Breakdown of يا صديقتي، يجب أن تمرري الكرة الآن.
الal
the
الآنal-ân
now
صديقsadîq
friend
يi
my / me (after a preposition)
كرةkura
ball
أنan
to (with verbs)
ياyâ
O
يجبyajibu
must / has to
مررmarrara
to pass
Questions & Answers about يا صديقتي، يجب أن تمرري الكرة الآن.
Why is the verb تمرري missing its final ن?
This is the main point of your current lesson! The regular present tense verb for you (feminine singular) pass is تمررين. However, because it comes after أن (that), it changes to the subjunctive mood. In the subjunctive, the you (feminine singular) form drops the final ن, leaving just تمرري.
How can we tell the speaker is talking to a female friend?
There are two big clues. First, the noun صديقتي (my friend) is built from the feminine word صديقة plus the my suffix ـي. A male friend would be صديقي. Second, the verb تمرري is conjugated for a female you. If speaking to a male, it would be تمرر.
Why is there an أن before the verb if the English translation just says must pass?
In Arabic, the verb يجب literally translates as it is necessary. You cannot say you must directly. Instead, you say it is necessary that you pass. The word أن means that, and it is the word that forces the following verb into the subjunctive mood.
Can I attach a pronoun to يجب to say you must, like يجبك?
No, يجب is fixed and does not take pronoun suffixes to show who must do the action. You always use يجب أن (it is necessary that) and then conjugate the following verb to match the person who needs to do the action.
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