Language/Standard-arabic/Grammar/Question-words
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As a Standard Arabic language teacher for 20 years, I am excited to teach you about question words in Arabic. In this lesson, we will cover the most frequently used question words in Arabic and learn how to form questions in Arabic. Along the way, we will delve into the cultural context of each word, giving you a deeper understanding of the language and its speakers.
Take some time to dive into these other pages after completing this lesson: Accents & Al ham'za الهمزة.
Question Words in Arabic
In Arabic, question words are used to ask information-seeking questions. The most commonly used question words in Arabic are:
- مَا (ma) - What
- مَن (man) - Who
- مَتَى (mataa) - When
- لِمَاذَا (limaadhaa) - Why
- كَيْفَ (kayfa) - How
- أَيْنَ (ayna) - Where
- كَمْ (kam) - How much/many
Let's take a closer look at each of these question words.
مَا (ma) - What
مَا (ma) is used to ask about things or concepts. It is a general question word and can be used to ask about most nouns. Here are some examples:
Standard Arabic | Pronunciation | English |
---|---|---|
ما هَذَا؟ | ma hadhaa? | What is this? |
ما اسْمُكَ؟ | ma ismuka? | What is your name? |
ما هُوَ يَعْمَلُ؟ | ma huwa ya'malu? | What does he do? |
مَن (man) - Who
مَن (man) is used to ask about people. Here are some examples:
Standard Arabic | Pronunciation | English |
---|---|---|
مَنْ هُوَ؟ | man huwa? | Who is he? |
مَنْ يَعْمَلُ هُنَا؟ | man ya'malu huna? | Who works here? |
مَنْ يَأْكُلُ اللَّحْمَ؟ | man ya'kulul lahama? | Who eats meat? |
مَتَى (mataa) - When
مَتَى (mataa) is used to ask about time. Here are some examples:
Standard Arabic | Pronunciation | English |
---|---|---|
مَتَى يَبْدَأُ الدَّرْسُ؟ | mataa yabda'u ad-dars? | When does the lesson start? |
مَتَى تُغْلَقُ المَكْتَبَةُ؟ | mataa tughlaqu al-maktabah? | When does the library close? |
مَتَى سَتُعِيَدُ زِيَارَتُكَ؟ | mataa sa tu'iyadu ziyaaratu-ka? | When will you visit again? |
لِمَاذَا (limaadhaa) - Why
لِمَاذَا (limaadhaa) is used to ask about the reason something happens. Here are some examples:
Standard Arabic | Pronunciation | English |
---|---|---|
لِمَاذَا أَنْتَ مُتَأَخِّرٌ؟ | limaadhaa anta muta'akhkhirun? | Why are you late? |
لِمَاذَا أُحِبُّ السَّفَرَ؟ | limaadhaa uhibbu as-safara? | Why do I love to travel? |
لِمَاذَا لَا تَرْدُ عَلَى رِسَالَتِي؟ | limaadhaa la tardu 'alaa risaalati? | Why don't you reply to my message? |
كَيْفَ (kayfa) - How
كَيْفَ (kayfa) is used to ask about the manner in which something happens. Here are some examples:
Standard Arabic | Pronunciation | English |
---|---|---|
كَيْفَ الجَوُّ اليَوْمَ؟ | kayfa al-jawwu al-yawma? | How is the weather today? |
كَيْفَ تَقْضِي يَوْمَكَ؟ | kayfa taqdi yawmaka? | How do you spend your day? |
كَيْفَ هَرَبُوا؟ | kayfa harabuu? | How did they escape? |
أَيْنَ (ayna) - Where
أَيْنَ (ayna) is used to ask about the location of something. Here are some examples:
Standard Arabic | Pronunciation | English |
---|---|---|
أَيْنَ الحَمَّامُ؟ | ayna al-hammaamu? | Where is the bathroom? |
أَيْنَ تَعِيشُ؟ | ayna ta'ishu? | Where do you live? |
أَيْنَ القَلَمُ؟ | ayna al-qalamu? | Where is the pen? |
كَمْ (kam) - How much/many
كَمْ (kam) is used to ask about quantity. Here are some examples:
Standard Arabic | Pronunciation | English |
---|---|---|
كَمْ سَعْرُ السَّيَّارَةِ؟ | kam sa'ru as-sayyaarati? | How much is the car? |
كَمْ لَدَيْكَ مَالًا؟ | kam ladayka maalan? | How much money do you have? |
كَمْ عُمْرُ الأُسْدِ؟ | kam 'umru al-'usdi? | How old are lions? |
Question Formation
To form a question in Arabic, you can start with a verb or a question word. The word order of a question in Arabic is the same as in a statement, except that the verb comes first. Consider the following examples:
Statement | Question | ||
---|---|---|---|
هُوَ يَأْكُلُ الفَاكِهَةَ. | هَلْ هُوَ يَأْكُلُ الفَاكِهَةَ؟ (hal huwa ya'kulu al-faakihtah?) | ||
أَنَا تَعِبَانُ. | هَلْ أَنَا تَعِبَانُ؟ (hal ana ta'ibaan?) | ||
أَنْتُمْ تَسْمَعُونَ الْمُوسِيقَى. | هَلْ أَنْتُمْ تَسْمَعُونَ الْمُوس
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