Personal Pronouns
أنا أنتَ أنتِ هو هي نحن أنتم هم + dual forms
Can use personal pronouns to introduce myself and talk about others
Look at these examples. Can you spot the grammar pattern?
أنا طالِب
I am a student (m)
أنتَ مِن أين؟
Where are you (m) from?
هُوَ مُعَلِّم
He is a teacher
نَحْنُ مِن مِصْر
We are from Egypt
Pay attention to the highlighted parts. What do they have in common?
الضمائر المنفصلة
Arabic personal pronouns distinguish person, number, AND gender:
| Singular | Dual | Plural | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | أنا (I) | نحن (we) | |
| 2nd m. | أنتَ (you m.) | أنتُما | أنتُم |
| 2nd f. | أنتِ (you f.) | أنتُنَّ | |
| 3rd m. | هُوَ (he) | هُما | هُم |
| 3rd f. | هِيَ (she) | هُنَّ | |
Arabic has a dual (for exactly 2) — rare in world languages. At A1, focus on: أنا، أنتَ/أنتِ، هو/هي، نحن، هم. The feminine plurals (أنتنّ، هنّ) are formal MSA — colloquial Arabic often uses masculine forms for mixed groups.
Common Error Patterns
Used wrong gender pronoun (أنتَ for female, أنتِ for male)
أنتَ (fatḥa, -a ending) = male, أنتِ (kasra, -i ending) = female
Added a 'to be' verb in present tense
Arabic has NO present-tense copula: أنا طالب (I student) = I am a student
أنا طالِب
I am a student (m)
anā ṭālib — no verb 'am' needed! Arabic drops 'to be' in present tense.
أنتَ مِن أين؟
Where are you (m) from?
anta min ayna — أنتَ with fatḥa = masculine 'you'.
هُوَ مُعَلِّم
He is a teacher
huwa muʿallim — هو = he. Again no 'is' in Arabic.
نَحْنُ مِن مِصْر
We are from Egypt
naḥnu min miṣr — نحن = we (all genders).
Practice in course
Apply this grammar in A1 course exercises