An adjective matches its plural noun. For people the adjective is plural too: أَصْدِقَاء مُجْتَهِدُون, “hard-working friends”, and نِسَاء مُجْتَهِدَات, “hard-working women”. For things the adjective is feminine singular: كُتُب جَدِيدَة, “new books”. This is a rule to learn: a plural of things behaves like “she”. It is true even when the singular noun is masculine. With الْ on both words you get “the new books”: الْكُتُب الْجَدِيدَة. With الْ on the noun only, it is a sentence: الْكُتُب جَدِيدَة, “the books are new”.
The noun is…
The adjective is…
Example
people (men)
plural
رِجَال مُجْتَهِدُون
people (women)
plural
نِسَاء مُجْتَهِدَات
things
feminine singular
كُتُب جَدِيدَة
things
feminine singular
مَدَارِس كَبِيرَة
Worked examples
Layla
كَيْف مَدَارِس مَدِينَتِكُم؟
Omar
مَدَارِس مَدِينَتِنَا كَبِيرَة وَنَظِيفَة.
Layla and Omar talk about the schools of the city. Press each line.
The new books: with and without الْ on the adjective.
People: the adjective is plural.
Class activity
Describe a street. Write six phrases about plural things around you: for example “big houses”, “clean streets”, “old doors”. Use the plural of the noun and the feminine singular of the adjective. Then write two phrases about people with a plural adjective, such as أَصْدِقَاء سَعِيدُون.
