Breakdown of هو يسافر متأخرا دائما.
هوhuwa
he / his / him (attached)
سافرsâfara
to travel
دائماdâ'iman
always
متأخرmuta'akhkhir
late
Questions & Answers about هو يسافر متأخرا دائما.
Why do both متأخرا and دائما have an extra Alif with two small lines at the end?
This ending is the indefinite accusative case, which you are learning right now! When we want to use a word as an adverb (like "late" or "always") to describe how or when an action happens, we add these two dashes. They make an "an" sound, and in writing, they usually need an extra silent Alif to "carry" them.
How do I pronounce the ends of متأخرا and دائما? Does the Alif make a long "aa" sound?
No, the Alif here is completely silent. The two small lines make an "an" sound. So you pronounce these words as "muta'akhkhiran" and "dā'iman". The extra Alif is just a spelling rule for this specific case ending.
Why is دائما (always) at the very end of the sentence, instead of before the verb like in English?
Arabic word order for adverbs is different from English. Adverbs that describe time, frequency, or degree (like "always", "late", or "very") usually come after the verb, and very often sit at the very end of the sentence.
Can I use متأخر without the extra Alif ending?
Yes, if you are using it as a regular adjective to describe a noun. For example, to say "He is late", you would just say هو متأخر. We only add the "an" ending to make it متأخرا when we want to turn it into an adverb that describes the action of traveling.
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