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Subject-Verb Agreement with

If the Verb leads the sentence, it stays singular; if the Subject leads, the verb must match fully.

The Rule in 30 Seconds

  • Verb matches Subject in Gender.
  • Subject First = Match Number & Gender.
  • Verb First = Match Gender only (Singular).
  • Non-human plurals = She (Singular Feminine).

Quick Reference

Sentence Order Subject (Doer) Verb Form (Action) Rule Name
Verb First (VSO) The Student (M) Yadrusu (Singular) Standard Match
Verb First (VSO) The Students (M) Yadrusu (Singular) The Lazy Verb
Subject First (SVO) The Student (M) Yadrusu (Singular) Standard Match
Subject First (SVO) The Students (M) Yadrusuuna (Plural) Full Agreement
Verb First (VSO) The Girls Tadrusu (Fem. Sing.) The Lazy Verb
Subject First (SVO) The Girls Yadrusna (Fem. Pl.) Full Agreement

主な例文

3 / 9
1

Yaktubu al-talibu al-darsa

The student writes the lesson.

2

Al-talibu yaktubu al-darsa

The student writes the lesson.

3

Yaktubu al-tullabu al-darsa

The students write the lesson.

🎯

The Safe Bet

If you are unsure about the plural endings, just put the verb first! You only need to worry about gender then. It's a valid grammar cheat code.

⚠️

The Broken Plural Trap

Remember, non-human plurals (like 'books', 'cats', 'ideas') are treated as a single female. Do not use 'they' for them!

The Rule in 30 Seconds

  • Verb matches Subject in Gender.
  • Subject First = Match Number & Gender.
  • Verb First = Match Gender only (Singular).
  • Non-human plurals = She (Singular Feminine).

Overview

Welcome to the world of Arabic Subject-Verb Agreement! Think of this like a social code between words. In English, you say "He eats" but "They eat." Arabic does this too, but it takes it a step further. The verb (the action) has to check the ID card of the subject (the doer) to see if they match. If the subject is a boy, the verb dresses like a boy. If it's a girl, the verb dresses like a girl. It's polite, it's organized, and yes, it's essential for sounding like you know what you're doing.

How This Grammar Works

Arabic verbs are sensitive. They care deeply about two things regarding the subject: Gender (Male/Female) and Number (One/Many). But here is the plot twist: Order Matters.

If you put the Verb First (Start of sentence), the verb gets lazy. It ignores how *many* people there are and stays singular. It only cares about gender.

If you put the Subject First, the verb has to work harder. It must match the subject in *both* gender and number.

Formation Pattern

  1. 1Let's look at the Present Tense as our default setting.
  2. 2The Gender Check:
  3. 3Masculine subjects usually trigger a ya- start for the verb.
  4. 4Feminine subjects trigger a ta- start.
  5. 5The Number Check (Subject First - SVO):
  6. 6One male: Huwa yadrusu (He studies)
  7. 7Many males: Hum yadrusuuna (They study) - Add -uuna
  8. 8The Lazy Verb Rule (Verb First - VSO):
  9. 9One male: Yadrusu al-talib (The student studies)
  10. 10Many males: Yadrusu al-tullab (The students study) - *Still singular!*

When To Use It

Use this rule literally every time you form a sentence with an action. Asking for coffee? Describing your day? Complaining about the weather? You need this. It is the glue holding your sentence together.

When Not To Use It

Do not worry about this in "Equational Sentences" (sentences without verbs), like saying "The house is big" (Al-bayt kabeer). That is a noun-adjective agreement, which is a different beast entirely. Also, don't overthink it for slang or dialects immediately; they often simplify things, but Standard Arabic (MSA) demands this respect.

Common Mistakes

  • The Over-Achiever: Making the verb plural when it comes *first*.
  • *Wrong:* Yadrusuuna al-tullab (The students study)
  • *Right:* Yadrusu al-tullab (Verb stays singular!)
  • The Gender Bender: Using ya- for a girl or ta- for a boy. Fatima yashrab sounds like "Fatima (he) drinks." It confuses everyone.

Contrast With Similar Patterns

In English, you say "The boys run" and "Run the boys" (if you were a poet). The verb "run" doesn't change much. In Arabic, swapping the order changes the verb's ending. It is a unique feature that gives Arabic its flexibility. You can start with the doer OR the action, but the rules of engagement change slightly.

Quick FAQ

Q: What if the subject is a non-human plural, like 'cars'?

Treat them like a single lady! Al-sayyarat tasru' (The cars speed - feminine singular).

Q: Do I always have to use the subject pronoun like 'Huwa' (He)?

Nope! The verb often contains the pronoun. Yadrusu implies "He studies" all by itself.

Reference Table

Sentence Order Subject (Doer) Verb Form (Action) Rule Name
Verb First (VSO) The Student (M) Yadrusu (Singular) Standard Match
Verb First (VSO) The Students (M) Yadrusu (Singular) The Lazy Verb
Subject First (SVO) The Student (M) Yadrusu (Singular) Standard Match
Subject First (SVO) The Students (M) Yadrusuuna (Plural) Full Agreement
Verb First (VSO) The Girls Tadrusu (Fem. Sing.) The Lazy Verb
Subject First (SVO) The Girls Yadrusna (Fem. Pl.) Full Agreement
🎯

The Safe Bet

If you are unsure about the plural endings, just put the verb first! You only need to worry about gender then. It's a valid grammar cheat code.

⚠️

The Broken Plural Trap

Remember, non-human plurals (like 'books', 'cats', 'ideas') are treated as a single female. Do not use 'they' for them!

💬

Politeness Points

Using the correct gender agreement is considered very polite. Calling a woman 'he' isn't just bad grammar; it can be slightly offensive or just very confusing.

💡

The 'Ta' Trick

Think of 'Ta' as the Two-faced prefix. It works for 'She' (Hiya) AND 'You male' (Anta). Context is your best friend here.

例文

9
#1 يَكْتُبُ الطَّالِبُ الدَّرْسَ

Yaktubu al-talibu al-darsa

Focus: Yaktubu

The student writes the lesson.

Verb First: Singular Masculine.

#2 الطَّالِبُ يَكْتُبُ الدَّرْسَ

Al-talibu yaktubu al-darsa

Focus: yaktubu

The student writes the lesson.

Subject First: Singular Masculine.

#3 يَكْتُبُ الطُّلَّابُ الدَّرْسَ

Yaktubu al-tullabu al-darsa

Focus: Yaktubu

The students write the lesson.

Verb First: Stays Singular despite plural subject!

#4 الطُّلَّابُ يَكْتُبُونَ الدَّرْسَ

Al-tullabu yaktubuuna al-darsa

Focus: yaktubuuna

The students write the lesson.

Subject First: Must match plural subject.

#5 تَشْرَبُ البِنْتُ الحَلِيبَ

Tashrabu al-bintu al-haleeba

Focus: Tashrabu

The girl drinks the milk.

Feminine subject gets 'Ta-' prefix.

#6 الكِلَابُ تَنَامُ

Al-kilabu tanaamu

Focus: tanaamu

The dogs sleep.

Non-human plural (dogs) = Feminine Singular verb.

#7 يَذْهَبُونَ الأَوْلَادُ ✗

Yadhabuuna al-awladu (Incorrect)

Focus: Yadhabuuna

The boys go.

Mistake: Plural verb used at start.

#8 يَذْهَبُ الأَوْلَادُ ✓

Yadhabu al-awladu (Correct)

Focus: Yadhabu

The boys go.

Correction: Verb must be singular at start.

#9 أَنَا وَأَحْمَد نَدْرُسُ

Ana wa Ahmed nadrusu

Focus: nadrusu

Ahmed and I study.

Compound subject 'We' triggers 'Na-' prefix.

自分をテスト

Choose the correct verb form for the beginning of the sentence.

___ Al-tullabu ila al-madrasati. (The students go to school)

✓ 正解！ ✗ おしい！ 正解: Yadhabu

Because the verb comes first, it stays singular (masculine) even though 'students' is plural.

Match the verb to the subject in this SVO sentence.

Al-banatu ___ al-tufaha. (The girls eat the apple)

✓ 正解！ ✗ おしい！ 正解: Ya'kulna

Subject comes first (The girls), so the verb must match in gender and number (Feminine Plural).

Select the correct verb for a non-human plural subject.

Al-sayyarat (The cars) ___.

✓ 正解！ ✗ おしい！ 正解: Tasru'u

Non-human plurals are treated as 'She' (Feminine Singular).

🎉 スコア： /3

ビジュアル学習ツール

Boy vs Girl Verbs (Present)

Masculine (Huwa)
Ya- Prefix
Yadrusu He studies
Feminine (Hiya)
Ta- Prefix
Tadrusu She studies

Which Verb Form?

1

Is the Verb First?

YES ↓
NO
Check Subject Number -> Match It!
2

Is Subject Human?

YES ↓
NO
Use Feminine Singular (She)
3

Is Subject Male?

YES ↓
NO
Use Feminine Singular (Ta-)
4

Result

YES ↓
NO
Use Masculine Singular (Ya-)

Pronoun Hidden in Verbs

🔡

Prefixes

  • • Ya- (He/They)
  • • Ta- (She/You)
  • • A- (I)
  • • Na- (We)
🔚

Suffixes

  • • -uuna (Plural M)
  • • -na (Plural F)
  • • -een (You F)

よくある質問

20 問

Think of the verb as introducing the topic. It doesn't know how many people are coming yet, so it stays in default mode (singular). Once the subject appears, the meaning is clear.

Yes! In VSO (Verb First), the past tense verb also stays singular. Dhahaba al-awlad (The boys went), not Dhahabuu.

For 'I' (Ana), use the A- prefix (Aktubu). For 'We' (Nahnu), use the Na- prefix (Naktubu). These are always subject-first in meaning.

If subject is first: Al-banat ya'kulna. If verb is first: Ta'kulu al-banat.

VSO (Verb First) is very formal and classic Arabic style. SVO (Subject First) is becoming more common in modern media and dialects.

Arabic has a specific form for exactly two people! But for A1, we usually group them with plurals or handle them separately. Just know it exists.

Adjectives follow the noun they describe exactly—in gender, number, and definiteness. They are the ultimate copycats.

The patriarchy wins in grammar, unfortunately. A mixed group is treated as Masculine Plural (Hum).

People might understand you, but it will sound broken. Like saying 'Me go store' in English.

For a male, it's Ta- (Tadrusu - You study). For a female, it's Ta- plus a suffix (Tadrubeena).

It is just a quirk of the language. 'Cars', 'books', 'trees' are all 'She' when plural. Al-kutub mufida (The books [she is] useful).

Yes, dialects often simplify this. They prefer SVO (Subject First) and might drop some specific feminine plural forms.

'People' is treated as a masculine plural. Al-naas yaqooluuna (The people say).

Then the verb MUST contain the pronoun. If you drop 'The boys', you must say Yadhabuuna (They go), not Yadhabu.

No. The verb only cares about the Subject. The object just sits there waiting to be acted upon.

Most verbs are built on 3 letters (like K-T-B for writing). The prefixes and suffixes we add for agreement just attach to this root.

Look for the Ta Marbuta (ة) at the end. It's a dead giveaway that you need a feminine verb.

Countries and cities are almost always treated as Feminine Singular. Misr jamila (Egypt is beautiful).

Yes, but number rules are complex. At A1, just stick to Singular vs. Plural.

Forgetting the 'Lazy Verb' rule in VSO sentences and making the verb plural unnecessarily.

役に立った？

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