Verbs Starting With و

Level 3

Assimilated verbs (الفعل المثال) start with a weak letter, most commonly و. In Form I, this و is dropped in the present tense and imperative if the present tense vowel is a kasra (i) or, in many cases, if the verb has a guttural letter.

How It Works

In Arabic morphology, an assimilated verb (الفعل المثال) is one where the first radical of the الجذر is a weak letter (و or ي).

1. Verbs Starting with Waw (و) in Form I:
In الوزن الأول, the initial و is deleted in the المضارع and the الأمر if the verb follows the active present tense patterns yaf‘ilu (يَفْعِلُ) or yaf‘alu (يَفْعَلُ). Deletion is standard when the middle radical carries a kasra (i) in the present. It also occurs when the present tense vowel is a fatha (a), typically when the second or third radical is a guttural letter (أ، هـ، ع، ح، غ، خ), such as in يقع (from وقع) and يضع (from وضع). The و is retained if the present tense vowel is a damma (u), or if it is a fatha (a) without a guttural letter, such as in يوجل (from وجل).

2. Derived Forms (II, III, IV, V, VI, X):
In most derived shapes, the initial و is retained. In الوزن الثاني, الوزن الثالث, الوزن الخامس, and الوزن السادس, the و remains unchanged (e.g., وحّد, واجه). In الوزن الرابع and الوزن العاشر, the و is also retained in the verb itself (e.g., أوجد, استوجب).

3. Verbal Noun (Masdar) Changes:
For many Form I verbs, the المصدر drops the و and adds a تاء مربوطة at the end (e.g., وصل ← صلة). However, in the مصدر الوزن الرابع and the مصدر الوزن العاشر, the initial و changes to a ي because it follows a kasra (e.g., إيجاد instead of إوجاد).

4. Form VIII Assimilation:
In الوزن الثامن, if the first radical is و, it is typically changed into a ت and then merged with the pattern's ت to form a شدة. For example, the root و-ص-ل becomes اتّصل (to contact) instead of اوتصل.

5. Verbs Starting with Yaa (ي):
Verbs that start with ي are much rarer. Unlike the و verbs, they usually retain the weak letter in the present tense. For example, يبس (to dry) becomes ييبس.

6. Passive Voice Retention:
The و is not dropped in the الماضي or the المضارع المبني للمجهول. Contrast the active يَعِدُ (he promises) where the و is dropped, with the passive يوعَدُ (he is promised) where the و is retained.

Examples (5)

  1. أنا أقف في الطابور الآن.

    I am standing in the queue now.

    Word by Word: I stand in the queue now.

    The verb is وقف. In the present tense أقف, the initial و is dropped because the middle letter takes a kasra in the present tense (يَقِفُ).

  2. هذه صفة الرجل الكريم.

    This is a characteristic of the generous man.

    Word by Word: This characteristic the man the generous.

    The word صفة (characteristic) is the verbal noun of وصف. The initial و is dropped and replaced by a تاء مربوطة at the end.

  3. ييبس العشب في الصيف.

    The grass dries up in the summer.

    Word by Word: Dries the grass in the summer.

    The verb ييبس starts with ي. Unlike verbs starting with و, the weak letter is retained in the present tense (ييبس).

  4. يصل القطار الآن.

    The train arrives now.

    Word by Word: Arrives the train now.

    The verb is وصل. The initial و is dropped in the present tense (يصل) because the middle letter takes a kasra.

  5. قف هنا من فضلك.

    Stand here, please.

    Word by Word: Stand here from your favor.

    The verb is وقف. In the imperative, the و is dropped, resulting in the two-letter command قف.

Common Mistakes

  • Keeping the 'waw' in the present tense.

    يَوْصِلُ الرَّجُلُ.
    يَصِلُ الرَّجُلُ.

    Learners often treat these as regular verbs. Remember that the و must be deleted in the active present tense for Form I verbs like this.

  • Adding a helper vowel (Hamzat al-Wasl) to the imperative.

    اِقِفْ!
    قِفْ!

    Because the و is deleted, the verb stem starts with a vowel, so you do not need the 'i' sound (Hamza) usually found in imperatives.

How It Connects

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Verbs Starting With وLevel 3

Learn This First

To understand 'al-fi'l al-mithaal' (assimilated verbs), a learner must first be comfortable with the basic Arabic root system and the standard conjugation of the present tense, as this pattern describes a specific irregularity where the first letter of the root disappears in the present form.