There is no indefinite article in Arabic. When not preceded by the definite article, most nouns indicate their indefiniteness by doubling their last short vowel in writing and adding an “n” sound at the end of the word. This is called تَـنْويـن (tanwīn).
If the noun is used in a genitive phrase, e.g., حَــجْــمُ الْـكِـتـابِ (ḥajmu -l-kitāb) ‘size of the book,’ the تَـنْويـن (tanwīn) is omitted. More details on genitive phrases are provided in Level III, Lesson 3.
The تَـنْويـن (tanwīn) is used in formal speech but is seldom found in daily spoken language. Nevertheless, it is important to be aware of the pertinent rules when learning Arabic.
Examples of تَـنْويـن (Tanwīn)
Consider an example using the word كِـتـاب (kitāb) ‘book’:
| تَـنْـويـن ضَـمّ (tanwīn ḍamm) ‘double ḍammah’ i.e., final ‘un’ sound | تَـنْـويـن فَـتْـح (tanwīn fatḥ) ‘double fatḥah’ i.e., final ‘an’ sound | تَـنْـويـن كَـسْـر (tanwīn kasr) ‘double kasrah’ i.e., final ‘in’ sound |
| كِـتـابٌ (kitābun) | كِـتـابًـا (kitāban) | كِـتـابٍ (kitābin) |
The تَـنْويـن (tanwīn) serves a similar purpose to the indefinite article “a” or “an” in English, but it is not an exact equivalent.
Although we refer to تَـنْويـن (tanwīn) as a double vowel ending, the vowel is only doubled in writing. The change in pronunciation is indicated by the extra “n” sound at the end of the word.
| A word cannot have both tanwīn and the definite article الـ (al) ‘the’ at the same time, since tanwīn marks indefiniteness. |
Adding ﺍ (’alif) with تَـنْـويـن فَـتْـح (tanwīn fatḥ)
Note that we add an ﺍ (’alif) at the end of a noun when تَـنْـويـن فَـتْـح (tanwīn fatḥ) is used, e.g., كِـتـابًــا (kitāban).
There are two exceptions where the extra ﺍ (’alif) is not used:
1. When the last consonant is ة (tā’ marbūṭah) ‘tied-t,’ as in كُـرَة (kurah) ‘ball.’
| تَـنْـويـن ضَـمّ (tanwīn ḍamm) | تَـنْـويـن فَـتْـح (tanwīn fatḥ) | تَـنْـويـن كَـسْـر (tanwīn kasr) |
| كُـرَةٌ (kuratun) | كُـرَةً (kuratan) | كُـرَةٍ (kuratin) |
Notice that when تَـنْويـن (tanwīn) is applied at the end of the word, the pronunciation of ة (tā’ marbūṭah) changes from “h” to “t.”
2. When the last consonant is a ء (hamzah)preceded by an ﺍ (’alif), as in سَـمـاء (samā’) ‘sky.’
| تَـنْـويـن ضَـمّ (tanwīn ḍamm) | تَـنْـويـن فَـتْـح (tanwīn fatḥ) | تَـنْـويـن كَـسْـر (tanwīn kasr) |
| سَـمـاءٌ (samā’un) | سَـمـاءً (samā’an) | سَـمـاءٍ (samā’in) |
Grammatical Cases & تَـنْويـن (Tanwīn)
You may wonder how to determine the last vowel of a noun, i.e., when to use كِـتـابٌ (kitābun), كِـتـابًا (kitāban), or كِـتـابٍ (kitābin). The last vowel is determined by the grammatical case of the word.
The default grammatical case for nouns in Arabic is called the nominative, where an indefinite noun is marked with a final تَـنْـويـن ضَـمّ (tanwīnḍamm), e.g., كِـتـابٌ (kitābun) ‘a book.’
We will cover grammatical cases in more detail in Lesson 6 of this level and in Level III, Lesson 4.
Summary of Arabic Diacritics
To summarize, the main diacritics in Arabic are:
| Diacritic | Equivalent | Name |
| ــُـ | short “u” vowel | ضَـمَّـة (ḍammah) |
| ــَـ | short “a” vowel | فَـتْـحَـة (fatḥah) |
| ــِـ | short “i” vowel | كَـسْـرَة (kasrah) |
| ــْـ | no vowel after | سُـكـون (sukūn) |
| ــّـ | double consonant | شَــدَّة (shaddah) |
| ــٌـ | double ḍammah | تَـنْـويـن ضَـمّ (tanwīn ḍamm) |
| ــًـ | double fatḥah | تَـنْـويـن فَـتْـح (tanwīn fatḥ) |
| ــٍـ | double kasrah | تَـنْـويـن كَـسْـر (tanwīn kasr) |
Back to: The Definite Article الـ (al)
Other lessons in Level II: