Lesson 55
Apposition Badal
البدل
Badal is a noun following another noun that identifies, clarifies, or is a part of it. It agrees in case with the first noun and is one of the four "followers" (تَوَابِع) in Arabic grammar.
Four Types of Badal
TypeArabic termExampleMeaning
Substitutive (full match)بَدَل مُطَابِقجَاءَ أَخُوكَ زَيْدٌYour brother, Zayd, came
Partial (part of whole)بَدَل بَعْض مِنْ كُلّأَكَلْتُ الرَّغِيفَ ثُلُثَهI ate the loaf a third of it
Inclusive (attribute)بَدَل اشْتِمَالأَعْجَبَنِي زَيْدٌ عِلْمُهُZayd impressed me his knowledge
Wrong / correctiveبَدَل غَلَطرَأَيْتُ زَيْداً عَمْراًI saw Zayd (correction:) ʿAmr
Partial Badal Pronoun Rule
In partial and inclusive badal, a pronoun suffix must link the badal back to the first noun: أَكَلْتُ الرَّغِيفَ ثُلُثَهُ the هُ refers to الرَّغِيف. Likewise أَعْجَبَنِي زَيْدٌ عِلْمُهُ the هُ refers to زَيْد.
اهْدِنَا الصِّرَاطَ الْمُسْتَقِيمَ صِرَاطَ الَّذِينَ أَنْعَمْتَ عَلَيْهِمْ
Ihdinā ṣ-ṣirāṭa l-mustaqīma ṣirāṭa lladhīna anʿamta ʿalayhim
"Guide us to the straight path the path of those You blessed." (1:6-7) صِرَاطَ is a substitutive badal from الصِّرَاطَ
جَاءَ أَخُوكَ مُحَمَّدٌ أَعْجَبَنِي زَيْدٌ أَخْلَاقُه
Jāʾa akhūka Muḥammadun Aʿjabanī Zaydun akhlāquhu
Your brother Muhammad came. Zayd impressed me his character [impressed me].
- Badal agrees with the مُبْدَل مِنْهُ (first noun) in case if it is accusative, the badal is also accusative.
- The most common badal: بَدَل مُطَابِق the second noun IS the first noun (alternative name or appositional clarification).
- Quranic use: Al-Fatiha 1:7 صِرَاطَ الَّذِينَ is a substitutive badal from الصِّرَاطَ الْمُسْتَقِيمَ in 1:6.
- Partial and inclusive badal require a pronoun link back to the first noun missing that pronoun is an error.
- Badal is one of the four "followers" (تَوَابِع): نَعْت, تَوْكِيد, عَطْف, بَدَل all take the case of what they follow.