I'rab of Surah At-Takwir Ayah 23: word by word Arabic grammar
Surah At-Takwir (التكوير) · Meccan · Ayah 23
وَلَقَدْ رَءَاهُ بِٱلْأُفُقِ ٱلْمُبِينِ TransliterationWa la-qad ra'ahu bil-ufuqi al-mubin
MeaningAnd he certainly saw him on the clear horizon.
This verse affirms that the Prophet truly saw the angel. The waw connects, the lam is the lam of the oath, and qad is a particle of certainty. The phrase bi al-ufuq is linked to a circumstantial state of the object pronoun in ra'ahu, locating the vision at the clear horizon.
Word by word i'rab
connective particle (waw al-'atf)
The waw connects this clause to the preceding statements about the revelation and its messenger.
indeclinable particlelam of the oath (lam al-qasam)
This lam is the lam of an implied oath, used to strengthen the assertion that follows.
indeclinable particleparticle of certainty (harf tahqiq)
Qad before a past-tense verb confirms and emphasizes that the action definitely occurred.
indeclinable particleprepositional phrase linked to a circumstantial state (hal)
The ba governs al-ufuq in the genitive, and the phrase is attached to a circumstantial state of the object pronoun in ra'ahu, showing where the seeing took place.
genitive (object of preposition)Detailed i'rab
The verse opens with the connective waw, followed by the lam of the oath, which prepares an emphatic assertion. Qad is a particle of verification placed before the past-tense verb ra'a ('he saw') to confirm decisively that the action happened. Although not all words are listed individually, the verb ra'a carries an attached object pronoun -hu ('him', the angel). The prepositional phrase bi al-ufuq has the ba governing al-ufuq in the genitive, and this phrase is connected to a circumstantial state (hal) of the object pronoun, describing the situation of what was seen as being at the horizon. Al-mubin ('the clear') is an adjective of al-ufuq, agreeing with it in the genitive. The verse thus emphatically affirms the reality of the vision.
Frequently asked
What is the function of la-qad at the start?
The lam is the oath particle adding emphasis, and qad is a certainty particle confirming that the past action definitely occurred.
Why is al-ufuq in the genitive?
It is governed by the preposition ba, which puts its object in the genitive case.
What does the phrase bil-ufuq attach to?
It attaches to a circumstantial state of the object pronoun in ra'ahu, indicating that the one seen was at the clear horizon.