Things You'll Need:
- Standard Arabic-English dictionary
- Beginning Arabic textbook that includes grammar
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Step 1
Learn the Arabic alphabet. You need to be able to read the Arabic letters before you can dissect and understand a sentence.
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Step 2
Familiarize yourself with the parts of speech in Arabic. In addition to the nouns, pronouns, adjectives, adverbs and verbs found in English, Arabic has some additional parts of speech, such as the idaafa.
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Step 3
Learn to recognize typical word order. In Arabic, sentences often begin with the verb. The conjugation of this verb indicates the subject of the sentence, a noun which can be found anywhere later in the sentence.
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Step 4
Differentiate between verbal and nominal sentences. Verbal sentences begin with a verb, as described in the previous step. Nominal sentences begin with a noun or pronoun and are usually employed for sentences with the verb "to be."
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Step 5
Watch for the "idaafa." Arabic uses this grammatical form often to indicate possession and sometimes for other purposes as well. The idaafa typically consists of two or more nouns that are followed by any appropriate adjectives. There are specific grammatical rules to be followed for words included in the idaafa.
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Step 6
Look for the diacritical markings, the fatha, kasra and damma. These indicate the case of each word in a sentence and can be used to enhance your understanding of the sentence.
