Arabic expresses possession using prepositions like عند (with/at) or ل (for/to) instead of a verb for "to have." To say what someone had in the past, place the past tense verb كان (was) before the prepositional phrase.
Agreement with the Possessed Item
Because the possessed item is grammatically the subject of the sentence, كان must agree in gender with the item owned, not the owner.
If the item is masculine, use كان (he/it was). Notice below how كان is masculine because the "tape" is masculine, even though the "camera" is feminine.
| My grandfather had an old radio. | كان عند جدي مذياع قديم.kâna 'inda jaddî midhyâ'un qadîm |
| The camera had a small tape. | كان للكاميرا شريط صغير.kâna lilkâmirâ sharîtun saghîrun |
If the possessed item is feminine, use كانت (she/it was), regardless of the owner's gender.
| My grandmother had a traditional machine. | كانت عند جدتي آلة تقليدية.kânat 'inda jaddatî âlatun taqlîdiyyatun |
| Did you have a map in the car? | هل كانت عندك خريطة في السيارة؟hal kânat 'indaka kharîtatun fis-sayyârati? |
Attaching Pronouns to عند
You can attach pronoun suffixes directly to عند (e.g., "I had," "we had"). The gender rule still applies based on the possessed object. If you list multiple items, the verb agrees with the first item in the list.
| We had two laptops. | كان عندنا حاسوبان محمولان.kâna 'indanâ hâsûbâni mahmûlâni |
| I had a traditional map and an old camera. | كانت عندي خريطة تقليدية وكاميرا قديمة.kânat 'indî kharîtatun taqlîdiyyatun wa kâmîrâ qadîmah |