In this lesson, we study interrogatives in Arabic. Interrogative particles and pronouns are the language tools we use to ask questions.
Table of Contents
- Yes/No Questions
- Basic Interrogatives in Arabic
- Difference between مــا؟ (mā) and مــاذا؟ (mādhā)
- Interrogatives Preceded by a Preposition
- Level IV – Intermediate II (B2)
Yes/No Questions
The formal way to ask a نَـعَـمْ (na‘am) ‘yes’ or لا (lā) ‘no’ question is to place the interrogative particle هَــلْ (hal) or أَ (’a) before a statement. For example:
| هَـلْ تُـريـدُ أَنْ تَـأْكُـل؟ hal turīdu ’an ta’kul(a)? Do you want to eat? | أَ تُـريـدُ أَنْ تَـأْكُـل؟ ’a-turīdu ’an ta’kul(a)? Do you want to eat? |
| هَـلْ بَـيْـتُـكَ قَـريـبٌ مِـنْ هُـنـا؟ hal baytuka qarībun min hunā? Is your house close to here? | أَ بَـيْـتُـكَ قَـريـبٌ مِـنْ هُـنـا؟ ’a-baytuka qarībun min hunā? Is your house close to here? |
In informal spoken language, the interrogative particle هَــلْ (hal) or أَ (’a) is omitted and the statement is turned into a question by simply changing the intonation. For example:
| تُـريـدُ أَنْ تَـأْكُـل؟ turīdu ’an ta’kul(a)? You want to eat? | بَـيْـتُـكَ قَـريـبٌ مِـنْ هُـنـا؟ baytuka qarībun min hunā? Your house is close to here? |
Basic Interrogatives in Arabic
The basic interrogatives in Arabic are:
| Interrogative | English meaning | Example |
| مــا؟ mā? | What? | مــا لَـوْنُ الـسَّـيّـارَةِ؟ mā lawnu -s-sayyārah? What is the color of the car? |
| مـاذا؟ mādhā? | What? | مــاذا تَـفْـعَـلُ الْآنَ؟ mādhā taf‘alu -l-’ān? What are you doing now? |
| مَــنْ؟ man? | Who/Whom? | مَــنْ فَـعَـلَ هــذا؟ man fa‘ala hādhā? Who did this? |
| كَـيْـفَ؟ kayfa? | How? | كَـيْـفَ فَـعَـلْـتَهــذا؟ kayfa fa‘alta hādhā? How did you do this? |
| أَيُّ؟ ’ayyu? | Which? | أَيُّ هـذِهِ الـمَـفـاتـيـحِ لَـكَ؟ ’ayyu hādhihi -l-mafātīḥi lak(a)? Which of these keys is yours? |
| كَــمْ؟ kam? | How much? How many? | كَـمْ طـالِـبًـا هُـنـاكَ؟ kam ṭāliban hunāk(a)? How many students are there? |
| مَـتـى؟ matā? | When? | مَـتـى تُـريـدُ أَنْ تَـذْهَـبَ؟ matā turīdu ’an tadh hab(a)? When do you want to go? |
| أَيْــنَ؟ ’ayna? | Where? | أَيْـنَ أَنْـتَ الْآن؟ ’ayna ’anta -l-’ān? Where are you now? |
In addition, there are some uncommon interrogatives that are rarely used in spoken language but can be found in literary writing, such as:
| Interrogative | English meaning | Example |
| أَنّــى؟ ’annā | From where? | أَنّـى لَـكَ كُـلُّ هـذا الْـوَقْـتِ؟ ’annā laka kullu hādhā -l-waqt? From where do you get all this time? |
| أَيّــانَ؟ ’ayyāna | When? (in the future) | أَيّانَ سَـوْفَ تُـغـادِرُ؟ ’ayyāna sawfa tughādir? When will you leave? |
Difference between مــا؟ (mā) and مــاذا؟ (mādhā)
There is a difference in usage between مـا (mā) and مـاذا (mādhā), both translated as “what.” While مـا (mā) can be used before nouns or verbs, it is more commonly used before nouns. On the other hand, مـاذا (mādhā) is used exclusively before verbs. To simply ask “What?” we use مـاذا؟ (mādhā).
Here are some examples:
| مـا اسْـمُـكَ؟ mā -smuk(a)? What is your name? | مـا لَـوْنُ الـسَّـيّـارَةِ؟ mā lawnu -s-sayyārah? What is the color of the car? |
| مـاذا تَـفْـعَـلُ هُـنـا؟ mādhā taf‘alu hunā? What are you doing here? | مـاذا تُـريـدُ أَنْ تَـأْكُـل؟ mādhā turīdu ’an ta’kul(a)? What do you want to eat? |
Interrogatives Preceded by a Preposition
Some interrogatives in Arabic can be preceded by a preposition to convey more complex meanings, such as لِــمَ (lima) and لِـمـاذا (limādhā), both meaning “why,” or more literally, “for what?” The two interrogatives are formed by combining the preposition لِــ (li) ‘to/for’ with the basic interrogatives مـا (mā) and مـاذا (mādhā), as follows:
| لِــ li to/for | + | مـا؟ mā what? | = | لِــمَ؟ lima why? for what? |
| لِــ li to/for | + | مـاذا؟ mādhā what? | = | لِـمـاذا؟ limādhā why? for what? |
Note that when the interrogative مـا (mā) is preceded by a preposition, the final ا (’alif) is often omitted and replaced with a فَـتْـحَـة (fatḥah) ‘short a.’
Other similar pronouns include:
| Interrogative | English meaning | Example |
| لِـمَـنْ؟ li-man? | To whom? Whose? | لِـمَـنْ أَرْسَـلْـتَ الـرِّسـالَـةَ؟ li-man ’arsalta -r-risālah? To whom did you send the letter? |
| بِـمـاذا؟ bi-mādhā | In/Of What? | بِـمـاذا تُـفَـكِّـرُ؟ bi-mādhā tufakkir(u)? What are you thinking of? |
| إِلــى أَيْــنَ؟ ’ilā ’ayna? | To where? | إِلى أَيْنَ سَـتَـذْهَـبُ؟ ’ilā ’ayna sa-tadh hab(u)? Where are you going to? |
| مِــنْ أَيْــنَ؟ min ’ayna? | From where? | مِـنْ أَيْنَ أَتَـيْـتَ؟ min ’ayna ’atayt(a)? Where did you come from? |
| (1) عَـــمَّ؟ ‘amma? | About what? | عَـــمَّ سَـيَـتَـحَـدَّثُ الْـيَـوْم؟ ‘amma sa-yataḥaddathu -l-yawm? What will he talk about today? |
| (2) مِـــمَّ؟ mimma? | From/Of what? | مِـــمَّ صُـنِـعَـتْ هـذه الْـحَـقـيـبَـةُ؟ mimma ṣuni‘at hādhihi -l-ḥaqībah? What is this bag made of? |
| (3) مِـمَّـن؟ mimman? | From whom? | مِـمَّـن سَـمِـعْـتَ هـذا؟ mimman sami‘ta hādhā? From whom did you hear this? |
| (4) عَـمَّـن؟ ‘amman? | About whom? | عَـمَّـن تَـتَـكَـلَّـمُ؟ ‘amman tatakallam(u)? About whom are you talking? |
| مَــعَ مَـنْ؟ ma‘a man? | With whom? | مَــعَ مَـنْ تَـعـيـشُ؟ ma‘a man ta‘īsh(u)? With whom do you live? |
(1) The interrogative عَـــمَّ (‘amma) ‘about what’ is the combination of the preposition عَـنْ (‘an) ‘about’ followed by the interrogative ما (mā) ‘what.’
(2) The interrogative مِـــمَّ (mimma) ‘from what’ is the combination of the preposition مِـنْ (min) ‘from’ followed by the interrogative ما (mā) ‘what.’
(3) The interrogative مِـمَّـن (mimman) ‘from whom’ is the combination of the preposition مِـنْ (min) ‘from’ followed by the interrogative مَـنْ (man) ‘who.’
(4) The interrogative عَـمَّـن (‘amman) ‘about whom’ is the combination of the preposition عَـنْ (‘an) ‘about’ followed by the interrogative مَـنْ (man) ‘who.’
Other lessons in Level IV: