Expressing Contrast with لكنّ
In Arabic, when you want to express a contrast between two ideas—just like using "but" in English—you will often use the conjunction لكنّ.
Because لكنّ behaves just like the particles you've seen in previous lessons, it requires the subject of the following sentence to attach directly to it as a pronoun suffix.
Here is how you attach pronouns to لكنّ to say "but I", "but he/it", "but she/it", and "but we":
- لكنني (but I)
- لكنه (but he / but it - masculine)
- لكنها (but she / but it - feminine)
- لكننا (but we)
When discussing real estate and housing, remember to match the attached pronoun to the gender of the noun you are referring back to. For a masculine noun like a house, use لكنه.
| I want to rent this house, but it is expensive. | أريد أن أستأجر هذا البيت، لكنه مكلف.urîdu an asta'jira hâdhâ al-bayta, lâkinnahu mukallifun |
For a feminine noun like an apartment, use لكنها.
| We rented a furnished apartment, but it is very small. | استأجرنا شقة مفروشة، لكنها صغيرة جدا.ista'jarnâ shuqqatan mafrûshatan, lâkinnahâ saghîratun jiddan. |
Dealing with Landlords and Contracts
You can use these same attached pronouns to refer to people, such as a landlord or a tenant. The pronoun suffix simply attaches to the end of the conjunction to smoothly link the two contrasting thoughts.
| The landlord wanted to sign the contract, but I am sick today. | أراد المالك أن يوقع العقد، لكنني مريض اليوم.arâda al-mâliku an yuwaqqi'a al-'aqda, lâkinnanî marîdun al-yawma |
| The tenant read the contract, but he does not want to sign now. | المستأجر قرأ العقد، لكنه لا يريد أن يوقع الآن.al-musta'jiru qara'a al-aqda, lakinnahu lâ yuridu an yuwaqqia al-âna. |
Finally, if the subject of the second clause is "we", attach the plural pronoun to make لكننا (but we).
| The hotel is expensive, but we will rent a room in it. | الفندق مكلف، لكننا سوف نستأجر غرفة فيه.al-funduqu muklifun, lâkinnanâ sawfa nasta'jiru ghurfatan fîhi |
Not this, but that: بل
لكنّ adds a contrast. بل (but rather) corrects: after a negative it replaces what was denied with the right thing.
- لا أريد الشاي، بل القهوة. I don't want tea, but rather coffee.
- البيت ليس صغيرا، بل كبير. The house isn't small — it's big.
Use لكنّ when both halves are true (the house is big, but expensive), and بل when the second half replaces the first.
