Breakdown of استأجرنا شقة مفروشة، لكنها صغيرة جدا.
صغيرsagheer
small
هاhâ
her / her (object) / it (feminine)
شقةshaqqa
apartment
جداjiddan
very
لكنlâkin
but
استأجرista'jara
to rent
مفروشmafrûshun
furnished
Questions & Answers about استأجرنا شقة مفروشة، لكنها صغيرة جدا.
The lesson is about لكنّ with pronouns. Why does this sentence use لكنها (lakinnahaa) instead of just لكن (lakin)?
The word لكنّ (lakinna) is considered a sister of إنّ (inna) in Arabic grammar, which means it must be followed immediately by a noun or an attached pronoun. Because we are saying 'but it is...', we attach the pronoun directly to the conjunction, creating لكنها.
Why is the attached pronoun in لكنها the feminine ها (-haa) when translating to the English word 'it'?
In Arabic, pronouns must always match the gender of the noun they refer to. The 'it' here refers back to the apartment, شقة (shaqqah). Since شقة ends with a taa marboota (ة) and is a feminine noun, we have to use the feminine pronoun ها to refer to it.
Both مفروشة (furnished) and صغيرة (small) end in the feminine ة. Are they doing the exact same job?
They both describe the feminine noun شقة (apartment), but they play slightly different roles. مفروشة is a standard adjective following the noun, so it matches it directly. صغيرة is the predicate (the main piece of news) coming after لكنها. Since it gives information about a feminine apartment, it also takes the feminine ending.
The verb استأجرنا (ist'ajarnaa) looks quite long. How can I break it down?
It looks long because it has both a prefix and a suffix added to the core root word for renting (أجر). The استـ (ista-) at the beginning is a common verb pattern used when seeking or asking for something. The ـنا (-naa) at the very end is the past tense ending for 'we', putting it all together as 'we rented'.
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