Breakdown of كان عندنا حاسوبان محمولان.
حاسوبhâsûb
computer
ناnâ
our / us (object) / we (subject suffix on past verb)
عند'inda
at / to have
كانkâna
to be
محمولmahmûl
portable
Questions & Answers about كان عندنا حاسوبان محمولان.
How does this sentence say 'we had'?
Arabic doesn't have a single verb for 'to have.' Instead, you use عندنا (literally 'at us') to mean 'we have.' To make it past tense ('we had'), you just put the past-tense verb كان (was) in front of it. It basically translates to 'There was at us...'
Why is كان used here instead of a 'we' form like كنا?
When expressing possession like this, the 'owner' (we) is just a pronoun attached to the word عند. The grammatical subject of the sentence is actually the thing being owned, which is the laptops (حاسوبان). Because the verb كان comes before the laptops in the sentence order, it stays in its basic masculine singular form.
Why do the words حاسوبان and محمولان end in ـان?
That ending is the 'dual' suffix. In Arabic, when you have exactly two of something, you don't use the plural form. Instead, you add ـان to the end of the singular word. So حاسوب (computer) becomes حاسوبان (two computers).
Does محمولان just mean 'laptop'?
محمول literally means 'portable' or 'carried.' So حاسوب محمول means 'portable computer,' which is the standard way to say 'laptop' in Arabic. Here, the adjective takes the same dual ending (ـان) so it matches the two computers it describes.
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