A nominal sentence (الجملة الاسمية) is a sentence that begins with a noun. It is one of the two main sentence types in Arabic and is used extensively to describe states, make declarations, and present information. Nominal sentences are composed of two essential parts: the subject (المبتدأ) and the predicate (الخبر).
Structure: المبتدأ والخبر
The مبتدأ (subject) is what the sentence is about, and the خبر (predicate) is the information being provided about the subject. In Arabic, no linking verb (like "is" or "are" in English) is needed:
- الكِتَابُ جَدِيدٌ — The book (is) new. الكتاب is the مبتدأ, جديد is the خبر.
- الطَّالِبُ ذَكِيٌّ — The student (is) intelligent.
- المَدْرَسَةُ كَبِيرَةٌ — The school (is) big.
Key Rules
- Both the مبتدأ and the خبر are in the nominative case (مرفوع).
- The مبتدأ is typically definite (with ال or a proper noun), while the خبر is typically indefinite (with tanween).
- The خبر must agree with the مبتدأ in gender and number.
Types of خبر
The predicate can take several forms: a single word (مفرد), a prepositional phrase (شبه جملة), a verbal sentence (جملة فعلية), or another nominal sentence (جملة اسمية). For example: الوَلَدُ فِي البَيْتِ (The boy is in the house) — here the خبر is the prepositional phrase فِي البَيْتِ.
Mastering nominal sentences is crucial because they form the basis for many more complex grammatical structures you will encounter later, such as إنّ and its sisters, which modify nominal sentences in specific ways.