Breakdown of أمس، تحدى أحمد يوسف وتسابقا في السرعة.
وwa
and
فيfî
in / about, regarding
أمسams
yesterday
يوسفyûsuf
Yusuf
أحمدahmad
Ahmad
تحدىtahaddâ
to challenge
تسابقtasâbaqa
to race each other
سرعةsur'a
speed
Questions & Answers about أمس، تحدى أحمد يوسف وتسابقا في السرعة.
Why is there an alif at the end of تسابقا but not at the end of تحدى?
The first verb, تحدى (he challenged), has only one doer: Ahmed. However, the second verb involves both Ahmed and Youssef. To show that exactly two people did an action in the past tense, Arabic adds a dual suffix. For two males, this suffix is simply an alif (ـا) added to the base "he" form, giving us تسابقا (they both raced).
How do we know Ahmed is the one who challenged Youssef, and not the other way around?
In a standard Arabic verbal sentence, the order is Verb-Subject-Object. Because أحمد comes immediately after the verb تحدى, he is the subject (the challenger). يوسف comes next, so he is the object (the one being challenged).
Why doesn't the Arabic sentence need extra words to say they raced "against each other"?
The base verb تسابق comes from a specific Arabic verb pattern (known as Form VI) that is often used to show a shared or reciprocal action. The idea of doing something "with" or "against each other" is already built right into the verb's shape!
Why does the verb تحدى end with a dotless yaa (ى) instead of a regular alif (ا)?
That letter is called an alif maqsura, and it is pronounced exactly like a regular alif ("a"). Many Arabic verbs that end in a vowel sound are spelled this way in the past tense because of the hidden root letters they are built from. You just have to memorize its spelling as part of the word.
Learn أمس، تحدى أحمد يوسف وتسابقا في السرعة and more in Arabic
All course content and exercises are completely free — no paywalls, no trial periods, no signup needed.
- ✓ Practice with interactive exercises
- ✓ Track your progress with spaced repetition
- ✓Learn at your own pace — completely free