Breakdown of تفتقر غرفتها إلى التدفئة، ناهيك عن الكهرباء.
الal
the
هاhâ
her / her (object) / it (feminine)
غرفةghurfa
room
كهرباءkahrabâ'
electricity
افتقر إلىiftaqara ilâ
to lack
تدفئةtadfi'a
heating
ناهيك عنnâhîka 'an
not to mention / let alone
Questions & Answers about تفتقر غرفتها إلى التدفئة، ناهيك عن الكهرباء.
How do we use the expression ناهيك عن in this sentence, and what does it literally mean?
The phrase ناهيك عن is a fixed expression meaning 'not to mention' or 'let alone'. It is used to add a stronger, more extreme point to what was just stated, implying that if the room lacks heating, it definitely lacks electricity. Literally, ناهيك comes from a root meaning 'to forbid' or 'suffice', paired with the attached pronoun ـك meaning 'you'. It conveys the sense of 'let it suffice you' or 'it prevents you from needing to mention' the next thing.
What grammatical case does الكهرباء take after ناهيك عن?
It takes the genitive case (majrur), pronounced الكهرباءِ. This is simply because the expression ends with the preposition عن, so any noun immediately following it must take the genitive case.
Why is the preposition إلى used after the verb تفتقر?
In Arabic, the Form VIII verb افتقر, meaning 'to lack' or 'be in need of', strictly requires the preposition إلى to connect to its object. While in English we say 'lacks heating' directly, Arabic essentially says 'is in need to the heating', hence تفتقر إلى التدفئة.
What verb form does the word for heating (التدفئة) come from?
التدفئة is the verbal noun (masdar) of the Form II verb دفّأ meaning 'to warm' or 'heat up'. Because the root ends in a hamza, its Form II verbal noun follows the special تَفْعِلَة pattern instead of the standard تَفْعيل pattern.
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