Dropping the (ن) in the Jussive Mood
In the previous lesson, you saw that regular verbs take a sukun in the jussive mood after لم. However, the jussive affects verbs differently depending on their subjects.
For present tense verbs that naturally end in the letter ن (the masculine plural, the dual, and the feminine singular "you"), the jussive mood is formed by dropping the final ن entirely.
Masculine Plurals
For masculine plural forms (speaking to or about a group of males or a mixed group), the present tense normally ends in ون. To put these verbs in the jussive mood after لم, you drop the ن and replace it with a silent ا (alif).
Notice how the verbs in these examples end in وا rather than ون:
| My colleagues, you did not complete the project. | يا زملائي، لم تكملوا المشروع.yâ zumalâ'î, lam tukmilû al-mashrû'a |
| The programmers did not prepare for the conference. | المبرمجون لم يستعدوا للمؤتمر.al-mubarmijûna lam yasta'iddû lil-mu'tamari. |
Dual Subjects
For dual subjects (speaking to or about exactly two people), the present tense normally ends in ان. In the jussive mood, you simply drop the ن. The verb will end smoothly on the long ا sound.
| The two professors did not agree on the topic. | الأستاذان لم يوافقا على الموضوع.al-ustâdhâni lam yuwâfiqâ alâ al-mawdû'i |
| The two students (f) did not explain the sources. | الطالبتان لم تشرحا المصادر.at-tâlibatâni lam tashrahâ al-masâdira |
The 2nd Person Feminine Singular
When speaking directly to a single female ("you"), the present tense verb normally ends in ين. Just like the plural and dual forms, the jussive mood requires you to drop the final ن, leaving the verb to end on the long ي sound.
| My colleague (f), you did not print the notes. | يا زميلتي، لم تطبعي الملاحظات.yâ zamîlatî, lam tatba'î al-mulâhazât. |
| Why did you (f) not attend the meeting? | لماذا لم تحضري الاجتماع؟limâdhâ lam tahduri l-ijtimâa? |
