Conjugation › Arabic › Akala / yaʾkulu
Arabic · Verb Tables · Intermediate
أَكَلَ / يَأْكُلُ (akala / yaʾkulu) means "to eat" in Arabic. Present: أنا (anā) آكُلُ [ākulu], أنتَ (anta) تَأْكُلُ [taʾkulu], أنتِ (anti) تَأْكُلِينَ [taʾkulīna], هو (huwa) يَأْكُلُ [yaʾkulu], هي (hiya) تَأْكُلُ [taʾkulu], نحن (naḥnu) نَأْكُلُ [naʾkulu]. Below: all 16 tenses we teach, with examples.
The present (imperfect) stem takes a person prefix and, for 'you (f.)' and the plurals, a suffix, plus the indicative ending -u (dropped in casual speech). Covers English simple present and present continuous alike ('I write' / 'I am writing') — Arabic does not force a choice between them.
| أنا (anā) | آكُلُ [ākulu] |
| أنتَ (anta) | تَأْكُلُ [taʾkulu] |
| أنتِ (anti) | تَأْكُلِينَ [taʾkulīna] |
| هو (huwa) | يَأْكُلُ [yaʾkulu] |
| هي (hiya) | تَأْكُلُ [taʾkulu] |
| نحن (naḥnu) | نَأْكُلُ [naʾkulu] |
| أنتم (antum) | تَأْكُلُونَ [taʾkulūna] |
| هم (hum) | يَأْكُلُونَ [yaʾkulūna] |
Arabic has no separate progressive verb form; ongoing action is normally just the plain present above. To stress 'right now', speakers instead use the active participle (ism al-fāʿil, here kātib 'writing') as the predicate; it agrees like an adjective (gender/number), not by person, so 'I' and 'you (m.)' share the masculine form shown here and 'she' takes the feminine kātibatun.
| أنا (anā) | أَنا آكِلٌ [anā ākilun] |
| أنتَ (anta) | أَنْتَ آكِلٌ [anta ākilun] |
| أنتِ (anti) | أَنْتِ آكِلَةٌ [anti ākilatun] |
| هو (huwa) | هُوَ آكِلٌ [huwa ākilun] |
| هي (hiya) | هِيَ آكِلَةٌ [hiya ākilatun] |
| نحن (naḥnu) | نَحْنُ آكِلُونَ [naḥnu ākilūna] |
| أنتم (antum) | أَنْتُمْ آكِلُونَ [antum ākilūna] |
| هم (hum) | هُمْ آكِلُونَ [hum ākilūna] |
The past (perfect) stem takes only suffixes for person, gender and number; there is no prefix. Used for any completed action, corresponding to both English simple past ('I wrote') and, in most contexts, present perfect ('I have written').
| أنا (anā) | أَكَلْتُ [akaltu] |
| أنتَ (anta) | أَكَلْتَ [akalta] |
| أنتِ (anti) | أَكَلْتِ [akalti] |
| هو (huwa) | أَكَلَ [akala] |
| هي (hiya) | أَكَلَتْ [akalat] |
| نحن (naḥnu) | أَكَلْنا [akalnā] |
| أنتم (antum) | أَكَلْتُمْ [akaltum] |
| هم (hum) | أَكَلُوا [akalū] |
No single-word imperfect exists; it is built with kāna (to be, conjugated in the past) followed by the plain present tense of the main verb. Matches English 'was writing' or 'used to write'.
| أنا (anā) | كُنْتُ [kuntu] آكُلُ [ākulu] |
| أنتَ (anta) | كُنْتَ [kunta] تَأْكُلُ [taʾkulu] |
| أنتِ (anti) | كُنْتِ [kunti] تَأْكُلِينَ [taʾkulīna] |
| هو (huwa) | كانَ [kāna] يَأْكُلُ [yaʾkulu] |
| هي (hiya) | كانَتْ [kānat] تَأْكُلُ [taʾkulu] |
| نحن (naḥnu) | كُنّا [kunnā] نَأْكُلُ [naʾkulu] |
| أنتم (antum) | كُنْتُمْ [kuntum] تَأْكُلُونَ [taʾkulūna] |
| هم (hum) | كانُوا [kānū] يَأْكُلُونَ [yaʾkulūna] |
MSA does not distinguish 'I wrote' from 'I have written' morphologically — both are the simple past. The particle قد (qad) placed before the past verb adds the nuance of a completed action with present relevance ('have indeed done'), common in news and formal writing.
| أنا (anā) | قَدْ أَكَلْتُ [qad akaltu] |
| أنتَ (anta) | قَدْ أَكَلْتَ [qad akalta] |
| أنتِ (anti) | قَدْ أَكَلْتِ [qad akalti] |
| هو (huwa) | قَدْ أَكَلَ [qad akala] |
| هي (hiya) | قَدْ أَكَلَتْ [qad akalat] |
| نحن (naḥnu) | قَدْ أَكَلْنا [qad akalnā] |
| أنتم (antum) | قَدْ أَكَلْتُمْ [qad akaltum] |
| هم (hum) | قَدْ أَكَلُوا [qad akalū] |
Built with kāna (past) + قد (qad) + the past-tense main verb. Matches English 'had written'.
| أنا (anā) | كُنْتُ [kuntu] قَدْ أَكَلْتُ [akaltu] |
| أنتَ (anta) | كُنْتَ [kunta] قَدْ أَكَلْتَ [akalta] |
| أنتِ (anti) | كُنْتِ [kunti] قَدْ أَكَلْتِ [akalti] |
| هو (huwa) | كانَ [kāna] قَدْ أَكَلَ [akala] |
| هي (hiya) | كانَتْ [kānat] قَدْ أَكَلَتْ [akalat] |
| نحن (naḥnu) | كُنّا [kunnā] قَدْ أَكَلْنا [akalnā] |
| أنتم (antum) | كُنْتُمْ [kuntum] قَدْ أَكَلْتُمْ [akaltum] |
| هم (hum) | كانُوا [kānū] قَدْ أَكَلُوا [akalū] |
Formed by attaching the prefix سَـ (sa-) directly to the present-tense verb. Used for something the speaker sees as fairly soon or certain — the everyday way to say 'will'.
| أنا (anā) | سَآكُلُ [sa'ākulu] |
| أنتَ (anta) | سَتَأْكُلُ [sa-taʾkulu] |
| أنتِ (anti) | سَتَأْكُلِينَ [sa-taʾkulīna] |
| هو (huwa) | سَيَأْكُلُ [sa-yaʾkulu] |
| هي (hiya) | سَتَأْكُلُ [sa-taʾkulu] |
| نحن (naḥnu) | سَنَأْكُلُ [sa-naʾkulu] |
| أنتم (antum) | سَتَأْكُلُونَ [sa-taʾkulūna] |
| هم (hum) | سَيَأْكُلُونَ [sa-yaʾkulūna] |
Formed with the separate word سوف (sawfa) before the present-tense verb instead of the attached سـ. Textbooks treat it as interchangeable with the near future, just a shade more formal or more distant/emphatic.
| أنا (anā) | سَوْفَ آكُلُ [sawfa ākulu] |
| أنتَ (anta) | سَوْفَ تَأْكُلُ [sawfa taʾkulu] |
| أنتِ (anti) | سَوْفَ تَأْكُلِينَ [sawfa taʾkulīna] |
| هو (huwa) | سَوْفَ يَأْكُلُ [sawfa yaʾkulu] |
| هي (hiya) | سَوْفَ تَأْكُلُ [sawfa taʾkulu] |
| نحن (naḥnu) | سَوْفَ نَأْكُلُ [sawfa naʾkulu] |
| أنتم (antum) | سَوْفَ تَأْكُلُونَ [sawfa taʾkulūna] |
| هم (hum) | سَوْفَ يَأْكُلُونَ [sawfa yaʾkulūna] |
Built with سَـ + kūn (the future of kāna) + قد (qad) + the past-tense main verb. Matches English 'will have written'; mainly seen in formal or written registers.
| أنا (anā) | سَأَكُونُ [sa'akūnu] قَدْ أَكَلْتُ [akaltu] |
| أنتَ (anta) | سَتَكُونُ [sa-takūnu] قَدْ أَكَلْتَ [akalta] |
| أنتِ (anti) | سَتَكُونِينَ [sa-takūnīna] قَدْ أَكَلْتِ [akalti] |
| هو (huwa) | سَيَكُونُ [sa-yakūnu] قَدْ أَكَلَ [akala] |
| هي (hiya) | سَتَكُونُ [sa-takūnu] قَدْ أَكَلَتْ [akalat] |
| نحن (naḥnu) | سَنَكُونُ [sa-nakūnu] قَدْ أَكَلْنا [akalnā] |
| أنتم (antum) | سَتَكُونُونَ [sa-takūnūna] قَدْ أَكَلْتُمْ [akaltum] |
| هم (hum) | سَيَكُونُونَ [sa-yakūnūna] قَدْ أَكَلُوا [akalū] |
MSA has no distinct conditional mood. 'Would' in a statement (often reported speech, 'he said he would write') is expressed with kāna (past) + the sa- future: kāna sa-yaktubu, literally 'he was going to write'. Real hypothetical 'if... would' sentences use a different construction (see Conditional sentences in Grammar).
| أنا (anā) | كُنْتُ [kuntu] سَآكُلُ [sa'ākulu] |
| أنتَ (anta) | كُنْتَ [kunta] سَتَأْكُلُ [sa-taʾkulu] |
| أنتِ (anti) | كُنْتِ [kunti] سَتَأْكُلِينَ [sa-taʾkulīna] |
| هو (huwa) | كانَ [kāna] سَيَأْكُلُ [sa-yaʾkulu] |
| هي (hiya) | كانَتْ [kānat] سَتَأْكُلُ [sa-taʾkulu] |
| نحن (naḥnu) | كُنّا [kunnā] سَنَأْكُلُ [sa-naʾkulu] |
| أنتم (antum) | كُنْتُمْ [kuntum] سَتَأْكُلُونَ [sa-taʾkulūna] |
| هم (hum) | كانُوا [kānū] سَيَأْكُلُونَ [sa-yaʾkulūna] |
A heavy, mostly written/bookish compound — kāna (past) + sa-akūnu (future of kāna) + qad + the past main verb — for 'would have written'. In practice, most speakers avoid it and rephrase with a لو (law, 'if only') hypothetical sentence instead (see Conditional sentences in Grammar).
| أنا (anā) | كُنْتُ [kuntu] سَأَكُونُ [sa'akūnu] قَدْ أَكَلْتُ [akaltu] |
| أنتَ (anta) | كُنْتَ [kunta] سَتَكُونُ [sa-takūnu] قَدْ أَكَلْتَ [akalta] |
| أنتِ (anti) | كُنْتِ [kunti] سَتَكُونِينَ [sa-takūnīna] قَدْ أَكَلْتِ [akalti] |
| هو (huwa) | كانَ [kāna] سَيَكُونُ [sa-yakūnu] قَدْ أَكَلَ [akala] |
| هي (hiya) | كانَتْ [kānat] سَتَكُونُ [sa-takūnu] قَدْ أَكَلَتْ [akalat] |
| نحن (naḥnu) | كُنّا [kunnā] سَنَكُونُ [sa-nakūnu] قَدْ أَكَلْنا [akalnā] |
| أنتم (antum) | كُنْتُمْ [kuntum] سَتَكُونُونَ [sa-takūnūna] قَدْ أَكَلْتُمْ [akaltum] |
| هم (hum) | كانُوا [kānū] سَيَكُونُونَ [sa-yakūnūna] قَدْ أَكَلُوا [akalū] |
The present stem changes its final ending (marfūʿ -u becomes manṣūb -a, and the nūn of taktubīna/taktubūna/yaktubūna is dropped) after linking particles: أَنْ (an, 'to', joining two verbs), لَنْ (lan, 'will not' — the standard way to negate the future), and كَيْ/لِكَيْ (kay/likay, 'so that') or حَتَّى (ḥattā, 'in order to/until') for purpose.
| أنا (anā) | أَنْ آكُلَ [an ākula] |
| أنتَ (anta) | أَنْ تَأْكُلَ [an taʾkula] |
| أنتِ (anti) | أَنْ تَأْكُلِي [an taʾkulī] |
| هو (huwa) | أَنْ يَأْكُلَ [an yaʾkula] |
| هي (hiya) | أَنْ تَأْكُلَ [an taʾkula] |
| نحن (naḥnu) | أَنْ نَأْكُلَ [an naʾkula] |
| أنتم (antum) | أَنْ تَأْكُلُوا [an taʾkulū] |
| هم (hum) | أَنْ يَأْكُلُوا [an yaʾkulū] |
The jussive drops the present tense's final short vowel or nūn ending. Placed after لَمْ (lam, 'did not'), it is the standard formal way to negate a past action — more common in writing than negating the perfect verb with مَا.
| أنا (anā) | لَمْ آكُلْ [lam ākul] |
| أنتَ (anta) | لَمْ تَأْكُلْ [lam taʾkul] |
| أنتِ (anti) | لَمْ تَأْكُلِي [lam taʾkulī] |
| هو (huwa) | لَمْ يَأْكُلْ [lam yaʾkul] |
| هي (hiya) | لَمْ تَأْكُلْ [lam taʾkul] |
| نحن (naḥnu) | لَمْ نَأْكُلْ [lam naʾkul] |
| أنتم (antum) | لَمْ تَأْكُلُوا [lam taʾkulū] |
| هم (hum) | لَمْ يَأْكُلُوا [lam yaʾkulū] |
After إِنْ (in, 'if'), both the if-clause verb and the result-clause verb take the jussive. This is the main B1–B2 way to build a real, likely conditional ('if you do X, Y will happen'), corresponding to English 'if + present, will + verb'.
| أنا (anā) | إِنْ آكُلْ [in ākul] |
| أنتَ (anta) | إِنْ تَأْكُلْ [in taʾkul] |
| أنتِ (anti) | إِنْ تَأْكُلِي [in taʾkulī] |
| هو (huwa) | إِنْ يَأْكُلْ [in yaʾkul] |
| هي (hiya) | إِنْ تَأْكُلْ [in taʾkul] |
| نحن (naḥnu) | إِنْ نَأْكُلْ [in naʾkul] |
| أنتم (antum) | إِنْ تَأْكُلُوا [in taʾkulū] |
| هم (hum) | إِنْ يَأْكُلُوا [in yaʾkulū] |
Built from the jussive stem: drop the person prefix, and if the stem then starts with two consonants, add a helping alif (اُ-/اِ-) at the front, pronounced with a short u or i. Only exists for the three 'you' forms; other persons use a linking particle instead (e.g. لِيَكْتُبْ, li-yaktub, 'let him write' — not covered at this level).
| أنا (anā) | — |
| أنتَ (anta) | كُلْ [kul] |
| أنتِ (anti) | كُلِي [kulī] |
| هو (huwa) | — |
| هي (hiya) | — |
| نحن (naḥnu) | — |
| أنتم (antum) | كُلُوا [kulū] |
| هم (hum) | — |
Negative commands are not a separate verb form: they are simply لَا (lā, 'don't') plus the jussive of the same 'you' forms used in the affirmative imperative, unlike English, which reuses the plain verb ('write' → 'don't write').
| أنا (anā) | — |
| أنتَ (anta) | لَا تَأْكُلْ [lā taʾkul] |
| أنتِ (anti) | لَا تَأْكُلِي [lā taʾkulī] |
| هو (huwa) | — |
| هي (hiya) | — |
| نحن (naḥnu) | — |
| أنتم (antum) | لَا تَأْكُلُوا [lā taʾkulū] |
| هم (hum) | — |
| أَكَلْتُ الفَطُورَ مُبَكِّرًا. akaltu l-faṭūra mubakkiran. | I ate breakfast early. |
| سَآكُلُ فِي المَطْعَمِ اللَّيْلَةَ. sa'ākulu fī l-maṭʿami al-laylata. | I'll eat at the restaurant tonight. |
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