How to Ask "Is It Possible?" in Arabic: The Hal Yumkinu An Structure

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Master "Hal Yumkinu An": Ask "Can You?" in Arabic (Beginner Guide)

How do you ask or say "Is it possible to do something?" or "Can (someone) do something? You can use the following structure "هَلْ يُمْكِنُ + أَنْ + فعل مضارع منصوب" when you want to ask "Is it possible to do something?" or "Can (someone) do something?

is it possible in arabic



🧩 All Parts of the sentence explanation

هَلْ

➤ A question word — like "Is" or "Do" in English.

➤ It shows that this is a yes or no question.


يُمْكِنُ

➤ Means "it is possible" or "can".

➤ It does not show who is doing the action — it's impersonal.


أَنْ

➤ Means "to" — it connects to the next verb.


فعل مضارع منصوب

➤ A present tense verb that comes after "أَنْ", so it gets a fathah at the end.

➤ It means what the action is — for example: to visit, to travel, to write, etc.

I've explained fi'l mudari mansub (imperfect verb in subjunctive mood). I recommend you restudy 3 Arabic imperfect verb moods: indicative, subjunctive, and jussive. 


Sentence Examples (Questions and Answers)


هَلْ يُمْكِنُ أَنْ نَزُوْرَ بَيْتَكَ؟ نَعَمْ، يُمْكِنُ أَنْ نَزُوْرَ بَيْتِي

Can we visit your house? Yes, we can visit my house.

(Is it possible for us to visit your home? We are possible to visit your house.)


هَلْ يُمْكِنُ أَنْ نُسَافِرَ هَذَا الصَّبَاحَ؟ لَا، لَا يُمْكِنُ أَنْ نُسَافِرَ هَذَا الصَّبَاحَ.

Can we travel this morning? No, we can't travel this morning.

(Is it possible for us to travel this morning? No, we are not possible to travel this morning.)


Sentence Pattern

From the sentence above, you can notice that the sentence patterns are:

  • Question: هَلْ يُمْكِنُ + أَنْ + فعل المضارع منصوب

(hal yumkinu + an + fi'l mudari' mansub)


  • Positive statement: يُمْكِنُ + أَنْ + فعل المضارع منصوب

(yumkinu + an + fi'l mudari' mansub)


  • Negative statement: لا + يُمْكِنُ + أَنْ + فعل المضارع منصوب

(laa yumkinu + an + fi'l mudari' mansub)


Now, you have already known the sentence pattern. So, let's finish the exercises below.


Exercises


a. Translate the following sentence into English:


هَلْ يُمْكِنُ أَنْ نَزُوْرَ صَدِيقَنَا خَالِدًا الْيَوْمَ؟


هَلْ يُمْكِنُ أَنْ تَدُلَّنِي عَلَى طَرِيقِ الْمَطَارِ؟


هَلْ يُمْكِنُ أَنْ نُسَافِرَ هَذَا الْمَسَاءَ؟


هَلْ يُمْكِنُ أَنْ تُسَاعِدَنِي فِي هَذَا الْعَمَلِ؟


هَلْ يُمْكِنُ أَنْ نَذْهَبَ؟


هَلْ يُمْكِنُ أَنْ تَكْتُبَ الدَّرْسَ؟


هَلْ يُمْكِنُ أَنْ يَقْرَأَ الْكِتَابَ؟


b. Translate the following sentence into Arabic


Can we drink the water?


Can you open the door?


Can you sit here?


Can you play with me?


Can we watch TV?


Can we hear the story?



Answers


a. Translate the following sentence into English:


هَلْ يُمْكِنُ أَنْ نَزُوْرَ صَدِيقَنَا خَالِدًا الْيَوْمَ؟

Can we visit our friend Khalid today?


هَلْ يُمْكِنُ أَنْ تَدُلَّنِي عَلَى طَرِيقِ الْمَطَارِ؟

Can you show me the way to the airport?


هَلْ يُمْكِنُ أَنْ نُسَافِرَ هَذَا الْمَسَاءَ؟

Can we travel this evening?


هَلْ يُمْكِنُ أَنْ تُسَاعِدَنِي فِي هَذَا الْعَمَلِ؟

Can you help me with this work?


هَلْ يُمْكِنُ أَنْ نَذْهَبَ؟

Can we go?


هَلْ يُمْكِنُ أَنْ تَكْتُبَ الدَّرْسَ؟

Can you write the lesson?


هَلْ يُمْكِنُ أَنْ يَقْرَأَ الْكِتَابَ؟

Can he read the book?


b. Translate the following sentence into Arabic


هَلْ يُمْكِنُ أَنْ نَشْرَبَ الْمَاءَ؟

Can we drink the water?


هَلْ يُمْكِنُ أَنْ تَفْتَحَ الْبَابَ؟

Can you open the door?


هَلْ يُمْكِنُ أَنْ تَجْلِسَ هُنَا؟

Can you sit here?


هَلْ يُمْكِنُ أَنْ تَلْعَبَ مَعِي؟

Can you play with me?


هَلْ يُمْكِنُ أَنْ نُشَاهِدَ التِّلْفَازَ؟

Can we watch TV?


هَلْ يُمْكِنُ أَنْ نَسْمَعَ الْقِصَّةَ؟

Can we hear the story?


Summary:

  • Core Structure: You learned the essential Arabic pattern هَلْ يُمْكِنُ + أَنْ + فعل مضارع منصوب to ask "Is it possible to...?" or "Can (someone) do something?".
  • Parts Explained:
    • هَلْ: Starts a yes/no question.
    • يُمْكِنُ: Means "it is possible" (impersonal).
    • أَنْ: Means "to", connecting to the verb.
    • فعل مضارع منصوب: The present tense verb in a special form (ending in fathah) after an, describing the action.

  • Sentence Patterns: You now know how to form the Question (هَلْ يُمْكِنُ أَنْ...), the Positive Answer (يُمْكِنُ أَنْ...), and the Negative Answer (لا يُمْكِنُ أَنْ...).
  • Practical Application: You saw numerous examples and practiced translating sentences both to and from Arabic using this structure.

✅ Epilogue 

Now that you've mastered the "هَلْ يُمْكِنُ" structure, you can confidently ask polite questions and express possibilities in Arabic. Keep practicing with real-life situations, and try making your own sentences using this pattern. The more you use it, the more natural it will feel. Happy learning — and keep going! 🌟