If and if only: idaa and law
There are two "ifs" here, and they divide reality. Idaa — if it can happen; after it the verb stands in the past. "Idaa darasta, tajtaaz al-imtihaan" — if you learn it, you will pass the exam. Arabic looks at the future from the past, exactly as in "when you come — you will". For example: “إذا درست، تجتاز الامتحان” — If you learn it, you will pass the exam. A rule from the Arabic course: worked out on examples, not…
How it works
There are two "ifs" here, and they divide reality. Idaa — if it can happen; after it the verb stands in the past. "Idaa darasta, tajtaaz al-imtihaan" — if you learn it, you will pass the exam. Arabic looks at the future from the past, exactly as in "when you come — you will".
Law — if only, that is, never: "law kaana ʿandii munaaha" — if I had a scholarship. Inside stands the familiar "kaana" — was: the unfulfilled is already the past for the language.
The second half of the phrase lives an ordinary life: the future through the prefix "sa-" or the present. The language coins no special shape for "would" — the English "would go" it says simply "goes".
The familiar ʿindamaa — "when" — is of the same family: when the courier comes, I will receive the parcel. The difference from "idaa" is certainty: "when" is said of what will surely happen, "if" — of what may.
Table
| sense | how to say | example |
|---|---|---|
| if (about the future) | idaa + past verb | idaa darasta, tajtaaz |
| if only (unreal) | law + kaana | law kaana ʿandii munaaha |
| when (for sure) | ʿindamaa + present | ʿindamaa yasil al-manduub |
| even if | hattaa law + kaana | hattaa law kaana saʿban |
By example
- إذا درست، تجتاز الامتحانиза дэраста, таджтааз аль-имтихаанIf you learn it, you will pass the exam
- لو كان عندي منحة، درست في الجامعةлу кана ʿанди мунаха, дэрасту фи аль-джамииʿаIf I had a scholarship, I would study at the university
- إذا وصلت الشاحنة، نغادر البيت القديمиза васалят аш-шаахина, нугхаадиру аль-бейт аль-кадиимWhen the truck comes, we will leave the old house
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
Idaa vs law in Arabic?
There are two "ifs" here, and they divide reality. Idaa — if it can happen; after it the verb stands in the past. "Idaa darasta, tajtaaz al-imtihaan" — if you learn it, you will pass the exam. Arabic looks at the future from the past, exactly as in "when you come — you will".
Conditional sentences in Arabic?
There are two "ifs" here, and they divide reality. Idaa — if it can happen; after it the verb stands in the past. "Idaa darasta, tajtaaz al-imtihaan" — if you learn it, you will pass the exam. Arabic looks at the future from the past, exactly as in "when you come — you will".
The verb tense after idha in Arabic?
There are two "ifs" here, and they divide reality. Idaa — if it can happen; after it the verb stands in the past. "Idaa darasta, tajtaaz al-imtihaan" — if you learn it, you will pass the exam. Arabic looks at the future from the past, exactly as in "when you come — you will".
How to say if I had in Arabic?
There are two "ifs" here, and they divide reality. Idaa — if it can happen; after it the verb stands in the past. "Idaa darasta, tajtaaz al-imtihaan" — if you learn it, you will pass the exam. Arabic looks at the future from the past, exactly as in "when you come — you will".
What does it look like in a Arabic example sentence?
“إذا درست، تجتاز الامتحان” (иза дэраста, таджтааз аль-имтихаан) — If you learn it, you will pass the exam. A rule is easier to test on sentences like this than to memorize as a wording: what surfaces in conversation is the sentence.