Two Ways To Make a Verb Causative

Level 5

Arabic uses specific verb shapes to change the 'direction' of an action. By modifying a basic Form I verb into Form II or Form IV, you can transform a verb like 'to sit' into 'to seat' or 'to know' into 'to inform'.

How It Works

In Arabic, verbs are categorized as intransitive or transitive. To increase the valency of a verb (the number of objects it takes), two primary morphological patterns are used:

1. Form IV (أَفْعَلَ - The Hamza Pattern):
This form prefixes a hamzat al-qaṭ‘ (أَ) to the root. It is a primary way to express causative action.

  • Causative: It transforms an intransitive verb into a transitive one, or a transitive verb into a ditransitive one. In rare cases, it can even result in tritransitive verbs (taking three objects), such as أَعْلَمَ (to inform). Example: جَلَسَ (He sat) → أَجْلَسَ (He seated/made someone sit).
  • Privative/Removal: It can indicate the removal of a quality or state from the object. Example: أَعْجَمْتُ الكِتَابَ (I removed the obscurity/dotted the letters of the book).
  • Exposure: It indicates exposing the object to the action. Example: أَبَعْتُ الثَّوْبَ (I offered the garment for sale).
  • Declarative: Finding someone to possess a quality. Example: أَبْخَلْتُهُ (I found him to be stingy).
  • Entry into Time or Place: Example: أَصْبَحَ (He entered the morning).
  • In the present tense, the prefix vowel is always a dhamma (يُـ), and the initial hamza disappears: يُجْلِسُ.

2. Form II (فَعَّلَ - The Doubling Pattern):
This form doubles the second radical of the root using a shadda. Like Form IV, it increases valency, but often carries additional nuances:

  • Causative with Nuance: Often implies intensity or multiplicity. Example: فَرِحَ (He was happy) → فَرَّحَ (He gladdened someone).
  • Intensity or Repetition: قَطَعَ (cut) → قَطَّعَ (cut into many pieces).
  • Declarative/Estimative: كَذَّبَهُ (He called him a liar).
  • Abbreviative (al-naḥt): Turning phrases into verbs. Example: سَبَّحَ (to say Subhan Allah).
  • Denominative: Deriving verbs from nouns. Example: خَيْمَة (tent) → خَيَّمَ (to camp).

Lexical Preference:
While many roots can take both forms, usage is determined by convention. For example, to say 'to teach,' Arabic uses the Form II verb عَلَّمَ, whereas the Form IV verb أَعْلَمَ means 'to inform.' Learners should pay attention to these specific meanings to become proficient in their usage.

Examples (4)

  1. أَجْلَسَ المعلّمُ الطالبَ في المقعدِ الأوّلِ.

    The teacher seated the student in the first seat.

    Word by Word: Seated the teacher the student in the seat the first.

    Here, the Form IV verb أَجْلَسَ (from the root ج-ل-س 'to sit') is used to show the teacher caused the student to sit.

  2. نَزَّلَ اللهُ القرآنَ على النبيِّ مُحمَّدٍ تَدريجيًّا.

    God sent down the Qur'an to the Prophet Muhammad gradually.

    Word by Word: Sent down God the Qur'an upon the Prophet Muhammad gradually.

    The Form II verb نَزَّلَ is used here instead of Form IV to emphasize that the revelation happened in stages over time.

  3. أَعْلَمْتُ صديقي بموعدِ الرحلةِ.

    I informed my friend of the trip's timing.

    Word by Word: I informed my friend with timing (of) the trip.

    The Form IV verb أَعْلَمَ (to inform) makes the root ع-ل-م (to know) transitive, meaning 'to cause someone to know'.

  4. يُدَرِّسُ الأستاذُ اللغةَ العربيةَ في الجامعةِ.

    The professor teaches the Arabic language at the university.

    Word by Word: Teaches the professor the language the Arabic in the university.

    Form II دَرَّسَ (to teach) is the standard causative form of دَرَسَ (to study). Note the 'u' vowel on the present prefix 'yu-'.

Common Mistakes

  • Using a 'fatha' instead of a 'dhamma' on the present tense prefix.

    يَجْلِسُ المعلّمُ الطالبَ.
    يُجْلِسُ المعلّمُ الطالبَ.

    For all four-letter verb patterns (Form II, III, and IV), the present tense prefix (يـ/تـ/أـ/نـ) must take a 'dhamma' (u) sound. Using a 'fatha' (a) makes it sound like a Form I verb.

  • Using periphrastic 'make' constructions instead of the morphological causative.

    جعلتُه يضحكُ.
    أضحكتُه.

    While 'ja'ala' (to make) is grammatically correct, using the Form IV verb 'adhaka' (to make laugh) is more natural and concise in Modern Standard Arabic.

How It Connects

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Two Ways To Make a Verb CausativeLevel 5

Learn This First

To understand how verbs are made causative through prefixing a hamza or doubling the middle radical, a learner must first be familiar with the Arabic root-and-pattern system (Awzan). Specifically, they need to recognize Form II (fa'ala) and Form IV (af'ala), as these are the specific morphological structures used to increase the transitivity of a verb.