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8 Semi-flexible nouns
8.1 Introduction
Nouns are of two main categories of nouns, with regard to their endings in the different noun states:
- Rigid nouns.
- Flexible nouns. These are further sub-divided into:
- Fully-flexible nouns.
- Semi-flexible nouns.
So far we have been mostly studying fully-flexible nouns. In this chapter we will learn about semi-flexible nouns.
Here is an example of the kind of nouns we have learned so far:
| State | Indefinite | Definite |
|---|---|---|
| u-state | رَجُلٌ | ٱَلرَّجُلُ |
| a-state | رَجُلًا | ٱَلرَّجُلَ |
| i-state | رَجُلٍ | ٱَلرَّجُلِ |
As you can see, the noun is nūnated when it is indefinite, and also, the vowel mark on the last letter changes for each state that the noun is in. These kinds of nouns are called fully-flexible nouns. They are by far the most common type of noun.
There are some nouns, however, that are semi-flexible. Here is an example of a semi-flexible noun, صَحْرَاء ṣaḥrāʾ “a desert”:
| State | Indefinite | Definite |
|---|---|---|
| u-state | صَحْرَاءُ | ٱَلصَّحْرَاءُ |
| a-state | صَحْرَاءَ | ٱَلصَّحْرَاءَ |
| i-state | صَحْرَاءَ | ٱَلصَّحْرَاءِ |
As you can see, when صَحْرَاء ṣaḥrāʾ is indefinite, it is not nūnated. Also, when it is indefinite and in the i-state, the vowel mark on its final letter is not ◌ِ, as you might expect but ◌َ . And so the noun looks identical in the a-state and i-state when it is indefinite.
When it is definite, however, it looks just like fully-flexible nouns.
So there are two differences between fully-flexible and semi-flexible nouns:
- When indefinite, a semi-flexible noun is not nūnated.
- When indefinite and in the i-state, a semi-flexible noun’s final letter does not have an i-mark. Instead it shall have an a-mark, just like when it is in the a-state.
The other category of nouns are rigid nouns. Rigid nouns don’t change their endings due to their state. They are much fewer in number compared to flexible nouns. Pronouns are an example of rigid nouns.
8.2 Feminine markers
Before we discuss semi-flexible nouns in more detail, we will discuss feminine markers. We already know of one feminine marker: the ة. When a singular noun ends with ة, then that is an indication, with very few exceptions, that it is a feminine noun. Examples are:
| Root | Feminine noun | Masculine noun from same root (if any) |
|---|---|---|
| «جري» | جَارِيَة “a girlf” | – |
| «علم» | عَالِمَة “a scholarf” | عَالِم “a scholarm” |
| «کلب» | کَلْبَة “a dogf” | کَلْب “a dogm” |
| «شجر» | شَجَرَة “a tree” | – |
| «صغر» | صَغِيرَة adj. “smallf” | صَغِير adj. “smallm” |
As you can see, the feminine marker ة is never part of the noun’s root. It is thus considered extrinsic to the root. Also, sometimes, but not always, the feminine noun is formed by adding the feminine marker ة to the end of a masculine noun.
It is also important to note that ة is only a feminine marker for singular nouns. When we learn plurals, if Allāh wills, we will see that ة is used frequently with masculine plurals.
Now we will learn of two more feminine markers: اء and ىٰ.
Here are some examples of nouns that end with these two feminine markers:
| Root | Feminine noun | Masculine noun (if any) |
|---|---|---|
| «صحر» | صَحْرَاء “a desert” | – |
| «حمر» | حَمْرَاء adj. “redf” | أَحْمَر adj. “redm” |
| «ذکر» | ذِکْرَىٰ “a remembrance” | – |
| «غضب» | غَضْبَىٰ adj. “very angryf” | غَضْبَان adj. “very angrym” |
When extrinsic to the word’s root, اء and ىٰ are feminine markers, just like ة. However, one important difference from ة is that sometimes اء and ىٰ may not be extrinsic to the word’s root. In this case, they will not be feminine markers, and the noun will regularly be a masculine noun. Examples:
| Root | Noun | Pattern using paradigm «فعل» |
|---|---|---|
| «هدي» | ٱلْهُدَىٰ (masc.) “the guidance” | ٱَلْفُعَل |
| «خبء» | خِبَاء (masc.) “a tent” | فِعَال |
These cases will become more clear, if Allāh wills, when we study weak roots (roots that contain a weak letter like ء، و، ي).
Otherwise, when extrinsic to the word’s root, اء, and ىٰ are consistently feminine markers, just like ة.
Also, just like ة, اء and ىٰ are only feminine markers for singular nouns. We will see, if Allāh wills, that they are used frequently with masculine plurals.
By the way, another difference from ة is that when اء and ىٰ are feminine markers, and a masculine counterpart exists, then the feminine noun is not formed by simply adding the feminine marker to the end of the masculine noun. The masculine and feminine nouns are different internally as well. For example, the feminine noun حَمْرَاء adj. “redf” is not formed simply by adding the feminine marker اء to the end of the masculine noun أَحْمَر adj. “redm”.
We will discuss this in more detail below.
8.3 Categories of semi-flexible nouns
We now return to our discussion of semi-flexible nouns. Semi-flexible nouns, in terms of their formation, fall under different categories. We will discuss them below.
When discussing semi-flexible nouns in isolation we will add the numeral 2 as a superscript to their ending, thus: 2صَحْرَاء ṣaḥrāʾ2. This is to indicate their semi-flexibility.
8.3.1 Nouns that end with an extrinsic اء
If a noun ends with an اء, which is extrinsic to the word’s root, then it shall be a semi-flexible noun.
We have already seen an example of such a noun above: 2صَحْرَاء ṣaḥrāʾ2 “a desert”. The root of this noun is «صحر». You can see that the ending اء is not part of the root. Therefore it is a semi-flexible noun.
Furthermore, we have also learned that this اء, which is extrinsic to the word’s root, is a feminine marker for singular nouns, just like ة, except that ة does not generally make a noun semi-flexible.
Here is an example sentence with this noun:
ذَهَبَ ٱلرَّجُلُ إِلَىٰ صَحْرَاءَ وَاسِعَةٍ.
d͡hahaba -rrajulu ʾilā ṣaḥrāʾa wāsiɛah.
“The man went to a wide desert.”
Note that the vowel mark on the final letter of صَحْرَاءَ ṣaḥrāʾa is ◌َ, not ◌ٍ, even though it is indefinite and in the i-state (because it is preceded by the preposition إِلَىٰ ʾilā “to”). This is because it is a semi-flexible noun.
2صَحْرَاء ṣaḥrāʾ2 in this sentence is also a describee, whose describer is وَاسِعَةٍ wāsiɛatin “wide”. The final vowel mark ◌َ on the describee صَحْرَاءَ ṣaḥrāʾa has no effect on the final vowel mark on the describer وَاسِعَةٍ wāsiɛatin “wide”. All that matters in this regard is the state of the describee.
Note, also, that the describer وَاسِعَة is feminine to match the gender of the describee 2صَحْرَاء ṣaḥrāʾ2.
Note, as well, that the describer وَاسِعَةٍ is nūnated as it is indefinite and fully-flexible. The inability of its describee 2صَحْرَاء ṣaḥrāʾ2 to be nūnated (because of its semi-flexibility) does not affect the describer.
Also, beware, as we’ve already mentioned, that there are some words where the اء ending may be part of the word’s root, for example خِبَاء k͡hibāʾ “a tent” from the root «خبء» on the pattern خِبَاء. Such words will be fully flexible. Also, for the same reason, اء in this word is not a feminine marker, and the word is masculine.
8.3.2 Nouns that end with an extrinsic ىٰ
If a noun ends with an ىٰ which is extrinsic to the word’s root, then it shall be a semi-flexible noun.
We’ve already seen an example of such a word: 2ذِکْرَىٰ d͡hikrā2 “a remembrance”. The root of this word is «ذکر» and it is on the pattern فِعْلَىٰ.
We’ve also learned that, similar to اء, this ىٰ, which is extrinsic to the word’s root, is a feminine marker for singular nouns.
Since 2ذِکْرَىٰ d͡hikrā2 already ends with the vowel-mark ◌ٰ, the last letter won’t have any additional vowel markers and therefore the word will appear the same in all states:
| State | Indefinite | Definite |
|---|---|---|
| u-state | ذِکْرَىٰ | ٱَلذِّکْرَىٰ |
| a-state | ذِکْرَىٰ | ٱَلذِّکْرَىٰ |
| i-state | ذِکْرَىٰ | ٱَلذِّکْرَىٰ |
Therefore, the state of such nouns cannot be determined by the vowel mark on their final letter, and has to be deduced otherwise by their function in the sentence. Nevertheless, these nouns are still included in the category of semi-flexible nouns, and not rigid nouns. This is because rigid nouns are closed set consisting only of pronouns and other similar words.
Here is an example of this word in a sentence:
ٱَلْکِتَابُ ذِکْرَىٰ جَمِيلةٌ.
ʾalkitābu d͡hikrā jamīlah.
“The book is a beautiful remembrance.”
Note, again how the describer جَمِيلَة jamīlah is feminine and in the u-state, in order to match the gender and state of the describee 2ذِکْرَىٰ d͡hikrā2.
Beware also that, just like in the case of اء, there are some words where ىٰ may be part of the word’s root, e.g. ٱَلْهُدَىٰ ʾalhudā “the guidance” whose root is «هدي». Because here the ىٰ in ٱلْهُدَىٰ is part of the word’s root, therefore it shall not be a semi-flexible noun. So, when it is indefinite, it will be nūnated: هُدًى hudan “a guidance”. Also, for the same reason, ىٰ in this word is not a feminine marker, and the word is masculine.
8.3.3 Nouns on the pattern أَفْعَل
If a noun is on the pattern أَفْعَل ʾafɛal then it shall be a semi-flexible noun. By the way, there is no feminine marker on such words, so they will be masculine by default.
Most colors and many physical characteristics fall into this pattern. Colors and physical characteristics are adjectival nouns. The masculine noun for such adjectival-nouns is on the pattern أَفْعَل ʾafɛal. And the feminine adjectival noun is on the pattern فَعْلَاء faɛlāʾ (which is itself a semi-flexible noun pattern because of the extrinsic اء ending). Here are some examples of such adjectival nouns:
| Root | Masc. Noun | Fem. noun | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| «حمر» | 2أَحْمَر | 2حَمْرَاء | red |
| «سود» | 2أَسْوَد | 2سَوْدَاء | black |
| «بيض» | 2أَبْيَض | 2بَيْضَاء | white |
| «عرج» | 2أَعْرَج | 2عَرْجَاء | lame |
| «حور» | 2أَحْوَر | 2حَوْرَاء | beautiful eyed |
| «بکم» | 2أَبْکَم | 2بَکْمَاء | mute |
Example:
لَبِسَ ٱلرَّجُلُ قَمِيصًا أَبْيَضُ.
labisa -rrajulu qamīṣan ʾabyaḍ.
“The man wore a white shirt.”
8.3.4 Adjectival nouns that end with an extrinsic ان
The letters ان may be an extrinsic ending for nouns. This ending is not a feminine marker so the noun would typically be masculine. This ending may cause the noun to be semi-flexible.
This category is more complicated than the previous ones. The following conditions must be satisfied for a word that ends with ان to be a semi-flexible noun:
- The noun must be a adjectival-noun on the pattern فَعْلَان. So the common noun ثُعْبَان t͡huɛbān “a serpent” of the root «ثعي» is a common noun and therefore, not a semi-flexible noun.
- The ان must be extrinsic to the word’s root. So جَبَان jabānun “cowardly”, an adjectival noun of the root «جبن», is not a semi-flexible noun.
- The feminine of the adjectival noun shall not be formed by adding ة to the masculine noun. So نَدْمَان nadmān “regretful”, an adjectival-noun from the root «ندم», is not a semi-flexible noun, because its feminine is نَدْمَانَة nadmānah.
It is rare that this last condition fails. Most adjectival nouns that end with an extrinsic ان are of the pattern فَعْلَان faɛlān and their feminine is of the pattern فَعْلَىٰ faɛlā (which is itself a semi-flexible noun pattern). These adjectival-nouns typically have an emphatic meaning. The following are examples of semi-flexible adjectival-nouns that fall into this category:
| Root | Masc. Noun | Fem. noun | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| «غضب» | 2غَضْبَان | 2غَضْبَىٰ | very angry |
| «عطش» | 2عَطْشَان | 2عَطْشَىٰ | very thirsty |
| «جوع» | 2جَوْعَان | 2جَوْعَىٰ | very hungry |
8.3.5 Nouns of the patterns فَفَافِف and فَفَافِيف
Nouns that are of the patterns فَفَافِف and فَفَافِيف are also semi-flexible nouns. Here each letter ف could be any letter of the alphabet.
Here are some examples of these nouns:
- 2مَسَاجِد masājid2 “mosques”
- 2مَفَاتِيح mafātīḥ2 “keys”
These patterns are only used for plurals and we will study them in more detail in chapter 11 , if Allāh wills.