Lesson 54
Emphasis Tawkīd
التوكيد
Arabic has a system of emphasis words (تَوْكِيد) that strengthen or confirm the statement. These follow their referent noun and must agree with it in case.
Two Types of Tawkīd
TypeDescriptionExample
Verbal (لَفْظِيّ)Repeating the same wordجَاءَ جَاءَ زَيْدٌ
Semantic (مَعْنَوِيّ)Adding a specific emphasis wordجَاءَ زَيْدٌ نَفْسُهُ
Semantic Tawkīd Words
WordArabicUse / Example
Self/sameنَفْسجَاءَ الطَّالِبُ نَفْسُهُ
Essence / veryعَيْنهَذَا هُوَ عَيْنُهُ
All (of)كُلّجَاءَ الطُّلَّابُ كُلُّهُمْ
Entirely / completelyأَجْمَعسَجَدَ الْقَوْمُ أَجْمَعُون
Bothكِلَا / كِلْتَاجَاءَ الْوَلَدَانِ كِلَاهُمَا
جَاءَ الطُّلَّابُ كُلُّهُمْ قَرَأَ الأُسْتَاذُ الْكِتَابَ نَفْسَه
Jāʾa ṭ-ṭullābu kulluhum Qaraʾa l-ustādhu l-kitāba nafsahu
All the students came. The teacher himself read the book.
فَسَجَدَ الْمَلَائِكَةُ كُلُّهُمْ أَجْمَعُونَ
Fasajada l-malāʾikatu kulluhum ajmaʿūna
"And the angels all prostrated together." (15:30) كُلُّهُمْ + أَجْمَعُونَ = double emphasis for totality.
- Tawkīd follows its مُؤَكَّد (the noun being emphasised) and takes the same case.
- كُلّ + pronoun suffix = all of them: كُلُّهُمْ (all of them), كُلُّهَا (all of it).
- نَفْس and عَيْن can appear with pronoun suffix or in iḍāfa: نَفْسُ الرَّجُلِ (the man himself).
- Combining كُلّ + أَجْمَع gives maximum totality Quran 15:30 uses both to stress that not one angel failed to prostrate.
- كِلَا (masc dual) and كِلْتَا (fem dual) "both" require a dual pronoun suffix: كِلَاهُمَا (both of them).