I'rab of Surah Abasa Ayah 2: word by word Arabic grammar
Surah Abasa (عبس) · Meccan · Ayah 2
أَن جَآءَهُ ٱلْأَعْمَىٰ TransliterationAn jaa'ahu al-a'maa
MeaningBecause the blind man came to him.
This verse states the cause of the frowning. The particle an introduces a verbal clause, "the blind man came to him," and the whole clause is understood as a verbal noun governed by an omitted preposition meaning "because." The phrase explains the verbs of the previous ayah.
Word by word i'rab
particle forming a verbal noun (harf masdari)
This particle turns the following verb into an implied verbal noun, allowing the clause to function as a single grammatical unit.
indeclinablepast-tense verb with attached object pronoun
A past-tense verb fixed on fatha; the suffixed pronoun hu is its direct object, "to him."
indeclinablesubject of the verb (fa'il)
The doer of "came," formally nominative though its case is shown by an implied vowel on the final weak letter.
nominativeDetailed i'rab
The verse opens with an, a particle that converts the verb after it into an implied verbal noun (masdar mu'awwal). The resulting noun-clause is in the genitive position because it is governed by a preposition that has been omitted but is understood as "because of"; thus the meaning is "because of the blind man's coming to him." This whole phrase grammatically attaches to the two verbs of the preceding verse, supplying their cause. Within the clause, ja'a ("came") is a past-tense verb fixed on fatha, and the suffixed pronoun hu is its direct object. The agent al-a'ma ("the blind man") is the subject in the nominative; because it ends in a weak alif, its nominative marker is an estimated vowel rather than an audible one. The construction neatly explains why the frown occurred.
Frequently asked
What does the particle an do here?
It is a masdari particle: it converts the following verb into an implied verbal noun so the entire clause can act as one grammatical unit, here a noun in the genitive position.
Why is the clause in the genitive?
It is governed by an omitted preposition understood as "because of," so the implied verbal noun takes the genitive position and links back to the verbs of verse 1.