The complete list of Arabic broken plural patterns

The Ultimate Guide to Arabic Broken Plural Patterns (Jam' Takseer)

If you are a beginner wondering how to form plural in Arabic, you might have quickly realized that Arabic grammar is uniquely rich and fascinating. Learning Arabic plural noun rules is one of the most important steps in expanding your vocabulary and building proper sentences.

Before discussing irregular plural patterns, let's restudy the following subject:

• Sound plural: sound masculine and sound feminine plural
• Sound plural in nominative, accusative, and genitive case
• Dual noun in nominative, accusative, and genitive case

As we've already known that Arabic nouns (and adjectives) are inflected for three types of number, they are:

1. singular (مفرد - Mufrad)
2. dual (مثنّى - Muthanna)
3. plural (جمع - Jam')

In this lesson, we are going to restudy dual and plural. Let's start from the dual noun.

Dual Noun in Arabic

We use dual for pairs or for two persons or things of the same kind.

The dual noun has a particular pattern. We form the dual by replacing the case ending of the singular form with the following suffixes, -aani (انِ) and -ayni (يْنِ).

Examples:

• Singular: رَجُلٌ (a man).
• Dual: رَجُلاَنِ (two men).

The dual form انِ is for the nominative case (مرفوع - Marfu'). The form of dual for accusative (منصوب - Mansub) and genitive (مجرور - Majrur) is رَجُلَيْنِ (rajulayni).

Sound Plural (Regular Plural) in Arabic

To understand the difference between sound and broken plural in Arabic, we first need to look at the regular rules. There are two plural types in Arabic, they are:

• The sound plural (الجمع السّالم - Al-Jam' As-Saalim), or we can call it a regular plural.
• The broken plural (الجمع التّكسير - Al-Jam' At-Takseer), or we can call it an irregular plural.

In this section, we are discussing about the sound plural.

• We form the sound masculine plural (جمع المذكّر السّالم) by replacing the case ending of the singular with these suffixes: -uuna (ونَ) and -iina (يْنَ).

Example:

• Singular: مُدَرِّسٌ (a teacher).
• Plural: مُدَرِّسُوْنَ (teachers). مُدَرِّسُوْنَ is in the nominative case, whereas the accusative and genitive case is مُدَرِّسِيْنَ (mudarrisiina).
• We form the sound feminine plural (جمع المؤنّث السّالم) by adding the following suffixes: -aatun (اتٌ), -aatin (اتٍ).

Example:

• Singular: مُدَرِّسَةٌ (a teacher).
• Plural in nominative case: مُدَرِّسَاتٌ (mudarrisaatun).
• Plural in accusative and genitive: مُدَرِّسَاتٍ (mudarrisaatin).

Now, let's discuss the broken plural.

Note: You can memorize the broken plural patterns and examples, or test your memory using the digital flashcards at the bottom of this article.

Understanding Arabic Broken Plurals

The Arabic plural system is talking about the plural patterns both regular plural (الجمع السّالم) and irregular plural (الجمع التّكسير). Regular plural is also called sound plural, whereas irregular plural is also called broken plural.

We've studied regular plural in the former lesson. Now, the focus is on broken plural. Broken plurals are formed from the singular by some changes based on specific patterns.

The broken plural occurs more frequently than the sound plural and there are hardly any strict mathematical rules about how to form the broken plural from the singular. Before we look at the patterns, let's learn how to actually use them in sentences.

1. Human vs. Non-Human Categories ('Aqil vs. Ghairu 'Aqil)

In Arabic syntax (Nahwu), it is crucial to categorize your nouns before you turn them into plurals. Arabic strictly divides nouns into two groups:

• 'Aqil (عاقل): This means "rational" or "human." It refers to human beings (like teachers, doctors, or men).
• Ghairu 'Aqil (غير عاقل): This means "irrational" or "non-human." It refers to animals, inanimate objects, places, and abstract concepts (like pens, mountains, or books).

You must identify whether a noun is human or non-human because it entirely dictates the grammar rules for verbs (Fi'il) and adjectives (Sifah) that follow it.

2. Syntax & Agreement: Using Plurals in a Sentence

This is the golden rule of Arabic grammar for beginners: All non-human plurals are treated grammatically as Singular Feminine (مفرد مؤنث - Mufrad Mu'annath).

When you use a non-human broken plural in a sentence, any adjectives describing it, or any verbs acting upon it, must take the singular feminine form.

Example 1: Non-Human (Ghairu 'Aqil)

• Singular: قَلَمٌ جَدِيْدٌ (A new pen - qalamun jadiidun) -> Both are singular masculine.
• Plural: أَقْلاَمٌ جَدِيْدَةٌ (New pens - aqlaamun jadiidatun) -> "Aqlaam" is a broken plural (pens). Because pens are non-human, the adjective "new" (jadiidah) takes the singular feminine form (adding the ta' marbutah ة at the end).

Example 2: Human ('Aqil) For human broken plurals, the adjective must match the plural form!

• Singular: طَبِيْبٌ مَاهِرٌ (A skilled doctor - tabiibun maahirun)
• Plural: أَطِبَّاءُ مَاهِرُوْنَ (Skilled doctors - atibbaa'u maahiruuna) -> "Atibbaa'u" is a human broken plural, so the adjective "maahiruuna" also takes a plural form.

3. How to Master "Simaa'iy" (Auditory) Plurals

As mentioned earlier, we know the broken plural form by reading the Arabic dictionary or hearing the native Arabic people. This concept is called Simaa'iy (سماعي), which means "by hearing" or "auditory."

Since you cannot predict a broken plural simply by looking at the singular word, how do beginners memorize them? Here are three highly effective strategies to add to your study routine:

• Vocab Pairing: Never learn a singular noun by itself. Whenever you write down a new vocabulary word on your flashcards or vocabulary tables, always write its plural form right next to it. Treat them as a single package: Qalam - Aqlaam.
• Use a Quality Dictionary: Always rely on a good Arabic-English dictionary (Fyi, I’m using https://www.arabicstudentsdictionary.com). This dictionary will typically list the singular word and indicate the broken plural (or sound plural) pattern right next to it.
• Active Exposure: Because these are simaa'iy, your brain needs repetition. Listen to Arabic audio, read beginner-friendly texts, and practice pronouncing the plurals out loud to build your auditory memory.

Arabic Broken Plural Patterns

Now that you know how to use them, let's look at the structures. I'll show you the singular form first, then the broken plural pattern with the example.

Note: some singular may have more than one form of the broken plural, some may have both sound and broken plural. In this lesson, I only show you one form.

Below are the most common patterns of the broken plural:

Final Thoughts

Mastering Arabic broken plural patterns takes time and patience. Because there are 27 different patterns, do not try to memorize this entire list in one day! Instead, focus on learning the grammar syntax rules first, differentiate between human and non-human subjects, and consistently practice learning the plurals alongside their singular forms as you acquire new vocabulary. Happy learning!

Digital Flashcards