Laam (ل) is an essential letter in Arabic, with various roles depending on the context. It can serve as a marker for definiteness, a linking word, or a particle, each contributing to the overall meaning and flow of a sentence in Arabic grammar.
Acquiring further knowledge about the types of Laam in Arabic grammar is a crucial topic, check Shaykhi Academy’s Learn Arabic Online Course for more details. In this article; we will cast some light on the different types of Laam in Arabic grammar, and its different usages. Go no further.
What is Laam لام – ل In Arabic?
In Arabic grammar, Laam (ل) refers to the Arabic letter ل, which serves multiple purposes depending on its grammatical usage and context. It can act as a definite article, preposition, or particle, each with its own unique rules.
The Arabic letter laam (ل) works as a particle or a preposition in some cases in the Arabic sentence. This often happens when it comes at the beginning of a word. It has many various meanings with many grammatical rules in the Arabic sentence syntaxes and semantics.
Types of Laam in Arabic Grammar
One of its most common uses is in Laam At-Taʿreef (لام التعريف), which forms the definite article “Al” (ال) to make nouns definite, like “the” in English. This Laam is further divided into Laam Shamsiya and Laam Qamariya.
Laam Shamsiya appears before Sun Letters (e.g., ت, ر, س) and is silent, with the Sun Letter pronounced with a shadda, as in “الشمس” (ash-shams, the sun). Laam Qamariya, on the other hand, occurs before Moon Letters (e.g., ب, ج, م) and is pronounced clearly, as in “القمر” (al-qamar, the moon).
Beyond definiteness, Laam functions in other contexts, such as Laam Al-Jarr (لام الجر), which acts as a preposition meaning “for” or “belong to,” and Laam Al-Amr (لام الأمر), which indicates commands or obligations, akin to “should” or “let” in English.
Other types include Laam At-Tawkeed (لام التوكيد) for emphasis, and Laam At-Taʿleel (لام التعليل) to express purpose, meaning “in order to.” Each type has distinct rules that contribute to the richness and precision of Arabic grammar.
Here are the types of Laam in Arabic grammar in details:
1. Laam At-ta3ref
Laam Et-ta3ref (لام التعريف) is the most common definite article in the Arabic language. It comes after the letter alif (ا) to combine the definite article (Al-alif Wil Laam / الـ). It comes at the beginning of an Arabic noun to transmit it from being indefinite onto definite. Its equivalent word in the English language is the definite article (The).
Laam At-tareef is divided into two kinds. Here they are:-
A. Laam Shamsiya (لام شمسیّة)
The Arabic language letters are divided into two types; Sun letters (El Horoof Ash-Shamsiya) and Moon letters (Al Horoof Al-qamaria).
What is the Rule of Laam Shamsiya?
When Laam At-ta3ref if followed by one of the sun letters which are (ﻥ ,ﻝ ,ﻅ ,ﻁ ,ﺽ ,ﺹ ,ﺵ ,ﺱ ,ﺯ ,ﺭ ,ﺫ ,ﺩ ,ﺕ), it is called laam Shamsiya and it becomes a silent sound.
Example:-
The sun rises from the East.
تٌشْرِق الْشَمسُ من الْشَرّقِ.
Toshreq Ash-shams min Ash-sharq.
Notice:- Laam At-ta3ref is silent in the word (الشرق) and (الشمس) because it is Lam Shamsiya.
More examples of Laam Shamsiya are as in following words:
السَّمِاعة The headphone
التَّمرُ The dates
الرَّجُلُ The man
الصَّبَاحُ The morning
السَّمَاءُ The sky
B.Laam Qamariya (لام قمریّة)
When Laam At-ta3ref if followed by one of the Moon letters which are (هـ ,ﻱ ,ﻭ ,ﻡ ,ﻙ ,ﻕ ,ﻑ ,ﻍ ,ﻉ ,ﺥ ,ﺡ ,ﺝ ,ﺏ ,أ) it is called Laam Qamariyah. It becomes a clear voiced sound.
Example:-
Heba is at home.
هِبة في الْبَيْتِ
Heba fe al-bayt.
Notice:- Laam At-ta3ref in the word (ٱَلْبَيْت), is pronounced clearly as (Al Bayt).
Some more examples about laam Qamariya are in the following words:
الْفَمُ The mouth
الْجَزَر The carrots
الْبَا بُ The door
الْفيلُ The Elephant
الْحُمارُ The donkey
The age الْعُمر
Important Note:
You may find it difficult to memorize the Sun Letters and the Moon Letters. But you don’t have to do that. All you should do is to apply the following rule. It will help you to distinguish between the two types of laam At-ta3ref. The rule is to consider both words (الشمس) and (القمر) as a phonological measure of all the other words. If laam Et-Ta3’reef in any word is phonologically the same as the laam in the word (الشمس); then it’s Laam Shamsiya, and if the phonological rythme in any word sounds like the laam in the word (القمر); then it is Laam Qamariya.
2. Laam El-Jarr (لام الجر)
In this case, it works as a preposition, therefore it is called the preposition laam (ل). It has two types. They are as follows:-
A. Laam El Jarr Before a Noun
If it comes before a noun, its meaning will be (for) or (belong to). It will have a kasrah mark and the noun that follows it, will be magroor with kasrah diacritic.
Ex:
This apple is for Zayid.
هَذِه التُفاْحَةُ لِزيدٍ.
Ha’thehe al-tofa’ha lezayidin.
B. Laam El-Jarr Before a Pronoun
If laam el-jarr comes before a pronoun, (it is often attached to the pronoun), its meaning will be (for) or (belong to ). In this case, it will have fat-ha diacritic.
Ex:-
This apple is for you.
هَذِه التُفَاحةُ لَكَ.
Ha’the’he al-tofa’ha la’k.
3. Laam Al-Amr (لام الأمر)
In this case, it has kasra mark, and it comes before a present verb (فعل مضارع). It turns the present verb into magjoom verb ( فعل مجزوم). Its equivalent meaning in the English Language is (should) or (let). The verb that follows it, will have a sukoon diacritic.
When to Use Laam Al-Amr
It is used to refer to obligations and commands.
Ex:-
He should go to school.
Or
Let him go to school.
لِيَذْهَبْ إلى المَدَرسةِ.
Le’ya’thab ela al-madrasah.
4. Lam Et-ta3’leel (لام التعليل)
In this case, it comes before a verb. It has kasrah diacritic. The verb that follows it, will be mansoob ( فعل منصوب), with fat-ha diacritic. its equivalent meaning in English Language is (in order to) or (except to)
Examples:
A. “And I did not create the jinn and mankind except to worship Me”. Surah Adh-Dhariya, verse 56.
وَمَا خَلَقْتُ الْجِنَّ وَالْإِنسَ إِلَّا لِيَعْبُدُونِ
Wo’ma kh’lakit al-jinn wa al-ens ella lya’3ibdoone.
B. The boy studies in order to pass the exam.
يُذاكْر الْوَلدُ لِيَنْجَحَ في الْإمْتِحان ِ
Yo’dh’kir al’walad lea’ngha fe al-im’tehan
The Arabic verb [ يَعْبُدُونِ ] has a kasra mark because there is an omitting letter which is (ي) at the end of the verb, it was like that [يعبدوني]. This (ي) is the Arabic equivalent pronoun to the English object pronoun [Me]. It was omitted and replaced by the kasrah mark under the last letter (ن) to be like that [يعبدونِ], but it is still in the mansub status. Visit the page of Shaykhi Academy’s General Arabic Course for more details about this point.
If laam Et-Ta3’leel (ِل) is preceded by another letter, such as the Arabic letter (ف), the word that follows it; will have sukoon diacritic.
Example:
“And let him see which food is most suitable, and let him bring you some provision thereof.” Surah Al-kahf, Verse 19.
.فَلْيَنْظُرْ أَيُّهَا أَزْكَىٰ طَعَامًا فَلْيَأْتِكُمْ بِرِزْقٍ مِنْهُ
Fa’leyindhir ayoha az’kah t3a”min fa’lea’atekom be’raziqin menho.
5. Emphatic Laam ( لام التَوكِيد)
In this case, it works as a particle, therefore it is called laam At-tawqeet (لام التَوكِيد). It can be followed either by a verb or a noun. It is used for putting much emphasis on the sentence action verb. It has two types. They are as follows:
A. Laam of Initiation (لام الاِبْتِداء):
It comes at the beginning of a sentence to commence the sentence semantic structure. It doesn’t affect the sentence parse. If it is omitted the sentence parse will still be the same.
Example:
1. She is indeed the most beautiful girl.
لَهْيَ أَجْمَلُ فَتَاةٌ
2. The moon does glisten.
لَلقْمرُ حَقًا مُتَلألأٌ
B. Swearing Laam (لام القسم):
It comes at the beginning of a present verb to give the semantic structure of swearing. It is preceded by an oath word such as by God. It has fat’ha diacritic. You should know that noon At-tawqeet is attached to the end of the present verb that follows it.
Example:
1. By Allah, I will do my best..
واللهِ لَأَفْعَلنَّ ما بِوِسْعي
2. By Allah, I will leave you.
تَاللّه لَأَهْجُرَانّك
6. Lamm of Ingratitude (Laam El-gohood / لام الجحود)
This kind of laam comes after past Arabic negative phrases such as (ما كان) or (ما كنا) which means ( wouldn’t have + pp); and it is followed by a present verb. Laam el-gohood is laam maksorah (has a kasra diacritic), and it makes the present verb that follows it, a mansub verb.
Example:
Heba would not have done that.
مَا كَاْنَتْ هِبة لِتَفْعل ذَلّكَ.
Ma Kanata Heba le’taf3l thalik.
7. Laam of Distance ( لام البعد / Laam El-bo3d)
It sticks to the demonstrative pronoun ( ذاك) which means ( this) and turns it to the demonstrative pronoun (ذلك) which means that.
So it will be like as following:
This (masculine, singular, near) = ذاك (dhākah)
That (masculine, singular, far) = ذلك (dhālika)
8. Consequence Laam (لام العاقبة)
It is named that because the phrase that precedes it is a reason for the result phrase that follows it. Consequence laam has a kasra mark and the present verb that follows it; is mansub with fat’ha diacritic.
Example:
“Pharaoh’s household picked him up, to be an opponent and a sorrow for them”.
“فَالْتَقَطَهُ آلُ فِرْعَوْنَ لِيَكُونَ لَهُمْ عَدُوًّا وَحَزَنًا”
Fa’elta’qataho aal fer3on lya’kona lahom 3ado’wan wa hazanan.
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Conclusion
Mastering the Arabic language depends on a successful acquisition of its grammatical rules. This is achieved via attending many sessions about the most important grammatical theories. Types of Laam in Arabic grammar is an important lesson in the Arabic language. Gaining much information on this topic enables you to master the Arabic language.
