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To describe the condition of someone while an action is taking place (like a thief fleeing *masked*, or a child running *terrified*), Arabic uses the Adverb of State (الحال).

### Form and Function

Express this state using an adjective or a participle. This word follows three rules:
- It is always **indefinite** (it never takes the definite article ال).
- It is always in the **accusative case** (singular words usually end in ـًا for masculine, or ـةً for feminine).
- It **agrees in gender and number** with the noun it describes.

### Masculine States

For masculine nouns, the adverb of state takes the accusative marker ـًا. Notice how it can describe either the person performing the action (the subject) or the person being observed (the object):

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### Feminine States

If the noun is feminine, the adverb of state must also be feminine. The accusative marker is placed directly above the ة (ـةً).

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### Combining Multiple States

To describe multiple conditions at once, connect the descriptive words with و (and). Both words take the indefinite accusative ending.

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Adverbs of state (الحال)

adjective

adverb

conjunction

determiner

interjection

interrogative

noun

numeral

particle

prefix

preposition

pronoun

sentence

verb

The definite article and locatives (الـ)

Basic noun gender (ة)

Sun and moon letters

Singular subject pronouns (أنا، أنت، هو، هي)

Indefinite nouns and nominal sentences (ـٌ)

Demonstrative pronouns for 'this' (هذا / هذه)

Separate prepositions (في، من، إلى، على)

Attributive adjectives

Predicative adjectives

Yes/No questions (هل، أ)

Basic questions (من، ما، أين)

Singular possessive pronouns (ـي، ـك، ـه، ـها)

Plural subject pronouns (نحن، أنتم، هم)

Plural possessive pronouns (ـنا، ـكم، ـهم)

Noun possession

Attached prepositions (بـ، لـ، كـ)

Pronouns with prepositions

Having and possessing (عند، لـ، مع)

Regular plural nouns (ـون، ـين، ـات)

Broken plurals

Dual nouns (ـان / ـين)

Plural and distant demonstratives (هؤلاء، ذلك، تلك)

Non-human plural agreement

Present tense singular verbs

Verbal sentences (VSO)

Present tense plural verbs

Topicalized sentences (SVO)

The indefinite accusative case (ـاً)

Verb object pronouns (-ني، -ك، -ه)

Present tense negation (لا)

Question words with verbs (متى، كيف...)

Adverbs of time and place

The future tense (سـ / سوف)

Intentions and desires (أن)

Negating states and possession (ليس)

Past tense singular suffixes

Past tense plural suffixes

Negating past events (ما)

Singular commands

Numbers 1 to 10

Number agreement for 1 and 2 (واحد، اثنان)

Asking how many (كم)

Numbers 3 to 10 (ثلاثة إلى عشرة)

Ordinal numbers 1 to 10 (الأول، الثاني)

Basic conjunctions (فـ، أو، لكن)

Ordering at a café (واحد، اثنان)

Food and drink with conjunctions (و، ف، أو، لكن)

There is and there are (هناك / ليس هناك)

Direct address (يا)

Giving reasons (لأنّ)

Relative pronouns (الذي / التي)

Quantifiers (كل / بعض)

The past tense of 'to be' (كان)

Past possession

Numbers 11 to 19 and tens to 80

Telling time (الساعة)

This book vs this is a book (هذا الكتاب، هذا كتاب)

Greetings (مرحبا، السلام عليكم)

How are you? and goodbye (كيف حالك، مع السلامة)

Nationalities (مصري، مصرية)

Roots and patterns (كتب، كتاب، مكتب)

Politeness (من فضلك، آسف)

Complex possession chains

Colors and traits (أفعل / فعلاء)

Plural colors and traits (فُعْل)

Comparative adjectives (أفعل من)

Superlative adjectives (أفعل)

Adverbs of manner (ـاً)

The nominative case (ـُ)

The genitive case (ـِ)

The accusative case (ـَ)

Dual noun cases (ـان / ـين)

Masculine plurals and 'the best of' (أفضل النجارين)

Emphasizing sentences (إنّ)

Connecting clauses (أنّ)

Reporting speech (قال إنّ)

Expressing contrast (لكنّ)

Comparison and probability (كأنّ, لعلّ)

Distant plural pointing (أولئك)

Plural relative pronouns (الذين, اللواتي)

Past habits (كان + present)

Ongoing actions (ما زال)

Masculine plurals online (مبرمجون، مؤثرون)

Perfective past (قد)

Probability (قد)

The subjunctive mood (أن)

Question	Answer
masked	ملثمmulaththam
When I was there, I saw the thief masked.	عندما كنت هناك، رأيت اللص ملثما.'indamâ kuntu hunâka, ra'aytu l-lissa mulaththaman
to notice	لاحظlâhadha
hurrying	مسرعmusri'
I noticed the car speeding in the street.	لاحظت السيارة مسرعة في الشارع.laaHaZtu as-sayyaarata musri`atan fi ash-shaari`
terrified	مذعورmadh'ûr
The child ran terrified.	ركض الطفل مذعورا.rakada at-tiflu madhouran.
confused	مرتبكmurtabik
When I asked the suspect, I noticed him confused.	لما سألت المتهم، لاحظته مرتبكا.lammâ sa'altu al-muttahama, lâhaztuhu murtabikan
injured	مصابmuṣâb
alone	وحيدwahîd
We found the guard injured and alone in the building.	وجدنا الحارس مصابا ووحيدا في المبنى.wajadnâ al-hârisa musâban wa-wahîdan fî al-mabnâ.
smiling	مبتسمmubtasim
nervous	متوترmutawattir
The manager entered the meeting smiling, but he was nervous.	دخل المدير الاجتماع مبتسما، لكنه كان متوترا.dakhala al-mudiru al-ijtimâ'a mubtasiman, lâkinnahu kâna mutawattiran.
fleeing	هاربhârib
You might notice the suspect fleeing from the court.	قد تلاحظ المتهم هاربا من المحكمة.qad tulâhizu al-muttahama hâriban mina al-mahkamati
The woman left the hospital hurrying.	غادرت المرأة المستشفى مسرعة.ghâdarati al-mar'atu al-mustashfâ musri'atan
The suspect stood in front of the judge nervous and confused.	وقف المتهم أمام القاضي متوترا ومرتبكا.waqafa al-muttahamu amâma al-qâdî mutawattiran wa murtabikan
The passenger waited alone, but he was smiling.	انتظر الراكب وحيدا، لكنه كان مبتسما.intazara ar-râkibu wahîdan, lâkinnahu kâna mubtasiman.
The thief fled from the store masked.	هرب اللص من المتجر ملثما.haraba l-lissu mina l-matjari mulaththaman
The thief left the house fleeing and terrified.	ترك اللص البيت هاربا ومذعورا.taraka l-lissu l-bayta hâriban wa madhûran.
The driver arrived at the hospital injured.	وصل السائق إلى المستشفى مصابا.wasala as-sâ'iqu ilâ al-mustashfâ musâban
state, condition	حالhâlun
How is your father?	كيف حال أبيك؟kayfa hâlu abîka?
The patient's condition is better today.	حال المريض أفضل اليوم.hâlu al-marîdi afdalu al-yawma

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