Demonstrative Pronouns — Ism al-Ishārah
Summary: Arabic demonstrative pronouns vary by gender, distance, and addressee; تِلْكَ is broken into three structural components: pointer, distance marker, and addressee marker.
Structure of تِلْكَ
تِلْكَ (that — feminine, distant) is composed of three parts: (source: surah_yusuf_session2.md)
| Part | Element | Function |
|---|---|---|
| تِ | ism al-ishāra | the actual pointer — feminine form of ذَا |
| لَ | lām al-buʿd | indicates greater distance (same lām as in ذَلِكَ vs. ذَاكَ) |
| كَ | ḥarf al-khiṭāb | indicates the addressee — changes based on who is being spoken to |
Variant Forms
| Form | Meaning |
|---|---|
| تِلْكَ | feminine, distant — addressing one person |
| تِلْكُمَا | addressing two people |
| تِلْكُمْ | addressing a group |
| تِيكَ | without lām al-buʿd (shorter distance) |
Example from hadith al-ifk: تِيكُمْ — teacher addressing a group, referring to a feminine subject. Found in Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhāri. (source: surah_yusuf_session2.md)
Resolving the Two Sukūns in تِلْكَ
When lām al-buʿd enters upon تِيكَ, we get تِيْلْكَ — two adjacent sukūns (yāʾ with sukūn + lām with sukūn). Rule: when yāʾ with sukūn is adjacent to another sukūn, drop the yāʾ → تِلْكَ. (source: surah_yusuf_session2.md)
When lām does not enter, تِيكَ remains as is.
Parallel: ذَاكَ / ذَلِكَ
The masculine pair follows the same logic:
- ذَاكَ — near/moderate distance (no lām al-buʿd)
- ذَلِكَ — greater distance (with lām al-buʿd)