Arabic/Basics of Conjugation/Past tense
Conjugating the Past Tense
[edit | edit source]For basic past tense conjugation, called الماضي in Arabic, the root of the verb, that is دَرَسَ or سَكَنَ, is then followed by a suffix according to who or what it is referring to.
- When looking at an Arabic-English dictionary the verb will be listed under the root. This root is also the singular male form of the verb. It is very important to note what form the root of the verb takes (this is for when one wants to become advanced). This can cause the root of the verb to change in accordance to the conjugation.
The past tense can be negated by placing “لا” or "ليس" in front of the word, "ما" in Levantine Arabic.
| English Pronoun | Arabic Pronoun | دَرَسَ (study) | سَكَنَ (live) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Singular | I | أَنا | دَرَسْتُ | سَكَنْتُ |
| Singular | You (m.) | أَنْتَ | دَرَسْتَ | سَكَنْتَ |
| Singular | You (f.) | أَنْتِ | دَرَسْتِ | سَكَنْتِ |
| Singular | He | هُوَ | دَرَسَ | سَكَنَ |
| Singular | She | هِيَ | دَرَسَتْ | سَكَنَتْ |
| Plural | We | نَحْنُ | دَرَسْنا | سَكَنَّا |
| Plural | You (m. pl.) | أنْتُمْ | دَرَسْتُم | سَكَنْتُم |
| Plural | You (f. pl.) | َّأَنْتُن | دَرَستُنَّ | سَكَنْتُنَّ |
| Plural | They (m.) | هُم | دَرَسوا | سَكَنُوا |
| Plural | They (f.) | هُنَّ | دَرَسنَ | سَكَنَّ |