Common Irregular

Arabic roots usually have three letters. In a hollow verb, the second letter is a long vowel. This vowel is actually a "weak" version of w or y. When you conjugate regular verbs, the consonants stay put. Look at kataba (he wrote). The k, t, and b never leave. Now look at qaala (he said). When you change "he said" to "I said," something happens. The middle alif vanishes. You are left with qultu. Why does this happen? Arabic avoids having two "still" (sukoon) sounds in a row. It is like a traffic jam for your tongue. When you add a suffix like tu (meaning "I"), the middle letter gets squeezed. To make the word flow, the weak vowel steps out. Think of it like a polite person leaving a crowded elevator. It makes room for the new ending. You only need to know which endings trigger this exit.

1. 1Let's break down the past tense transformation step-by-step. We will use zaara (to visit) as our model.
2. 2Start with the root: z-a-r (زار).
3. 3Decide who is doing the action.
4. 4Is the ending a vowel? For "he" (zaara) or "she" (zaarat), the alif stays.
5. 5Is the ending a consonant? For "I" (tu) or "you" (ta), the alif must go.
6. 6Drop the alif. Now you have z-r-tu.
7. 7Add a small helper vowel to the first letter. For zaara, it becomes a short u.
8. 8The final result is zurtu (I visited).
9. 9Here is the pattern for kaana (to be):
10. 10I was: kuntu (vowel dropped)
11. 11You (m) were: kunta (vowel dropped)
12. 12He was: kaana (vowel stays)
13. 13She was: kaanat (vowel stays)
14. 14We were: kunna (vowel dropped)
15. 15They (m) were: kaanuu (vowel stays)

You will use these verbs in almost every conversation. Imagine you are at a traditional market in Amman. You want to tell the shopkeeper, "I was here yesterday." You would say kuntu hunaa ams. If you use the regular pattern, it sounds like "I kaana-ed," which is confusing. Use this pattern when reporting what people said. "I said to my friend..." becomes qultu li-sadiiqii. It is also vital for travel stories. "I visited Dubai" is zurtu Dubai. Even simple needs use it. "I wanted coffee" is aradtu qahwa. These verbs are the heavy lifters of the language. They handle your past experiences and your past desires. Mastering them makes you sound like a pro immediately. It shows you understand the rhythm of Arabic speech.

Don't apply this rule to regular verbs. Verbs like shariba (to drink) keep all their letters. Only look for that middle alif. Also, this "dropping" rule is for the past tense. In the present tense, the vowel often changes, but it doesn't disappear in the same way. For example, yaquulu (he says) still has a long vowel. Do not drop the vowel when talking about "him," "her," or "them (two)." In those cases, the endings start with vowels. The elevator isn't crowded yet! So, the middle vowel stays to enjoy the ride. If you say qaltu instead of qultu, people might still understand. However, it will sound a bit like saying "I goed" in English. It's cute, but you're better than that!

The biggest mistake is keeping the alif. Learners often say qaaltu instead of qultu. It feels more natural to keep the word whole. But your tongue will trip over the double consonant sound. Another mistake is using the wrong "helper" vowel. Should it be i or u? For qaala, it is u. For ba'a (to sell), it is i. This depends on the original hidden root letter. If you aren't sure, u is a very safe bet for many common verbs. Yes, even native speakers mess this up sometimes when they are tired! Just keep your endings crisp. Don't stress too much about the tiny helper vowel at first. The most important part is dropping that middle alif when you add a consonant ending.

Compare hollow verbs to "Defective" verbs. Defective verbs have a weak letter at the end, like ramaa (to throw). In those, the end of the word changes. Hollow verbs only change in the middle. Also, compare them to regular verbs like darasa (to study). In darasa, you just add tu to get darastu. Easy! In zaara, you can't just add tu to get zaartu. You must drop the alif to get zurtu. Think of regular verbs as solid bricks. Think of hollow verbs as sliding puzzles. You have to move one piece to fit the next one in. It's like a grammar traffic light. Regular verbs are a green light all the way. Hollow verbs have a yellow light in the middle—proceed with caution!