Breakdown of تحتاج العناية بالشعر إلى شامبو جيد ومشط نظيف.
الal
the
وwa
and
نظيفnazhîf
clean
بbi
by, with (attached)
جيدjayyid
good / well
شعرsha'r
hair
احتاج إلىihtâja ilâ
to need
شامبوshâmbû
shampoo
عنايةʿinâya
care
مشطmusht
comb
Questions & Answers about تحتاج العناية بالشعر إلى شامبو جيد ومشط نظيف.
Why is there an إلى after the verb for "needs"?
In Arabic, the verb احتاج (to need) and its present tense form تحتاج cannot take a direct object on their own. The verb always requires the preposition إلى (to) before the thing that is needed. Literally, this sentence says that hair care needs "to" a good shampoo.
Why does "hair care" use the preposition بـ instead of just being an Idafa (possessive) phrase?
While you might expect an Idafa like عناية الشعر, it is much more common and idiomatic in Arabic to use the definite noun العناية (the care) followed by the preposition بـ (with/by) to mean "care for" something. You will see this same pattern in similar phrases, such as العناية بالبشرة (skin care).
The word شامبو is a borrowed word. How do we know its grammatical gender?
Foreign loanwords that do not refer to people and do not end in a feminine marker like the Taa Marbuta are almost always treated as masculine by default. You can see this in action here because the adjective describing it, جيد (good), is in its masculine singular form.
Does the word شامبو take a Kasra (genitive case ending) because it comes after the preposition إلى?
No, its pronunciation and spelling do not change. Because شامبو ends in a long vowel, it is indeclinable. This means its ending never changes to show grammatical case; it remains exactly the same whether it is the subject, the object, or following a preposition.
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