I'rab of Surah Abasa Ayah 26: word by word Arabic grammar
Surah Abasa (عبس) · Meccan · Ayah 26
ثُمَّ شَقَقْنَا ٱلْأَرْضَ شَقًّۭا TransliterationThumma shaqaqnā al-arḍa shaqqā
MeaningThen We split the earth in thorough splitting.
"Then We split the earth with splitting." The verse is joined by thumma to the preceding act of pouring water, showing a sequence in God's provision. Shaqaqnā is a past-tense verb with the attached subject -nā; al-arḍ is its direct object in the accusative, and shaqqan is an absolute object from the same root, accusative, emphasizing the thoroughness of the splitting open of the soil.
Word by word i'rab
conjunction of sequence (harf 'atf)
A connective particle indicating sequence with a delay, joining this clause to the previous verse's action.
indeclinablepast-tense verb with subject pronoun
Past tense built on sukūn because the subject pronoun -nā ("We") is attached; the pronoun is the doer in the nominative place.
indeclinabledirect object (maf'ul bihi)
The thing split, accusative by the fatḥah as the object of shaqaqnā.
accusativeabsolute object (maf'ul mutlaq)
A cognate verbal noun from the same root, accusative, intensifying the act of splitting.
accusativeDetailed i'rab
ثُمَّ is a coordinating conjunction expressing sequence; it joins this clause to the previous verse. شَقَقْنَا is a past-tense verb built on sukūn because of the attached subject pronoun ـنا, which is the doer in the nominative place. ٱلْأَرْضَ is the direct object in the accusative, marked by fatḥah. شَقًّا is an absolute object (mafʿūl muṭlaq), a verbal noun from the same root as the verb, in the accusative, used to emphasize and intensify the manner of splitting. The clause as a whole is coordinated by ثُمَّ onto the action described in the previous verse, continuing the catalogue of God's deliberate acts in bringing forth food from the earth.
Frequently asked
What does ثُمَّ add to the meaning?
ثُمَّ is a conjunction showing ordered sequence with some interval; it links the splitting of the earth after the pouring of water in an orderly chain of provision.
Why does شَقَقْنَا end in sukūn rather than a vowel?
Past-tense verbs are built on sukūn when the attached pronoun -nā ("we") is the subject; the verb itself is indeclinable in this state.