I'rab of Surah Al-Kafirun Ayah 6: word by word Arabic grammar
Surah Al-Kafirun (الكافرون) · Meccan · Ayah 6
لَكُمْ دِينُكُمْ وَلِىَ دِينِ TransliterationLakum dīnukum wa-liya dīn(i)
MeaningFor you is your religion, and for me is my religion.
This verse is two parallel nominal sentences. In each, a fronted prepositional phrase (lakum / liya) serves as a preposed predicate (khabar muqaddam), and the following noun (dinukum / din) is the delayed subject (mubtada' mu'akhkhar). The waw joins the two clauses. The fronting gives the sense of specification and contrast.
Word by word i'rab
preposed predicate (khabar muqaddam)
The preposition lam plus the attached pronoun kum forms a prepositional phrase that stands as the fronted predicate of the nominal sentence.
genitivedelayed subject (mubtada' mu'akhkhar)
This is the delayed subject in the nominative, marked by the damma, and it is in a genitive construct (idafa) with the attached pronoun kum meaning 'your'.
nominativeconjunction (harf 'atf)
The waw is a coordinating particle linking the second nominal sentence to the first.
indeclinablepreposed predicate (khabar muqaddam)
The preposition lam with the first-person pronoun ya forms a prepositional phrase serving as the fronted predicate of the second clause.
genitivedelayed subject (mubtada' mu'akhkhar)
This is the delayed subject, formally nominative; its damma is estimated on the consonant before the lightened (dropped) ya of possession ('my religion').
nominativeDetailed i'rab
The verse consists of two balanced nominal sentences joined by the conjunction waw. In the first, لَكُمْ: the preposition lam with the attached pronoun kum: is a prepositional phrase functioning as a fronted predicate (khabar muqaddam), while دِينُكُمْ is the delayed subject (mubtada' mu'akhkhar) in the nominative, marked by a clear damma, and joined to the pronoun kum in a genitive construct. The second clause mirrors the first: لِيَ is the fronted predicate, and دِينِ is the delayed subject, nominative in status though its ending is not pronounced: the original ya of possession is dropped for lightness, so the damma is merely estimated on the preceding letter. Fronting the predicates conveys restriction and emphatic contrast between the two parties.
Frequently asked
Why is the prepositional phrase placed before the subject in this verse?
In both clauses the predicate (lakum, liya) is a prepositional phrase brought forward before the subject. This fronting is deliberate: it produces the sense of restriction and sharp contrast: 'yours alone for you, mine alone for me': which fits the verse's theme of separating the two faiths.
Why does دِينِ not show a visible case ending?
دِينِ is grammatically the nominative subject, but it originally ended in the possessive ya ('my'). That ya has been dropped for lightness, leaving only a kasra to indicate it. The nominative damma is therefore not pronounced; it is an estimated (muqaddar) ending on the letter before the omitted ya.
What is the role of the waw in the middle of the verse?
The waw is a coordinating conjunction (harf 'atf). It links the second complete nominal sentence (liya din) to the first (lakum dinukum), placing the two statements in parallel and reinforcing the contrast between them.