Word
لو واظبنا على الحضور، ما زاد الغياب.
Meaning
If we had attended regularly, the absence would not have increased.
Part of speech
sentence
Pronunciation
Course
Breakdown of لو واظبنا على الحضور، ما زاد الغياب.
الal
the
ماmâ
not (negating a past verb or a sentence)
زادzâda
to increase / to gain
لوlaw
if (hypothetical/unreal)
Questions & Answers about لو واظبنا على الحضور، ما زاد الغياب.
Why is لو used here instead of إذا or إن for the word 'if'?
In Arabic, لو is used specifically for hypothetical or unreal conditions—things that didn't actually happen. Because the speakers didn't attend regularly in reality (and the absences did increase), it is a contrary-to-fact statement. If the condition was possible or a future likelihood, you would use إذا or إن.
Usually, the result part of a لو sentence starts with the prefix لـ (la-). Why is it missing before ما زاد?
The prefix لـ (la-) is attached to the result clause of a لو sentence only when the result is affirmative, such as لَزاد (it would have increased). Because this result clause is negative, using the particle ما (not), the لـ prefix is dropped.
Why is the preposition على used after the verb واظبنا?
The verb واظب (a Form III verb meaning to persevere, or to do something consistently) naturally pairs with the preposition على. While the English translation is simply 'attended regularly', the Arabic phrasing literally means 'we persevered on the attendance'.
Are الحضور (the attendance) and الغياب (the absence) considered standard nouns or gerunds here?