I'rab of Surah An-Naba Ayah 7: word by word Arabic grammar
Surah An-Naba (النبأ) · Meccan · Ayah 7
وَٱلْجِبَالَ أَوْتَادًۭا TransliterationWal-jibala awtada
MeaningAnd the mountains as stakes?
This verse continues the rhetorical questioning that began with "Have We not made..." The earth was made a resting place, and here the mountains are mentioned as stakes or pegs that steady it. Grammatically, "the mountains" is joined by the conjunction waw onto "the earth," and "as stakes" functions as a second object describing what the mountains were made into.
Word by word i'rab
conjunction (harf 'atf)
This connecting waw joins what follows onto the earlier object "the earth" in the previous verse.
indeclinableobject joined by conjunction (ma'tuf)
It is accusative because it is joined onto the earlier accusative object "the earth," still governed by the implied verb "made."
accusativesecond object (maf'ul bihi thani)
It is the accusative second object of the doubly-transitive verb "to make," describing what the mountains were made into.
accusativeDetailed i'rab
This verse is grammatically tied to the preceding one, where the rhetorical interrogative hamza and the verb "made" set up a doubly-transitive structure. The conjunction waw at the start links "the mountains" (al-jibal) onto the earlier object "the earth." Because the thing it is joined to was accusative, "the mountains" takes the accusative case as well, remaining the direct object of the implied or carried-over verb "made." The final word "as stakes" (awtadan) is accusative as the second object of this doubly-transitive verb, since verbs of making take two objects: the thing made and what it is made into. The whole verse thus parallels "the earth a resting place," presenting the mountains as pegs that hold the earth firm.
Frequently asked
Why is "the mountains" in the accusative case here?
It is accusative because it is joined by the conjunction waw onto "the earth" in the previous verse, which was the accusative object of the verb "made." Items joined by a conjunction take the same case as the word they are joined to.
What grammatical role does "as stakes" play?
It is the second object of a doubly-transitive verb. Verbs meaning "to make" take two objects: the first is the thing acted upon (the mountains), and the second states what it becomes (stakes).