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Lesson 4.2: Asking Questions (هَلْ / مَنْ / مَا) Next
Lesson 4: Part 1: Nominal Sentence (Mubtada & Khabar) ▶ Part 2: Questions (هَلْ / مَنْ / مَا) Part 3: Dialogue

Turning Statements into Questions

You can now make statements like "The student is new." But how do you ask about something? Arabic has 3 essential question tools. Look at them in action first!

هَلْ
Hal
Yes / No Question
هَلِ الطَّالِبُ جَدِيدٌ؟
Hal at-talibu jadeedun?
"Is the student new?"
مَنْ
Man
Who? (for people)
مَنْ هَذَا؟ هَذَا مُعَلِّمٌ
Man hadhaa? Hadhaa mu'allimun
"Who is this? This is a teacher."
مَا
Maa
What? (for things)
مَا هَذَا؟ هَذَا كِتَابٌ
Maa hadhaa? Hadhaa kitaabun
"What is this? This is a book."

The Rules

هَلْ — Yes/No

Add هَلْ to the very beginning of any nominal sentence. The rest of the sentence stays exactly the same.

الطَّالِبُ مُجْتَهِدٌ ← هَلِ الطَّالِبُ مُجْتَهِدٌ؟
Note: هَلِ gets a Kasra (هَلِ) before Al- words to ease pronunciation.
مَنْ — Who?

Replaces the subject when asking about a person's identity. The answer states who they are.

مَنْ هَذَا؟ هَذَا مُحَمَّدٌ
مَنْ هَذَا؟ هَذَا طَالِبٌ
مَا — What?

Asks about the nature or identity of a thing (not a person). Returns a noun or adjective as the answer.

مَا هَذِهِ؟ هَذِهِ سَبُّورَةٌ
مَا اسْمُكَ؟ اسْمِي خَالِدٌ

Q&A Drill — Tap to reveal the answer!

نَعَمْ، اَلْمُدَرِّسُ جَدِيدٌ
Yes, the teacher is new.
هَلِ الْمُدَرِّسُ جَدِيدٌ؟
Is the teacher new?
Tap to reveal answer
هَذِهِ طَبِيبَةٌ
This is a doctor (f).
مَنْ هَذِهِ؟
Who is this?
Tap to reveal answer
هَذَا قَلَمٌ
This is a pen.
مَا هَذَا؟
What is this?
Tap to reveal answer
نَعَمْ، اَلْبَابُ مَفْتُوحٌ
Yes, the door is open.
هَلِ الْبَابُ مَفْتُوحٌ؟
Is the door open?
Tap to reveal answer
هَذَا طَالِبٌ
This is a student.
مَنْ هَذَا؟
Who is this?
Tap to reveal answer
هَذِهِ سَيَّارَةٌ
This is a car.
مَا هَذِهِ؟
What is this (f)?
Tap to reveal answer