I'rab of Surah Al-Infitar Ayah 19: word by word Arabic grammar
Surah Al-Infitar (الانفطار) · Meccan · Ayah 19
يَوْمَ لَا تَمْلِكُ نَفْسٌۭ لِّنَفْسٍۢ شَيْـًۭٔا ۖ وَٱلْأَمْرُ يَوْمَئِذٍۢ لِّلَّهِ TransliterationYawma laa tamliku nafsun li-nafsin shay'an, wal-amru yawma'idhin lillah
MeaningThe Day when no soul will have power to do anything for another soul; and the command, that Day, belongs entirely to Allah.
This verse names the Day when no soul will have any power to benefit another soul; on that Day all command and authority belong to Allah alone. "Yawma" is an adverb of time, "la tamliku" is a negated verb with "nafs" as its subject, and the closing nominal sentence places "the command" with Allah on that Day.
Word by word i'rab
adverb of time (zarf zaman)
An accusative adverb of time, "the Day," that ties this verse to the preceding mention of the Day of Recompense.
accusativenegative particle (harf nafy)
A particle of negation that negates the present-tense verb following it.
indeclinableimperfect verb (fi'l mudari')
A present-tense verb in the nominative (indicative) state meaning "has power" or "controls," governed by no canceling particle.
nominativesubject (fa'il)
The doer of the verb "tamliku," nominative and indefinite, meaning "a soul" or "any soul."
nominativeprepositional phrase (jar wa majrur)
The preposition "li" with the genitive noun "nafs" attaches to the verb, conveying "for another soul."
genitivedirect object (maf'ul bihi)
The accusative object of "tamliku," meaning "anything," indicating that no soul controls a single thing for another.
accusativesubject of nominal sentence (mubtada')
The "wa" begins a new clause and "al-amr," the command or authority, is the nominative topic of the sentence.
nominativeadverb of time (zarf)
An adverb of time built upon kasrah, meaning "on that Day," specifying when the command belongs to Allah.
accusativepredicate (khabar)
The phrase "li-llah" serves as the predicate of "al-amr," affirming that the command belongs wholly to Allah.
genitiveDetailed i'rab
The verse opens with "yawma," an accusative adverb of time linking back to the Day of Recompense. The negative particle "la" negates the indicative imperfect verb "tamliku" ("has power"), whose subject is the indefinite nominative "nafs" (a soul). The prepositional phrase "li-nafs" (for another soul) attaches to the verb, while the accusative "shay'an" (anything) is its direct object, so the clause states that no soul controls anything at all for another. The conjunction "wa" then introduces a nominal sentence: "al-amr" (the command) is the nominative subject, "yawma'idhin" (on that Day) is an adverb of time built on kasrah, and "li-llah" is the predicate, declaring that all authority on that Day belongs to Allah alone.
Frequently asked
Why is "yawma" in the accusative case?
It is an adverb of time (zarf zaman), and such adverbs take the accusative; here it means "the Day" and connects this verse to the previously mentioned Day of Recompense.
What is the grammatical role of "li-llah" at the end?
It is the predicate (khabar) of the subject "al-amr." The nominal sentence affirms that the command and authority on that Day belong entirely to Allah.
Why does "yawma'idhin" carry a kasrah ending?
It is an adverb of time built (mabni) upon kasrah because it is annexed to "idh," which stands in for an elided, understood time-clause; it functions to specify "on that Day."