ابني يقرأ الكتاب.

ابني is made of:

• ابن = son
• ـي = my

So ابني means my son.

The ـي at the end is a possessive suffix. Arabic often shows possession by attaching a pronoun directly to the noun, instead of using a separate word like my.

It is pronounced roughly ibnī.

A simple breakdown:

• ib = like ib in rib, but shorter
• nī = nee

So: ib-nī

A common thing for English speakers to notice is that ابن keeps the consonant cluster bn. Arabic allows that here, even though English learners may want to insert an extra vowel.

The final ي is the suffix meaning my.

So:

• ابن = son
• ابني = my son

This ي is one of the most common possessive endings in Arabic. You will see the same pattern in words like:

• كتابي = my book
• أخي = my brother
• بيتي = my house

Because Arabic usually expresses possession by attaching pronoun suffixes to nouns.

Instead of saying something like my + son as two separate words, Arabic usually says one combined form:

• ابني = my son

This is completely normal and very common in Arabic.

يقرأ is the present-tense verb meaning he reads or he is reading.

It is pronounced roughly yaqraʾu in full formal pronunciation.

Helpful breakdown:

• يـ often marks the he form in the present tense
• قرأ is the root area connected with reading

The final sound in يقرأ includes a hamza (ء), so the word ends with a little catch in the throat: yaqraʾ.

That is a hamza.

Hamza represents a glottal stop, the brief stoppage in sound you hear in the middle of the English expression uh-oh.

So يقرأ is not pronounced like yaqra smoothly. It has a stop near the end: yaqraʾ.

This sound is important in Arabic because it can change the word.

الكتاب means the book because of الـ, the Arabic definite article.

So:

• كتاب = a book / book
• الكتاب = the book

The sentence uses a definite object, so it refers to the book, not just any book.

الكتاب is the direct object of the verb يقرأ.

In other words:

• ابني = the one doing the action
• يقرأ = the action
• الكتاب = the thing being read

So the structure is:

My son + reads/is reading + the book

Arabic allows more than one word order.

This sentence uses:

• Subject + Verb + Object
  ابني يقرأ الكتاب

But Arabic can also use:

• Verb + Subject + Object
  يقرأ ابني الكتاب

Both are correct.

Very generally:

• ابني يقرأ الكتاب can feel a bit more like My son reads the book
• يقرأ ابني الكتاب can feel more like My son is reading the book or simply a more verb-first style

In many contexts, the difference is about style, focus, or emphasis, not basic meaning.

Because it begins with ابني, many teachers describe it as a nominal sentence (جملة اسمية) whose predicate is a verbal clause.

That means:

• ابني = the topic/subject at the beginning
• يقرأ الكتاب = the clause telling you something about him

So even though there is a verb in the sentence, the sentence starts with a noun, which matters in Arabic grammar.

It can mean either one, depending on context.

In Modern Standard Arabic, the present tense often covers both:

• he reads
• he is reading

So ابني يقرأ الكتاب could mean:

• My son reads the book
• My son is reading the book

Context tells you which is more natural.

Because the verb itself already includes the subject information.

يقرأ already means he reads / he is reading.

So Arabic does not need a separate pronoun like هو unless there is a reason for emphasis or contrast.

For example:

• هو يقرأ الكتاب = He is reading the book
• This can sound more emphatic, like He is reading the book

But in your sentence, ابني already identifies the subject clearly.

A fully vowelled version is:

اِبْنِي يَقْرَأُ الْكِتَابَ

This shows the short vowels and case endings more clearly.

Very roughly:

• اِبْنِي = ibnī
• يَقْرَأُ = yaqraʾu
• الْكِتَابَ = al-kitāba

In normal everyday Arabic writing, these short vowels are usually omitted.

Because it is the direct object, and in formal Arabic the direct object is usually in the accusative case.

So in full case-marked Arabic:

• الْكِتَابَ = accusative

That final fatḥa marks its grammatical role.

In normal unvowelled writing, you usually just see الكتاب, and the case ending is not written.

Because ابني is a noun with a possessive suffix attached.

Tanwīn, such as -un, usually appears on indefinite nouns. But a noun with my attached is already definite, so it does not take tanwīn.

Compare:

• ابنٌ = a son
• ابني = my son

Once the suffix ـي is attached, the form changes and tanwīn disappears.

Yes.

That would mean My son is reading a book or My son reads a book.

Compare:

• ابني يقرأ الكتاب = My son reads/is reading the book
• ابني يقرأ كتابًا = My son reads/is reading a book

So the difference is definiteness:

• الكتاب = the book
• كتابًا = a book

Yes, it is completely natural and straightforward.

It is a very standard beginner-style sentence because it clearly shows:

• a possessed noun: ابني
• a present-tense verb: يقرأ
• a direct object: الكتاب

So it is a good example of basic Arabic sentence structure.