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Friends: adjectives and agreement
Describing a friend is a favourite exam task. Arabic adjectives come after the noun and match it in gender and in having ال.
Friends and personality
صَديق (Sadiiq) = friend (boy), صَديقة (Sadiiqa) = friend (girl), أَصْدِقاء (aSdiqaa') = friends.
لَطيف (laTiif) kind, مُضْحِك (muDHik) funny, ذَكِيّ (dhakiyy) clever, هادِئ (haadi') calm, خَجول (khajuul) shy, صادِق (Saadiq) honest, كَريم (kariim) generous, نَشيط (nashiiT) active, كَسول (kasuul) lazy, اجْتِماعِيّ sociable.
لَطيف (laTiif) kind, مُضْحِك (muDHik) funny, ذَكِيّ (dhakiyy) clever, هادِئ (haadi') calm, خَجول (khajuul) shy, صادِق (Saadiq) honest, كَريم (kariim) generous, نَشيط (nashiiT) active, كَسول (kasuul) lazy, اجْتِماعِيّ sociable.
Agreement
Is or the?
الصَّديقُ صادِق = The friend is honest (ال on the noun only: a sentence).
الصَّديقُ الصّادِق = the honest friend (ال on both: a phrase).
What makes a good friend? الصَّديقُ الجَيِّد صادِق ويُساعِدُني = A good friend is honest and helps me.
الصَّديقُ الصّادِق = the honest friend (ال on both: a phrase).
What makes a good friend? الصَّديقُ الجَيِّد صادِق ويُساعِدُني = A good friend is honest and helps me.
Translate: My friend Layla is clever and funny.
- My friend (girl): صديقتي (ة becomes ت).
- Layla: ليلى. No verb "is".
- Both adjectives are feminine: ذكية، مضحكة.
Answer: صديقتي ليلى ذكية ومضحكة.
Adjectives follow the noun and agree: add ة for feminine, and add ال if the noun has ال. الصديق صادق = the friend is honest; الصديق الصادق = the honest friend.
The interactive lesson includes the diagrams for this topic.
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