The Present Tense

Level 1

The Arabic present tense, or al-muḍāri‘, is used for actions happening now, habits, and general truths. Unlike the past tense which only uses suffixes, the present tense uses prefixes (and sometimes suffixes) to show who is doing the action.

How It Works

In Modern Standard Arabic, the present tense (الفعل المضارع) represents the 'imperfective' aspect, meaning the action is not yet complete.

1. The Prefixes:
To conjugate a verb in the present, you attach a prefix to the root. The vowel on the prefix depends on the verb form: most verbs use a fatḥa (a-), but verbs with four letters in the past tense (Forms II, III, and IV) use a ḍamma (u-).

  • أَ / أُ (a- / u-): Used for 'I' (e.g., أكتب / أُدرّس).
  • نَ / نُ (na- / nu-): Used for 'We' (e.g., نكتب / نُدرّس).
  • يَ / يُ (ya- / yu-): Used for 'He' and most 'They' forms (masculine dual, masculine plural, and feminine plural).
  • تَ / تُ (ta- / tu-): Used for 'She', the 'They (feminine dual)' form, and all second-person 'You' forms (masculine, feminine, singular, dual, and plural).

2. The Identical Forms:
A key point to remember is that the prefix تـ is used for both 'She' (third-person feminine singular) and 'You' (second-person masculine singular). This means that a word like تكتب can mean either 'she writes' or 'you (masculine) write' depending on the context.

3. Stem Vowels:
In Form I, the first root letter takes a sukūn and the middle vowel must be memorized. However, in derived forms (II-X), the stem vowels are predictable based on the specific pattern.

4. Suffixes for Gender and Number:
While prefixes tell you the person, suffixes are added for specific groups. For example, the 'You (feminine singular)' form adds ـينَ, the dual forms add ـانِ, masculine plural forms often add ـونَ, and feminine plural forms add ـنَ (e.g., يكتبنَ).

5. Negation:
To negate a present tense verb in the indicative mood, simply place the particle لا before the verb (e.g., لا يكتب).

6. Time and Aspect:
The present tense covers both the simple present ('I study') and the present progressive ('I am studying'). To specifically indicate the future, you can add the prefix سـ directly to the verb or use the separate particle سوف before it, as explained in The Future.

7. The Moods:
The final vowel of a present tense verb changes based on its role in the sentence:

In both the Subjunctive and Jussive moods, the final ن is dropped for the Five Verbs (the forms for 'you' feminine singular, and all dual and masculine plural forms).

Examples (4)

  1. أَدْرُسُ اللُّغَةَ العَرَبِيَّةَ.

    I study the Arabic language.

    Word by Word: I-study the-language the-Arabic.

    The prefix 'alif' (أـ) indicates the first person singular 'I'.

  2. يَكْتُبُ الطَّالِبُ الرِّسَالَةَ الآنَ.

    The student is writing the letter now.

    Word by Word: He-writes the-student the-letter now.

    The prefix 'ya' (يـ) indicates a third-person masculine subject. Note that this form covers 'is writing'.

  3. هِيَ تَشْرَبُ القَهْوَةَ كُلَّ صَبَاحٍ.

    She drinks coffee every morning.

    Word by Word: She she-drinks the-coffee every morning.

    The prefix 'ta' (تـ) is used here for the third-person feminine 'She'.

  4. نَحْنُ نَسْكُنُ فِي بَيْتٍ كَبِيرٍ.

    We live in a big house.

    Word by Word: We we-live in house big.

    The prefix 'nun' (نـ) indicates the first person plural 'We'.

Common Mistakes

  • Using a separate verb for 'am' or 'is' (like in English).

    أنا أكون أكتب.
    أنا أكتبُ.

    In Arabic, the present tense verb already includes the meaning of 'am/is/are'. Adding 'akūnu' (I am) is unnecessary and incorrect in this context.

  • Forgetting the feminine suffix for 'You (fem.)'.

    أنتِ تَكْتُب.
    أنتِ تَكْتُبِينَ.

    When addressing a woman, you must add the suffix '-īna' in addition to the 'ta-' prefix.

  • Using the dialect 'bi-' prefix in formal writing.

    أنا بكتب الدرس.
    أنا أكتبُ الدرسَ.

    The 'bi-' prefix (e.g., biktab) is common in dialects like Levantine or Egyptian, but it is never used in Modern Standard Arabic.

How It Connects

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The Present TenseLevel 1

Learn This First

To understand the present tense (al-fi'l al-mudari'), you first need to recognize what a verb is in Arabic. Since the present tense changes its form based on who is performing the action, you must be familiar with the singular personal pronouns. Finally, understanding the concept of roots and patterns will help you see how the prefixes (like 'ya', 'ta', 'a', 'na') are attached to the core verb root.

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