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### Defective Verbs in the Present Tense

In the previous lesson, we saw how defective verbs (verbs ending in a weak letter) behave in the past tense. In the present tense, these verbs are conjugated by adding the standard present tense prefixes to the beginning of the word.

For many defective verbs, the weak letter at the end is a ي. When conjugating for "he" (هو), "she" (هي), or the masculine "you" (أنت), simply add the corresponding prefix (يـ or تـ), and leave the final ي exactly as it is.

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### Verbs Ending in Alif Maqsura (ى) and Waw (و)

Not all defective verbs end in ي in the present tense. Depending on the root, the final weak letter might be an *alif maqsura* (ى) or a *waw* (و). Just like verbs ending in ي, these weak letters are kept at the end of the verb. 

When conjugating for "we" (نحن), add the prefix نـ. Notice how the weak endings remain in place.

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### Conjugating for "I"

To conjugate defective verbs in the present tense for "I" (أنا), use the prefix أ. As with the other subjects, the weak letter at the end of the verb remains unchanged.

{{item:1121183}}

### Summary of Defective Present Tense Prefixes

Here is a quick overview of how these verbs look with the standard present tense prefixes for the subjects covered in this lesson:

| Pronoun | Verb ending in ي | Verb ending in ى | Verb ending in و |
| - | - | - | - |
| I (أنا) | أمشي | أنسى | أبدو |
| We (نحن) | نمشي | ننسى | نبدو |
| He (هو) | يمشي | ينسى | يبدو |
| You (masc.) / She (أنت / هي) | تمشي | تنسى | تبدو |

Let's see these rules applied together in one final example where a speaker uses both ي and ى verb endings.

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Defective verbs in the present tense (يمشي)

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
tourist	سائحsâ'ihun
line	خطkhatt
straight	مستقيمmustaqîm
The tourist walks in a straight line.	يمشي السائح في خط مستقيم.yamshî as-sâ'ihu fî khattin mustaqîm
to proceed	مضىmadâ
square	ساحةsâha
Are you proceeding to the new square?	هل تمضي إلى الساحة الجديدة؟hal tamdi ila as-sâhati al-jadîdati
intersection	تقاطعtaqâtu
We proceed to the intersection, then we stay there.	نمضي إلى التقاطع، ثم نبقى هناك.namdî ilâ at-taqâtu'i, thumma nabqâ hunâka
to appear	بداbadâ
The big museum appears after that intersection.	يبدو المتحف الكبير بعد ذلك التقاطع.yabdû al-mut'hafu al-kabîru ba'da dhâlika at-taqâtu'i
to meet	التقىiltaqâ
Where do we meet today?	أين نلتقي اليوم؟ayna naltaqi al-yawma?
direction	اتجاهittijâh
We meet in the square in this direction.	نلتقي في الساحة في هذا الاتجاه.naltaqî fi s-sâhati fî hâdhâ l-ittijâhi
to run (people, liquids, events)	جرىjarâ
I do not run, I walk to the square.	أنا لا أجري، أنا أمشي إلى الساحة.ana lâ ajrî, ana amshî ilâ as-sâha.
The tourist runs in that direction.	يجري السائح في ذلك الاتجاه.yajrî as-sâ'ihu fî dhâlika al-ittijâhi
I see the tourist; he meets with the policeman.	أرى السائح؛ هو يلتقي مع الشرطي.arâ as-sâ'iha; huwa yaltaqî ma'a ash-shurtiyy.
Does the street appear straight from here?	هل يبدو الشارع مستقيما من هنا؟hal yabdu ash-shâri'u mustaqîman min hunâ?
I proceed in a straight line, and I do not forget the direction.	أمضي في خط مستقيم، ولا أنسى الاتجاه.amdî fî khattin mustaqîmin, wa lâ ansâ al-ittijâha.
The line ends at the intersection.	ينتهي الخط عند التقاطع.yantahi al-khattu 'inda at-taqâtu'i
near, close	قريبqarîb
The square is close to the hotel.	الساحة قريبة من الفندق.as-sâhatu qarîbatun mina l-funduqi.
Is the restaurant close to here?	هل المطعم قريب من هنا؟hal al-mat'amu qarîbun min hunâ?
around; about (a topic)	حولhawla
We walked around the square.	مشينا حول الساحة.mashaynâ hawla s-sâhati
I read a book about the history of the city.	قرأت كتابا حول تاريخ المدينة.qara'tu kitâban hawla târîkhi al-madînah.
near, by (+ noun)	قربqurba
The hotel is near the square.	الفندق قرب الساحة.alfunduqu qurba as-sâhati.
The tourist lives near the intersection.	يسكن السائح قرب التقاطع.yaskunu assâ'ihu qurba attaqâtu'i.
it seems (that …)	يبدوyabdû
It seems that the street is crowded.	يبدو أن الشارع مزدحم.yabdu anna ash-shâri'a muzdahimun.
It seems the tourist is lost.	يبدو أن السائح ضائع.yabdu anna as-sâ'iHa dâ'i'

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