Learn · grammar
Pronominal Suffixes
־ה ־הא ־הם ־ך ־כם
Arabic doesn't say "his book" with a separate word for "his." It glues a short ending onto the noun: כתאב + ה = כתאבה, "his book." These endings are the single biggest reason a word you know looks unfamiliar — the stem is hiding under a suffix. Learn the handful of endings and the stem jumps back out.
The core endings
Each ending stands for a possessor (on a noun) or an object (on a verb or preposition). They are nearly identical to the Hebrew ones you already feel.
- ־ה-hu
his / him / its
רבה = his Lord; לה = to him.
- ־הא-hā
her / it (f.)
פיהא = in it (f.).
- ־הם-hum
their / them
להם = to them; מעהם = with them.
- ־ך-ka / -ki
your (sing.)
רבך = your Lord.
- ־כם-kum
your (pl.)
רבכם = your (pl.) Lord.
- ־י / ־ני-ī / -nī
my / me
רבי = my Lord; ־ני on a verb = me.
- ־נא-nā
our / us
רבנא = our Lord.
On prepositions: tiny but everywhere
The most common words on the page are a one-letter preposition plus a suffix. Recognize these and whole sentences open up.
- להلهlahu
to him / he has
- בהبهbihi
in it / with it
- מנהمنهminhu
from it / from him
- עליהعليهʿalayhi
upon him / against him
Finding the stem
To read a long word, peel the ending off the back and the article off the front. What's left is usually a word you know.
- כלאמהkalāmuhu
his speech
כלאם (speech) + ־ה (his).
- אסמהismuhu
his name
אסם (name) + ־ה (his).
- ידהyaduhu
his hand
יד (hand) + ־ה (his) — the same יד as Hebrew.
Check yourself
A few quick questions on what you just read.
What does the ending ־ה mean in רבה?