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### The Past Tense Verb كان

In Arabic, basic sentences in the present tense usually do not use a word for "is" or "are." However, to describe states, places, or situations in the past, you must use the verb كان (to be).

For third-person subjects, you will use one of two forms depending on the gender of the noun:
- كان (he/it was) for masculine subjects
- كانت (she/it was) for feminine subjects

### The Predicate of كان (The Accusative Case)

When using كان, the subject of the sentence remains in the default nominative case, but the predicate (the word or phrase giving information about the subject) changes to the **accusative** case.

In written Arabic, indefinite masculine words in the accusative case usually add an alif (ا) to the end of the word. For feminine words ending in a tied taa (ة), the spelling does not change.

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### Using Noun Phrases as Predicates

The predicate of كان can be a single adjective, or it can be a noun followed by an adjective (like "a famous person" or "a big museum"). When the predicate is a noun-adjective pair, **both** words must match in case and take the accusative form.

Notice how the masculine nouns and adjectives below both add an extra alif to show the accusative case.

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### كان with an Idafa Subject

When the subject of the sentence is an Idafa (possession) phrase, such as "the wall of the castle," the gender of the verb كان matches the first word of the Idafa (the possessed item). The predicate, as always, still takes the accusative case.

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The past tense of 'to be' (كان)

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)

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)

Expressing purpose (لـ)

Question	Answer
to be	كانkâna
palace	قصرqasr
famous	مشهورmashhour
The palace was famous.	كان القصر مشهورا.kâna al-qasru mash-hûran.
castle	قلعةqal'ah
huge	ضخمdakhm
The castle was huge.	كانت القلعة ضخمة.kânati alqal'atu dakhmatan
wall	سورsûr
The wall of the castle was high.	كان سور القلعة عاليا.kâna sûru l-qal'ati âliyâ.
king	ملكmalik
The king was a famous person.	كان الملك شخصا مشهورا.kâna al-maliku shakhsan mash-hûran
mosque	مسجدmasjid
building	مبنىmabnâ
historical	تاريخيtârîkhî
This mosque was a historical building.	كان هذا المسجد مبنى تاريخيا.kâna hâdhâ al-masjidu mabnan târîkhiyyan
The famous king visited this castle.	زار الملك المشهور هذه القلعة.zâra al-maliku al-mash-hûru hâdhihi al-qal'ata
The historical building was a big museum.	كان المبنى التاريخي متحفا كبيرا.kâna al-mabnâ at-târîkhiyyu mat'hafan kabîran
The huge mosque was open.	كان المسجد الضخم مفتوحا.kâna al-masjidu ad-dakhmu maftûhan
The wall of the city was old.	كان سور المدينة قديما.kâna sûru l-madînati qadîman
The king built a huge palace.	بنى الملك قصرا ضخما.banâ al-maliku qasran dakhman