ذا

Root entry · 21 derived lemmas

This root primarily deals with demonstrative pronouns and particles used for pointing or indicating. It covers forms for 'this' and 'that', including variations for proximity, distance, emphasis, and gender, as well as demonstrative relative pronouns.

Derived headwords

ذَاparticle

1.
thisboth
A demonstrative pronoun used to refer to something present or near, often translated as 'this'.
2.
whoeverclassical
Can function as a relative pronoun, meaning 'whoever' or 'the one who'.

ذا الرجل — This man

من ذا الذي يشفع عنده إلا بإذنه — Who is it that can intercede with Him except by His permission?

ذَلِكَparticle

1.
thatboth
A demonstrative pronoun used to refer to something distant or of higher status, translated as 'that'.

ذلك الكتاب لا ريب فيه — This is the Book about which there is no doubt

ذَائِكَparticle

1.
thatclassical
An emphatic form of 'that', similar to 'ذلك'.

ذِيَاكَparticle

1.
thatclassical
A diminutive form of 'ذاك', still referring to something distant.

ذِيَالِكَparticle

1.
thatclassical
A diminutive form of 'ذلك', used poetically.

أني أبو ذيالك الصبي — That I am the father of that boy

هَذَاparticle

1.
thisboth
A demonstrative pronoun formed by adding the particle 'ha' (هـ) for attention to 'ذا', meaning 'this'.

هذا زيد — This is Zayd

ذِيparticle

1.
this (fem.)classical
A demonstrative pronoun for the feminine singular, equivalent to 'هذه'.

ذي أمة الله — This is Umm Allah

ذِهْparticle

1.
this (fem.)classical
A variant form of 'ذي' for the feminine singular, used when pausing.

ذه أمة الله — This is Umm Allah

تِيكَparticle

1.
that (fem.)classical
A demonstrative pronoun for the feminine singular, referring to something distant.

تِلْكَparticle

1.
that (fem.)both
A demonstrative pronoun for the feminine singular, referring to something distant.

ذَيَّاparticle

1.
this (dim.)classical
A diminutive form of 'ذا'.

ذَيَّانparticle

1.
these twoclassical
A dual form derived from 'ذا'.

هَذِيَّاparticle

1.
this (dim.)classical
A diminutive form of 'هذا'.

ذَانِparticle

1.
these twoboth
The dual form of 'ذا', used for two items.

إن هذان لساحران — Indeed, these two are magicians

هَذَاكَparticle

1.
thatboth
A demonstrative pronoun indicating something distant, often with an added particle of attention.

هذاك زيد — That is Zayd

ذَيْنِكَparticle

1.
those twoboth
The dual form of 'ذاك', referring to two distant items.

رأيت ذينك الرجلين — I saw those two men

ذَانِكَparticle

1.
those twoclassical
An emphatic dual form, similar to 'ذينك'.

جاءني ذانك الرجلان — Those two men came to me

مَاذَاparticle

1.
whatboth
An interrogative pronoun formed from 'ما' and 'ذا', meaning 'what'.
2.
what (relative)classical
Can function as a relative pronoun meaning 'what' or 'that which'.

ماذا ينفقون — What do they spend?

هَذِهِparticle

1.
this (fem.)both
The feminine singular demonstrative pronoun, meaning 'this'.

هذه منطلقة — This (female) is proceeding

هَذِيparticle

1.
this (fem.)classical
A variant form of 'هذه'.

فهذي طواها بعد هذي وهذه — So this one (she) wore them out after this one, and this one (she) wore out...

هَذَاتparticle

1.
this (fem. pl.)classical
A rare and generally avoided plural form for feminine demonstratives.

Parallel reading

ذا يكون بمعنى هذا

Dha is used to mean this.

من ذا الذي يشفع عنده إلا بإذنه

Who is it that can intercede with Him except by His permission?

ذا اسم كل مشار إليه معاين يراه المتكلم المخاطب

Dha is the name for every pointed-to, visible object that the speaker sees the addressee.

والاسم فيها الذال وحدها مفتوحة

And the name in it is the Dhal alone, with a fatha.

وهو اسم مبهم لا يعرف ما هو حتى يفسره ما بعده كقولك: ذا الرجل

And it is an ambiguous name, whose meaning is not known until what follows it explains it, like your saying: this man.

وتزاد لاما للتأكيد (فيقال: ذلك)

And a lam is added for emphasis (so one says: dhalika).

والكاف للخطاب؛ وفيها دليل على أن المشار إليه: بعيد

And the kaf is for address; and in it is evidence that the indicated object is distant.

ذلك الكتاب لا ريب فيه

This is the Book about which there is no doubt.

أو همزا فيقال: ذائك

Or with a hamza, so one says: dha'ik.

ويصغر فيقال: ذياك

And it is made diminutive, so one says: dhayak.

وتصغير ذلك: ذيالك

And the diminutive of dhalika is: dhayalik.

وقد تدخل ها التنبيه على ذا فتقول: هذا زيد

And the particle 'ha' for attention may enter upon 'dha', so you say: hadha Zayd.

فها حرف تنبيه، وذا: اسم المشار إليه، وزيد هو الخبر

So 'ha' is a particle of attention, and 'dha' is the indicated noun, and Zayd is the predicate.

وذي، بالكسر، (و) إن وقفت عليه قلت: ذه بهاء موقوفة

And 'dhi', with a kasra, (and) if you pause upon it, you say: 'dhih' with a paused ha.

وهي بدل من الياء وليست للتأنيث وإنما هي صلة

And it is a substitute for the ya and is not for feminine gender, but rather it is an addition.

تقول: ذي أمة الله

You say: dhi Umm Allah.

وذه أمة الله

And dhih Umm Allah.

أمن زينب ذي النار قبيل الصبح ما تخبو

From Zaynab, this fire, before morning, does not extinguish.

قال ثعلب: ذي معناه ذه، ولا تدخل الكاف على ذي للمؤنث

Tha'lab said: 'dhi' means 'dhih', and the kaf is not added to 'dhi' for the feminine.

وإنما تدخلها على تا، تقول: تيك وتلك ولا تقل ذيك، فإنه خطأ

Rather, it is added to 'ta', so you say: tayka and tilka, and do not say 'dhayka', for that is an error.

تصغير ذا ذيا

The diminutive of 'dha' is 'dhaya'.

وذيان في التثنية

And 'dhayan' in the dual.

وتصغير هذا هذيا

And the diminutive of 'hadha' is 'hadhaya'.

وإن ثنيت، ذا قلت ذان

And if you dualize 'dha', you say 'dhan'.

فمن أسقط ألف ذا قرأ: إن هذين لساحران

And whoever drops the alif of 'dha' reads: 'Indeed, these two are magicians'.

ومن أسقط ألف التثنية قرأ: إن هذان لساحران

And whoever drops the alif of the dual reads: 'Indeed, these two are magicians'.

وتدخل الهاء على ذاك فتقول: هذاك زيد

And the ha enters upon 'dhak', so you say: 'hadhak Zayd'.

وتقول في التثنية رأيت ذينك الرجلين

And in the dual you say: I saw those two men.

وجاءني ذانك الرجلان

And those two men came to me.

وربما قالوا ذانك بتشديد النون

And sometimes they say 'dhanik' with a shadded nun.

فقلن هذا الذي منح المودة غيرنا وجفانا

So they said: 'This is the one who bestowed affection on others and abandoned us'.

وقد استعملت ذا مكان، الذي

And 'dha' has been used in place of 'alladhi'.

يسألونك ماذا ينفقون

They ask you, 'What do they spend?'

أي ما الذي، فما مرفوعة بالابتداء وذا خبرها، وينفقون صلة ذا

Meaning 'what is it that', so 'ma' is the subject and 'dha' is its predicate, and 'yunfiqun' is the relative clause of 'dha'.

وكذلك هذا بمعنى الذي

And likewise 'hadha' means 'alladhi'.

عدس ما لعباد عليك امارة نجوت وهذا تحملين طليق

O 'adas, what authority do the servants have over you? You escaped, and this one you carry is free.

أي الذي

Meaning 'the one who'.

وقد تكون ذي زائدة؛ كما في حديث جرير: (يطلع عليكم رجل من ذي يمن على وجهه مسحة من ذي ملك)

And 'dhi' may be superfluous; as in the hadith of Jarir: '(A man from Yemen will appear to you, with a mark of royalty on his face)'.

وقال: إنها صلة أي زائدة

And he said: 'It is an addition, meaning superfluous'.

ويقال في تأنيث هذا: هذه منطلقة

And for the feminine of 'hadha', it is said: 'hadhihi munṭaliqah'.

وقال بعضهم: هذي منطلقة

And some of them said: 'hadhi munṭaliqah'.

فهذي طواها بعد هذي وهذه طواها

So this one (she) wore them out after this one, and this one (she) wore out...

وقال بعضهم: هذات منطلقات، وهي شاذة مرغوب عنها

And some of them said: 'hadhat munṭaliqāt', and it is irregular and undesirable.

وتمنى شبيب منة ينفلت به وذا قطري لفه منه وائل

And Shabeeb wished for a favor by which he could escape, and this Qatari, Waa'il wrapped him up.

يريد قطريا، وذا زائدة

He means Qatari, and 'dha' is superfluous.