.
A: preverbal particles: -‫ س‬، ‫ سوف‬, e.g.
. ‫سوف نزرع األرض سيوفا‬ .‫سأفعل ما بوسعي‬.
prediction
E: modal will , shall, e.g.
After taking this tablet, you’ll feel better.
A: preverbal particles: -‫ س‬، ‫سوف‬, e.g.
.‫ستبدي لك األيام ما كنت جاهال‬
3.4.3. Comparing English and Arabic modality
1. As noticed from the detailed account above, English and Arabic do not use the same
devices to convey the different notions of modality. While English makes extensive use
of the special category of the modal auxiliaries for this purpose, Arabic seems to depend
on high verbs, PP’s, or AdjP’s that have the proposition subordinated to them, to convey
such notions. English may similarly use adverbial, adjectival, or nominal constructions
to express these notions.
2. Arabic does not seem to have any counterpart to the English modals that share their
characteristics. The modals in English constitute a well-defined closed system of verbs
that may be distinguished from other verbs via a certain number of specific features.
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3. Many notions could be expressed by more than one modal in English (with probably
very subtle differences), or by one verb or PP in Arabic. On the other hand, one modal,
verb, or PP may express more than one notion.
4. There is no unique (one-to-one) relation between the devices used in one language and
their counterparts in the other. Nor would we find one equivalent in Arabic for a certain
modal expressing a specific modal notion in English. Each of the notions discussed
above may be conveyed by one method in one language, but by more than one in the
other, and vice versa.
Exercises
1. We would like you to read the list of similarities and differences in any one of the
comparison sections. Read the description of the relevant topic in English and
Arabic, and see if you could add other points of similarity and difference that were
not mentioned.
2. And, what other topics have not been discussed concerning the verb phrase and the
verb? Find one, or more, provide a description for it in both languages and list those
points where the two languages are similar and where they differ. (the verb
complementation; double-object verbs; verbs with non-finite clause complements)
3. With an eye on the verb tenses, list down the various types of conditional sentences
in English and find out what corresponds to each in Arabic.
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Chapter Four
Pronouns
4.1. Pronouns
4.2. Personal pronouns
4.2.1. English personal pronouns
4.2.2. Arabic personal pronouns
4.2.3. Comparing English and Arabic personal pronouns
4.3. Possessive pronouns
4.3.1. Possessive pronouns in English
4.3.2. Possessive pronouns in Arabic
4.3.3. Comparing English and Arabic possessive pronouns
4.4. Reflexive pronouns
4.4.1. Reflexive pronouns in English
4.4.2. Reflexive pronouns in Arabic
4.4.3. Comparing reflexive pronouns in English and Arabic
4.5. Demonstrative pronouns
4.5.1. Demonstrative pronouns in English
4.5.2. Demonstrative pronouns in Arabic
4.5.3. Comparing demonstrative pronouns in English and Arabic
4.6. Relative pronouns
4.6.1. Relative pronouns in English
4.6.2. Relative pronouns in Arabic
4.6.3. Comparing relative pronouns in English and Arabic
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4.1. Pronouns
Pronouns constitute a special category of proforms. They stand for noun phrases. In this,
they stand in a particular relation to their antecedents, making their reference usually an
anaphoric reference, but sometimes a cataphoric one. They are subdivided into different
classes. In the following sections, we are going to discuss personal pronouns, possessive
pronouns, reflexive pronouns, demonstrative pronouns, and relative pronouns
4.2. Personal pronouns
Personal pronouns are a special class of pronouns. They replace noun phrases with which
they share reference. Because these pronouns stand for the whole noun phrase, and not
merely the head noun, we do not find them, or any other kind of pronoun, preceded by a
determiner. They usually replace noun phrases in their function as subjects and objects.
4.2.1. English personal pronouns
Personal pronouns in English exhibit person, number, gender, and case contrasts. The
following table shows these contrasts.
person Number& gender nominative accusative

singular I me
1st plural we us
singular you you
2nd plural you you
sing. masc. he him
sing. fem. she her
3rd sing. neuter it it
plural they them
We have 1st, 2nd, and 3rd person pronouns. 1st and 3rd person pronouns exhibit number
distinction between singular and plural forms. No distinction in number is made in 2nd
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person pronouns in Modern English. Gender contrast is limited only to 3rd person singular
pronouns, which have separate forms for the masculine, feminine and neuter genders. No
such distinction is made in 1st person and 2nd person pronouns, nor in the 3rd person plural
pronoun.
Personal pronouns exhibit case contrast. Their forms differ depending on their
grammatical function. Subjective pronouns are used in subject-like positions, where they
are said to be in the nominative case. In object-like positions, they are in their objective
form and are in the accusative case. The exceptions are the 2nd person pronoun, and 3rd
person singular neuter pronoun which retain the same form for both cases.
function
As their name indicates, subjective personal pronouns function as subjects of sentences,

e.g.
He managed to do it. They would like to visit.
Likewise, objective pronouns function as direct and indirect objects, objects of

prepositions, i.e. preposition complements, objects of comparison, and linking verb
complements, e.g.
We saw her. Give me a penny! John looked at them with awe.
Susan is younger than him. It is her.
In this last function as a linking verb complement, both forms of the pronoun may be
encountered, e.g. It is I and It is me. The choice is dependent upon criteria of
appropriateness of use, and formality.
One last point that needs to be mentioned is the constraint placed on the use of personal
pronouns. These pronouns cannot co-occur with their antecedents, i.e. the noun phrases
that are co-referential with, in the same simple sentence. They must be free in this small
domain. As will be mentioned later, this is where a reflexive pronoun is used, e.g. *Susani
saw heri in the mirror. Susani saw herselfi in the mirror.
Susan and her cannot refer to the same person in the first sentence.
4.2.2. Arabic personal pronouns
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Personal pronouns in Arabic exhibit person, number, gender, and case contrasts. This is
what we see in the table below. We have 1st, 2nd, and 3rd person pronouns. The number
contrast in 1st person pronouns is binary; there are only singular and plural pronouns. In 2nd
and 3rd person pronouns, the number contrast is ternary. Here, we have singular, dual, and
plural pronouns.
free bound
Sub. Obj. Obj.
1st singular common ‫أنا‬ ‫إياي‬ ‫ـني‬

plural common ‫نحن‬ ‫إيانا‬ ‫ـنا‬
singular masc َ‫أنت‬ َ‫إياك‬ َ‫ـك‬
fem ‫ت‬
ِ ‫أن‬ ‫إياك‬
ِ ‫ ِك‬-
2nd dual common ‫أنتما‬ ‫إياكما‬ ‫كما‬-
plural masc ‫أنتم‬ ‫إياكم‬ ‫كم‬-
fem ‫أنتن‬ ‫إياكن‬ ‫كن‬-
singular masc ‫هو‬ ‫إياه‬ ‫ه‬-
fem ‫هي‬ ‫إياها‬ ‫ها‬-
dual common ‫هما‬ ‫إياهما‬ ‫هما‬-
3rd plural masc ‫هم‬ ‫إياهم‬ ‫هم‬-
fem ‫هن‬ ‫إياهن‬ ‫هن‬-
As for gender, 2nd and 3rd person pronouns show gender contrast. They have distinct
singular and plural masculine and feminine forms. However, 2nd , 3rd dual pronouns, and
1st person pronouns do not show gender contrast. First person pronouns are common for
both genders. We also need to note, that similar to the personal and nonpersonal distinction
in nouns, the use of personal pronouns exhibits this distinction. In fact we could say this
about all types of pronouns. Pronouns standing for plural nonpersonal noun phrases are in
the 3rd singular feminine form, e.g.
.‫ وهي التي أبحث عنها عند باعة الكتب‬.‫الكتب القديمة كنز‬
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All pronouns show case distinction. However, the contrast here is more restricted than
that found in nouns. Pronouns in Arabic have two forms: one is used when a pronoun is in
the nominative case, and is duly called the subjective form, or pronoun; the other is used
to indicate the accusative and genitive cases and is called the objective form. Pronouns in
Arabic do not have a distinct form indicating the genitive case.
On the other hand, Arabic personal pronouns are sub-classified into free pronouns and
bound pronouns. This is shown in the above table. You will see that the free pronouns
have two forms each, one signaling the nominative case and the second the accusative case.
The bound pronouns occur only as objects of verbs, objects of preposition or determiners
of head nouns in construct state constructions. They signal the accusative and the genitive
case, and have the same form when affixed to either the perfect and imperfect forms of the
verb.
The above table may look incomplete to some of you. There are no bound subjective
pronouns as is stipulated by traditional Arabic grammarians. Traditional description of
Arabic considers all verbal suffix inflections as pronouns. In this discussion, except for the
objective pronouns, all other suffixes that we find with the verbs will be considered
inflectional suffixes marking the agreement with the subject in person, number and gender.
They are not subjective pronouns. These inflectional suffixes differ in their form after
perfect and imperfect verbal stems as the underlined elements in the following examples
indicate.
perfect: . َ‫ أكلن‬،‫ أكلوا‬، ‫ أكلتا‬، ‫ أكال‬، ‫ أكلتن‬، ‫ أكلتم‬، ‫ أكلتما‬، ‫ت‬

ِ ‫ أكل‬، َ‫أكلت‬، ‫ أكلنا‬، ‫أكلت‬
imperfect: . ‫ يأكلن‬، ‫ يأكلون‬، ‫ تأكالن‬، ‫ يأكالن‬، ‫ تأكلن‬، ‫ تأكلون‬،‫ تأكالن‬،‫تأكلين‬
Besides these overt pronouns, free and bound, traditional Arabic grammarians talk
about ‘covert’ subjective pronouns, which do not have a surface form. These are mainly
proposed to function as subjects in sentences that lack a free subject, or whose verbs lack
the suffix inflections that the grammarians consider ‘bound’ subjective pronouns. Within
this tradition, the following subjectless ‘sentences’ have ‘covert’ subjective pronouns.
‫سم‬
َ ‫ بما يق‬/ ‫ تفرح‬، ‫ يفرح‬، ‫ تفرح‬، ‫ نفرح‬، ‫ أفرح‬، ‫فرحَت‬
ِ ، ‫فر َح‬
Alternatively, we may suggest that Arabic, like many other languages is a subject-drop
language, which allows the subject of the sentence to be dropped ‘deleted’, when the
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information about it can be retrieved from the subject agreement features on the verb, i.e.
person, number and gender. Therefore, in all the above examples, we posit that the subject
has been dropped.
function
Free subjective pronouns are not usually found as subjects that occur after the verbs, except
in contexts of emphasis, ‫جاء هو بنفسه‬. We find them as topics, of nominal sentences, with
or without a verb, i.e. those beginning with nouns, e.g. ‫ أنا أرجو خيرأ‬، ‫هو قادم‬. They may also
function as focus elements in a medial position between the topic and its comment in such
sentences as ‫ محمد هو القادم‬. Besides functioning as a focus operator, it has the effect of
ensuring that the relationship between the two elements is that of predication rather than
that of modification. The construction ‫ محمد القادم‬may be understood not only as a sentence
meaning ‘Mohammed is coming’ but also as a noun phrase ‘the coming Mohammed’.
These pronouns may occur after the restrictive ‫ إال‬,e.g. ‫ ما جاء إال هو‬. They come after
the particle ‫أما‬, e.g. ‫أما أنا فكما علمت‬. They could also be used in emphatic contexts after the
bound subject or object, e.g. ‫ رأيتها هي‬، ‫ جاءوا هم‬.
Free objective pronouns occur in direct or indirect object positions when they are pre-
posed to a pre-verb position, e.g.
.‫إياك أعني واسمعي يا جارة‬
ِ .‫إياكَ نعبد وإياكَ نستعين‬
Like their subjective counterparts, only the free objective pronouns appear after the
exception particle ‫إال‬, e.g. ‫ما قصدت إال إياكم‬. They may also be used to avoid the occurrence
of two bound object pronouns, probably for focusing reasons too. Besides the form ‫تلبسناها‬,
in which we have two objective bound pronouns functioning as the direct and indirect
object, there is the equivalent ‫ تلبسنا إياها‬where the direct object is a free objective pronoun.
Only the indirect object is bound as a pronominal suffix to the verb.
Bound objective pronouns function as direct objects, indirect objects, objects of
prepositions, and as determiners of head nouns in construct state constructions
‫ هذي ديارهم‬، ‫ عليكَ توكلت‬، ‫ أعطانا إياه‬،‫رأيتهم‬
In this last function, they are equivalent to the English possessive pronouns.
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Like English, Arabic personal pronouns cannot co-occur with their antecedents, i.e.
noun phrases that refer to the same entities, in the same simple sentence. Thus, we cannot
say ‫ محمد أعده لالمتحان‬if the underlined object pronoun refers to the noun phrase ‫ محمد‬. We
have to say ‫ محمد أعد نفسه لالمتحان‬, using the underlined reflexive pronoun. Personal
pronouns must be free in the domain of the simple sentence. .
4.2.3. Comparing English and Arabic personal pronouns
1. English and Arabic personal pronouns show contrast in person, number, gender and
case.
2. In both languages, personal pronouns must be free in the simple sentences they occur
in, i.e., they cannot share reference with any element in that domain.
3. The details of the above-mentioned similarities in gender, number, and case are not
the same. The two languages reveal some differences. For example, gender contrast in
English pronouns is limited to the third person singular. In Arabic, it extends to all
second and third person singular and plural pronouns. The dual forms do not show such
distinction. Arabic also shows a contrast in the use of pronouns between personal and
nonpersonal reference.
4. Number distinction in English is obliterated in the second person pronouns. In Arabic,
we have the three-way number distinction extending to second and third person
pronouns.
5. Differences between the two languages can be seen in the form of the pronouns. While
they are free morphemes in English, in Arabic they are both, free morphemes and bound
morphemes.
6. The difference between English and Arabic extends to the function of the personal
pronouns. Subjective pronouns in English function as subjects (nominative case
environment) and objective pronouns function as objects of verbs and of prepositions
(accusative case environment). This is not the case in Arabic. There seems to be some
division of labour between free and bound pronouns. Free subjective pronouns occur in
topic positions, where they precede the verb, in nominal sentences and in other generally
focusing positions after focusing particles ‫ إال‬and ‫ أما‬. So are the objective free pronouns,
which occur in focus positions when preposed to the beginning of the sentence, after a
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focusing particle, and when we attempt to avoid the suffixation of two bound object
morphemes to the verb. Bound objective pronouns function as objects of verbs (in
accusative case positions), as objects of prepositions and as determiners in construct
state relations (in genitive case positions). In this last function, they are like possessive
pronouns in English.
4.3. Possessive pronouns
Possessive pronouns are those pronouns that replace noun phrases in their genitive
function, i.e. those with [’s] in English.
4.3.1. Possessive pronouns in English
We reserve this term to those pronouns that replace noun phrases in the genitive case in
English. As the table below shows, they formally differ from subjective and objective
personal pronouns. Therefore, they make a separate subcategory of pronouns. Depending
on their function, possessive pronouns may be of two forms.
Singular plural
1st my mine our ours
2nd your yours your yours
rd
3 masc. his his
3rd fem. her hers their theirs
3rd neut. its its
The first form in each pair is used when the pronoun functions as a determiner of a head
noun, e.g. Your wishes are my orders. The second form is used when the pronoun replaces
the whole noun phrase that is made of the head noun and the determiner genitive noun
phrase, in what has been termed as ‘genitive with ellipsis’. This is its pronominal function,
e.g.
Jane’s grade is higher than yours; mine is even higher.
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In English, a possessive pronoun can be coreferential with another noun phrase in the same
simple sentence, e.g. Janei injured heri finger while slicing the bread.
4.3.1. Possessive pronouns in Arabic
We can hardly talk about the existence of ‘possessive’ pronouns in Arabic, since we do not
have a distinct form for such pronouns. If we assume that they exist, then these possessive
pronouns have the same forms of the bound objective pronouns displayed in the table of
the personal pronouns in Arabic, and they have only one function, i.e. that of a determiner
in a noun phrase. In our discussion of bound objective pronouns in Arabic we said that
besides their functions as objects of verbs and of prepositions, they also function as
determiners of nouns in a construct state construction, e.g. ، ‫ كتابهما‬، ‫ قضيتنا‬،‫ جارهم‬، ‫صديقي‬
‫جامعتكن‬. They do not have a pronominal function in the sense that their English counterparts
do.
Similar to English, these pronouns can co-occur with their antecedents in the same
simple sentence, e.g ‫وشطيه والجرف والمنحنى‬ ‫سالم على هضبات العراق‬
4.3.3. Comparing English and Arabic possessive pronouns
1. While we can isolate a special set of possessive pronouns in English, we cannot do the
same for Arabic. In Arabic, the bound objective pronouns are the possible counterparts
of the English possessive pronouns. Again, we are assuming the existence of
‘possessive’ pronouns in Arabic for the sake of comparison.
2. English possessive pronouns realize two functions: a determiner function and a
pronominal function. Their Arabic counterparts function only as determiners. They are
always preceded by the head noun, and are said to be in the genitive case.
3. English possessive pronouns have two forms, each associated with one of the above
functions. The Arabic ‘possessive’ pronouns have only one form, identical to that of
the bound objective personal pronouns.
4. In Arabic, these pronouns display a wider contrast in number and gender than their
English counterparts. This point was discussed in more detail when we compared the
personal pronouns in the two languages.
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5. In both languages, these pronouns can occur with their coreferential noun phrases in
the same simple sentence.
4.4. Reflexive pronouns
Reflexive pronouns are a special category of pronouns sometimes called ‘anaphors’.

They replace coreferential nouns phrases in the same simple sentence.
4.4.1. Reflexive pronouns in English
Reflexive pronouns in English are compound forms made of –self prefixed by a

pronominal element, either of the objective or possessive form.
1st 2nd 3rd

myself yourself himself, herself, itself
ourselves yourselves themselves
function
These pronouns are used in two functions: emphatic and reflexive. In their emphatic
function they stand in apposition to a preceding co-referential noun phrase. Normally the
pronoun follows itimmediately, but sometimes it is extraposed to the end of the sentence.
The king himself ordered it.
The king ordered it himself.
In their reflexive function, they usually occur in direct object, indirect object or object
of preposition positions. In all these positions, they require the existence in the same simple
sentence of an antecedent – i.e. a NP with which they are co-referential.
She wants to find herself a small house near the lake.
They gave themselves the vacation they have long deserved.
Aren’t you ashamed of yourself?
4.4.2. Reflexive pronouns in Arabic
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In Arabic, there is a special group of forms that we would like to call ‘reflexive’ or ‘self-’
pronouns, though they were never recognized as such in traditional descriptions of Arabic
grammar. These forms realize the same functions realized by the reflexive pronouns in
English. They consist of the noun ‫ نفس‬or its plural ‫ أنفس‬suffixed by a objective pronoun,
marked for the genitive case. The combination of the head noun and the pronoun is an
instance of construct state construction, i.e. a determiner pronoun and a head noun. The
following table shows that they preserve the usual distinctions found in other pronouns in
person, number and gender.
1st 2nd 3rd

singular ‫نفسي‬ ‫نفسك‬ ‫ نفسها‬،‫نفسه‬
dual ‫ نفسيكما‬،‫ نفساكما‬،‫نفساهما‬
‫نفسيهما‬
plural ‫ أنفسكن أنفسنا‬،‫أنفسكم‬ ‫ أنفسهن‬،‫أنفسهم‬
Following the general observation we made about gender contrast between personal and
nonpersonal nouns, self-pronouns in Arabic is another category which exhibits contrast
between reference to personal and nonpersonal antecedents, when these are of plural
number. With plural nonpersonal antecedents, the pronoun retains its third person feminine
singular form ‫ نفسها‬, whereas for personal feminine plural antecedents the pronoun has the
feminine plural form ‫أنفسهن‬, e.g.
.‫برأت الدول المحتلة نفسها من جريمة االحتالل‬ .‫النساء لمن أنفسهن على قلة الطعام‬
function
Similar to their namesakes in English, these forms have two functions: emphatic and
reflexive. In their emphatic function they usually follow the NP they stand in apposition
to, e.g. . ‫هذه هي اللوحة الضائعة نفسها‬
In their reflexive function, these forms are constrained by the condition that they must
be preceded by an antecedent, a noun phrase with which they are co-referential, in the same
simple sentence. Hence, they can only act as direct objects, indirect objects, and objects of
prepositions. In each case, the first element of the form ‫ نفس‬or ‫ أنفس‬will be inflected for
the appropriate case, i.e. the accusative or the genitive, e.g.
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. ‫جنت على نفسِها براقش‬ .‫سها زجاجة عطر‬

َ ‫أهدت زينب نف‬ .‫سهم‬
َ ‫التأمنن رجاال يمدحون أنف‬
We may note here that in the last example, the antecedent, which is the subject of the
sentence, follows the reflexive pronoun that has been preposed for focusing reasons.
4.4.3. Comparing reflexive pronouns in English and Arabic
1. In both English and Arabic, these perform the same two roles: emphatic pronouns and
reflexive pronouns.
2. The conditions that govern their use as reflexives are the same in the two languages.
They require antecedents in their simple sentence. These antecedents have to be higher
than the reflexive pronouns in sentence structure. Hence, the identity of their functions
as direct objects, indirect objects and objects of preposition, in both languages.
3. The differences mainly concern their form. Though they are compound forms in both
languages, they still exhibit formal differences. In English, they act as single units,
whereas in Arabic, the first element, which constitutes the base, shows contrast and case
inflection depending on its function. They may thus be said to be instances of a construct
state construction between a determiner pronominal noun phrase and a head noun.
4. These forms show the differences that were observed between the pronominal units in
the two languages. These concern the differences in number and gender inflections. In
English, no case-related variation is observed in the form of the pronominal elements
because they are inflected for the same– i.e. accusative, case . Similarly, the pronominal
elements do not show case-related difference in their from in Arabic. This is because
these pronouns are always in their bound objective forms. It is the form they have when
suffixed to the first element in a construct state construction.
4.5. Demonstrative pronouns
Demonstratives are deictic elements in that they primarily refer to the location of the
utterance, in terms of proximity or distance. By making use of demonstratives, languages
are able to indicate different points along the spatial distance. Besides their determinative
function in the noun phrase, demonstratives may function as pronouns replacing the noun
phrase.
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4.5.1. Demonstrative pronouns in English
Demonstrative pronouns in English show contrast in number and proximity as the table
below shows.
singular plural
proximal this these
distal that those
As mentioned above, demonstratives in English have two functions: determinative and

pronominal, depending on whether they function as determiners within a noun phrase
followed by the modifiers and the head noun, e.g. This new building is spacious. In their
pronominal function they stand for the whole NP, e.g. Those were the days.
We dealt with the determinative use of demonstratives in Chapter 2 in our discussion of
the determiner system in the noun phrase. Here, we will be concerned with their
pronominal use. Demonstratives may refer to material that precedes or follows them in the
linguistic context. Thus, they have anaphoric or cataphoric reference, depending on their
relation to their antecedents, e.g.
I lost all contact with them. This was frustrating. (anaphoric)
This is all that I heard. “We are here to stay.” (cataphoric)
In the first example, the demonstrative this refers to ‘loosing contact with them’, which
precedes it in the linguistic context. In the second sentence, this refers to the proposition
‘we are here to stay’, which follows it.
Besides, demonstratives may have exophoric reference when their reference depends
on the outside world situation and not on the linguistic context. We could imagine someone
doing something that the other person highly appreciates and so responds with e.g.
This is so nice of you.
Furthermore, proximity, which determines the choice between this and that, and these
and those, needs not be physical. It could be psychological. Notice the difference between,
e.g. This is good. Thank you.
and That was nasty. You shouldn’t have said it.
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4.5.2. Demonstrative pronouns in Arabic
Arabic demonstratives show contrast in proximity, number, gender, and case. This last
contrast is limited to the dual forms. They are either proximal or distal, singular, dual, or
plural, masculine or feminine, and for the dual demonstratives, they are either in the
nominative or accusative case.
singular dual plural

nom acc & gen
proximal masc. ‫هذا‬ ‫هذان‬ ‫هذين‬ ‫هؤالء‬

fem. ‫هذه‬ ‫هاتان‬ ‫هاتين‬
distal masc. ‫ذلك‬ ‫ذانك‬ ‫ذينك‬ ‫أولئك‬
fem. ‫تلك‬ ‫تانك‬ ‫تينك‬
Like English demonstratives, Arabic demonstratives realize two functions: a

determinative function when they function as pre-determiners occupying a position before
the definite article, and a pronominal function when they stand for the whole noun phrase.
We dealt with the first function in Chapter 2 above in our discussion of the determiners.
The following are examples of these two functions
determinative: .‫ذلك الكتاب ال ريب فيه‬

pronominal: .‫هذا كثيب قديم‬
As you could see from the table above, the gender distinction is neutralized for the
plural. Referring to plural masculine and feminine referents is with the same form.
However, we should remember that this is the case only with personal referents, i.e. nouns
referring to humans. In cases of reference to plural nonpersonal referents, the singular
feminine form of these demonstratives is used, e.g.
.‫كافئت المديرة هؤالء وعاقبت أولئك‬ ‫هل سمعت بذلك ؟‬

.‫هذان خصمان اختصموا في ربهم‬ .‫أولئك آبائي فجئني بمثلهم‬
.‫تلك عهود بائدة‬ .‫هذه عادات قديمة‬
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In addition to proximity and number contrast, dual forms show case contrast too. The
first form signals the nominative case, and the second signals the accusative and genitive
case
.‫مررت بهذين صباحا‬ .‫أريد هذين الكتابين‬ .‫هاتان صديقتان افترقتا‬
In their reference, Arabic demonstratives may depend on the outside world situation.
The sentence ‫ هذا غريب‬in response to seeing something unexpected, is an example of
exophoric reference. However, the reference of these demonstratives basically depends on
the linguistic context in which they occur. Here, they are said to have either an anaphoric
or a cataphoric reference depending on their position in relation to that of their
antecedent’s.
anaphoric : .‫هذا ما أتمناه‬ .‫سأعطيك أمواال وضياعا‬

cataphoric: .‫يقال إن األرض قد زلزلت‬ ‫هل سمعت بهذا ؟‬
Like in English, proximity, which determines the choice of the demonstrative, may not
be physical. It could be psychological.
physical .‫ عليك بهذا ودع ذلك لزيد‬،‫في الغرفة كرسيان‬

psychological: .‫ذلك من آيات هللا‬ .‫هذا حديث شيق‬
Furthermore, Arabic demonstratives may follow a definite noun phrase where they
appear to have an emphatic function. This is the case when they occur with proper nouns
or with head nouns suffixed by a genitive pronoun or followed by a genitive noun phrase.
. ‫ال تدع قول الحق هذا‬ .‫كتابك هذا ممتع‬ .‫علي هذا لم يسجد لصنم‬
4.5.3. Comparing demonstratives in English and Arabic
1. Demonstratives in English and Arabic show similarity in their function. In both

languages, they realize a determinative or a pronominal function.
2. The two languages share the proximity and number contrasts in their demonstratives,
allowing for the differences in the number systems in English and Arabic: a binary
system in the former, and a ternary one in the latter.
3. In both languages, proximity may be physical or psychological
4. The reference of the demonstratives in both Arabic and English mainly depends on the
linguistic context, but could also be related to the outside world context.
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5. In both languages, pronominal demonstratives exhibit anaphoric or cataphoric

reference in relation to their antecedents in the sentence.
6. Only Arabic demonstratives exhibit gender contrast in the singular and dual. English
demonstratives do not exhibit case contrast. Plural demonstratives in Arabic show a
personal-nonpersonal reference contrast. The plural demonstratives are only used in the
reference to, or occurrence with, plural personal nouns. With plural nonpersonal
antecedents, the form of the demonstrative used is that of the singular feminine.
7. Arabic demonstratives may also occur after and not before the head noun.
4.6. Relative pronouns
Relative pronouns are elements used to link modifying (adjectival) clauses within a noun
phrase. In both English and Arabic, we find such post-modifying clauses that are called
‘relative clauses’, and which begin with certain elements that are conventionally called
‘relative pronouns’. These elements substitute for, or copy, noun phrases inside the relative
clauses that are co-referential with the head noun. The noun phrase that the relative pronoun
repplaces or copies is called the relativized NP. We will discuss relative clauses in more
detail in Chapter 10 below.
4.6.1. Relative pronouns in English
Relative pronouns in English show personal vs. nonpersonal contrast. They also show
case contrast. Personal relative pronouns are who (nominative) replacing the subject of the
relative clause; whom (accusative) replacing the object of the verb and the prepositional
complement; and whose (genitive) replacing the determiner. There is one nonpersonal
pronoun, which, that does not show any case contrast. Consider the following.
the professor who gave the lecture is … ….. the girl who(m) I met there.
..the president whose strategy was to lie.. … the book which she bought…..
In English, a distinction is made between two types of relative clauses: restrictive and
non-restrictive relative clauses. This distinction affects the choice and the distribution of
the relative pronouns. Restrictive relatives help restrict the reference of the head noun,
while non-restrictive relatives add information to an already specified head noun. While
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the former allow the relative pronoun to be deleted or replaced by the complementizer that,
no such action is admissible in the latter, as we will see later.
The girl (who/ ø/that) I married is blonde.
John, who was unhappy with his job, left the town suddenly.
function
As was said above, relative pronouns replace noun phrases, i.e. relativized NP’s, within
the relative clause, which are co-referential with the antecedent, i.e. the head noun that the
relative clause modifies. The pronoun who replaces a subject and informally the object.
I met the man who -----won the first prize in the lottery.
The woman who you met ---- in the reception is a well-known novelist.
That old man who you were talking to ------- used to work for the FBI.
whom replaces relativized object NP’s in formal contexts and replaces prepositional
complements when the preposition is moved to the beginning of the clause.
Those were the officials whom we expected--- to attend the convention.
The girl with whom you were exchanging addresses--- is my girlfriend.
whose replaces determiner NP’s, which are in the genitive case. The head noun moves
with it to the beginning of the sentence.
The girl whose book I borrowed--- --- thought I would buy it from her.
which replaces nonpersonal NP’s whether they are subjects, direct objects, or objects of
prepositions.
This is the cat which --- ate the sausage.
The computer which I am using--- now is not mine.
The books to which he usually refers--- are out of print.
It may also refer not to a noun phrase antecedent, but to a clause antecedent as in the
following sentence.
Suddenly John started shouting, which was embarrassing to all of us.
The complementizer that can replace the pronouns who, whom, and which in all their
functions but only in restrictive relatives and when there is no preposition preceding the
pronoun. As for the zero ‘pronoun’ ø (or the deletion of the pronoun according to some),
it replaces relative pronouns functioning as objects of verbs or complements of
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prepositions, when they are not preceded by a preposition in restrictive clauses. In non-
restrictive relative clauses, there is no pronoun deletion, nor is there replacement with that.
The girl that is asking the question is a friend of mine.
This is the pace that I visited last year.
The book that you referred to is out of print.
The woman ø you met in the reception is a famous actress.
The man ø you were talking to used to work for the FBI.
The computer ø I am using is not mine.
* John, that is starting a new business, is very enthusiastic about it.
*The man to that you were talking is not a CIA agent.
*The man ø went to the coffee shop has no job.
* John, ø you were talking to, is a CIA agent.
where, when, and why are also used to introduce relative clauses. These are given the
name relative adverbs, e.g.
This the place where (in which) I find what I need.
Tell me about the time when (at which) you need to leave.
This is then the real reason why (for which) he did not finish his studies.
Beside the above relatives, English contains free relatives. These are relative clauses
with no antecedents. The relative pronouns introducing these free relatives are the same as
the other ones, with possible suffixation of ‘ever’. In these clauses, the relative pronoun is
said to merge with the antecedent. As such, the free clause is not a noun phrase modifier.
Rather, it constitutes the whole noun phrase e.g.
I’ll give who(ever) gets an A a present.
Take what(ever) you want.
Safeway’s is where I do my grocery shopping.
4.6.2. Relative pronouns in Arabic
Relative pronouns, or better, relative ‘markers’ in Arabic take an initial position in the
relative clause. These markers, which look like demonstratives that are preceded by the
definite article may be taken as markers of definiteness. They show number (singular, dual,
plural) and gender (masculine, feminine) contrasts in agreement with the antecedent of the
relative clause. In addition, the dual relative markers show case contrast – nominative vs.
accusative and genitive – again in agreement with the antecedent.
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singular Dual plural

masc. ‫الذي‬ ‫اللذين‬/‫اللذان‬ ‫الذين‬
fem. ‫التي‬ ‫اللتين‬/‫اللتان‬ ‫الالئي‬/‫الالتي‬/‫اللواتي‬
.‫عثِر على المخطوطة التي أضاعها‬ .‫قضي األمر الذي فيه تختلفان‬
.‫عرفت بمشكلة الطالبين اللذين تشاجرا‬ .‫زارني الطالبان اللذان تخرجا عام أول‬
.‫ما بال النسوة الالتي قطعن أيديهن‬ .‫ذهب الرجال الذين يعاش في أكنافهم‬
There is another type of contrast in the use of plural relative markers. This is the one we
see between those that stand for personal antecedents and those that stand for nonpersonal
ones. Plural relative markers are used only with personal antecedents. Nonpersonal plural
antecedents are followed by the feminine singular marker regardless of their gender.
.‫شاعت السرقات التي يرتكبها الهواة‬ .‫تلك الكتب التي كتبها‬
function
Relative markers in Arabic refer to the head noun, the antecedent, and play the role of a
link between this head noun and the relative clause that modifies it, and contains a noun
phrase, the relativized NP, that is co-referential with it. Relative clauses in Arabic contain
pronominal copies of the relativized NP. These are called resumptive pronouns.
.]‫فرحنا للشاعرين [اللذين اختارتهما اللجنة‬ .‫األصدقاء [الذين أهديتهم الكتاب] شكروني‬
.]‫عثر على الكتب [التي مزقت أغلفتها‬ .] ‫هذا حبيبي [الذي لمتنني فيه‬
The presence of relative markers in Arabic relative clauses is limited to those clauses
that modify definite antecedents. Indefinite antecedents are modified by relative clauses
without a relative marker, a fact that gives support to the suggestion that the relative
markers are indeed markers of definiteness, e.g.
. ‫ ال نظير له‬-- ‫عثرت على كتاب‬ .‫ سمعنا به من قبل‬-- ‫ذلك خبر‬
Arabic does have a set of relative pronouns that are identical to the interrogative
pronouns. These are the pronouns ‫ أي‬،‫ ما‬،‫ من‬which introduce free relative clauses, that do
not have head nouns, or antecedents. With their relative clauses, these pronouns comprise
the whole noun phrase. They stand for the relativized noun phrases inside the relative
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clauses. The relativized noun phrase is omitted in certain contexts or replaced by a

‘resumptive’ pronoun in others. The difference between ‫ من‬and ‫ ما‬is that of personal vs.
nonpersonal contrast. The first stands for a personal relativized noun phrase, the second for
a nonpersonal one. The pronoun ‫ أي‬stands for a relativized noun phrase that functions as a
determiner, and is found with its head noun at the beginning of the clause.
،‫عرفت هند أيهم تختار‬ .‫ستزرع ما حصدته‬ .‫ومن أرادني بسوء فأرده‬
4.6.3. Comparing relative pronouns in English and Arabic
1. In both Arabic and English, relative pronouns/markers follow their antecedents and
occupy an initial position in the relative clause.
2. In both languages, we find two types of relative clauses with variation in the relative
pronouns: regular relatives that occur with an antecedent, and free relatives that occur
alone without an antecedent. These make the whole NP.
3. Relative pronouns in English exhibit personal vs. nonpersonal contrast and a case
contrast depending on the grammatical function of the relativized NP’s they replace in
the relative clause. The contrasts that Arabic relative markers exhibit in number, gender,
and case depend on the antecedent, since they have to agree with it. Only the relative
pronouns of free relative clauses: ‫ ما‬، ‫ من‬and ‫ أي‬, show personal vs. nonpersonal contrast
in agreement with the relativized NP’s that they stand for in the relative clause.
4. While relative pronouns in English replace the relativized NP’s inside the relative
clauses that are co-referential with the antecedent, the relative markers in Arabic refer
to the antecedent and bind the relativized NP’s which always appear as resumptive
pronouns that are co-referential with the antecedent, and which may be deleted in certain
contexts.
5. Relative markers in Arabic only occur with definite antecedents. When the antecedent
is indefinite, we have a zero marker. In English, relative pronouns occur with both
definite and indefinite antecedents. A zero pronoun (or relative pronoun deletion) in
English is only possible in restrictive relative clauses and when the relative pronoun
replaces an object noun phrase.
6. In English, we find differences in the use of relative pronouns between restrictive and
non-restrictive clauses. In restrictive relative clauses, the relative pronoun can be
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replaced by the complementizer that. However, no such replacement is possible in non-

restrictive relatives. No differences as such are noticeable in the use of relative markers
in Arabic.
7. When the relative pronoun in English replaces a determiner noun phrase, the head
noun must move with it to the beginning of the clause. Arabic does not exhibit such
movement. Similarly, when the relative pronoun in English replaces a prepositional
complement the preposition may be left in its place (preposition stranding), or it may
move to the beginning of the clause. No such movement is possible in Arabic.
Exercises
1. For each type of pronouns that we discussed in this chapter, what points of similarity
and difference can be added to what were listed?
2. One type of pronouns that was not treated is the class of indefinite pronouns, like
someone, anyone, somebody, etc… in English. Does Arabic have a similar group
of pronouns? Provide a description for this type of pronouns in English and Arabic
and find out their similarities and differences.
3. What distinguishes relative pronouns in English from their counterparts in Arabic?
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Chapter Five
The Adjective Phrase
5.1. The adjective phrase

5.1.1. The adjective phrase in English
5.1.2. The adjective phrase in Arabic
5.1.3. Comparing English and Arabic adjective phrases
5.2. The adjective
5.2.1. Adjectives in English
5.2.2. Adjectives in Arabic
5.2.3. Comparing adjectives in English and Arabic
5.3. Comparison of adjectives
5.3.1. Comparison of adjectives in English
5.3.2. Comparison of adjectives in Arabic
5.3.1. Comparing adjective comparison in English and Arabic
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5.1.The adjective phrase.
The adjective phrase is a phrase headed by an adjective. Two questions emerge here. What
is an adjective? What is the position, and hence, function of the adjective phrase? An
adjective is traditionally defined as a word that modifies or, more generally, describes a
noun. However, this is not the only property that distinguishes an adjective from other
lexical categories (parts of speech). Adjectives are morphologically distinguishable, i.e.
their morphological forms in contrast to other categories, like nouns, verbs, adverbs, etc.
The morphological form of the adjectives will be discussed in Chapter 11 on morphology.
Adjective phrases realize two main functions in the sentence. As a clause constituent,
the adjective phrase functions as a complement: subject or object complement. The second
function is that of a modifier within the noun phrase. These are the predicative and the
attributive functions respectively. Restrictions on the realization of these functions are
mainly lexical. All depends on the head of the adjective phrase, i.e. the adjective. However,
it may be useful to remind you that when we talk about the function of the adjective, we
are in reality dealing with the adjective phrase and not the only the head adjective. The
discussion of the adjective phrase as a grammatical unit will thus cover its structure and
functions in Arabic and English.
5.1.1. The adjective phrase in English

Adjective phrases in English may be exemplified in the following sentences.
That is a pretty hat.
It was an extremely unrealistic suggestion.
Jane is afraid of all little creatures that move.
Mary doesn’t usually care, but, nowadays, she is eager to please everyone.
Don’t interrupt him. He is busy writing his resignation letter.
Don’t you worry. I’m sure you are going to find a way out.
As the above examples show, the adjective phrase consists of three constituents, only
one of which, the head, is obligatory. These are: the head of the phrase, which is an
adjective, a specifier, which is an adverb phrase, and a complement, which could be a
preposition phrase, a non-finite infinitival or a gerund clause, or a finite clause. The
structure of the adjective phrase may be represented as:
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Spec - Head - Comp

1. Spec(ifier): an adverb phrase that typically functions as an intensifier to the adjective.
It is usually a single adverb like very, purely, fairly, definitely, extremely, hardly, etc.
2. Head: an adjective.
3. Comp(lement): a constituent that only some adjectives require. It could be of various
syntactic categories: a preposition phrase, an infinitival non-finite clause, an –ing
participle gerundive clause, or a finite clause. Adjective phrases are frequently found
consisting of only the obligatory head adjective, and without the optional specifiers or
complements.
Syntactic functions
Two syntactic functions may be distinguished for the adjective phrase. These are the
attributive and predicative functions. An adjective phrase is attributive when it functions
as a constituent of a noun phrase, as is seen in the first sentence above, where the adjective
phrase pretty is a constituent of the noun phrase a pretty hat. When it functions as a
complement of the verb phrase, it has a predicative function, as is seen in the third sentence
above, where the adjective phrase afraid of all little creatures that move is part of the
predicate. These functions usually correspond to differences in the position that adjective
phrases in English occupy in the sentence.
a. Attributive adjective phrases

Attributive adjective phrases in English typically occupy a pre-head position in the noun
phrase. The internal structure of the noun phrase in English contains two positions before
the head noun. These are the position of the determiner(s), and the position of the
modifier(s). Modifiers are either adjective phrases like new, or noun phrases, like gold in
the sentences below. If both are present, the noun phrase modifier comes last, next to the
head noun, preceded by the adjective phrase modifier and the determiner.
I found all the fifteen new books you brought with you.
This is an expensive gold watch.
Adjective phrases that occupy a pre-head position are those that consist of the head
adjective, or the head and a specifier, e.g.
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a very easy task an extremely funny play
However, sometimes we find adjective phrases occupying a post-head position within the
noun phrase. This is usually the case when the head noun is an indefinite pronoun like
anything, somebody, everything, etc.
I did everything possible. Find someone competent.
Besides, adjective phrases that contain a complement in addition to the head tend to
occupy a post-head position, e.g.
I have a library larger than yours. The boys easiest to teach were in my class.
We may also find adjectives in this post-head position in some institutionalized

expressions like
inspector general, heir apparent, notary public, president elect,
In addition, we may find adjective phrases headed by able-adjectives in this position

when the head-noun is also modified by another superlative modifier, e.g.
the best solution possible, the easiest method imaginable
Note here that these adjective phrases are still attributive in function despite their post-head
position. They have been claimed to be the remnants of what are originally relative clauses.
the only solution (which is) possible Give me anything (which is) edible.
b. Predicative adjective phrases

Predicative adjective phrases in English are so called because they predicate some quality
of a noun phrase or a clause. They are found following a verb phrase headed by linking
(copular) verbs like be, grow, seem, etc., and are said to function as subject complements.
Jane seems comfortable. Susan looks pale. That man is suitable for the job.
To do this is foolish. That the text had been edited was obvious to us.
Adjective phrases are also said to have a predicative function when they are related to
the object noun phrases or clauses that precede them. They are called object complements.
I found Jane very helpful. They consider what he said crazy.
In the above sentences, very helpful describes the object Jane, and crazy describes the
object what he said.
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An important note needs to be made here about the distribution of the adjective phrases
over the two functions that they typically realize: the attributive and predicative functions.
The majority of the adjective phrases in English may be found in various sentences
functioning attributively or predicatively. On the other hand, there are those adjective
phrases that seem to be limited to only one of the two functions. This is attributed to certain
features that characterize the head adjective, which may be either attributive or predicative.
The adjective phrase short can be found in both functions, e.g.
This is a short cut. The dress was short.
However, main behaves differently. It can only occur attributively. Compare

I went through the main door. with *That door is main.
A third class of adjective phrases is that of phrases headed by adjectives like asleep.
These may only occur predicatively, e.g.
The baby is asleep. *Don’t wake the asleep baby.
We, therefore, seem to have three sub-classes of adjective phrases: central, attributive,
and predicative.
Furthermore, there are adjective phrases that are used in two different senses, in terms
of how they describe the referent of the head noun. One adjective phrase that stands as a
good example is the one headed by old. It could be used attributively and predicatively in
sentences like
That is an old house. vs. That house is old.
In both sentences, the adjective old tells us about the condition of the house, i.e. that it
is not new. The other sense that the adjective old conveys, is what we find in sentences like
This is an old friend of mine, in which what is described as old is not the ‘friend’, but the
‘friendship’. It is interesting to note that in this sense, the adjective old is restricted in its
use to the attributive function, i.e. it can only be used attributively. However, in its former
sense, where it describes the noun directly, we find that it can be used both attributively
and predicatively. In this sense, it is a central adjective. Thus, a distinction is made here
depending on whether or not adjectives describe the referent directly. When they do, they
are called inherent adjectives, and when they do not, like the attributive old, they are non-
inherent.
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Attributive adjective phrases in English may be divided into sub-groups according to

their type of modification. The first is that of intensifying adjective phrases, which either
emphasize, amplify, or downtone the nouns they modify, e.g. true in true scholar, simple
in simple truth, certain in certain winner, complete in complete fool, close in close friend,
and slight in slight effort. Note that these adjectives are all non-inherent. All of them may
have another sense in which they are inherent, and hence, are considered central adjective
phrases, e.g. a true statement and The statement is true; a complete victory and The victory
was complete.
A second group of attributive adjective phrases is that of adjectives that restrict the
reference of the noun either exclusively or chiefly. These are phrases headed by adjectives
like only in the only answer, main in the main gate, particular in a particular individual,
sole in the sole argument. Some of these may have another function as intensifiers. The
word very is a restrictive adjective in the sentence This is the very man I was expecting, but
an intensifier in That dress is very pretty.
A third group comprises those attributive adjective phrases that are headed by non-
inherent adjectives, which are related to adverbs. A former friend is related to someone
who was a friend formerly, past events to events in the past, a possible solution to possibly
a solution.
The last group is that of adjective phrases headed by denominal adjectives, i.e. derived
from nouns. A criminal lawyer is a lawyer dealing with cases of crimes, an atomic physicist
is a physicist specializing in the field of atoms, and medical school is a school for the
teaching of medicine. Note that these adjectives are non-inherent. They are only attributive
since we do not have: *the lawyer is criminal, *the physicist is atomic, or *the school is
medical, with the same meaning as their former counterparts.
As was mentioned above, there are adjective phrases that only function predicatively.
These are headed by adjectives that are similar to verbs and adverbs, and tend to refer to a
temporary rather than a characteristic condition, e.g. He felt ill/unwell. Some of these are
formed by adding the prefix /a-/ to a verb, e.g. asleep, afraid, awake, ajar, etc.
Finally, mention must be made of predicative adjective phrases in which the

complement is an obligatory component. This is because of their head adjectives that seem
to require a complement, e.g. afraid, fond, aware, tantamount, etc.
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She is afraid to talk about it. This is tantamount to a revolution.

I am fond of her. Are you aware f the repercussions?
5.1.2. The adjective phrase in Arabic
The following sentences contain examples of adjective phrases in Arabic.

.‫زارنا في يوم بار ٍد جدا‬ . ٌ‫ذلك وجهٌ حسن‬
. ٍ‫شاعرنا ك ِلف بغزال ذي هيف‬ . ‫جاء رجل عريض المنكبين‬
. ‫فاطمة متأكدة أنها ستعود‬
The examples show that adjective phrases in Arabic consist of a head adjective, which is
the essential and obligatory component of the phrase, a specifier, and a complement that
could be a preposition phrase or a clause. The structure of the adjective phrase in Arabic
may be represented as:
Head – Spec – Comp
1. Head: an adjective, simple or compound (in a construct state construction).

2. Spec(ifier): single word adverb phrases- head only- intensifying the adjective, e.g.
…،‫ تقريبا‬،‫جدا‬
3. Comp(lement): preposition phrases or finite clauses that are determined by some
adjective heads.
The head adjective is the essential component of the adjective phrase. The specifier and
the complement are optional elements. Most of the time, adjective phrases are found to
consist only of the head adjective and without a specifier or a complement. In the adjective
phrase, the head adjective is the element that carries the case inflection and the features of
gender, number, and definiteness that adjective phrases are inflected for. It is also the
element that determines the distribution of the phrase
Syntactic functions
We may identify two syntactic functions that adjective phrases, realize. They may function
as modifiers of nouns when they occur as constituents of the noun phrase. This is their
attributive function. Alternatively, they may function predicatively as complements when
they occur as constituents of the predicate of the sentence.
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a. Attributive adjective phrases

In our discussion of the noun phrase in Arabic in Chapter 2, we showed that it consists of
three main constituents: the head, the set of determiners that may appear before and/or after
the head, and the set of modifiers. These comprise simple and complex adjective phrases,
noun phrases, preposition phrases, or clauses. Thus, the position that the attributive
adjective phrase occupies in the noun phrase is a post-head position. Modifiers usually
come after post-head determiners, though demonstrative determiners may constitute an
exception.
.‫بنت أخي الصغيرة حلوة‬ . ‫ابتاعت قماشا ناع َم الملمس‬ .‫هل علينا رجا ٌل أشداء على الكفار‬
. ‫دعنا من قص ِتك الممل ِة هذه‬ . ‫الشجعان‬
ِ ‫ل‬
ِ ‫الرجا‬ ‫عجبت ألولئك‬
Thus, the variation in the position of the adjective phrase in relation to the head noun in
English is not matched in Arabic.
b. Predicative adjective phrases

The second syntactic function that adjective phrases may realize is that of complements.
Here, they are situated outside the noun phrase they describe since they are clause
constituents , or more accurately, constituents of the predicate, hence the name predicative.
In copular/existential sentences, the subject is a noun phrase, and the predicate may consist
of a possible linking verb plus a complement. This complement could be a noun phrase, a
preposition phrase, or an adjective phrase as we see in the following examples.
. ‫الناس قلقون مما يحدث‬ . ‫قريب‬
ٌ ‫الفرج‬ . ‫األفق‬
ِ ‫محم ٌد واسع‬
The above are sentences that contain examples of predicative adjective phrases
functioning as subject complements in copular verbless sentences. They are inflected for
the nominative case, which is realized on the head adjective. This is the case for which
noun phrase complements are inflected in such sentences. Generally, these adjective
phrases agree with the subject noun phrases that they describe in number and gender, again
realized on the head adjective. No agreement in case or definiteness is noticeable between
the two. Predicative adjective phrases are usually indefinite.
We may also find adjective phrases in this function –i.e. subject complement – in other
sentences that are very closely related to the above sentences. These are sentences of the
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VSC or SVC, pattern in which the predicate consists of a linking verb and its complement,
like the linking verb ‫ كان‬and other members of its group in the following sentences. .
.‫ما زال المؤتمرون مجتمعين‬ .‫أصبح الوضع حرجا‬ .‫كانت األمسية جميلة‬
In such sentences, the complement adjective phrase is inflected for the accusative case,
realized on the head adjective. Here we may notice that the agreement between the
adjective phrase and the subject noun phrase is in number and gender, but not in
definiteness.
The second function of the predicative adjective phrase is that of object complement.
This is when an adjective phrase modifies the object noun phrase or clause in sentences of
complex transitive verbs, and occupies a position directly after that object.
. ‫وجد الناس المجرمين طلقا َء‬ . ‫الجو صحوا‬
َ ‫ظنوا‬ . ‫حسبت هندأ مريضة‬
Like adjective phrases functioning as subject complements, these agree with the object
noun phrases they describe in number and gender only. They are usually indefinite, and are
inflected for the accusative case.
In the discussion of the syntactic functions that adjective phrases realize we must also
mention the restrictions, if any, on their distribution between the attributive and the
predicative functions. These restrictions are mostly determined by the head adjectives. The
overwhelming number of adjective phrases in Arabic can be classified as central. That is,
they can occupy both attributive and predicative positions.
‫الجنود األشاوس‬ ‫الصديق الوفي‬ ‫الفتح المبين‬
.‫جنودنا أشاوس‬ .‫صديقي وفي‬ . ‫كان الفتح مبينا‬
There appear to be no adjective phrases in Arabic that are restricted to predicative
function, i.e. that occur only as subject or object complements and do not occur as modifiers
within the noun phrase. However, it seems that we do have a small number of such phrases
that are predominantly or exclusively attributive. Many of these have two senses. In one of
sense, the phrase is restricted to an attributive position, whereas it is not so restricted in the
other. Like its English synonym old, the Arabic ‫ قديم‬for example, can only be used
attributively in a sentence like ‫محمد معلم قديم‬. We cannot use it predicatively here ‫*معلمنا‬
‫ قديم‬However, in its other sense, it could occur in both positions, as in ‫ اشتريت كتابا قديما‬and ‫هذا‬
‫ الكتاب قديم‬.
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A similar adjective phrase is the one headed by ‫حقيقي‬, which is only attributive in one sense and
central – i.e. occurs in both positions – in another, e.g. ‫*الصديق حقيقيا‬/ ‫ صديق حقيقي كان العذر‬/ ‫عذر‬.
The difference seems to be related to the mode of description: whether or not the adjective
describes its referent directly. If it does, then ‫ حقيقي‬، ‫ قديم‬can occur in both positions. If the
description is indirect, they occur only attributively. When they describe ‫ عذر‬or ‫ كتاب‬their
description is direct. Not so is their description of ‫ معلم‬or ‫صديق‬. Here they describe the
teaching and the friendship, and not the teacher or friend. As was mentioned in our
discussion of English adjectives this difference is termed inherent vs. non-inherent.
One group of attributive adjective phrases is those that restrict the reference of the noun
they modify exclusively. This is the case of adjective phrases headed by adjectives like
‫وحيد‬، which is found only attributively in ‫ هذا هو السبب الوحيد‬.The sentence ‫*كان السبب وحيدا‬
in which the adjective phrase is functioning predicatively, is ungrammatical. Similar are
adjectives like ‫ رئيس‬، ‫ أخير‬، ‫أول‬, which occur attributively as in ‫ الرئيس‬/‫األخير‬/‫السؤال األول‬, but
not predicatively ‫ رئيسا‬/‫ أخيرا‬/‫ *كان السؤال أوال‬.
A second group of attributive phrases is that whose head adjectives are related to
adverbs. These are adjectives like ‫ حالي‬، ‫ حاضر‬، ‫ سابق‬، ‫ ماضي‬. A phrase like ‫في المحاضرة‬
‫ السابقة‬means ‫ في المحاضرة سابقا‬, and ‫ الوضع الحالي‬means ‫ الوضع حاليا‬. These cannot be used
predicatively, as seen in ،‫ *كان األسبوع ماضيا‬، ‫ *كانت المحاضرة سابقة‬، ‫ *الوضع حالي‬.
Finally, mention needs to be made of adjective phrases in which the complement is
obligatory. As is the case in Englsih, there are adejctives that are most typically followed
by complemmetns. These are adjectives like ‫ مغرم‬،‫ معجب‬،‫ متأكد‬.
5.1.3. Comparing adjective phrases in English and Arabic

1. Adjective phrases realize the same range of functions in Arabic and English. At the
clause level they function as complements – subject or object complements. As phrase
constituents, they function as modifiers of the head noun in noun phrases.
2. Adjective phrases appear to consist of the same constituents in the two languages: a
head, a specifier, and a complement. In both languages, the head is the only obligatory
element. The specifier is optional, and the distribution of the complement is determined
by the lexical properties of the head.
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3. The two languages seem to differ in the position of the specifiers in their adjective
phrases. While English grants them a pre-head position, they occupy a post-head
position in Arabic. As for the position that complements occupy in the adjective phrase,
the two languages are similar. In both languages, these complements come after the
head adjectives.
4. The two languages differ in the range of their adjective complements. In English, the
range appears to be wider. We may have adjective complements that are preposition
phrases, infinitival non-finite clauses, ing-participle non-finite clauses, or finite clauses.
In Arabic, these complements may be either preposition phrases, or finite clauses.
5. Adjective phrases realize the same syntactic functions in both languages. These are the
attributive and predicative functions, depending on whether they are found within the
noun phrases as modifiers of the head noun, or within the predicate as subject and object
complements
6. Adjective phrases observe the same restrictions in their distribution over their two
syntactic functions in the two languages. In both Arabic and English, the majority of
adjectives are of the central type. Besides, there are adjective phrases in both languages
that seem to be restricted in their occurrence to the attributive function. These are either
intensifying or restrictive phrases that restrict the reference of the nouns they modify.
The modification in all such cases is non-inherent, in contrast to inherent modification,
which central adjective phrases perform. As for the restriction to a predicative function,
the two languages seem to differ. While English contains a sub-class of adjective
phrases that are limited to the predicative function, Arabic does not seem to have an
analogous class.
7. The two languages differ in the position that attributive adjective phrases occupy in the
noun phrase. In Arabic, these always follow the head noun. In English, there seem to be
two such positions: a pre-head position for simple adjective phrases that may be
intensified, but with no complements; and a post-head position persevered for adjective
phrases with complements, adjective phrases coming after special classes of head nouns,
or those within specific institutionalized expressions.
8. In English, predicative adjective phrases constitute only part of the predicate since they
occur in sentences with linking verbs that take subject complements, or with complex
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transitive verbs that take direct objects and complements to these objects. In Arabic,
predicative adjective phrases functioning as subject complements may make the whole
predicate in verbless copular sentences of the pattern SC. Here, they are inflected for
the nominative case. They may also form part of the predicate when a linking verb is
added in which case they are inflected for the accusative case. Predicative adjective
phrases functioning as object complements occur in contexts identical to those in which
we find their English counterparts. They are inflected for the accusative case in
agreement with the object noun phrases they modify.
5.2. The adjective

An adjective is defined in terms of its form, position, and/or its function. Formally,
adjectives may be distinguished from lexical items that belong to other categories by the
way they are built. Here, we are concerned with the morphological derivation of the
adjective– i.e. how it is constructed morphologically: what morphemes are exclusively
used in the derivation of an adjective that may signal the membership of a word to this
category, and which morphemes are employed to signal the differences in the grammatical
relation that an adjective has to other elements. This will be discussed in more detail in
chapter 11.
The second criterion for the definition of an adjective is based on the differentiation
between this lexical category and other categories in the various positions they occupy in
larger grammatical units: the phrase and the clause. As for the third criterion, it concerns
the function that adjective (phrases) perform in the sentence. They play the role of the
modifier of a noun, referring to the qualities that a specific entity or entities are
characterized with.
Languages differ in the morphological devices they use to derive their lexical items. To
derive their adjectives, English and Arabic choose many methods. Besides, the form of
their adjectives may undergo some changes that are determined by the grammatical relation
they stand to their head noun, i.e. inflectional changes that will be discussed when we deal
with such relations below.
Our present discussion will also involve the semantic classes of the adjectives. Besides,
we will look at the function of the adjective as a head of the adjective phrase or as a
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substitute for the noun, and the restrictions that the different sub-classes of adjectives
determine on the distribution of the adjective phrases. The discussion of comparison
constructions that adjectives are typically used in will be the subject matter of the next
section.
5.2.1. Adjectives in English
Adjectives in English have traditionally been considered a separate lexical class. They are
morphologically distinct from other classes – parts of speech – by specific properties.
English uses specific bound morphemes, mainly suffixes, to derive its adjectives from
lexical items of other categories, and which differ from others used in the derivation of
other word classes, (See Chapter 11.) Adjectives may also be inflectionally distinct from
other classes such as nouns or verbs, as will be seen presently.
Besides, adjectives are distinguished on other syntactic grounds. A word is considered
an adjective if it is used in the modification of a noun phrase attributively, within the noun
phrase, and/or predicatively, by functioning as a complement. Adjectives are defined as
words that could be modified by intensifiers like very, fairly, etc.., and that could be found
in comparison structures. Consider the following sentences or phrases in which the
adjectives are underlined.
It was a happy afternoon. He could make Jane happy.
They are very happy. John looks happier today than he did last week.
a. We notice that the word happy has been used attributively as a modifier of the noun
afternoon in the first sentence, and predicatively as a complement of the object Jane in
the second sentence. It is modified by the intensifier very in the third sentence, and is
used in a comparison structure in the fourth sentence. Thus, it fulfills the criteria we set
above for ‘adjectiveness’.
b. The form of this adjective does not change whether it modifies a singular noun or a
plural noun. Nor does it change when the gender of the noun it modifies differs, or
whether this noun is personal or nonpersonal. This means that adjectives in English do
not agree with the nouns they modify in number or gender. Further examples like
The happy end they expected was not coming soon.
and We were expecting a happy end to the film.
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show that the form of the adjective does not change with the change in the grammatical
function of the noun it modifies or in the definiteness of this noun. Adjectives in English
do not agree with the nouns they modify in their grammatical case or definiteness either.
c. The adjective shows a change in form when used in constructions that compare between
two entities in terms of a certain property or feature. Comparison could be at various
levels and this will call for a change in the form of the adjective, as sill be seen when
we discuss this point in more detail below.
Semantic classes
One way of classifying adjectives is their division into inherent and non-inherent
adjectives, which was discussed above, when we dealt with the restrictions on the functions
of adjective phrases, such as the difference between the two senses of the adjective old and
criminal. This concerns how direct the reference of the adjective to the noun is.
The second is that which concerns their division into dynamic adjectives, like helpful,
friendly, noisy, jealous, etc., and stative adjectives like tall, old, short, etc. The difference
lies in their reference to temporary and constant states respectively. They differ
syntactically too. Dynamic adjectives can be used with the progressive aspect while stative
ones cannot.
Jane is being foolish. *Jane is being tall.
Another semantic division is the one we find in the type of modification that adjectives
realize. Some adjectives like true scholar, complete fool, slight changes etc… are
intensifying adjectives in that they emphasize, amplify or downtone the nouns the modify.
Other adjectives restrict the reference of the nouns they modify like the only solution, the
main door, the sole argument. These are restrictive adjectives.
The last distinction we want to make is the one between gradable and non-gradable
adjectives. Most adjectives are gradable. We can say Jane is tall and Jane is taller than …
or Jane is the tallest …. Adjectives like dead and alive are ungradable. We do not find them
in comparison constructions. Gradability is manifested via the use of intensifiers like very,
so, etc., e.g. very tall, so cold, but not very dead, or slightly alive. Some stative adjectives
are nongradable. These are mostly denominal adjectives like atomic, Iraqi, Arab, French,
etc.
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Adjectives as heads of noun phrases
In English, we may encounter adjectives functioning as heads of noun phrases. These differ
from the noun heads in that they are not inflected for number or the genitive case, and are
always definite. They are of three types. The first are adjectives that modify personal nouns.
These have plural and generic reference.
The young must be kind to the old. The injured were taken to the hospital.
Adjectives referring to nationalities may also function as heads of noun phrases. These
are adjectives that end with /-ish/ British, Irish; /-ch/ French, Dutch; and /-ese/ Japanese,
Sudanese. Similar to the first type, they have generic plural reference, and therefore, require
plural concord, e.g.
The Irish and the French are predominantly catholic.
The Vietnamese share with the Japanese their industriousness.
The third type is those adjectives that function as heads of noun phrases with abstract
reference. They include superlatives. They take singular concord.
The worst is yet to come.
5.2.2. Adjectives in Arabic
Adjectives in Arabic are morphologically distinct from other categories. There are specific
morpho-syntactic patterns that are used in the derivation of adjectives from the tri-
consonantal or augmented roots, which differ from other patterns used in the derivation of
verbs or nouns, as will be detailed in Chapter 11.
A note may be made here about the categorical status of adjectives in Arabic
grammatical tradition, in which adjectives were not assigned an independent status as a
distinct lexical class. Rather, they were taken to belong to the general class of nouns,
together with real substantives, pronouns, and demonstratives. This was not done without
good reason. Adjectives in Arabic frequently function as heads of noun phrases and adopt
substantive reference. Besides, they are inflected for the same inflections nouns are
inflected for. This partial similarity in function and form is the reason for considering them
nouns.
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However, being aware of the differences between adjectives and other types of nouns,
the old grammarians did distinguish adjectives as a separate sub-class named ‫أسماء الوصف‬
‘nouns of description’, in contrast to substantives. This was probably in recognition of their
basic syntactic function in the sentence – modification. Within this tradition, an adjective
is a noun – in class – that functions either as a substantive or a ‘description’ ‫ نعت‬, i.e. a
modifier.
Nevertheless, in spite of these similarities between adjectives and other nouns, we feel
that adjectives should be recognized as a distinct class. This is because of the distinct
patterns and suffixes used in their derivation. It is also because their basic function - i.e.
modification – is still different from the function of other classes, a difference that is duly
reflected in the positions they occupy in the sentence.
Thus, an adjective may be defined in terms of its morphological features- i.e. the
morpho-syntactic patterns employed in its derivation, and its syntactic function as a head
of the adjective phrase realizing a modifier: its occurrence within the noun phrase as a
modifier, and its occurrence in the predicate as a complement. Besides, an adjective may
occur with intensifiers and in comparison structures.
Let us consider the following sentences.
.‫لبست المدينة حلة جديدة‬ .‫تحدثت الى الرجال الغاضبين‬ .‫كثيب قدي ٌم‬
ٌ ‫هذا‬
.‫حسبت األمر سهال‬ .‫كانت البلية مضاعفة‬ . ٌ‫هذا العقد ثمين‬
.‫شهد أجمل البنات‬ .ٍ‫شهد أحلى من هند‬ . ‫صعب جدا‬ٌ ‫هذا السؤال‬
.‫هذا رجل كبير حلمه‬ .‫جاء رج ٌل عريض المنكبين‬
What do they tell us about adjectives in Arabic?
a. The underlined words fulfill the criteria we set for the definition of adjective (phrases).
They function as modifiers within the noun phrase (in the sentences of the first line);
they also function as subject and object complements (in the sentences of the second
line); and they can be followed by the intensifier ‫جدا‬, and found in comparison structures
( in the first three sentences of the third line).
b. Adjectives agree with the head nouns they modify in some or all of these categories:
gender, number, case, and definiteness. Attributive and predicative adjective phrases
differ in how they agree with the nouns they modify.
c. Adjectives in Arabic exhibit a change in their form when they occur in constructions
in which two entities are compared in terms of a property that they have. This change
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in the form of the adjective may be observed in the second and third sentences in the
third line above. Comparison constructions will be discussed in more detail below.
d. In contrast to simple adjectives, we have what may be called complex adjectives. These
are the adjectives that function as the head of a construct state construction, and are
followed by a noun phrase in the genitive case, or are followed by a subject noun phrase,
in some sort of a clausal construction where the adjective functions like a stative verb.
Although the adjective, the head of the construction, actually describes the following
noun phrase, the combination of the two elements in the construction stands as an
adjective phrase modifier describing the preceding noun. This is what the last two
sentences in the above examples represent. This would be similar to a noun phrase in
English like a story of happy conclusion, in which the adjective happy modifies the noun
conclusion, and the preposition phrase of happy conclusion modifies the story.
Inflection in adjectives
Adjectives in Arabic exhibit some formal changes depending on the nouns they modify.
These changes, in the form of inflectional suffixes, are markers of the agreement of the
adjective phrase with the head noun it modifies, and are manifested on the head adjective.
These inflections mark contrasts in gender: masculine vs. feminine; number: singular, dual,
plural; case: nominative, accusative, genitive; and definiteness: definite vs. indefinite. The
actual forms of these inflections are the same as those we find in noun inflections.
The first inflectional category is number. Adjectives, whether they head attributive or
predicative adjective phrases, are inflected for number in agreement with the number of
the nouns they modify. Singular nouns are modified by singular adjectives, dual and plural
nouns, by dual and plural adjectives.
. ‫ قابلت محامين كثيرين‬. ‫اشتريت كتابين قديمين‬ . ‫كان ذلك حلما جميال‬
. ‫ فالمحامون كثيرون‬، ‫لم ال تغيره‬ . ‫الكتابان قديمان‬ . ‫كان اليوم جميال‬
The adjectives in the first three sentences above are heads of attributive adjective phrases.
In the last three, they head predicative phrases. Note the difference between the adjectives
in their patterns of agreement.
We may note here that the plural personal and nonpersonal nouns initiate a different
pattern of agreement in number in the adjectives that modify them. This is the same pattern
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that we have encountered in verb-subject agreement and pronouns’ agreement with their
antecedents. With plural personal (human) nouns, adjectives agree fully in number and
gender. Plural masculine personal nouns are modified by plural masculine adjectives, and
plural feminine personal nouns are modified by plural feminine adjectives. e.g.
. ‫الطالبات متعَبات‬ .‫الطالب متعَبون‬ ‫النساء الغاضبات‬ ‫الرجال الغاضبون‬
However, plural nonpersonal nouns behave differently. Whether masculine or feminine,

these nouns are usually modified by singular feminine adjectives, e.g.
. ‫القطط سائبة‬/‫ما زالت الكالب‬ . ‫القطط السائب ِة‬/
ِ ‫ب‬
ِ ‫قام رجال الصحة بحملة على الكال‬
With dual nouns, the agreement of the adjective is full regardless of whether they are
personal or nonpersonal, e.g.
.‫ اللوحتان جميلتان‬/‫الفتاتان‬ . ‫لوحتين جميلتين‬/ ‫شاهدت فتاتين‬
Adjectives in Arabic, in attributive or predicative positions, agree with their nouns in

gender. Adjectives modifying masculine nouns are inflected for the masculine gender and
those that modify feminine nouns are inflected for the feminine gender.
. ‫ ياله من منظر ساحر‬. ‫الصيف حار‬ . ‫ كانت البنات جميالت‬. ‫تلك يد الطبيعة الساحرة‬
However, as was said in the preceding paragraph, the difference between personal vs.
nonpersonal nouns is reflected in the agreement pattern in adjectives. While adjectives
modifying plural personal nouns agree with them both in number and gender, those that
modify plural nonpersonal nouns do not exhibit this variation. There is only one form for
the adjective, i.e. in this case, the singular feminine gender form, regardless of the gender
of the noun. The adjective ‫ كبيرة‬which is in the singular feminine form is used with plural
nonpersonal nouns of masculine gender like ‫ شكوك‬and plural nonpersonal nouns of
feminine gender like ‫قضايا‬
. ‫القضايا كبيرة‬/‫كانت الشكوك‬ . ‫قضايا كبيرة‬/‫طرح المشاركون شكوكا‬
Adjectives functioning attributively, i.e. heading attributive adjective phrases, agree

with their head nouns in their case inflection. The case inflection markers on adjectives are
the same as those used for marking case in nouns. The head noun is marked for the case of
the noun phrase – nominative, accusative, or genitive. This is copied onto adjectives. The
noun phrases in the following examples are in the nominative, accusative, and genitive
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cases respectively. They clearly show that case inflections appear on the head nouns and
the adjective modifiers.
. ‫في عيش ٍة راضي ٍة‬ . ‫اهدنا الصرا َط المستقي َم‬ ..،‫ولوال رجا ٌل مؤمنون‬
The case inflection that predicative adjectives are marked for is not an instance of
agreement with the case inflection of the noun phrase they are related to. They receive their
case inflection from their position as complements of the verb phrase. In verbless copular
sentences, where an adjective phrase is found in the predicate, the head adjective receives
the nominative case. If such sentences contain an overt linking verb, such as auxiliary ‫كان‬,
the head adjective will be inflected for the accusative case. Adjectives heading predicative
adjective phrases functioning as object complements will also be inflected for the
accusative case.
. ‫األمر واضحا‬
َ ‫حسبت‬ . ‫كان هللا غفورا‬ .ٌ‫الدار واسعة‬
Furthermore, adjectives functioning attributively agree with their head nouns in

definiteness too. Definite head nouns have definite adjective phrase modifiers, and
indefinite ones have indefinite modifiers. Remember that definiteness in nouns is not only
realized via the definite article. A noun in a construct state also acquires definiteness, if the
genitive NP in the construct state is definite. However, the mark of definiteness in agreeing
adjectives is the definite article invariably.
. ‫أدركته رحمة هللا الواسعة‬ . ‫أولئك رجا ٌل صالحون‬ .‫الرحيم‬
ِ ‫الرحمن‬
ِ ‫بسم هللا‬
This is true even in ‘complex’ adjectives – i.e. adjectives that are in a construct state,
like, ‫ رقيق النسمات‬، ‫ واسع المغفرة‬، ‫ واثق الخطوة‬، ‫ طويل الباع‬. These adjectives will be prefixed by
the definite article when modifying a definite noun.
‫حلت ليالي الصيف الرقيقة النسمات‬ .‫ذلك الرجل الطويل القامة إبني‬ . ‫رأيت رجال وسي َم الوجه‬
.‫هؤالء الفساق الكثيرو األموال لصوص‬ . ‫هاتان فتاتان ممشوقتا القوام‬ .
A note must be made here concerning ‘clausal’ modifiers that may look similar to these
complex adjectives. These are structures that begin with adjectives that are followed by
noun phrases in the nominative case like
. ‫هربت الملكة القليل جنودها‬ . ‫ذقت أطعمة زكية رائحتها‬ . ‫للحكام القاسي ِة قلوبهم‬
ِ ‫ويل‬
Here, the adjectives are said to function like intransitive stative verbs and the following
nouns, which are inflected for the nominative case, function as their subjects. These
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adjectives agree with the nouns they modify – i.e. the preceding head nouns – in
definiteness and case as seen in the above examples. However, they agree, just as verbs do,
with their following ‘subject’ noun phrases in gender. There is no number agreement
between these adjectives and their preceding head nouns, nor with the noun phrases that
follow them in analogy to verbs that precede their subjects. Again, although the adjective
really describes the state of the following noun phrase, the combination of the two describes
the preceding head noun.
Semantic classes
Adjectives in Arabic may be classified semantically into a number of sub-classes. The

distinctions are based on various semantic parameters. One is the distinction we already
made between inherent and non-inherent adjectives, which is related to how direct their
relation to the referent noun they modify.
A second distinction is that between gradable and nongradable adjectives. Some
adjectives like, ‫ عطشان‬،‫ حسن‬، ‫ كبير‬are said to be gradable because we could find them in
comparison constructions as
.‫فاطمة أكثر عطشا من زينب‬ . ‫هذه أحسن من تلك‬ . ‫حسين أصغر من زيد‬
Other adjectives do not enter into such constructions. These are nongradable adjectives like
‫ أخير‬، ‫ ميت‬، ‫ حي‬.e.g. ‫ موتا من ذاك‬/‫ أموت أو أكثر حياة‬/ ‫*هذا الرجل أحيا‬
A third distinction is that which we find between stative and dynamic non-stative
adjectives. This is the kind of difference that is found between adjectives like ،‫ صغير‬، ‫طويل‬
‫ قديم‬and ‫غضب‬
ِ ،‫ مزعج‬،‫ودود‬. The difference becomes clear in sentences with time adverbials
like the following where it is possible to have dynamic adjectives but not stative ones, e.g.
‫ زيد مزعج اليوم‬, but not ‫ *زيد طويل اليوم‬.
Adjectives as heads of noun phrases
Adjectives in Arabic frequently stand as heads of noun phrases in the various functions that
these phrases realize. These are used to replace substantive nouns. In fact, we could say
that they may have been ‘substantivized’ to such an extent that the occurrence of a referring
noun, like ‫ رجل‬or ‫ شيء‬or ‫ إمرأة‬before them is felt to be awkward, unnecessary, or even
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unacceptable. They have developed into ‘referring expressions’. Hence, they behave
syntactically as noun heads in the noun phrase. They are modified by various noun
modifiers, and their inflections for number, gender, case, and definiteness are identical to
those we find on nouns.
. ‫ويل للمجرمين‬ .‫رفقا باليتامى‬ . ‫هذه سيدة المحفل‬ .‫لنفرق بين الطيب والخبيث‬
We also need to note here that the gender inflection of adjectives in this function differs
from their gender inflection as modifiers of nouns. Remember that adjectives modifying
plural nonpersonal nouns are found in the singular feminine form, while those that modify
plural personal nouns are in the plural – masculine or feminine - form. Substantivized
adjectives standing as heads of noun phrases that refer to plural nonpersonal entities are
found – just like substantive nouns- in the appropriate plural form: masculine, feminine or
broken forms, while their modifiers preserve their proper adjectival inflection as the
following show.
. ‫هاجمتهم الجوارح الضارية‬ .‫ت عجيبة‬ٍ ‫رسموا كائنا‬
. ‫تحدث بعض المؤرخين المحدثين‬ .‫ت‬
ِ ‫ت المغتربا‬ِ ‫حلت مشاكل الطالبا‬
5.2.3. Comparing adjectives in English and Arabic

The following points constitute the main points of similarity and difference between
adjectives in English and Arabic.
1. In both English and Arabic, adjectives make a distinct lexical class. The adjective is
distinguished from other lexical classes morphologically in that there are specific
derivational devices, affixes in the case of English, and internal change patterns in the
case of Arabic, used exclusively for the derivation of adjectives. Adjectives are
semantically distinguished from other lexical classes too. In addition, they are
distinguished syntactically from other classes by their distinct syntactic functions as
heads of modifying phrases.
2. Many adjectives, in both English and Arabic, may be modified by intensifiers, i.e. the
specifiers of the adjective phrase. However, the position of the intensifier differs. While
it comes before the adjective in English, it occurs after it in Arabic. They may also be
followed by complements, of various kinds, which are determined by the head adjective.
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3. Adjectives in Arabic, but not in English, are inflected for number, gender, case and
indefiniteness in agreement with the head nouns they modify. In English, adjectives are
not inflected for such categories.
4. In both English and Arabic, but to a varying extent, adjectives could function as heads
of the noun phrase substituting for the head nouns. In English, this is limited to
adjectives that modify personal nouns, adjectives of nationalities, and adjectives in noun
phrases of abstract reference. These adjectives retain a generic and definite reference
and generally have plural concord. In Arabic, the phenomenon is much more common,
and thus, cannot be limited to a specific set of adjectives. There are no restrictions on
their reference. They exhibit the same number, gender, and case inflections that the
substantive nouns they substitute for have.
5. In both languages, adjectives may be semantically divided into sub-classes, which
consequently affect their syntactic behaviour. These involve distinctions between
inherent vs. non-inherent, gradable vs. nongradable and stative vs. dynamic adjectives.
6. Arabic seems to employ a type of complex adjectives that are formed of two elements,
an adjective and a genitive noun phrase, thus forming a construct state construction.
These differ from simple adjectives in that while the latter describe the preceding head
noun, the former actually describe the genitive noun phrases that follow them. What
describes the preceding head noun is the combination of the two elements. This
construction is absent in English. We could thus distinguish two types of relationship
between the adjective and the noun it modifies in Arabic: a direct one represented by
simple adjectives, and an indirect one exemplified by complex adjectives.
7. A similar modification construction that we only find in Arabic is the one that we
termed the ‘clausal’ adjective or modifier. This is a construction headed by an adjective
that is followed by a noun phrase in the nominative case, in what looks like a verb-
subject structure. In this construction, the agreement pattern between the adjective and
its following head noun differs from that which obtains between simple and complex
adjectives and their head nouns. While it agreed with the preceding head noun in
definiteness and case, it agrees with the following noun in gender, in a similar fashion
to the agreement pattern of the verb with its following subject. This is another type of
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indirect relationship between the adjective and the noun it modifies, which is absent in
English.
5.3. Comparison of adjectives

Adjectives commonly form the standard along which two entities may be compared. We
compare between two or more entities according to which possesses the highest/lowest
degree of an attribute or a property. There may also be comparisons to the same degree.
English and Arabic both exhibit comparison constructions in which the adjectives assume
forms that are particular to them. Naturally, adjectives that enter into such constructions
are of the gradable type, e.g. young, short, etc... Ungradable adjectives like dead, absent,
etc. cannot.
5.3.1. Comparison of adjectives in English

In English, we may compare between entities and actions in terms of a certain property or
attribute. Comparison makes use of certain correlative patterns to express higher, lesser,
or the same degree. These sentences are of the following patterns:
a. X- be- Adj+er/ more + Adj - than – Y

b. X –be- Adj+est/ most + Adj- (of) Z
c. X –be- as - Adjective – as – Y
d. X – be- less -Adj – than – Y
Higher degree comparison is expressed either by by inflection, i.e. suffixation by /-er/

and /-est/ with minor changes in spelling, or by periphrasis, i.e. using the same form of the
adjective preceded by more/most. The different forms of the adjective are the basic
absolute form like strong, the inflected comparative form stronger, and the inflected
superlative form strongest. The periphrastic forms for the adjective adaptable that are
equivalent to those are: more adaptable, and most adaptable. The comparative form is used
in comparing two entities and the superlative form is used when more than two things are
compared. The adjective is followed by its complement [than NP].
Jane is taller/ more beautiful than Jill.

Jill is my sharpest/ most intelligent student.
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113
Monosyllabic adjectives adopt the inflection strategy in comparison, e.g. high< higher<
highest. Many disyllabic adjectives act similarly in comparison, e.g. funny< funnier<
funniest. Other disyllabic adjectives opt for the periphrastic forms, e.g. complex< more
complex< most complex. Some take both, e.g. polite, common. All trisyllabic or longer
adjectives, or participles used as adjectives, take the periphrastic forms in comparison, e.g.
manageable< more manageable < most manageable, understanding < more
understanding < most understanding.
We also need to note that some adjectives form their comparative and superlative forms
irregularly, by using independent lexical forms, e.g. good< better < best; bad < worse <
worst. Some have alternative inflected forms, e.g. old, older, and oldest, or elder, and
eldest; far, farther, and farthest, or further and furthest, with slight differences in meaning
or distribution between the two alternatives.
Comparison to the same degree is expressed by the correlative pattern [as-Adjective-
as], James is as enthusiastic as Bill is about the elections. In negating this senetence, the
pattern may either be [is not as…as..] or [is not so…as…]. As for comparison between two
entities to a lesser degree, this is achieved by using the periphrastic [less-adjective-than]
pattern, as shown above, e.g. This course is less demanding than that one. And for
comparison between more than two entities for a lesser degree the periphrasitic patetrn
[least-Adjective (of)] is used, e.g. This is the least acceptable excuse.
5.3.2. Comparison of adjectives in Arabic

In Arabic, constructions comparing between entities to the same degree either use
adjectives of the absolute form or a verbal noun of the same root.
a. NP1 – Adj (/?aCCaC/)- Prep ‫ – من‬NP2 .‫فاطمة أكبر من زينب‬

b. NP1 – ..‫أعلى‬/‫أشد‬/‫ أكثر‬- Verbal noun - Prep ‫ – من‬NP2 .‫محمد أجل مكانة من صاحبه‬
c. NP – ..‫أعلى‬/‫أشد‬/ – Np- Verbal noun .‫علي أكبر الطلبة عمرا‬
d. NP1 – ..‫ أقل‬- Verbal noun - Prep ‫ – من‬NP2 .‫زيد أقل عطاء من محمد‬
e. NP – ..‫ – أقل‬Np- Verbal noun .‫علي أقل الطلبة عطاء‬
f. NP1 – Adj –Prep - NP2 . ‫ كـ علي‬/‫زيد ذكي بقدر‬
g. NP1 – Prep ‫ – بـ‬Verbal Noun – NP2 . ‫زيد بذكاء علي‬
h. NP1 – Prep ‫ كـ‬- NP2 – Verbal noun . ‫زيد كعلي ذكاء‬
114114
In comparisons to a higher degree, (patterns a,b,c), the form of the adjective differs from
that which is used in non-comparison contexts, i.e. where a certain property is predicated
of an entity. The morpho-syntactic pattern /ʔaCCaC/ is used to derive the comparative
form. Thus, we may have two forms of the adjective: the absolute (ordinary) form and the
comparative form.
‫صغير< أصغر‬ ‫فاضل< أفضل‬ ‫حلو< أحلى‬ ‫زكي< أزكى‬ ‫حسن< أحسن‬
The comparative forms are used both in comparing two, or more entities with regards
to a particular property. In constructions comparing between two entities, (pattern a), the
adjective is followed by its complement consisting of the preposition ‫ من‬and the second
noun phrase in the comparison. In these constructions, the adjective is inflected for case,
depending on its grammatical function but not for number or gender.
.‫هذا أحسن من ذاك‬ .‫أكثر من كتبه‬
َ ‫كانت كتبي‬ .‫بنتي أحلى من بنت صديقي‬
The same comparative form of the adjective is used in comparing between more than
two entities (pattern c). Here, the adjective is either followed by ‫ من‬or is followed by a
generic noun indicating the entities compared.
.‫باريس أجمل العواصم‬ .‫باريس أجمل من بقية العواصم‬
.‫الذهب أثمن المعادن‬ .‫الذهب أثمن من المعادن األخرى‬
Adjectives of the comparative form are used attributively indicating supremacy. This is
what we find in phrases like:
‫الدرجات العليا‬ ‫اليد الطولى‬ ‫السعر األغلى‬ ‫البضاعة األسوأ‬
Note that some of these adjectives are inflected for gender and number, in agreement with
the head noun they modify. This inflection is more frequently attested when these
adjectives are used as heads of noun phrases.
‫كبريات المدن‬ ‫المرء بأصغريه‬ ‫أنتم األعلون‬
The majority of the adjectives, however, do not have a comparative form. Here, another
method, a periphrastic one, (pattern b), is used instead in comparison constructions. The
first noun phrase is followed by the intensifiers ،‫ أشد‬، ‫أكثر‬, which are followed by a verbal
noun – from the adjective root. This, in turn, is followed by the preposition ‫ من‬and the
second noun phrase in the comparison construction.
. ‫سلطانكم أشد استبدادا من سلطاننا‬ .‫عمرو أكثر إسرافا من زيد‬
115
115
As for comparing more than two entities, the intensifiers ‫ أشد‬، ‫ أكثر‬are used, followed by
a generic form of the entities compared and a verbal noun derived from the root of the
adjective, e.g.
. ‫هذا أشد الخطوط انكسارا‬ .‫محمد أكثر الناس احتراما لآلخرين‬
Comparisons to a lesser degree, (pattern d), do not make use of a specific comparative
form. Rather, a periphrastic method is used instead. Here, the intensifier ‫ أقل‬is used before
a verbal noun, e.g. .‫زينب أقل صبرا من أختها‬ .‫زيد أقل ذكاء من علي‬
In comparisons involving more than two entities to a lesser degree, (pattern e), we use
the same construction used in higher degree comparisons, except for the use of the
intensifier ‫أقل‬, instead of ‫ أشد‬، ‫ أكثر‬.
. ‫تلك هي المناطق األقل حظا‬ . ‫كان زيد أقل الطلبة مشاركة‬
As for comparing between entities to the same degree, (patterns,f,g,h), adjectives of the
absolute form are used preceded by the first noun phrase and followed by a preposition and
the second noun phrase. Or, the first noun phrase is is followed by a preposition and the
second noun phrase, which, in turn, is followed by a verbal noun of the same root of the
adjective. Sometimes, the verbal noun and the noun phrae representing the second entity
may exchange positions.
.‫حسين بشجاعة األسد‬ .‫حسين كاألسد شجاعة‬ .‫حسين شجاع كاألسد‬
5.3.1. Comparing adjective comparison in English and Arabic

1. In both languages, adjectives are used in comparison constructions, for a higher
degree, a lesser degree, or equational degree of comparison between two or more entities
with regards to their possession of a certain property. Such constructions initiate a
change in the form of the adjective – inflection, or the use of periphrasis, i.e. using the
same form of the adjective preceded by more/most in English, and the use of a verbal
noun preceded by ‫ أشد‬،‫ أكثر‬in Arabic.
2. The two languages utilize different constructions when the comparison is held between
more than two entities from those used for the comparison between two entities.
3. English and Arabic adjectives differ in the number of forms used in comparison
structures. Arabic uses one form for the comparison while English uses two; one for
116
comparisons involving two entities and another for comparisons involving more
entities: the comparative and the superlative degrees.
4. The two languages derive these forms from the adjective base form via suffixation in
English, and internal vowel pattern plus the prefix /ʔa/ in Arabic.
5. In comparison constructions, the adjective is followed by its complement. Adjective
comparative forms are followed by preposition phrases, headed by prepositions than in
English, and ‫ من‬in Arabic.
6. There are also differences in the agreement inflections that these forms are marked
with in the two languages. In English, no such inflections appear on the comparative or
the superlative forms in agreement with the head nouns. In Arabic they do, whether they
are used attributively or predicatively.
Exercies
1. As modifiers, adjectives maintain a strict order, before the head noun in English and
after the head noun in Arabic. Describe this order in the two languages and see if
there are any similarities between the two languages.
2. What differences can you detect between those adjectives that are functioning as
nouns in the two languages?
3. Conduct a comparison between the complement system of adjectives in English and
Arabic
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Chapter Six
The Adverb Phrase
6.1. The adverb phrase

6.1.1. The adverb phrase in English
6.1.2. The adverb phrase in Arabic
6.1.3. Comparing adverb phrases in English and Arabic
6.2. The adverb
6.2.1. Adverbs in English
6.2.2. Adverbs in Arabic
6.2.3. Comparing adverbs in English and Arabic
6.3. Comparison of Adverbs
6.3.1. Comparison of adverbs in English
6.3.2. Comparison of adverbs in Arabic
6.3.3. Comparing adverb comparison in English and Arabic
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6.1. The adverb phrase
The adverb phrase is the fourth phrasal category under consideration in this book. Like
other phrases, adverb phrases are so called because they are headed by words belonging to
a particular lexical category: the adverb. However, the clarity of this statement is somewhat
shadowed by the fact that adverbs themselves make the least homogeneous category. The
distinction of adverbs does not solely depend on their morphological structure. In many
instances, it depends on the function they perform and/or the position they occupy in the
sentence or lesser grammatical units.
Adverb phrases have two functions in the sentence. At the clause level, they function as
adverbials, modifying the verb or the sentence. They may also function as specifiers or
modifiers at the phrase level, where we find them as constituents of adverb phrases,
adjective phrases, preposition phrases, or noun phrases.
6.1.1. The adverb phrase in English
The adverb phrase in English may be exemplified in the following examples.

You may go right ahead.
The mechanic went about his job extremely slowly.
It worked out fairly well.
If you must, you have to drive rather carefully.
It was rather nice of him.
The sentences, above all, contain adverbs.
Jane lost here balance and fell right into the pool.
Its structure could be represented as
Spec – Head
The adverb phrase in English is not as structurally rich as other phrases are. Besides the
head adverb, we may find a specifier in the form of an adverb phrase positioned to the left
of the head. Adverb (phrases) that may occupy the specifier position in an adverb phrase
belong to the rather restricted class of intensifiers (e.g. rather, right, very, etc.). However,
the adverb phrase does not seem to contain a complement. Most commonly, adverb phrases
appear as consisting only of the head adverb, with no specifiers or complements. This is
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the reason why in many descriptive treatments of the grammar of English, the term ‘adverb’
is predominantly used in the discussion of the syntactic functions of the ‘adverb phrase’.
Syntactic functions
We have already identified two main syntactic functions that are realized by the adverb
phrase. First, it functions as a clause constituent realizing the function of adverbial of
different types and status, optional in some cases and obligatory in others. It also functions
as a phrase constituent as a specifier/ modifier in several phrases.
a. Adverbial
An adverbial is a constituent that modifies a verb, a clause, or a proposition in various
ways. Consider the following sentences exemplifying the adverbial functions of the adverb
phrase.
They have gradually managed to mix with the others.
The test is now.
Frankly, I don’t see any way out.
She has often done it differently.
The guests arrived late.
Technically, this is impossible.
Four general adverbial functions may be distinguished. Adverbials can be adjuncts,
subjuncts, disjuncts, and conjuncts. Within each of these classes there are, of course,
finer divisions. The adverbial function may be realized by both clausal and phrasal units.
In English, noun phrases, preposition phrases, adverb phrases, and clauses can all function
as adverbials. Here, we shall restrict our discussion to the adverbial functions that phrases
headed by adverbs, i.e. adverb phrases, can perform.
The adjunct is the first adverbial function. An adjunct says something about the action
expressed by the sentence. It gives us more information about the time, place, manner,
duration, etc. of the activity conveyed by the sentence. Thus, adjuncts are more integrated
within the structure of the clause, though to varying extents. Some of them are more
peripheral than others that seem to be more central.
He remained outside. You can see it now.
He raised the volume deliberately. She will certainly discover the truth.
Note that the adjunct in the first example is obligatory, whereas it is optional in the other
examples.
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Adjuncts have various semantic roles. There are time adjuncts, place adjuncts, manner
adjuncts, etc. In each of these roles, they express various types of meaning. Adverb phrases
functioning as time adjuncts may express definite time: today, now, (He will come by
today); duration: briefly, (They stayed briefly in the same hotel); frequency: seldom, daily,
annually (The meeting is held annually).
When functioning as place adjuncts they may express position: here, upstairs (My room
is upstairs); or direction: westwards, backwards (It is moving backwards). They may also
function as process adjuncts expressing manner: slowly, carefully (You need to watch your
steps very carefully); emphasis: certainly (He certainly knows what I mean); means:
surgically (The infection has to be dealt with surgically); or degree: badly (We badly need
a change).
A subjunct may be distinguished from an adjunct by its more peripheral role in the
sentence and its different behaviour from other constituents of the clause. Subjuncts may
express a viewpoint, e.g. The enemy suffered a crushing defeat, not militarily, but
psychologically too). They may serve a focusing function: restrictive, e.g. only, merely,
alone (He is merely doing his job), or additive, e.g. also, even, equally (Even the children
want to see it); or function as intensifiers: amplifiers, e.g. literally, fully, deeply, actually
(We literally pulled him away from the stage), or down-toners, partly, almost, hardly (I
partly agree with him). They may express courtesy, e.g. kindly, cordially (Could you kindly
respond to that question?); or are closely related to time expressions, e.g. still, just, yet,
already (I have just finished my exam).
The disjunct is even less related to any of the other constituents of the clause. Disjuncts
are distinguished by their super-ordinate role to other elements. They convey the speaker’s
comment or viewpoint about the sentence. Two broad types of disjuncts may be isolated.
They are ‘style disjuncts’, which convey the speaker’s comment on the style of what is
being said, e.g. personally, frankly, generally, strictly, etc. (Personally, I don’t it will
work); and ‘content disjuncts’ that comment on the content of the message conveyed by
the sentence, wisely, apparently, funnily (enough) undoubtedly, etc. (Wisely, he directly
contacted his superior).
The last adverbial function that adverb phrases realize at the clause level is that of a
conjunct. This is an element that conjoins two grammatical units expressing at the same
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time the semantic relation that obtains between these units. Conjuncts could indicate
listing, e.g. finally, moreover, next, similarly, etc. (She is both pretty and intelligent;
moreover, she comes from a wealthy family). They could be resultative, e.g. therefore, so,
accordingly, etc. (I was not there, therefore, I couldn’t see what happened); or contrastive,
e.g. instead, still, however, etc. (She didn’t do very well in the interview, still, she was given
the job). They may also express time relationship, e.g. meanwhile, originally, eventually,
etc. (They were first moved to a safer place, but eventually they were evacuated).
b. Specifier/Modifier
The second function of the adverb phrase is that of a specifier within other phrases. In this
function, it occurs as a phrasal constituent that may be found within adjective phrases,
preposition phrases, noun phrases or other adverb phrases, modifying the head element. As
a specifier/modifier, the adverb phrase typically consists of the head adverb. It functions
as a specifier within the adjective phrase occupying a pre-head position and usually with
the semantic role of an emphasizer, e.g. really (really interesting), an amplifier, e.g. very,
extremely (extremely beautiful), or a down-toner, e.g. rather, somewhat (somewhat
offensive). It may also express a viewpoint, e.g. morally, legally, practically, etc.
(practically impossible).
The adverb phrase realizes this function when found in preposition and adverb phrases
also. Here, too, it occupies a pre-head position and conveys an intensifying sense. The
occurrence of such intensifiers in adverb phrases is quite common. E.g. surprisingly well,
pretty soon, quite deliberately. In preposition phrases, they are less so, and the list of the
specific items that occur in this capacity is quite limited, e.g. right, well, dead (right
through his head, well beyond the limit).
Adverb phrases may also realize this function within noun phrases. Some, like quite and
such, occur before the determiners in such phrases as in (It was such a nice evening. She
is quite a competent lawyer). Others appear in a post-head position (the meeting yesterday,
the day before, your friend outside). One final note here is that as constituents of noun
phrases like the above, adverb phrases seem to express similar semantic roles to those they
express at the clause level, i.e. when they function as adverbials.
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6.1.2. The Adverb phrase in Arabic
In Arabic, the adverb phrase consists of the head and, sometimes, a specifier. The specifier
of the adverb phrase modifies the head, and is usually an intensifier like ‫جدا‬. The structure
of the adverb phrase in Arabic is the reverse of that of the adverb phrase in English
Head – Spec
The following exemplify the adverb phrase in Arabic and its various functions.
‫متى جئت؟‬ . ‫ ال يمكن تبرير ذلك أخالقيا‬. ‫جلس هناك‬ . ‫لم أرها قط‬
. َ‫رأيته اآلن‬ . ‫عصر السبت‬
َ ‫أتاهم‬ . ‫أحيانا‬ ‫يكلمها‬ ‫كان‬ . ‫عرفته زمنا‬
. ‫رماه أرضا‬ . ‫التفتت يمنة‬ . ‫ سرنا بطيئا جدا‬. ‫أمس‬ ِ ‫ذلك ما حصل‬
.‫ السفر فجرا مريح‬. ‫ طرحته خار َج الغرف ِة‬. ‫ فاجأتهم ليال‬. ‫اتجهت جنوبا‬
These sentences contain units (underlined) that functionally correspond to adverb

phrases in English, and thus, might be called adverb phrases. However, they do raise an
important question about the existence of such a phrase in Arabic. In other words, do we
have ‘adverb phrases’ in Arabic?
As you remember, phrases are classified and identified in terms of their heads – the
lexical category that plays the central role in the phrase. Can we distinguish words that we
can call adverbs in Arabic, and which differ from other words that belong to other lexical
categories? Many of the underlined words in these sentences are easily recognized as nouns
and adjectives. If so, then why are they taken here to be elements of adverb phrases?
Because they realize adverbial functions. However, the full answer to this question will
have to wait until we come to discuss the adverbs in the two languages.
Syntactic functions
Following the model we have designed for the distinction of the syntactic functions that
adverb phrases realize in English, we may similarly suggest that adverb phrases in Arabic
perform two main functions in the grammar of Arabic. These are the function of an
adverbial at the clausal level, and the function of a specifier/modifier at the phrasal level.
We may find adverb phrases as clause constituents realizing various adverbial roles. We
also find them as constituents of other phrases functioning as specifiers or modifiers in
those phrases.
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a. Adverbial
In Arabic, we may find adverbs realizing all the subclasses of the adverbial functions. They
could be found as adjuncts, subjuncts, disjuncts, and as conjuncts. Here, we would like to
note again that other types of phrases may realize these different adverbial functions, most
commonly preposition phrases, but also noun phrases and adjective phrases. We also find
clauses that perform these adverbial functions.
In Arabic, adverb phrases function as adjuncts. In this function, they may constitute an
obligatory element in the clause in some sentences, while in others they are optional. Their
status depends on the type of clause pattern they occur in, i.e. some verbs like ‫ دخل‬require
an adverbial adjunct. Similarly, the adverbial adjunct may serve as a predicate in verbless
existential sentences.
As adjuncts, we have adverbs that serve a variety of semantic roles. There are those that
function as time adjuncts marking a definite or indefinite point in time, e.g.,
. َ‫لقاؤنا الساعة‬ . ‫اليو َم عاد‬ .‫غدا إذا جاء‬ .‫سننتهي منها اآلن‬
and
. ‫سبحان الذي أسرى بعبده ليال‬ . ‫االنطالق عصرا‬ . ‫غزوهم عشية‬
They may also indicate duration, e.g. .‫قضذذذذينا فيها سذذذذنينَ عددا‬ .‫إسذذذذتغرقتني كتابتها سذذذذاعتين‬
or frequency, e.g.
. ‫يقام الحفل سنويا‬ .‫لم يرها قط‬ .‫لبث طوا َل يومه متفكرا‬ . ‫كان يشارك أحيانا‬
These adverb phrases could serve as adjuncts of place conveying position, e.g. ‫نزلنا بغدا َد‬,
direction, e.g. ‫ جعل يلتفت يمنة وي سرة‬, or distance, e.g. ‫ سرت فر سخا‬. They may also function as
manner adjuncts, e.g. ‫سرنا في الطريق حثيثا‬, or express emphasis, e.g. ‫سأراك غدا حتما‬, or means,
e.g. ‫جرى التحليل مجهريا‬. Furthermore, they may function as adjuncts of reason or purpose,
e.g. ‫ سجدنا شكرا هلل‬،‫هاجروا طلبا لألمن‬.
At the clause level, Arabic adverb phrases function also as subjuncts expressing a
variety of semantic roles. Here, they mainly express viewpoints.
.‫ليس باإلمكان تنفيذ مما تريدون‬،‫عمليا‬ . ‫ و ليس أخالقيا‬،‫قد يمكن تبرير هذا ماديا‬.
However, they may also have a focusing function, restrictive, e.g. ‫ غير‬،‫فقط‬:
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. ‫ أردت فقط أن أقول هذا‬, or additive, e.g. ‫أيضذذذا‬: ‫هي أيضذذذا متعة للصذذذغار‬. They can also function as
intensifying subjuncts: as amplifiers, e.g. ‫ فعال‬، ‫حتما‬: ‫ ;ذلك حتما ما يجب أن يفعلوه‬or down-toners,
e.g.‫تقريبا‬: ‫أنجزنا كل شيء تقريبا‬.
A third adverbial function that adverb phrases in Arabic may realize is that of disjuncts.
As was said before, in this function, the adverbial element is not closely related to other
constituents of the clause. Rather, it is a higher, sentential element making a comment by
the speaker about the message conveyed by the sentence expressing his/her viewpoint. We
may need to remind you again that here the adverb phrase typically occupies an initial
position in the sentence.
.‫ ليس في ذلك ضير‬،‫عموما‬ .‫ أعتقد أنه أخطأ في قوله‬،‫شخصيا‬
The last adverbial function that adverb phrases in Arabic realize at the clausal level is
that of a conjunct. Adverb phrases seem to perform this function between grammatical
units of various types or structures, e.g. ‫ طبعا‬، ‫ خاصة‬،‫ أي‬،‫ هكذا‬،‫بل‬
.‫ تلك المتعلقة باألمن‬،‫ وخاصة‬،‫نهتم بالخطط الجديدة‬ .‫ بل كان يسمع كل كلمة قالوها‬،‫لم يكن نائما‬
b. Specifier/Modifier
The other function that the adverb phrase in Arabic may realize is that of a
specifier/modifier at the phrasal level. As a specifier within an adjective phrase following
the head adjective, the adverb phrase realizes the role of the intensifier, either, an amplifier,
e.g. ‫ جدا‬، ‫ تماما‬: ‫ ماكنة معطلة تماما‬.‫ كان اإلنتصذذذار سذذذريعا جدا‬, or a down-toner, e.g. ‫ نوعا ما‬،‫تقريبا‬
: ‫كتاب قديم نوعا ما‬. In this role, the adverb phrase may also express a view point, e.g. ‫هذا ليس‬
‫الحل المقبول منطقيا‬.
In adverb and preposition phrases in Arabic, one can hardly find adverb specifiers, but
we may frequently find adverb phrases that function as modifiers of the head nouns within
noun phrases. The underlined items in the following examples are modifiers of the head
nouns they immediately follow, e.g.
.‫الموت جوعا جريمة إنسانية ال تغتفر‬ .‫لقاؤنا الليلة َ لن يطول‬ .‫السفر نهارا يتيح رؤية الكثير‬
In these phrases, the adverb phrase serves a variety of adverbial functions: time, place,
manner, reason, etc. Notice that the head nouns in these adverb-modified head noun
phrases are action nominals or gerunds with structural properties similar to those of
sentence structure.
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We may also add that the adverbial modification of the head noun is not restricted to
adverb phrases. Head nouns are more commonly modified by adverbial preposition
phrases, which will be dealt with in the next chapter. We may also note here that the
semantic roles that adverb phrases express when they function as constituents of other
phrases are similar to those they express at the clause level.
6. 1.3. Comparing adverb phrases in English and Arabic

1. The structure of the adverb phrase is the same in Arabic and English. It consists of the
head adverb and a specifier that is an adverb phrase. However, the order of the specifier
in relation to the head adverb differs. While in English it comes before the head, it follows
it in Arabic.
2. The internal structure of the adverb phrase in both languages is not as rich as that found
in other phrases. Most of the time the adverb phrase consists of the head adverb alone.
3. One major point of difference between the two languages is that while in English
adverb phrases, like other phrases, are distinguished according to the morphological
properties of their head elements, in Arabic, the same phrase is distinguished according
to its function. No clear derivational features distinguish the head elements of this phrase
from other lexical categories.
4. In both languages, the adverb phrase realizes the same functions. It functions as an
adverbial, at the clause level, i.e. when it is a clause constituent: adjunct, subjunct,
disjunct, and conjunct. At the phrase level, it functions as a specifier /modifier of the head
inside different phrases in both Arabic and English.
5. When functioning as adverbials, adverb phrases in both English and Arabic enjoy more
freedom in the positions they occupy in the sentence than the other clause constituents,
whose position is more fixed. Besides their typical positions, they may show up at other
positions. At the phrase level their position is rather fixed in the two languages. Adjective
phrase specifiers in English occur before the head, but in Arabic, they occur after the
head.
6. As modifiers of the head noun in noun phrases, the adverb phrase occurs after the head
in both English and Arabic, though there are exceptions to this rule in English.
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7. The two languages differ in the range of the semantic roles that adverb phrases express
in the functions they realize. In English, adverb phrases functioning as adverbials express
a wider range of semantic roles than those that their Arabic counterparts do. For example,
we may find adverb phrases functioning as disjuncts commenting on the contents of the
message, apparently, funnily (enough). Arabic uses adverbials of other categories, i.e.
preposition phrases, to express those function, ‫ كما يبدو‬،‫ على ما يظهر‬or parentheticals like
‫ لو سمحت‬،‫ من فضلك‬.
8. Similarly, adverb phrases functioning as modifiers/specifiers in other phrases do no
show the same distribution in the two languages. While adverbs in English can be found
performing this function in noun phrases, adjective phrases, preposition phrases and other
adverb phrases, in Arabic the occurrence of such adverb phrases is limited to noun phrases
and adjective phrases. Their occurrence as specifiers of adverb phrases is very much
restricted, and limited to the intensifier ‫جدا‬, and they do not seem to realize this function
within preposition phrases.
6.2. The adverb

An adverb may be distinguished from other lexical categories by its form, and/or its
position and function in the sentence. In form, we seek to distinguish adverbs from lexical
items belonging to other lexical categories, like adjectives, verbs, or nouns. Here we are
concerned with the morphological construction of the adverb: what morphemes are used
in the derivation of adverbs, and in signaling the relation that adverbs have to other
constituents of the larger units in which we find them.
We will also deal with how adverbs are distinguished from other elements in their
distribution, i.e. the positions that the phrases they head occupy in the larger units of
grammar: the clause and phrase, and their functions in these positions. This concerns their
functions as different types of adverbials modifying the action or the proposition, as clause
constituents, or, within phrases, as specifiers /modifiers of the heads of these phrases.
6.2.1. Adverbs in English

The Adverb in English constitutes an independent lexical category that can be
distinguished from other lexical categories morphologically. Most adverbs are
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morphologically distinguished by means of particular derivational suffixes: /-ly/ to an

adjective base, e.g. generally , the less productive suffixes /-wise/, e.g. clockwise, and /-
wards/, eo.g. southwards, added to a noun base. However, the most common adverbs are
not so derived. These constitute a group of morphologically idiosyncratic words like now,
then, always, very, already, and some have the same form of the corresponding adjectives,
e.g. early, fast.
Adverbs are also distinguished from other lexical categories in terms of the position
they occupy in the larger units in which they occur. However, this is closely related to their
functions in these larger units. In each of them, they are to be found in particular positions,
though they may also appear in positions other than their typical ones.
In the preceding sections, we discussed the various functions of the adverb phrases,
which are headed by the adverb, and often consist of this head alone. There, we dealt with
the different adverbial functions of these phrases at the clausal level, and the modifier
function that they realize as specifiers or modifiers inside other phrases.
6.2.2 Adverbs in Arabic

When we turn to Arabic, we are immediately confronted with the question whether there
is a distinct lexical category that we may call the adverb. The answer to this question is not
so straightforward. In Arabic, no adverbs can be distinguished on morphological grounds.
In other words, we do not have a particular set of morphological patterns used to derive
and hence, define a specific class of words from other morphologically distinct classes.
Thus, the criterion we are going to follow in defining adverb, and consequently adverb
phrases, is functional. Lexical items that we are going to consider adverbs are those that
head phrases realizing an adverbial function in the sense that they tell us about the time,
place, manner, frequency, duration, etc. of the action or state conveyed by the sentence.
Formally, we could distinguish two types of lexical items that typically fill in these
positions. The first is that of a group of uninflected (‘indeclinable’ in the traditional
terminology) particles. These do not show any signs of inflection for case. They typically
indicate a variety of adverbial relations such as temporal, spatial, manner, durational,
frequency, etc. notions. We may include in this group interrogative particles, particles
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introducing various kinds of adverbial clauses, or used to indicate time, modality, and
negation notions before verbs, deictic expressions and the like, e.g.
‫ أ‬،‫ أنى‬،‫ كذا‬،‫ لن‬،‫ أين‬،‫ متى‬،‫ هناك‬،‫ هنا‬،‫ هكذا‬،‫ فقط‬،‫ قط‬،‫ إال‬،‫…قد‬
.‫ما أفدتنا بشيء‬ ‫أين حقي؟‬ ‫متى وصلتم؟‬
.‫قد حضر الطعام‬ ‫هل غادر الشعراء من متردم؟‬ ‫أ تعلم أم أنت ال تعلم؟‬
.‫هنا محط رحالهم‬ ‫هال جلست؟‬ .‫لم أره قط من قبل‬
The second and larger group of lexical items that we want to consider as adverbs is that
of nouns and adjectives, characterized also as being declinable, i.e. showing case inflection.
These fall into two sub-classes. One is that of words that may alternatively function as
prepositions followed by noun phrases in the genitive case, e.g. ‫ تحذذذت‬،‫ فوق‬،‫ قبذذذل‬. In the
following two examples, these words are inflected for the accusative case.
‫تحتَ الماءِ ؛ فوقَ الشجر ِة‬
Sometimes, these words occur with or without a preceding preposition, and without a
following noun phrase complement, and are, therefore, identified as adverbs, e.g.
.‫والشكر لكم من قبل ومن بعد‬ .‫لم يشت قبل وال أصافا‬
Notice that in this case, they are inflected for the nominative case.
The second sub-class is that of indefinite nouns and adjectives that are inflected for the
accusative case. This case inflection is a signal for their adverbial status. ،‫ يمنة‬،‫ شماال‬،‫صباحا‬
،‫ ماديا‬،‫ إقتصاديا‬،‫ دينيا‬،‫ طويال‬،‫ عاجال‬،‫ سريعا‬،‫ دائما‬،‫ قليال‬،‫ ضحى‬،‫ أحيانا‬،‫ غدا‬،‫ أرضا‬etc…
. ‫نراكم غدا‬ . ‫توجه شماال‬ . ‫هذا غير مج ِد اقتصاديا‬ .‫موعدكم ضحى‬
Some of these may occur in their definite forms; either prefixed by the definite article ‫الـ‬
َ
/al-/, e.g. ‫الليلذذذة‬ َ
، ‫البذذذارحذذذة‬، ‫اليو َم‬, or made definite by a following genitive noun, or are
inherently definite by their being proper names like ‫ مكة‬، ‫رمضان‬
.‫موعدكم يو َم الزين ِة‬ َ‫نزلنا مكة‬ .َ‫سأزوره الليلة‬
6.2.3 Comparing adverbs in English and Arabic

The following are the main points of similarity and difference between adverbs in English
and Arabic.
1. The first and most important point in the comparison of adverbs in English and Arabic
is the fact that these elements are not defined and/or identified according to the same
criteria in the two languages. Allowing for exceptions, adverbs in English are
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morphologically distinct from other lexical categories by virtue of the specific affixes
used in their derivation. Thus, adverbs in English constitute a separate lexical class. This
is not the case in Arabic. The adverbs in this language can only be defined functionally.
That is, words are considered adverbs depending on their specific adverbial function in
the sentence. These words may belong to various lexical categories such as nouns,
adjectives, or prepositions. Many of them are actually particles with no identifiable
morphological pattern. Others are morphologically nouns or adjectives that are used in
the sentence to serve an adverbial function.
2. Whereas adverbs in English do not exhibit any case inflection, their Arabic
counterparts do. The majority of the adverbs in Arabic are inflected for the accusative
case, which is the adverbial default case. This case is taken as a signal of their adverbial
function, whether at the clause or phrase level. However, we need to remember that not
all adverbs in Arabic are alike here. Some are uninflected (indeclinable), with an
invariable ending.
3. English and Arabic adverbs differ as far as definiteness is concerned. In English
adverbs are not preceded by the definite or indefinite articles. Definiteness is a property
of nouns. On the other hand, some adverbs in Arabic, i.e. those that belong to the lexical
category of nouns exhibit a definiteness contrast. Most of the time they are indefinite,
but sometimes they are definite, either via prefixation by the definite article, or by being
followed by a noun phrase in the genitive case (the construct state).
6.3. Comparison of adverbs

Like adjectives, adverbs can be compared. That is, the property they signify can be made
a standard of comparison between two actions. In other words, two actions, can be
compared with respect to their attributes: time, manner, place, etc..
6.3.1. Comparison of adverbs in English

Gradable adverbs in English can be compared. In this, the adverbs generally follow the
same patterns that adjectives follow. The structures used in the comparison of adverbs, to
a higher degree, a lower degree, or the same degree, are the same as those used in the
comparison of adjectives.
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Very few of them use the inflection with /-er/ and /-est/, e.g., soon – sooner - soonest..
This morning, he arrived sooner than expected.
Some of these have the same form as their corresponding adjectives, and are thus
inflected similarly, e.g. hard -harder – hardest, early – earlier – earliest, well/bad – worse
– worst, e.g.
Jane is working harder this semester than she did last semester.
However, most adverbs use periphrasis, i.e. the use of a complex form, e.g. easily - more
easily - most easily, beautifully – more beautifully – most beautifully. Again, the
construction is the same as that of similar adjectives.
I’ll try to do it more/less carefully next time.
I’ll work on this as carefully as I worked on that one.
6.3.2. Comparison of adverbs in Arabic

In Arabic, a handful of adverbs that are adjectives in category, and are semantically
characterized as gradable, like ‫ طويال‬،‫ كثيرا‬،‫ قليال‬،‫ سذذريعا‬may be used in the comparative and
superlative degrees of comparison when they function as adverbials of manner. They
appear in the comparative inflectional pattern, e.g. ،‫ أكثر‬،‫أقل‬،‫أسرع‬:
.‫رأيتك اليوم تمشي أسر َع من ذي قبل‬
However, since most of the adverbial functions are realized by noun phrases and
preposition phrases. comparison in these cases is achieved via periphrasis, using the
construction ]--- ‫ أقل من‬/‫ أفضل‬/‫ أقوى‬/‫أحسن‬/‫ [أكبر‬e.g.
.‫حضروها بعناية أفضل من سابقتها‬ .‫حدثني بجرأة أكبر من حديثه مع محمد‬
6.3.3. Comparing adverb comparison in English and Arabic

1. In both languages, gradable adverbs may be found in comparative constructions.
2. The constructions used in adverb comparison are the same as those used for the
comparison of adjectives.
3. In English, some adverbs use the same inflections that adjectives are inflected for when
compared. There are also adverbs that have the same form of their corresponding
adjectives in their absolute, comparative and superlative forms. However, the majority
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of the adverbs in English use the periphrasis strategy of the type [more/less-Adv-than]
and [most-Adv].
4. In Arabic, things are different. The lexical items that we have decided to call adverbs
depending on their function in the clause and phrase belong to different categories, i.e.
parts of speech: adjectives, nouns, particles of different types and preposition phrases.
Some of the gradable adverbs that are adjectives in category are compared via the use
of the same inflections adjectives are inflected for when compared. Others, which are
preposition phrases, are compared via periphrasis, using the construction /‫أحسذذذذن‬/‫’أكبر‬
‘--- ‫ أفضل من‬/‫أقوى‬
Exercises
1. Again, for every point described and compared, go over the description and find out
other similarities and differences.
2. Adverb phrases, adjuncts for example, can be found in different positions in the
sentence. Collect a sample of sentences that contain adjuncts from English and
Arabic. Provide a description of this variation in position and see where the two
languages differ or are similar here.
3. Describe how adverbs are compared to the same degree or to a lesser degree in
English and Arabic. Are there any similarities, or differences between them in the
two languages?
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Chapter Seven
The Preposition Phrase
7.1. The preposition phrase

7.1.1 Preposition phrases in English
7.1.2 Preposition phrases in Arabic
7.1.3. Comparing preposition phrases in English and Arabic
7.2. Prepositions
7.2.1. Prepositions in English
7.2.2. Prepositions in Arabic
7.2.3. Comparing prepositions in English and Arabic
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7.1. The preposition phrase

The preposition phrase is the last phrasal category that we will discuss. It is the phrase in
which the preposition is the central constituent. A preposition phrase consists of a
preposition head and a phrasal or clausal complement. The complement is a necessary
element in all PP’s and is said to be ‘governed’ grammatically by the head. The effect of
this government is sometimes noticeable in some formal changes on the complement.
Another way of putting it is to say that the preposition assigns case to its complement.
Preposition phrases are found as constituents of clauses and of phrases. In each of these
positions, they realize various grammatical functions. At the clause level, preposition
phrases may function as adverbials or complements. As adverbials, they can realize the
different types of adverbials that we discussed in the previous chapter: adjuncts, subjuncts,
disjuncts, and conjuncts expressing different semantic roles. In some clauses, they play a
more central role, being part of the complementation of the verb, and are thus obligatory
elements. In others, their role is more peripheral and their occurrence is thus optional.
Preposition phrases are also found as constituents of other phrases: mainly noun phrases
and adjective phrases. In noun phrases, they occur as modifiers of the head noun, and in
adjective phrases, they function as complements to the head adjective.
7. 1.1. Preposition phrases in English

In English, a preposition phrase consists mainly of the head, which is a preposition, and an
obligatory complement that follows it. The head of the preposition phrase is said to
‘govern’, or assign to its complement the accusative case, though this is not overtly
manifested except when the complement is a pronominal noun phrase, in which case the
pronoun will be in its objective form. The following exemplify preposition phrases in
English.
Sue lives in Huston. I called them in the morning.
John sat beside her. I am pretty sure of what he said.
He usually puts his newspaper on the table. She arrived right on time.
A friend in need is a true friend. Samples of the product will be given.
Preposition phrases in English may contain an adverb specifier that is located before the
head preposition, e.g., an intensifier like right in one of the above examples. The structure
of the preposition phrase in English may therefore be represented as:
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Spec – Head – Complement

The complement of the preposition is usually a noun phrase, as in all but one of the
examples above. However, it could be a finite ‘interrogative’, and not a ‘that-clause’, as in
of what he said in the sentence above, or a nonfinite ing-clause like I have no objection to
John’s joining the committee. It could also be a preposition phrase, e.g. from behind the
door, and in some rather idiomatic cases it may be an adjective phrase, e.g. in brief, in
short, etc.
Syntactic function
Preposition phrases in English realize two main functions depending on their status in the
sentence. When they are immediate constituents of the clause, they function as adverbials
or complements. However, they could also be found as constituents of other phrases where
they function as modifiers and complements.
a. Adverbial
As a clause constituent, the preposition phrase in English functions as an adverbial
realizing the various adverbial functions discussed in Chapter Six. You may remember that
these are mainly the functions of adjunct, subjunct, disjunct, or conjunct, with their
different subclasses. Consider the following sentences.
My son lives in Bendigo. The celebration turned into a nightmare.
She looked me straight in the eye. With pride, he displayed his medals.
In short, Joan was very unhappy about it. She laughed in the meeting.
To my surprise, John passed the test. We had our lunch in the park.
The above sentences show preposition phrases as clause constituents realizing the
different adverbial functions. They can also be seen to have different status in the clause.
In some cases, they are quite central and are therefore obligatory, while in others they are
more peripheral, and are optional. In the first three sentences above, the preposition phrase
is as an obligatory element. However, this is not the case in the other sentences. It can be
omitted without affecting the well formedness of the sentence.
As adjuncts, preposition phrases may be found serving the various semantic roles of
adjuncts. We find them as time adjuncts, place adjuncts, process adjuncts, etc. expressing
various meanings that will be discussed below.
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Preposition phrases functioning as time adjuncts may express definite time, e.g. We met
at ten o’clock; duration, e.g. He taught there for two years; and frequency, e.g. They call
one another on every other day. As space adjuncts, they may express position, e.g. Winter
starts earlier in Canada, direction, e.g. She ran away from the school (source), We hurried
to the lecture room (goal), distance, e.g. He walked for three miles then stopped. They may
also function as process adjuncts expressing manner, e.g. She walked on it with careful
steps, means, e.g. I go to school by bus, instrument, e.g. The doctor cut the skin with a
special knife.
As subjuncts, preposition phrases may express a viewpoint, e.g. From a religious point
of view, this is sacrilegious. They may show the subject’s orientation, e.g. With pride, John
explained his theory of evolution; or they may serve a focusing function, e.g. Bill has, in
addition, won weight-lifting medals at college.
As adverbials, preposition phrases function as disjuncts too. Here again, they realize the
different types of disjuncts. We find them as style disjuncts expressing a comment by the
speaker, e.g. In short, the debate was long but not boring; and content disjuncts, making
observations on the actual content of the utterance and its truth conditions, e.g. To my
regret, I had to erase the frank accusations made in his speech.
Furthermore, preposition phrases may realize the adverbial function of conjuncts where
they link between grammatical units such as clauses or phrases. Many of these preposition
phrase conjuncts are more or less frozen units, and are generally treated as clichés. They
may express a number of semantic roles. One of these is listing, e.g. He wrote a long,
detailed, and in addition, apologetic letter. They could be resultative, e.g. She was nagging
him all the time, and as a result, he spent his time outside; inferential, e.g. He wouldn’t
respond to any of her calls; in other words, he wanted her out of his life; or contrastive,
e.g. John was helpful and cooperative; on the other hand, he would not allow any
disagreement.
One special use of the preposition phrase is its occurrence as an adverbial in existential
sentences with the verb be and other copular verbs, e.g. Jane is at home. They are in the
dining room. The car is round the corner. The preposition phrase is an obligatory element
in these sentences and it makes part of the complementation of the verb. However, we may
note that in some of these sentences, the preposition phrase has more of an adjectival role
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than that of an adverbial one, and can consequently be substituted or coordinated with
adjective phrase complements. e.g. She felt at ease/comfortable.; They are in
trouble/ruined ; She is under arrest/handcuffed. In such cases, they are considered subject
complements rather than adverbials.
b. Verb complement
There are other instances of preposition phrases that are clause constituents. Consider the
following sentences.
She is looking for the right man. The children were waiting for the bus.
We rely on TV ads for our vacations.. Look at that!
In these sentences the preposition phrases do not have any clear adverbial role, i.e. they
do not express any adverbial notion of time, space, process, speaker’s viewpoint or
comment, etc. Rather, they appear to be obligatory elements in the clause, as part of the
verb complementation. The preposition is uniquely selected by the verb, and is not
replaceable by other prepositions. The verbs that select preposition phrase complements
are termed as ‘prepositional verbs’, e.g. decide on, get off, care for
Prepositional verbs differ from ‘phrasal verbs’ - verbs that are followed by preposition-
like particles but that differ in their behaviour, e.g. turn on, put off. Many of these phrasal
verbs develop an idiomatic meaning with their particles. Transitive phrasal verbs allow the
direct object to be placed before the particle, especially when it is a personal pronoun. On
the other hand, in prepositional verbs, the preposition must always precede its noun phrase
complement.
She took off her raincoat. She took her raincoat/it off.
She is looking after her baby *She is looking her baby after.
Prepositional verbs differ from verbs that are followed by adverbial preposition phrases,
e.g. She met me after the lecture. They allow questioning the preposition complement with
who, or what, e.g. Who is she looking after? In the latter, the whole adverbial should be
questioned, i.e. with when.
Another sign of the close relationship between the verb and the preposition is the ability
of many of these prepositional verbs to passivize by moving the complement of the
preposition to subject position leaving the preposition behind, e.g. The radio is relied on
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for weather forecast. This suggests that the verb and the preposition may be considered a
single verbal unit and the preposition complement as a direct object.
c. Modifier/complement
As constituents of phrases, preposition phrases may realize the function of a modifier or a
complement. We may find a preposition phrase as a post-modifier in a noun phrase or a
complement in an adjective phrase, e.g.
[The girl in the middle] is the prettiest. I talked to [the man with the umbrella].
[The right man for the job] is John. [The arrival of the police] put things in order.
She is [fond of roses]. He was [very kind to her].
He listened to them [from behind the screen].
In the first four of the above sentences, the preposition phrase is within a noun phrase
– indicated by the brackets. In these phrases, the preposition phrase functions as a modifier
of the head noun and occurs to its right, hence the name post-modifier. Note also that in
some of these phrases, the occurrence of the preposition phrase is obligatory and it seems
to form part of the complementation of the head noun, e.g. [The arrival of the police].
In the fifth and sixth sentences above, the preposition phrases are constituents of
adjective phrases. These preposition phrases come after the head adjectives: fond and kind.
However, they differ in that the first preposition phrase is an obligatory element of the
adjective phrase but no so in the second. Adjectives differ as to whether they require a
complement or not. Some do, some do not, and yet a third class admits complements that
are optional in status. In the last sentence above, the preposition phrase behind the screen
is within another preposition phrase indicated by the brackets and functions as a
complement of the preposition from.
Preposition stranding
Although preposition complements are obligatory elements in the structure of preposition
phrases, English exhibits cases where the preposition appears without an overt
complement. This is what we find in the following sentences.
The witness was sent [for…] again. The man whom we talked [to …] left.
Where is he [from…]? He is difficult to deal [with…].
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Preposition stranding, the technical name of this phenomenon, is the result of noun
phrase movement. The missing prepositional complement in the above examples has
moved to another position in the sentence.
We usually find stranded prepositions in passive sentences where the preposition
complement has moved to subject position, as in the first sentence in the above examples.
We also find it when the complement is a relative or an interrogative pronoun that has
moved to the beginning of the clause, as in the second and third sentences. Furthermore,
we find it in sentences showing thematization, as in the fourth sentence, where the
thematized complement has moved to subject position.
7.1.2. Preposition phrases in Arabic
Like their counterparts in English, preposition phrases in Arabic are formed of the head, a
preposition, followed by an obligatory complement. Prepositions in Arabic are said to
govern the genitive case. Their complements are inflected for this case, which is overtly
manifested on the head noun or adjective, when the complement is a noun phrase headed
by a noun, or a substantivized adjective. Preposition phrases in Arabic may contain a
specifier. This is an element from a closed set of adverbial intensifiers like ‫ تماما‬,‫ تقريبا‬and
it occurs phrase-finally.
The structure of the preposition phrase in Arabic may be represented as:
Head – Complement – Spec

Consider the following examples.
ِ ‫ أنّ للثعل‬.‫ عادوا إلى المدين ِة‬.‫ب الواعظينا‬
.‫ب دينا‬ ِ ‫برز الثعلب في ثيا‬ .‫على الباغي تدور الدوائر‬
.‫الوسط تماما‬
ِ ‫في‬ . ‫رجل‬ ‫بيتنا‬ ‫في‬ . ٍ
‫د‬ ‫بع‬ ‫عن‬ ‫سفحك‬
ِ ‫حييت‬ . ‫قف بالمعر ِة‬
.‫ كان هللا بما تعملون بصيرا‬. ‫إنهن حل لكم‬ . ‫قريش‬
ٍ ‫ يا ابن الهواشم من‬.‫الحق غابا‬
ِ ‫وكانت خيله في‬
.‫ قالت هو من عند هللا‬. ‫ب أو من بعي ٍد‬ ٍ ‫ من قري‬. ‫أأوجع من أنّك المزدرى ؟ اتفقنا على أن ال نتفق‬
In the above sentences, the underlined preposition phrases are formed of a preposition
head followed by a complement that may be a noun phrase inflected for the genitive case
(in any of its phonological realizations). This is the case in all but the last five examples.
In these, the complements of the first three are clauses of different types: a nominalized
free relative clause ‫ ; ما تعملون‬a finite nominal clause with the complementizer ّ‫أن‬: ‫أنك‬
‫ ;المزدرى‬or a nonfinite verbal clause beginning with the complementizer ‫ أن‬: ‫أن ال نتفق‬
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The complement could occasionally be an adjective phrase, as in ‫من قريب أو بعيد‬. Here
again we may find that the complement is inflected for the genitive case. In the last
example, the prepositional complement is itself a preposition phrase ‫عند هللا‬. In one of the
examples, ‫الوسط تماما‬
ِ ‫في‬, the preposition phrase contains a specifier – i.e. ‫ تماما‬- occurring
after the preposition complement.
Syntactic function
Preposition phrases realize various functions in the sentence both as clause constituents
and as phrase constituents. As constituents of the clause, they function as adverbials and
complements. At the phrase level, they function as modifiers and complements. in other
phrases.
Adverbial
This is the main function that preposition phrases realize when they are immediate
constituents of the clause. They may realize the various adverbial functions expressing the
different semantic roles associated with those functions. Let us look at the following
sentences.
. ‫ سلمت أمري للذي فطر السماوات واألرض‬. ‫ ارجعي إلى ربك‬.‫نظرت إليه‬
. ‫نمنا على األرض‬ .‫نحرت الذبائح في العيد‬ . ‫عاش شاعرنا في بغداد‬
.‫ لن تسنح الفرصة ثانية‬،‫ لألسف‬.‫ قل كلمتك‬،‫على األقل‬
In all the above examples, the preposition phrases are immediate constituents of the
clause and realize various adverbial functions. We may notice here that they do not have
the same status in these sentences. In some, they are more central to the structure of the
clause than in others. This could be seen from a simple comparison between the sentences
of the first line with those of the second line. In the former, the preposition phrases play
quite a central role and are hence obligatory. This is not the case in the latter sentences.
Here, their omission would not make the sentence ungrammatical.
The first and commonest adverbial function that preposition phrases in Arabic realize
is the function of adjunct. We may find them expressing the various semantic roles of the
adjuncts. As time adjuncts, they may refer to definite time, e.g. ‫; في الصيف ضيعت اللبن‬
duration, e.g. ‫ ;إستمر المطر بالهطول حتى الفجر‬or frequency, e.g. ‫ كانا يلتقيان في كل صباح ومساء‬.
Preposition phrases functioning as space adverbials may express position, e.g. ‫ولد شاعرنا‬
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‫ ;في النجف‬direction, e.g. ‫( انطلق المتسابقون من النادي‬source); ‫وجهت وجهي لفاطر السماوات واألرض‬
(goal); or distance, e.g. ‫ تابعنا سيرنا لعدة أميال‬. They may also function as process adjuncts
expressing such notions as manner, e.g.‫ ;دعا هللا بقلب سليم‬means, e.g. ‫ ; غادر البالد بطريق الجو‬or
instrument, e.g. ‫ أمسك كتابه بيمينه‬.
Preposition phrases may serve the adverbial function of subjunct. Here, they may
express such notions as viewpoint, e.g. ‫ ال بأس بهذا الحل‬، ‫ ;من الناحية النظرية‬subject orientation,
e.g. ‫ أعلن محمد عن فوزه باالنتخابات‬،‫ ; بفخر واعتزاز‬or focusing, e.g. ‫ صريح أيما صراحة‬، ‫ إلى ذلك‬،‫وهو‬
As adverbials, preposition phrases in Arabic may realize the function of a disjunct too.
Here too, we can see that they realize such different types of disjuncts as style disjuncts
making note of a comment by the speaker, e.g. ‫ لم يعد أمامه غير القبول بما فرض عليه‬،‫; وباختصار‬
or content disjuncts, making some sort of observation on the actual content of the utterance
and its truth conditions, e.g. ‫ كان ذلك أهون الشرين‬،‫ لشديد األسف‬.
A further adverbial function that preposition phrases in Arabic realize is that of
conjuncts, where they serve as connectors between grammatical units of various categories,
words, phrases or clauses. Many of these preposition phrases are frozen expressions, like
their English counterparts. As conjuncts, they express different notions such as listing, e.g.
‫ أطفئوا األنوار‬،‫ وباإلضافة إلى ذلك‬،‫ ; أغلقوا النوافذ وأسدلوا الستائر‬result, e.g. ،‫ وكنتيجة لذلك‬،‫كان دائم السفر‬
‫ ; أصبح يعرف الكثير مما يجهله اآلخرون‬or contrast, e.g. ‫ هو‬، ‫ وعلى العكس من ذلك‬، ‫محمد كثير البذل للناس‬
‫ شديد التقتير على أهله‬.
Preposition phrases are found as adverbials or complements of copular existential
nominal clauses that consist of a noun phrase subject and a predicate (‘topic’ and
‘comment’ in Traditional Arabic Grammar). The predicate may be a noun phrase, an
adjective phrase, an adverb phrase, or a preposition phrase. In such sentences, a preposition
phrase may function as an adverbial adjunct, but of an obligatory status. It cannot be
omitted, ‫ الكتاب على المنضدة‬،‫ الحصاد في أيلول‬،‫ لقاؤنا عند المسجد‬. In other sentences like these,
the preposition phrase has more of a complement role than an adverbial one. In such
sentences, it attributes a certain property to the subject, more like an adjective, e.g. ‫محمد‬
‫في حيرة من أمره‬. This is why they are considered subject complements.
a. Verb complement
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We often find preposition phrases occurring in the clause in association with the so-called
prepositional verbs. Here they could be seen as part of the verb complement rather than
adverbials that add time, space, or manner modifications to the sentence. Consider the
following sentences
. ‫غضذذذذذذذب هللا عليهم‬ . ‫دافع المحامي عن المتهم‬ . ‫هللا يرفق بعباده‬ . ‫يعتمد الناس على قادتهم‬
. ‫ال تثق بما يقولون‬ . ‫التقيت بالمجتمعين‬ .‫فرغ من عمله‬ . ‫رغب فيها‬
In each of the above examples, the verb is followed by a preposition phrase. The
preposition is exclusively selected by the verb. Their non-adverbial function is made clear
in that they are not questioned with adverb wh-elements like ‫ أين‬،‫ متى‬,etc., which are used
in questioning adverbial prepositions. Rather, the preposition complement is questioned
with the pronoun wh-elements ‫ ماذا‬،‫من‬, and moved to the beginning of the sentence together
with the preposition, e.g. ‫ بمن التقيت؟‬.
Besides, in topicalization, the preposition complement may be moved alone to the
beginning of the sentence leaving a pronoun in its original place, e.g. ‫المتهم هو الذي دافع‬
‫ المحامي عنه‬. Adverbial preposition phrases do not seem to allow this.
This may suggest that in prepositional verbs, the verb and the following preposition
form a single lexical unit, with the noun phrase that follows the preposition functioning as
a direct object.
As clause constituents, preposition phrases in Arabic have yet another function. This is
the rather special partitive use of preposition phrases headed by the preposition ‫ من‬in
sentences like the following.
.‫من عادتي أن أقرأ القرآن‬ ‫هل إلى ذلك من سبيل؟‬ .‫ليس من شك أنه فعل ذلك‬
.‫من الناس من ال يؤتمن‬ َ ‫وبورك قبرك من‬
.‫مفزع‬ ‫مفزع للحتوف‬
ِ ‫تعاليت من‬
.‫ومن عجب أنهم الهون عنه‬ .‫من المؤسف أنهم لم يتعظوا بغيرهم‬ ‫أليس هنالك من ناصر ؟‬
In these sentences, the preposition phrases assume a substantive significance (i.e. noun
phrases) and are found in positions usually occupied by noun phrases. This can be seen
from the functions they realize, which are like those realized by noun phrases: subjects or
complements in copular nominal sentences or direct objects.
b. Modifier/complement
Preposition phrases in Arabic may occur as phrase constituents. In this capacity, they
usually serve as modifiers or complements in noun phrases and adjective phrases
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respectively. In noun phrases, we may find them modifying the head. These always follow
the head. Within the noun phrase, preposition phrases are preceded by both the determiner
noun phrase (in the genitive) and the adjective (phrases), as the following noun phrases
show.
‫عصفور في اليد‬ ‫ثيابا خضرا من سندس‬ ‫أساور من فضة‬
‫أغنية عن العراق‬ ‫عيد للمسلمين‬ ‫يقيني باهلل‬
.‫الوساطة بينهما صعبة‬ .‫ذلك كان دليل زيد الوحيد على السرقة‬
Preposition phrases are also found as constituents of adjective phrases functioning as

complements to the head adjective. In many of these adjective phrases, the preposition
phrase complement is optional. Its absence does not render the adjective phrase ill-formed.
However, the preposition phrase is considered a complement because of the strict selection
of the head preposition by the adjective. This can be seen in the following adjective phrases.
‫خائف من المحاولة‬ ‫حريص على ماله‬ ‫رءوف بالعباد‬
‫وكان هللا بما تعملون بصيرا‬ ‫أكبر من أختها‬ ‫أشداء على الكفار‬
Adjectives in the comparative form used predicatively are necessarily followed by a
preposition phrase headed by ‫من‬, as one of the examples above shows . As for their position,
these preposition phrases usually follow the head adjectives. Nevertheless, they may be
transposed to a pre-head position as in ‫ بما تعملون بصيرا‬, where the preposition phrase
complement ‫ بما تعملون‬has moved to a position in which it precedes the head adjective ‫بصير‬
Preposition phrases may also be constituents of other preposition phrases functioning
as complements of the head preposition. Like other prepositional complements, they follow
the head.
.‫قرأه محمد من قبلك‬ . ‫أغلقت بابها من دونه‬ .‫قالت هو من عند هللا‬ .‫أخرجه من تحت الركام‬
7.1.3. Comparing preposition phrases in English and Arabic

1. Preposition phrases exhibit a similar structure in Arabic and English. In both languages
the preposition phrase consists of a preposition head, an obligatory complement and an
optional specifier.
2. In both languages, the preposition complement may belong to various categories. Most
frequently, it is a noun phrase, but we do have clausal complements too. These could be
finite clauses of certain types: wh-clauses or nominalized (free) relative clauses in
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English, and finite clauses beginning with the complementizer ّ‫ أن‬، ّ‫ إن‬, or nominalized
free relative clauses in Arabic. They may also be nonfinite ing-clauses in English, and
nonfinite ‫أن‬, clauses in Arabic. Moreover, preposition complements, in both languages
may be preposition phrases or, less commonly, adjective phrases.
3. Preposition phrases in English and Arabic realize similar functions at the clause and
phrase level. As constituents of the clause, they function as adverbials, expressing
various adverbial subclasses and semantic roles. Their status varies in how obligatory
they are from one case to another. In some cases, i.e. those of copular verbs in English
and Arabic, and those of nominal verbless sentences in Arabic, the preposition phrase
adverbial is obligatory. This is the case in sentences like She was in the kitchen in
English, and ‫ الخير فيما وقع‬، ‫ كان االجتماع في النادي‬in Arabic. It cannot be omitted. In other
cases, the preposition phrase adverbial is optional.
4. We also find preposition phrases functioning as subject complements in sentences with
copular verbs. In these cases they do not seem to express any adverbial role, as is seen
in the examples You are in trouble ; She felt at ease in English , and ‫محمد في حيرة من أمره‬
in Arabic.
5. In both languages, we find preposition phrases functioning as part of the complement
of certain verbs. This is the case with prepositional verbs. Such verbs select the
prepositions that follow them and, together, they seem to make a single semantic unit.
In these sentences, the prepositions do not have any adverbial role, e.g. adding time,
space, manner, etc information to the sentence. Under this assumption, the noun phrase
that functions as a prepositional complement may be considered a direct object to a
‘compound’ verb made of the lexical verb and the following preposition.
6. At the phrase level, preposition phrases function as modifiers of the head element in
the phrase. Within noun phrases, we find preposition phrases functioning as modifiers
of the head noun occupying a post-head position in both languages. Their relation to the
head noun may vary from one case to another. In some cases the head noun seems to be
obligatorily followed by a PP, which renders this as a part of the complementation of
the head, as in the English The arrival of the police.
7. Preposition phrases may also function as complements in adjective phrases in Arabic
and English. In both languages, they occupy a post-head position. In many cases, the
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occurrence of the preposition phrase is optional, though there are cases where it is
obligatory, as in fond of babies in English, and in comparative constructions in Arabic,
e.g. ‫ أكبر من أخته‬. The head adjective seems to strictly select the preposition that follows
it, which is why these preposition phrases are considered complements and not
modifiers.
8. Preposition phrases also function as complements in other preposition phrases in
Arabic and English. In these cases, they occupy a post-head position since both Arabic
and English are so-called ‘head first’ languages.
9. English and Arabic differ in the partitive use of preposition phrases. Arabic exhibits
preposition phrases, with the preposition ‫ من‬displaying substantive significance. They
occupy positions usually occupied by noun phrases, such as subjects and complements
in subject-predicate (topic-comment) nominal sentences and direct objects. English does
not exhibit such structures.
10. Although preposition phrases enjoy freedom of movement in both languages, Arabic
and English differ in the extent of this freedom. For example, both languages allow
preposition phrases functioning as time adjuncts to move to the beginning of the
sentence. However, only Arabic allows preposition phrases functioning as adjective
complements to precede their head adjectives. English does not allow that.
11. Prepositions in English and Arabic are case governors/assigners. However, they
assign different cases to their complements. In English, their complements are inflected
for the accusative case, though only pronominal complements exhibit this case marking
overtly. In Arabic, prepositions assign the genitive case. If their complements are noun
or adjective phrases, then their head elements show this case inflection overtly.
12. Only English exhibits the phenomenon of preposition stranding in certain sentences,
and as a result, of noun phrase movement. In Arabic, we do not find any cases of
prepositions that are not followed by their complements, i.e. where the complement has
moved leaving the head preposition behind. In cases of noun phrase topicalization, the
moved noun phrase leaves a resumptive pronoun in its original position after the
preposition.
7.2. Prepositions
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Prepositions are elements that express a relation between two entities, one of which is that
which is represented by its complement. This relation may vary along a wide semantic
spectrum including, time, space, reason, means, etc. Human languages use a varying
number of these elements to express different semantic relations between any two entities.
Formally, these elements differ in their morphological status: some are free lexical items
while others are affixes. Some are simple consisting of a single morpheme, and others are
complex made of more than one morpheme.
Their position in relation to their complements differs too. In some languages, they
occur before these complements, and in others, they occur after them. However, in the two
languages of our concern, English and Arabic, these elements occur before their
complements, as was mentioned above in the discussion of the structure of the preposition
phrase.
In both English and Arabic, and probably in all natural languages, prepositions are
multi-sense elements. In other words, they are polysemous. Each preposition may express
more than one semantic relation. What makes things a bit complicated is that each of those
semantic relations that the prepositions express can be realized by more than one
preposition with very subtle differences between one and the other, and possible
idiosyncrasies in the use of this or that preposition. This will make it impossible for those
interested in translation to establish total equivalence between individual English and
Arabic prepositions.
Our discussion of prepositions in English and Arabic is going to deal with the main
semantic relations that are expressed by prepositions and to list the different prepositions
that may be used to express them. An alternative, and necessarily more detailed, approach
is to list all the uses that each preposition has and the semantic relations it expresses.
However, this approach will take us far afield and beyond the limits of the present work. It
is hoped that the discussion below will ultimately cover the uses of these prepositions.
7.2.1. Prepositions in English

As far as their morphological structure is concerned, prepositions in English are free lexical
items. There are no bound prepositions affixes. Besides, prepositions in English may be
divided into two sub-groups; simple prepositions, e.g. in, on, for, from, by, at, onto, into,
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and complex prepositions, which consist of more than one word, e.g. in front of, instead
of, on top of, etc. Complex prepositions should be kept distinct from cases of two
prepositions following one another.
English prepositions are going to be classified according to the different relations they
express; their types and their subtypes. As was said above, it is possible for a single
preposition to indicate different relations in different contexts, and for the same relation to
be expressed by more than one preposition. The following is a list of the main relation
types usually expressed by prepositions and the prepositions that may express them.
1. Place:
position: in, on, over, under,
The group manager is in the room.
relative position: in front of, behind, below, opposite
My car is behind yours.
destination: to, into, on
She was taken to the hospital.
negative destination: off, away from, out of
They turned off the road.
passage: across, over, under, through, (a)round
The two lovers walked over the bridge.
2. Time
point: at, in, on
Our meeting is at six pm sharp.
duration: for, during, from …to , over
I will be in Paris during the summer.
duration specifying starting point : before, by, since ,after
The meeting will be after the second session and before lunch.
duration specifying terminal point: till, by, up to
They kept dancing up to 4 am.
3. Cause and purpose: because of, for, from, out of
He took off his shirt because of the heat.
They are running a campaign for a new president.
4. Source: from
She is from Salalah
5. Manner: with , like, in
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He treated her with kindness.

6. Means and instrument : by, with
I go to school by bus
Jane sliced the meat with the knife.
7. Agency: by
The executive order was signed by the President.
8. Stimulus: at
She was surprised at their reaction.
9. Accompaniment : with
Jane went with her husband to that meeting.
10. Concession: in spite of, with all, for all
They made the trip in spite of the heavy rain.
11. Constituency: of, with
That box is made of sandalwood.
The preposition phrase consists of a head and a complement.
7.2.2. Prepositions in Arabic

Morphologically, prepositions in Arabic may be divided into two subtypes. The first are
bound morphemes that are prefixed to their complement noun phrases forming with them
one phonological unit. These are: ‫ كـ‬، ‫ و‬، ‫تـ‬، ‫ لـ‬، ‫ بـ‬, e.g. ‫ بحياتك‬،‫ كالغراب‬،‫هلل‬
The second subtype is the group of free morphemes, which comprise the rest of the
prepositions in Arabic. These are divided in turn into two subgroups: the group of basic
prepositions, or prepositions proper; elements that are uninflected like ،‫ إلى‬،‫ في‬،‫ من‬،‫على‬
‫ منذ‬،‫ مع‬،‫ عن‬،‫ حتى‬,e.g.
‫ عن الروا ِة‬،ِ‫ من هللا‬،‫الصيف‬
ِ ‫ في‬،‫الصباح‬
ِ ‫ منذ‬.
The second group is that of elements that show inflections similar to the inflections on
nouns, e.g. ‫ قدام‬،‫ حول‬،‫ وراء‬،‫ أ مام‬،‫ خلف‬،‫ فوق‬،‫ ت حت‬،‫ ب عد‬،‫ق بل‬. In Arabic grammatical tradition,
these are considered nouns that are used adverbially, hence their inflection for the
accusative case, for which adverbs are typically inflected. However, based on their
function, distribution, and the semantic notions they express, they are prepositions, and
may perhaps be called ‘nominal prepositions’. Look at the following examples. :
. ‫ولد قب َل الهجر ِة‬ .‫جلست عن َد المدفأ ِة‬ .‫ب‬
ِ ‫وقفت أما َم البا‬
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These prepositions can themselves be preceded by prepositions. When they are, they
show inflection in the genitive case, e.g. /-i/. This is the case that preposition complements
are inflected for.
.‫العروس‬
ِ ‫بدأ االحتفال من قب ِل وصو ِل‬ . ‫تسلل من وراءِ البناي ِة‬
It is possible to find in Arabic few instances of frozen phrases, which express relations
that are typically expressed by prepositions. They may be called complex prepositions.
Like prepositions, these phrases take noun phrase complements that are inflected for the
genitive case, e.g. ‫ بذذالرغم من‬، ‫ على الرغم من‬which express concession, and ‫ بسذذذذذذبذذب‬which
expresses reason.
.‫نجحوا في مسعاهم على الرغم من ك ِل الظروف المعاكسة‬
.‫تأجلت اللعبة بسبب هطو ِل المطر‬
Like their counterparts in other languages, prepositions in Arabic express different
relations, and their meaning is determined in terms of the types and subtypes of the relations
they express. The same preposition may express different relations in different contexts,
and the same relation can be expressed by different prepositions with subtle differences
between them.
The main relations that prepositions in Arabic may express are:
1. Place:
position: ‫ عن‬،‫ إلى‬،‫ على‬،‫في‬, ‫بـ‬
. ‫جلس الجميع إلى المائدة‬
relative position: ‫ قدام‬،‫ خلف‬،‫ تحت‬،‫أمام‬
. ‫وضعت كتبي خلف الباب‬
destination: ‫ حتى‬،‫نحو‬،‫إلى‬
. ‫قدموا إلى البصرة‬
negative destination: ‫عن‬، ‫من‬
. ‫سأرحل عن بال ٍد أنت فيها‬
passage: ‫ خالل‬،‫ في‬،‫ عبر‬،‫حول‬
. ‫دارت السيارة حول الملعب‬
2. Time
point: ‫من‬،‫ مع‬،‫ في‬،‫منذ‬
.‫سيبدأ الدوام في األسبوع القادم‬
duration : ‫ لـ‬،‫خالل‬
. ‫سينتهون من بنائه خالل شهرين‬
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duration specifying starting point : ‫ قبل‬،‫من‬،‫ بعد‬،‫منذ‬

.‫بدأت جولتنا منذ يوم الخميس‬
duration specifying terminal point: ‫حتى‬
.‫سالم هي حتى مطلع الفجر‬
3. Cause and purpose: ،‫ من‬،‫ عن‬،‫ على‬،‫ بـ‬،‫ بسبب‬، ‫لـ‬
.‫تأجل االجتماع لغياب الرئيس‬
4. Source: ‫من‬
.‫هذا التمر من البصرة‬
5. Manner: ‫ مثل‬، ‫كـ‬
.‫أخذت ترتجف كريشة في مهب الريح‬
6. Means and instrument : ‫بـ‬
. ‫سقاها الماء بيديه‬
7. Agency: ‫ في‬،‫ من قبل‬،‫من‬
.‫إنما يوحى إليه من هللا‬
8. Stimulus: ‫لـ‬
.‫دهِشوا لشجاعته‬
9. Accompaniment : ‫ بـ‬،‫مع‬
.‫إن هللا معنا‬
10. Concession: ‫ على‬،‫بالرغم من‬
. ‫يانبعا َ أفارقه على الكراهة بين الحين والحين‬
11. Possession: ‫ لدى‬،‫ مع‬،‫ عند‬، ‫لـ‬
.‫عندي بنت وولدان‬
12. Constituency: ‫من‬
. ‫يلبسون ثيابا خضرا من سندس وإستبرق‬
.‫يتكون البيت من طابقين‬
7.22.3. Comparing prepositions in English and Arabic

1. Prepositions in both English and Arabic may be classified into simple and complex
prepositions: those that are made of single morphemes and those made of multiple
morphemes, e.g. English in front of, Arabic ‫ بالرغم من‬.
2. Only in Arabic do we find bound prepositions that are prefixed to their complements.
All English prepositions are free morphemes.
3. In Arabic, prepositions are further classified into those that do not show inflection, and
those that do. The latter are inflected just like nouns and may thus be considered
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‘nominal prepositions’. Alternatively, they may be considered nouns that are

functioning adverbially. This will explain their being inflected for the accusative case,
which adverbial nouns are usually inflected for. In English, prepositions are not
inflected.
4. In both languages, prepositions assign case to their noun phrase complements: the
genitive case in Arabic, and the accusative case in English. Note here that nouns in
English are not overtly inflected for case. Only pronouns are. As preposition
complements, pronouns appear in their objective form.
5. Prepositions in English and Arabic are polysemous elements. Most of them express
several relations.
6. There is no one-to-one correspondence between the prepositions of the two
languages in all their uses. Consequently, there is no total translation equivalence
between a given preposition in English and its Arabic cognate. An English preposition
may stand for a certain Arabic preposition indicating a certain relation in the translation
of a particular sentence from Arabic into English, but we should not expect the same
relation to be retained in the translation of another sentence in which it expresses another
relation. A good example of this nonequivalence is the ‘incomplete’ correspondence
between English from and Arabic ‫من‬.
Exercises
1. What else can you say about the similarities and differences in the behaviour and
function of preposition phrases in the two languages?
2. Look closely into the kinds of complements that we find in preposition phrases in
the two languages and conduct a comparison between them.
3. We based our discussion of the different relations on listing the prepositions that
may indicate each of these relations. Take anyone of these relations, and find out
the differences between the prepositions that express it. Do the same thing for
Arabic and conduct a comparison between the prepositions in the two languages.
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Chapter Eight
The sentence
8.1. Sentence structure

8.2. The simple sentence
8.2.1. Sentence structure in Arabic
8.2.3. Comparing sentence structure in English and Arabic
8.3. Word order variation
8.3.1. Word order variation in English
8.3.2. Word order variation in Arabic
8.3.3. Comparing variation in English and Arabic word orders
8.4. The compound sentence
8.4.1. Compound sentences in English
8.4.2. Compound sentences in Arabic
8.4.3. Comparing compound sentences in English and Arabic
8.5. The complex sentence
8.5.1. Complex sentences in English
8.5.2. Complex sentences in Arabic
8.5.3. Comparing complex sentences in English and Arabic
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8.1. Sentence structure

The sentence is considered the highest-ranking unit of grammar. Grammar, in this sense,
is the internal formal system, the core, of the language. Grammatical units are best defined
in terms of their constituents. Thus, a sentence is defined in terms of the clauses that
constitute it. A clause is a grammatical unit that is defined in terms of the elements that
make it. These could be identified in terms of their categories, i.e. noun phrase, verb,
phrase, preposition phrase, adverb phrase, etc. However, it has been noticed that different
types of phrases may fill the constituent slots of the clause. It may thus be more adequate
to define the clause in terms of the functions of the constituents that make it.
A clause is made of a constituent that functions as a subject and another that functions
as a ‘verb’, or as the verbal element. It may also consist of other elements that function as
an object, a complement and an adverbial. Except for the subject, the rest of the constituents
make the predicate.
A clause may stand as an independent grammatical unit making a sentence. However,
more than one clause may combine to form a sentence. One-clause sentences are called
simple sentences. However, sentences that consist of more than one clause are either
compound or complex sentences, depending on whether the relation between these clauses
is symmetrical or asymmetrical. Sentences are thus divided into three main types: simple,
compound, complex.
This chapter is devoted to the discussion of the different sentence types. Our discussion
will begin with the simple sentence, its various structural patterns in the two languages,
and the possible variation that take place in those patterns. In the rest of the chapter, the
discussion will turn to the compound and complex sentences in Arabic and English.
8.2. The simple sentence

In the previous section we arrived at a simple definition of the simple sentence: the sentence
that consists of a single clause. This is in contrast to both compound and complex sentences
that consist of more than one clause. The question remains: what structure does the simple
sentence have? What are the elements that enter into this structure?
When we look at simple sentences, we find that they do not always consist of the same
elements. Some may contain constituents that are not found in others. A general survey
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would lead us to the view that they are grouped into patterns as far as their structures are
concerned. This is our starting point in the description of sentence structure in English and
Arabic and the comparison between them. These patterns represent the structure of the
basic sentences, from which other sentences are derived via various syntactic processes. In
the following sections, we will consider the various patterns of the simple sentences in
English and Arabic, and one type of possible variations that take place in these patterns,
i.e. variation in the word order.
8.2.1. Sentence structure in English

English sentences may be grouped into seven general patterns. These are:
1. S V (intransitive) Time elapses.
2. S V O (mono-transitive) Oppression breeds rebellion.
3. S V C (copular) My son is intelligent.
4. S V A (copular) The test is on Monday.
5. SVOO (ditransitive) I bought my wife a gold watch.
6. S V O C (complex transitive) I found her quite competent.
7. S V O A (complex transitive) I put my books on the kitchen table.
S stands for Subject, V stands for Verb, O stands for Object (direct and indirect), C
stands for Complement, and A stands for Adverbial. In those patterns where an adverbial
is included, this element is obligatory. However, the adverbial is generally distinguished in
its being an optional element that may be added to the other constituents of any of these
patterns. Moreover, we may have more than one occurrence of an adverbial element in one
clause.
To repeat what has been said above, these constituents may be realized by phrases of
various categories and sizes. The Subject and the Object may be realized by one-word noun
phrases or more complex ones, with multiple determiners and modifiers. So is the Verb,
which may be realized by a single lexical verb inflected for tense, or a more complex verb
phrase that contains the full array of auxiliaries. Complements may be noun phrases,
adjective phrases, or even preposition phrases of various length and complexity. Similarly,
the Adverbial may be realized as an adverbial phrase, a preposition phrase or even a noun
phrase. Finally, any of these clause constituents may be realized by a clause, again of
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various length and complexity, which would result in a complex sentence in which the
main clause contains one or more clauses as constituents.

Sentences in Arabic are best divided into two types as far as their overt structure is
concerned: nominal and verbal sentences. This, originally traditional division is based on
the category of the constituent that they begin with. Many attempts have been made to
provide a unified syntactic account to these sentence types, but the discussion of these
proposals will take us far away from the aims and scope of this book.
Simple sentences in Arabic may be grouped into the following patterns.
1. S C (topic-comment) . ‫الحياة حلوة‬
2. S A (topic-comment) . ‫االمتحان غدا‬
3. V S (intransitive) . ‫الحت تباشير الصباح‬
4. V S O (mono-transitive) . ‫كتب محمد مقالة‬
5. V S C (copular ) َ.‫أصبح الخبر شائعا‬
6. V S A (copular ) . ‫أضحى محمد في البيت‬
7. V S O O (ditransitive) . ‫أهدت فاطمة ابنتها سوارا‬
8. V S O C (complex transitive) . ‫حسب الناس زيدا مجنونا‬
9. V S O O C (complex transitive) . ‫الشمس طالعة‬
َ ‫أريت زيدا‬
10. V S O A (complex transitive) . ‫وضعت المرأة الحطب في التنور‬
We would like to note the following about the above patterns:

a. Patterns (1) and (2) are those of nominal sentences beginning with a subject
(traditionally called ‘topic’), and a predicate (traditionally called ‘comment’), which
may be a Complement or an Adverbial.
b. Where the Adverbial appears in the above patterns, i.e. patterns (2), (6), and (10), it is
an obligatory element. However, one or more adverbials may be added as optional
elements to any sentence pattern.
c. Pattern (9) shows a ditransitive Verb taking two objects, an indirect and a direct object,
followed by a Complement to the second object.
d. The O element in the VSO pattern is a direct object, or a cognate object ‫المفعول المطلق‬.
This is a constituent defined, within the grammatical tradition of Arabic, as a verbal
noun derived from the same verb root, e.g. ‫سرت سيرا‬. It is assigned the accusative case.
155
155
e. Other elements that follow the verb appear in the accusative case. In the Arabic
grammatical tradition they are classified as different ‘object’ types: object of
accompaniment ‫ المفعول معه‬, e.g. ‫سذذذرت وشذذذاط َئ النهر‬, object of purpose ‫ المفعول ألجله‬, e.g.
َ‫ ; سذذذذذذجذذدنذذا تعبذذدا‬circumstantial participle ‫ الحذذال‬, e.g. ‫ ;قذذدمذذت زهراء ضذذذذذذذذاحكذذة‬and object of
specification ‫ التمييز‬, e.g. ‫اشذذذذذذتعل الرأس شذذذذذذيبا‬. As modifiers of the action that the verb
indicates, they may all be considered adverbials, and may very well fit into the VSA or
VSOA patterns
f. In the verbal sentences, i.e. those that begin with the verb, the subject may be dropped,
e.g. ‫عادت أمس‬. The information about the subject could be retrieved from the agreement
features on the verb. This fact was mentioned in the discussion of personal pronouns.
8.2.3. Comparing sentence structure in English and Arabic

When comparing sentence structure in English with that of Arabic, a number of similarities
and differences emerge. The following are some of the more important ones.
1. In both English and Arabic, the minimal number of elements that a sentence should
have is two. These are SV in English, and VS, SC, and SA, in Arabic. These elements
constitute the two sides of predication, the core of sentence structure. To these, some
other elements are added in other sentence patterns in the two languages.
2. A close correspondence can be noticed between the sentence patterns found in English
and those found in Arabic. This is what we find in : SV-VS, SVO-VSO, SVC-VSC,
SVA-VSA, SVOO-VSOO, SVOC-VSOC, SVOA-VSOA
3. One main difference that we find in the sentence structure of the two languages is the
fact that sentences in English are of one type: all begin with the subject followed by the
verb. In Arabic, we find sentences of two types: nominal verbless sentences, and verbal
sentences. As noticed above, the verbless sentences are composed of two elements: the
first element is the subject and the second is the predicate (‘topic’ and ‘comment’ in
Arabic grammatical tradition). The predicate may be a complement, which is a noun
phrase, an adjective phrase, or an adverbial. In this sense, predication is achieved
directly between the two elements without a ‘liking’ element. No verbal element is
required when reference is to the present time, or to constant states.
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4. Another point of difference concerns the fact that English is a SV language, while
Arabic is VS language. Sentences in the first begin with the subject, in the second they
begin with the verb.
5. In Arabic, the SC and SA sentence patterns change to VSC and VSA when the sentence
refers to past or future time. A linking verb is added like ‫ كان‬or other similar verbs,
e.g. .َ ‫سيظل صيتك ذائعا‬ .‫كان المفتاح في الدرج‬
These may be said to function as past or future tense carriers.
6. In this way, the Arabic SC and SA patterns are the closest equivalents to the English
SVC and SVA, in that the subject and the predicate are always connected by the copular
verb be.
The other Arabic sentence pattern to which we do not find an English counterpart is
the VSOOC pattern. An equivalent sentence in English would be a complex sentence
in which the main verb is followed by an indirect object followed by a clausal direct
object as in, e.g. I showed John that the earth is round.
7. The two languages differ in the variety of objects that the element O subsumes. It is
pretty restricted in English, where it covers either direct or indirect objects. In In the
traditional accounts of Arabic, the term covers a number of elements that are inflected
for the accusative case. Many of these realize a clearly adverbial function and would be
classified accordingly.
8.3. Word order variation

Human languages show varying degrees of flexibility in the order that the words and
constituents assume in their sentences. In some, the word order is rather strict, while in
others it is less so. Sentence constituents may sometimes show up in a position that is
different from that where they are usually found. To account for this variation, we generally
take one word order in the sentence to be the basic one, from which others are derived by
the movement of certain elements from their supposedly original place to another position
to the left or right.
The basic order is the one that has wider distribution and less restricted use. Those
orders that are derived from it are usually marked and their occurrence is limited to specific
contexts. We may want to say that such orders are functionally loaded, in the sense that
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they are usually associated with certain functional purpose, e.g. focusing, emphasis, etc.
Both English and Arabic exhibit variation in the word order of their sentences, though to a
different extent, as the following discussion will show.
8.3.1. Word order variation in English

The word order of the sentence in English is relatively fixed. Constituents are not free to
appear at different positions in the sentence. Their position does not usually change. The
order of the clause constituents in the patterns we mentioned in section (8.2.1) is the one
that characterizes the basic word order of English sentences. The subject comes first,
followed by the verb, which, in turn, is followed by the object, etc. However, this rather
strict order appears to be violated sometimes. This is the case when some elements are
brought from within the sentence to a front position or when two constituents exchange
their positions. The fronting of these elements has the function of putting the fronted
element in focus, or making it the theme of the sentence. The following sentences are
examples of instances of such variation.
This I want to see ---.
Last evening I saw someone pushing a vegetable cart ---.
Never have we --- met anyone like him before.
Only then will I—find what actually happened to him --- ---.
Into the sea went the mice--- ---.
By moving them from their usual place into initial position, the underlined elements in the
above sentences are now marked as the themes of the sentences. This movement may be
accompanied by another change in the position of other elements, as is seen in the
movement of the verb to the left of the subject.
Another instance of word order variation in English may be seen in the movement of
usually long ‘heavy’ elements to the end of the sentence. This operation is called
extraposition, which may be associated sometimes with the insertion of the empty pronoun
it in the original place of the extraposed element.
I gave -- to my daughter a gold medal that was given to me by my grandmother.
It is not obvious why he has made all these changes in his plans.
Variation in word order is sometimes accompanied by other structural changes in the
application of certain syntactic processes. It does not only involve a change in the position
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of some element. In English, we find constructions that involve the rearrangement of the
constituents such as clefting, passivization, questions, wh-movement, existential there-
constructions, and topicalization. You will find that beside the change in position that some
constituents undergo, there are other changes that take place in the structure of the sentence,
things like addition or deletion of some elements. These processes may be exemplified in
the following sentences.
It was in the mall that I first met her. < I first met her in the mall.
What I gave her was a gold watch. < I gave her a gold watch.
The book was bought by millions. < Millions bought the book.
What news have you brought with you? < You have brought with you what news.
There is a cat in the attic. < A cat is in the attic.
As for my son, he is a surgeon. < My son is a surgeon.
8.3.2. Word order variation in Arabic
Arabic is a more flexible language as far as the word order of its sentences is concerned. It
allows a wide range of variation. We recognize the verb-subject (VS) order as the basic
one since it is the least functionally marked, and the one with the widest distribution. It is
not associated with any functional notion of emphasis, focusing, or theme marking. In
addition, its occurrence is not linked to any specific syntactic context. All other possible
orders may be thought of as derivatives from this one via movement.
There are three movement sites - positions to which elements move - in the Arabic
sentence. One is the final position in the sentence to which phonologically long elements
move in what has been called extraposition. The underlined constituent in the sentence
below has moved to the end of the sentence from its original, now vacant, subject position.
. ‫ محمدا البارحةَ رج ٌل لم يكن قد رآه من قبل‬-- ‫زار‬
The other two sites to which elements move are either to the left, or to the right of the
verb. From this follows the fact that for all the above verb first (VS) patterns, we may have
SV alternatives in which the subject is brought into the theme (traditionally ‘topic’)
position, e.g.
.‫ ابنتها خاتم ذهب‬--- ‫فاطمة أهدت‬ .--- ‫الفجر الح‬ .‫ االمتحان‬--- ‫محمد قدم‬
.‫ إلى أعشاشها‬--- ‫الطيور عادت‬ .‫ الساعة قائمة‬--- ‫علي ظن‬
159
The availability of this position is not restricted to subjects. Other elements may move
to it – i.e. the various kinds of objects and adverbials, e.g.
. --- ‫باسما جاء صاحبي‬ . )‫األرض مددنا(ها‬

َ
.--- ‫إلى الماء يسعى من يغص بلقمة‬
The second movement site is directly after the verb. Elements that move to this place
are the center of focusing, for purposes of emphasis or contrast.
.--- ‫علي‬
ٌ ‫جاء باسما‬ .--- ‫ضرب زيدا محم ٌد‬
.--- ‫جلس على األرض الضيوف‬
All these possibilities of change in the order of the constituents are called ‘stylistic
variation’. Its main characteristic is its optionality. However, there are changes that have
to be made in the word order. They are determined by formal constraints, which render
them obligatory. When the object is a pronoun it must move to the right of the verb since
it is a bound and not a free pronoun, i.e. a suffix, and therefore cannot stand on its own. It
has to be affixed ‘cliticized’ to a stem, which is the verb in this case, e.g.
.--- ‫يرثها عبادي الصالحون‬ .‫غلبه الوجع‬
Similarly, interrogative elements, i.e. question words and phrases, move to a pre-verb
position. In Arabic, these elements usually occupy an initial position in the sentence.
‫؟‬---‫كيف استقبل الناس الخبر‬ ‫ ؟‬--- َ‫ماذا إشتريت‬ ‫ محمدا ؟‬--- ‫من رأى‬
On the other hand, the subject of a nominal sentence, i.e. the subject in the SC and SA
patterns, must be definite. However, there are instances where the subject is indefinite and
the predicate is an adverbial preposition phrase. In such cases, the preposition phrase moves
obligatorily to an initial position in the sentence and the indefinite subject takes a second
position. . --- ‫رب‬
ٌ ‫للبيت‬ . --- ‫فيها أنهار من عسل‬
Sometimes variation in word order is associated with structural changes. It does not
only involve a change in the position of some element. In Arabic, we have constructions
that also involve a change in the position of some elements beside other structural changes.
Instances of this are found in passivization, topicalization, and exception and existential
constructions, which are exemplified below.
. ‫ > اقت ِحم البيت من الجنود ليال‬.‫اقتحم الجنود البيت ليال‬
.‫ > أما علي فكان أبوه رجال صالحا‬.‫كان أبو علي رجال صالحا‬
.‫ > فأما اليتيم فال تقهر‬. ‫ال تقهر اليتيم‬
.‫ > ما زارني إال محمد‬.‫زارني محمد‬
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.‫غريب في الدار‬
ٌ ‫ > هناك‬.‫في الدار غريب‬
8.3.3. Comparing word order variation in English and Arabic
The following are some points of similarity and difference between English and Arabic
concerning the possible variations that take place in the word order of their sentences
1. Though both English and Arabic allow variation in the word order of their sentences,
the two languages differ in the extent of this phenomenon. English word order is fixed.
Stylistic variation, which mainly involves moving an element to the beginning of the
sentence, ‘preposing’, or to the end of the sentence, ‘extraposition’, is limited to only
certain elements, mostly adverbials, and for purposes of themetization and focusing.
2. Arabic enjoys a rather free word order. All verb first (VS) orders may be changed to
subject first (SV) sentences. Besides, the subject is not the only element that may
precede the verb, other elements may. Movement could also be to another position right
after the verb.
3. In Arabic, further variation in the word order results from the possible movement of
elements like the object or the adverbial to a position to the right of the verb to exhibit
contrastive focus.
4. Beside the stylistic variation mentioned above to achieve emphasis or focusing, we may
find in Arabic certain word order changes governed syntactically, e.g. to avoid
pronominal suffix stranding, or to avoid beginning a sentence with an indefinite topic.
English does not have bound pronouns, and therefore, the problem of suffix stranding
does not rise. Nor does it have any restriction against its sentences beginning with an
indefinite noun.
5. In addition to the variation that results from moving elements to the beginning of the
sentence or after the verb in Arabic for purposes of themetization and focusing, we find
another type of variation in the word order resulting from the application of certain
syntactic processes. These may include other changes like addition or deletion of
elements. The two languages exhibit such changes in a number of processes in their
syntax like clefting, wh-question formation, passivization, existential constructions,
topicalization, etc…, some of which are going to be discussed in detail in the following
chapters.
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8.4. The compound sentence

Clauses may combine to make what are called compound sentences. Compound sentences
consist of two or more clauses that enjoy equal status. They are symmetrically related.
These clauses are coordinated via the use of conjunctions. Clauses may also be combined
in another fashion, where one functions as a consistuent of the other. Clauses put together
this way make complex sentences, which we will discuss later in this chapter.
8.4.1. Compound sentences in English

Compound sentences in English are sentences that contain two or more coordinated
clauses. The coordinated clauses could be independent clauses or dependent subordinate
clauses in a complex sentence. These clauses are linked by the three coordinating
conjunctions, or coordinators: and, or, and but, as the following sentences show.
Jane cooked the dinner and Bill washed the dishes.
You can use my copy or you can buy your own.
She can take a sick leave but her boss wouldn’t like it.
Mary thinks that the moon is made of cheese and that the sun is a huge orange.
These coordinating conjunctions should not be mixed with the conjuncts, which are
adverbial elements used in joining clauses, like so, yet, however, etc… One aspect of
difference between the two is that you may have a conjunct preceded by a conjunction, as
in Sue didn’t like them, and yet she invited them to dinner. We cannot have two
conjunctions or two conjuncts together.
The above sentences show us that the conjunctions always take an initial position in the
conjoined clause. We cannot place and after Bill in the first sentence, or but after her boss
in the third. This is another aspect of difference between conjunctions and the adverbial
conjuncts, some of which may assume a mid-clause position.
The order of the coordinated clauses cannot be reversed. They are sequentially fixed.
The third sentence above will be ungrammatical if its clauses are reordered as in * But her
boss wouldn’t like it, she can take a sick leave.
Clause coordination by the conjunctions and and or may involve more than two clauses,
e.g.
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John can prepare the burgers, (and) Jean may mix the salad, and Sam may toast
the bread.
You could take the bus, (or) Jack may give you a ride, or you could take the
underground.
The conjunction can be omitted in all coordinated clauses except the final one. The
conjunction but can only link two clauses.
English has three pairs of ‘correlative’ conjunctions: either…or, both…and, and
neither…nor. Either anticipates an alternative or adversative proposition in the second
clause which begins with or. Both anticipates an addition in the second clause, and neither
anticipates a second negative clause. This is what we see in the following.
You can either stay here for the night, or you can take the late night bus.
Mary should both stop her diet, and see a doctor.
Jill neither smokes nor drinks alcohol.
The position of the first element in the pair may vary; it could be before the auxiliary or
the verb, or after the verb. This position determines the scope of the combination:
alternation, addition, or negation, as shown in the above sentences and the following one.
You should speak either/both/neither slowly, or/and/nor clearly.
But in a clause-initial position, only either but not neither nor both, can introduce the first
clause, as in
Either they negotiate a peace agreement or they will go to war.
As you may have noticed, in compound sentences, there are many instances of ellipsis.
This takes place when the same element occurs in both of the coordinated clauses. One of
the occurrences of such elements is usually ellipted. This process will be discussed in
Chapter 10 where we deal with syntactic processes.
8.4.2. Compound sentences in Arabic

Compound sentences in Arabic make use of conjunctions to link their coordinated clauses.
These are ‫‘ و‬and’, ‫‘ فـَذذذذذذذذذذذ‬so’, ‫‘ ثم‬then’, ‫‘ أو‬or’, ‫‘ أم‬or’, ‫‘ لكن‬but’. These conjunctions link
independent clauses or dependent subordinate clauses in a complex sentence as well.
. ‫هذا حسين وهذا يوم مولده‬ .‫قال كلمته وترك االجتماع‬ ‫قف بالمعرة وامسح خدها التربا‬
.‫ جلس الضيوف إلى المائدة ثم بدأوا بتناول الطعام‬.‫هللا رؤوف بعباده وإنه على كل شيء قدير‬
.‫حضر كل من دعي لكن محمداَ إعتذر‬ .‫إنا أعطيناك الكوثر فص ِل لربك وإنحر‬
.‫الفراهيدي لم يكن شاعرا بل كان نحويا‬ ‫أتعلم أم أنت ال تعلم؟‬
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.‫نصحوني بأن أكثر من الفاكهة أو أتناول الدواء‬

As you may notice from the above sentences, the conjoined clauses may belong to
various structural patterns, and communicative functions, declarative, interrogative, or
imperative clauses. They may begin with the overt complementizer ّ‫ إن‬. This is what we
find in the last sentence, which is an example of the coordination of two subordinate clauses
in a complex sentence.
In compound sentences, these conjunctions introduce the second coordinated clause.
They do not occupy any other position. Besides, the order of the coordinated clauses cannot
be reversed since this will violate the sequence of events, states, or actions implied by the
conjunctions. If the order of the two clauses in the second sentence above is reversed, it
will be ungrammatical:‫ * وترك االجتماع قال كلمته‬.
The use of the conjunction ‫ و‬as a connective device is so wide that we find it not only
at the beginning of the second coordinate clause in a compound sentence, but it frequently
introduces independent sentences, paragraphs and even chapters, connecting them to those
that precede them in the text or context. It is normal diction for this conjunction to introduce
the first sentence in the first paragraph in an essay, or a chapter in a book
Besides signifying an addition by the second clause to the first clause, the conjunctions
‫ فَـذذذذذذذذذ‬and, even more so, ‫ثم‬, add a strong tone of sequencing between the two coordinated
clauses, as can be seen form the sentences above. Moreover, ‫ فَـذذذ‬may introduce a negative
clause, which would result in an alternative relationship between the two clauses, as in:
َ ‫ بحثوا عنهذذا فمذذا وجذذدوا شذذذذذذيئ ذا‬. In these sentences, it is synonymous to ‫ لكن‬, which has two
variants: ّ‫لكن‬, which introduces a clause beginning with a noun, and ‫لكن‬, which introduces
a clause beginning with a verb. Coordination with this adversative conjunction is limited
to two clauses. In the following sentence, we may notice that the third clause cannot be
introduced by‫لكن‬, but by another conjunction ‫أو‬.
.‫ أوكان يشعر بالتعب‬،‫ ولكنه كان مريضا‬،‫لم يكن رافضا للحضور‬
Some conjunctions, like ‫ بل‬and ‫ أم‬seem to have a somewhat restricted occurrence. Both
of them anticipate an alternative proposition in the second clause to that in the first. ‫ بل‬must
be preceded by a negative clause to which the second clause, which it introduces, is an
alternative, e.g. ‫ لم يغب زيد عن االحتفال بل كان أول من حضذذذذذر‬. On the other hand, ‫ أم‬requires an
164
interrogative first clause and introduces an interrogative second clause functioning as an

alternative, e.g. ‫أفال يتدبرون القرآن أم على قلوب أقفالها؟‬
Arabic has the correlative conjunction ]‫وإ ّما‬.... ‫ ]إ ّما‬the first part of which introduces the
first coordinated clause and anticipates an adversative second clause that is introduced by
the second part of the conjunction. The second element may be replaced by ‫أو‬, e.g.
]‫ أو أن تصوم ثالثين يوما‬/ ‫جزاء إفطارك [إما أن تعتق رقبة وإما‬
Compound sentences make the appropriate context for ellipsis. The coordinated clauses
may share certain elements, and the second instances of these shared elements may very
well be ellipted leaving only segments of the second clause. This sometimes results in
obliterating the clausal origin of the coordination, as will be discussed in the section on
ellipsis as a syntactic process in Chapter 10.
8.4.3. Comparing compound sentences in English and Arabic

The above account of English and Arabic compound sentences shows a number of
similarities and differences.
1. Our discussion has been limited to the syntactic coordination of independent clauses
via overt elements called conjunctions. This process produces single sentences.
Sentences that are made of clauses that are semantically related but are not linked by
conjunctions, those in what is called ‘asyndetical relation’, are left out. Nor did we deal
with clauses connected by conjuncts, the adverbial elements that perform a similar
function to that of conjunctions.
2. The conjoined clauses may be independent clauses, or dependent subordinate clauses
that we may find in complex sentences.
3. The elements of the basic set of conjunctions in both languages occupy a fixed
position, i.e. the beginning of the second coordinated clause.
4. The order between the coordinated clauses cannot be reversed if it results in a violation
of sequence of events or states, etc. between them.
5. In both English and Arabic, correlation may extend to more than two clauses. Only
but in English, and its semantic cognate ‫ لكن‬in Arabic, limit the coordination to two
clauses.
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6. Conjunctions in Arabic appear to have a wider use than in English. The conjunction ‫و‬
often appears at the beginning of independent sentences or at the beginning of
paragraphs. In this role, it seems that it serves the function of connecting these sentences
to what precedes them in the linguistic context.
7. In both languages, we find two-item correlating conjunctions that connect alternative,
additional, or negative propositions. The position that the first elements of these
conjunctions occupy may vary in accordance with the scope of the correlation.
8. In Arabic, some conjunctions, like ‫ بل‬and ‫ أم‬are limited in their occurrence to certain
contexts. ‫ أم‬conjoins interrogative clauses, and ‫ بل‬requires that the first clause should be
negative, and the second clause which it introduces makes an alternative proposition.
9. In Arabic, some conjunctions like ‫ لكن‬may be preceded by ‫و‬, and the second element
of the correlating conjunction ‫وإما‬.... ‫إما‬. In English, conjunctions can only co-occur with
conjuncts but not with other conjunctions.
8.5. The complex sentence

In the section on compound sentences, we dealt with the structural relation of coordination
where two or more independent or subordinate clauses are joined together. Another type
of structural relation may obtain between clauses in sentences that are composed of more
than one clause. This makes the third sentence type in our classification, which is the
complex sentence.
Complex sentences are sentences made of more than one clause, one of which is an
independent clause, called ‘main’, ‘matrix’, or ‘superordinate’ clause, while the second is
a dependent ‘subordinate’ clause functioning as a constituent of the first one. In other
words, this is a situation where we have one clause embedded into another one. In theory,
the subordination, or the embedding of clauses, can continue indefinitely. That is, a clause
may function as a constituent of another clause, which is, itself, a constituent of a third one,
and so on.
Subordinate clauses may perform various functions at the clause or phrase levels. You
may find a ‘subordinate’ clause functioning as a subject, an object a complement or an
adverbial in another clause. It may also function as a complement or modifier in another
phrase. This functional diversity of the subordinate clauses has motivated classifying them
166
as nominal clauses, adjectival clauses and adverbial clauses depending on the type of
function they serve in the sentence.
Subordinate clauses are sometimes introduced by elements that link them to the main
clause. These ‘subordinators’ vary depending on the type of subordinate clauses they
introduce. All these issues will be discussed in detail as we deal with complex sentences in
English and Arabic.
8.5.1. Complex sentences in English
In complex sentences in English, we witness a wide variety of functions that the

subordinate clauses perform. The subordinate clauses differ in their clause types too, i.e.
whether they are finite or non-finite clauses. Besides, they differ as to how they are inked
to the main clause.
{They believe [that the moon is made of cheese.]}
{[To tell the truth] is sometimes difficult.}
{All she did was [make him a good dinner.]}
{He was very good at [telling jokes about the president.]}
{[Seated in the last row] they missed much of the dialogue.}
{Julie preferred [for her son to study engineering.]}
The above complex sentences contain subordinate clauses, enclosed by square brackets;
the ‘superordinate’, main clauses are within braces. The subordinate clauses are of different
clause types. In the first sentence, the subordinate clause is a finite clause. Finite clauses
have finite verbs that show contrast in tense, person and number, and the subject in these
clauses cannot be omitted.
The subordinate clauses in the rest of the sentences are non-finite clauses, with non-
finite verbs, which do not show tense, person, or number contrasts. Non-finite clauses are
of three types: to-infinitive and bare infinitive, ing-participle, and en-participle, and may
occur with or without a subject. The subordinate clause in the last sentence is a to-infinitive
non-finite clause with an overt subject her son.
Besides the above clause types, we may have verbless clauses, which can be viewed as
reductions of full finite or non-finite clauses, e.g.
{[When hungry] John becomes depressed.}
167
The next question concerns subordinators, i.e. those elements that are associated with
subordinate clauses. They are the indicators of subordination, whose function is to link or
connect these clauses to the main clause. Many subordinators are cognates of prepositions,
and some grammatical accounts consider them prepositions that take clausal complements.
Within these accounts, a distinction is made between ‘complementizers’ like that, if, for-
to, and the other preposition-like subordinators. The majority of the subordinators are
simple like, that, before, since, until, lest, because, if, when, where, while, etc... However,
we also have compound subordinators like as soon as, such as, so that, in order that, et..,
and correlative ones too, if....then, so…that, etc…
Not all subordinate clauses are introduced by a subordinator, and in the case of that,
there are instances where its presence is optional.
Functions
Subordinate clauses may realize various functions both at the clause level, i.e. as immediate
constituents of the clause, and at the phrase level, as constituents of particular phrases. As
immediate constituents of the main clause, subordinate clauses may function as subjects,
direct and indirect objects, complements, and adjuncts. As constituents of phrases, they
function as noun modifiers, appositives, and complements of adjectives and prepositions.
In these functions, subordinate clauses assume the same functions that noun phrases,
adjective phrases, preposition phrases, and adverb phrases perform. Thus, these
subordinate clauses will accordingly be classified as nominal clauses, adverbial clauses and
adjectival clauses.
a. Nominal clauses
Subordinate nominal clauses may be found in all those positions that noun phrases usually
occupy. They may function as subjects, direct and indirect objects and subject and object
complements at the clause level, and as appositives, preposition complements and adjective
complements within particular phrases. The following are examples of subordinate clauses
(underlined) realizing various functions. The examples will show that these nominal
clauses are of various clause types, and that some clause types are not found in particular
168
functions. Note that subordinate clauses of the interrogative clause type do not exhibit
subject/auxiliary inversion.
As immediate constituents of the clause, they function as:
subjects
That Jane didn’t show up raised some questions. (finite that-clause)
How they will manage is a total mystery. (wh-inter. clause)
Whether they agree or not will not change anything. (yes/no inter. Clause)
Whatever you say will be recorded. (free relative clause)
For Smith to buy the house is not an easy decision. (to-infinitive clause)
Asking questions does not seem to be welcome. (ing-participle clause)
direct objects
They know (that) Bill opened the safe. (finite that-clause)
I don’t know how she did it all by herself. (wh-inter. clause)
Nobody knows if they will come. (yes/no inter. clause)
They believed whatever he told them. (free relative clause)
She tried to fix the vacuum-cleaner. (to-infinitive clause)
I like driving along the coast. (ing-participle clause)
indirect objects
They will give whoever wins the contest a gold watch. (free relative clause)
subject complements
The general idea is that reorganization is necessary. (finite that-clause)
The question is what I should do now. (wh-inter. clause)
The problem is whether he will accept our proposal. (yes/no inter. clause)
Home is wherever you find peace. (free relative clause)
Her life desire was to be a lawyer. (to-infinitive clause)
My daughter’s hobby was dressing dolls. (ing-participle clause)
object complements
You could call her whatever you want. (free relative clause)
We found his response to be meaningless. (to-infinitive clause)
As constituents of particular phrases, they may function as:
appositives (in noun phrases)
The idea, that the moon is a huge cheesecake, was welcome. (finite that-clause)
The question, how they opened the safe, is still unanswered. (wh-inter. clause)
We will get to the residents, whoever lived there, soon. (free relative clause)
His dream, to become a cardiologist, will become a reality. (to-infinitive clause)
John’s work, designing human-like robots, is promising. (ing-participle clause)
169
adjective complements
I am sure that you will pass. (finite that-clause)
Joan was not sure which of the two blouses she should buy. (wh-inter. clause)
I am happy to inform you about the job opportunity. (to-infinitive clause)
The teacher was busy marking papers. (ing-participle clause)
preposition complements
Nobody told us about who is the favourite candidate. (wh-inter. clause)
I would like to talk to whoever in charge here. (free relative clause)
I am in doubt about participating in the contest. (ing-participle clause)
b. Adverbial clauses
These subordinate clauses realize the various functions of phrasal adverbials. They are
mostly finite clauses and are introduced by subordinators, though non-finite, and verbless
clauses are also used, sometimes without a subordinator. Like adverbial phrases, these
subordinate adverbial clauses may occupy different positions in the sentence. We may now
list some of the semantic roles that these adverbial clauses indicate.
time (subordinators: when, before, as soon as, since, after, etc..

Call me as soon as you arrive at the airport.
When the bombing started, everyone ran to the shelters.
While delivering his lecture, the professor had a heart attack.
We entered the house to find nobody there.
When ripe, peaches are delicious.
place (subordinators: where and wherever)
I found my book where I had put it.
Wherever employed, he is going to prove competent.
condition (subordinators: if, unless, provided that, as long as, etc…)
If you get there in time, you will be able to talk to her.
Unless some drastic changes take place, things will become worse.
Unless clearly stated, the instructions will not be followed.
concession (subordinators: although , though, whereas, even if, ..)
Everybody was happy though there were no real changes in the plan.
Even if you don’t like John, you must admit that he is successful.
cause (subordinators: because, as, since)
They had to set another date for the meeting because nobody came.
170
. Coming from a traditional society, he couldn’t accept the new norms.

purpose (subordinators: to, so that, in order that, so as to, in order to)
He put off the date of test so that everyone will be able to take it.
They waited for a long time in order for John to show up.
She drank to forget.
result (subordinators: so that, so)
They came early so that they could get better seats.
manner and comparison (subordinators: (exactly) as, (just) as), as if, as though)
She did it (exactly) as I taught her.
Kate sounded as if she was going to confess everything.
preference (subordinators: rather than, sooner than)
Rather than go home and take a nap, John continued working in the office.
c. Adjectival clauses
The third type of subordinate clauses are adjectival clauses, which perform the same
function as that of an adjective phrase in the noun phrase. That is, they form part of the
system of modification in the noun phrase. Subordinate adjectival clauses may be finite
and non-finite clauses. The conventional name given to the finite clauses is ‘relative
clauses’. In English, relative clauses are introduced by relative pronouns that replace a
noun phrase that is coreferential with the head noun. They occupy the final positon in the
noun phrase:
Sally talked to the professor who teaches the syntax course about her paper.
This is my girlfriend, whom I have told you about.
Non-finite subordinate clauses may also function as adjectival clauses modifying the
head noun in a noun phrase. These could be to-infinitive, ing-participle, or en-participle
clauses, as the following examples show.
The person to talk to about this problem is the Dean.
The old woman presenting the new project is the city engineer.
Any person found on the premises will be arrested for trespassing.
It is worth noting that these clauses have corresponding relative clauses, but with some
modifications, such as subject deletion. Some grammatical models have suggested that
171
these non-finite clauses, or even other verbless post-modifiers are derived from what are
originally relative clauses.
8.5.2. Complex sentences in Arabic

Like complex sentences in English, their counterparts in Arabic comprise subordinate
clauses that realize a wide variety of functions. Subordinate clauses differ as to how they
are connected to the superordinate, main clause, i.e. whether or not they are introduced by
a special subordination marker. They also differ in their clause types: finite vs non-finite
clauses, or declarative and interrogative clauses. Besides, they differ in their functions in
the sentence as immediate constituents of the clause or of specific phrases within the clause.
The following sentences may help illustrate some of these points.
}].‫{أيقنوا [أن رحمة هللا واسعة‬ }].‫{قل [أعوذ برب الفلق‬

}].‫]} {دخل المسجد فوجد المصلين [راكعين‬.‫} {بدأ [يكتب كل ما سمعه‬.‫{و[أن تصوموا] خير لكم‬
In the first and second sentences, the subordinate clauses, within brackets, are finite
clauses, while those in the last three examples are non-finite clauses. The difference
between the two lies in the imperfect form of the non-finite verb and its subjunctive mood
when introduced by the complementizer ‫أن‬. Besides, the temporal reference of the
subordinate verb is always relative to that of the main verb. Non-finite clauses may also
have a participial form of the verb, as shown in the last example.
The above examples also show that subordinators, i.e. elements that ‘link’ them to the
main/superordinate clause, may introduce subordinate clauses. These are the
complementizers ‫ إن‬،‫ أن‬، ّ‫إنّ أن‬, and various particles such as ،‫ قبل‬،‫كان‬،‫ حين‬،‫حيث‬،‫ كي‬،‫ إذا‬،ِ‫ لـ‬،‫ لو‬،
... ،‫ منذ‬،‫ و‬،‫ بعد‬. This is what we see in the second and third sentences above. However, we
frequently find subordinate clauses that are not introduced by subordinators, as in the first,
fourth and fifth sentences.
The functional similarity of most of these subordinators to prepositions is more obvious
in Arabic than in English. In numerous instances, we find them preceding clauses that begin
with the complementizers ‫ أن‬، ّ‫أن‬, which raises questions about their status as subordinators.
They may equally well be considered prepositions with clausal complements in these cases.
Besides these particles, which may be considered simple subordinators, we have compound
subordinators, e.g.،‫ بعدما‬،‫ قبل ما‬،‫ حيثما‬،‫ حينما‬،‫ كيفما‬،‫ أينما‬،‫ لئال‬،‫ لما‬،‫ لكي‬،‫لوال‬
172
As was said above, these subordinate clauses perform different functions in the
sentence. They may assume the function of a subject, or object, or other immediate
constituents of the clause. They also function as constituents of phrases of various kinds
within these phrases. Below we will discuss these functions in more detail.
Functions
In the wide variety of syntactic functions that subordinate clauses assume at the clausal or
phrasal levels, they act similarly to phrasal categories like the noun phrase, adjective
phrase, preposition phrase, and adverb phrase in the functions they perform in the clause.
It is, thus, possible to classify these subordinate clauses as nominal clauses, adverbial
clauses and adjectival clauses. As was said above, these could be of different types.
However, the clause types are not all available for individual functions. A clause type is
available for one function may not be available for the other.
a. Nominal clauses
Nominal subordinate clauses are those that perform the same functions realized by the noun
phrase. Thus, we will find them in those positions that we may find noun phrases in the
clause. As immediate constituents of the clause, they may function as subjects, direct and
indirect objects, subject complements in SC sentences, or object complements. On the other
hand, they function as appositives in noun phrases and complements in adjective and
preposition phrases. In these functions, they may appear with or without complementizers.
The complementizers that we may, or may not, find with these clauses are: ‫ أن‬، ّ‫ أن‬، ّ‫إن‬. These
clauses may also be finite interrogative clauses that begin with the complementizer ‫ إن‬or
‫ إذا‬, or begin with the wh-words.
subjects
.‫يبدو أنّ الحكومة تماطل في تنفيذه‬ ( finite decl. clause)
.‫وأن تصوموا خير لكم‬ (non-finite ‫أن‬-clause)
.‫ذهب الذين يعاش في أكنافهم‬ (free relative clause)
.‫لبس معروفا إن كانوا سيلبون دعوتنا‬ (yes/no inter clause)
direct objects
.‫وظنوا أنّهم قد أحيط بهم‬ (finite decl. clause)
.‫قالوا نفقد صواع الملك‬ (finite decl. clause)
173
.‫وليس قولك من هذا بضائره‬ (wh inter clause)

.‫يريدون أن يطفئوا نور هللا بأفواههم‬ (non-finite ‫أن‬-clause)
.‫بدأ الحاضرون يوجهون أسئلتهم له‬ (non-finite clause)
.‫العرب تعرف من أنكرت والعجم‬ (free relative clause)
indirect objects
.‫الذي ينظم أجمل قصيدة دوواين من عيون الشعر‬/‫سنهدي من‬ (free relative clause)
subject complements
.‫المعروف أنّهم هددوا الشاهد بالقتل‬ (finite declarative clause)
.‫أمنيتي أن أصبح جراحا‬ (non-finite ‫أن‬-clause)
.‫سؤالنا هو إن كان الناس يعرفون ما حدث فعال‬ (yes/no inter clause)
.‫المسلم من سلم الناس من لسانه ويده‬ (free relative clause)
object complements
.‫أسميت إبنتي ما أحببت من األسماء‬ (free relative clause)
As immediate constituents of particular phrases, they may function as:
appositives (in noun phrases)
.‫ تؤمنون باهلل واليوم اآلخر‬،‫( هل أدلكم على تجارة تنجيكم من عذاب أليم‬finite decl. clause)
.‫( الحروب تثبت حقيقة أنّ الحضارة اإلنسانية لم ترق إلى ما تسمو إليه‬finite decl. clause)
.‫من الصعب اإلجابة على سؤال إن كانت المحاولة قد نجحت‬ (yes/no inter clause)
.‫حلم البشرية أن يسود السالم لن يتحقق قريبا‬ (non-finite ‫أن‬-clause)
adjective complements
.‫نحن متأكدون أنّ الرجل سيعود إلى رشده‬ (finite decl. clause)
.‫لست متأكدا إن كان المتهم سيعترف بما قام به‬ (yes/no inter clause)
.‫كان مجبرا أن يكشف عن حقيقة ما أخفوه‬ (non-finite ‫أن‬-clause)
preposition complements
.‫تعلم بأنّ دماء الضحايا فم‬....‫أ‬ (finite decl. clause)
.‫اتفقنا على أن ال نتفق‬ (non-finite ‫أن‬-clause)
.‫انحاز الناس إلى من أكثر لهم الوعود‬ (free relative clause)
b. Adverbial clauses
The second class of subordinate clauses that we will look into here is that of clauses that
express notions that are carried out by adverbial phrases of different types. As is the case
with nominal clauses, subordinate adverbial clauses can be finite or non-finite clauses.
They may be introduced by a subordinator, or occur without it. In addition, they may
174
‫‪Comparing Arabic with English‬‬
‫‪occupy different positions in the sentence, as will be seen in the examples of the next‬‬
‫‪discussion.‬‬
‫‪The following is a list of the main adverbial functions that are expressed by these‬‬
‫‪adverbial clauses indicate.‬‬
‫‪time‬‬ ‫)‪, etc..‬حين‪ ،‬لما‪ ،‬بينما‪ ،‬منذ‪ ،‬قبل‪ ،‬بعد‪ ،‬و‪ ،‬إذ‪ ،‬إذا‪ ،‬حينما‪ ،‬حتى‪(subordinators,‬‬
‫فكلوا واشربوا حتى يتبين لكم الخيط األبيض من الخيط األسود من الفجر‪.‬‬
‫أنا آتيك به قبل أن يرتد إليك طرفك‪.‬‬
‫جرى كل ذلك ونحن صغيران‪.‬‬
‫وصلنا لنجد محمدا يستعد للسفر‪.‬‬
‫بينما كنا نحتفل بالعام الجديد اندلعت الحرب بين الدولتين‪.‬‬
‫حين صاح ديك الصباح سكتت شهرزاد عن الكالم المباح‪.‬‬
‫‪place‬‬ ‫)حيث‪ ،‬أينما ‪(subordinators:‬‬
‫وقد نام حيث أناخ راحلته‪.‬‬
‫‪.‬أينما تولوا وجوهكم فثمة وجه هللا‪.‬‬
‫)…‪, etc‬إذا‪ ،‬إن‪ ،‬لو‪،‬لوال‪condition (subordinators: ،‬‬
‫إن تنصروا هللا ينصركم‪.‬‬
‫لن نستطيع أن نفعل شيئا إذا لم يتمكن من الدفع‪.‬‬
‫لوال إنك جئت في الوقت المناسب لكان الغداء قد فاتك‪.‬‬
‫‪concession‬‬ ‫)وإن‪ ،‬ولو ‪(subordinators:‬‬
‫كانت ثورة شعبية عامة وإن كان القائمون بها من ضباط الجيش‪.‬‬
‫الموه على ما حدث ولو إنّه لم يكن له يد فيه‪.‬‬
‫‪cause‬‬ ‫)ألنّ ‪ ،‬إذ ‪(subordinators:‬‬
‫لم يكن انتخابه صعبا ألنّ الناخبين كانوا يحبونه‪.‬‬
‫ولكن جاءت النجدة بسرعة‪ ،‬إذ وصلت سيارة االسعاف في تلك اللحظة‪.‬‬
‫‪purpose‬‬ ‫)لـِ ‪( ،‬ل)كي‪( ،‬ل)كي ال ‪(subordinators:‬‬
‫جاءت مبكرة لتكون أول المتقدمين‪.‬‬
‫فرددناه إلى أمه كي تقر عينها‪.‬‬
‫نشرت القوانين في وسائل االعالم (ل)كي ال تضيع حقوق الناس‪.‬‬
‫‪result‬‬ ‫)كي‪ ،‬لكي ‪ ،‬فَـ ‪ ،‬بحيث‪(subordinators:‬‬
‫بذل محمد جهدا كبيرا فنال مراده‪.‬‬
‫هطلت األمطار بغزارة بحيث غرقت البيوت والشوارع‪.‬‬
‫‪manner and comparison‬‬ ‫)كما ‪ ،‬مثلما‪ ،‬كما لو‪ ،‬كأنما ‪(subordinators:‬‬
‫قادتني مثلما يقود البصير ضريرا‪.‬‬
‫قضى وقته باللعب كما يحلو له‪.‬‬
‫‪175‬‬
‫‪175‬‬
.‫تقبل محمد نقدهم كما لو كانوا يكيلون له عبارات الثناء‬

preference (subordinators: ‫)بدال من‬
.‫بدال من أن نبيت في تلك المدينة سنعود ليال ولو أننا سنصل متأخرين‬
circumstance
There is a class of subordinate clauses in Arabic that we may term ‘circumstance'
subordinate clauses. These clauses, which are mostly participial clauses in form, but may
also be finite clauses of various patterns, describe the state or situation. The situation
expressed by the circumstance clause should be simultaneous to that of the main clause,
hence the frequent use of the participial and the imperfect verbal forms. These clauses may,
or may not, be introduced by a subordinator, as the sentences below show us. The
subordinator, which is used when these clauses are of the pattern SC or SA, or begin with
a noun phrase, is the particle ‫ و‬. As for their position, they usually follow the element they
modify in the main clause.
.‫توغل الفارس شاهرا سيفه في جيش العدو‬ .‫استقبلت الضيوف راكبين جيادهم‬
.‫سقط مغشيا عليه‬ .‫ليعبدوه مخلصين له الدين طاهرة نفوسهم‬
.‫التقت عيناهما وهما يتحدثان مع المدعويين اآلخرين‬ .‫شعرت باأللم يتزايد في كتفي‬
c. Adjectival clauses .
Adjectival clauses, commonly called ‘relative clauses’, are the third type of subordinate
clauses. These are clauses that realize the same function that the adjective phrase realizes
in the noun phrase. Together with adjective phrases, noun phrases, and preposition phrases,
they form the system of modifiers in the noun phrase. Positionally, they occupy a phrase-
final place.
Relative clauses in Arabic will be discussed in detail in Chapter 10. However, certain
points merit brief mentioning here. In Arabic, adjectival phrases are divided into two types.
The first type are clauses that modify a definite head noun ‘antecedent’. They are
introduced by the relative marker. The second are clauses that modify an indefinite
antecedent. These do not begin with a relative marker. This difference may be noted in the
following examples.
.‫عثِر على المصوغات التي سرقت من البيت في جيب المتهم‬

.‫أنا ال أملك الكتاب الذي تريد‬
176
.‫حفظ هللا زمانا أطلعك‬

.‫أهديته كتبا اشتريتها أمس من معرض الكتاب‬
Besides, adjectival clauses in Arabic contain a noun phrase that is co-referent with the
antecedent and is realized as a ‘resumptive’ pronoun. As the above examples show, this
element may not be overtly expressed.
Arabic adjectival clauses may be classified into two types according to their function,
i.e. whether they determine the reference of the antecedent, by restricting its reference to a
particular entity, hence the name ‘restrictive’, e.g.
.‫كاذب‬
ٌ ‫تبين أنّ الخبر الذي سمعناه أمس‬ .‫اشترى بيتا يقع على شاطئ البحر‬
Or, they function as ‘qualifiers’ of an already ‘determined’ entity. In other words, they
provide additional information to it, and we may thus call them ‘non-restrictive’ clauses,
e.g.
.‫سمعنا أنّ محمدا الذي التقيته في االحتفال أمس غادر إلى بلده‬
Adjectival clauses may be of various clause types and sentence patterns. Though mostly
finite, these clauses may sometimes be non-finite, with a non-finite verbs or participles,
e.g.
. ‫بحث عن منزل يستأجره‬. .‫دهِش لمنظر أوراق الشجر الناطقة ألوانها بأبدع الصور‬
The underlined constituent in the second example, which we called ‘complex adjective’ in
Chapter 5 when dealing with adjectives in Arabic, is assumed to form a clause that is made of the
participle ‫الناطقة‬, its nominative case subject ‫ألوانها‬, and preposition phrase complement ‫بأبدع الصور‬.
We may also note that this clause is not introduced by the expected relative marker ‫ الذذتذذي‬as it
modifies the definite antecedent ‫أوراق الشذذجر‬. Instead, the clause has an initial / ‫الـ‬/. It is assumed,
that in these cases, this prefix is not a definite article , but a contracted relative marker.
8.5.3. Comparing complex sentences in English and Arabic

1. Arabic and English complex sentences share the division of their subordinate clauses
into nominal, adverbial, and adjectival clauses.
2. Each of these classes of subordinate clauses takes up the functions of their phrasal
namesakes. Nominal clauses perform the range of functions realized by noun phrases,
and so do adverbial clauses, which function as adverbials, and adjectival clauses, which
perform the functions of the adjective phrases.
177
177
3. In both languages, the embedding of clauses into others is limitless. That is, clauses
may infinitely be subordinated to others that are themselves subordinated to others and
so on.
4. In both Arabic and English, subordinate clauses may be of various clause structure and
types: finite and non-finite clauses of various structures, and may be of declarative and
interrogative types. Each function may be realized by more than one type of subordinate
clauses. However, some functions are more restricted in the structural type of clause
they allow. Variation in the type of the subordinate clause is usually associated with
semantic difference.
5. Subordinate clauses may be introduced by an element that indicates their status as

dependent causes. These are the complementizers that, if, whether, for-to in English,
and ‫ إن‬،‫ إذا‬،‫ أن‬، ّ‫ أن‬، ّ‫ إن‬in Arabic, whose distribution is determined by clause type.
6. Not all subordinate clauses begin with a complementizer. There are many cases where
such clauses have no complementizer. This depends on the grammatical context they
are found in, the clause type, and their function.
7. In addition to the complementizers, we find other elements that introduce subordinate

clauses. These are the subordinators, which we find at the beginning of adverbial clauses
in particular. Subordinators may be simple or compound. It has been suggested that
these subordinators are really prepositions, which are followed by clausal complements,
instead of having their usual noun phrase complements. This suggestion gains support
from the fact that in Arabic, there are instances where these subordinators are followed
by clauses that begin with complementizers, e.g. ّ‫ حتى أن‬،‫ قبل أن‬،‫منذ أن‬
8. In Arabic, we find a distinct class of participial and finite subordinate clauses that
perform an adverbial function that is named ‘circumstance’, ‫ الحال‬in Arabic grammatical
tradition. These clauses describe the manner/condition in which the state or action is
taking place. In the different contexts they occur in, circumstance clauses may have a
temporal sense. In others, they come very close to adjectival clauses, which describe the
participants in the action or state. We have retained the independence of this class of
adverbial clauses awaiting a more detailed and comprehensive treatment.
178
Exrcises
1. Find out other points of similarity between Arabic and English as far as variation
in their word order is concerned.
2. The description of the sentence patterns in the two languages did not say anything
about the semantic roles of the subject of the sentence. Conduct a comparison of
the various roles of the subject in Arabic and English sentences.
3. Attempt a description of a paragraph in English and a paragraph in Arabic. What
features can you find about each, especially the elements that link the sentences in
the paragraph?
179
Chapter Nine
Sentence Types and Discourse Functions
9. 1. Sentence types
9.2. Questions
9.2.1. Yes/no questions
9.2.1.1. Yes/no questions in English
9.2.1.2. Yes/no questions in Arabic
9.2.1.3. Coomparing yes/no questions in English and Arabic
9.2.2. wh-questions
9.2.2.1. wh-questions in English
9.2.2.2. wh-questions in Arabic
9.2.2.3. Comparing wh-questions in English and Arabic
9.2.3. Minor types of questions
9.2.3.1. Minor types of questions in English
9.2.3.2. Minor types of questions in Arabic
9.2.3.3. Comparing minor types of questions in English and Arabic
9.3. Directives
9.3.1. Directives in English
9.3.2. Directives in Arabic
9.3.3. Comparing directives in English and Arabic
9.4. Exclamations
9.4.1. Exclamations in English
9.4.2. Exclamations in Arabic
9.4.3. Comparing exclamations in English and Arabic
180
9.1. Sentence types

In natural languages, we can distinguish various sentence types depending on specific
syntactic features that characterize each type, such as the change in the word order, the
absence or presence of certain elements, etc. These sentence types are generally associated
with specific communicative functions that different sentences play in discourse. In the
previous chapter, we divided sentences into three kinds depending on their structural
complexity: simple sentences, compound sentences, and complex sentences.
In our discussion of the simple sentences, we dealt with sentences of the type that is
usually associated with providing information to the hearer. These are declarative
sentences. Declarative sentences are considered the basic canonical sentence type that
provides a point of reference to other sentence types, which are defined in terms of the
syntactic changes or departure from this type. Accordingly, we sketched the various
patterns of the declarative sentences in the two languages, and the kind of possible
variation that is allowed in the order of their constituents. In this chapter, we turn our focus
to the other three sentence types: interrogatives, imperatives, and exclamatives.
It was said above that each of these four sentence types is typically, though not
exclusively, associated with one of the general four communicative functions that language
performs in discourse: conveying information, eliciting information; eliciting actions, and
expressing the speaker’s high emotions and feelings. We usually use declarative sentences
to make statements, interrogative sentences to make questions, imperative sentences for
directives (requests, demands, orders), and exclamative sentences to make exclamations.
However, we often find instances where this association is not maintained. The various
sentence types may serve discourse functions other than those with which they are usually
associated. A declarative sentence like ‘She is going home’, if said with a rising intonation,
will have the discourse function of eliciting information rather than conveying it. Thus, it
is a question. The sentence ‘Would you hand in your answer sheets, please?’ is
syntactically an interrogative sentence. However, as far as its discourse function is
concerned, it belongs to the class of directives. It is a request to somebody to do something
and not a question to see if he/she would ‘hand in the answer sheets’. Or take the sentence
‫ أليس هللا بأحكم الحاكمين؟‬from Arabic. It is an interrogative sentence in form, but a statement
in its discourse function. It does not ellict information; rather, it conveys it
181
In both English and Arabic, certain, formally distinguishable, sentence types are
assigned typical discourse functions. They use various devices to form these sentence
types: addition, deletion, inversion, or movement of elements, or any combination of these.
However, despite the difference between the two languages in the formal devices they
employ to derive interrogative, imperative, and exclamative sentences, both are equally
capable of expressing the whole range of discourse functions. This makes the task of
comparing between them easier when each of the specific discourse function classes is
dealt with separately. The following sections will discuss the three main functions:
questions, directives, and exclamations, and how they are realized in English and Arabic.
9.2. Questions
The first discourse function that we are going to discuss in this chapter is that of eliciting
information, i.e. questions. Different types of questions may be distinguished. We ask
questions to get information, or to verify information. We may also want to elicit
confirmation from the addressee, or ask him to choose between alternatives. These are
usually expressed via the use of a certain sentence type: interrogative sentences. However,
they could also be realized by the use of other type(s), which renders the questions indirect.
It is also the case that the sentence type normally used to express questions, i.e.
interrogative sentences, may be used to express other functions, such as requests or
statements.
When discussing questions we shall deal with the following sub-classes of questions:
polarity or yes/no questions and content questions, termed as wh-questions. Besides the
discussion of the different types of interrogative sentences which are typically used in
making questions, we will deal with sentences that belong to other types, but are still used
in realizing questions, and interrogative sentences that serve other functions.
In forming their interrogative sentences, English and Arabic display certain similarities
and differences, as is expected. In discussing question formation in the two languages we
will bear in mind the syntactic processes required by the two languages in the construction
of these structures.
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9.2.1. Yes/no questions
Some questions require confirmation or denial from the addressee. These are yes/no
questions. A sub-type of these is attached to the end of a declarative sentence. It is called a
tag-question. Another is that of alternative questions, which ask the addressee to make a
choice between given alternatives.
9.2.1.1. Yes/no questions in English
In English, interrogative sentences that are used to express yes/no questions, exemplified
below, require the movement of the operator- i.e. the auxiliary verb, to a pre-subject
position. Actually, the subject and the operator exchange places, hence the other name
‘subject-auxiliary inversion’ given to the process. This is accompanied by the sentence
having a rising intonation. When there is no auxiliary verb in the sentence to act as an
operator, the help of the verb do is sought to function as an operator. When there is more
than one auxiliary, it is always the first auxiliary that functions as an operator. Note here
that subject-auxiliary inversion is applied to main clauses. Subordinate interrogative
clauses do not undergo this process, as was shown in the previous chapter.
Have you found anything↑?
Is that true↑?
Did you find what you were looking for↑?
Will he be working on the project tomorrow↑?
These questions are said to have neutral orientation or neutral polarity. It means that
they do not carry any bias in expecting either an affirmative or a negative answer. These
yes/no questions, which are affirmative, do not favour a particular answer, a property that
distinguishes them from similar questions that favour a positive answer. They are said to
have positive orientation, or positive polarity. They differ in that they contain assertive
elements like someone, somebody, something, etc., instead of the non-assertive anyone,
anybody, anything, etc. The occurrence of such assertive elements makes the question
biased toward a positive answer, e.g.
Have you found something? Is there someone in the room?
To which the expected response is: 'Yes, I have' and ' Yes, there is' respectively.
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Negative yes/no question
The above discussion dealt with affirmative – positive – yes/no questions. Besides these,
there are negative yes/no questions that contain negative elements, like:
Didn’t you see him coming? Shouldn’t she finish what she started?
Have they never answered your question? Did I not tell you all about it?
The negative element not, when contracted, is affixed to the operator. They make one
element that precedes the subject. If it is not contracted, which is typical of formal style,
not remains to the left of the verb. These questions have negative orientation, or polarity,
which means that they are biased to a negative response, like: No, I didn’t and No, she
shouldn’t, etc. Their negative orientation is complicated by elements of disbelief. They
imply that the speaker has previously expected something, but is surprised to find the
opposite (positive-negative expectation). This is why such questions often express the
disappointment of the speaker, who had assumed something and discovered that his/her
assumption was wrong.
Tag-questions
Another sub-type of yes/no-questions is the short yes/no-question that we may find

appended to statements, generally called a tag-question. A tag-question consists of an
operator and a subject. There may be a negative element not, which appears in its
contracted form (n’t) and is affixed to the operator. The operator is the same as that of the
statement, and if there is no auxiliary that functions as an operator, the helping verb do is
brought in. The subject is a pronoun that is coreferential with the subject of the statement.
If the statement is positive, the tag is negative, and vice versa.
He will be here this afternoon, won’t he?
Mary loves him, doesn’t she?
They can’t make it to the meeting, can they?
You don’t feel well, do you?
An important distinction is made between tags with rising intonation and those with
falling intonation. Those with rising intonation – the nuclear tone occurs on the auxiliary –
require from the addressee the verification of the proposition, i.e. to say if it is right or
wrong. No particular expectation is made by the speaker as to what the response may be.
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On the other hand, tags with falling intonation require conformation by the addressee to
what the speaker says. The expectation here is not neutral. It is either positive or negative.
This gives rise to four types of tag questions.
1. Positive S + Negative Tag (Rising tone) He liked it, didn’t he↑?

Positive assumption – neutral expectation (yes/no)
2. Negative S + Positive Tag (Rising tone) Jane hasn’t done it, has she↑?
Negative assumption – neutral expectation (yes/no)
3. Positive S + Negative Tag (Falling tone) She failed the test, didn’t she↓?
Positive assumption – positive expectation (yes)
4. Negative S + Positive Tag (Falling tone) She cannot see it, can she↓?
Negative assumption – negative expectation (no)
The difference in the meaning of these four types of sentences may be explained in
terms of the speaker’s assumption embedded in the statement he/she makes, positive in (1
and 3) and negative in (2 and 4), and what he/she expects the response to the tag-question
to be. In the case of tags with rising tones (sentences 1 and 2), the speaker does not expect
any particular response since he/she wants to verify the truth of their assumption. This is
what makes their expectation neutral in these two sentences. In sentences with tags of
falling tones, the speaker makes an assumption, positive or negative, and seeks
conformation to his/her assumption from the addressee. This makes the expectation to the
positive assumption in (3) positive and to the negative assumption in (4) negative.
A fifth, but less usual, type may be added. This is where both the statement and the tag
are positive. The statement is often preceded by so or oh, and it indicates that the speaker
has already concluded something. It may carry a sarcastic tone.
So, that is your excuse, is it↓?
We also need to mention here that imperatives and exclamatives in English may also be
appended by tag-questions.
Open the windows, won’t you? Don’t make a single move, will you?
Let’s paint it green, shall we? What a nice painting it is, isn’t it?
Alternative questions
Alternative questions expect as a response one of the options given in the question itself.
A question of this type presents the addressee with a limited choice of replies that he/she
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should choose from. In English, two kinds of alternative questions can be distinguished: a
yes/no question, and a combination of a yes/no and wh- question.
Do you like to go by bus↑ or train↓ ?
Where would you like to go in the summer↓ , Spain↑ or Italy ̖ ?
The first resembles a yes/no question except that the intonational pattern is different. A
yes/no question has a final rising tone, but in an alternative question a rise occurs on each
item of the list except the final one, on which we have a falling tone indicating that the list
is complete.
Do you like tea↑, coffee↑, or a coke↓ ?
The response to a question like this would be by mentioning one of the choices given in it,
e.g. coffee.
The second type is a combination of two questions: a wh-question, and an elliptical
alternative question of the yes/no type. The following question
What would you like for dinner↓, fish↑ or chicken↓ ?
is said to be a reduced version of:
What would you like for dinner↓ ? Would you like fish↑ or chicken↓?
Declarative yes/no questions

Many times, yes/no questions are formed by merely changing the intonation of a
declarative sentence, which usually denotes a statement, from its usual falling tone to a
rising tone. Such questions are accordingly termed as ‘declarative questions’, because the
word order is that of a declarative sentence.
She wrote you back↑? You haven’t eaten yet↑?
These questions are not neutrally oriented. A positive response is expected in the case
of a positive question, and a negative one in the case of a negative question.
9.2.1.2. Yes/no-questions in Arabic

Yes/no-questions in Arabic are formed by the addition of an interrogative particle to the
beginning of the declarative sentence, and the change of the intonational pattern to a rising
tone. In Arabic, there are two such particles: /hal/ ‫ هل‬and the prefix /ʔa-/ ‫ أ‬، ‫ الهمزة‬. No
movement of any sort is involved in the formation of such questions.
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The interrogative particle ‫ هل‬precedes only affirmative declarative sentences of the

basic order VS. That is, it is not used in sentences with elements that have been moved to
an initial position, which actually means that it is always followed by a verb in its perfect
or imperfect form, or an imperfect verb, preceded by the future prefix /sa-/ َ‫ سـ‬.
‫هل سيخطب في الحفل↑؟‬ ‫وهل يصلح العطار ما أفسد الدهر↑؟‬ ‫هل غادر الشعراء من متردم ↑؟‬
These questions seem to have neutral orientation. A positive or a negative response are
both possible.
The second, and less restricted, interrogative particle is the prefix /ʔa-/ ‫ أ‬. This particle
has a wider distribution than the previous one. Besides its occurrence before sentences with
a VS order, it may occur at the beginning of nominal sentences – i.e. followed by the NP
in SC and SA patterns, or a fronted subject in what is originally a verbal sentence.
Moreover, it may occur in sentences with various elements that are moved to a pre-verbal
position for focusing reasons. In addition, unlike ‫ هل‬, which can only precede the main
clause in a complex sentence, this particle can precede fronted subordinate clauses of
different types.
‫أمحمد جمع الفضائل كلها ؟‬ ‫أيظن أني لعبة بيديه؟ أستصحون من غفوتكم؟‬
‫أراضيا كان محمد؟‬ ‫أكتابا فقدت؟‬
‫أكلما زرتك قصصت علي قصتك؟‬ ‫أفي بيته يؤتى الحكم؟‬
Similar to questions with ‫هل‬, questions with /‫أ‬/ in which the basic order is maintained
have neutral orientation. The speaker expects either response. Questions with preposed
elements, like the last five above, seem to have positive orientation. Here, the question does
not involve the whole proposition, as is the case in questions with basic word order. Rather,
it involves the preposed focused element which comes right after the interrogative particle.
The speaker seems to have made a pre-assumption, and would like some confirmation from
the addressee.
Negative yes/no questions

Negative yes/no questions are formed with /ʔa-/ ‫ أ‬followed by the negative particles ‫لم‬
negating past events, ‫ ال‬negating general statements, ‫ لن‬negating future events, and the
negative verb ‫ ليس‬, a member of a group of linking (copular) verbs
‫ألم يصل الضيوف بعد؟‬ ‫أال تعرف اإلنجليزية؟‬

‫أليس هللا بأحكم الحاكمين؟‬ ‫ألن تترك التدخين؟‬
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These questions are said to be negatively oriented. Sometimes, they combine the inquiry
with an element of surprise or disbelief. A negative answer would be with ‫ نعم‬followed by
the negative statement itself. If the response is positive, it should be with ‫ بلى‬followed by
a positive statement.
.‫ كتبته‬،‫ بلى‬/ .‫ لم أكتبه‬، ‫نعم‬ ‫ألم تكتب ما أمليته عليك؟‬
Very frequently these negative yes/no questions seem to have the force of strong
positive statements, rather than that of questions. We will deal with this in more detail
below.
Tag-questions
Arabic has a single phrase used as a question-tag to all types of statements. This is the
negative ‫أليس كذلك؟‬. It may be pronounced with a rising tone to indicate a request for
verification, or a falling tone to indicate a request for confirmation. Tags are considered an
instance of modern style in Arabic.
‫ أليس كذلك؟‬،‫انتهت الحرب‬ ‫ أليس كذلك؟‬،‫هم مجتمعون في الدار‬
‫ أليس كذلك؟‬،‫لم يقرأ الناس الخبر في الجريدة‬
Alternative questions
Arabic has alternative questions of the same two types we saw in English, those that
resemble yes/no questions and those that combine yes/no and wh-questions. The first type
resembles ordinary yes/no questions except that the intonational pattern is different. A
yes/no question has a final rising tone, but in a yes/no alternative question a rise occurs on
each item of the list except the final one, on which we have a falling tone indicating that
the list is complete. The coordinator used between the alternative choices is usually ‫ أم‬.
The first type may be divided into two sub-types differing in the structural repetition of
the question, i.e. repetition of the alternative choices, e.g.
‫هل جاء محمد↑ أم علي↓؟‬ ‫أزرعت حنطة↑ أم شعيرا↓؟‬
or a repetition of the whole clause, e.g.
‫ أم هل تستوي الظلمات والنور↓؟‬،↑‫هل يستوي األعمى والبصير‬

‫ أم أنت ال تعلم↓؟‬،↑‫أتعلم‬
The second type is a combination of a wh-question and an elliptical alternative question
of the first type.
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]‫ أم عليا؟‬،‫[من قابلت؟ أقابلت محمدا‬ < ‫ محمدا↑ أم عليا↓؟‬،‫من قابلت‬
Declarative yes/no questions

In Arabic, it is possible to form a yes/no question by merely changing the intonational
pattern of a declarative sentence to a rising tone. That is, no addition of an interrogative
particle is made. They are neutrally oriented in that they may have a positive or a negative
response, e.g.
‫تريد أن تشتري بيتا ↑؟‬ ‫عاد محمد من سفرته ↑؟‬
9.2.1.3. Comparing yes/no questions in English and Arabic

1. English and Arabic express this type of discourse function (eliciting the truth or
falsity of a proposition) via a special sentence type, which is characterized generally by
rising intonation in both languages, in contrast to the falling intonation that characterizes
statements.
2. They share the full range of yes/no questions. In both languages, we find positive and
negative yes/no questions, tag-questions, and declarative questions.
3. However, they differ in the way these questions are formed. While English uses the
device of word order change, i.e. subject-auxiliary/operator inversion, Arabic uses
addition – i.e. use of interrogative particles in a sentence-initial position. Arabic uses
two such particles each with its distinct distribution and scope. However, as was said
above, a rising tone is a common feature of such questions in both languages.
4. Arabic and English differ in how they form their tag-questions. English exhibits a full
and quite complex range of tags, varying in terms of the subject and the operator of the
statement to which they are appended, and to whether that statement is positive or
negative. They also vary in terms of their tone: rising or falling. Five types are
distinguished accordingly with various indications. On the other hand, Arabic uses a
single ‘frozen’ form as a tag to all statements, regardless of their structure.
5. In both languages, positive yes/no questions are generally neutrally oriented unless they
contain some assertive forms, or question some focused – preposed – forms. Negative
yes/no questions are more negatively oriented – i.e. they tend to have negative
expectation. This similarity between the two languages extends to tag-questions. Rising
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intonation in tags indicates verification of an assumption so the expectation is neutral;

and a falling tone is associated with confirmation, so the expectation depends on the
assumption being positive or negative. Declarative questions in both languages have
neutral orientation.
6. One of the interrogative particles in Arabic, the prefix /ʔa-/ ‫ أ‬, may precede sentences
with emphasized, focused, elements that are preposed to a preverbal position. Using this
particle restricts the questioning to that element, rather than to the whole proposition.
This makes the question more positively oriented, which is similar to the effect of the
use of assertive forms in yes/no questions in English.
7. English and Arabic do not exhibit major differences in alternative questions. Both use
analogous forms: those of the yes/no questions and content wh-questions and the list of
the choices. The only difference seems to lie in the fact that Arabic sometimes uses the
repetition of the question form instead of only listing the choices, as we saw in the first
and second questions in the above examples.
9.2.2. wh-questions
These are questions that require the addressee to provide some information.. They are also
called content questions because the response is not the verification of the truth or falsity
of a proposition. Both languages express this discourse function via a special sentence type,
the interrogative sentence, the main feature of which being the presence of a question
word. Most of these words begin with {wh} in English, hence the name wh-questions for
this type of interrogative sentences.
9.2.2.1. wh-questions in English

Consider the following examples of wh-questions in English.
Who can finish this for me? What will you do?
Whom / who did he consult? What has she been crying for?
Where did you find it? I didn’t ask her what she would like to see
You might have noticed that the above sentences bear some relationship to another type
of sentences, which have been termed declaratives or statements in functional terms. When
compared to its corresponding declarative sentence, each of these interrogative sentences
involves two processes of movement of elements.
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The first movement process is that of subject-auxiliary inversion, which we have

encountered in interrogative sentences realizing yes/no questions. In these sentences, we
also have a movement of the operator, i.e. the primary or modal auxiliary, or the helping
verb do when there is no auxiliary, to a pre-subject position.
Besides, there is another movement at work here. This is the movement of phrases
headed by the wh-words (who, whom, what, which...), and are therefore called wh-phrases,
to the beginning of the sentence. Where does this movement originate? Where does the
wh-phrase move from?
Theses phrases are supposed to originate inside the sentence in different positions
depending on their grammatical functions: e.g. the subject: Who can finish this for me?, or
the object, e.g. Whom / who did he consult?, or an adjunct, e.g. Where did you find it? ,
How did she handle it? We could attest this from the lexical items that replace these wh-
elements in the answers given to the questions and the different positions these occupy in
the sentence: John can finish this for me, He consulted a well-known psychiatrist, I found
it in the garage, She handled it carefully.
We may conclude from this that elements that are characterized as wh-phrases move to
the beginning of the sentence. These wh-phrases have grammatical functions in their
sentences: subjects, direct or indirect objects, objects of prepositions, adverbials, noun
phrase determiners or modifiers, subject or object complements, etc. The wh-phrase who
is used for subjects and objects of personal reference and whom for objects of personal
reference, but only in formal contexts. what is used for subjects and objects of nonpersonal
reference, whose for noun phrase determiners of personal reference and, which for noun
phrase modifiers. how is used for manner adverbials, why for reason adverbials, when for
time adverbials, where for place adverbials, how many for count quantifiers, how much for
mass quantifiers, etc.
The movement of the wh-phrase to the beginning of the sentence is obligatory in
English, except in a certain type of questions called ‘echo questions’, where no such
movement is noticeable. The wh-element remains in its original place, e.g. You saw Mary
where? These questions are usually said in response to statements and serve to clarify a
statement that could not be clearly perceived or was surprising.
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However, sometimes, we may have wh-questions without subject-auxiliary inversion.

This is what we see in the last sentence of the above examples; I didn’t ask her what she
would like to see. This sentence, which exemplifies a complex sentence with a subordinate
wh-question clause, shows that the movement of the auxiliary in questions takes place only
in main clause questions. Subordinate clause questions do not involve this movement. Such
constructions are also termed ‘indirect questions’ since the question is embedded within a
statement in the main clause. Remember that this is similar to what was said above about
subordinate yes/no questions.
wh-phrase
The moved wh-phrases that we saw in all the above examples were made solely of wh-
words. However, these phrases may consist of more than the wh- lexical items. When the
wh-elements are within other phrases, the whole phrase will move to the beginning of the
sentence. This means that the movement involves all the material in the phrase. This is
what we see in the following.
Which book has the committee chosen? Whose car shall we take?
How many seats did you book? To whom should we complain?
At what time will they meet? How often do you visit them?
In the first three examples, the moved wh-phrases are noun phrases consisting of the
wh-elements which, whose, and how, which function as modifiers, determiners, or
quantifiers respectively, in addition to the head nouns book, car, and seats. In the fourth
and fifth examples, the moved phrase is a preposition phrase, in which the wh-element
functions as the prepositional complement, whom; or a determiner of the complement noun
phrase, what. In the sixth example the wh-phrase is an adverb phrase and the wh-element
how functions as a specifier/modifier of the head adverb, often.
One exception to this is the possible movement of a wh-element from within the
preposition phrase, where it functions as a complement, leaving the head preposition
‘stranded’ in its original place, e.g. Who(m) should we complain to? Questions with
stranded prepositions are the unmarked, ordinary, and less formal forms when compared
to their counterparts with the moved prepositions, which are marked as being formal.
Long-distance wh-movement
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All the examples above show that the movement of the wh-phrase is confined within clause
boundaries. That is, the wh-phrase moves from within a clause to the beginning of the same
clause. However, English provides us with instances where the wh-phrase appears to have
moved across these boundaries. This is termed long-distance movement, which we see in
the following.
[What did you say [John bought ----?]]
[Who did Mary believe [you said [that John married ---?]]]
It seems that in sentences where there is multiple embedding of clause-type
complements, the wh-phrase moves up from one clause to another in a successive manner
until it gets to the position that we see it occupying at the beginning of the main clause. It
crosses all these clause boundaries that lie in between. In the first sentence above, the wh-
phrase has moved from the subordinate clause to the beginning of the main clause, and in
the second clause, it has moved across two clause boundaries to arrive at its surface position
at the beginning of the main clause.
This movement is not without constraints. It is subject to the stipulation that the
movement should be between adjacent clauses. The movement of the wh-phrase is from
within a clause to a position within the clause that immediately dominates it. Nothing
should separate them, otherwise the movement is blocked, i.e. it results in an
ungrammatical sentence. The following two examples show this.
[S What did you say [S what John bought ----?]]
*[S What did you see [ NP the man [S who bought-----?]]]
In the first sentence, the subordinate clause in which the wh-phrase originates is
immediately dominated by the main clause. The wh-phrase what moves first to the
beginning of the subordinate clauses and then to the beginning of the main clause. There
is no barrier between the two clauses. However, in the second sentence, the inner clause
[who bought what] is not directly dominated by the main clause. There is another
constituent between them, i.e. the noun phrase [the man [who bought what]]. Hence, the
movement is not allowed. The wh-phrase has moved from within a clause that is embedded
within a noun phrase, to the beginning of the main clause.
9.2.2.2. wh-questions in Arabic
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Like English, inquiries about information are expressed in Arabic via a certain type of
sentences. These interrogative sentences, which are traditionally called wh-questions,
differ from declarative sentences in that they begin with question elements. They may be
exemplified by the following sentences.
‫من قابلتَ في الطريق؟‬ ‫ماذا قال محمد؟‬ ‫من دق بابنا؟‬
‫ت؟‬ِ ‫أي ثوب لبس‬
َ ‫متى انتهيتم من عملكم؟‬ ‫كيف تجد نفسكَ اليوم؟‬
‫مع من جئتم ؟‬ ‫كم مرشحا ستنتخبون ؟‬ ‫ت؟‬ِ ‫كتاب من استعر‬
َ
Wh-questions are formed by moving the wh-element, which may originate at different
positions inside the clause, to its beginning. Different wh-elements are used in Arabic: The
assumption that there is a movement of the wh-element is based on the various grammatical
functions that these elements assume in the sentence. They may be subjects, direct and
indirect objects, objects of prepositions, NP determiners and modifiers, complements,
adverbials, etc.
Each of these elements seems to serve a specific semantic-syntactic function: ‫ من‬and ‫ما‬
for noun phrases referring to persons and things respectively, ‫ أي‬for noun phrase
determiners and modifiers. Others serve adverbial functions: ‫ كيف‬for manner, ‫ متى‬for
time, ‫ أين‬for place, ‫ كم‬for quantifiers (mass and count), and ‫ لماذا‬for reason.
In Arabic, there are instances of compound wh-elements where prepositions and wh-
words are joined to make a single word, e.g.
)‫ لم (لماذا‬، )‫ فيم (في ماذا‬، )‫ عالم (على ماذا‬، )‫بم (بماذا‬
Though most of these wh-elements do not exhibit overt case marking, some do. The
word ‫ أي‬in the sentence ‫ت ؟‬
ِ ‫أي ثوب لبس‬
َ is marked for the accusative case because it functions
as the object of the verb ‫ت‬
ِ ‫ لبسذذذذ‬. In those cases where the case marking is not overt, the
grammatical function of the wh-element may also be deduced from the material that
replaces it in the answer to the question.
Wh-phrase
The wh-element stands for the whole phrase. However, this phrase may be a constituent of
a bigger phrase. In this case, it moves to the beginning of the sentence with the other
elements of the bigger phrase. This is what we see in
‫كم مرشحا ستنتخبون؟‬ ‫مع من جئتم ؟‬ ‫أي ثوب لبست ؟‬ ‫كتاب من استعرت؟‬
َ
194
In the first of these examples, the wh-element functions as a determiner within a noun
phrase headed by the noun ‫كتاب‬. In the second example, the wh-element functions as a
modifier within a noun phrase, whose head is ‫ثوب‬, while in the third example it functions
as a preposition phrase complement in which the head is ‫مع‬, and in the fourth example, it
is a quantifier within a noun phrase headed by ‫مرشحا‬. Note that in all these examples, the
other constituents of the phrase have moved with the wh-elements. The movement of these
other elements is obligatory. No stranding is allowed in Arabic. We cannot have:
‫ * كم ستنتخبون مرشحا ؟‬، ‫ب ؟‬
ٍ ‫ت ثو‬
ِ ‫ * أي لبس‬، ‫* من جئتم مع؟‬ ‫كتاب ؟‬
َ ‫* من استعرت‬
Long-distance wh-movement
The above examples show that the movement of the wh-phrase is within the boundaries of
the same clause. That is, the wh-phrase moves from its original position inside the clause
to an initial position in the same clause. Yet, similar to English, we find sentences in Arabic
showing a long distance movement of the wh-element. These are sentences like
]]‫؟‬---‫[ج من قالت هند[ج إنّ محمدا رأى‬ ]]‫؟‬--- ‫[ج ماذا أراد محمد[ج أن تشتري فاطمة‬
The wh-phrase in these sentences starts from its original position within the embedded
clause, indicated by the blank space in the above examples, and moves to a position at the
beginning of the main clause, thus crossing the clause boundaries. We would like to say
that this movement is achieved in successive steps, crossing one clause boundary at each
step.
Similar to the situation in English, this long-distance movement is not without
restrictions. The movement of the wh-phrase to a clause must be from a clause that it
immediately dominates. That is, the clause in which this phrase originates or moves from
must be an immediate constituent of the clause that the wh-phrase moves to. For instance,
there cannot be a major category like a noun phrase between them. This is exactly what we
saw in English. Thus, we cannot have
]]‫ ]] عاد إلى بغداد‬--- ‫*[ج ماذا قالت هند[ج إن [ع إ الشاعر[ج الذي ألقى‬
The movement from within the relative clause to the main clause is blocked by the fact
that the former is not immediately dominated by (is not an immediate constituent of) the
latter. There is another constituent, i.e. the noun phrase that includes the relative clause,
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between them. Movement of elements is local. It is within the same clause boundaries or
between adjacent clauses.
9.2.2.3. Comparing wh-questions in English and Arabic

The following are the main points of similarity and difference between Arabic and English
concerning wh-questions in the two languages.
1. In wh-questions, English and Arabic use special lexical items called question words,
or wh-words that stand for the questioned element, i.e. what the required information is
about. In each language, a number of these words are used and they vary according to
the grammatical function of the questioned element, its case, or personal/non-personal
reference.
2. Both Arabic and English use the strategy of wh-movement to form wh-questions. In
both languages, the wh-phrase moves to a position at the beginning of the sentence from
its original position inside the sentence.
3. This movement is local in both languages. That is, it is usually restricted to clause
boundaries.
4. Long distance movement, which both languages exhibit, is achieved via successive
steps across clause boundaries, but only when the wh-phrase does not cross the
boundaries of major constituents, e.g. noun phrases, in its way up to the initial position
of the main clause. Thus, wh-movement is constrained by locality.
5. In both Arabic and English, the movement of wh-elements observes the general
principle that if this element is a constituent of a larger phrase, then the whole phrase is
involved in the movement to the initial position in the sentence. However, it seems that
there is an exception to this, in the case of movement from within preposition phrases
in English. Here, a wh-phrase functioning as complement of a PP may move alone
leaving the head preposition in its original position. In such cases, the preposition is said
to be stranded. Preposition stranding is not allowed in Arabic. The principle is obeyed
across the board.
6. Only English exhibits a second type of a movement process in the formation of its
questions, both yes/no and wh-questions. This is the process of operator/ auxiliary
movement to a pre-subject position. The auxiliary verb in the sentence, or the first one
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of these when there are more than one, moves up to occupy a position to the left of the
subject phrase. When there is no auxiliary in the sentence, a helping verb is inserted in
this position carrying the tense element with it. This movement applies in all direct
questions, of the yes/no and wh- types. Indirect questions, which are embedded within
another clause, do not exhibit this movement. In Arabic, there is no such movement.
7. Nor do we find any insertion of a helping verb, analogous to English, in Arabic
questions. The tense element is still signalled on the verb in these constructions.
9.2.3. Minor types of questions

In this section, we will deal with interrogative sentences that do not elicit information. i.e.
they do not serve the function that interrogative sentences typically serve. In other words,
they are not questions. Rather, they express other discourse functions. Both English and
Arabic display such phenomenon.
9.2.3.1. Minor types of questions in English

Interrogative sentences in English may realize functions other than requesting information.
They may be statements, directives or even exclamations. As will be discussed in the next
section on directives, interrogative sentences of the yes/no type are frequently used as
requests to somebody to do something, e.g. Could you pass me the salt please?, which is
not intended to ask whether a person is or isn’t ‘capable of passing the salt.’ Rather it is
requesting that he/she pass the salt.
Another type of interrogative sentences that do not function as questions is that of
rhetorical questions. These are actually questions that are said without any expectation of
a response from the addressee. Rather, they have the function of statements. A negative
rhetorical question has the force of a strong positive assertion, and a positive rhetorical
question has the force of a strong negative assertion.
Isn’t what he did clear to everyone? (Certainly what he did is obvious.)
Can you doubt those crimes? (Certainly you cannot doubt.)
Who doesn’t know? (Certainly everyone knows.)
Who cares? (Certainly nobody cares.)
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Like ordinary yes/no-questions, rhetorical yes/no-questions have rising intonation but

with a different range of pitch movement. Rhetorical wh-questions have a rise-fall tone
instead of the falling tone of normal wh-questions.
Exclamatory questions is another type of interrogative sentences that realize a function
that is not their typical function of eliciting information. Rather, they function as
exclamations expressing the speaker’s strong feelings. These are found most frequently as
negative yes/no-interrogative sentences with falling tone, e.g.
Isn’t it an awesome movie! Hasn’t she grown!
9.2.3.2. Minor types of questions in Arabic

Arabic interrogative sentences may be used not to elicit information, which is their typical
realization, but to express other functions like statements, directives, or exclamations. In
the next section on directives, we will deal with those sentences that express directives
though they are interrogative in structure, e.g. ‫هل يمكن أن ترفع صذذذوتك؟‬. This sentence is not
understood as asking someone whether he/she could raise his or her voice. Rather it is
asking them to raise their voice.
A second function that interrogative sentences can realize is that of making strong
statements. These sentences are called rhetorical questions, to which the speaker does not
expect any response from the addressee. Like English, these may be yes/no questions or
wh-questions. A negative rhetorical question has the force of a strong positive assertion,
and a positive one has the force of a negative assertion.
‫ألم تر كيف فعل ربك بأصحاب الفيل ؟‬ (Certainly you saw…(
‫هل يستوي الذين يعلمون والذين ال يعلمون ؟‬ (Certainly they are not equal…)
‫من الذي لم يسمع بذلك؟‬ (Certainly everyone heard….)
‫من يأبه لما يفعلون؟‬ (Certainly no one cares…)
Interrogative sentences may also be used to express exclamations. In the following verse
from the Holy Qur’an, the sentence shows the strong feeling of wonder that the speaker is
expressing ،e.g. ‫كيف تكفرون باهلل وكنتم أمواتا فأحياكم‬
9.2.3.3. Comparing minor types of questions in Arabic
198
198
1. Both English and Arabic use interrogative sentences for discourse functions other than
those that they typically realize. Interrogative sentences may express statements,
directives, and exclamations.
2. In both languages, we find rhetorical questions; interrogative sentences that do not

require a response from the addressee since they are statements. These could be of the
yes/no or wh-questions types. In both English and Arabic, these have the force of
assertions of opposite polarity. Negative rhetorical questions have the force of strong
positive assertions, and positive rhetorical questions have the force of strong negative
assertions.
3. Both English and Arabic use interrogative sentences as directives. Both yes/no and wh-
questions are used to express the discourse function of directives.
4. In both languages, we may find interrogative sentences realizing the discourse function
of exclamation. In English, these are most frequently found in the form of negative
yes/no questions with a falling tone, instead of the rising tone that is typical of such
sentences when they express a question.
9.3. Directives
Directives are used to instruct others to do something. The function of instructing others to
elicit some action from them may be sub-divided into finer illocutionary acts ranging from
pleading, wishing, inviting, suggesting, requesting, offering and advising, to warning,
prohibiting, instructing, ordering and commanding. All belong to the same general class of
the discourse function that we call directives. In both languages, this class of discourse
functions is primarily realized by a distinct sentence type: the imperative sentence.
In addition to the imperative sentences that are typically associated with this function,
we may find sentences of other types that realize it. Assuming that the discourse function
of directive is available to all languages, including English and Arabic, we will examine
the different ways directives are realized in these two languages and see where they differ
and where they are similar.
9.3.1. Directives in English
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English typically uses a certain sentence type – imperative sentences – to realize this
function. Imperative sentences are distinguished from declarative sentences by two
features: the form of the main verb; it is in its base form; and the general absence of the
subject.
Go out. Be quiet. Help me please. Do it again.
Since it is in its base form, the verb does not show tense distinction. Modal auxiliaries
are not allowed either. However, there are passive imperatives (with be or get), e.g.
Please, be seated. Get dressed. Get lost.
As might have been noticed from the above examples, verbs used in imperative
sentences are usually dynamic verbs referring to actions. Imperative sentences with stative
verbs are rare, but do occur occasionally, e.g.
Love thy neighbour. Forgive them.
Imperative sentences in English are of three types: subjectless imperatives, subject

imperatives, let-imperatives. The first, which we exemplified above, is by far the most
common and typical of imperative sentences. All the above sentences are examples of this
type of imperatives. The absent subject of an imperative sentence is understood to be the
second person pronoun referring to the addressee(s). Some grammarians speak of its
underlying presence and subsequent deletion. This is motivated by the presence in these
subjectless sentences, of anaphoric expressions, which require an antecedent in the same
sentence, e.g. Look at yourself.
Subject imperatives are imperative sentences that come with an overt, stressed subject
you. This is what we find in sentences like
You keep silent. Don’t tell me to do it. You do it.
The subject you is admonitory, as the first sentence above shows. There is a sense of
warning. Its use could express irritation too. In addition, it could be contrastive, as in the
second sentence. We may also have third person subjects in these imperatives, e.g.
Somebody open the door! Nobody move!
However, it must be noted that these subject imperatives are different from imperative
sentences with vocatives like, John, do your job. In which the vocative NP is set aside by
a separate tone nucleus, and may appear at the end of the sentence like, Do your job, John.
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The third type of imperative sentences functioning as directives is that of let-imperative

sentences beginning with the verb let followed by a first person pronoun in the accusative
case – i.e. me, us. This is what we find in the following sentences. Note here that we often
have an abbreviated form of let us in which the pronoun is cliticized to the verb resulting
in let’s.
Let me help you with the suitcase. Let us find a quiet place to talk.
Let’s take our chance. Let’s have a party.
We may even have third person imperatives with let.

If anyone objects, let him speak now. Let no one misunderstand my words.
Negation of imperative sentences
Second person imperative sentences are negated simply by inserting Don’t, or more
formally Do not before the main verb, e.g.
Don’t be fooled by what he says. Don’t you ever say that again.
Imperatives with let are negated either by adding don’t before or after let and the subject.
The insertion of not after the pronoun suffices in sentences with let’s.
Don’t let’s make fuss about it. Let’s don’t make a fuss about it
Don’t let me interrupt your thoughts. Let’s not say anything about that.
Do is used with positive imperative sentences too. Its use is to make the request more
insistent and persuasive, and is restricted to subjectless and first person imperatives with
let’s, e.g. Do have another piece. Do let’s go and see the film.
Interrogative directives
Other sentence types may serve the discourse function of a directive. Interrogative
sentences may be used, not to elicit information, as they typically do, but to elicit action –
i.e. to instruct the addressee to do something. Yes/no questions with modals – e.g. would,
could, should – are commonly used as directives asking someone to do something or
another.
Could you pass the newspaper, please? Would you kindly repeat what you said?
Shouldn’t you be in bed now?
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Wh-questions may also be used to realize a directive. These could be both positive and
negative wh-questions. The verb should be in the present tense.
Why do you bother to reply? or Why bother to reply ? (Don’t bother to reply!)
Why don’t you rewrite it? or Why not rewrite it? (Rewrite it!)
9.3.2. Directives in Arabic

In Arabic, directives are realized by a distinct type of sentences called imperative
sentences. These are distinguished from interrogative or declarative sentences by specific
properties. The first feature is that of having a particular morpho-syntactic form of the verb:
the imperative form, which differs from the other two verbal forms: the perfect and the
imperfect, e.g.
.‫ادع إلى سبيل ربك‬ .‫ارجعوا إلى أبيكم‬ .‫أصلحي الطعام‬ ‫سدد خطاي لكي أقول فأحسنا‬
The imperative verb form is generally similar to that of the imperfect form but without
the inflectional prefix indicating person and/or gender. In those forms that begin with a
consonant cluster, the prefix /ʔi-/, or /ʔu-/ is added, e.g.
ِ ،‫ تق ّحم‬،‫اِبتسِم‬، ‫ستمع‬
‫ العَب‬،‫ أكتب‬،‫حارب‬ ِ ‫ا‬
In the above sentences and verbs, we may also notice that the imperative verb is in the
jussive mood. There is no vowel at the end of the verb form in the first sentence, and no /-
na/ at the end of the verb form in the second and third sentences. Remember that the jussive
mood is indicated by either the absence of a vowel, or the omission of /-na/, and /-ni/, at
the end of the verb, or by vowel shortening in final and medial positions in verbs whose
medial or final root radical is a semi-vowel, e.g. ‫ عد‬،‫اسع‬
The imperative verb is inflected for second person number and gender in agreement
with the ‘absent’ subject. e.g.
‫ أكتبن‬، ‫ أكتبوا‬، ‫ أكتبا‬،‫ أكتبي‬،‫أكتب‬
A third feature concerns the general absence of the subject in these sentences. The
subject is dropped and information about it is retrieved from the agreement features of
number, person, and gender that the verb is marked for. However, some imperative
sentences do have free (independent) subject pronouns. These are brought in for reasons of
emphasis or contrast.
.‫اذهب أنتَ وربك فقاتال‬ .‫ت هذه الرسالة‬
ِ ‫أكتبي أن‬
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These sentences should not be confused with imperatives containing vocative nouns
that are usually preceded by the vocative particle ‫يا‬. These vocative nouns are rather free
positionally. They may occur in initial, medial, or final positions in the sentence
.‫يا محمد اقرأ ما أنزل عليك‬ .‫اقرأ يا محمد ما أنزل عليك‬

.‫اقرأ ما أنزل عليك يا محمد‬
Other imperative sentences employ the imperative particle /li-/ ‫ لـ‬prefixed to the verb in
the imperfect form. These could be first, second, and third person imperatives.
.‫ِلنذهب إلى بيوتنا مسرعين‬ .‫ِليبذل كل ذو مال من ماله‬
.‫فليكن ما تريد‬ .‫فلتذهب الى الجحيم‬
Certain preposition phrases may play the same role an imperative verb does in the
sentence. Some of these, like ‫عليك‬, indicate advice or suggestion, others like ‫ إياك‬indicate
prohibition, e.g.
.‫عليكم بالصوم والصلوات‬ .‫عليك بالصدق في قولك‬ .‫إياك والنقص في الكيل‬
Verbal nouns may substitute for the imperative verbs occasionally. In these sentences,
the verbal noun is inflected for the accusative case, e.g.
‫ذودا عن الحمى‬ .‫صبرا على الشدائد‬
Negation of imperative sentences

Negative imperative sentences in Arabic do not use imperative verb forms. Rather, they
make use of the imperfect of the same verb, preceded by the negative particle ‫ ال‬. The verb
is inflected for the jussive mood.
.‫ال تدخلوا بيوتا غير بيوتكم‬ .‫ إن هللا معنا‬. ‫ال تحزن‬ .‫ال تأكال من هذه الشجرة‬
Interrogative directives
Arabic uses other sentence types to realize this discourse function. Interrogative
sentences are frequently used to elicit actions such as suggestions or advice, etc. Positive
and negative yes/no questions are used for suggestions or requests.
‫هل لك أن تناولني القلم؟‬ ‫هال كتبت له كلمة ؟‬ ‫أال تعاونني قليال ؟‬
These sentences are not understood as questions asking for positive or negative answers.
Rather, they are requests for the addressee to do something.
Similarly, wh-questions are also used as directives.
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).. ‫ أنجز‬:‫لم ال تنجز ما وعدتني به؟ (أي‬ )‫ ال تهتم بها‬:‫لم كل هذا االهتمام بها؟ (أي‬
9.3.3. Comparing directives in English and Arabic

1. Arabic and English may equally express the various illocutionary acts that are grouped
under the general discourse function of directives. In both languages, we can make
suggestions, give advice, make invitations and offers, make requests give orders, etc.
2. Both languages use a distinct sentence type to realize this class of discourse functions.
They mainly use imperative sentences for this purpose. These are sentences that are
distinguished in structure from other sentence types. In addition to imperative sentences,
Arabic and English use other sentence types – mainly interrogative sentences as
directives.
3. Imperative sentences in the two languages are of more than one sub-type. English has
subject-less imperatives beside imperatives with subjects and with let. Likewise, Arabic
has imperative sentences with and without second person subject. It also has imperative
sentences with the ‫ لـذذذ‬prefix, an imperative particle prefixed to an imperfect verb; and
imperatives with preposition phrases and verbal nouns substituting for the imperative
verb.
4. While English uses the base form of the verb in imperative sentences, Arabic uses a
distinct morpho-syntactic verb form that is different from the perfect and the imperfect
forms, and which is inflected for the jussive mood, and for second person, number and
gender.
5. Usually, but not without exception, imperative sentences in English are subject-less.
The subject, which is a second person singular or plural, is implied or understood but
not present, though there is evidence to its existence. Similarly, Arabic imperatives are
usually without an overt subject.
6. Independent (free) subject pronouns are found in some imperative sentences in both
languages for reasons of emphasis or contrast.
7. In both languages, some imperative sentences contain vocatives. These vocative nouns
are to be distinguished from the free subject pronouns that are found in some imperative
sentences.
204
8. Negation of imperatives is handled differently in the two languages. In English an

imperative sentence is negated by inserting the auxiliary do followed by the particle not,
often in their contracted form don’t before the verb. In Arabic, negative imperatives use
the imperfect form of the verb in the jussive mood and preceded by the negative particle
‫ال‬.
9. Interrogative sentences of the yes/no type and the wh- type are used in both languages
as alternative sentence types expressing directives that indicate different acts of
advising, requesting, ordering, offering, etc.
9.4. Exclamations
Exclamations, as one of the communicative functions of language, express the high extent
to which the speaker is ‘impressed’ by something. Typically, they are realized, in both
Arabic and English, by a distinct type of sentences conventionally called exclamatives. In
the following discussion we will not consider phrasal expressions, basically elliptical, that
are used to express exclamations, such as Wow!, Ah1, Oh!, Damn! in English, or ‫ ويلي‬، ! ‫وا‬
! ‫ رباه! رحماك‬،! ‫ وياله‬، ! in Arabic. Our discussion will deal with sentences that realize this
function.
9.4.1. Exclamations in English

English uses a distinct type of sentences to realize this discourse function. These are
exclamative sentences that share with wh-questions the property of having the exclamatory
wh-element moved to an initial position from its original position inside the sentence. The
exclamatory wh-elements (underlined in the examples below) may realize various syntactic
functions within the sentences. What exclamatives do not share with wh-questions is the
fact that they do not exhibit subject-auxiliary inversion.
What an awesome scene we saw! What a sight it was!
How beautiful she is! How recklessly you drive!
What a fool I found myself to be! How foolish you must think I am!
Only two wh-words are used in exclamative sentences. These are what and how, the
first used as a pre-determiner of a noun phrase, and the second as an intensifier of an
adjective, adverb, or a clause. The exclamatory element could be an object, a complement,
a preposition complement, or even a constituent from an embedded clause.
205
Interrogative sentences, with subject-auxiliary inversion may also be used as

exclamations and not as questions. These are typically negative yes/no questions with a
falling – instead of the usual rising – tone. Although negative in form, these sentences are
strongly positive in meaning
Hasn’t she grown↓! Isn’t it an exquisite picture↓!
9.4.2. Exclamations in Arabic

Exclamations in Arabic are realized by formulaic expressions that may exhibit a rather
unique sentence structure. One such expression begins with an exclamatory particle ‫مذذذا‬
followed by an adjective in the comparative form inflected in the accusative case, which
is, in turn, followed by a definite noun in the accusative.
! ‫ما أجم َل السما َء‬ ! ‫ما أقسى الحياةَ في عصرنا‬
! ‫ما أرو َع ما أنشدت‬ ! ‫طعام‬
ٍ ‫ما أطيبَه من‬
Another formulaic expression that is used for exclamation is the one that begins with an
imperative verb followed by the preposition ‫ بـ‬and its complement noun phrase, e.g.
!‫أكرم به من بطل حر أبي‬
ِ !‫أجمل بالعراق وطنا‬
ِ
Other similar constructions are those that begin with the exclamatory particle ‫يذذذذا‬
followed by a preposition phrase made of the prefix preposition ‫ لـذذذذذذذذذ‬and its complement.
This is occasionally followed by another partitive preposition phrase consisting of ‫ من‬and
a noun phrase coreferential with the preceding pronoun.
!‫فيالك بحرا لم أجد فيك مشربا‬ !‫فيالك من مفزع للحتوف‬ !‫يا لروع ِة الجبال‬
Interrogative sentences of the yes/no or the wh- question types may also be used to
express exclamations, e.g.
!‫قالت أنّى يكون لي غالم‬ !‫أرأيت ما فعلوه بالناس‬ ! ‫كيف تكفرون باهلل وكنتم أمواتا فأحياكم‬
In the above examples, the interrogative sentences are not questions seeking information.
They are expressing intense feelings.
9.4.3. Comparing exclamations in English and Arabic

1. Both Arabic and English use distinct sentence types to realize this discourse function.
Beside these, they both use ‘frozen’ expressions: words and phrases that express very
strong emotions.
206
2. English uses sentences with a distinctive grammatical structure, resembling, but not
identical to interrogative sentences. Though they may begin with a wh- phrase like wh-
interrogative sentences, exclamatives do not involve subject-auxiliary inversion, and the
wh-words used are limited to how and what.
3. On the other hand, Arabic uses structures that cannot be said to have conventional
sentence structure. More appropriately, they have a very restricted kind of such a
structure, hence the term ‘formulaic’. These ‘sentences’ usually begin with specific
particles. Two main patterns may be distinguished. The first begins with the particle ‫ما‬
followed by an adjective in the comparative form followed by a noun phrase. The second
begins with an imperative verb followed by a preposition phrase headed by the
preposition ‫ بـ‬. There are other formulaic expressions that realize exclamations, such as
those that begin with ‫ يا‬followed by the prefix preposition ‫ لـ‬and its complement in the
manner explained above.
4. In English and Arabic, both yes/no and wh-questions, with some change in tone, may
be used to realize exclamations. In this case, these sentences do not express questions.
Rather they are understood as expressing intense feelings.
Exercies
1. Go over the description of questions, directives, and exclamations and try to find
some more points of similarity and difference between the two languages.
2. For each of these discourse functions, do you think the two languages can equally
express the finer divisions involved? Your decision should be based on evidence.
3. In our discussion of the sentence and its structure and types, we did not focus on
negative sentences. Describe how negation is realized in Arabic and English. Are
there different ways of negating a sentence? Find out where the two languages
differ or are similar.
207
Chapter Ten
Syntactic Processes
10.1. Syntactic processes

10.2. Relative clauses
10.2.1. Relative clauses in English
10.2.2. Relative clauses in Arabic
10.2.3. Comparing relative clauses in English and Arabic
10.3. Ellipsis
10.3.1. Ellipsis in English
10.3.2. Ellipsis in Arabic
10.3.3. Comparing ellipsis in English and Arabic
10.4. Passive voice
10.4.1. Passive voice in English
10.4.2. Passive voice in Arabic
10.4.3. Comparing passive voice in English and Arabic
208
10.1. Syntactic processes

This chapter is concerned with some of the processes that affect the structure of the
sentence in English and Arabic.They may take the form of a movement that a certain
constituent undergoes from one position to another, or the addition or deletion of a clause
constituent. Such processes will result in a different sentence structure, a difference that
distinguishes what is conventionally termed as the underlying structure of the sentence
from its surface structure. Some of these processes have been discussed in some detail in
the preceding chapters when we dealt with word order variation in Chapter 8. We also
discussed the syntactic processes involved in the formation of questions in Chapter 9.
Our discussion in this chapter will deal with the various processes that are involved in
the formation of three widely attested constructions in English and Arabic: relative clauses,
passive voice, and ellipsis in sentences. In both languages, we find clauses that modify
nouns that are conventionally called 'relative clauses'; instances of omission of elements in
their sentences; and a formal distinction in grammatical voice realized in active and passive
sentences.
In the following three sections, we will look into the characteristics of these
constructions in each of the two languages and discuss the similarities and differences that
they display.
10.2. Relative clauses

Relative clauses have constituted a topic of much discussion in grammatical treatises. They
are clauses within noun phrases functioning as modifiers of the head nouns in these phrases.
There is a co-referentiality relationship between the head noun and a noun phrase inside
the relative clause. These clauses were discussed in part when we dealt with relative
pronouns in Chapter 4, where we considered the various pronominal elements that occupy
the initial position in these clauses. Relative clauses were also discussed when we dealt
with types of subordinate clauses in complex sentences in Chapter 8. In the following
section, we will concentrate on the structure of these clauses and how they are formed.
10.2.1. Relative clauses in English
Let us start with the following examples of relative clauses in English.
John is [the congress member who--- voted for the occupation.]
209
She found [the item which she wanted--- .]

[The students who/whom you teach---] appreciate your seriousness.
[The treaty which they signed---] was negotiated in Geneva. .
I married [the girl whose purse I found--- in the library.]
In all the above examples, we can see that the underlined clauses are constituents of the
bracketed noun phrases. All of these clauses begin with a wh-element, called a relative
pronoun, that is similar to the wh-element that precedes a wh-question. Besides, in each
relative clause there is some missing noun phrase (represented by a blank in the above
examples) of various grammatical functions: a subject, a direct object, preposition
complement, a noun phrase modifier, adverbial adjunct, etc. If this missing phrase were
present, we will find that it is coreferential with the head noun, conventionally termed as
the ‘antecedent’, which the relative clause modifies. The ‘missing’ noun phrase is called
the ‘relativized’ noun phrase. The choice of the wh-element depends on whether the
relativized noun phrase is in the nominative case, who, or the accusative case, whom, and
whether it has personal vs. nonpersonal reference, personal who, whom vs. nonpersonal
which.
Different suggestions have been made to account for the formation of the relative clause
in English. One prevailing analysis proposes that it is constructed in the following way.
The relative clause presumably starts as a clause with a noun phrase that is co-referential
with the antecedent/head noun that the clause modifies. This ‘relativized’ noun phrase is
replaced by a wh-element that subsequently moves to the beginning of the clause. Thus, it
may be suggested that the process of wh-movement, which we encountered when dealing
with wh-questions, is at work here too, i.e. a wh-element moves to a clause-initial position
leaving a gap that is bound to it inside the clause.
We can illustrate this by analyzing the second sentence in the above examples. The
sentence may start as:
She found the item [she wanted the item.]
The bracketed relative clause contains an underlined noun phrase that is co-referential with
the head noun the item. This phrase is replaced by the appropriate wh-element or ‘relative
pronoun’ which. It will look like [she wanted which]. This element will subsequently move
to the beginning of the clause, giving us [which she wanted ----]
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What does the movement to the beginning of the sentence involve? It typically involves
the wh-element that has replaced the relativized noun phrase. However, there are two main
exceptions. When the relativized noun phrase functions as a determiner of a noun phrase
in the clause, like the phrase the girl’s in the last sentence above, which is replaced by the
wh-element whose, the movement affects the whole noun phrase whose purse. This is also,
what we find in the following example:
That is the president whose integrity everybody questioned ----.
The moved material is the noun phrase ‘whose integrity’.
The same thing occurs when the relativized noun phrase functions as a complement of
a preposition. The material that moves to the beginning of the clause consists of the entire
preposition phrase. The preposition moves along with its wh-complement, e.g.
This is the day for which we were waiting ----.
The relativized noun phrase the day, which is coreferential with the head noun, functions
as a complement of the preposition for, and is replaced by the wh-element which. The
movement to the beginning of the clause involves the whole preposition phrase for which.
However, the preposition head may be optionally left in its original position, e.g.
This is the day which we were waiting for ----.
In these clauses, the preposition is said to be stranded. Preposition stranding is the more
common strategy. The movement of the preposition with its wh-complement to the
beginning of the clause is a mark of formal usage.
Relative clauses may begin with wh-elements, like where and when that we cannot call
‘relative pronouns’ since they do not refer to entities. Rather they refer to places and times.
These wh-elements replace adverbials of time and place, e.g.
This is the place where I met them--- last night.
You need to state the time when you need this to be delivered---.
Restrictive vs. nonrestrictive relatives

As far as their function is concerned, relative clauses in English are traditionally divided
into restrictive and nonrestrictive clauses. Restrictive relatives help restrict the reference
of the head noun. In the following example, the underlined clause helps to make the girl
refer to a ‘particular girl’, e.g. The girl who I married is blonde .
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Nonrestrictive relative clauses do not help in restricting reference . They are additives
in the sense that they add information to an already specified entity. In the following
example, the head noun John has unique reference, so it does not need to be more
restrictively specified. The function of the relative clause is to add relevant information to
the basic statement about John.
John, who was unhappy with his job, suddenly left the town.
The non-restrictive clause is set aside from the main clause by pauses, represented by
commas in writing before and after the relative clause, and by a separate intonational
contour.
This functional difference is reflected in a structural difference between these two types
of clauses. In addition to the differences in their intonational patterns, these two clauses
differ in their choice of the relative pronoun. While nonrestrictive relatives retain the
moved wh-elements at their beginning, restrictive relatives allow their deletion or
replacement by the complementizer that, as will be shown below.
Finally, there is a special type of nonrestrictive relative clauses in sentences like,
The guards let many people get in, which made those inside uncomfortable.
In such sentences, the underlined relative clause is not co-referential with, or related to,
any noun phrase in the main clause. Rather, it refers to the preceding statement as a whole.
What made ‘the staff very angry’ was not 'the guards', or ‘many people’; rather, it was the
fact that ‘many people were let in’.
Replacement with ‘that’

Relative clauses may be introduced by the complementizer that instead of the wh- relative
pronouns who, whom and which. that can replace these pronouns in all their functions.
However, this replacement is limited to restrictive relative clauses, and only when no other
element has moved to the beginning of the clause beside the wh-element. In other words,
that cannot be preceded by any element. The following sentences show this.
The girl that is asking the question is an ex-student of mine.
This is the place that we visited last year.
The book that you referred to is out of print.
* John, that is travelling to London tonight, has not packed his luggage yet.
*The man to that you were talking is a CIA agent.
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The reason why the fourth sentence is ungrammatical is because the relative clause is
non-restrictive. In the last sentence, we have the preposition to preceding that. It has moved
from its original position in the relative clause to the beginning of this clause together with
the relative pronoun who, which was later replaced by that. This is inadmissible.
Deletion of the wh-element

Another process that is at work in relative clauses in English is the deletion of the wh-
element/relative pronoun. Again, this process is found in restrictive relatives alone. When
the fronted wh-element is not accompanied by further lexical material – i.e. is not part of a
larger phrase, it may be deleted, provided that it does not function as the subject of the
relative clause. Thus, we may have
The treaty ø they signed---was negotiated in Geneva.
and, He is a person ø you could count on---
But we cannot have *This is the day for ø we were waiting---.
or *That is the president ø integrity everybody questioned---.
or *The man ø ---found it was generously rewarded.
or * John, ø you were talking to---, is a CIA agent.
In the third sentence, the 'deleted' wh-element is preceded by the preposition for. In the
fourth, it is followed by the head noun integrity that has moved along with it. In the fifth,
it functions as the subject of the clause, and in the sixth example, the deleted relative
pronoun heads a non-restrictive relative clause.
A relative clause origin has been suggested for all the modifiers in the noun phrase, with
the subsequent deletion of, not only the relative pronoun, but other elements too. Thus,
non-finite ing- and ed- participle adjectival clauses in the people raising their hands want
to ask questions, and the women seated in the front rows could see the make-up lines on
the actors’ faces are derived from who are raising their hands, and who are seated in the
front rows. Likewise, preposition phrase modifiers like that in the girl with the umbrella is
my daughter start as who is with the umbrella, and even adjective phrases like I adore spicy
food, as food which is spicy, that are all followed by the deletion of unnecessary elements
in order to arrive at the surface forms. This suggestion may be viewed as an attempt to
provide a unified account for the system of noun phrase modifiers.
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Long-distance relativization
The movement of the wh-element to the beginning of the relative clause is constrained. It
usually does not cross major boundaries, like noun phrases. This is similar to the constraints
on the movement of wh-elements in wh-questions. Thus, a sentence like the following is
ungrammatical, because the movement has been from within a noun phrase
*I saw the girl whom we discovered [NP the fact [that John married --- secretly]].
However, there are cases where the movement of the wh-element seems to be allowed
in a step-by-step manner across clause boundaries. This long-distance ‘successive’
movement may be exemplified in:
This is the car [S which you claimed [S John said [S Mary bought ----]]].
In reviewing the above properties of this movement, we find that we are before the same
movement process, i.e. wh-movement, that we saw at work in wh-question formation in
Chapter 9.
Free relatives
Free relatives are relative clauses with no antecedent. Here, the relative pronoun is said to
merge with the antecedent. So, the clause is not considered a modifier of a head noun.
Rather, it is understood as a complete noun phrase, and has been assigned to the class of
nominal subordinate clauses in Chapter 8. In other words, the relative clause constitutes
the entire NP, e.g.
Whoever/who really wants this must work hard to get it.
Take what(ever) you want.
I took what I found in her purse.
Wallmart is where I do my grocery shopping.
These free 'headless' relative clauses may have specific and generic reference. In the
first two sentences, the relative clauses have generic reference. They refer to persons or
entities in general. In the third and fourth sentences, the clauses have specific reference.
The relative clause in the third sentence talks about a specific item that I found and took.
In the fourth sentence, the relative clause is about the place (definite) that I do my shopping
at.
10.2.2. Relative clauses in Arabic
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Arabic, like English, recognizes a special type of clauses that occur within the noun phrase
and function as modifiers of the head noun. As you may remember, we discussed these
clauses when we dealt with relative pronouns and adjectival clauses in Chapters 4 and 8
above. These clauses occupy a post-head position in the noun phrase. This is what we see
in the following examples.
.‫ابعثه المقام المحمود الذي وعدته‬ .‫قضي األمر الذي فيه تستفتيان‬
.‫ما رأيك بالرجل الذي تحدثت معه أمس؟‬ .‫ذهب الناس الذين يعاش في أكنافهم‬
.‫ بين الحين والحين‬...‫يا نبعا أفارقه‬ .‫ومنهم رجال قضوا نحبهم‬ .‫جنات تجري من تحتها األنهار‬
The above sentences exhibit a number of things about relative clauses in Arabic. First,
they occur after the head noun. In fact, relative clauses occupy a final position in the noun
phrase coming after other modifiers like adjectives and preposition phrases. This is what
we see in ‫ابعثه المقام المحمود الذي وعدته‬. The adjective ‫ المحمود‬occurs before the underlined
relative clause. Second, these relative clauses contain a pronoun that is coreferential with
the head noun. And, third, not all relative clauses begin with a relative marker like ،‫الذي‬
‫ التي‬etc. Some relative clauses do, like those in the first four of the above sentences. Others
do not. This is not a matter of choice like the optional wh-relative pronoun deletion that we
witnessed in English. Rather, the presence and absence of these markers is linked to
whether or not the antecedent/ head noun, is definite or not.
Definite antecedents take relative clauses beginning with relative markers that differ in
number and gender: masculine/feminine, and personal/nonpersonal, in the manner that was
discussed in detail when we dealt with the various types of pronouns in Chapter 4. These
markers are:
singular Dual Plural

masc. ‫الذي‬ ‫اللذين‬/‫اللذان‬ ‫الذين‬
fem. ‫التي‬ ‫اللتين‬/‫اللتان‬ ‫الالئي‬/‫الالتي‬/‫اللواتي‬
Indefinite antecedents, with very rare exceptions, are followed by relative clauses
without such markers, as you could see from the last three of the above sentences. These
relative clauses do not contain relative markers, or they have zero Ø markers
215215
As is the case with English relatives, different proposals have been put forward to
account for the process of forming relative clauses in Arabic. The analysis we are going to
adopt here posits that the relative markers are derivatively demonstratives that are preceded
by the definite article. Thus, the difference between the overt relative markers in clauses
with definite antecedents and the zero markers in clauses with indefinite antecedents may
be due to the difference between the definite article /al-/ and the phonetically unrealized,
indefinite article in Arabic. As such, these markers may very well be treated as definite
articles.
The above analysis suggests that relative clauses in Arabic should be treated as elements
of the determiner system. It also indicates that Arabic relative clauses may not be derived
in an identical manner to the way their English counterparts are. English relativization was
accounted for via the replacement of a noun phrase in the relative clause by a relative
pronoun under identity with the antecedent. The replacement is followed by the movement
of the relative pronoun to the beginning of the clause leaving a gap, in the same way as wh-
elements in wh-questions.
A movement analysis cannot be maintained for Arabic relative clauses because, as we
shall see presently, these clauses contain a pronoun that refers to the antecedent. Instead,
we may suggest that the relative markers originate at the beginning of the clause and their
role is to establish a link between the antecedent and the relative clause, which contains a
pronoun that is bound by the antecedent since it is co-referential with it.
Participial adjectival clauses pose another question about the relative marker.
Remember that in Chapter 8 we talked about the different types of adjectival clauses in
Arabic and said that finite clauses differ in terms of the presence or absence of the relative
marker. Non-finite participial clauses, which have also been termed as ‘complex
adjectives’ in Chapter 5, differ similarly in the presence or absence of the prefix /- ‫الـ‬/ on
the participle, e.g.
‫سهم‬
َ ‫عاقبوا الجنو َد الحاسرين رؤو‬ ‫من النساءِ المغفور ِة ذنوبهن‬
‫مازحت صديقا رائقا مزاجه‬
This supports the suggestion that the prefix is not the definite article that we find with
substantives, but rather a contracted relative marker introducing a relative clause modifying
a definite antecedent, and which is absent when the antecedent is indefinite.
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The resumptive pronoun

The first examples above were said to show that relative clauses in Arabic contain a
pronoun that is coreferential with the antecedent of the relative clause. The underlined
elements in the following examples
‫المقام المحمود الذي وعدته‬ ‫األمر الذي فيه تستفتيان‬ ‫ أفارقه بين الحين والحين‬Ø ‫نبعا‬
are clitics, i.e. bound pronouns that are coreferential with the antecedents ‫ المقام المحمود‬, ‫نبعا‬
‫ األمر‬respectively. This seems to be the norm in the overwhelming majority of Arabic
relative clauses. The resumptive pronoun may be considered an element that has replaced
the relativized noun phrase, which is coreferential with the antecedent.
However, there are exceptions to this norm. First, when the relativized noun phrase
functions as the subject of the relative clause, there is no overt resumptive pronoun. Instead,
it is substituted by agreement markers on the verb showing its agreement with the dropped
subject in person, gender and number in the fashion detailed in Chapter 4 when we dealt
with personal pronouns in Arabic. This is what we see in the following examples.
‫الجنة التي أعدت للمتقين‬ ‫المؤمنون الذين يقيمون الصالة‬ ‫المدربان اللذان يشرفان على الفريق‬
Another instance where the resumptive pronoun may be omitted is when the relativized
noun phrase functions as the object of the verb in the relative clause. In this case, there is
a choice between retaining and omitting the resumptive pronoun. Thus, both sentences in
each of the following pairs is grammatical
‫ في المهرجان‬--- ‫األلعاب التي شاهدوا‬ ‫األلعاب التي شاهدوها في المهرجان‬
‫ كتابي‬--- ‫الصديق الذي أهديت‬ ‫الصديق الذي أهديته كتابي‬
‫تعرفنا على الشاعرين اللذين اختارت – اللجنة‬ ‫تعرفنا على الشاعرين اللذين اختارتهما اللجنة‬
Relativization from any other position requires the presence of the resumptive pronoun
inside the relative clause.
‫ذلك (الرجل) الذي لمتنني فيه‬ ‫الجنة التي وعدتم بها أيها المؤمنون‬
‫ذهب (الناس) الذين يعاش في أكنافهم‬
In the first two of the above phrases, the resumptive pronouns function as preposition
complements. They show up as bound pronouns or 'clitics': ‫ها‬, and ‫ ه‬in this position
suffixed to the prepositions ‫ في‬and ‫ بـ‬. In the third one, the resumptive pronoun is the second
constituent of a construct state construction. Again we find it showing up as the clitic – ‫هم‬
- suffixed to the head noun ‫ أكناف‬. No deletion of these pronouns is permitted.
217
217
Resumptive pronoun deletion is not confined to relative clauses modifying definite head
nouns. We also find it in the same contexts in relative clauses that modify indefinite head
nouns. The resumptive pronoun is replaced by agreement markers on the verb when the
relativized noun phrase functions as the subject of the clause, and is optionally deleted
when the relativized noun phrase functions as the object of the verb.
]‫ومنهم رجال[ قضوا نحبهم‬
]‫ المسلمون‬--- ‫كان أول مسجد [أقام‬ ] ‫كان أول مسجد [ أقامه المسلمون‬
The first sentence shows the agreement between the verb with the dropped subject in the
bracketed relative clause. No overt resumptive pronoun is admitted here. In the second and
third sentences, we may observe the deletion or the preservation of the resumptive pronoun.
Its deletion is optional since it occupies the position of object of verb.
Restrictive vs. nonrestrictive relatives

The functional distinction between restrictive and nonrestrictive relative clauses is
maintained in Arabic too. Relative clauses in Arabic are found to perform two different
functions: either they restrict the reference of the head noun they modify, i.e. they specify
the head noun, or they add more information to an already specified head noun. Let us
consider the following sentences
. ‫مزقت زينب الرسائل التي أرسلها لها‬ .‫الثوب الذي ارتدته هند أمس كان من تصميمي‬
.‫فاطمة التي وصلت ليلة أمس كانت جد متعبة‬ .‫ياأبا القاسم الذي كنت أرجوه لدهري قطعت متن الرجاء‬
The two underlined clauses in the first two examples restrict the reference, or define
the things they are talking about. In the first one, we are talking about ‫' الثوب‬the dress', but
not about ‘any dress’; rather it is about a specific dress that ‘Hind wore for the party’. In
the second example, the clause specifies ‫' الرسائل‬the letters' as those that 'he wrote to her'
and not any other 'letters'. These relative clauses are restrictive. They restrict the reference
of the noun they modify.
In the third and fourth examples above, the relative clauses have another function. They
do not specify the head nouns. In each of the two examples, the head noun is a proper name,
i.e. a name referring to a specific person. It has a unique reference. What these relative
clauses seem to be doing is adding further information to an already known entity. They
do not serve to distinguish this person from other persons with the same name. They are
218
telling us about ‘the expectations I had’ from ‫ أبو القاسم‬, and about ‘the arrival’ of ‫;فاطمة‬
they are not distinguishing these persons from others with the same reference.
This functional difference is not accompanied by formal differences between the two
types of clauses. Formally, they do not differ, except that since nonrestrictive relative
clauses modify head nouns with unique reference, these nouns are generally definite, and
as such, the relative clauses following them would begin with a relative marker. Restrictive
relative clauses modify definite and indefinite antecedents. As was said earlier, in the case
of the latter, the presence of the relative marker is not permitted.
Free relatives
Arabic exhibits frequent instances where the relative clause is not headed by the
antecedent/head noun. In these instances, the relative clause headed by the relative marker
constitutes the noun phrase by itself. Such clauses are conventionally termed as 'free
relatives'. Let us consider the following examples
‫ الذي تعرف البطحاء وطأته‬--- ‫هذا‬ ‫ الذين أنعمت عليهم‬--- ‫صراط‬
‫ ما قالت حذام‬--- ‫فإن القول‬ ‫ من أحببت‬---‫إنك ال تهدي‬
‫ من يعمل مثقال ذرة خيرا يره‬---- ‫ أيهم تختار‬--‫عرفت هند‬
These ‘headless’ relatives are of two types. The first type is that of relative clauses that
begin with the usual relative markers that we have been dealing with, and are exemplified
by the first two relative clauses in the above examples. The absence of the antecedent in
these clauses is similar to the absence of the substantive noun in noun phrases headed by
adjectives. The relative clause assumes the role of the head noun- the antecedent- in the
same way the adjective assumes the role of the head noun in the noun phrase (Cf. Chapter
5). Of course, it is always possible to have an overt antecedent:
‫هذ الرجل الذي تعرف البطحاء وطأته‬
‫صراط المؤمنين الذين أنعمت عليهم‬
The second type of these headless relatives is that of clauses that begin with relative
markers that are identical to the wh-elements ‫من‬, ‫ ما‬, and ‫أي‬, and are exemplified in the rest
of the clauses in the above examples. These markers maintain the same uses they have in
wh-questions: the first and the second differ in terms of personal /nonpersonal gender, and
the third stands as a determiner in a noun phrases.
219
The main formal difference between the two groups of free relative clauses is that
relatives of the first group are headed by markers that can also occur in relatives headed by
the antecedent, in which case the relative clause will change from a nominal to an adjectival
clause. The second group of relatives, i.e. those with the wh-like markers cannot co-occur
with head nouns. These markers can only head free relatives, and their clauses function as
nominal clauses all the time.
Besides, the free relatives of the first group have a definite reference. Those of the
second group may do so, but equally well, they may have an indefinite, specific or non-
specific or generic reference. Some refer to specific persons or things, like the specific
‘speech’ in ]‫[ما قالت حذام‬--- ‫ فإن القول‬. Others talk about people, or things in general as in:
‫ [من يعمل مثقال ذرة خيرا ] يره‬.
Long distance relativization

The fact that relative clauses in Arabic contain a resumptive pronoun that is coreferential
with the antecedent/head noun makes it possible to relativize from any position within the
sentence, whether from the main clause or any subordinate clause within it. In other words,
the co-reference relation between the antecedent and the resumptive pronoun is not
confined to the same clause. This is what we find in the following examples
]].‫]] سمعت بالخبر [الذي قيل [أن محمدا أشاعه‬.‫هذا هو العمل[ الذي أردت [أن أنجزه‬
]]]].‫رأيت الفتاة [ التي اكتشفت [أن محمدا هو[الذي أشاع [خبر هروبها‬
In the first example, the resumptive pronoun is within a nonfinite subordinate clause
that functions as the object of the main verb in the relative clause. In the second example,
the resumptive pronoun is in a finite subordinate clause that functions as a complement of
the main verb. In both examples, these subordinate clauses are immediately dominated by
the main clause of the relative clause. In the third, the resumptive pronoun is within a noun
phrase that is embedded within a relative clause that is embedded within a finite clause that
is, in turn, embedded in the relative clause modifying the head noun.
10.2.3. Comparing relative clauses in English and Arabic
220
1. Arabic and English relative clauses share a number of features. First, both languages
exhibit clauses within the noun phrase functioning as modifiers of the head noun,
occupying final position within the noun phrase.
2. In both languages, these clauses begin with elements that furnish the link between the
relative clause and the head noun/antecedent.
3. The elements that introduce the relative clauses in the two languages differ. In English,
they are wh-elements that are identical to those used in wh-questions, and are called
‘relative pronouns. A relative pronoun replaces a noun phrase inside the clause that is
coreferential with the antecedent, and then moves to the beginning of the clause and
next to the antecedent. It reflects the case and person (personal/nonpersonal) of the
relativized noun phrase. The relativization and subsequent movement of the relative
pronoun is allowed from only a limited number of positions inside the relative clause
(subject, object of verb, object of preposition, determiner of NP).
4. In Arabic, these relative ‘markers’ are determiner-like elements that agree with the
antecedent in number, gender, and case. There is no reason to believe that they originate
inside the relative clause, as replacements of the relativized noun phrases, and that they
subsequently move to the beginning of the clause.
5. In English relative clauses, there is a gap (an empty space) indicating the place form
which the relative pronoun has moved. No such gap is found in Arabic relative clauses.
Instead, there is a 'resumptive' bound pronoun inside the clause that is co-referential
with the antecedent. Thus, the resumptive pronoun represents the relativized noun
phrase. This pronoun is realized as an agreement markers on the verb if it functions as
the subject of the relative clause, and may be deleted if it functions as an object of the
verb.
6. The presence of a resumptive pronoun makes it possible to relativize in Arabic from
any position in the sentence or its 'subordinate' clauses regardless of their structural
depth. This is not possible in English, where relativization is rather local, and is subject
to the same constraints on the movement of wh-elements in questions. Thus, English
allows long-distance relativization from within complement clauses via successive
movement steps.
221
7. While all relative clauses in English normally begin with relative pronouns, not all
Arabic relative clauses begin with a relative marker. In Arabic, only relative clauses
modifying definite antecedents begin with relative markers. Those that modify
indefinite antecedents are not introduced by such elements. The relative markers are
said to be contracted and appear as the prefix /‫الـ‬/ before ‘non-finite’ participial clauses,
when these modify definite antecedents.
8. When the relative pronoun in English replaces a determiner noun phrase, the head noun
of this phrase must move with it to the beginning of the relative clause. Similarly, when
the relative pronoun replaces a preposition complement the preposition may be left in
its place (preposition stranding), or move to the beginning of the clause with its
complement. No such movement is possible in Arabic.
9. Relative pronouns in English may be replaced by the complementizer 'that' when they
precede restrictive relative clauses, and when they are not accompanied by any material
that has moved with them to the beginning of the clause. In English, relative pronouns
can also be deleted in the same contexts where they can be replaced by 'that' except
when the relative pronoun has moved from a subject position. Arabic exhibits no such
substitution or deletion of the relative marker.
10. It has been suggested that in both languages, non-finite adjectival clauses, and other
phrasal modifiers of the head noun in a noun phrase, may all be instances of relative
clauses that have undergone the deletion of some elements.
11. In both English and Arabic, we find free 'headless' relatives, where there is no head
noun/antecedent and the relative clause constitutes the entire noun phrase. In English,
these free relatives begin with some of the relative pronouns used with regular relatives.
In Arabic, these clauses, which are much more frequently used than in English, may
either begin with the same relative markers used in regular relatives, or they make use
of another set of markers. These are the wh-elements ‫ من‬، ‫ ما‬, ‫أي‬, which cannot co-
occur with an antecedent. In both languages, the reference of these headless relatives
may be either generic or specific.
12. Both languages show a functional contrast between restrictive and nonrestrictive
relative clauses. In both Arabic and English, we find that some relative clauses serve a
specifying function, restricting the reference of the head noun, and others that are used
222
to add information to an already well-defined head noun with no need for further
specification of its reference. However, in English this functional contrast is augmented
by a formal difference. Deletion of relative pronouns is not possible in nonrestrictive
relative clauses, nor is replacement with the complementizer 'that'. Besides,
nonrestrictive relatives are separated from the rest of the sentences with pauses and
intonational contour. The distinction in Arabic is mainly functional.
10.3. Ellipsis
Ellipsis is the grammatical omission of some elements that are identical to some material
that has previously occurred in the sentence or discourse. This means that the deleted
material should be recoverable. Furthermore, the re-insertion of the ellipted material should
result in a meaningful and grammatical sentence.
Ellipsis is generally divided into two types depending on the interpretation of the
ellipted material. The first is situational ellipsis where the interpretation depends on the
extra-linguistic context. The second type is textual ellipsis in which the interpretation
depends on the linguistic context. The difference can be seen in considering the following
examples.
A. …. Happy? B. Oh, yes. I am.
Susan baked the cake and Jane … the lasgna.
In the first example, the context in which the question was made helps us interpret it as
(Are you happy?). This is an instance of situational ellipsis. In the second example, which
is an instance of textual ellipsis, the ellipted elements are recovered from the sentence itself.
The ellipted material is identical to some material that has previously occurred in the
sentence, in this case the verb ‘baked’. This is what the interpretation ‘Jane baked the pie’
depends on. The discussion of ellipsis will be limited to textual ellipsis in English and
Arabic since it is this type of ellipsis that is linguistically defined. On the other hand, the
occurrence of sentences or pieces of discourse from which something has been missing
with no preceding antecedent to the ellipted material will allow as many interpretations for
it as there are readers or listeners or discourse situations
In turn, textual ellipsis may be divided into special ellipsis and general ellipsis. The
first is the omission of various elements, which we generally find in the context of
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coordination structures. On the other hand, general ellipsis may not be limited to
coordination structures. It may be found in other structures as well.
10.3.1. Ellipsis in English

English displays many instances of ellipsis, both special and general. Various elements can
be ellipted in different constructions. Ellipsis in English can be seen within sentences as
well as across sentence boundaries uttered by different speakers. We will take up the
different cases in more detail in the following sections.
Special ellipsis
Special ellipsis, also called ‘gapping’, is restricted to coordinated clauses. The general rule
for this type of ellipsis is that when two or more clauses are joined by a conjunction like
and, and these clauses are identical except for their subjects and a phrase at the end of the
verb phrase then the identical material can be ellipted in every clause after the first. This is
medial ellipsis. Let us consider the following sentences that show ellipsis.
John washed the clothes and Susan --- the dishes.
Jeff looks more relaxed and Jack --- more approachable.
The students must bring the slides and the professor --- the projector.
I held the meeting in the office and the Dean --- in the meeting room.
In the first sentence, the verb washed has been ellipted in the second conjoin. The
sentence is interpreted as "John washed the clothes and Susan washed the dishes."
Similarly, in the second sentence it is the verb looks that is ellipted. The sentence is
interpreted as "Jeff looks more relaxed and Jack looks more approachable. In the third
sentence, the ellipted material is the auxiliary and the main verb must bring, and in the
fourth it is the verb and the direct object held the meeting.
We may also find ellipsis of an identical subject, or a subject and a verb in the sentences
below, an instance of initial ellipsis.
Stan questioned the man first and --- called the police later.
Mark gave Sue a rose and --- Joan a diamond ring.
These sentences are normally interpreted as
Stan questioned the man first and Stan called the police later.
Mark gave Sue a rose and Mark gave Joan a diamond ring.
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The entire verb phrase and its complement in the second clause in coordination
constructions may also be ellipted leaving a remnant constituent as in
The judges liked her performance and the audience --- too.
The judges liked her performance and the audience liked her performance too
We may note here that ellipsis is only possible in such cases if the two conjoins are
independent clauses. Conjoined that-clauses do not allow this type of ellipsis. Thus, we
may have
Bill knows that I work in the office and Sam --- in the factory.
But not *Bill knows that I work in the office and that Sam --- in the factory.
Nor can we have this ellipsis if the two conjoins are of a different rank. That is, if one of
them is an independent ‘main’ clause, and the other a subordinate clause within the second
conjoin, then ellipsis of identical elements is not allowed.
*John wants a new bicycle and I know that Jill ---a guitar.
Furthermore, no ellipsis is possible when the two clauses are not conjoined by a
coordinating conjunction, but rather, one of them is embedded in the other. Ellipsis of
identical elements in matrix and subordinating clauses is not possible.
* [Jane helped Susan [because Mary --- Elizabeth]]
General ellipsis
English shows cases of freer ellipsis, which is called general ellipsis. This type of ellipsis
can apply in conjoined clauses and in other contexts as well. In English, this kind of ellipsis
is realized in the ellipsis of predicate elements, elements of the noun phrase, and even entire
clauses as will be seen presently. Let us consider the following sentences.
Jean is happy when you are ---.
I will attend the meeting if Mr. Robins will ---.
We thought that John would be working on his paper but it turned out he hasn't been---.
His parents thought Jeff would soon be the most popular actor in Hollywood, but now it
is clear that he will never be---.
Janet doesn’t play the violin but John does ---.
In all these sentences, elements that are identical to some preceding elements have been
ellipted. The ellipted material constitutes all the elements of the predicate that follow the
auxiliary, that is, the rest of the predicate excluding the auxiliary. The ellipsis here seems
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to be restricted to those contexts in which we have an auxiliary: primary be and have,

modals, or the helping verb do preceding the ellipted material.
This type of ellipsis is also possible if the second occurrence of the phrase comes after
the negative particle not, or the infinitival to.
We are happy but the teacher is not ---.
Bill can try the new car if he wants to---.
Let us note that in all these cases, ellipsis is final, i.e. the ellipted material constitutes the
final part of the sentence.
Other instances of general ellipsis occur within noun phrases. Both heads and modifiers
of noun phrases can be ellipted.
Joan's car, like Rose's --- is a Honda.
Kathy is the most intelligent girl in the group. She is also the prettiest ---.
The first campaign against smoking in schools was more successful than the last ---.
The new digital glass watches that they are advertising are better than any other ---
that you can get.
I have three first edition copies and she has two ---.
In the first of the above sentences, the second occurrence of the head noun car is ellipted.
In the second and third sentences, both the head nouns and the post-modifying preposition
phrases are ellipted, while in the fourth and fifth sentences the pre-modifiers and the head
nouns are ellipted.
A larger scale ellipsis is seen in the deletion of all the material that follows a question
phrase if the earlier discourse contains this material. This type of ellipsis is found in both
direct and indirect questions.
Speaker A: Someone has reported the accident.
Speaker B: I know, but who--- ?
We all know that Trump asked Putin for help, but we don't know why---.
10.3.2. Ellipsis in Arabic

Similar to English, Arabic exhibits frequent use of ellipsis. Many of the instances of this
phenomenon are cases of situational ellipsis that depend on the extra-linguistic context for
the recoverability of the ellipted material. As such, there is no certainty of the recovered
elements since we do not depend here on any previously mentioned material in the
discourse.
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On other hand, we find in Arabic instances of textual ellipsis, the kind of ellipsis that is
linguistically governed. The ellipted material is recovered from the linguistic context, and
the precise recoverability of this material is a necessary condition. Any close look at Arabic
sentences will show us both types of textual ellipsis: the special type that is confined to
coordination structures and the more general type of ellipsis found elsewhere.
Special ellipsis
Instances of special ellipsis in Arabic can be seen in the following examples.
.‫ زيد قبالة الموقد‬---‫جلس محمد جنب علي و‬ .‫ زيد شايا‬---‫شرب محمد قهوة و‬
.‫ عليا قلما‬--- ‫أهدى المعلم محمدا كتابا و‬ . ‫ شعاع الشمس باهتا‬---‫بدت السماء ملبدة بالغيوم و‬
.‫ يقرضون الشعر‬--- ‫شرب المدعوون القهوة ثم جعلوا‬
In each of the first three examples the subjects and the direct objects of the two
coordinated sentences differ, whereas the verbs ‫ شذذذرب‬،‫ جلس‬،‫بدت‬, are identical. The rest of
the predicate, which follows the ellipted verb, may be a noun phrase, a preposition phrase
or an adjective phrase. The second occurrence of the verb is ellipted. In the fourth example,
both the subject and the verb of the second conjoin ‫ أهدى المعلم‬are ellipted under identity
with the subject and the verb in the first conjoin. In the last example, only the subject is
ellipted. We may note here that this sentence cannot be an instance of coordinated
predicates (the verb and its complements); rather, it is taken as a case of coordination of
two clauses, e.g. ‫شرب المدعوون القهوة ثم جعل المدعوون يقرضون الشعر‬
Ellipsis is not possible within coordinated subordinate clauses both beginning with the
complementizer ‫ أن‬،‫' إن‬that'
.‫ عشرة فصول‬--- ‫*عرفت أنّ محمدا قرأ عشرين فصال وأنّ عليا‬
But it is possible when the second conjoin does not begin with a complementizer
.‫ عشرة فصول‬--- ‫عرفت أنّ محمدا قرأ عشرين فصال وعليا‬
Nor can we have ellipsis if the repeated material occurs in clauses of different rank: the
first time in the matrix clause and the second in the subordinate clause.
.‫ أقالما‬--- ‫*يريد محمد كتابا وأعرف أنّ عليا‬
As this type of ellipsis is confined to coordination structures, complex sentences consisting
of main and subordinate clauses that contain repeated material do not allow this type of
ellipsis. Thus, we do not have
.‫ معطفا‬--- ‫*اشترت فاطمة ثوبا جديدا ألن هندا‬
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We may mention here other examples of ellipsis in coordination structures where the
second clause is ellipted except for one remnant constituent.
‫ عدوي؟‬--- ‫أأنت صديقي أم‬ ‫ نصرانيا‬--- ‫ما كان إبراهيم يهوديا وال‬
.‫ كذلك‬--- ‫زيد يهوى الغناء وهند‬ ‫ في مزرعتك؟‬--- ‫هل سقطت القتبلة في بيتك أم‬
.‫ بلسانه‬--- ‫ما شاركهم في معركتهم بيده وال‬
General ellipsis
Arabic shows instances of general ellipsis, which is not limited to coordination structures.
There are abundant examples of ellipsis within the noun phrase in Arabic, where different
elements of this phrase are ellipted under identity with previously mentioned elements. Let
us consider the following examples.
.---‫لدي أربع أخوات ولديها ثالث‬
.‫ التي جرت في باريس‬--- ‫لم نشاهد مباراة كرة القدم النهائية التي جرت في لندن ولكننا شاهدنا‬
.‫ أيضا‬--- ‫لم تكن فاطمة أجمل فتاة في ذلك الصف فحسب بل كانت األذكى‬
.‫ الثانية‬--- ‫إن لم تفدك الجرعة األولى فعليك بـ‬
In the first sentence, we notice the ellipsis of the head noun ‫ أخوات‬leaving the quantifier,
while in the second sentence all elements of the noun phrase but the post-modifying relative
clause are ellipted. In the third example, the head noun and the post-modifying preposition
phrase are ellipted. Only the comparative adjective remains.
However, unlike English‫ و‬Arabic does not allow ellipsis within a possessive ‘construct
state’ construction. Such sentences are ungrammatical.
.‫محم ٍد كبير‬... ‫* بيت فاطمة مثل‬
There are two other instances of general ellipsis that are not allowed in Arabic. One is
the ellipsis of elements of the predicate following the auxiliary, which we witnessed in
English. A proform has to replace the ellipted material. Therefore, while the first of the
following sentences is ungrammatical, the second is.
....‫*زيد لم يستطع اجتياز ذلك االختبارالصعب ولكن محمدا تمكن‬
.‫زيد لم يستطع اجتياز ذلك االختبارالصعب ولكن محمدا تمكن من ذلك‬
The second instance of general ellipsis that English allows but Arabic does not is that
of the material following the infinitival complementizer ‫أن‬, or the negative ‫ليس‬
......‫*لكم أن تستعيروا الكتاب إن أردتم أن‬
.......‫*حسين فرح بنجاحه لكن عليا ليس‬
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In both of these cases, the ellipsis is final, in the sense that the ellipted material occupies a
final position in the sentence.
Arabic also exhibits instances of the ellipsis of entire clauses. This is what we see in the
deletion of all the material that follows the wh-phrase if the earlier discourse contains this
material. This can be found in direct and indirect questions
Speaker A: ‫سافر محمد إلى لندن‬
Speaker B: ‫ ؟‬------- ‫متى‬
------- ‫أنا أعرف أن محمدا سافر إلى لندن ولكني ال أعرف متى‬
10.3.3. Comparing ellipsis in English and Arabic

1. Though English and Arabic share the general properties and types of ellipsis, the two
languages differ in the details of the conditions that govern this process and the
structures it applies to.
2. The discussion has been limited to contextual ellipsis in which ellipsis is determined
by the linguistic context and hence the condition of precise recoverability of the ellipted
material is at work.
3. Both languages show instances of special ellipsis, which holds only within coordinate
clauses, and general ellipsis, which may be found not only within coordinated clauses,
but also within noun phrases and other structural contexts.
4. In cases of special ellipsis, we find that both English and Arabic allow the ellipsis of
various elements of the predicate: the auxiliary, the verb, the verb and other identical
elements, in the second conjoin, leaving the subject and other elements that are different
in the two clauses. There are cases where the entire second clause is ellipted except for
one remnant constituent.
5. In both languages, we may find cases of ellipted subjects in the second conjoin of
coordinated clauses, which we cannot explain as cases of coordinated verb phrases, but
rather as instances of coordinated clauses.
6. The two languages seem to abide by the conditions on special ellipses that require the
ellipsis to take place in clauses of the same rank and that the ellipsis cannot occur
between complement clauses beginning with the complementizer that ‫ أن‬،‫ إن‬.
7. Both languages exhibit instances of general ellipsis that occur within noun phrases.
other
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8. However, we find some differences between the two languages in some cases of
general ellipsis. The two languages differ in allowing the ellipsis of the head noun of a
possessive construction. English allows such ellipsis, whereas Arabic doesn't allow such
ellipsis in its corresponding construct state construction.
9. Besides, while English allows the ellipsis of repeated material in the predicate, after
verbs be, have, modals, and the helping do, Arabic does not allow this ellipsis in any
similar or corresponding contexts.
10. Similarly, English allows final ellipsis of elements of the predicate after negated
special verbs and after the infinitival 'to'. However, Arabic does not allow such ellipsis
after the corresponding infinitival ‫أن‬, or after negated special verbs.
10.4. Passive voice

The passive voice vs. active voice contrast refers to differences in the structure of the
sentence related to how the action is viewed by the speaker. The contrast is found in
sentences with transitive verbs and concerns which semantic roles of the sentence
arguments are given prominence. While in active voice sentences the agent (the doer of the
action) occupies the subject position, it is the patient (the receiver of the action) that
occupies that position in passive voice sentences. The agent is put aside, or is never
mentioned in these sentences, e.g.
John broke the window. > The window was broken (by John).
This reshaping of the picture, i.e. bringing the patient into focus, and relegating the
agent to a secondary status, is usually accompanied by formal changes in the structure of
the sentences. Languages differ in the methods and devices they use to show these changes
in the scene. However, changes in the verb phrase seem to be very common. Both Arabic
and English exhibit this contrast between active and passive voice, though they do this with
the expected differences between them.
Verbs show a wide variety as far as allowing passivization. Generally, it is transitive
verbs that have this property, but there are some that do not. Similarly, we find intransitive
verbs in passive voice constructions. On the other hand, there are verbs that may be used
transitively and intransitively. In their use as intransitive verbs, some of these exhibit a
change that is similar to passivization. They have ‘patient’ subjects. These are ‘middle
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voice’ verbs. Middle voice constructions are semantically related to passive constructions,
though they differ in their syntax. They are found in both Arabic and English. e.g. The
window opened and ‫انقطع حبل الود بيننا‬
10.3.1. Passive voice in English

Passive constructions in English differ from their active counterparts in a number of things.
Let us consider the following sentences:
The police arrested Mary. > Mary was arrested by the police.
The company sent a job offer to Jane. > A job offer was sent to Jane.
The first thing we note about the verbs in the above sentences is that they are transitive.
Second, the verb undergoes a change in its form in the passive sentence. It is now in its en-
(past participle) form and is preceded by the auxiliary verb be. The change from the active
form to the passive form of the verb brings in other changes.
While the active form requires an agent (doer of the action) as its subject, and a patient
(receiver of the action) as its object, its passive counterpart doesn't seem to require an agent;
it only selects a patient. Nor is it followed by an object. Rather, the patient, which functions
as the object in the active sentence appears to have moved to the subject position of the
passive sentence, since all sentences require subjects. What happens to the agent? It either
disappears altogether, as in the second sentence above, or is placed at the end of the passive
sentence preceded by the preposition by, as in the first sentence.
The above account describes the nature of the process of passivization, and the relation
between active sentences and their passive counterparts. The changes occur at two levels:
the verb phrase level and the clause level. The changes that take place in the form of the
verb seem to trigger the other changes that we find at the clause level.
Another passive construction can be found in English. this is the construction which
makes use of the verb get instead of be. The following two sentences are examples.
They got injured in the accident.
At last, Mary got invited to the party.
We need to notice here that the main verb is also in its –en, past participle, form. The get-
passives differ from the be-passives in that the former imply that the subject – they and
Mary in the above sentences – has some responsibility in the action.
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Another distinction that may be made here is the one between adjectival passives and
dynamic passives. The following sentences do not indicate actions that happened to certain
entities. Rather they indicate the state of these entities
The glass is broken. Her face was painted.
Although the above examples look identical to the be-passives, the sentences do not imply
actions that the subjects underwent. The past participle form of the verb is adjectival in
function. This is evident from the fact that it can be modified by adverbial intensifiers like
very, which are associated with adjectives as specifiers, and not with verbs. This similarity
could easily lead to ambiguity. A sentence like ‘The glass was broken' may be interpreted
as telling us what happened to the glass, i.e. It was broken by the burglar, ‘an action’, or it
could be a statement about how the glass was, ‘a state’.
A further point of interest in our discussion of passivization in English is the general
observation that not all transitive verbs allow passivization. While the great majority of
transitive verbs are found in both constructions, there are some that are only found in the
passive form such as the verb rumor, as in
It is rumored that the minister will submit her resignation.
* The media rumored that the minister will submit her resignation
At the same time, there are some stative transitive verbs that do not passivize. These are
verbs like: fit, suit, cost, resemble, etc.
The suit fits me nicely. * I am fitted nicely by the suit
That ring cost two thousand dollars. *Two thousand dollars were cost by the ring.
On the other hand, there are ‘prepositional verbs’, verbs that take preposition phrase
complements, that allow passivization. This is what we see in the following sentences
where the subjects seem to have moved from the position of the preposition complement
leaving the preposition in its regular position after the verb.
The baby was cared for----.
The problem was looked into ----.
Subjects in passive voice constructions may be clauses of various types. These may
occur in their usual pre-verb positions, or are extraposed to the end of the sentence. In this
case, an expletive empty pronoun it is used to fill the original position of the extraposed
clausal subject.
All congressmen strongly believed that the Russians hacked the e-mails.
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That the Russians hacked the e-mails was strongly believed by all congressmen.
It was strongly believed by all congressmen that the Russians hacked the e-mails.
The last point in the discussion in this section concerns middle voice constructions. These
are formally active voice sentences. That is, the verb retains its active voice form, and there
is no be-en auxiliary, e.g.
The window broke. The water boiled.
However, the verbs in such sentences are intransitive; there are no object noun phrases,
and the subjects the window and the water have the semantic role of the patient of the
action.
Note here, that the verbs of these sentences may also be used transitively with the
subjects of the above sentences functioning as objects:
The burglar broke the window. I boiled the water.
Besides the formal differences between passive voice and middle voice constructions, there
is a semantic difference that concerns the role of the agent of the action. In the former
construction, the agent has, in a way, a role in the proposition, or a part in the picture,
though a secondary one that may not deserve mentioning. No such role is allocated for the
agent in the latter.
Uses of the passive voice

The passive is used to bring the noun phrase that refers to the patient of the action into
focus. It brings the entity that undergoes the action to the foreground by placing it in the
subject position at the beginning of the sentence. The noun phrase that refers to the agent
is moved to the background; it is relegated to the end of the sentence or left out altogether.
This is what the following sentence indicates.
The house was broken into and the fugitives were arrested.
Nothing about the ‘people who broke into the house, or arrested the fugitives’ is
mentioned since it is not thought to be important by the speaker. Ignorance of the agent
identity or deliberate avoidance of this identity are other possible reasons to use a passive
sentence like the above. This fact is responsible for the frequent use of the passive in
scientific discourse. In this context, the interest is in what happens in an experiment, rather
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than in who conducts it. Not mentioning the agent will also help make the statement sound
more objective.
The passive may also be used to give prominence to the agent by moving it to a final
position in the sentence. This is the case in the following response in which the new
information is left to the end of the sentence.
Who did this? It was all done by Mary.
10.4.2. Passive voice in Arabic

Passive voice in Arabic is realized in a change at the level of the main verb and at the clause
level. The passive verb differs from its active counterpart in its vowel pattern. The
following are the active and passive patterns for the basic tri-lateral verbs in the perfect and
imperfect forms. The changes in the augmented (derived) verbal forms are generally
similar.
active passive
CaCaC ‫فَتَح‬ ‫فتِح‬
Perfect CaCiC ‫َع ِلم‬ CuCiC ‫ع ِلم‬
CaCuC ‫َحرم‬ ‫ح ِرم‬
aCCaC ‫يلعَب‬ ‫يلعَب‬
imperfect aCCiC ‫يحسِب‬ uCCaC ‫سب‬
َ ‫يح‬
aCCuC ‫يسكن‬ ‫يسكَن‬
At the clause level, the change from an active voice construction to a passive voice one
is similar to that in English. The passive verb selects a patient only; it does not require an
agent. The patient occupies the position of the subject, and is inflected for the nominative
case accordingly. We do not usually find an agent in passive sentences in Arabic. The
following sentences show this.
.َ ‫شوهد القاتل هاربا‬ .‫أقيم االحتفال عصر الجمعة‬
These sentences show the patient as the subject of the sentence. In the active counterparts
of these sentences, the patient occupies the position of the direct object, and is inflected for
the accusative case.
.‫شاهد الناس القات َل هاربا‬ . ‫أقامت الجمعية االحتفا َل عصر الجمعة‬
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Arabic allows clausal subjects in passive voice constructions. These clauses, which we
find after the verb, are the direct objects of the active voice counterparts of these sentences,
and have been moved to subject position.
.‫ذ ِكرأنّ الرئيس قد قبل االستقالة في نشرة األخبار اليوم‬
.‫أعلِن أن سيبدأ االحتفال يوم غ ٍد في الجريدة الرسمية‬
Clausal subjects, like all subjects, could be postposed to the end of the sentence, with no
need for an overt expletive like the pronoun ‘it’ in English. Arabic allows such variation in
the word order of its sentences.
.‫ذكِر في نشرة األخبار اليوم أنّ الرئيس قد قبل االستقالة‬
.‫أعلِن في الجريدة الرسمية أن سيبدأ االحتفال يوم غ ٍد‬
Passivization in Arabic is not confined to transitive verbs taking direct objects. It
extends to prepositional verbs, i.e. verbs that take preposition phrase complements, like
‫ جاء بـ‬and ‫ أذن لـ‬.
.‫جيء باللصوص إلى القاضي‬ > .‫جاء الحراس باللصوص إلى القاضي‬
.‫لم يؤذَن لمحمد بالسفر‬ > .‫أذن الوزير لمحمد بالسفر‬
The preposition phrase fills in the position of the subject of the passive sentence. This is
the case in the above sentences, where ‫ باللصذذذذذذوص‬and ‫ لمحمد‬stand as the subjects of the
passive verbs ‫ جيء‬and ‫يؤذَن‬. We may also find sentences that look related to these, as in
‫ محمد أذِن له بالسذذذذذذفر‬, in which the preposition complement is in a clause-initial position.
Sentences like this are the natural result of the movement of some constituent, the noun
phrase ‫ محمد‬to the beginning of the sentence as a sentence topic. In moving to its new
position, it leaves a pronoun in its original position after the preposition
One type of passive constructions that needs to be mentioned is that of ‘impersonal’
passive constructions. In such constructions, an adverbial preposition phrase may occupy
the position of the subject.
.‫سير في الفجر‬ .‫ر ِقص في الشوارع‬
Though it is usually the case that a passive sentence, and a passive verb will have active
counterparts, we do find verbs that always occur in the passive voice form. These are verbs
like ‫ دهِش‬،‫ أغمي‬، ‫ ب ِهت‬،‫جن‬
. ‫ب ِهت الذين كفروا‬ . ‫دهِشنا لرؤيتهم‬
‫هل جنِنت؟‬ .‫أغمِ ي عليها حين سمعت بذلك‬
In some of these cases, the use of the passive form has become idiomatic:
.‫أصبحت المنظمة قوة سياسية ال يستهان بها‬
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.‫كان خطيبا ال يشَق له غبار‬ .‫ذلك شيء ال يصدَق‬

On the other hand, there appear to be some transitive verbs that ‘resist’ passivization.
These are verbs like ‫ يشابه‬، ‫ يالئم‬in .‫يالئم ذلك القميص زيدا‬ .‫ شابه محمد أخاه‬to which no
corresponding passive sentence is possible. ‫*لوئم زي ٌد‬ .‫*شوبه أخوه‬
Arabic exhibits middle voice constructions. These constructions, which are active in
voice, contain derived verbs of special forms, mainly: ?inCvCvC ‫ انصذذرف‬،‫ اندحر‬، ‫انكسذذر‬, but
also ?iCtvCvC ‫ ارتفع‬،‫ انتصذذذذذذر‬, taCvCCvC, ‫ تق ّطع‬،‫تكسذذذذذذر‬
ّ and others, that may function as
middle voice verbs.
.‫انصرف الناس‬ .‫اندحر الغزاة‬ .‫انكسرت الزجاجة‬
.‫تقطعت بهم السبل‬ .‫ ارتفع جدار الصمت‬.‫انتصر الثوار على الطغاة‬
To all of these verbs there are transitive counterparts, in which the subjects of these
sentences function as objects.
.‫الناس‬
َ ‫صرفت الشرطة‬ .َ‫ دحر الجيش الغزاة‬.َ‫كسرت فاطمة الزجاجة‬
.‫قطعت مصاعب العيش السب َل بهم‬ .‫جدار الصمت‬
َ ‫رفع الخوف‬ .‫نصر هللا الثوار‬
The last note that we may mention here concerns the agents in passive sentences.
Although passive voice sentences in Arabic lack agents in general, the agent is sometimes
mentioned in those sentences in the form of preposition phrases.
.‫أصيبت بعلة في نفسها‬ .‫إنما يوحى إليه من هللا‬
.‫وقع الطلب من قبلهم‬ .‫أضيئت الشوارع بالكهرباء‬
As the first sentence shows, the preposition complement has the semantic role of the
agent. However, it may also have the role of the instrument used to achieve the action, as
witnessed in the third example. The fourth example contains a preposition phrase ‫ من قبلهم‬,
which is frequently used in modern styles, certainly in governmental register, though
frowned upon by Arabic purists.
Uses of passive voice

Why is the passive used? It is used to place focus onto the action rather than the agent of
the action. The latter is relegated to the background while the entity that undergoes the
action is brought into the foreground. In the scene that passive voice sentences sketch, the
agent plays a role but this role is left without mention of who plays it.
.‫د ِحرت جيوش العدو‬ .‫وغيض الماء‬ .‫أحبِطت المؤامرة‬ .‫أص ِلح الخلل‬
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There are many reasons for the language user to do this. Interest in the action – giving
it priority over who did it - is a good reason to use the passive voice. The user may want to
keep the agent anonymous for any reason, or is ignorant of it. With the patient in subject
position and the agent unexpressed in almost all cases, the passive voice is the suitable
device
The passive is sometimes used to give prominence to the agent as a new piece of
information, or in cases of contrastive focus. A sentence like ‫ شذذذذذذوهد من قبلي‬denies any
doubts about ‘seeing him’ because it was ‘done’ by ‘me’. It could also be used in response
to a claim that the ‘seeing’ was by someone else.
As was mentioned above, Arabic has middle voice constructions that serve similar
functions to those served by the passive voice. Middle voice sentences sketch a scene for
the action in which there is no role for an agent, e.g. .‫ اندحرت جيوش العدو‬. This is where this
sentence differs from its corresponding passive sentence above. Whereas the passive voice
sentence allows for an agent role, the middle voice sentence suppresses that role.
There is also a special active voice construction with the verb ‫ تم‬or ‫' جرى‬take place',
followed by the verbal noun, which is used in modern styles and in which the focus again
falls on the achievement of the action, e.g. , ‫ تم دحر جيوش العدو‬, ‫ جرى تدريب الجنود‬though a
role is kept for the unmentioned agent.
It is commonly observed that that passive constructions are less frequently used in
Arabic than in English. This is probably due to the availability of the other constructions
that achieve similar effects to those that passive voice constructions are used to achieve.
10.4.3. Comparing passive voice in English and Arabic

1. Both languages show clear contrast in voice.
2. The formal differences related to this contrast are at the verb level and the clause level
in both Arabic and English. In English, the form of the main verb changes in passive
constructions to the past participle, and an auxiliary be, or sometimes get, is added
before it. In Arabic, the change in the verb form is that of a change in the internal vowel
patterns, which are different from the vowel patterns of the active verb forms.
3. At the clause level, there are similarities between the two languages in the changes that
take place between active voice and passive voice sentences. The patient (receiver of
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the action) of the active sentence occupies the subject position in the passive sentence.
The agent, which occupies the subject position in the active sentence, is either omitted
in the passive sentence, or is relegated to a final position in the sentence as a complement
of a preposition. While in English you may equally find a passive sentence with or
without an agent, most passive sentences in Arabic are agentless. However, in modern
styles in Arabic, the agent is sometimes mentioned, again as a complement of a
preposition phrase at the end of the sentence.
4. Passive voice sentences in both languages allow clausal subjects. In English, these are
frequently extraposed to a final position in the sentence, and replaced by the expletive
‘empty’ pronoun it. In Arabic, they could freely occupy the subject position after the
verb or a final position in the sentence without a replacement by an expletive pronoun.
5. In English, the same construction [be + past participle] may have adjectival, rather
than passive, properties. Adjectival passives are usually agentless and refer to states and
not actions. Besides, like adjectives, the en-form of the verb, the past participle, may be
modified by intensifiers like very. This formal similarity between the two constructions
raises ambiguity. In Arabic, passive participles have a different form from that of the
passive voice verb.
6. Though passivization involves primarily transitive verbs that select direct objects, the
two languages allow passivization in prepositional verbs. These verbs select the
following preposition. In other words, the preposition phrase that follows them is a
complement. In these cases, the noun phrase that functions as the complement of the
preposition occupies the subject position in English passive voice constructions. In
Arabic, the entire preposition phrase occupies this position. Only in cases of
topicalization, does the preposition complement move alone to the front of the sentence
leaving a pronoun in its original place.
7. In Arabic, adverbial preposition phrases are sometimes allowed to move into subject
position in passive constructions involving intransitive verbs. This is the so-called
‘impersonal passive’. English, with very rare exceptions, does not allow this.
8. In both languages, we find verbs that are only found in passive voice constructions.
Some of these have even developed into some idiomatic expressions.
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9. Both languages contain structures that function similarly to passive voice

constructions. Arabic and English have middle voice constructions. These differ from
the passive voice constructions in that the verbs in English retain their active voice form,
but lose their transitivity, and take the patients as their subjects. In Arabic there are
special derived verb forms that are used in middle voice constructions. Furthermore,
Arabic has an additional active voice construction with the verb ‫ تم‬or ‫ جرى‬followed by
a verbal noun that denotes ‘the doing’ of an action.
10. The two languages differ in the frequency that the passive voice constructions are
used in them. It is generally remarked that passive voice constructions are used less
frequently in Arabic than in English. This may be due to the availability of middle voice
and other constructions, which function in a similar way to the passive voice verbs, i.e.
foregrounding of the patient by making it their subject.
11. The structure of the passive voice constructions defines their use by the language
speakers. In both languages, theses constructions are used to put the patient or theme of
the action into focus and to emphasize the action instead of who did it. This tends to
make the statements sound more objective, which is why passive voice constructions
are more frequently used, or preferred in scientific discourse.
12. Furthermore, when the agent is mentioned in passive constructions it is possible to
give prominence to the agent in its final position in cases of contrastive focus, as is the
case in English passive voice constructions. In modern rather formulaic style in Arabic,
we also find mention of the agent preceded by a preposition at the end of the sentence.
Again, this puts focus on the agent as an additional focusing point.
Exercises
1. We know that the relative clause in Arabic contains a resumptive pronoun, while
its counterpart in English does not. Discuss the differences between the two clauses
that are the result of the existence/absence of this pronoun.
2. Discuss in detail the constraints on ellipsis in English and Arabic. Can you find
constraints that apply in both languages?
3. Look again at middle passive constructions in English and Arabic. Collect more
examples of these from English and Arabic, and conduct a comparison to find out
where they differ. (Hint: verb forms, presence of the agent).
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Chapter Eleven
Morphology
11.1. Morphology: an introduction

11.2. Word derivation
11.2.1. Word derivation in English
11.2.1.1. Affixation
11.2.1.2. Conversion
11.2.1.3. Compounding
11.2.2. Word derivation in Arabic
11.2.2.3. Reduplication
11.2.3. Comparing word derivation in English and Arabic
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11.1. Morphology: an introduction

In this chapter, we deal with morphology. Morphology, as you know, is that part of
language study that deals with the structure of the words in language: what they are made
of, how their components are put together, how new words are coined or derived from old
words, and the possible changes that they undergo because of their relation to other words
in the sentence.
What is a word? One common definition is that it is the smallest independent
grammatical unit. The notion of the word is universal in human languages. All languages
have what is intuitively called a ‘word’. Everyone seems to be able to divide speech strings
in their native language into words. Words have been found to consist of smaller elements.
As such, a word may be analyzed into one or more minimally meaningful and grammatical
elements that contrast with one another in their functions. These are called morphemes,
e.g. un-time-ly, tree-s, great-er, re-cover-ed.
Many morphemes exhibit variation. Their variants are allomorphs. These are
conditioned phonologically, morphologically, or lexically. The actual ‘phonetic’ shape of
the morpheme is the result of the interaction of any of these factors. However, we will not
deal with the morphophonemic processes in our discussion in this chapter.
Some of these morphemes, e.g. time, great, cover, in the above examples, can stand
alone. These are free morphemes. Others, which can only appear in combination with other
morphemes, like: un-, re-, -ly, -ed, are bound morphemes, The central morpheme which
represents the core of the word, i.e. that which remains after all other morphemes are taken
away, like tree, cover, time, is the root. It usually represents the basic lexical meaning of
the word. The root needs to be distinguished from the base and the stem. A base simply
refers to the element, whether made of one or more morphemes, to which a certain
morpheme is added. In the above example, time is the root, but it is also the base for –ly,
to form timely. However, the base for un-, is timely, which consists of two morphemes. The
stem is the element to which inflectional affixes are added. In the above examples, recover
is both the stem, and base for -ed, to form recovered.
Most bound morphemes are affixes, which are added to the base in different ways. Some
come before the base and are thus called prefixes, e.g. un- in untimely, others are affixed
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after the stem and are thus called suffixes, e.g. -ly in the same word. Yet a third type of
affixes is added inside the base, e.g. the ‫ت‬, /-t-/ in ‫اجتمع‬. These are infixes.
Functionally, affixes are divided into two kinds: derivational and inflectional.
Derivational affixes create new words from others, e.g. organ>organic,
derivation>derivational, king>kingdom, ‫ج>استخرج‬-‫ر‬-‫ خ‬، ‫ب> مكتب‬-‫ت‬-‫ك‬. Inflectional affixes
have a grammatical function; they signal the grammatical relations and functions of the
words they are affixed to, e.g. case, number, definiteness, gender, in nouns, tense, voice,
aspect, in verbs. girl’s, washed, rounds, ‫ معلمون‬،‫ طالبان‬، ‫شاعرة‬
In this chapter, we will look closely into some areas of the morphology of Arabic and
English which involve how words in the two languages are built and what processes are
used in their formation. This is the domain of derivational morphology. As for the
morphological changes that these words undergo to indicate various grammatical
properties, functions and relations, i.e. the domain of inflectional morphology, these have
been dealt with in the previous chapters about the syntax of lexical and phrasal categories.
Our discussion will proceed in a similar fashion to that in the previous chapters. Frist
we will attempt a description of word derivation in English. This is followed by a
description of how words are derived in Arabic. Then we conduct a comparison between
the two systems to find out where they are similar and where they differ.
As is the case with other linguistic systems, no two languages are identical in their
morphological systems. This difference is only too obvious in the case of such genetically
unrelated languages as English and Arabic are. However, beside this difference we will
also notice the similarity between the two languages in the general principles that underlie
their morphological structure. Human languages are cast of the same mold.
11.2. Word derivation
One of the major issues in the morphology of human languages concerns how words are
built and the various methods these languages use to form their new words. These various
methods range from the very common methods of affixation and compounding to the less
common ones like conversion and internal modification of the root morpheme among
others.
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11.2.1. Word derivation in English
Words in English are divided into word classes that are distinguishable both
morphologically and/or syntactically: verbs, nouns, adjectives, adverbs, prepositions,
articles, pronouns, conjunctions, and interjections. Four of these are of interest to us due to
their morphological structure: nouns, verbs, adjectives and adverbs. The discussion below
will be about how words of these classes are derived. English uses different methods to
derive its lexical items. We will discuss these one by one.
Affixation is the addition of an affix to a base to derive a new word, e.g. proud<proudly.
This appears to be the most common method of word derivation in English. Affixes in
English are either prefixes or suffixes. Infixes are rare.
Affixes are attached to bases that could be simple roots. Alternatively, they could be
attached to bases that comprise the root and one or more affixes. Note the difference
between timely, where the affix /-ly/ is attached to a base that is made of the root /time/,
and untimely, where the affix /un-/ is attached to a base that is made of the root /time/, and
the affix /-ly/. In this sense, English allows multiple affixation, e.g.
nation>nation+al>nation+al+ize>de+nation+al+ize>
de+nation+al+iza+tion>anti+de+nation+al+iza+tion,…
Roots in English are usually free morphemes. However, we do find some that are bound
and do not appear alone as independent words. These are mainly roots borrowed from Latin
or Greek, which we always find in combination of some affixes, e.g. /ceive/ in receive,
deceive, perceive, conceive, …
Derivational affixes have two functions: a) they change the category, or sub-category,
of the base they are attached to; b) they change the meaning of the base. The category-
changing affixes may be classified in terms of the lexical categories that result from their
attachment. There are special suffixes for the derivation of nouns, verbs, adjectives, and
adverbs. The following are some of the common ones.
A. Affixes that change the category of the base

1. noun-forming suffixes:
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/-ion/ V>N promotion, creation, decision

/-ment/ V>N government, settlement, employment
/-er/ V>N learner, writer, player
/-al/ V>N refusal, dismissal, arrival
/-ness/ Adj > N kindness, happiness, loudness
/-ity/ Adj > N sincerity, ability, reality
/-ism/ Adj > N liberalism, colonialism
/-hood/ N>N childhood (concrete > abstract N)
/-ship/ N>N friendship (concrete > abstract N)
/-ist/ N>N receptionist, pianist (abs/con > personal N)
2. verb-forming prefixes and suffixes

/be- N>V behead, behold, beget
/en-/ N, Adj > V encage, endanger; enable, enrich
/-fy/ N, Adj > V notify, glorify; simplify, clarify
/-ize/ N, Adj > V characterize, categorize; specialize, modernize
/-ate/ N, Adj > V assassinate, urinate; activate,
/-en/ Adj > V widen, darken, shorten
3. adjective-forming prefixes and suffixes

/a-/ V > Adj asleep, awake, aboard
/-y/ N > Adj dirty, cloudy, sunny
/-ful/ N > Adj beautiful, successful, spiteful
/-less/ N > Adj shameless, careless, homeless
/-al/ N > Adj inflectional, derivational, distributional
/-able/ V > Adj changeable, acceptable, responsible, plausible
/-ive/ V > Adj active, adaptive, cooperative
/-ed,-en/ V > Adj crowded, educated, chosen, broken,
/-ing/ V > Adj interesting, boring, alarming
4. adverb-forming suffixes
/-ly/ Adj > Adv quickly, carefully, silently
/-wise/ N > Adv clockwise, health-wise, likewise
/-ward(s)/ N > Adv backward, homeward, eastward
B. Affixes that affect the meaning of the base

English also uses affixes that change the meaning of the base of the derived word,
without changing its category. The following are some of the most common ones.
/in-/ ‘not’ inaccurate, inadequate

/un-/ ‘not’ unjust, unkind, unhappy
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/un-/ ‘reversive’ untie, undo

/dis-/ ‘not’ disorder, disagree, dishonest
/dis-/ ‘reversive’ discontinue, disconnect
/re-/ ‘again’ redo, rewrite, rebuild
/mis-/ ‘wrongly’ misunderstand, mistake
/pre-/ ‘before’ preposition, prefix
/post-/ ‘after’ post-operational, postposition
/semi-/ ‘half’ semi-circle, semi-final
/inter-/ ‘between’ interact, international
/ex-/ ‘former’ ex-wife, ex-president, exterminate
You must have noticed that the above affixes were either prefixes or suffixes. These are
the affix types that are commonly used in English. Of the other types of affixes, there are
very rare instances of infixes. Examples of such infixes are words like, im-bloody-possible
and New-frigging-York. Note that what is infixed is not a bound morpheme, but rather a
word: bloody, frigging. Besides, these and other infixes like them are expletives.
11.2.1.2. Conversion
English uses another strategy or process for forming new words that is closely related to
affixation. This is the process of conversion where a word is derived from another word
without making any modification to the base from which the new word is derived. That is,
the old word remains as it is, but is used as belonging to a category that is different from
that of the old word. The noun play, is not different from the verb play, from which it is
derived. They are phonologically identical. Only their syntactic distribution and their
morphological structure determine whether they are the old base, the verb, or the new one,
the noun.
We know that in ‘Jane played basketball’, play is a verb only depending on the
inflectional ‘past tense’ suffix that is affixed to it. However, in ‘The plays she starred in
were all comedies’ the word play is a noun because of the inflectional ‘plural’ suffix. The
information about the category of the word play in the two sentences can also be retrieved
from its position in these sentences. In the first sentence, it occurs after the subject noun
phrase Jane, which is typically a position occupied by a verb. In the second sentence, it
occurs after an article, which is a position where nouns appear in.
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It is claimed that this mode of derivation is achieved by the affixation of a zero affix or
morpheme, an affix that has no phonetic value. This phonetically ‘silent’ affix is treated
like the suffix /-er/, which changes the verb into a noun when it is affixed to it, except that
the affix in our case is not spelled out; it is silent.
Compounding does not involve the derivation of new lexical items by adding affixes.
Rather, it involves the joining of bases, roots or words that may themselves be derived by
affixation. Bases of similar or different categories may be joined to form new words.
Compounds are distinguished from phrases in that their meaning may not be always
determined from the combined meaning of their elements. Note that while the phrase green
`house means a ‘house that is green’, the compound `greenhouse means a certain enclosure
where plants are grown, which is not necessarily green. So is the difference between white
`house and the compound `Whitehouse, which is the residence of the US President.
Difference in the stress pattern may signal the difference between them too. Compounds
are mostly stressed on their first elements. Phrases are usually stressed on their second
elements.
The category of the compound is usually determined by the category of its head element.
Thus, toothbrush is a noun because its head element brush is a noun, and navy-blue is an
adjective because its head blue is an adjective.
In English, we find noun compounds, verb compounds and adjective compounds. Noun
compounds are the most common and productive of all compounds. We have VN
compounds, breakfast, playtime, drophammer; NN: ice-cream, suitcase, hair-dryer; AN:
greenhouse, blackboard, faintheart; PN: in-group, overcoat, outpost.
The meaning of some NN compounds can be precisely interpreted. For example, the
meaning of the compound hair-remover, can be easily predicted because the second
element is a noun that is derived from the verb remove. Here, the first element is interpreted
as the object of the second element, which is the head of the compound; it is something
that ‘removes hair’. This is the way we interpret hair-cutter and hair-restorer. Similar are
other compounds whose second element is derived from a verb, e.g. script-writer and
crime prevention
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However, other NN compounds may not be so regularly interpreted. For example a

storybook is a ‘book of stories or contains stories’, but a schoolbook, is not a ‘book of, or
contains schools’. Rather it is a book used as a ‘textbook at schools’, and a promptbook is
not really a ‘book of prompts’, but a ‘script used by a prompter in the theatre’. Compounds
whose head noun on the right is not derived from a verb, and whose interpretation is not
precisely predicted in terms of object-verb relation, are called primary compounds. Those
compounds whose first element is interpreted as the object of the verb from which the
second element is derived are called secondary compounds.
These compounds have a noun as their second element. They also denote a particular
type of entity, action, state,… A script-writer refers to a certain type of writer, law
enforcement is a type of enforcement, and blackboard is a kind of board. The rightmost
element, which is a noun, is the head of the compound. Most noun compounds are right-
headed.
English exhibits compounding in verbs too, though they are less common or productive
than noun compounding. We may have VV compounds: freeze-dry, typewrite; NV: steam-
clean, hand-wash; AV: deep-fry, dry-clean; PV: upload, undertake, outgrow.
The second element i.e. the one on the right, in the above compounds is a verb. Most of
them denote a special type of the activity that the second element refers to. In typewrite,
reference is to a kind of writing, hand-wash denotes washing of hands, and in dry-clean,
we are talking about a special kind of cleaning. In this sense, we say that the verb is the
head of the compound and that these compounds are right-headed.
We also find compound adjectives in English. There are NA compounds: oil-rich,
airtight, baby blue; AA: grey-green, light-blue, red-hot; PA: outlying, overcrowded,
undernourished. The second element in these compound adjectives is an adjective, which
functions as the head of the compound. All of them denote a special type of attribute that
the second element refers to. The adjective baby blue refers to a special type of blue, so
does oil-rich which refers to a special type of richness, i.e. rich in having oil. The adjectives
in these compounds make their heads. They are right-headed.
The compound nouns, verbs, and adjectives that we have dealt with above are all right-
headed. The second element in the compound heads it. It determines the compound’s
category and provides the base for its meaning. As was noted above, blackboard is a kind
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of board, dry-clean, is a type of cleaning, and light is a shade of blue. In semantic terms,
compounds of this sort are said to be endocentric compounds.
However, not all compounds are headed. Some compounds are headless. A NN
compound like sabretooth is not a kind of tooth. It is the name of a large extinct carnivorous
mammal, with large upper canine teeth. So, although tooth is a noun, it is not the head of
this compound. This compound is headless. Neither of the two elements determines its
category as a noun, nor does any of them provide a basis for what it means. Another
example of headless compounds is the AN compound redneck. Now redneck is not a kind
of neck, but rather a person of a certain social status. Thus, we cannot call neck the head of
this compound though it is a noun. Such compounds as sabretooth and redneck are
exocentric, in contrast to the endocentric and headed compounds.
The notion of headedness is related to the semantic endocentric vs exocentric contrast
that we find in these compounds. Endocentric compounds have heads, and the compound
is a hyponym of the head, while the exocentric ones do not have heads. However, though
this may be semantically true, the notion of head is not limited to semantic criteria. The
head of a compound determines its category too. If neither component plays this latter role,
then the compound is headless.
That tooth in sabretooth and neck in redneck are nouns is not what makes these
compounds nouns. If so, then we need to find out if there are compound nouns whose
second elements are not nouns. This is what we see in noun compounds like take-off, input,
sell-out, and sit-in, which are formed of a preposition and a verb, or a verb and a preposition
or adverb.
A special kind of compounding is when only portions of existing roots are joined to
derive new words. One such process known as blending. Words like brunch, smog, sci-fi,
info-tech are conventionally referred to as blends. What is joined in this case is only
portions from words and not full words. ‘brunch’ is derived by joining portions from two
words breakfast and lunch; ‘smog’ by putting together portions from smoke and fog, ‘sci-
fi’ is derived by joining portions from science and fiction, and ‘info-tech’ by joining
portions from information and technology. Similarly, we may also consider such words as
Afro-Asiatic, electro-magnetic, psycholinguistics, and high-tech to be blends, or
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compounds in our classification, although they are derived by combining a portion of one
word root/base with a complete version of another.
Yet an extreme type of blending involves joining only the first sounds/letters of the
elements. These blends are called acronyms, e.g. NATO (North Atlantic Treaty
Organization, RAM (random access memory), and AIDS (acquired immune deficiency
syndrome). Note that each of these letter strings is pronounced as a word and not as a
sequence of letters. If a string is pronounced by reading the name of each letter, as in UN
and USA, then it is not an acronym.
11.2.2. Word derivation in Arabic
Like any other language, Arabic uses a variety of methods or procedures to derive its
words: adding elements to roots or bases, repeating the root, or by joining together
independent words to build new words. However, the most salient morphological feature
that characterizes word derivation in Arabic, and all other Semitic languages, lies in the
rather special way that affixation works in them.
In these languages, there are no independent roots from which their words are derived.
The roots, which carry the basic meaning of the words, are discontinuous consonantal
strings, and they never occur alone. Words are derived by interspersing various patterns
of vowels into these roots. Like any other morpheme, each one of these patterns has a
specific derivational or inflectional function.
We need to add a note here about the Arabic transcription used in this section to
illustrate these patterns. Each consonant and vowel, is given a separate symbol, and is
written separately. Vowels are indicated in the following ways. The vowel we find between
/k/ and /t/ in ‫ كتب‬wrote is /a/, /‫ ﹷ‬/ in the Arabic transcription; /u/ in ‫ كتب‬books is /‫ ﹹ‬/, and the
vowel between /t/ and /b/ in ‫ كتب‬was written is /i/ and /‫ ﹻ‬/. Vowel length is indicated by
doubling. The long vowel that we find between /k/ and /t/ in ‫ كاتب‬writer will be transcribed
as /aa/, /‫ﹷ ﹷ‬/ In the Arabic transcription; the long vowel /uu/ in ‫ مكتوب‬written is /‫ ﹹ ﹹ‬/; and /ii/
in ‫ فيل‬elephant is /‫ ﹻ ﹻ‬/. Likewise, consonant length – i.e. gemination- is also indicated by
ّ ‫ و‬enlarged is transcribed as ]‫ [و ﹷ س س ﹷ ع‬.
doubling the consonant. Thus, ‫سع‬
249
Affixation is the major mechanism for word formation in Arabic, of which there are
different types. As in the case in English and other languages, we find instances of the use
of prefixes and suffixes to derive new words. However, word derivation in Arabic is mainly
achieved via the interaction between a discontinuous root morpheme and another
morpheme represented by a vowel pattern, which is inserted between the root consonants.
Our description of the derivation of words in Arabic will begin by discussing affixation by
vowel patterns, followed by a description of the derivational prefixes and suffixes in
Arabic.
Vowel patterns
If we look into the words ‫ كاتب‬/kaatib/, ‫ أكتب‬/aktub/, ‫ كتب‬/katab/ we will find that they
share something: they contain the same three consonants /‫ ك‬/, / ‫ت‬/ , and / ‫ب‬/ , and they are
all about ‘writing’ though they are of different categories: two are verbs and one is an
active participle. Where they differ is the vowels that we find between the consonants. This
suggests that each of these words is made of two elements, one providing the basic semantic
information of the word, the three discontinuous consonants, and a second one, the in-
between vowels, providing information about its lexical category and other grammatical
categories, like tense/ aspect, or number for example.
Thus, we can say that ‫ كتب‬is formed of the discontinuous consonant root [K-T-B]
]‫ب‬-‫ت‬-‫ [ك‬and the vowel pattern [-a-a-]~[ - ‫ ﹷ‬- ‫ ﹷ‬-] which is interspersed into it forming the
perfect verb[‫]ك ﹷ ت ﹷ ب‬. The second word ‫ أكتب‬is similarly derived from the same consonant
root and the vowel pattern [a - - u-]~ [- ‫ ﹹ‬- - ‫] ﹷ‬, indicating that this word is a verb of imperfect
tense/aspect. And for the derivation of ‫ كاتب‬, we have the consonantal root and the vowel
pattern [- aa - i -]~ [- ‫ ﹻ‬- ‫ ﹷ ﹷ‬-] interposed onto the root. It provides the information that this
word is an active participle. We can think of many other words that are derived from this
consonantal root by interposing onto it different vowel patterns, e.g. [-i-aa-]~[- ‫ ﹷ ﹷ‬- ‫ ﹻ‬-] to
derive ‫كتاب‬, [-i-aa-at]~]‫ ﹷ ة‬- ‫ ﹷ ﹷ‬- ‫ ﹻ‬-[ to derive ‫كتابة‬, and [ma- - a-] ~]- ‫ ﹷ‬- - ‫ [م ﹷ‬to derive ‫ َمكتب‬.
These vowel patterns have been given different names. Some linguists think they are
kinds of affixes and call them ‘infixes’ or ‘transfixes’. Others, who propose a two-layer
morphological structure for Arabic, have called them ‘vowel melodies’. Here, we shall
consider them a special type of affixes, and call them ‘vowel patterns’. However, we need
250
to mention here that these patterns may occasionally consist of a combination of both
consonants and vowels. Besides, the derivation of a word may involve the addition of more
than one morpheme of different types, to the root base. Finally, the discussion will only
involve those vowel and consonant patterns that are used in the derivation of new lexical
items. Vowel patterns that have an inflectional function, like those indicating tense and
voice, have been dealt with in the Chapter 3 above when we discussed the verbs in Arabic.
The account for the derivation of words in Arabic starts with the verb forms. These are
based on triliteral consonantal roots, like the above example, and quadriliteral consonantal
roots. We have fifteen verb forms of triliteral consonantal roots, one basic verb stem,
representing the discontinuous consonantal root, plus the vocalic pattern, and fourteen
‘augmented’ verb stem forms that are derived from the basic form. Of the quadriliteral
consonantal roots, there are four forms, one basic verb stem representing the discontinuous
root and the vowel pattern, and three augmented forms. The derivation of the augmented
verb forms is achieved by various methods: doubling of one of the root consonants, a
change in the vowel pattern, the affixation of consonants, or any combination of these.
Below is a list of the common and frequently used forms: ten triliteral and two quadriliteral
verb forms.
The derivation of other lexical categories is dependent on these verb stem forms via the
interposition of various vowel patterns and prefixation of consonants, which signal the
lexical category of the derived word. The derivation is based on the form of the verb stem.
a. Verb forms
Triliteral roots
Form I. [CVCVC]. Consonantal root, vowel pattern [-a-a-]~ ]- ‫ ﹷ‬- ‫ ﹷ‬-[ (with some
variation in the second vowel) :]‫ [ك ﹷ ت ﹷ ب‬......‫ كرم‬،‫ كذب‬،‫ سمع‬،‫ عرف‬،‫ نجح‬،
Form II. [CVCCVC]. Consonantal root, doubling of the second root consonant, vowel
ّ ،‫ س ّمع‬،‫سلّم‬
pattern: ]‫ [ك ﹷ ت ت ﹷ ب‬....‫ شجّع‬،‫طوف‬
Form III [CVVCVC]. Consonantal root, doubling of the first vowel, vowel pattern:
]‫ [ك ﹷ ﹷ ت ﹷ ب‬...‫ جالس‬،‫ سامر‬،‫قاتل‬
Form IV [ʔVCCVC]. Consonantal root, prefixation of /ʔ/, vowel pattern:
251
]‫[ أ ﹷ ج ل ﹷ س‬.....‫ أرى‬،‫ أكرم‬،‫أسمع‬
Form V [taCVCCVC]. Consonantal root, prefixation of /ta/, doubling of second root

consonant, vowel pattern: ]‫ [ت ﹷ ش ﹷ ج ج ﹷ ع‬..... ‫ تل ّمس‬،‫سم‬
ّ ‫ تب‬،‫ تربّع‬،‫سح‬
ّ ‫تف‬
Form VI [taCVVCVC]. Consonantal root, prefixation of /ta/, doubling of first vowel

in the pattern, vowel pattern: ]‫ [ت ﹷ ر ﹷ ﹷ ك ﹷ م‬....‫ تفاعل‬،‫ تكاثر‬،‫ تراجع‬،‫ تعاقد‬،‫تسامح‬
Form VII [ʔinCVCVC]. Consonantal root, prefixation of /ʔin/, vowel pattern:

]‫ [ا ﹻ ن ك ﹷ س ﹷ ر‬.....‫ انفتح‬،‫ انقلب‬،‫ اندحر‬،‫انسحب‬
Form VIII [ʔiCtVCVC]. Consonantal root, prefixation of /ʔi/ and infixation of /t/ after
first consonant, vowel pattern: ]‫ [ا ﹻج ت ﹷ م ﹷ ع‬......‫ ازدهر‬،‫ اكتتب‬،‫ اقتسم‬،‫التحم‬
Form IX [ʔiCCVCC]. Consonantal root, prefixation of /ʔi/ and doubling of third root
consonant, vowel pattern: ]‫[اﹻ ح م ﹷ رر‬.......‫ اصفر‬،‫ اخضر‬،‫اسود‬
Form X [ʔistVCCVC]. Consonantal root, prefixation of /ʔist/, vowel pattern:

]‫ [ اﹻ س ت ﹷ غ ف ﹷ ر‬........ ‫ استرحم‬،‫ استقبل‬،‫ استعظم‬،‫استخرج‬
Quadriliteral roots
Form qI [CVCCVC]. Consonantal root, vowel pattern: ]‫ [د ﹷ ح ر ﹷ ج‬.‫ فلسف‬،‫ هندس‬،‫طمأن‬
Form qII [taCVCCVC]. Consonantal root, prefixation of /ta/, vowel pattern:

]‫ [ت ﹷ د ﹷ ح ر ﹷ ج‬....‫ تقهقر‬،‫ تفلسف‬،‫تدهور‬
b. Participle forms
Active and passive participles ‫ إسم الفاعل‬, ‫ إسم المفعول‬are forms of multiple functions.
Besides their occasional verbal function, they are commonly used as adjectives, and are
also used as substantives referring to doers of actions (Cf. Chapters 3 and 5).
Active participles are derived from the basic triliteral roots via the pattern [-aa-i-]~
]- ‫ ﹻ‬- ‫ ﹷ ﹷ‬- [: ]‫[ل ﹷ ﹷ ع ﹻ ب] [ش ﹷ ﹷ ع ﹻ ر‬. The derivation of this participle from augmented triliteral
forms and quadriliteral forms is via the pattern [mu-a-i-]~]- ‫ ﹻ‬- ‫ ﹷ‬- ‫[م ﹹ‬, with an initial /mu/
and vowels /a/ before or after the first root consonant and /i/ before the last root consonant.
This is the same vowel pattern found in the imperfect verb form of these bases, with the
addition of the initial /mu/.
252
،]‫ [م ﹹ ت ﹷ م ﹷ ك ك ﹻ ن] [م ﹹ ت ﹷ س ﹷ ﹷ م ﹻ ح‬،]‫ [م ﹹ ش ر ﹻ ف‬،]‫ [م ﹹ ق ﹷ ﹷ ت ﹻ ل‬،]‫[م ﹹ ف ﹷ ك ك ﹻ ر‬

]‫[م ﹹ ن ك ﹷ س ﹻ ر‬، ]‫ [م ﹹ س ت ﹷ ع ل ﹻ م] [م ﹹ ن ت ﹷ ظ ﹻ ر‬،]‫ [م ﹹ د ﹷ ح ر ﹻ ج‬، ]‫[م ﹹ ت ﹷ ق ﹷ ه ق ﹻ ر‬
Passive participles are derived from the basic triliteral roots via the pattern
[ma- -uu-]~]- ‫ ﹹ ﹹ‬- - ‫[م ﹷ‬: with an initial /ma/ and the vowel /uu/ before the last root consonant:
]‫[م ﹷ ق ب ﹹ ﹹ ل] [م ﹷ ح م ﹹ ﹹ د] [م ﹷ ش ر ﹹ ﹹ ع‬. The derivation of this participle from augmented
triliteral and quadriliteral verb forms is via the following pattern [mu-a- a-]~]- ‫ ﹷ‬- ‫ ﹷ‬- ‫ [م ﹹ‬:
an initial /mu/ and the vowel /a/ before or after the first root consonant and last root
consonant, and /a/ before the last root consonant.
]‫ [م ﹹ ت ﹷ ع ﹷ م م ﹷ د] [م ﹹ ت ﹷ ج ﹷ ﹷ و ﹷ ز‬،]‫ [م ﹹ د رﹷ ج‬،]‫ [م ﹹ ب ﹷ ﹷ ر ﹷ ك‬،]‫[م ﹹ ح ﹷ م م ﹷ د‬

،]‫[م ﹹ ن ق ﹷ ل ﹷ ب‬، ]‫ [م ﹹ س ت ﹷ خ ر ﹷ ج] [م ﹹ ن ت ﹷ ظ ﹷ ر‬،]‫ [م ﹹ د ﹷ ح ر ﹷ ج‬، ]‫[م ﹹ ت ﹷ د ﹷ ح ر ﹷ ج‬
c. Noun forms
Verbal nouns
The verbal noun ‫ مصدر‬is the abstract, and sometimes concrete, noun that is related to the
action or state denoted by the verb. Its derivation is determined by the verb form. For each
verb form there is one or more verbal noun form(s). The derivation of the verbal noun
involves the interposition of a specific vowel pattern onto the root or augmented verb
forms. Some verb forms may have several verbal noun forms. In the case of Form I, the
triliteral verb form, Wright lists forty-four noun forms. The following is a list of the most
common of these forms.
F I. [-a- -]~ ]- - ‫ ﹷ‬-[ ‫[ ; نَصر‬-u--]~ ]- - ‫ ﹹ‬-[ ‫[ ; حسن‬-i- -] ~ ]- - ‫ ﹻ‬-[ ‫ [ ; ِسلم‬-a-a-]~ ]- ‫ ﹷ‬- ‫ ﹷ‬-[
‫[ بَصَر‬-i-aa-at]~]‫ ﹷ ة‬- ‫ ﹷ ﹷ‬- ‫ ﹻ‬-[ ‫[ ; ِسبا َحة‬ma- - i-at]~]‫ ﹷ ة‬- ‫ ﹻ‬- - ‫عرفَة [م ﹷ‬
ِ ‫[ ; َم‬-u-uu-]~
َ ‫[ ; َخ‬-u-uu-at]~ ]‫ ﹷ ة‬- ‫ ﹹ ﹹ‬- ‫ ﹹ‬-[ ‫; سهولَة‬
]- ‫ ﹹ ﹹ‬- ‫ ﹹ‬-[ ‫[ ; جلوس‬-a-aa-at]~]‫ ﹷ ة‬- ‫ ﹷ ﹷ‬- ‫ ﹷ‬-[ ‫سارة‬
ِ ‫[ ; َم‬-a-ii-]~ ]- ‫ ﹻ ﹻ‬- ‫ ﹷ‬-[ ‫[;نَعيق‬- a- -at]~
[ma- -a-]~ ]- ‫ ﹷ‬- - ‫[ ; َمد َخل[م ﹷ‬ma- - i-]~]- ‫ ﹻ‬- - ‫رجع [م ﹷ‬
]‫ ﹷ ة‬- - ‫ ﹷ‬-[ ‫َرح َمة‬
F II. [ta- -ii-]~ ]- ‫ ﹻ ﹻ‬- - ‫[ ;تَكريم [ت ﹷ‬ta- -i-at] ~ ]‫ ﹷ ة‬- ‫ ﹻ‬- - ‫بص َرة [ت ﹷ‬
ِ َ‫[ ;ت‬ta- - aa-] ~
]- ‫ ﹷ ﹷ‬- - ‫تَجوال [ت ﹷ‬
F III. [mu- aa-a-at]~ ]‫ ﹷ ة‬- ‫ ﹷ‬- ‫ ﹷ ﹷ‬- ‫شاركَة [م ﹹ‬

َ ‫م‬
F IV. [ʔi- - aa-]~ ]- ‫ ﹷ ﹷ‬- - ‫اسعاد [إ ﹻ‬
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F V. [ta-a- -u-]~ ]- ‫ ﹹ‬- - ‫ ﹷ‬- ‫تَ َكلُّم [ت ﹷ‬
F VI. [ta- aa-u-] ]- ‫ ﹹ‬- ‫ ﹷ ﹷ‬- ‫تَكاثر [ت ﹷ‬
F VII. [ʔin-i-aa-]~ ]- ‫ ﹷ ﹷ‬- ‫ ﹻ‬- ‫انكِسار [ا ﹻ ن‬
F VIII.[ ʔi-ti-aa-] ~ ]- ‫ ﹷ ﹷ‬- ‫ ت ﹻ‬- ‫اكتِساب [ا ﹻ‬
F IX. [ʔi- - i-aa-]~ ]- ‫ ﹷ ﹷ‬- ‫ ﹻ‬- - ‫احمِ رار [ا ﹻ‬
F X. [ʔisti- -aa-]~ ]- ‫ ﹷ ﹷ‬- - ‫استِخراج [ ا ﹻ س ت ﹻ‬
Fq I. [-a- -a-at]~ ]‫ ﹷ ة‬- ‫ ﹷ‬- - ‫ ﹷ‬-[ ‫ت َر َج َمة‬
Fq II. [ta-a- -u-]~ ]- ‫ ﹹ‬- - ‫ ﹷ‬- ‫تَ َخلخل [ت ﹷ‬
Instance nouns
These are nouns that refer to actions taking place only once, or one instance of such actions.
These nouns have the same derivational patterns of the verbal nouns plus the inflection
with the feminine gender marker /at/‫ة‬/.The verbal noun vowel pattern [-a- -]~]- - ‫ ﹷ‬-[is used
for the derivation of these instance nouns from triliteral Form I roots. Examples of these
instance nouns are:
]‫ [إﹻ ل ت ﹻ ف ﹷ ﹷ ت ﹷ ة‬،]‫ [اﹻ ط ل ﹷ ﹷ ل ﹷ ة‬،]‫ [ت ﹷ رو ﹻ ﹻ ح ﹷ ة‬،]‫ [ف ﹷ ر ح ﹷ ة‬،] ‫[ج ﹷ ل س ﹷ ة] [ق ﹷ ف ز ﹷ ة‬
Nouns of kind
The noun of kind ‫ إسم النوع‬is a noun indicating the manner in which an action takes place.
The most common form of derivation of this noun is with the pattern [-i- -at] ]‫ ﹷ ة‬- - ‫ ﹻ‬-[
which ends with the feminine marker, e.g. ]‫ [م ﹻ ي ت ﹷ ة‬، ]‫[ج ﹻ ل س ﹷ ة‬.
Nouns of time and place
The nouns of time and place ‫ إسم المكان وإسم الزمان‬are nouns that refer to the place and time
at which an action takes place. These nouns are derived with the following patterns
beginning with the prefix /ma/, [ma- - a-] ~ ]- ‫ ﹷ‬- - ‫[ َمكتب [م ﹷ‬ma- - i-] ~]- ‫ ﹻ‬- - ‫; َمجلِس [م ﹷ‬
[ma- - a-at]~]‫ ﹷ ة‬- ‫ ﹷ‬- - ‫[م ﹷ‬: ‫[ ; مكتبة‬mi- -aa-] ~ ]- ‫ ﹷ ﹷ‬- - ‫[م ﹻ‬: ‫ ميعاد‬.
Instrument nouns
Nouns that denote instruments that are used to perform an action ‫ إسم اآللة‬are derived via
the following patterns all beginning with the prefix /mi/: [mi- -aa-]~ ]- ‫ ﹷ ﹷ‬- - ‫[م ﹻ‬: ‫;مِ فتاح‬
254
[mi- - a-] ~ ]- ‫ ﹷ‬- - ‫[م ﹻ‬: ‫مِ بضَع‬, and [mi- - a - at] ~ ]‫ ﹷ ة‬- ‫ ﹷ‬- - ‫[م ﹻ‬: ‫ مِ ك َحلَة‬.
Abstract nouns of quality
These make a rather special subcategory of abstract nouns that are derived from relative
adjectives (see below) by the suffixation of the feminine gender suffix /at/~/ ‫ ﹷ ة‬/ to these
adjectives. Thus, from the relative adjective ‫ وطني‬we get ]‫[و ﹷ ط ﹷ ن ﹻ ي ي ﹷ ة‬. Other examples
ِ ،‫ الشيوعِية‬،‫القَومِ ية‬
are ‫ الح ِرية‬،‫اإلنسانِية‬
Diminutive nouns
Nouns may exhibit a diminutive form indicating a smaller size. A diminutive noun may
also denote some endearing or adoring sense. Diminutive nouns are derived by interposing
special vowel patterns onto their consonantal roots. The diminutive vowel pattern for
triliteral nouns is [-u-ei-] ~ ]- ‫ ﹷ ي‬- ‫ ﹹ‬-[, e.g. ‫ جبَيل‬from ‫ َجبَل‬, ‫سين‬ َ ‫ َح‬and ‫ كلَيب‬from
َ ‫ ح‬from ‫سن‬
‫كَلب‬. Diminutive forms of quadriliteral nouns are derived via the vowel pattern [-u-ei-i-] ~
َ ‫ ُم‬from ‫ َمس ِجد‬, ‫ د َري ِهم‬from ‫ دِرهَم‬, ‫ أحَيمِ ر‬from ‫أَح َمر‬, and ‫ سلَيمى‬from ‫سلمى‬
] - ‫ ﹻ‬- ‫ ﹷ ي‬- ‫ ﹹ‬-[ e.g. ‫سي ِجد‬ َ
d. Adjective forms
In the derivation of adjectives from the basic verb stem forms, numerous patterns are used.
These are adjectives resembling participles ‫ الصفة المشبهة‬. The main patterns for the
derivation of these adjectives are:
[-a- - ]~ [- - ‫ ﹷ‬-]: ]‫ [ص ﹷ ع ب‬، ]‫[عذب‬ [-a-i-]~ [- ‫ ﹻ‬- ‫ ﹷ‬-] : ]‫[فَطِ ن] [ف ﹷ رﹻ ح‬

[-a-a-]~ [- ‫ ﹷ‬- ‫ ﹷ‬-]: ]‫ [ح ﹷ س ﹷ ن‬، ]‫[ َجلَل‬ [-u- -]~ [- - ‫ ﹹ‬-]: ]‫[حلو] [ص ﹹ ل ب‬
[-a-aa-]~ [ - ‫ ﹷ ﹷ‬- ‫ ﹷ‬-]: ]‫ [ج ﹷ و ﹷ ﹷ د‬, ]‫[حَصان‬ [- u-aa-]~ [- ‫ ﹷ ﹷ‬- ‫ ﹹ‬-]: ]‫ [ش ﹹ ج ﹷ ﹷع‬،]‫[فرات‬
[-a-ii-]~ [- ‫ ﹻ ﹻ‬- ‫ ﹷ‬-]: ]‫[ج ﹷ م ﹻ ﹻ ل‬, [‫]كَثير‬ [-a-uu-]~ [ - ‫ ﹹ ﹹ‬- ‫ ﹷ‬-]: ]‫[صَدوق] [ع ﹷ ط ﹹ ﹹ ف‬
َ ] [ʔa- -a-]~ [- ‫ ﹷ‬- - ‫] أ ﹷ‬: ]‫[أَكبَر] [أ ﹷ ج م ﹷ ل‬
[-a- -aan]~ [- ‫ ﹷ ﹷ‬- - ‫ ﹷ‬-]: ]‫[ع ﹷ ط شﹷ ﹷ ن‬، [‫سكران‬
The last form [?a- -a-] is the one used in comparative constructions for the comparison
between two or more entities in having a certain property (Cf. Chapter 5 on adjectives).
Intensive adjectives
Certain adjective forms denote intensity or frequency of action. These are ‫صيغ المبالغة‬.
One of the above forms, [-a-uu-], as in ]‫[ك ﹷ ذ ﹹ ﹹ ب‬, may denote this notion of intensity.
Other common forms are derived via the patterns [-a- -aa-]~]- ‫ ﹷ ﹷ‬- - ‫ ﹷ‬-[, [-i- - ii-]~
255
255
]- ‫ ﹻ ﹻ‬- - ‫ ﹻ‬-[ and [-u- -uu-]~]- ‫ ﹹ ﹹ‬- - ‫ ﹹ‬-[ with the doubling of the second root consonant, e.g.
]‫ [ك ﹷ ذ ذ ﹷ ﹷ ب‬and ‫ [ص ﹻ د د ﹻ ﹻ ق] ; بَكّاء‬and ‫سكّير‬
ِ ; and ]‫[ق ﹹ دد ﹹ ﹹ س‬and ‫ سبّوح‬respectively.
Another common pattern is [mi- -aa-]~]- ‫ ﹷ ﹷ‬- - ‫ [م ﹻ‬like ]‫مِ قوال [م ﹻ ه ذ ﹷ ﹷ ر‬. Adding the
feminine gender marker /at/ to these adjectival forms strengthens the intensiveness of the
adjective, as in ]‫ [ع ﹷ ل ل ﹷ ﹷ م ﹷ ة‬and ‫ داهِية‬،, ‫سو َءلَة‬.
Intensive adjectives of the pattern [-a- -aa-]~]- ‫ ﹷ ﹷ‬- - ‫ ﹷ‬-[ are used as nouns referring to
ّ ،‫ ع ّطار‬،‫ بقّال‬،‫ حدّاد‬.
persons of profession like ]‫ [ن ﹷ ج ج ﹷ ﹷ ر‬and ... ‫بزاز‬
Relative adjectives
These adjectives denote belonging or connection to a place, an entity, a person, etc. They
are derived by the addition of the suffix /iy/~ /‫ ﹻ ي‬/ to the noun. So, for example, from the
noun ‫ شمس‬, we have the relative adjective ‫[ش ﹷ م س ﹻ ي] شمسي‬. Other examples are:
‫عقل > عقلي؛ عراق > عراقي؛ بصرة > بصري؛ دنيا > دنيوي‬.
Prefixes and suffixes
Besides vowel pattern interposition, affixation in Arabic may also be of the more traditional
types that we encounter in English: prefixation and suffixation. Words are formed by
adding prefixes and suffixes, though this method of word derivation is much less common
than the interposition of vowel patterns. As we saw above, some of the augmented verb
bases onto which vowel patterns are interposed may be derived via adding prefixes. This
is what we see in forms V [taCVCCVC], VI [taCVVCVC], and qII [taCVCCVC], in
which the verb bases into which the vowel pattern is interspersed are derived by the
affixation of the prefix /ta/. Form VII [ʔinCVCVC] is derived by the prefixation of /n/, and
form X [ʔistVCCVC] by the prefixation of /st/. On the other hand, verb form VIII
[ʔiCtVCVC] is derived by the infixation of /t/ between the first and second root consonants.
A certain type of adjectives, i.e. the relative adjective, is derived from a nouns via a
specific suffix /iy/~ /‫ ﹻ ي‬/, e.g. ‫ وطني< وطن‬. Abstract nouns may be derived from this relative
adjective by adding the suffix /at/~/ ‫ ﹷ ة‬/ as in ‫وطنية < وطني‬
New words in Arabic are also derived by joining independent bases, i.e. words, to form
new ‘compound words’. Of course, compounding, the process of joining two independent
256
words to form another with a new, and sometimes unrelated, meaning is a feature that is
not particular to Arabic. We do find words like ‫‘ رأسمال‬capital’ which is the result of joining
‫‘ رأس‬head’ and ‫‘ مال‬money’, ‫‘ ماصدق‬extension’, which is derived from the relative marker
‫‘ ما‬what’ and the verb ‫‘ صدق‬was true’, and ‫‘ الأخالقي‬immoral’ from the negative particle ‫ال‬
‘not’ and the relative adjective ‫‘ أخالقي‬moral’.
The above examples are orthographically considered single words with no space
between their components. There are few compound proper names that are occasionally
written as single words, e.g. ‫ خانيونس‬. However, most of the time, the components of the
compound words in Arabic are orthographically treated as separate units. This is what we
find in compounds like: ،‫ ليل نهار‬، ‫ دودة القز‬، ‫ عين الماء‬، ‫ عروس البحر‬، ‫ شهر العسل‬،‫ خاتم الذهب‬،
،‫ أحمر صارخ‬،‫لطيف المعشر‬
Compounds in Arabic may consist of elements of various categories. The most common
of which are of the N+N type like: ‫ ناطحة سحاب‬،‫ عروس البحر‬،‫ بيت الدرج‬،‫جرس االنذار‬
Syntactically, all these are construct state constructions. There are A+N compounds which
are similarly structured, e.g. ،‫ حسن النية‬،‫ ناعم الملمس‬،‫ واثق الخطوة‬،‫لطيف المعشر‬. We also have
A+A compounds like ‫ أصفر فاقع‬،‫أحمر صارخ‬. There are compounds that consist of a relative
marker +Verb compounds like ‫‘ ماصدقات‬extensions’, from the particle ‫ ما‬and the verb ‫صدق‬,
and those that consist of Adv +Adv like ‫ صباح مساء‬and ‫ ليل نهار‬, both meaning ‘always’ or
‘all day long’. We may also include here compound verbs made of the negative particle
‫ ما‬and a verb, like ‫ ما فتئ‬،‫ ما انفك‬،‫ ما برح‬،‫ ما دام‬،‫ال زال‬/‫ما‬, and compound adverbs formed of
the relative marker ‫ ما‬and an adverb, like ‫ ربما‬،‫ سيما‬،‫ وقتما‬،‫ حالما‬،‫ حيثما‬،‫حينما‬
Compounds in Arabic may be semantically divided into endocentric and exocentric
compounds. Endocentric compounds are those that refer to a particular type of what the
first component in the compound refers to. So ‫ دودة القز‬is a kind of worm, and ‫ غرفة الطعام‬is
a room where food is taken. However, ‫ رأسمال‬is not a kind of head, nor is ‫ عروس البحر‬a
special type of bride. These two compounds are exocentric.
The endocentric vs exocentric contrast is sometimes linked to the notion of headedness

in compounds. A headed compound is endocentric: the compound is a hyponym of the
head. Headless compounds are exocentric. There is no hyponymy relation between the
compound and one of its elements. However, as mentioned above, the notion of ‘head’ is
not based totally on semantic grounds. The head of a compound also determines its
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257
category. In Arabic, it seems that the overwhelming majority of the compounds are headed.
Exceptions to this may be found in such compounds as ‫ صباح مساء‬and ‫ليل نهار‬. The head
element of a compound in Arabic is the first element. Therefore, in ‫ رب البيت‬the word ‫ رب‬is
the head, and so is ‫ لطيف‬in ‫لطيف المعشر‬. The head of the compound determines its lexical
category. The compound ‫ رب البيت‬is a noun because its head ‫ رب‬is a noun, and ‫لطيف المعشر‬
is an adjective because its head ‫ لطيف‬is one.
The pluralization of compounds provides further evidence for the notion of headedness.
In those Arabic compounds where only one of the two elements is pluralized, it is the head
that carries the plural inflection. Thus we have ‫ جوازات سفر‬،‫غرف الطعام‬, ‫ عيون الماء‬, ‫عرائس‬
‫ البحر‬, ‫ ناطحات السحاب‬and ‫ لطيفو المعشر‬. However, in many instances where both elements of
the compounds are pluralized, as in ‫رؤوس أموال‬, ‫أولياء األمور‬. The exception to this trend in
pluralization is where the compound is taken as one single lexical item and is pluralized as
such. This is what we see in ‫ ماصدقات‬, the plural of ‫ ماصدق‬and ‫ رساميل‬, which is an alternative
plural form of ‫رأسمال‬.
Compounding in Arabic may involve joining parts, or portions of independent lexical
items. In this process, known as blending, one or both words that are joined lose some of
their vowels and consonants. Though very few instances of blending have been attested in
Classical Arabic, e.g. ‫‘ جلمود‬boulder’ from ‫‘ جلِد‬freeze’ and ‫‘ جمد‬harden’, Standard Arabic
today contains many of these blends, e.g, ‫ األفروآسيوية‬،‫ الفوقومية‬،‫ القروسطي‬،‫البرمائي‬,
‫…كهرومغناطيسي‬..
The more drastic mode of compounding, acronymy, which involves forming new words
from the initial letters of phrase, may also be found in Standard Arabic. The noun ‫ بسملة‬is
said to be derived from the phrase ‫ بسم هللا الرحمن الرحيم‬in this way. In modern use, we may
find instances of acronyms used for naming units, movements or parties, e.g. ‫ قسد‬for ‫قوات‬
‫ سوريا الديمقراطية‬and ‫ حشد‬for ‫حزب الشعب الديمقراطي‬, or ‫ فتح‬which is the reverse of ‫ حتف‬for ‫حركة‬
‫ التحرير الفلسطيني‬and ‫ حماس‬for ‫حركة المقاومة اإلسالمية‬. These are not pronounced as strings of
letters. Rather they are taken as words and are pronounced as such.
11.2.2.3. Reduplication
Besides deriving words via the interposition of a vowel pattern within a discontinuous
consonantal root, prefixation, suffixation, or compounding, few Arabic lexical items are
258
258
derived from roots that exhibit reduplication. Reduplication is a process where all or part
of a morpheme is repeated. This [‫– ك‬hod of derivation could be seen in quadriliteral roots
like ]‫ح‬- ‫ن‬- ‫ح‬- ‫ [ن‬،]‫ ر‬-‫ ك‬-‫ [ك –ر‬، ]‫ه‬-‫ق‬- ‫ه‬-‫ [ق‬, from which the verbs ]‫[ك ﹷ ر ك ﹷ ر] [ق ﹷ ه ق ﹷ ه‬
and ]‫ [ن ﹷ ح ن ﹷ ح‬are derived via the interposition of a vowel pattern /- a- - a -/. It is suggested
that in these roots, reduplication of a two-consonant root has taken place. In this mode of
derivation, one may include the derivation of Form II triliteral roots, which are derived by
duplicating the second root consonant, e.g. ]‫ ب‬- ‫ [ك – ت ت‬from the base root ]‫ ب‬- ‫[ك – ت‬,
and Form III triliteral roots, which are derived by the lengthening, or duplication, of the
first vowel in the vowel pattern, e.g. ]‫[ك ﹷ ﹷ ت ﹷ ب‬. In this light, these might constitute an
instance of partial reduplication.
11.2.3. Comparing word derivation in English and Arabic
When we look at how Arabic and English form their lexical items, the first thing that
attracts our attention is the wide difference between them. However, the two languages
also share some features.
1. English and Arabic differ in the way their morphemes combine, or are structured
within the derived word. While morphemes in English are joined in a linear fashion, i.e.
they are positioned either before or after one another, in Arabic the main method of
building lexical items is for morphemes to be interposed onto one another. That is, one
may picture them as belonging to two different levels, or ‘tiers’. Affixation of bound
morphemes to bases in English in the derivation of new words is achieved by the
prefixation or suffixation of these morphemes to the bases. On the other hand, in Arabic,
words are derived by interposing ‘vowel patterns’ onto discontinuous consonantal roots,
i.e. the vowels occupy positions between the consonants and not before or after them.
2. In English, affixes are classified according to whether they change the category of the
base they are attached to, or change its meaning. This distinction does not generally
apply to Arabic. The main method of deriving new words, i.e. the interposition of vowel
patterns, does not act on a pre-existing word to change its category. Without the vowel
pattern, the root does not make an independent lexical item. The lexical item comes into
existence and adopts a category only after the vowel pattern is inserted. There are,
however, very few suffixes in Arabic that change the category of the base they are
259
attached to, like those used in deriving relative adjectives from nouns, or abstract nouns
of quality from relative adjectives.
3. In Arabic, some of the vowel patterns contain consonantal elements. These are the
initial consonants that we find in nouns of time and place, instrument nouns, active and
passive participles of the augmented triliteral and quadriliteral verb forms, and one or
two forms of intensive adjectives. They might be taken as separate prefixes, except that
in the derivation of the words, they function in conjunction with the interposed vowels.
4. Each category-changing affix in English is specified as to the category that results
from its addition and the category of the base it is affixed to. So, there are noun-forming
affixes, verb-forming affixes, adjective-forming affixes, and adverb-forming affixes. In
Arabic, for the derivation of lexical items of each category, there are a number of
specific patterns that are used for this purpose. Generally, there is no overlapping in the
patterns. There are specific patterns for the derivation of the base and augmented verb
forms, patterns for the derivation of the active and passive participles, the various types
of nouns and of adjectives.
5. As for the meaning-changing affixes, this seems to be a feature of English morphology.
There are no affixes in Arabic that are attached to affect the meaning of the base. The
negative adjectives like ‫ الأخالقي‬and ‫المعقول‬, seem to be compound words that are derived
via joining the negative particle ‫ ال‬to the adjective.
6. Both languages use compounding as a method to derive new words from old ones. In
both Arabic and English, lexical items of similar or different categories combine to
make compound words. However, the variety of such combinations is wider in English
than in Arabic as the discussion above shows.
7. Orthographically, many of the compound words in English are written as single lexical
items, though some are hyphenated and others are written with the two components
treated as separate items. In Arabic, the overwhelming majority of the components of
the compounds are written as separate items. There are few compounds that are written
as single lexical items.
8. The endocentric vs. exocentric semantic contrast is maintained in the compounds of
both languages. In Arabic and English, we find endocentric compounds in which the
compound refers to a type of its head element, or is a hyponym of the head. We also
260
find exocentric compounds in the two languages in which no such semantic relation
obtains, e.g. redneck and sabretooth in English and ‫ بيت الدرج‬،‫ عروس البحر‬in Arabic.
9. The above semantic contrast is sometimes linked to the notion of ‘head’ in compounds.
However, the head of a compound is also identified as the element that determines its
lexical category and carries the plural inflection. This is the case in the compounds of
both languages, though these heads do not occupy the same position in the compounds
of the two languages. In English it is the second element, while in Arabic, it is mostly
the first. However, both languages exhibit instances of headless compounds.
10. Both languages show instances of blending where only portions of one or both
elements in the compound are joined together instead of the full words. Blending in
English is commonly used as a method of deriving new words in science, technology,
names of new products, advertisement, etc…
11. Both languages make use of a special mode of compounding, acronymy, to derive
new words via joining the initial letters or sounds of the elements of phrases to form a
new word. New acronyms are created everyday in English and Arabic.
12. While conversion is a widely used method of deriving new words in English,
resulting in many words of multiple categories, conversion is not used for the derivation
of new words in Arabic .
13. In Arabic, we may find instances of another method of word derivation. This is
reduplication, which is not so common in English. Many quadriliteral verbs are the
result of reduplication, it is even suggested that some of the augmented verb stem forms
are the result of partial reduplication: forms II, V and IX.
Exercises
1. Collect as many examples as you can of the augmented verbal forms V, VII, and
VIII in Arabic. What aspects in meaning do they share and where do they differ,
compared to their basic stems? How do verbs in English express the same shades
of meaning that these forms express in Arabic?
2. Headless compounds are found in both English and Arabic. Collect more instances
of such compounds and find out if they are equally common in English and Arabic,
and how they are treated in the two languages. Check the compounds whose
categories differ from those of their two elements
261
3. Are there any other processes of word formation? (Hint: eponymy, where a word
that refers to an entity is derived from the proper name of a person, place, etc.. that
is connected with the entity). Find out how this method is used in Arabic and
English and see where they differ or are similar.
262

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Comparing Arabic

The Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan

Bakirr. Murtadha Jawad

1st Edition 2021

7. The preposition phrase ............................................................................ 133

Some Basic Questions

1.1. Language comparison

1.1. Language comparison

1.3. How do we compare

1.4. Why do we compare?

If transfer from L1 into L2 is psychologically inevitable then we could generalize that

We mentioned a number of areas and activities where language comparison plays a

The Noun Phrase

2.1. The noun phrase

2.1. The noun phrase

2.1.1. The noun phrase in English

Det – Pre-Mod – Head – Post-Mod

1. Determiners: These are of three types: pre-determiners (quantifiers), central

2. Pre-modifiers: adjective or noun phrases.

2.1.2. The noun phrase in Arabic

The structure of the noun phrase in Arabic may be represented as:

Det1 – Head – Det2 - Mod

1. Determiners: These are of two types: pre-determiners (quantifiers demonstratives);

2.1.3. Comparing the noun phrase in English and Arabic

2.2. The noun

2.2.1. The noun in English

2.2.2. The noun in Arabic

2.3.1. Number in English nouns

2.3.2. Number in Arabic nouns

1. CuCaC ‫غرفة < غرف‬ 16. CwaaCiC ‫قافلة < قوافل‬

2.3.3. Comparing number in English and Arabic

1. Nouns in both languages show number contrast.

2.4.1. Gender in English nouns

2.4.2. Gender in Arabic nouns

2.4.3. Comparing gender in English and Arabic

1. Both English and Arabic exhibit gender distinction.

2.5.1. Case in English nouns

The doctor gave me some medicine.

subjective: the suspect’s death = The suspect died.

2.5.2. Case in Arabic nouns

1. The subject of the sentence, both verbal and non-verbal.

2. The nominal predicate of a non-verbal sentence, e.g. . ‫مهندس‬

4. Noun phrase adverbial of time, place, or purpose.

5. Complement of vocative particle ‫يا‬, complement of exception particle ‫إال‬, complement

subjective : ‫ = ضحك األطفا ِل‬.‫يضحك األطفال‬

2.5.3. Comparing case in English and Arabic

2.6.1. Determiners in English

All the four girls sitting there are my daughters.

2.6.2. Determiners in Arabic

‫الناس جميعهم‬ ‫الجيل الخامس‬ ‫الكتاب هذا‬ ‫الرجال األربعة‬

2.6.3. Comparing the determiner systems in English and Arabic

and co-occurrence with each other. We may distinguish quantifiers, demonstratives,

2.6.4.1. Articles in English

2.6.4.2. Articles in Arabic

2. Specific unidentified reference is indicated by the indefinite marker /-n/ suffixed to

.‫كان في المسجد مصلون‬ . ‫غرس شجرتين‬

2.6.4.3. Comparing English and Arabic articles

The Verb Phrase

3.1. The verb phrase

3.1. The verb phrase

3.1.1. The verb phrase in English

The verb phrase consists of:

4. the auxiliary have + en