Explanation of the words of Ibn Malik (may Allah have mercy on him): "In a masculine quadrilateral name with a long third letter *** the third is if'alah, and this is consistent among them."
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
The Shaykh :"Masculine": This is to distinguish it from the feminine.
"Quadrilateral": This is to distinguish it from non-quadrilateral names.
"With a long third letter": What is this to distinguish it from?
"If'alah from them": What does this mean?
The student: It is consistent.
The Shaykh :"It is consistent": An example of this is the word: *ta'am* (food). Is *ta'am* a masculine quadrilateral name with a long third letter, or not?
The student: Yes.
The Shaykh : We say in its plural: *at'imah* (foods). For *libas* (clothing), we say in its plural: *albisah* (clothes). So, whenever we find a quadrilateral name with a long third letter, its plural is on the pattern of *if'alah*, such as *kiswah* (garment) and *akisayah* (garments), *ta'am* (food) and *at'imah* (foods), *libas* (clothing) and *albisah* (clothes), *hida'ah* (shoe) and *ahdhiyah* (shoes), and many others. Now, do we say *asafir* for *'asfar* (bird)? *'Asfar*!
The student: It is a pentasyllabic word.
The Shaykh : Huh?
The student: It is a pentasyllabic word.
The Shaykh : Is it a pentasyllabic word? Yes, this rule does not apply to it. Ibn Malik says: "A masculine quadrilateral name". Now, what do we say about *Zaynab*?
The student: It is feminine.
The Shaykh : Huh?
The student: It is feminine.
The Shaykh : How many letters? *Zaynab* has four! It fails to meet two conditions: it is not masculine, and it is not elongated, whereas they say "with a long third letter." Now, what about *Sa'ad*?
The student: One condition.
The Shaykh : One condition, which is femininity. The condition is that it must be masculine, and this is feminine. So, we do not say *Asa'id* for the plural of *Sa'ad*. If we have women and they are all named *Sa'ad*, we do not say *Asa'id* for them.
"Quadrilateral": This is to distinguish it from non-quadrilateral names.
"With a long third letter": What is this to distinguish it from?
"If'alah from them": What does this mean?
The student: It is consistent.
The Shaykh :"It is consistent": An example of this is the word: *ta'am* (food). Is *ta'am* a masculine quadrilateral name with a long third letter, or not?
The student: Yes.
The Shaykh : We say in its plural: *at'imah* (foods). For *libas* (clothing), we say in its plural: *albisah* (clothes). So, whenever we find a quadrilateral name with a long third letter, its plural is on the pattern of *if'alah*, such as *kiswah* (garment) and *akisayah* (garments), *ta'am* (food) and *at'imah* (foods), *libas* (clothing) and *albisah* (clothes), *hida'ah* (shoe) and *ahdhiyah* (shoes), and many others. Now, do we say *asafir* for *'asfar* (bird)? *'Asfar*!
The student: It is a pentasyllabic word.
The Shaykh : Huh?
The student: It is a pentasyllabic word.
The Shaykh : Is it a pentasyllabic word? Yes, this rule does not apply to it. Ibn Malik says: "A masculine quadrilateral name". Now, what do we say about *Zaynab*?
The student: It is feminine.
The Shaykh : Huh?
The student: It is feminine.
The Shaykh : How many letters? *Zaynab* has four! It fails to meet two conditions: it is not masculine, and it is not elongated, whereas they say "with a long third letter." Now, what about *Sa'ad*?
The student: One condition.
The Shaykh : One condition, which is femininity. The condition is that it must be masculine, and this is feminine. So, we do not say *Asa'id* for the plural of *Sa'ad*. If we have women and they are all named *Sa'ad*, we do not say *Asa'id* for them.