Questions & Answers about زوجتي لبنانية.
Why is there no word for 'is' in this sentence?
In Arabic, simple sentences using 'am', 'is', or 'are' do not use a verb in the present tense. You just put the subject (زوجتي) and the description (لبنانية) side by side to mean 'My wife is Lebanese'.
How does the word for 'my wife' work here? I do not see a separate word for 'my'.
Arabic uses attached endings, called suffixes, to show ownership. The base word for 'wife' is زوجة. To say 'my wife', you attach the suffix ي to the end, making it زوجتي.
The word for wife usually ends in a round Taa Marbuta (ة). Why does it look different in زوجتي?
When you add an ending like the 'my' suffix to a word that ends in a Taa Marbuta (ة), that round letter opens up into a regular Taa (ت). This happens so it can physically connect to the new letter at the end.
Why does the word for 'Lebanese' end with that same round letter (ة)?
Adjectives in Arabic must match the gender of the noun they describe. Since a wife is feminine, the adjective takes the feminine ending ة to become لبنانية. If you were talking about a Lebanese husband, you would drop the ة and just say لبناني.
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