Breakdown of الرسالة هنا. أين طابع البريد؟ هو عليها.
أينayna
where
الal
the
هناhunâ
here
هوhuwa
he / his / him (attached)
على'ala
on / of (evidence of) / to (lie to someone) / for (difficult for someone)
هاhâ
her / her (object) / it (feminine)
رسالةrisâla
letter / message
بريدbarîd
mail
طابعtâbaʻ
stamp
Questions & Answers about الرسالة هنا. أين طابع البريد؟ هو عليها.
How do we get the word عليها (on it)?
This word combines the preposition على (on) with the attached pronoun ـها (her/it). Notice that the final letter of على, which looks like a 'y' without dots, changes to a regular ي with two dots when we attach a pronoun to it. So, على + ـها becomes عليها.
Why does the sentence use هو (he) and ـها (her) when English just uses "it" for both?
In Arabic, all nouns have a gender, and pronouns must match that gender. The stamp (طابع) is masculine, so we use the separate pronoun هو (he) to say "It is". The letter (الرسالة) is feminine because it ends in a taa marbuta (ة). Therefore, we attach the feminine pronoun ـها (her) to the preposition, literally saying "he is on her".
How does طابع البريد mean "postage stamp"?
This is a relationship between two nouns, often called an Idafa structure, which literally translates to "the stamp of the mail". In Arabic, you put the two nouns right next to each other. The first word طابع (stamp) cannot take "the" (الـ), and the second word البريد (the mail) defines what kind of stamp it is.
Why isn't there a word for "is" in الرسالة هنا (The letter is here)?
Arabic does not use a present tense word for "am", "is", or "are". When you put a subject like الرسالة (the letter) right next to information about its location like هنا (here), the "is" is naturally understood by the listener.
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