Definition of Verbal Nouns
Verbal nouns are defined as words that resemble fixed nouns in their adherence to a single vowel movement, and they share characteristics with verbs by indicating an action associated with time. It is further articulated that these words signify the meanings of verbs without being subject to the inflections applied to verbs.
Categories of Verbal Nouns
Verbal nouns can be classified based on their connotation of verb meanings into three distinct categories:
- Past Verbal Noun
The past verbal noun refers to expressions indicative of past actions, such as هيهات (meaning “far away”), سرعان and بطآن (indicating “to hasten” and “to slow down,” respectively), and شتّان (meaning “to diverge”).
- Present Verbal Noun
The present verbal noun signifies actions occurring in the present, like أفٍّ (meaning “I am annoyed”), بخٍ (meaning “I appreciate”), آه (meaning “I feel pain”), and واها (meaning “I am astonished”).
- Imperative Verbal Noun
The imperative verbal noun conveys commands and is notably the most prevalent type of verbal noun in the language. Examples include صهٍ (meaning “be quiet”), دونك (meaning “take”), رويداً (meaning “take your time”), هلمَّ (meaning “come here”), آمين (meaning “respond”), هيا and هيت (both meaning “hurry”), and حيَّ (meaning “approach”).
Spontaneous and Transferred Verbal Nouns
Spontaneity refers to the act of speaking extemporaneously from memory without preparation, and spontaneous verbal nouns are those originally established in the language to denote specific meanings, thereby being initially created as verbal nouns, such as هيهات, صه, and أفّ.
In contrast, transferred verbal nouns are those that were employed in a context different from that of a verbal noun and were subsequently transferred to function as verbal nouns, occurring in four forms:
- From the prepositional phrase: For example, عليك أباك (meaning “stick to your father”), or إليك عنّي (meaning “stay away from me”).
- From the adverbial phrase: For example, دونك الطعام (meaning “the food is before you”), or مكانك قف (meaning “stay where you are”).
- From a particle of notification: For example, هاك المال (meaning “take the money”).
- From the verbal source: For example, رويدك القوم (meaning “give them time”), or بله الحديث (meaning “leave the topic”).
Standard and Colloquial Verbal Nouns
Verbal nouns can be formed by applying a standard measure to any fully-accomplished three-letter verb and following a single weight which is (فِعال), such as حذارِ (meaning “beware”) and تراك (meaning “leave”), while other verbal nouns are considered colloquial, such as صه, مه, and هيهات.
Rules Governing Verbal Nouns
There are several rules that apply to verbal nouns, including:
- Verbal nouns are created for the purposes of affirmation, brevity, exaggeration, or a combination of all three.
- All verbal nouns are constructed based on the form in which they were heard.
- Verbal nouns maintain a consistent case for singular, plural, masculine, and feminine, except in second-person forms where we say: رويدكَ for masculine, رويدكِ for feminine, رويدكم for masculine plural, and رويدكنَّ for feminine plural, and similar forms apply to هاكَ, هاكِ, هاكما, هاكمْ, and هاكنْ.
- The addition of the nun (tense of the noun) gives specificity or indeterminacy to the meaning of the verbal noun; saying صهْ requests quiet during the current conversation, while صهٍ signifies a request for complete silence.
- The structures of verbal nouns do not vary with changes in time; they are non-inflective.
- It is permissible to use a verbal noun for emphasis, for instance, in the phrase: اسكت صهٍ.
- Verbal nouns do not accept verbal markers such as negation, jussive markers, the emphasis nun, the second-person pronoun, or the subject pronoun.
- Verbal nouns perform the action similar to the verbs they represent, in terms of transitivity, intransitivity, and the subject requirement.
Examples of Parsing Verbal Nouns
Verbal nouns function like verbs, requiring a subject and an object, while they themselves are parsed based on their structural form as in the following examples:
- آخٍ من المرض
آخ: Present verbal noun built on a kasra (broken vowel), with an implied subject of أنا (I).
من: Preposition.
المرض: A noun in the genitive case, indicated by the kasra marked at the end.
- حيَّ على الصلاة
حيَّ: Imperative verbal noun built on a fatha (open vowel), with an implied subject of أنت (you).
على: Preposition.
الصلاة: A noun in the genitive case, indicated by the kasra marked at the end.
- هلمَّ إلينا
هلمَّ: Imperative verbal noun built on a fatha, with an implied subject of أنت (you).
إلى: Preposition.
نا: A connected pronoun built in the genitive case.
- دونك أخاك
دون: Imperative verbal noun built on a fatha, with “ك” indicating second-person address, and an implied subject of أنت (you).
أخاك: Direct object in the accusative case, indicated by the fatha marked at the end.
- بطآن ما وافقتُ
بطآن: Past verbal noun built on a fatha, with an implied subject of أنا (I).
ما: A particle built on sukoon with no grammatical function.
وافقتُ: Past tense verb built on sukoon attached to the suffix; the suffix represents a subject in the nominative case.