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.
Let’s discuss them in detail:
How many types of verbs are in Arabic?
Arabic verbs are mainly divided into two types: regular and irregular, distinguished by the presence of weak letters (ḥurūf ‘illah: alif, waw, yaa). Regular verbs like “فعل” (fa‘ala) follow consistent patterns across tenses—past, present, and imperative—making them straightforward to learn. In contrast, irregular verbs are influenced by weak letters, leading to changes in their structure and conjugation patterns.
Types of Arabic Verbs:
Arabic verbs are classified according to many aspects. The following chart summarizes some of them. I want to focus on the difference between Regular and Irregular verbs. The regular verbs are free from weak letters (Ḥurūf ‘illah) حروف العلة in their structure.
Ḥurūf ‘illah is 3 letters “alif, Waw, and Yaa”. you can memorize them in the word “واي” pronounced, “why”. Their name comes from their frequent alternation and change.
The Regular verbs have a regular structure in different tenses. Take the verb(فعل =do) as an example. The structure of the verb is the same in past, present, and imperative except for the prefix identified by the subjective.
These prefixes are used for regular and irregular verbs when the sentence expresses the present tense, and the first letter diacritics will be rendered skoon. The Imperative tense is formed by the “alif” and skoon on the first letter of the verbal root.
Examples of Arabic Verb types:
| tense | verb | transliteration | ||
| Past “root” | فعل | f’al | ||
| Present | masculine | Prefix “ي” | يفعل | yaf’al |
| Feminine | Prefix “ت” | تفعل | taf’al | |
| First-person singular | Prefix “أ” | أفعل | af’al | |
| First-person plural | Prefix “ن” | نفعل | naf’al | |
| imperative | افعل | if’al | ||
This is very easy with practice. Try the following verbs:
| tense | verb | transliteration | ||
| Past “root” | سكت | sakat | ||
| Present | masculine | Prefix “ي” | يسكت | yaskut |
| Feminine | Prefix “ت” | تسكت | taskut | |
| First-person singular | Prefix “أ” | أسكت | askut | |
| First-person plural | Prefix “ن” | نسكت | nasukut | |
| imperative | اسكت | uskut | ||
| tense | verb | transliteration | ||
| Past “root” | لعب | l’abb | ||
| Present | masculine | Prefix “ي” | يلعب | yal’ab |
| Feminine | Prefix “ت” | تلعب | tal’ab | |
| First-person singular | Prefix “أ” | ألعب | al’ab | |
| First-person plural | Prefix “ن” | نلعب | nal’ab | |
| imperative | العب | il’ab | ||
| tense | verb | transliteration | ||
| Past “root” | ضرب | drabba | ||
| Present | masculine | Prefix “ي” | يضرب | yaḍrib |
| Feminine | Prefix “ت” | تضرب | taḍrib | |
| First-person singular | Prefix “أ” | أضرب | aḍrib | |
| First-person plural | Prefix “ن” | نضرب | naḍrib | |
| imperative | اضرب | iḍrab | ||
Read more about: The Best List of Arabic Verbs for Beginners With Examples
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