Adjectives
Adjective agreement in gender, number, and definiteness
I can use adjectives with correct agreement in gender and definiteness
Look at these examples. Can you spot the grammar pattern?
كِتابٌ كَبيرٌ
A big book
الكِتابُ الكَبيرُ
The big book
مَدرَسَةٌ جَديدَةٌ
A new school
الكِتابُ كَبيرٌ
The book is big
Pay attention to the highlighted parts. What do they have in common?
الصفات (Adjectives)
Arabic adjectives follow the noun and must agree in 4 properties: gender, number, definiteness, and case.
| Pattern | Example | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Indef. masc. | كِتابٌ كَبيرٌ | a big book |
| Def. masc. | الكِتابُ الكَبيرُ | the big book |
| Indef. fem. | مَدرَسَةٌ كَبيرَةٌ | a big school |
| Def. fem. | المَدرَسَةُ الكَبيرَةُ | the big school |
Key: If noun has ال, adjective ALSO takes ال. Feminine adjectives add ة. Adjective comes AFTER noun (opposite to English).
Common Error Patterns
Mismatching definiteness between noun and adjective
الكتاب الكبير (both ال) = the big book; الكتاب كبير (only noun) = the book IS big
Not matching adjective gender to noun
Feminine nouns need feminine adjective: مدرسة كبيرة (not كبير)
كِتابٌ كَبيرٌ
A big book
Indefinite: both noun and adjective have tanwin. No ال on either.
الكِتابُ الكَبيرُ
The big book
Definite: BOTH noun and adjective take ال. This is attributive (not predicate).
مَدرَسَةٌ جَديدَةٌ
A new school
مدرسة is feminine → adjective also feminine: جديد → جديدة (add tā marbūṭa).
الكِتابُ كَبيرٌ
The book is big
Predicate: noun has ال but adjective does NOT → this is a sentence (the book IS big).
Practice in course
Apply this grammar in A1 course exercises