Grammar term · I'rab · Position
In place of nasab
fi mahall nasab
فِي مَحَلّ نَصْب
I'rabPositioncore term
In one line
“In the place of nasab” (فِي مَحَلّ نَصْب) describes a mabni word or a whole sentence filling a nasab slot.
Classical definition
تَكُونُ الكَلِمَةُ المَبْنِيَّةُ أَوِ الجُمْلَةُ فِي مَحَلِّ نَصْبٍ إِذَا وَقَعَتْ مَوْقِعَ المَنْصُوبِ، كَجُمْلَةِ مَقُولِ القَوْلِ.
“A mabni word or a sentence is “in the place of nasab” when it stands where a nasab word would stand — like the quoted-speech sentence after قَالَ.”
Understand it
Object slots welcome mabni words and whole sentences. In خَلَقَكُمْ the attached pronoun ـكُمْ is the object — fi mahall nasab, since a pronoun can show no fatha. And everything quoted after قَالَ fills the object slot as one block: the entire sentence is “what was said”.
How to spot it
Recognition test
Ask what the verb did to what; if the answer is a pronoun or a whole sentence, that filler is fi mahall nasab.
In the Qur'an
أَحَسِبَ ٱلنَّاسُ أَن يُتْرَكُوٓا۟ أَن يَقُولُوٓا۟ ءَامَنَّا وَهُمْ لَا يُفْتَنُونَ
Al-'Ankabut 29:2 — “Do men think that they will be left alone on saying, "We believe", and that they will not be tested?”
ءَامَنَّا is a whole sentence, yet it fills the slot of the thing يَقُولُوٓا۟ said. It cannot show a fatha, so it is described as being in the place of nasab.
Study this ayah word by word →Related terms
فِي مَحَلّ جَرّ · fi mahall jarr
فِي مَحَلّ جَزْم · fi mahall jazm
فِي مَحَلّ رَفْع · fi mahall rafa
لَا مَحَلّ لَهُ مِنَ الْإِعْرَاب · la mahall lahu min al-i'rab
Common questions
When does a sentence count as being in the place of nasab?
When it fills a slot that an ism in nasab would fill — most often as the thing said after a verb of saying, or as a hal. The clause is doing a noun's job, so it is described by the case that job requires.
Next in the guideفِي مَحَلّ رَفْعIn place of rafa →Updated