المخلب صغير.

The claw is small.

Breakdown of المخلب صغير.

• صغير: small
• مخلب: the claw

Questions & Answers about المخلب صغير.

What does الـ mean in المخلب?

الـ is the Arabic definite article, the equivalent of the in English.

• مخلب = a claw / claw
• المخلب = the claw

So المخلب is definite, not just any claw.

Does the l in الـ get pronounced here?

Yes. In المخلب, the next letter is م, which is a moon letter, so the l sound is pronounced.

In careful pronunciation, you would say something like al-mikhlab.
In Levantine, it is often pronounced more like il-mikhlab or el-mikhlab.

Why is there no word for is in the sentence?

In Arabic, present-tense sentences like this usually do not use a separate word for is/are.

So:

• المخلب صغير literally looks like the claw small
• but it means the claw is small

This is a very common Arabic sentence pattern. In the past or future, Arabic does use words equivalent to was or will be.

Why does صغير come after المخلب?