I'rab of Surah Abasa Ayah 15: word by word Arabic grammar
Surah Abasa (عبس) · Meccan · Ayah 15
بِأَيْدِى سَفَرَةٍۢ TransliterationBi-aydee safarah
MeaningBy the hands of scribes,
This ayah says the scrolls are "by the hands of scribes." Grammatically it is a prepositional phrase: "by the hands" attaches to the earlier adjective "exalted," and "scribes" is a possessive complement of "hands," so it takes the genitive case as the second term of a possessive construction.
Word by word i'rab
prepositional phrase (jarr wa majrur)
"By the hands": the prefixed بِ is a preposition putting أَيْدِى into the genitive, and the phrase links to the earlier adjective "exalted."
genitivepossessor (mudaf ilayh)
"Scribes" is the second term of the possessive construction with "hands," so it is genitive and indefinite.
genitiveDetailed i'rab
The verse begins with بِ ("by, with"), a preposition fused to the following noun أَيْدِى ("hands"), which therefore stands in the genitive case as the object of that preposition. The whole prepositional phrase بِأَيْدِى connects back to the adjective مَّرْفُوعَةٍ ("exalted") in verse 14, telling us by whose hands the scrolls are handled. أَيْدِى is also the first term (mudaf) of a possessive construction, and سَفَرَةٍ ("scribes, emissaries") is its second term (mudaf ilayh). As the possessor in such a construction, سَفَرَةٍ is always genitive, and the tanwin shows it is indefinite. So this verse layers a preposition over a genitive construct, with two nouns both ending in the genitive but for different reasons: hands by the preposition, scribes by the possessive annexation.
Frequently asked
Why is سَفَرَةٍ genitive when there is no preposition before it?
It is the possessor (mudaf ilayh) in the construct phrase أَيْدِى سَفَرَةٍ ("hands of scribes"). The second noun in an Arabic possessive construction is always genitive.
What does the phrase بِأَيْدِى connect to?
It links back to the adjective مَّرْفُوعَةٍ ("exalted") in verse 14, explaining that these honored, exalted scrolls are in the keeping of noble scribes.