Arabic Irregular Verbs

Learning Arabic irregular verbs can feel challenging for beginners, especially when weak letters change the structure of the verb during conjugation. If you’ve struggled to speak confidently because irregular verbs confuse you, you’re in the right place.

In this guide, we break down the difference between regular and irregular verbs, explain how weak letters affect verb patterns, and walk you through the four main types of irregular verbs in Arabic.

Introduction to Arabic Irregular Verbs:

Arabic verbs are categorized into regular and irregular types based on the presence of weak letters (ḥurūf ‘illah: alif, waw, yaa). 

Regular verbs maintain a consistent structure across tenses, as seen in “فعل” (fa‘ala) for past, “يفعل” (yaf‘alu) for present, and “افعل” (if‘al) for imperative. 

Irregular verbs, influenced by weak letters, undergo structural changes, making their patterns more dynamic. Practice with examples like “سكت” (sakata) and “لعب” (la‘iba) simplifies mastering these forms.

In this article, we focus only on Arabic Irregular Verbs:

Arabic Irregular Verbs

Arabic Irregular Verbs are verbs that contain one or two weak letters (Ḥurūf ‘illah) حروف العلة in their root. The presence of Weak letters inside their root makes them change by several factors during conjugation. They are called الأفعال المعتلة (al-af’aal al-mu’atla.) derived from their structure that contains (Ḥurūf ‘illah).

Types of Irregular Verbs

Arabic Irregular verbs are classified according to the place of the weak letters into 4 main categories.  

1. Irregular المثال – al-mithāl

When the weak letter is the first letter of the irregular verb, It is called mithāl which means Assimilated since their conjugation in past tense is similar to the regular verbs. The first letter of the verb can be Waw(و) or Yaa(ي). The (alif) can not come in the first letter place. For example,

You can practice conjugation of more examples in our interactive Arabic group classes.

2. Irregular الأجوف – al-ajwaf 

They are also called Hollow Irregular Verbs. The weak letter is in the middle of the verb. It can be any weak letter. In the case of conjugation of this type, it may be rendered to another vowel or remain as it is. See the following examples:

3. Irregular الناقص-al-Naaqis

When the third letter of the root of the verb is weak.  For examples, see the following table. you should differentiate this type from “Kana wa Akhwatuha”. You can learn more about them and other grammar in our Classical Arabic Course.

4. Irregular اللفيفal-lafīf

When the verb root structure contains  2 weak letters. It can be lafif maqroonلفيف مقرون when the 2 weak letters are adjacent. If they are separated by a sound letter, it is called Lafif mafrooq(لفيف مفروق).

See the following examples:

Example of Irregular Verbs

Practicing the conjugation of many Irregular verbs in Arabic is the best way to master them. The following table will help you practice many irregular verbs. Try to memorize them by using them in many sentences. Reading many Arabic texts in our Fusha Arabic class will help you differentiate regular from Irregular easily.

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Conclusion: 

Arabic verbs fall into two main categories: regular verbs, which maintain their structure across tenses, and irregular verbs, which include at least one weak letter from حروف العلة.

These weak letters cause changes in the verb root during conjugation, giving irregular verbs their unique patterns. There are four types of irregular verbs—al-Mithal, al-Ajwaf, al-Naqis, and al-Lafif— will help you recognize these forms and use them naturally.