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### Past Possession: "Had"

In Arabic, there is no single verb for "to have." Instead, you use a preposition of possession like عند (with/at) or لـ (to/for) with attached pronouns. To talk about possession in the past ("had"), place the past tense verb كان (was) before the prepositional phrase.

Because the possessed item is grammatically the subject of the sentence, the verb must agree with the gender of the *possessed item*, not the owner. Use كان for masculine items and كانت for feminine items.

When discussing cars, you will often use adjectives like automatic (أوتوماتيكي) or comprehensive (شامل). Adjectives follow the nouns they modify and agree in gender.

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### Fuel and Deposits

When arranging a rental, you will likely need to leave a deposit (وديعة). Pay attention to the vehicle's fuel (وقود) and remember to fill the tank (خزان) before returning it.

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### Distance and Limits

Rental contracts often have rules about the distance (مسافة) you can drive. Check if the mileage is limited (محدود) and find out what the charge is for an additional (إضافي) kilometer (كيلومتر).

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Renting a Car

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
automatic	أوتوماتيكيôtômâtîkî
When I visited Egypt, I had an automatic car.	عندما زرت مصر، كانت عندي سيارة أوتوماتيكية.'indama zurtu misra, kânat 'indî sayyâratun ûtûmâtîkiyyah
insurance	تأمينta'mîn
comprehensive / including, inclusive of	شاملshâmil
He had comprehensive insurance when he rented the car.	كان عنده تأمين شامل عندما استأجر السيارة.kâna 'indahu ta'mînun shâmilun 'indamâ ista'jara as-sayyârata.
deposit	وديعةwadî'a
When he paid the deposit, he had a rental contract.	عندما دفع الوديعة، كان له عقد إيجار.indamâ dafa'a al-wadî'ata, kâna lahu 'aqdu îjârin.
fuel	وقودwaqûd
We had fuel when the car stopped.	كان عندنا وقود عندما توقفت السيارة.kâna 'indanâ waqûdun 'indamâ tawaqqafati s-sayyâratu
kilometer	كيلومترkîlûmitr
additional	إضافيidâfi
The additional kilometer is expensive.	الكيلومتر الإضافي غال.al-kîlûmitru al-'iDâfiyyu ghâlin
Did you pay an additional tax on the comprehensive insurance?	هل دفعت ضريبة إضافية على التأمين الشامل؟hal dafa'ta dharîbatan idâfiyyatan 'alâ at-ta'mîni ash-shâmil?
distance	مسافةmasâfa
She used the automatic car for a distance of one hundred kilometers.	استخدمت السيارة الأوتوماتيكية لمسافة مئة كيلومتر.istakhdamatis-sayyâratal-otomâtikiyyata limasâfati mi'ati kîlûmitrin
tank	خزانkhazzân
You must fill the fuel tank before you return the car.	يجب أن تملأ خزان الوقود قبل أن ترجع السيارة.yajibu an tamla'a khazzâna al-waqûdi qabla an turji'a as-sayyârata
The company requires a deposit of one hundred dollars.	تطلب الشركة وديعة مئة دولار.tatlubu ash-sharikatu wadee'ata mi'ati doolarin
limited	محدودmahdûd
Is the distance limited in the rental contract?	هل المسافة محدودة في عقد الإيجار؟hal al-masâfatu mahdûdatun fî 'aqdi al-'îjâr?
Maryam does not like the automatic car.	مريم لا تحب السيارة الأوتوماتيكية.maryamu lâ tuhibbu s-sayyârata l-'ûtûmâtîkiyyah
Her car's tank was very small.	كان خزان سيارتها صغيرا جدا.kâna khazzânu sayyâratihâ saghîran jiddan
The distance is limited this week.	المسافة محدودة هذا الأسبوع.al-masâfatu maḥdûdatun hâdhâ al-usbû'a
taxi	تاكسيtâksi
I didn't rent a car; I took a taxi.	لم أستأجر سيارة، بل أخذت تاكسي.lam asta'jir sayyâratan, bal akhadhtu tâksî
We rode in a taxi to the airport.	ركبنا تاكسي إلى المطار.rakibnâ tâksî ilâ al-maṭâr.

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