Breakdown of المقهى مغلق اليوم، لذلك أقرأ الصحيفة في البيت.
يقرأ
to read
اليوم
today
في
at/in
البيت
home/house
Questions & Answers about المقهى مغلق اليوم، لذلك أقرأ الصحيفة في البيت.
Why is there no Arabic word for is in المقهى مغلق اليوم?
In Arabic, the verb to be is usually not written in the present tense.
So:
- المقهى مغلق اليوم = The café is closed today
Arabic simply puts the subject and the predicate next to each other.
This is called a nominal sentence:
- المقهى = the café
- مغلق = closed
- اليوم = today
If you wanted was or will be, Arabic would use an actual verb, such as كان or سيكون.
Why is مغلق indefinite, even though المقهى is definite?
Because مغلق here is not an adjective directly modifying المقهى. It is the predicate of the sentence.
Compare these:
- المقهى مغلق = The café is closed
- المقهى المغلق = the closed café
In the first one, مغلق is telling you something about the café, so it stays indefinite.
In the second one, المغلق is a true adjective attached to المقهى, so it matches it in definiteness.
This is a very common pattern in Arabic.
Is مغلق an adjective or a verb?