Breakdown of حملهی آنها را دیدیم.
آنها
they
دیدنdidan
to see / to watch
راrâ
definite direct object marker
حملهhamle
attack (noun)
Questions & Answers about حملهی آنها را دیدیم.
Why is there a ی at the end of حمله (attack)?
The word for "attack" is حمله (hamle), which ends in a silent ه. To connect it to آنها (them) to say "their attack", we use the connecting vowel called the Ezafe. When a word ends in a silent ه, the Ezafe is written with a ی and pronounced -ye. So, حملهی آنها is pronounced hamle-ye ānhā.
Why do we need the word را (rā) in this sentence?
را (rā) marks the specific direct object of the sentence—the thing being seen. Since "their attack" (حملهی آنها) is a specific, defined thing (not just "an attack" in general), we must place را immediately after the entire noun phrase.
Could I say حملهشان instead of حملهی آنها?
Yes! حملهی آنها uses the independent pronoun آنها (they/them) connected with an Ezafe to mean "their attack". You can also use the attached possessive pronoun شان (shān) and say حملهشان (hamle-shān). Both mean exactly the same thing and are very common.
In this lesson about long infinitives, how does حمله relate to the verb "to attack"?
حمله (hamle) is a standard noun. In Farsi, "to attack" is a compound verb made by combining this noun with the verb for "to do": حمله کردن (hamle kardan). If you wanted to use a long infinitive (verbal noun) to express "the act of attacking", you would use . But to just say "their attack", the simple noun works best here.