Plural Formation in Arabic: Commonalities and Differences

Arabic is a rich and complex language, known for its unique grammar and intricate word structures. One of the fascinating aspects of Arabic is its plural formation, which varies between Modern Standard Arabic (MSA) and diverse colloquial dialects spoken across the Arab world. However, despite regional differences, there are many commonalities in how plurals are formed. Notably, in Arabic, the plural form is used to express more than two, as there is a distinct rule for referring to exactly two objects or people, known as the dual form. This article will explore these commonalities, followed by specific grammatical differences in MSA and colloquial Arabic.

Basic plural formation in Arabic

In Arabic, there are two types of plurals: broken plurals and sound plurals. The difference between them is that sound plurals follow a fixed pattern, which we will learn below, while broken plurals do not follow a fixed pattern and must simply be memorized.

Unfortunately, determining whether a noun or adjective can be pluralized using a sound or broken plural is also random and must be memorized. You can recognize this through practice and repetition.

We apologize for the amount of memorization required in this paragraph, but constant exposure to Arabic through real-world videos on Playaling will make it easier.

Plural formation in Arabic

Plural formation in both Arabic dialects and Modern Standard Arabic is done in a similar manner with some differences.

Commonalities in plural formation

Regular (sound) plurals are formed by adding specific endings to the singular form of the noun. These can be further divided into regular masculine and feminine plurals.

Masculine sound plurals

Formed by adding ين to the end of the singular masculine noun.

Examples:

You can see how this rule applies to all types of Arabic, like Standard, Levantine, Egyptian, Gulf, and Darija with the difference often being in pronunciation according to each dialect:

English	Singular masculine in MSA, Levantine, Egyptian, Gulf, and Darija	MSA plural	Levantine plural	Egyptian plural	Gulf plural	Darija plural
engineer	مهندس	مهندسين	مهندسين	مهندسين	مهندسين	مهندسين

P.S.: Plural human nouns that take masculine form can refer to either a group of all men or a group of men and women.

Pay attention to the different plural forms of the nouns mentioned in this Lebanese clip.

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English	Singular masculine in MSA, Levantine, Egyptian, and Gulf	Singular masculine in Darija	MSA plural	Levantine plural	Egyptian plural	Gulf plural	Darija plural
gray	رمادي	رمادي	رماديين	رماديين	رمادي	رماديين	رماديين
ready	جاهز	واجد	جاهزين	جاهزين	جاهزين	جاهزين	واجدين

Feminine sound plurals

Formed by replacing the ة with ات at the end of the singular feminine noun.

Examples:

English	Singular masculine in MSA, Levantine, Egyptian, Gulf, and Darija	MSA plural	Levantine plural	Egyptian plural	Gulf plural	Darija plural
engineer	مهندسة	مهندسات	مهندسات	مهندسات	مهندسات	مهندسات

English	Singular masculine in MSA, Levantine and Gulf	Singular masculine in Egyptian	Singular masculine in Darija	MSA plural	Levantine plural	Egyptian plural	Gulf plural	Darija plural
gray	رمادية	رمادي	رمادية	رماديات	رماديات	رمادي	رماديات	رماديات
ready	جاهزة	جاهزة	واجدة	جاهزات	جاهزات	جاهزين	جاهزات	واجدات

A romantic clip from a series in Syrian Arabic.

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Broken plurals

Broken plurals, or جمع التكسير , do not follow a regular pattern and involve changes within the structure of the singular noun itself. These changes often include alterations to the vowels and sometimes the consonants.

Examples:

Palestinian students from Gaza talk about the difference between school and university books.

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English	Singular masculine in MSA, Levantine, Egyptian, Gulf, and Darija	MSA plural	Levantine plural	Egyptian plural	Gulf plural	Darija plural
red	أحمر	حمر	حمر	حمر	حمر	حومر حمرين

English	Singular masculine in MSA, Levantine, Egyptian, and Gulf	Singular masculine in Darija	MSA plural	Levantine plural	Egyptian plural	Gulf plural	Darija plural
kid	طفل	طفل	أطفال	أطفال	أطفال	أطفال	أطفال
house	بيت	دار	بيوت	بيوت	بيوت	بيوت	ديور

Notice how “cats” is pronounced in Moroccan Arabic.

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Specific grammatical differences

Masculine sound plurals in MSA

In Modern Standard Arabic, ون or ين is added to form the masculine sound plural, depending on the position of the word in the sentence. However, for beginners, adding either suffix will be understood as a plural. Don’t worry.

Example:

رمادي (gray) becomes رماديون (gray) or رماديين .

Broken plurals

In some dialects, colloquial plurals can take unique forms that differ from MSA:

English	Singular masculine in MSA	Singular masculine in Levantine and Gulf	Singular masculine in Egyptian	Singular masculine in Darija	MSA plural	Levantine plural	Egyptian plural	Gulf plural	Darija plural
woman	امرأة	مرا	حرمة	مرأة	نساء	نسوان	نسوان حريم	نسوان حريم	نسوان
man	رجل	رجّال	راجل	راجل	رجال	رجال	رجالة	رجال	رجال
rug	سجادة	سجادة	سجادة	زربية	سجاد	سجاد	سجاد	سجاجيد	زرابي
book	كتاب	كتاب	كتاب	كتاب	كتب	كتب	كتب	كتب	كتوبة
kid	ولد	ولد	ولد	دريات عايل	أولاد	ولاد	أولاد عيال	ولاد	دراري عيال عواول

Dialect-specific plural rules

Levantine & Gulf

In the Levantine & Gulf dialects, plural formation follows specific patterns:

The suffix ين :
- is added to the end of masculine nouns and adjectives in the sound plural.
- Examples: معلم (teacher) becomes معلمين (teachers), فنان (artist) becomes فنانين (artists)
The suffix ات :
- is added to the feminine nouns and adjectives in the sound plural.
- Examples: معلمة (female teacher) becomes معلمات (female teachers), سيارة (car) becomes سيارات (cars)
For broken plurals:
- specific forms must be memorized.
Adjectives for animals and inanimate objects:
- can use either the plural or the singular feminine form.
- Examples: الكتب الزرقا or الكتب الزرق (the blue books)
For describing people:
- the plural form is used except for الناس (people), which can use the singular feminine or plural form.
- Examples: الناس الحلوة or الناس الحلوين
The suffix ية :
- Used for borrowed nouns or professions.
- Examples: سكرتير (secretary) becomes سكرتيرية (secretaries)
Inanimate nouns, including those borrowed from other languages, typically pluralize with ات , regardless of their original gender, such as تليفونات (telephones) and باصات (buses)

Note the plural of mall (مول) in Jordanian Arabic.

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Egyptian dialect

The Egyptian dialect has its rules for plural formation:

No standard plural for color names:
- For colors derived from materials or objects, the suffix ـي is typically added to form the adjective, and this form remains consistent across masculine, feminine, and plural forms.
  - Examples: برتقاني (orange), دهبي (gold), فضي (silver), كحلي (navy blue)
- In Egyptian Arabic, colors do not typically take a regular plural form.

Note: The rule about colors derived from materials or objects is common across Arabic dialects. However, what is unique to the Egyptian dialect is the absence of a distinct feminine form, even in the singular. These adjectives stay the same regardless of gender or number.

Inanimate plural nouns are modified by feminine singular adjectives.
- Examples: الكتب القديمة (the old books), العربيات الجديدة (the new cars)
Animate plural nouns are modified by masculine plural adjectives.
- Example: البنات جاهزين (the girls are ready)
Animals plural nouns are modified by feminine singular adjectives.
- Example: الكلاب جاهزة (the dogs are ready)

Maghrebi dialect

In the Maghrebi dialect, plural formation can have unique forms not found in MSA or other dialects. Specific rules must be memorized, and regional variations influence pronunciation and usage.

The suffix ين :
- Is added to the end of masculine nouns and adjectives in the sound plural.
- Examples: واجدين (ready, pl), مهندسين (engineers)
The suffix ات :
- Is added to to the end of feminine nouns and adjectives in the sound plural.
- Examples: مهندسات engineers(feminine plural), واجدات ready (feminine plural)
There are irregular cases in Darija for the plural and must be memorized for example, it’s different than MSA in most cases: كتوبة (books), قرودة (monkies), قطوط (cats)
Adjectives for animals and inanimate objects can use either the plural or the singular feminine form.
- الكتوبة الزرقة (the blue books) or الكُتوبة الزورق
- القطوط البرتقالية or القطوط البرتقاليين (the orange cats)
For describing people, the plural form is used except for الناس word (people), which can use the singular masculine or plural form.

Understanding plural formation in Arabic requires recognizing both the common rules shared across MSA and colloquial dialects, as well as the specific variations unique to each form. While MSA maintains consistent grammatical structures, colloquial dialects offer a rich diversity of plural forms. By appreciating these nuances, learners can better navigate the complexities of Arabic plurals, whether in formal writing or everyday conversation.

Oh, and by the way…

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