Exploring the natural world is a great way to expand your Arabic vocabulary. In this lesson, we will learn the names of common wild animals and aquatic creatures, while introducing some handy grammar tools to describe their actions and traits.
The Safari: Verbs of Beginning
First, let's meet the نمر (tiger) and the قرد (monkey). To describe an animal starting an action, Arabic uses "verbs of beginning" (أفعال الشروع). Words like أخذ, جعل, and شرع shift from their literal meanings to mean "began to" when followed by a present-tense verb.
Expressing Wishes
Next are the زرافة (giraffe) and غزال (gazelle). To express a wish ("I wish..."), start your sentence with ليت. Because it is a sister of إنّ, the noun immediately following it is placed in the accusative case.
Amphibians and "Neither... Nor"
Now let's introduce the تمساح (crocodile) and ضفدع (frog). To say "neither... nor" with past-tense actions, simply place لا before the first past-tense verb and ولا before the second.
Sea and Sky
Let's expand our vocabulary to the water and sky with the حوت (whale), قرش (shark), بطريق (penguin), and نسر (eagle). Watch how the grammar structures we just learned apply to these new creatures.
Making Comparisons
Finally, to compare animals directly, use the comparative pattern أفعل followed by the preposition من (than). For instance, tall becomes أطول (taller) and heavy becomes أثقل (heavier).
