#studying grammar

[english-ness]

Wednesday 23/02/2022

I am trying to use @studytheory ‘s planner to organize my studies but frankly I have more urgent problems.

[arabic-langblr]

Patterns in Arabic part III: applications

[Patterns in Arabic : part 1]

[Patterns in Arabic : part 2]

Click on the Arabic words for the audio!

How to use the pattern to derive nouns?

The interesting thing about Arabic is that it has an entire pattern system where a pattern is linked with a meaning. Keep in mind that, when the word follows a pattern it needs to copy it perfectly: both in terms of letters and short vowels. The word and the pattern need to mirror each other perfectly.

For example, the pattern فاعِل fāʿil means the “doer of the verb” and it’s referred to as  اسم الفاعل (the pattern of the doer of the verb). Therefore every word that follows the pattern فاعِل fāʿil in triconsonontal (three lettered) roots will carry that meaning.

Some examples are included in the table below:

[audio : table 1] 

The root “كتب” means to write, and the pattern فاعل means the “doer” so the word كاتب means “the person who writes/ does the act of writing”. Using this logic can help us guess the meaning of new words and learn them with more ease. 

*There is a word for “thief” which is لص, I used “stealer” because we’re talking about someone who stole something in a particular context or the culprit in a particular theft of crime, not someone whose profession is to steal. I also preferred using “doer” instead of subject since the word in Arabic implies an action being done. 

Similarly, there are other patterns with different meanings, let’s take the pattern for  اسم المَفْعولٌ, the pattern is مَفْعول ٌ which means “something that has been done”. For example:

[audio : table 2] 

 [audio : table 3] / [audio : table 4] / رأى أحمد الكاتب / مفعول به

How to use these patterns to understand verb patterns?

I’ve always been skeptical of the notion of the 10 patterns, since this is a relatively new notion and hasn’t been mentioned or adopted by the older, more traditional grammarians of the Arabic language, but after researching and reading about it (especially the writings of Dr. H̱ālid ʾbū ʿamša), I understand now how helpful this notion is in helping learners who are not native Arabic spakers learn the language.

The 10 patterns system is just a rearrangement of the most relevant and the most commonly used patterns in Arabic, the patterns have always existed and obviously, they each have a meaning linked to them, this (relatively new) order helps give the learners a structure and helps them see the additions, the changes and the omissions that happen to the verb, the first form is the basic form (the root), and as I said before, this is our unit of reference so when we compare it to the other forms (from 2 to 10) we can see what changes took place to the verb.The focus in these ten patterns is the triconsonontal (three lettered) roots since they are the most common in Arabic.

[Audio : table 5] 

Let’s take the first verb form, which is the most basic one: فَعَلَ, the past tense from the verb is يَفْعَلُ, and the imperative form is افْعَلْ. Start off by memorizing the ten patterns in the same order you find them in this schedule, they will help you derive the different words and also understand the meaning of each derived word, for example

I will prepare a mini-series of short videos covering the different 10 patterns and the derived verbs from them and share the first part of it soon (inshallah) to avoid making this post too long.

What’s the link between Arabic poetry and patterns?

One of the most important applications of the pattern in Arabic in Arabic poetry, after all, poetry in Arabic follows a specific pattern (which we’ll be referring to as “meters”) and understanding it is linked with understanding the different patterns الأوزان. 

The branch of Arabic language that specializes in studying the meters used in poetry is called عِلْمُ العَروضُ | ʿilm al-ʿarūḍ.

In short, there are 16 patterns called بحور الشعر  | buḥūr aššiʿr (singular baḥr | بَحْر) and in order for a poem to be correct, it has to follow on of these patterns. Each baḥr is composed of a certain number of units per verse, each unit is called التّفْعيلة.

The interesting thing is that for each poem that follows a certain baḥr, when you analyses the pattern of each word, you’ll notice that every verse follows the same metric pattern, even if the poem has 100 verses, every single verse will follow the pattern.

I’ll take an example of one of the 16 baḥr (poem pattern): this one is called البحر المُتَقاربُ, in this baḥr, the unit is فعولن  repeated 8 times each verse this means that every poem that follows البحر المتقارب

This is a very long topic to discuss, but it’s also very interesting. I might prepare lessons about this if anyone is interested about learning more about analyzing Arabic poetry using the metric system. The reason why I raised it is to show you how important these patterns are and how they can be applied in different aspects of the language.

[p1anether]

my prof sending us an email that he’s gonna be more strict about grammar and small mistakes on our final essays bc it’s a final and we have more time at home to proofread ... literally shut up we’re in a pandemic and grammar isn’t real

[mumfordness]

What's with all the reference posts? I've been struggling with a fanfic, so thank you for those, they're rather helpful!! But now I gotta ask, are you writing something?

 You’re welcome! I’m studying to become a translator and those posts help me improve my writing skills, I need to expand my vocabulary and find different ways to translate certain expressions more accurately.

[studiousbees]

Study Tips- Grammar

Grammar is the backbone of any given language—even if you know a ton of words, if you don’t have a framework in which to insert them, you’ll find it very difficult to communicate effectively, or at all. Learning the grammar of a new language can be tricky, especially if it’s very different from the grammar of your native language, as you need to get your brain working in a patterns and directions that it is unfamiliar with. So, how can you study and learn grammar in an effective manner?

LEARNING:

When you start to learn grammar, it’s important to use reliable sources that can explain the grammar points in a clear manner. If you’re taking classes, you’ve got a great advantage over self-studiers because you can always ask the teacher for clarification! Before you buy a book or start using a new source, flip through it and browse a little. Try reading the descriptions of the grammar points; are they vague or confusing? If so, you might want to look for a different source. Also, if you’re buying a textbook, see if you can find reviews for that book online. What are other people saying about it? If a lot of others find the book too confusing and complicated, you might consider avoiding it as well. Books published by universities and other well-established institutions are usually pretty safe choices when choosing which book you want to study with.

As for actually learning, taking time to sit down and really understand the grammar point is crucial. Some concepts will be easier to grasp and some will be harder, especially if the grammar point you are learning doesn’t have a clear counterpart in your own native language. Rushing through learning grammar will likely lead you to forgetting things, which will put you at a disadvantage when you progress on to grammar that builds upon things that you should have already learned. Everyone progresses at his or her own pace, so don’t get frustrated if you think your progress is slow compared to others.

A good way to study grammar is to read the explanation, read examples, and then try to make your own sentences using it. If you have a teacher or a friend who is a native speaker, you can get someone to check to make sure you have understood the grammar correctly. However, be careful when relying on native speaker friends for grammar corrections because native speakers, especially those who haven’t really taken the time to explicitly learn the rules of their language, can sometimes be wrong as far as explaining those rules goes.

PRACTICING

Once you have learned a grammar point, it is vital to practice it to ensure you can remember and use it in the future when needed. Take some time every day to write practice sentences using the grammar point. If you have a language exchange partner or some other way of communicating with native speakers (or just other speakers, even if they are non-native) of your target language, try to work your new grammar into the conversation when appropriate. By using what you have learned regularly, you will become used to using it and will find using it becomes easier and easier over time.

It really is important to find native speakers or a teacher to practice with, as they can help correct any errors you make. It’s a bit unfortunate to learn and use a grammar point and think you had it down well only for someone to tell you months later that you have been misusing it all along! If there are no native speakers of your target language nearby you, you can always try sites like SharedLingo, Lang-8, various language sub-Reddits, and more to find some help. The most important thing to remember is that you should not be afraid to make mistakes! When learning something as complex as a new language, they are bound to happen. That’s how we learn!

MAINTAINING

Maintaining your grasp of various grammar points more or less means continuing to practice and use the grammar regularly so you don’t forget it and can use it easily. This is especially important for less commonly used grammatical forms that you wouldn’t often get a chance to use. You can do this simply by watching TV shows, reading books, or chatting with others, though you can also continue to do targeted practice like writing sentences. Whatever you feel will help you best remember the grammar into the future!