Nouns: Accusative Case

01

The Direct Object

The most common use of the accusative is to indicate who or what is being acted upon. In English, word order usually dictates this (Subject-Verb-Object). In Arabic, the case ending marks the object, allowing for more flexible word order, though Verb-Subject-Object is standard.

• ⁧شَرِبَ الْوَلَدُ الْحَلِيبَ.⁩

  shariba al-waladu al-ḥalība.shariba al-waladu al-ḥalība.shariba ʾal-waladu ʾal-ḥaliyba.shariba al-waladu al-ḥalyba.

  The boy drank the milk.

• ⁧زَارَ أَحْمَدُ صَدِيقًا.⁩

  zāra Aḥmadu ṣadīqan.zāra Aḥmadu ṣadīqan.zāra Aḥmadu ṣadiyqan.zara Aḥmadu ṣadyqan.

  Ahmed visited a friend.

02

Definite Nouns (The Ending -a)

When a noun is definite (marked by the article ⁧⁧ال⁩⁩ (alalʾalal) or by being a proper noun), the accusative case is marked by a single short vowel -a (⁧⁧فَتْحَة⁩⁩ (fatḥah)) placed above the final letter.

In unvocalized texts (texts without diacritics), this short vowel is not written, so you must rely on context to know the noun is the object.

• ⁧فَتَحَ الرَّجُلُ الْبَابَ.⁩

  fataḥa ar-rajulu al-bāba.fataḥa ar-rad͟julu al-bāba.fataḥa ʾar-raǧulu ʾal-bāba.fataḥa ar-rajulu al-baba.

  The man opened the door.

• ⁧سَمِعْتُ الْأَذَانَ.⁩

  sami‘tu al-adhāna.sami‘tu al-adhāna.sami‘tu ʾal-adhāna.sami‘tu al-adhana.

  I heard the call to prayer.

03

Indefinite Nouns (The Ending -an)

When a noun is indefinite (meaning "a" or "an"), the accusative case is marked by the -an sound (⁧⁧فَتْحَتَان⁩⁩ (fatḥatānfatḥatānfatḥatānfatḥatan)). This involves two important changes:

• Pronunciation: The word ends in an "an" sound.
• Spelling: For most masculine nouns, you must add a silent ⁧⁧أَلِف⁩⁩ (alifalifʾalifalif) (⁧⁧ا⁩⁩ (alifalifʾalifalif)) to the end of the word to "carry" the double vowel symbol. This ⁧⁧أَلِف⁩⁩ (alifalifʾalifalif) is written even in texts that do not use other diacritics, making it a helpful visual clue.

• ⁧قَرَأَ الطَّالِبُ كِتَابًا.⁩

  qara’a aṭ-ṭālibu kitāban.qara’a aṭ-ṭālibu kitāban.qara’a ʾaṭ-ṭālibu kitāban.qara’a aṭ-ṭalibu kitaban.

  The student read a book.

• ⁧رَأَيْتُ بَيْتًا كَبِيرًا.⁩

  ra’aytu baytan kabīran.ra’aytu baytan kabīran.ra’aytu baytan kabiyran.ra’aytu baytan kabyran.

  I saw a big house.

04

Spelling Exceptions: ⁧تَاء مَرْبُوطَة⁩ (tā’ marbūṭah)

There is a major exception to the spelling rule above. If a noun ends in ⁧ة⁩ (⁧⁧تَاء مَرْبُوطَة⁩⁩ (tā’ marbūṭahtā’ marbūṭahtā’ marbuwṭahta’ marbwṭah)), you do not add the extra ⁧⁧أَلِف⁩⁩ (alifalifʾalifalif). The double vowel symbol is placed directly over the ⁧ة⁩. This is common for feminine nouns.

• ⁧أَكَلْتُ تُفَّاحَةً.⁩

  akaltu tuffāḥatan.akaltu tuffāḥatan.ʾakaltu tuffāḥatan.akaltu tufaḥatan.

  I ate an apple.

• ⁧كَتَبَتْ فَاطِمَةُ رِسَالَةً.⁩

  katabat Fāṭimatu risālatan.katabat Fāṭimatu risālatan.katabat Fāṭimatu risālatan.katabat Faṭimatu risalatan.

  Fatima wrote a letter.

05

Adverbs of Time

Nouns indicating when an action happens are almost always placed in the accusative case. This transforms a noun like "morning" into the adverb "in the morning."

• ⁧أَذْهَبُ إِلَى الْعَمَلِ صَبَاحًا.⁩

  adhhabu ilá al-‘amali ṣabāḥan.adhhabu ilá al-‘amali ṣabāḥan.ʾadhhabu ilá ʾal-‘amali ṣabāḥan.adhabu ilá al-‘amali ṣabaḥan.

  I go to work in the morning.

• ⁧سَأُسَافِرُ غَدًا.⁩

  sa-usāfiru ghadan.sa-usāfiru ghadan.sa-usāfiru ghadan.sa-usafiru ghadan.

  I will travel tomorrow.