Breakdown of حضر شخصان اثنان الاجتماع.
الal
the
اجتماعijtimâ'
meeting
حضرhadara
to attend
اثنانithnân
two
شخصshakhs
person
Questions & Answers about حضر شخصان اثنان الاجتماع.
Why is the verb حضر (attended) singular when the subject is two people?
In Modern Standard Arabic, when a verb comes before the subject, it always stays in the singular form. Because حضر comes before شخصان (two people), we use the singular masculine form rather than a dual or plural verb.
If شخصان already means "two people", why is the number اثنان (two) added?
You are right that the dual ending ـان (-aan) on شخصان is enough to mean "two people". Adding the number اثنان immediately after it is optional and used purely for emphasis, much like saying "Exactly two people attended."
How would I use كم (how many) to ask the question that this sentence answers?
You would ask كم شخصاً حضر الاجتماع؟ (How many people attended the meeting?). Remember that after كم, the noun must be singular and take the "-an" ending (the accusative case), which is why we say شخصاً rather than using a plural or dual form.
Why do both شخصان and اثنان end with the exact same ـان (-aan) suffix?
Because the numbers 1 and 2 act like adjectives in Arabic, so they must perfectly match the noun they describe. Since شخصان is masculine, dual, and the subject of the sentence, اثنان copies all of those traits, resulting in the matching ـان ending.
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