Moroccan Arabic textbook 2011

60 • Moroccan Arabic
Exercise: Describe in the present tense the following activities.
šnu kay-dir / kat-dir / kay-diru
Present Tense – Irregular Verbs with Middle “a”
Irregular Verbs in General
Irregular verbs in the present tense are
more complicated than in the past tense.
In the past tense, verbs with the same
structure (―a‖ in the middle, ―a‖ at the
end) were conjugated the same way. In
the present tense, verbs that look the
same in their ―infinitive‖ form may be
conjugated differently.
As a result of this difference, in the
present tense you will have to remember
which category of conjugation each
irregular verb belongs to. These categories
are listed in the diagram to the right,
and each will be shown individually. The
glossary of verbs in the appendix (see
page 163) also shows, by example, how
an irregular verb is conjugated.
Categories of Present Tense Irregular Verbs
Present
Tense
Irregular
Verbs
long vowel
“a” in
the middle
long
vowel “a”
at the end
“a” becomes “u”
“a” becomes “i”
“a” remains “a”
“a” becomes “i”
“a” remains “a”
internal changes
We will deal with two large groups of irregular verbs: 3-letter verbs with a long vowel ―a‖ in the middle
and all verbs with a long vowel ―a‖ at the end. Within each of these general groups, there will be three
categories of different conjugations. At times, it may seem like too much information to handle. But
Peace Corps trainees have been learning the irregular present tense for years; you‘ll do great.
Practicing irregular verbs with your homestay family is one way to remember how each verb is
conjugated. The more you use the verbs, the quicker they will ―stick‖ in your memory.