مَعْرِفَة
ma'rifa
Definite noun (ma'rifa)
I'rab · i'rabDefinitenesscore term
Also written: Ma'rifah and Nakirah · Definite and indefinite · Marifah
In one line
A definite noun — one pointing to something specific.
Classical definition
المَعْرِفَةُ مَا دَلَّ عَلَى مُعَيَّنٍ، كَالعَلَمِ وَالمُعَرَّفِ بِأَلْ وَالضَّمِيرِ.
(شذا العرف)
What it is
Definiteness is the first property of every Arabic noun, and it works much as it does in English: a word is either definite (a specific, known thing — “the book,” a name, Allah) or indefinite (“a book,” any one of its kind). A noun is made definite mainly by the article الْ at its front; left without it, and carrying tanwin, it is indefinite. This single distinction is the hinge on which the nominal sentence turns.
How to spot it
Recognition test
Names, words with ال, pronouns and demonstratives are definite.
Related terms
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From the free course The Language of Quran — Easier than English (Book 1) (LoQ1), taught by Ustad Muhammad Arjan Ali.