Nahw Meer English: 6.2 - Active Particles/Imperfect Tense حُرُوْفُ الْعَامِلَةِ / فِعْلُ الْمُضَارِعِ

 

Section 6.2 – Active Particles/Imperfect Tense  فَصلٌ ٦. ٢ – حُرُوْفُ الْعَامِلَةِ / فِعْلُ الْمُضَارِعِ

 

These are of two types:

Type I: Those that are given Accusative نَصْبٌ status of which there are four:

 

 1) أَنْ – as in أُرِيْدُ أَنْ تَقُوْمَ meaning “I would like you to stand up”. It is done with Imperfect Tense مُضَارِعٌ which has the meaning of a Verbal Source اَلْمَصْدَرُ, like أُرِيْدُ قَيَامَكَalso meaning “I would like you to stand up”. For this reason, it is called الْمَصْدَرْيَةُ أَن.

 

2) لَنْ – as in لَنْ يَخْرُجَ زَيْدٌ meaning “Zaid will definitely not leave”. It is meant to emphasize the negative in the future.

3) كَىْ – as in أَدْخُلَ الْجَنَّةَ كَيْ أَسْلَمْتُ meaning “I accepted Islam so I can enter Jannah”.

4) إِذَنْ – as in إِذَنْ أُكْرِمَكَ meaning “then I will welcome you” in response to someone saying انَا آتِيْكَ غَدًا meaning “I will come to you tomorrow”.

 

 أَنْ[1] is assumed hidden مُقَدَّرَةٌ after the six Particles described below and it gives Accusative نَصْبٌ status to the Imperfect Tense مُضَارِعٌ.

 

i) After حَتّٰى: as in مَرَرْتُ حَتّٰى أُدْخُلَ الْبَلَدَ meaning, I kept passing until I entered the city.

 

ii) After Letter ل of Denial لَامُ الْجَحَدِ which enters on Predicate of كَانَ مَنْفِيُّand emphasizes the negative, as Allah SWT Says in Surah Al-Anfaal, Ayah 33

﴿وَ مَا كَانَ اللهُ لِيعَذِّبَهُمْ وَ أَنْتَ فِيهِم﴾

meaning “And Allah is not the kind who will punish them and you are amongst them”.

 

iii) Afterأَوْ with the meaning of إِلٰى أَنْ or إِلَّا أَنْ as in the sentence لَأَلْزِمَنَّكَ أَوْ تُعْطِيَنِيْ حَقٌّي meaning “I will stick to you/ stay with you until you give me my rights (what belongs to me)”.

 

iv) After وَاوُ الصَّرْفِ [2]

 

v) After لَامُ كَىْ [3]

 

vi) After اَلْفَاءُ (letter ف) which is used in reply to the six-word categories

     اَلْأَمْرُ، اَلنَّهْيُ، اَلنَّفْيُ، اَلْاِسْتِفْهَامُ، اَلتَّمَنِّيْ، اَلْعَرْضُ

          Their examples[4]are well known.

 

Type II: Those Particles that give Jussive جَزَمٌ status to Imperfect Tense مُضَارِعٌ. These are five:

لَمْ، لَمَّا، لامُ اَلْأَمْرِ، لَاءُ النَّهْيِ، إِنْ الشَّرْطِيَةُ

 

Examples:

 

لَمْ يَنْصُرْ - He did not Help

لَمَّا يَنْصُرْ - He has not helped yet         

وَلِيَنْصُرْ - He should help

لَا تَنْصُرْ - Do not help

إِنْ تَنْصُرْ أَنْصُرْ - If you help, I will help

 

 إِنْ enters in two sentences as in إِنْ تَضْرِبْ أَضْرِبْ meaning “if you strike, I will strike”. The first sentence is named Condition شَرْطٌ and the second sentence is called Response جَزاءٌ, and إِنْ gives the meaning of future Tense مُضَارِعٌ even though it is entered in the past tense. For example,

 ضَرَبْتُ ضَرَبْتَ إِنْ meaning “if you strike, I will strike”. Here Jussive جَزَمٌ sign is assumed hidden because the past tense is not flexible.

 

When Response جَزاءٌ is a Nominative sentence جُمْلَةٌ اِسْمِيَّةٌ, Imperative أمْرٌ, negative Imperative نَّهْيٌ, or supplication دُعَاءٌ, then it is required that the letter فis in a response, for example:

i. [5] مُكْرَمٌ فَأَنْتَ تَاْتِنِيْ إِنْ meaning “if you came to me then you are the honored one”.

ii. [6] رَأَيْتُ زَيْدًا فَأَكْرِمْهُ إِنْ meaning “if you see Zaid, then honor him”.

iii. [7]إِنْ أَتَاكَ عَمْرٌو فَلَا تُهِنْهُmeaning “if Amr came to you, do not insult him or let him down”.

iv إِنْ أَكْرَمْتَنِيْ فَجَزَاكَ اللهُ خَيْرًا[8] .meaning “If you honor me, then Allah will reward you with good”.

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[1] That is اَلْمَصْدَرْيةُ أَنْ.

[2] وَاوُ الصَّرْفِas in, as the poet says:

 لا تَنْهَ عَنْ خُلُقٍ وَ تَأتِيَ مِثْلَهُ   عَارٌ عَلَيْكَ إِذَا فَعَلْتَ عَظِيمُ. (و) here is called وَاوُ الصَّرْفِ

 meaning “you stop other people from something and you do it yourself, it is a big shortcoming for you if you do that”.

[3] لَامُ كَىْ, as in أَسْلَمْتُ لِأَدْخُلَ الْجَنَّةَ meaning “I accepted Islam so I can enter Jannah”.

[4] اَلْأَمْرُas in زُرْنِي فَأُكْرِمَكَ meaning “visit me and I will honor you”.

 اَلنَّهْيُ as in لَا تَشْتِمْنِي فَأَضْرِبَكَ meaning “do not insult me or I will hit you”.

 اَلنَّفْيُ as in فَتُحَدِّثَنَا مَا تَأَتِيْنَا meaning “do not come to us unless you want to talk to us”.

 اَلْاِسْتِفْهَامُ as in أَيْنَ بَيتُكَ فَأَزُوْرَكَ, meaning “where is your home so I can visit you”.

 اَلتَّمَنِّي as in لَيْتَ لِيْ مَالًافَأُنْفِقُ مِنهُ  meaning “I wish I had wealth so I can spend from it”.

 اَلْعَرْضُ as in تَنْزِلُ بِنَا فَتُصِيْبَ خَيرًا ألَا meaning “why don’t you come to us so some good can be done for you”.

[5] Example for Nominative sentence

[6] Example for Imperative (أَمْرٌ) verb

[7] Example for negative Imperative (أَمْرٌ) Particle

[8] Example for supplication