Part 3 · Chapter Twenty-Eight · Governing Particles (العوامل)
لِيَفْعَلْ وَلَا النَّاهِيَة
Commands, Completed — ‘Let Him’ and Formal ‘Don't’
Chapter Twenty-Four taught you how to command ‘you’ directly: اقْرَأْ, ‘Read!’ But Arabic can also command a third person — ‘let him read,’ ‘they should listen’ — using لِـ plus the jussive mood you just learned. And the لَا you've used informally since early in this course (لَا تَقْلَقْ, ‘don't worry’) has a formal name and rule of its own: لَا النَّاهِيَة, the ‘forbidding lā.’ This chapter completes the command system.
Every Arabic passage has a small circle button — click it to hear it read aloud using your browser's own Arabic voice.
BY THE END OF THIS CHAPTER YOU WILL BE ABLE TO
Form third-person commands with لِـ + jussive: ‘let him/them do’
Recognise وَلْ and فَلْ as لِـ fused with و and فَ
Use لَا النَّاهِيَة correctly, for ‘you’ and for third persons
Read two Qur'ānic commands — one positive, one negative — side by side
TEACHER NOTES
Pacing: 40 min
Prerequisite check: Imperative (Chapter Twenty-Four) and jussive (Chapter Twenty-Seven).
Watch out for: This chapter completes the negative-command pattern — contrast لَا تَفْعَلْ directly against the positive imperative.
01 — THE FULL PICTURE, FIRST
رُكْنُ الْقَوَاعِدِGrammar Corner
The full command system. You now have every piece — here's the complete picture, including what you already know.
Particle
Says
Meaning
Status
لِـ (لام الأمر) + جَزْم
li‑
let him/them do, he/they should
NEW HERE
لَا (النَّاهِية) + جَزْم
lā
don't (2nd or 3rd person)
NEW HERE
اقْرَأْ (2nd-person imperative)
iqra’
read! (direct command — no particle needed)
ALREADY LEARNED
لَمْ / لَمَّا
lam / lammā
did not / not yet
ALREADY LEARNED
Third-person commands: لِـ + jussive. You can't command ‘he’ or ‘they’ directly the way you command ‘you’ — Arabic instead says, literally, “let him do”.
لِـيَفْتَحْ
li‑yaftaḥ let him open / he should open
When لِـ follows وَ or فَ, its kasrah drops and it fuses onto the connector: وَ + لِـ + تَكْتُبْ becomes وَلْتَكْتُبْ, not وَلِتَكْتُبْ.
لَا النَّاهِيَة works for any person. You've used it for ‘you’ since early in the course; now you can also forbid a third person.
لَا تَحْزَنْ (أنت) / لَا يَحْزَنُوا (هم)
lā taḥzan / lā yaḥzanū don't grieve (you) / let them not grieve (they)
Quick check: how would you say “let her listen,” starting from تَسْمَعُ? (لِتَسْمَعْ.)
02 — LISTEN & REPEAT
حِوَارٌDialogue
A teacher gives instructions about the whole class, not just one student. Listen twice, then read aloud.
TEACHER
لِيَفْتَحْ كُلُّ طَالِبٍ كِتَابَهُ.
liyaftaḥ kullu ṭālibin kitābah.
Let every student open his book.
YŪSUF
حَسَنًا، فَتَحْتُ كِتَابِي.
ḥasanan, fataḥtu kitābī.
Okay, I've opened my book.
TEACHER
وَلْتَكْتُبْ مَرْيَمُ اسْمَهَا فِي الْأَعْلَى.
wa-ltaktub Maryamu-smahā fi-l-a‘lā.
And let Maryam write her name at the top.
TEACHER
لَا يَتَحَدَّثْ أَحَدٌ الْآنَ.
lā yataḥaddath aḥadun-l-ān.
Let no one speak now.
MARYAM
لَنْ نَتَحَدَّثَ يَا أُسْتَاذُ.
lan nataḥaddatha yā ustādh.
We won't speak, teacher.
03 — CORE WORDS
الْمُفْرَدَاتُVocabulary
لِـ attaches directly to the verb, exactly like the لِـ you learned in Chapter Nineteen — but now the verb is jussive, not subjunctive.
Arabic
Says
Meaning
Note
NEWلِيَفْتَحْ
liyaftaḥ
let him open, he should open
لِـ + جَزْم.
NEWوَلْتَكْتُبْ
wa-ltaktub
and let her write
لِـ fused after وَ — the kasrah drops.
NEWلِيَحْكُمْ
liyaḥkum
let him judge/rule
A common Qur'ānic pattern.
NEWلَايَتَحَدَّثْ
lā yataḥaddath
let him not speak, he shouldn't speak
لَا النَّاهِيَة + جَزْم, 3rd person.
NEWلَاتَحْزَنْ
lā taḥzan
don't grieve (m.)
2nd person — the familiar pattern, now named.
NEWطَالِبٌ
ṭālib
a student
—
NEWأَعْلَى
a‘lā
top, higher
فِي الْأَعْلَى — at the top.
NEWحَكَمَ/يَحْكُمُ
ḥakama / yaḥkumu
he judged, ruled / he judges, rules
—
Also in this chapter's dialogue and reading.
Arabic
Says
Meaning
Note
EARLYفَقَدْ
faqad
indeed, already
Placed before a past-tense verb, like لَقَدْ from Chapter Seventeen.
04 — READING THE SOURCE
وَقْفَةٌ قُرْآنِيَّةٌQur'ān Connection
A positive third-person command and a negative one, both extremely well known.
Let a man of wealth spend from his wealth ... and do not fear them, but fear Me.
لِيُنفِقْ
liyunfiq
let him spend (لِـ + jussive)
ذُو سَعَةٍ
dhū sa‘ah
a man of ample means
وَلَا تَخَافُوهُمْ
wa lā takhāfūhum
and do not fear them (لَا + jussive, ‘you all’)
لِيُنفِقْ shows the exact لِـ + jussive pattern from this chapter turned into real guidance about charity. لَا تَخَافُوهُمْ is the plural ‘you’ form of لَا النَّاهِيَة — note the jussive drop of ن from تَخَافُونَ.
05 — SAY IT LIKE A NATIVE
عِبَارَاتٌ يَوْمِيَّةٌEveryday Phrases
Common expressions using both command types.
لِيَكُنْ ذَلِكَ
liyakun dhālik — so be it, let it be
لِنَبْدَأْ
li-nabda’ — let's begin
لَا تَخَفْ
lā takhaf — don't be afraid
لَا تَتَأَخَّرْ
lā tata’akhkhar — don't be late
لِيَعْلَمْ الْجَمِيعُ
liya‘lami-l-jamī‘ — let everyone know
لَا يَهُمُّ
lā yahumm — it doesn't matter (let it not matter)
لِتَطْمَئِنَّ
li-taṭma’inna — so that you may be at ease
لَا تَنْسَ
lā tansa — don't forget
SKILLS PRACTICE
الِاسْتِمَاعُListening
Audio track 28.1
A team leader gives instructions to a group. Listen first, script second.
LEADER
لِيَجْلِسْ كُلُّ وَاحِدٍ فِي مَكَانِهِ.
AḨMAD
حَاضِرٌ.
LEADER
وَلْتُحْضِرْ سَلْمَى الْأَوْرَاقَ.
LEADER
لَا يَتَأَخَّرْ أَحَدٌ عَنِ الْمَوْعِدِ.
What does the leader ask everyone to do first?
What does Salmā need to bring?
What is forbidden?
Reveal answers
1. Sit in his place. 2. The papers. 3. Anyone being late to the appointment.
SKILLS PRACTICE
التَّحَدُّثُSpeaking
Pair work
Partner drill. Give three third-person instructions about people in the room — “لِيَفْعَلْ فُلَانٌ كَذَا” — and one negative command with لَا.
Recycling round. Most of this chapter's own vocabulary IS the command forms — keep the drill focused there.
1. False — he told them not to speak. 2. True. 3. True.
SKILLS PRACTICE
قِرَاءَةٌ حُرَّةٌFree Reading
Hover to check — no test, just read
A short passage using only words you've met so far. Just read for meaning — hover any word if you get stuck. Flip the switch to check whole sentences instead of single words.