Breakdown of هم مجموعة ممتازة.
همhum
they
مجموعةmajmûʿa
group / collection (of designs)
ممتازmumtâz
excellent
Questions & Answers about هم مجموعة ممتازة.
Why do we use the masculine plural pronoun هم ("they") when the word for group, مجموعة, is feminine?
The pronoun هم refers to the actual people being talked about, not the grammatical word for "group." In Arabic, you use هم for a group of males or a mixed-gender group. If you were pointing to a group made entirely of women, you would use the feminine plural pronoun هن instead.
Where is the verb "are" in this sentence?
Arabic doesn't use a word for "am", "is", or "are" in simple present-tense sentences like this. You just place the subject (هم, "they") directly next to what they are (مجموعة ممتازة, "an excellent group").
Why does the adjective ممتازة (excellent) end with a taa marbuta (ة)?
Adjectives in Arabic must match the gender of the noun they describe. Because مجموعة (group) is a feminine noun (indicated by the ة at its end), the adjective ممتازة must also take the feminine ة ending.
I learned that هم means "their." Why does it mean "they" here?
It depends on whether it stands alone! When هم is attached to the end of a word (like كتابهم for "their book"), it is an attached pronoun meaning "their." But in this sentence, it stands completely alone as an independent subject pronoun, so it translates to "they."
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