5.5 - Interrogative Sentence

 

Section 5.5 - Interrogative Sentences

 

Several Particles are used for interrogative sentences.

 

For those questions which can be answered in yes or no, to make a nominative sentence an interrogative one, two Particles are commonly used which are (1) هَلْ (hull) and (2) أَ (aa).  Examples of these would be:

 

a)     هَلْ مِنْۢ مَزِيْدٍ (hull mim ma-zeed-in) meaning “is there more in it?”,

b)     أَزَيْدٌ عَالِمٌ (a-Zaidun aa-li-mun) meaning “is Zaid a scholar?”

c)     أَإِنَّكَ لَأَنتَ يُوسُفُ (a-innaka la-anta you-su-fu) meaning “are you indeed Yousuf?”.

 

There are several ways a question can be posed in addition to the ones described above. The Particles used for these are described in Table 25 below.

 

Table 25 - Interrogative Particles

 

Particles	Meaning	Example	Meaning
مَا Maa	What	مَا هٰذَا   Ma haaza	What is this?
		مَا اِسْمُكَ   Maa Ismu-ka or Mas-mu-ka	What is your name?
مَنْ   Mun as in sun	Who	مَنْ رَبُّكَ   Man rab-buka	Who is your Lord?
		مَنْ اَنْتِ   Man-anta	who are you (female)?
كَيْفَ   Kai-fa	How	كَيْفَ اَنْتُمْ   Kaifa-antum	Who are you all?
		كَيْفَ حَالُكَ   Kaifa haa-lu-ka	How are you?
اَينَ   Ai-na	Where	اَيْنَ اَنْتَ   Ayna anta	Where are you?
مَتٰى   Mata/Aiy-yana	When	مَتٰى جَاءَ   Mataa-jaa-a	When did he come?
اَنّٰى   Anna	Where from/in what way/how	أَنَّىٰ لَهُ الذِّكْرَىٰ   Anna la-huz-zikraa	what good to him will be the remembrance?
أَىٌّ   Ay-yun	Which	أَيُّ طَرِيْقً   Ayyu taree-qan	Which way?
كَمْ   Kum (sound as in come)	How many/How much	كَمْ عَدَدُ الْاَيَّامِ   Kum adad-ul ayyami	How many days?

 

 

Table 26 - Interrogative Particles with Prepositions

 

First Particle - Jarr-un	Second Particle - interrogation	Combined	meaning
لِ   li	مَا   maa	لِمَا Li-maa (Quran sometimes uses it as لِمَ)	Why, for what
فِيْ   fee	مَا   maa	فِيْمَا   Fee-maa	In what/over what
مِنْ   min	مَا   maa	مِمَّا   Mim-maa	With what/from what
عَنْ   un	مَا   maa	عَمَّا   Am-maa	About what/about what
لِ   li	مَنْ   mun	لِمَنْ   Lee-mun (mun as in sun)	For who
مِنْ   min	اَيْنَ   Ay-na	مِنْ اَيْنَ   Min aiy-naa	From where
اِلٰى   ilaa	اَيْنَ   Ay-na	اِلٰى اَيْنَ   Ilaa-aiy-naa	Where to
اِلٰى   ilaa	مَتٰى   Ma-taa	اِلٰى مَتٰى   Ilaa ma-taa	Until when/how long
بِ   bi	كَمْ   kam	بِكَمْ   Bee-kam	For how much

 

Examples for the above Particle combinations:

 

1) لِمَ تَقُوْلُوْنَ مَا لَا تَفعَلُوْنَ (li-ma taqoo-loona ma la taf-aloon) meaning why do you say what you do not do.

 

2) فِيْمَا شَجَرَ بَينَهُمْ (fee-masha-ja-ra bai-na-hum) meaning over which they dispute among themselves.

 

3) مِمّا رَزَقْنٰهُمْ (mim-ma razaq-na-hum) meaning from what we gave them.

 

1)     سُبْحَانَ رَبِّكَ رَبِّ الْعِزَّتِ عَمَّا يَصِفُوْنَ (sub-ha-na rabbi-karabbil izza-ti am-ma ya-si-foon) meaning "Exalted is your Lord, the Lord of might, above what they describe."

 

5) وَلِمَنْ خَافَ مُقَامَ رَبِّهِ جنَّتانِ (wa li-mun khaafamu-qa-ma rab-bi-hi jan-na-tani) meaning “For those who fear (the time they will stand) before their Lord, there are two gardens”

 

6) مِنْ اَيْنَ اَنْتَ (min-ayi-na anta) meaning where are you from?

 

7) إِلٰى أَيْنَ نَحْنُ ذَاهِبُوْنَ (ilaa-ayi-nanah-nu za-hi-bun) meaning where (where to) are we going

 

8) اِلٰى مَتٰى يَا قَلْبِي (ilaa-ma-taya qal-bi) how long, O my heart

 

9) بِكَمْ ھٰذَالْقَمِيصُ (be-kamhaa-zal qa-meesu) meaning how much is this shirt?

 

 

 

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