الكوكب كبير.

The planet is large.

Breakdown of الكوكب كبير.

• كبير: big
• كوكب: a planet

Questions & Answers about الكوكب كبير.

How do I pronounce الكوكب كبير?

A careful MSA pronunciation is al-kawkabu kabīrun.

In normal pause, many speakers drop the final short vowels and say:

al-kawkab kabīr

A few pronunciation notes:

• ال = al-
• كو sounds like ko with a long-ish o
• كب in كوكب ends with a b sound
• كبير has a long ī sound, like ee in see

Also, the l in ال is pronounced clearly here, because ك is a moon letter, not a sun letter.

Why is there no word for is in this sentence?

Because Arabic usually does not use a present-tense verb meaning is/are in simple sentences like this.

So:

• الكوكب كبير = The planet is big

This is called a nominal sentence in Arabic. The meaning is is understood automatically.

If you wanted was, then Arabic would use a verb, for example:

• كان الكوكب كبيرًا = The planet was big

Why does the sentence start with الكوكب and then ?