I'rab of Surah Abasa Ayah 19: word by word Arabic grammar
Surah Abasa (عبس) · Meccan · Ayah 19
مِن نُّطْفَةٍ خَلَقَهُۥ فَقَدَّرَهُۥ Transliterationmin nutfatin khalaqahu fa-qaddarah
MeaningFrom a sperm-drop He created him, then He proportioned him.
This ayah continues the answer to the question "From what did He create him?" It states that God created the human being from a drop of fluid (nutfah), then proportioned and shaped him. The fronted prepositional phrase 'from a drop' attaches to the verb 'created', and the two past-tense verbs share the same divine subject.
Word by word i'rab
preposition (harf jarr)
A preposition meaning 'from', here indicating the origin or material of creation.
indeclinableobject of preposition (majrur)
It is genitive after 'min', and the phrase 'min nutfatin' attaches to the verb 'khalaqahu'.
genitivepast-tense verb with object pronoun
A past-tense verb with an implied subject 'He' (God) and the attached pronoun 'hu' as direct object.
indeclinableconjoined past-tense verb with object pronoun
The 'fa' joins this verb to the previous one in sequence; it is a past-tense verb with an implied subject and 'hu' as its object.
indeclinableDetailed i'rab
The verse opens with the prepositional phrase 'min nutfatin', where 'min' is a preposition and 'nutfatin' is its genitive object; together they are linked to the verb 'khalaqahu'. The verb 'khalaqa' is past tense, built on its ending, with a hidden pronoun 'He' referring to God as its doer, and the attached 'hu' functioning as the direct object. The conjunction 'fa' in 'fa-qaddarahu' connects the second verb to the first, marking an ordered succession of acts. 'Qaddara' is likewise a past-tense verb with a concealed divine subject and the attached pronoun 'hu' as its object. The whole forms a clause answering the earlier rhetorical question about the substance of human creation.
Frequently asked
Why is 'nutfatin' in the genitive case?
Because it is the object of the preposition 'min', and nouns governed by a preposition take the genitive case.
What does the 'fa' in 'fa-qaddarahu' indicate?
It is a conjunction of sequence, joining 'He proportioned him' to 'He created him' and showing that the second act followed the first in order.