There are five nouns in Arabic that are considered irregular when added to another noun in a genitive phrase as مُـضـاف (muḍāf) ‘annexed.’ The five nouns in Arabic are:
| أَب ’ab father | أَخ ’akh brother | حَـم ḥam father-in-law | فـو fū mouth | ذو dhū owner/possessor of |
Table of Contents
- The Five Nouns vs. The Six Nouns in Arabic
- Declination of Regular Nouns vs. The Five Nouns
- Exceptions of Five Nouns Declination in Arabic
- Level VI – Advanced II (C2)
The Five Nouns vs. The Six Nouns in Arabic
Some grammarians include the noun هَـن (han) ‘unspecified thing’ and refer to these nouns collectively as “The Six Nouns.” However, this sixth noun is rarely used or encountered.
Furthermore, the regular noun فَـم (fam) is more commonly used than the irregular noun فـو (fū), both meaning “mouth.”
Declination of Regular Nouns vs. The Five Nouns
When a regular noun is added to another noun or attached pronoun in a genitive phrase as مُـضـاف (muḍāf) ‘annexed,’ the following case markers are applied:
- The nominative case is indicated by a final ضَـمَّـة (ḍammah) ‘short u.’
- The accusative case is indicated by a final فَـتْـحَـة (fatḥah) ‘short a.’
- The genitive case is indicated by a final كَـسْـرَة (kasrah) ‘short i.’
Here are some examples of the regular nouns أُمّ (’umm) ‘mother’ and اسْــم (ism) ‘name’ in genitive constructions:
| Nominative | Accusative | Genitive |
| هـذِهِ أُمُّ الْـوَلَـدِ٠ hādhihi ’ummu -l-walad. This is the boy’s mother. | رَأَيْـتُ أُمَّ الْـوَلَـدِ٠ ra’aytu ’umma -l-walad. I saw the boy’s mother. | كُـنْـتُ مَـعَ أُمِّ الْـوَلَـدِ٠ kuntu ma‘a ’ummi -l-walad. I was with the boy’s mother. |
| هـذا اسْـمُ الـرَّجُـل٠ hādhā -smu -r-rajul. This is the man’s name. | أَعْـرِفُ اسْـمَ الـرَّجُـل٠ ’a‘rifu -sma -r-rajul. I know the man’s name. | سَـأَلْـتُ عَـنِ اسْـمِ الـرَّجُـلِ٠ sa’altu ‘an (i) -smi -r-rajul. I asked about the man’s name. |
In contrast, when one of the five nouns is added to another noun or attached pronoun in a genitive phrase as a مُـضـاف (muḍāf) ‘annexed,’ the following case markers are applied:
- The nominative case is indicated by a final و (ū).
- The accusative case is indicated by a final ا (ā).
- The genitive case is indicated by a final ي (ī).
The five nouns in Arabic are declined as follows:
| Nominative | Accusative | Genitive | |
| أَب ’ab | أبــو ’abū | أبــا ’abā | أبــي ’abī |
| أَخ ’akh | أَخــو ’akhū | أَخــا ’akhā | أَخــي ’akhī |
| حَـم ḥam | حَــمــو ḥamū | حَــمــا ḥamā | حَــمــي ḥamī |
| فـو fū | فــو fū | فــا fā | فــي fī |
| ذو dhū | ذو dhū | ذا dhā | ذي dhī |
Here are some examples of the nouns أَب (’ab) ‘father’ and أَخ (’akh) ‘brother’ in genitive constructions:
| Nominative | Accusative | Genitive |
| هـذا أَبـو الْـوَلَـد٠ hādhā ’abū -l-walad. This is the boy’s father. | رَأَيْـتُ أَبـا الْـوَلَـدِ٠ ra’aytu ’abā -l-walad. I saw the boy’s father. | كُـنْـتُ مَـعَ أَبـي الْـوَلَـدِ٠ kuntu ma‘a ’abī -l-walad. I was with the boy’s father. |
| أَخـوكَ هُـنـا٠ ’akhūka hunā. Your brother is here. | قـابَـلْـتُ أَخـاكَ٠ qābaltu ’akhāk(a). I met your brother. | سَـمِـعْـتُ عَـنْ أَخـيـكَ٠ sami‘tu ‘an ’akhīk(a). I heard about your brother. |
Here are additional examples of the five nouns in Arabic in context:
| اِجْـتَـمَـعَ رَجُـلٌ ذو سُـلْـطَـةٍ مَـعَ رَجُـلٍ ذي مـال٠ ijtama‘a rajulun dhū sulṭatin ma‘a rajulin dhī māl. A man of authority has met with a man of money (a rich man). |
| حَـمـوكَ رَجُـلٌ طَـيِّـب٠ ḥamūka rajulun ṭayyib. Your father-in-law is a kind man. |
| لا فُــضَّ فُــوكَ٠ lā fuḍḍa fūk(a). An expression: Well spoken! (Lit. May your mouth never be broken.) |
Exceptions of Five Nouns Declination in Arabic
An exception occurs when one of the five nouns is added to the first-person singular attached pronoun, i.e., ــي (ī) ‘my.’ In this case, there is no change in spelling regardless of the case.
| Nominative | Accusative | Genitive |
| هـذا أَبـي٠ hādhā ’abī. This is my father. | زُرْتُ أَبـي٠ zurtu ’abī. I visited my father. | كُـنْـتُ مَـعَ أَبـي٠ kuntu ma‘a ’abī. I was with my father. |
Finally, the irregularity applies only when these nouns are singular (not dual or plural) and not preceded by the definite article الـ (al) ‘the.’
Back to: Specification & Disambiguation
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