Conjugation › Arabic › Waḍaʿa / yaḍaʿu
Arabic · Verb Tables · Intermediate
وَضَعَ / يَضَعُ (waḍaʿa / yaḍaʿu) means "to put" in Arabic. Present: أنا (anā) أَضَعُ [aḍaʿu], أنتَ (anta) تَضَعُ [taḍaʿu], أنتِ (anti) تَضَعِينَ [taḍaʿīna], هو (huwa) يَضَعُ [yaḍaʿu], هي (hiya) تَضَعُ [taḍaʿu], نحن (naḥnu) نَضَعُ [naḍaʿu]. 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) | أَضَعُ [aḍaʿu] |
| أنتَ (anta) | تَضَعُ [taḍaʿu] |
| أنتِ (anti) | تَضَعِينَ [taḍaʿīna] |
| هو (huwa) | يَضَعُ [yaḍaʿu] |
| هي (hiya) | تَضَعُ [taḍaʿu] |
| نحن (naḥnu) | نَضَعُ [naḍaʿu] |
| أنتم (antum) | تَضَعُونَ [taḍaʿūna] |
| هم (hum) | يَضَعُونَ [yaḍaʿūna] |
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 واضِعٌ [anā wāḍiʿun] |
| أنتَ (anta) | أَنْتَ واضِعٌ [anta wāḍiʿun] |
| أنتِ (anti) | أَنْتِ واضِعَةٌ [anti wāḍiʿatun] |
| هو (huwa) | هُوَ واضِعٌ [huwa wāḍiʿun] |
| هي (hiya) | هِيَ واضِعَةٌ [hiya wāḍiʿatun] |
| نحن (naḥnu) | نَحْنُ واضِعُونَ [naḥnu wāḍiʿūna] |
| أنتم (antum) | أَنْتُمْ واضِعُونَ [antum wāḍiʿūna] |
| هم (hum) | هُمْ واضِعُونَ [hum wāḍiʿūna] |
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) | وَضَعْتُ [waḍaʿtu] |
| أنتَ (anta) | وَضَعْتَ [waḍaʿta] |
| أنتِ (anti) | وَضَعْتِ [waḍaʿti] |
| هو (huwa) | وَضَعَ [waḍaʿa] |
| هي (hiya) | وَضَعَتْ [waḍaʿat] |
| نحن (naḥnu) | وَضَعْنا [waḍaʿnā] |
| أنتم (antum) | وَضَعْتُمْ [waḍaʿtum] |
| هم (hum) | وَضَعُوا [waḍaʿū] |
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] أَضَعُ [aḍaʿu] |
| أنتَ (anta) | كُنْتَ [kunta] تَضَعُ [taḍaʿu] |
| أنتِ (anti) | كُنْتِ [kunti] تَضَعِينَ [taḍaʿīna] |
| هو (huwa) | كانَ [kāna] يَضَعُ [yaḍaʿu] |
| هي (hiya) | كانَتْ [kānat] تَضَعُ [taḍaʿu] |
| نحن (naḥnu) | كُنّا [kunnā] نَضَعُ [naḍaʿu] |
| أنتم (antum) | كُنْتُمْ [kuntum] تَضَعُونَ [taḍaʿūna] |
| هم (hum) | كانُوا [kānū] يَضَعُونَ [yaḍaʿūna] |
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 وَضَعْتُ [qad waḍaʿtu] |
| أنتَ (anta) | قَدْ وَضَعْتَ [qad waḍaʿta] |
| أنتِ (anti) | قَدْ وَضَعْتِ [qad waḍaʿti] |
| هو (huwa) | قَدْ وَضَعَ [qad waḍaʿa] |
| هي (hiya) | قَدْ وَضَعَتْ [qad waḍaʿat] |
| نحن (naḥnu) | قَدْ وَضَعْنا [qad waḍaʿnā] |
| أنتم (antum) | قَدْ وَضَعْتُمْ [qad waḍaʿtum] |
| هم (hum) | قَدْ وَضَعُوا [qad waḍaʿū] |
Built with kāna (past) + قد (qad) + the past-tense main verb. Matches English 'had written'.
| أنا (anā) | كُنْتُ [kuntu] قَدْ وَضَعْتُ [waḍaʿtu] |
| أنتَ (anta) | كُنْتَ [kunta] قَدْ وَضَعْتَ [waḍaʿta] |
| أنتِ (anti) | كُنْتِ [kunti] قَدْ وَضَعْتِ [waḍaʿti] |
| هو (huwa) | كانَ [kāna] قَدْ وَضَعَ [waḍaʿa] |
| هي (hiya) | كانَتْ [kānat] قَدْ وَضَعَتْ [waḍaʿat] |
| نحن (naḥnu) | كُنّا [kunnā] قَدْ وَضَعْنا [waḍaʿnā] |
| أنتم (antum) | كُنْتُمْ [kuntum] قَدْ وَضَعْتُمْ [waḍaʿtum] |
| هم (hum) | كانُوا [kānū] قَدْ وَضَعُوا [waḍaʿū] |
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) | سَأَضَعُ [sa'aḍaʿu] |
| أنتَ (anta) | سَتَضَعُ [sa-taḍaʿu] |
| أنتِ (anti) | سَتَضَعِينَ [sa-taḍaʿīna] |
| هو (huwa) | سَيَضَعُ [sa-yaḍaʿu] |
| هي (hiya) | سَتَضَعُ [sa-taḍaʿu] |
| نحن (naḥnu) | سَنَضَعُ [sa-naḍaʿu] |
| أنتم (antum) | سَتَضَعُونَ [sa-taḍaʿūna] |
| هم (hum) | سَيَضَعُونَ [sa-yaḍaʿūna] |
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 أَضَعُ [sawfa aḍaʿu] |
| أنتَ (anta) | سَوْفَ تَضَعُ [sawfa taḍaʿu] |
| أنتِ (anti) | سَوْفَ تَضَعِينَ [sawfa taḍaʿīna] |
| هو (huwa) | سَوْفَ يَضَعُ [sawfa yaḍaʿu] |
| هي (hiya) | سَوْفَ تَضَعُ [sawfa taḍaʿu] |
| نحن (naḥnu) | سَوْفَ نَضَعُ [sawfa naḍaʿu] |
| أنتم (antum) | سَوْفَ تَضَعُونَ [sawfa taḍaʿūna] |
| هم (hum) | سَوْفَ يَضَعُونَ [sawfa yaḍaʿūna] |
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 وَضَعْتُ [waḍaʿtu] |
| أنتَ (anta) | سَتَكُونُ [sa-takūnu] قَدْ وَضَعْتَ [waḍaʿta] |
| أنتِ (anti) | سَتَكُونِينَ [sa-takūnīna] قَدْ وَضَعْتِ [waḍaʿti] |
| هو (huwa) | سَيَكُونُ [sa-yakūnu] قَدْ وَضَعَ [waḍaʿa] |
| هي (hiya) | سَتَكُونُ [sa-takūnu] قَدْ وَضَعَتْ [waḍaʿat] |
| نحن (naḥnu) | سَنَكُونُ [sa-nakūnu] قَدْ وَضَعْنا [waḍaʿnā] |
| أنتم (antum) | سَتَكُونُونَ [sa-takūnūna] قَدْ وَضَعْتُمْ [waḍaʿtum] |
| هم (hum) | سَيَكُونُونَ [sa-yakūnūna] قَدْ وَضَعُوا [waḍaʿū] |
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] سَأَضَعُ [sa'aḍaʿu] |
| أنتَ (anta) | كُنْتَ [kunta] سَتَضَعُ [sa-taḍaʿu] |
| أنتِ (anti) | كُنْتِ [kunti] سَتَضَعِينَ [sa-taḍaʿīna] |
| هو (huwa) | كانَ [kāna] سَيَضَعُ [sa-yaḍaʿu] |
| هي (hiya) | كانَتْ [kānat] سَتَضَعُ [sa-taḍaʿu] |
| نحن (naḥnu) | كُنّا [kunnā] سَنَضَعُ [sa-naḍaʿu] |
| أنتم (antum) | كُنْتُمْ [kuntum] سَتَضَعُونَ [sa-taḍaʿūna] |
| هم (hum) | كانُوا [kānū] سَيَضَعُونَ [sa-yaḍaʿūna] |
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 وَضَعْتُ [waḍaʿtu] |
| أنتَ (anta) | كُنْتَ [kunta] سَتَكُونُ [sa-takūnu] قَدْ وَضَعْتَ [waḍaʿta] |
| أنتِ (anti) | كُنْتِ [kunti] سَتَكُونِينَ [sa-takūnīna] قَدْ وَضَعْتِ [waḍaʿti] |
| هو (huwa) | كانَ [kāna] سَيَكُونُ [sa-yakūnu] قَدْ وَضَعَ [waḍaʿa] |
| هي (hiya) | كانَتْ [kānat] سَتَكُونُ [sa-takūnu] قَدْ وَضَعَتْ [waḍaʿat] |
| نحن (naḥnu) | كُنّا [kunnā] سَنَكُونُ [sa-nakūnu] قَدْ وَضَعْنا [waḍaʿnā] |
| أنتم (antum) | كُنْتُمْ [kuntum] سَتَكُونُونَ [sa-takūnūna] قَدْ وَضَعْتُمْ [waḍaʿtum] |
| هم (hum) | كانُوا [kānū] سَيَكُونُونَ [sa-yakūnūna] قَدْ وَضَعُوا [waḍaʿū] |
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 أَضَعَ [an aḍaʿa] |
| أنتَ (anta) | أَنْ تَضَعَ [an taḍaʿa] |
| أنتِ (anti) | أَنْ تَضَعِي [an taḍaʿī] |
| هو (huwa) | أَنْ يَضَعَ [an yaḍaʿa] |
| هي (hiya) | أَنْ تَضَعَ [an taḍaʿa] |
| نحن (naḥnu) | أَنْ نَضَعَ [an naḍaʿa] |
| أنتم (antum) | أَنْ تَضَعُوا [an taḍaʿū] |
| هم (hum) | أَنْ يَضَعُوا [an yaḍaʿū] |
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 أَضَعْ [lam aḍaʿ] |
| أنتَ (anta) | لَمْ تَضَعْ [lam taḍaʿ] |
| أنتِ (anti) | لَمْ تَضَعِي [lam taḍaʿī] |
| هو (huwa) | لَمْ يَضَعْ [lam yaḍaʿ] |
| هي (hiya) | لَمْ تَضَعْ [lam taḍaʿ] |
| نحن (naḥnu) | لَمْ نَضَعْ [lam naḍaʿ] |
| أنتم (antum) | لَمْ تَضَعُوا [lam taḍaʿū] |
| هم (hum) | لَمْ يَضَعُوا [lam yaḍaʿū] |
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 أَضَعْ [in aḍaʿ] |
| أنتَ (anta) | إِنْ تَضَعْ [in taḍaʿ] |
| أنتِ (anti) | إِنْ تَضَعِي [in taḍaʿī] |
| هو (huwa) | إِنْ يَضَعْ [in yaḍaʿ] |
| هي (hiya) | إِنْ تَضَعْ [in taḍaʿ] |
| نحن (naḥnu) | إِنْ نَضَعْ [in naḍaʿ] |
| أنتم (antum) | إِنْ تَضَعُوا [in taḍaʿū] |
| هم (hum) | إِنْ يَضَعُوا [in yaḍaʿū] |
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) | ضَعْ [ḍaʿ] |
| أنتِ (anti) | ضَعِي [ḍaʿī] |
| هو (huwa) | — |
| هي (hiya) | — |
| نحن (naḥnu) | — |
| أنتم (antum) | ضَعُوا [ḍaʿū] |
| 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 تَضَعْ [lā taḍaʿ] |
| أنتِ (anti) | لَا تَضَعِي [lā taḍaʿī] |
| هو (huwa) | — |
| هي (hiya) | — |
| نحن (naḥnu) | — |
| أنتم (antum) | لَا تَضَعُوا [lā taḍaʿū] |
| هم (hum) | — |
| وَضَعْتُ المَفاتِيحَ عَلَى الطّاوِلَةِ. waḍaʿtu l-mafātīḥa ʿalā ṭ-ṭāwilati. | I put the keys on the table. |
| سَأَضَعُ الحَقِيبَةَ هُنا. sa'aḍaʿu l-ḥaqībata hunā. | I'll put the bag here. |
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