The Dual in Arabic

To talk about exactly two of something, Arabic doesn't need a number. It adds the ending ⁨ـَان⁩ or ⁨ـَيْن⁩ to the singular: ⁨كِتَاب⁩ (a book), ⁨كِتَابَان⁩ (two books).

Making the Dual

Add ⁨ـَان⁩ to the singular. A word that ends in ⁨ة⁩ changes it to ⁨ت⁩ first: ⁨سَيَّارَة⁩ becomes ⁨سَيَّارَتَان⁩.

Two Endings

The dual has two forms. Use ⁨ـَان⁩ when the word is the subject. Use ⁨ـَيْن⁩ after a preposition and when the word is the object of a verb.

No Number Needed

The dual already means "two", so you normally say no number at all. The word ⁨اِثْنَان⁩ (two) is added only for emphasis, after the noun: ⁨كِتَابَان اِثْنَان⁩ (two books, exactly two).

Adjectives in the Dual

An adjective after a dual noun is dual too. It takes the same ending, the same gender and the same ⁨ال⁩.

Pronouns for Two

Arabic also has pronouns for two people: ⁨هُمَا⁩ (they, two people), ⁨أَنْتُمَا⁩ (you two) and the ending ⁨ـهُمَا⁩ (their, of two people). The words ⁨هٰذَان⁩ and ⁨هَاتَان⁩ mean "these two".

Before Another Noun

When a dual is followed by an owner, it drops its ⁨ن⁩: ⁨كِتَابَا الطَّالِب⁩ (the student's two books). It drops it before an ending too: ⁨عَيْنَاهَا⁩ (her eyes).

Common Mistakes

• Using a number instead of the dual: say ⁨كِتَابَان⁩, not ⁨اِثْنَان كِتَاب⁩.
• Forgetting to change ⁨ة⁩ to ⁨ت⁩: say ⁨سَيَّارَتَان⁩, not ⁨سَيَّارَةان⁩.
• Using ⁨ـَان⁩ after a preposition: say ⁨فِي بَيْتَيْن⁩, not ⁨فِي بَيْتَان⁩.
• Leaving the adjective singular: say ⁨وَلَدَان صَغِيرَان⁩, not ⁨وَلَدَان صَغِير⁩.
• Keeping ⁨ن⁩ before an owner: say ⁨كِتَابَا الطَّالِب⁩, not ⁨كِتَابَان الطَّالِب⁩.

Example Sentences