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Questions & Answers about ما هذا؟ هذا قلم.
Why do we use هذا here instead of هذه?
هذا is the masculine form of "this". We use it here because the noun it refers to, قلم (pen), is a masculine word in Arabic.
Where is the word for "is" in هذا قلم?
Arabic does not use a word for "is" or "are" in simple present tense sentences. Just putting the words for "this" and "pen" next to each other as هذا قلم automatically means "This is a pen".
Why does هذا sound like it has a long "a" after the first letter, but it isn't written with an alif?
هذا is one of a few special words in Arabic where a long "a" sound is pronounced but not written. You just have to memorize that it is pronounced "haa-dhaa" even though there is no alif after the first letter!
Can I use ما to ask about a person?
No, ما is only used to ask "what" about objects, animals, or ideas (non-human things). Because a pen is an object, ما هذا؟ is perfectly correct. If you wanted to ask "Who is this?" about a person, you would use من instead.
How do we know it means "a pen" instead of "the pen"?