Arabic Verbs & Essentials of Grammar

by Jane Wightwick, Mahmoud Gaafar

Your one-stop guide to mastering the basics of Arabic

Can one book have all you need to communicate confidently in a new language? Yes, and that book is "Arabic Verbs & Essentials of Grammar." It offers a solid foundation of major verbal and grammatical concepts of the language, from pronouns to idioms and expressions and from irregular verbs to expressions of time.

Each unit is devoted to one topic, so you can find what you need right away and get focused instruction immediately. Concise yet thorough, the explanations are supported by numerous examples to help you master the different concepts. And for those tricky verbs, "Arabic Verbs & Essentials of Grammar" includes a Verb Index of the most common verbs, cross-referenced with the abundant verb tables appearing throughout the book.

This book will give you: An excellent introduction to the basics of Arabic if you are a beginner or a quick, thorough reference if you already have experience in the language Contemporary usage of verbs, adjectives, pronouns, prepositions, conjunctions, and other grammar essentials Examples that reflect contemporary usage and real-life situations

Genres: Language, Reference, Linguistics, Nonfiction

160 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1997

Reviews

[Brandon Wilde · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book does a good job of staying relatively concise while still providing examples. However, its organization often baffled me. I'd almost recommend readers to start at the back and work their way to the front, including the contents of some chapters in reverse.

I'm not sure what audience would prefer to learn the intricacies of Arabic verb conjugation, including how to handle every kind of irregular verb, all before knowing where the verb fits in an Arabic sentence. I was also thrown by the introduction of basic pronouns and genders in Chapters 20-21, after having already reviewed hundreds of verb conjugations based on pronoun and gender in the previous chapters.

Lastly, the logical structure inside some chapters was really lacking. I found it quite backwards to learn all the conjugation quirks of the subjunctive and jussive moods before getting an explanation as to what those moods even mean in the context of Arabic!

P.S. A small quibble with the synopsis on this page: This book doesn't actually cover idioms or expressions of time as claimed.

[Azaghedi · Rating 3 out of 5]

An adequate summary of the most basic features and functions of the complex Arabic verbal system. The "essentials of grammar" section, on the other hand, felt like an afterthought and even calling it "essentials" is being generous. If you're just looking to refresh things you already know, this isn't a bad book to go over; it'll only take you a couple of hours. However, a review is pretty much all it's good for. There are some sections which are barely more helpful than "such and such concept exists but it's complicated so if you want to know about it, go find a more comprehensive grammar." If you're learning anything new from this book, chances are you should be learning it from elsewhere because its coverage is a bit too superficial to suffice.

[Abū'l-Layth · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent book to learn Sarf

[Anna Cuccuru · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is very clear and could be very useful for all!

[Rocio Carrasco · Rating 5 out of 5]

Superb

[Alisha Lakhani · Rating 4 out of 5]

CLear and concise. Provides a broad and basic overview of the essentials of Arabic grammar and explains key concepts well. I do find that it lacks in information therefore, if you would a more fuller/rounded perspective of grammar 'A Reference of Modern Standard Arabic' by Karin Ryding, serves that purpose.

[Csilla · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a very good book if someone teaches Arabic for beginners. It has a useable vocabulary, the explanations on verbs are clear and easy to memorize. Advanced students though should chose other books.