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Negating With Maa and Laa
By ArabicTree | March 29, 2008
There are two particles of negation in Arabic–”maa” (مَا) and “laa” (لا).
First, let’s discuss the defaults. If you have a past-tense verb, you use maa to negate it. So if you say:
Ra’aytu Khaalidan (”I saw Khalid”). To negate it, just add “maa” to the front, like so:
Maa ra’aytu Khaalidan (”I didn’t see Khalid”). Easy, right?
If you have a present-tense verb, you negate it with laa. So if you say:
Ashrabu shaiya (”I drink tea.”) Adding laa makes it:
Laa ashrabu shaiya (”I don’t drink tea.”) Both of these sentences imply a habit–the first that you habitually drink tea, and the second that you never drink tea.
Now, those are the two norms–the defaults. You use maa to negate past-tense verbs, and laa to negate present-tense verbs.
But how would you say “I’m not drinking tea right now“? The answer is, you add maa, like so:
Maa ashrabu shaiya (”I’m not drinking tea.”) This sentence doesn’t imply anything about habit–it only says you’re not drinking tea at the present moment.
So you can use maa to negate either a past-tense or present-tense sentence, and laa to negate a present-tense sentence. Can you use laa to negate a past-tense sentence?
Allah (سبحانه وتعالى) says, in Surah Qiyaamah:
Translation: So he gave nothing in charity, nor did he pray! [Surah Qiyaamah, verse 31]
You’ll notice here, Allah (سبحانه وتعالى) used laa to negate past-tense verbs–saddaqa, and salla!
So yes, you can use laa to negate a past-tense verb–but:
- You must have two or more verbs that you’re negating, and
- You must add laa before each verb–not just once.
So if you said “fa laa saddaqa wa salla,” that would be grammatically incorrect–you need to add laa to both in order to satisfy the rules of Arabic grammar.
Can you add multiple instances of maa to negate? Sure! There’s no requirement on it, though, unlike laa.
Check out the table below, which summarizes the use of maa and laa in negations.
| Past-Tense | Present-/Future-Tense | |
|---|---|---|
| Maa | Maa sharibtu shaiya: I didn’t drink tea. | Maa ashrabu shaiya: I’m not drinking tea (right now). |
| Laa | Laa sharibtu wa laa akaltu: I didn’t eat, and I didn’t drink | Laa ashrabu shaiya: I don’t drink tea. |
Questions? Post them in the comments, insha’Allah.
Topics: Grammar, Intermediate |
April 7th, 2008 at 3:48 pm
May Allah reward you. A quick correction on the table:
“laa ashrabu wa laa akaltu” should instead read “laa sharibtu wa laa akaltu” in order to match “falaa saddaqa wa laa salla” in form.
Nice work on the site. Keep it up.
April 7th, 2008 at 4:45 pm
Jazakumullahu khayran; the mistake has been corrected!
June 6th, 2008 at 4:20 am
Mashallah, I just stumbled on your site, you explain Arabic so simply and clearly. JazakAllah khair, I hope to become a regular visitor!