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### واو المعية: The "While" Conjunction

You already know that the conjunction و means "and." However, when it appears after a negative command or a question, it can take on a special meaning: "while," "along with," or "at the same time as." In Arabic grammar, this is known as واو المعية (the و of accompaniment).

When you use و to mean "while simultaneously doing," the present tense verb immediately following it must be in the **Subjunctive** mood (المضارع المنصوب).

As a quick refresher, the subjunctive mood requires:
- Adding the vowel َ to the end of standard singular and first-person plural verbs.
- Dropping the ن at the end of plural verbs and the second-person feminine singular verb.

### Following a Negative Command

A common way to set boundaries during negotiations is to tell someone *not* to do one thing while simultaneously doing another. Notice how the second verb following the و drops its final ن because it is in the subjunctive.

{{item:1187612}}

{{item:1187619}}

If the subject is singular, the subjunctive verb simply takes the vowel َ at the end.

{{item:1187630}}

### Following a Question

You can also use واو المعية after a question to express disbelief or to challenge a proposal. Again, the verb following the و is governed by the subjunctive mood.

In this example, notice how the second-person feminine singular verb تقبلي drops its ن:

{{item:1187616}}

And here, the first-person plural verb نقبل takes the vowel َ:

{{item:1187629}}

### Seeing the endings

This course writes Arabic the way books and newspapers print it, without the short-vowel marks, so the ending this lesson is about is usually something you hear in the audio but cannot see in the drills. Here are some of them with every vowel written out:

| as written | fully vocalized | meaning |
|---|---|---|
| لا تفاوض وتملي شرطا مجحفا. | لَا تُفَاوِضْ وَتُمْلِيَ شَرْطًا مُجْحِفًا. | Do not negotiate while dictating an unfair condition. |
| أنبني كيانا مستقلا ونقبل بقرارات تعسفية؟ | أَنَبْنِي كِيَانًا مُسْتَقِلًّا وَنَقْبَلَ بِقَرَارَاتٍ تَعَسُّفِيَّةٍ؟ | Are we building an independent entity while accepting arbitrary decisions? |
| كيف تتوقعين الربحية وتقبلي شروطا مجحفة؟ | كَيْفَ تَتَوَقَّعِينَ الرِّبْحِيَّةَ وَتَقْبَلِي شُرُوطًا مُجْحِفَةً؟ | How can you expect profitability while accepting unfair conditions? |

After this و the verb is subjunctive. On an *I*, *he*, *she*, *we* or *you* (one man) verb that means a final fatha, which you hear but never see: **وَتُمْلِيَ**, **وَنَقْبَلَ**. As plain *and*, the same letters would be read وَنَقْبَلُ, so here the vowel is what carries the meaning *while*. The forms for *you* (one woman), for men or a mixed group, and for two show it in writing, because they drop their final ن: **تَتَوَقَّعِينَ** keeps its ن, **وَتَقْبَلِي** loses it. The feminine plural keeps its ن.

Simultaneous actions (و)

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
entity	كيانkiyân
to marginalize	همشhammasha
shareholder	مساهمmusâhim
Do not merge the two entities while marginalizing the shareholders!	لا تدمجوا الكيانين وتهمشوا المساهمين!lâ tadmijû al-kiânayni wa tuhammishû al-musâhimîn
profitability	ربحيةribhiyya
to accept (an offer, gift, etc.)	قبلqabila
unfair	مجحفmujhif
How can you expect profitability while accepting unfair conditions?	كيف تتوقعين الربحية وتقبلي شروطا مجحفة؟kayfa tatawaqqa'îna r-ribhiyyata wa-taqbalî shurûtan mujhifatan?
to dictate	أملىamlâ
arbitrary	تعسفيta'assufiyy
Do not dictate arbitrary terms while asking that we cooperate!	لا تملوا شروطا تعسفية وتطلبوا أن نتعاون!lâ tumlû shurûtan taassufiyyatan wa tatlubû an nataâwana
to take over	استولى علىistawlâ 'alâ
to undermine	قوضqawwada
Do not take over the company while undermining all of its departments.	لا تستولوا على الشركة وتقوضوا جميع أقسامها.lâ tastawloo ala ash-sharikati wa tuqawwidoo jameea aqsâmihâ
executive	تنفيذيtanfîziyy
The executive director (f) agreed on founding a new entity.	اتفقت المديرة التنفيذية على تأسيس كيان جديد.ittafaqati al-mudîratu at-tanfîdhiyyatu 'alâ ta'sîsi kiyânin jadîdin
O female shareholder, do not reject the merger while offering an unfair price!	يا أيتها المساهمة، لا ترفضي الاندماج وتعرضي سعرا مجحفا!yâ ayyatuhâ al-musâhimah, lâ tarfudî al-indimâja wa ta'ridî si'ran mujhifan!
The executive committee aims to double the profitability.	تسعى اللجنة التنفيذية إلى مضاعفة الربحية.tas'â allajnatu attanfîdhiyyatu ilâ mudâ'afati arribhiyyati
Do not monopolize the market while raising the prices!	لا تحتكروا السوق وترفعوا الأسعار!lâ tahtakirû as-sûqa wa tarfa'û al-as'âr!
Whoever marginalizes the partners and undermines them ruins the company.	من يهمش الشركاء ويقوضهم يفسد الشركة.man yuhammishi ash-shurakâ'a wa yuqawwiḍhum yufsidi ash-sharikah
Are we building an independent entity while accepting arbitrary decisions?	أنبني كيانا مستقلا ونقبل بقرارات تعسفية؟anabnî kiyânan mustaqillan wa naqbala bi qarârâtin ta'assufiyyatin?
Do not negotiate while dictating an unfair condition.	لا تفاوض وتملي شرطا مجحفا.lâ tufâwid wa tumliya shartan mujhifan.
How does the manager agree while taking over the company?	كيف توافق المديرة وتستولي على الشركة؟kayfa tuwâfiqu al-mudîratu wa-tastawliya ‘alâ ash-sharikati?

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