Breakdown of العشب الأخضر تحت الشجرة.
الal
the
شجرةshajara
tree
عشب'ushb
grass
تحتtahta
under
أخضرakhdar
green
Questions & Answers about العشب الأخضر تحت الشجرة.
Why is the word for "green" الأخضر in this sentence?
الأخضر follows the أفعل pattern, which is the standard shape for masculine colors. Because العشب (the grass) is a masculine word, we use this masculine form. If we were describing a feminine word, we would use the feminine pattern (فعلاء), which would be خضراء.
Why do both "grass" (العشب) and "green" (الأخضر) start with ال (the)?
In Arabic, an adjective must perfectly match the noun it describes. Since the grass is specific (definite) and has ال, the adjective green must also take ال. If you left the second ال off and just said العشب أخضر, it would become a complete sentence meaning "The grass is green."
Where is the word for "is" in this sentence?
Arabic does not use a word for "is" in present-tense sentences like this. Instead, it uses a nominal sentence structure. The subject is العشب الأخضر (the green grass), and the news about the subject is تحت الشجرة (under the tree). The "is" is automatically understood between these two phrases.
Does the word تحت (under) affect the word for "tree" (الشجرة)?
Yes! Location words like تحت cause the noun right after them to be in the genitive case. If you were reading this sentence with full vowel marks, الشجرة would end with a kasra (a vowel mark making an "ee" sound) to show it comes after a location word.
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