Expressing 'to not be' with لَيْسَ

01

Conjugating ⁧لَيْسَ⁩ (lạysạ)

The form of ⁧⁧لَيْسَ⁩⁩ (lạysạlaysalaysalys) changes to match the subject of the sentence (the person or thing being discussed). You must select the correct form based on gender and number.

Common forms include:

• He is not: ⁧⁧لَيْسَ⁩⁩ (lạysạlaysalaysalys)
• She is not: ⁧⁧لَيْسَتْ⁩⁩ (lạysạtlaysatlaysatlyst)
• I am not: ⁧⁧لَسْتُ⁩⁩ (lạstụlastulastulst)
• You are not (masculine): ⁧⁧لَسْتَ⁩⁩ (lạstạlastalastalst)
• You are not (feminine): ⁧⁧لَسْتِ⁩⁩ (lạstịlastilastilst)
• We are not: ⁧⁧لَسْنَا⁩⁩ (lạsnālasnālasnālsna)
• They are not: ⁧⁧لَيْسُوا⁩⁩ (lạysūlaysūlaysuwlysw)

• ⁧لَسْتُ طَالِبًا.⁩

  lạstụ ṭālịbạṇ.lastu ṭāliban.lastu ṭālibá.lst ṭalba.

  I am not a student.

• ⁧لَسْنَا جَاهِزِينَ.⁩

  lạsnā jāhịzīnạ.lasnā d͟jāhizīna.lasnā ǧāhiziyna.lsna jahzyn.

  We are not ready.

02

Changing the Predicate Case

The most important grammatical rule regarding ⁧⁧لَيْسَ⁩⁩ (lạysạlaysalaysalys) is how it affects the predicate (the adjective or noun describing the subject).

In a normal sentence, the predicate ends with a "u" or "un" sound (Nominative case). When you add ⁧⁧لَيْسَ⁩⁩ (lạysạlaysalaysalys), the predicate changes to the Accusative case (⁧⁧مَنْصُوب⁩⁩ (mạnṣūbmanṣūbmanṣuwbmnṣwb)).

• For singular nouns and adjectives, the ending changes to ⁧ـًا⁩ (-ạṇ-an-á-a). This usually requires adding an extra ⁧⁧ا⁩⁩ (ʼạlịfʾalifˈalifˈalf) to support the ⁧⁧تَنْوِين⁩⁩ (tạnwīntanwīntanwiyntnwyn).
• If the word ends in a ⁧ة⁩ (tāʼ mạrbūṭạẗtāʾ marbūṭahtāˈ marbuwṭaẗtaʼ mrbwṭẗ), you simply add the ⁧⁧تَنْوِين⁩⁩ (tạnwīntanwīntanwiyntnwyn) ⁧ـً⁩ (-ạṇ-an-á-a) without an extra ⁧⁧أَلِف⁩⁩ (ʼạlịfʾalifˈalifˈalf).

• ⁧لَيْسَ الْبَيْتُ كَبِيرًا.⁩

  lạysạ ᵃlbạytụ kạbīrạṇ.laysa ᵃlbaytu kabīran.laysa ᵃlbaytu kabiyrá.lys ᵃlbyt kbyra.

  The house is not big.

• ⁧لَيْسَتِ السَّيَّارَةُ جَدِيدَةً.⁩

  lạysạtị ᵃssạyyārạẗụ jạdīdạẗạṇ.laysati ᵃssayyāratu d͟jadīdatan.laysati ᵃssayyāraẗu ǧadiydaẗá.lyst ᵃsyarẗ jdydẗ.

  The car is not new.

03

Agreement with the Subject

When the subject is explicitly mentioned as a noun (e.g., "The man," "The teacher"), ⁧⁧لَيْسَ⁩⁩ (lạysạlaysalaysalys) comes first. It must agree with the subject's gender.

Use ⁧⁧لَيْسَ⁩⁩ (lạysạlaysalaysalys) for masculine subjects:

• ⁧لَيْسَ الرَّجُلُ طَوِيلًا.⁩

  lạysạ ᵃrrạjụlụ ṭạwīlạṇ.laysa ᵃrrad͟julu ṭawīlan.laysa ᵃrraǧulu ṭawiylá.lys ᵃrjl ṭwyla.

  The man is not tall.

Use ⁧⁧لَيْسَتْ⁩⁩ (lạysạtlaysatlaysatlyst) for feminine subjects. Note that if the following word starts with ⁧⁧ال⁩⁩ (al-al-ʾal-al-), the silence on the ⁧⁧تْ⁩⁩ (t) often changes to a short i sound (⁧⁧تِ⁩⁩ (tịtitit)) to help pronunciation flow:

• ⁧لَيْسَتِ الْمَدِينَةُ بَعِيدَةً.⁩

  lạysạtị ᵃlmạdīnạẗụ bạʕīdạẗạṇ.laysati ᵃlmadīnatu baʿīdatan.laysati ᵃlmadiynaẗu baʿiydaẗá.lyst ᵃlmdynẗ bʕydẗ.

  The city is not far.