The present: eight shapes of one verb
The verb changes by person, and the pronoun beside it is almost always spare: the form itself has said who acts. The present is built as a prefix and an ending around the root: akuunu, takuunu, yakuunu — "I/you/he" of the verb "to be". The dictionary lists the verb in the past — كان (kaana), "he was". For example: “هو يكون هنا غدا” — He will be here tomorrow. A rule from the Arabic course: worked out on examples…
How it works
The verb changes by person, and the pronoun beside it is almost always spare: the form itself has said who acts. The present is built as a prefix and an ending around the root: akuunu, takuunu, yakuunu — "I/you/he" of the verb "to be". The dictionary lists the verb in the past — كان (kaana), "he was".
The "you" of the two genders holds in the ending: takuunu and takuuniina. "They" has three shapes too, like the pronouns.
The pronoun is set for stress or to avoid ambiguity: ana akuunu — "me, exactly, I am".
Table
| Who | Form | Reading | Translation |
|---|---|---|---|
| I | أكون | akuunu | I am / will be |
| you (m.) | تكون | takuunu | you are / will be |
| you (f.) | تكونين | takuuniina | you are / will be |
| he | يكون | yakuunu | he is / will be |
| she | تكون | takuunu | she is / will be |
| we | نكون | nakuunu | we are / will be |
| you (pl.) | تكونون | takuunuuna | you are / will be |
| they | يكونون | yakuunuuna | they are / will be |
By example
- هو يكون هنا غداхува йакуну хуна гаданHe will be here tomorrow
- الجو جميل اليومаль-джав джамиль аль-йаумThe weather is fine today
How the rule settles in your head
A rule is not memorized from an explanation. It is memorized from an attempt to use it and a mistake — that is why the app delivers it mixed in with words, not as a separate lesson: it resurfaces exactly where you forgot it.
Frequently asked
The arabic present tense of to be?
The verb changes by person, and the pronoun beside it is almost always spare: the form itself has said who acts. The present is built as a prefix and an ending around the root: akuunu, takuunu, yakuunu — "I/you/he" of the verb "to be". The dictionary lists the verb in the past — كان (kaana), "he…
Kunu conjugation in Arabic?
The verb changes by person, and the pronoun beside it is almost always spare: the form itself has said who acts. The present is built as a prefix and an ending around the root: akuunu, takuunu, yakuunu — "I/you/he" of the verb "to be". The dictionary lists the verb in the past — كان (kaana), "he…
Arabic verb endings present tense?
The verb changes by person, and the pronoun beside it is almost always spare: the form itself has said who acts. The present is built as a prefix and an ending around the root: akuunu, takuunu, yakuunu — "I/you/he" of the verb "to be". The dictionary lists the verb in the past — كان (kaana), "he…
How to conjugate kaana in Arabic?
The verb changes by person, and the pronoun beside it is almost always spare: the form itself has said who acts. The present is built as a prefix and an ending around the root: akuunu, takuunu, yakuunu — "I/you/he" of the verb "to be". The dictionary lists the verb in the past — كان (kaana), "he…
What does it look like in a Arabic example sentence?
“هو يكون هنا غدا” (хува йакуну хуна гадан) — He will be here tomorrow. A rule is easier to test on sentences like this than to memorize as a wording: what surfaces in conversation is the sentence.