1. Introduction to Past Tense Conjugation

The past tense in Arabic, known as الماضي (al-maadi), is used to describe actions that have been completed. Conjugating verbs in the past tense involves adding specific suffixes to the root of the verb, depending on the subject.

1.1 The Basic Structure

• In Arabic, the past tense is based on the perfect aspect and indicates a completed action.
• The conjugation involves adding suffixes to a base form, which is derived from the root of the verb.
• The base form of the verb typically represents the third person masculine singular (he).

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2. Regular Verbs (الفعل الثلاثي المجرد)

Regular verbs, or الفعل الثلاثي المجرد (the basic form of triliteral verbs), follow predictable patterns in their conjugation.

2.1 Past Tense Conjugation for Regular Verbs

Using the verb كَتَبَ (kataba), meaning “to write”:

Subject Pronoun	Arabic	English
أنا	كتبتُ	I wrote
أنتَ	كتبتَ	You (m.) wrote
أنتِ	كتبتِ	You (f.) wrote
هو	كتبَ	He wrote
هي	كتبتْ	She wrote
نحن	كتبنا	We wrote
أنتم	كتبتم	You (m. pl.) wrote
أنتن	كتبتنَّ	You (f. pl.) wrote
هم	كتبوا	They (m.) wrote
هن	كتبنَ	They (f.) wrote

2.2 Suffixes for Past Tense

• The suffixes in the past tense change according to the gender and number of the subject.
• Suffixes:
  • تُ (-tu) for “I” (أنا)
  • تَ (-ta) for “you (m. singular)” (أنتَ)
  • تِ (-ti) for “you (f. singular)” (أنتِ)
  • _ (no suffix) for “he” (هو)
  • تْ (-t) for “she” (هي)
  • نا (-naa) for “we” (نحن)
  • تم (-tum) for “you (m. plural)” (أنتم)
  • تنَّ (-tun) for “you (f. plural)” (أنتن)
  • وا (-u) for “they (m. plural)” (هم)
  • نَّ (-na) for “they (f. plural)” (هن)

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3. Irregular Verbs and Common Patterns

While regular verbs follow predictable patterns, irregular verbs may deviate in their conjugation. Irregular verbs can include weak verbs (containing a weak letter like و or ي) and verbs with doubled consonants.

3.1 Weak Verbs (الأفعال المعتلة)

Weak verbs contain a weak letter (و, ي, or أ) in one of their root positions. These weak letters can affect how the verb is conjugated.

Example:

• قالَ (qaala) – “to say” (root: ق و ل)
  • أنا قلتُ (ana qultu) – “I said”
  • هو قالَ (huwa qaala) – “He said”
  • نحن قلنا (naḥnu qulnaa) – “We said”

3.2 Doubled Verbs (الأفعال المضعفة)

Doubled verbs have the same consonant repeated as the second and third letters of the root.

Example:

• ظنّ (zhanna) – “to think”
  • أنا ظننتُ (ana zhannatu) – “I thought”
  • هي ظنت (hiya zhannat) – “She thought”
  • هم ظنوا (hum zhannuu) – “They thought”

3.3 Hamzated Verbs (الأفعال المهموزة)

These verbs have a hamza (ء) as one of the root letters.

Example:

• أخذ (akhadha) – “to take”
  • أنا أخذتُ (ana akhadhtu) – “I took”
  • أنتِ أخذتِ (anti akhadhti) – “You (f.) took”
  • هم أخذوا (hum akhadhuu) – “They took”

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4. Example Conjugations and Practice

Using the verb ذهب (dhahaba), meaning “to go”:

Subject Pronoun	Arabic	English
أنا	ذهبتُ	I went
أنتَ	ذهبتَ	You (m.) went
أنتِ	ذهبتِ	You (f.) went
هو	ذهبَ	He went
هي	ذهبتْ	She went
نحن	ذهبنا	We went
أنتم	ذهبتم	You (m. pl.) went
أنتن	ذهبتنَّ	You (f. pl.) went
هم	ذهبوا	They (m.) went
هن	ذهبنَ	They (f.) went

4.1 Practice Sentences

• أنا كتبتُ الواجب. (ana katabtu al-waajib) – “I wrote the homework.”
• أنتِ أكلتِ التفاحة. (anti akalti at-tuffaahah) – “You (f.) ate the apple.”
• هي شربت الماء. (hiya sharibat al-maa’) – “She drank the water.”
• نحن ذهبنا إلى السوق. (naḥnu dhahabna ila as-suuq) – “We went to the market.”
• هم قرأوا الكتاب. (hum qara’uu al-kitaab) – “They (m.) read the book.”

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5. Practice Exercises

5.1 Conjugation Practice

• Conjugate the verb أكل (akala) – “to eat” for all subject pronouns.
• Conjugate the verb سمع (sami‘a) – “to hear” for the feminine singular and plural forms.

5.2 Sentence Formation

• Create sentences using the following verbs in the past tense:
  • لعب (la‘iba) – “to play”
  • كتب (kataba) – “to write”
  • درس (darasa) – “to study”

5.3 Translation Exercise

• Translate the following sentences into Arabic:
  • “She read the newspaper.”
  • “You (m.) drank coffee.”
  • “We listened to music.”

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6. Homework and Practice

• Conjugation Tables: Create conjugation tables for five new verbs in the past tense.
• Sentence Creation: Write ten sentences using different subject pronouns and verbs in the past tense.
• Listening Practice: Listen to Arabic songs or stories and identify the past tense verbs used.