Breakdown of خذ المسؤولية بنفسك قبل أن تعتمد على أخيك.
الal
the
أخakh
brother
كka
your / you (object)
بbi
by, with (attached)
Questions & Answers about خذ المسؤولية بنفسك قبل أن تعتمد على أخيك.
Why does the word for "yourself" (بنفسك) have the prefix بـ attached to it?
The word نفس means "self", and adding the pronoun ـك ("your") makes it "yourself" (نفسك). When we want to say "by yourself" or emphasize doing something personally in Arabic, we usually attach the preposition بـ (by/with) to the front. So, بنفسك literally means "by your self".
خذ looks really short. What verb is this?
خذ (take!) is the command form of the verb أخذ (to take / he took). Because the root starts with a hamza (أ), that first letter drops entirely in the command form to make it easier to pronounce. This happens with a few common verbs, such as أكل (to eat) becoming كل.
Why do we need the word أن between قبل and تعتمد?
The word قبل (before) can only be followed directly by a noun. When you want to say "before [doing an action]", you must use the phrase قبل أن followed by a present tense verb. The أن also changes the verb's ending vowel to a fatha (تعتمدَ), putting it in the subjunctive mood.
I usually see "your brother" as أخوك. Why is it أخيك here?