Pleasing, not liking
English says I liked the film. Arabic often says the film pleased me: أعجبني الفيلم. The verb أعجب(a'jaba) (to please) is a Form IV verb, the thing you like is its subject, and the person who likes it is an object pronoun on the verb.
| I liked the film a lot. | أعجبني الفيلم كثيرا.a'jabani al-filmu kathiran |
| Did you like the program? | هل أعجبك البرنامج؟hal a'jabaka al-barnâmaju? |
Agreement with the thing liked
Because the liked thing is the subject, the verb agrees with IT, not with you. A feminine noun — or a non-human plural — takes the feminine verb:
| Arabic | English |
|---|---|
| أعجبني الفيلم | I liked the film |
| أعجبتني القصة | I liked the story |
| تعجبني الأفلام | I like films |
| I liked the story. | أعجبتني القصة.a'jabatnî al-qissah. |
| I like Arabic music. | تعجبني الموسيقى العربية.tujibuni al-musiqa al-arabiyyah |
Use أحب for what you like in general (أحب القراءة) and أعجب for a particular thing you saw, heard or tried.
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