Arabic Verb Conjugations

Arabic verbs are built on a root system — typically three consonants (called a triliteral root) that carry the core meaning. For example, the root ك ت ب (k-t-b) relates to writing: كَتَبَ (to write), كِتَاب (book), كَاتِب (writer), مَكْتَبَة (library).

Verbs conjugate for person, gender, and number in both tenses. Arabic has two main tenses:

• الماضي (al-māḍī) — the past/perfect tense, formed by adding suffixes to the stem
• المضارع (al-muḍāriʿ) — the present/imperfect tense, formed with prefixes (and sometimes suffixes)

Verbs also come in ten forms (أوزان): Form I is the basic form, while Forms II–X are derived forms that systematically modify meaning (e.g., causative, reflexive, reciprocal). The dictionary form of an Arabic verb is the 3rd person masculine singular past tense (هُوَ فَعَلَ).