I'rab of Surah Abasa Ayah 8: word by word Arabic grammar
Surah Abasa (عبس) · Meccan · Ayah 8
وَأَمَّا مَن جَآءَكَ يَسْعَىٰ Transliterationwa-ammā man jā'aka yasʿā
MeaningBut as for the one who came to you striving,
By contrast, the one who came eagerly seeking guidance is highlighted. The verse opens with ammaa for detail and contrast, then a relative pronoun man as the subject, followed by the verb jaa'aka and a circumstantial verb yas'aa describing him running in earnest.
Word by word i'rab
conjunction (harf 'atf)
The waw joins this contrasting case to the earlier case of the man who was self-sufficient.
indeclinableparticle of condition and detailing (harf shart wa tafseel)
Ammaa introduces a new branch of the discourse, setting up a contrast and requiring a linking response later.
indeclinablesubject (mubtada')
This relative pronoun man stands in the nominative place as the subject of the nominal sentence.
nominativeverb (silah) with object pronoun
Jaa'a is a past-tense verb forming the relative clause of man, and the attached ka is its direct object.
indeclinablecircumstantial verb (haal)
This present-tense verb describes the state of the one who came, namely that he was striving and hastening.
nominativeDetailed i'rab
The verse opens with the conjunctive waw and the particle ammaa, which signals detailing and contrast and customarily demands a response clause introduced later by the fa. The relative pronoun man functions as the subject (mubtada') of the nominal sentence and stands in the nominative position. Its relative clause is the verb jaa'aka, a past-tense verb whose subject is concealed and whose object is the attached pronoun ka. The verb yas'aa is present-tense with a concealed subject referring back to man; it occupies the position of a circumstantial accusative (haal), portraying the man as actively striving and hurrying when he came. The predicate of the subject man arrives in the following verses.
Frequently asked
What role does ammaa play here?
Ammaa is a particle of detailing and contrast; it opens a new case opposite the earlier one and calls for a response clause beginning with fa.
Why is man the subject?
Man is a relative pronoun standing in the nominative place as the subject (mubtada'), with its relative clause being jaa'aka and its predicate coming in the later verse.
What is the function of yas'aa?
Yas'aa is a present-tense verb in the position of a circumstantial accusative (haal), describing the man as striving and hastening as he came.