Lesson 80 · تَرْجَمَ
Four-letter verbs: تَرْجَمَ and زَلْزَلَ
Most Arabic verbs have three root letters, but some have four: تَرْجَمَ (he translated) comes from ت ر ج م. In the present the first vowel is -u and the third root letter takes -i: يُتَرْجِمُ (he translates).
Learn with pictures
Tap a picture to hear the sentence.
Examples
تَرْجَمْتُ الرِّسَالَةَ إِلَى الْأُرْدِيَّةِtarjamtu r-risaalata ila l-urdiyyatiI translated the letter into Urdu.
مَنْ يُتَرْجِمُ هٰذَا الْكِتَابَ؟man yutarjimu haadha l-kitaaba?Who is translating this book?
أَبِي مُتَرْجِمٌabii mutarjimunMy father is a translator.
دَحْرَجَ الْوَلَدُ الْكُرَةَdaḥraja l-waladu l-kurataThe boy rolled the ball.
تَدَحْرَجَتِ الْكُرَةُtadaḥrajati l-kuratuThe ball rolled.
إِذَا زُلْزِلَتِ الْأَرْضُ زِلْزَالَهَاidhaa zulzilati l-arḍu zilzaalahaaWhen the earth is shaken with its shaking. (99:1)
Key points
- The pattern is فَعْلَلَ يُفَعْلِلُ: تَرْجَمَ يُتَرْجِمُ translate · زَلْزَلَ يُزَلْزِلُ shake · وَسْوَسَ يُوَسْوِسُ whisper · دَحْرَجَ يُدَحْرِجُ roll (something). Verbal nouns: تَرْجَمَةٌ, زَلْزَلَةٌ, وَسْوَسَةٌ.
- Many repeat two letters, and you can hear the meaning in the sound. Surah al-Zalzalah: إِذَا زُلْزِلَتِ الْأَرْضُ زِلْزَالَهَا (when the earth is shaken with its shaking). Surah An-Nas: مِنْ شَرِّ الْوَسْوَاسِ الْخَنَّاسِ (from the evil of the whisperer who withdraws).
- Put تَـ in front for something that happens by itself: تَدَحْرَجَ يَتَدَحْرَجُ (it rolled, it rolls) · تَزَلْزَلَ (it shook). The doer starts with مُـ: مُتَرْجِمٌ (translator).
Practice
Tap a question to see the answer.
Say “I translate.”
أُتَرْجِمُ utarjimu
Say “a translator” for a woman.
مُتَرْجِمَةٌ mutarjimatun
Tell a man “Translate the sentence!”
تَرْجِمِ الْجُمْلَةَ tarjimi l-jumlata
