Arabic Pointing Sentences: hādhā kitāb (This Is a Book)

Level: beginner. One of the first full sentences you can build in Arabic is a pointing sentence: “this is a book”, “that is a house”. You make it with a demonstrative (a pointing word) and a noun — and, surprisingly, no verb at all. هٰذَا كِتَابٌ (hādhā kitābun) is a complete sentence meaning “This is a book”.

The rule

A demonstrative is a pointing word: هٰذَا (hādhā) “this” (masculine), هٰذِهِ (hādhihi) “this” (feminine), ذٰلِكَ (dhālika) “that” (masculine), تِلْكَ (tilka) “that” (feminine). A noun is a naming word like كِتَابٌ (kitābun) “a book”. A noun is indefinite when it means “a/an” and carries tanwīn — the doubled vowel ending written -un here.

Arabic has no verb “to be” in the present. So when you put a demonstrative directly before an indefinite noun, the two words alone make a full sentence: هٰذَا كِتَابٌ (hādhā kitābun) = “This is a book”. Nothing stands for “is” — the meaning is built into the pattern.

The twist comes with the definite article ال (al-), “the”. Put it on the noun and the same two words become a phrase, not a sentence: هٰذَا الكِتَابُ (hādhā al-kitābu) = “this book” (just a label, waiting for more). So the single difference between a sentence and a phrase is that little ال (al-).

Forms

Example sentences

Common mistakes

• ❌ هٰذَا الكِتَابُ (meaning “this is a book”) → ✅ هٰذَا كِتَابٌ (hādhā kitābun). With ال (al-) you have said the phrase “this book”; drop it for the sentence.
• ❌ هٰذَا يَكُونُ كِتَابًا (hādhā yakūnu kitāban) → ✅ هٰذَا كِتَابٌ (hādhā kitābun). There is no verb “to be” in the present — do not add one.
• ❌ هٰذَا سَيَّارَةٌ (hādhā sayyāratun) → ✅ هٰذِهِ سَيَّارَةٌ (hādhihi sayyāratun). سَيَّارَة (sayyāra) is feminine, so use هٰذِهِ (hādhihi).
• ❌ هٰذَا كِتَابُ (hādhā kitābu) → ✅ هٰذَا كِتَابٌ (hādhā kitābun). The indefinite predicate noun needs tanwīn, the -un ending.
• ❌ كِتَابٌ هٰذَا (kitābun hādhā) → ✅ هٰذَا كِتَابٌ (hādhā kitābun). The pointing word comes first.

A short conversation

— مَا هٰذَا؟ (mā hādhā?) — What is this? — هٰذَا قَلَمٌ. (hādhā qalamun.) — This is a pen. — وَمَا تِلْكَ؟ (wa-mā tilka?) — And what is that (feminine)? — تِلْكَ سَيَّارَةٌ. (tilka sayyāratun.) — That is a car.

Each answer is just a demonstrative plus an indefinite noun — no verb, no article.

Usage notes

• The predicate is indefinite and nominative. The noun after the demonstrative takes tanwīn with a ḍamma: كِتَابٌ (kitābun), بَيْتٌ (baytun). That ending signals “a book / a house”.
• Adjectives follow and agree. A describing word comes after the noun and matches it — indefinite with indefinite: هٰذَا بَيْتٌ كَبِيرٌ (hādhā baytun kabīrun), “This is a big house”.
• Ask yes/no with هَلْ (hal). Put هَلْ (hal) in front: هَلْ هٰذَا كِتَابٌ؟ (hal hādhā kitābun?), “Is this a book?”. Answer نَعَمْ (naʿam), “yes”, or لَا (lā), “no”.
• Ask “what/who” with مَا (mā) and مَنْ (man). مَا هٰذَا؟ (mā hādhā?) is “What is this?”; مَنْ هٰذَا؟ (man hādhā?) is “Who is this?”.

Compared with…

• The demonstratives themselves. This page is about the sentence; to drill the four pointing words and their gender and number agreement, see Arabic Demonstratives: hādhā, hādhihi, dhālika.
• The definite article ال (al-). It is the one piece that flips a sentence into a phrase. Learn how it attaches, with sun and moon letters, on The Arabic Definite Article ال (al-).
• The nominal sentence in general. “This is a book” is one kind of verbless Arabic sentence; the wider pattern of subject + predicate is covered in The Arabic Nominal Sentence.

Quick recap before the quiz.

Practice

Quiz

Recap cheat-sheet

Next

• Drill the pointing words themselves: Arabic Demonstratives
• Back to the Arabic grammar section
• New here? Start with Start Learning Arabic Here