تَاء التَّأنِيث — The Feminine Marker on Verbs (Ta' Ta'nith)
In Arabic, when the فَاعِل (fa'il / subject) of a verb is feminine, the verb typically carries a تَاء التَّأنِيث السَّاكِنَة (silent ta') at the end of the past tense form or a ت prefix in the muḍāriʿ.
The Basic Rule
| Fa'il Type | Example | Rule |
|---|---|---|
| Real feminine (a woman, female animal) | جَاءَتِ الْمَرْأَةُ | Ta' ta'nith is obligatory |
| Grammatically feminine but not real | طَلَعَتِ الشَّمْسُ | Ta' ta'nith is preferred |
| Grammatically fem., non-real, AND separated from verb | تَرَاكَمَ / تَرَاكَمَتِ الظُّلُمَاتُ | Ta' ta'nith is optional |
When is Ta' Ta'nith Optional?
Two conditions must both be met for the ta' to become optional:
- The fa'il is a non-real feminine (مُؤَنَّث مَجَازِي) — i.e. it is grammatically feminine but refers to something that has no biological sex (e.g. شَمْس sun, ظُلُمَات darknesses, رِيح wind).
- A word comes between the verb and its fa'il — i.e. the fa'il is separated from the verb.
When both conditions are met, both forms are correct: - تَرَاكَمَ الظُّلُمَاتُ (without ta') ✓ - تَرَاكَمَتِ الظُّلُمَاتُ (with ta') ✓
Examples from the Quran
Surah An-Noor — Ayah 40
ظُلُمَاتٌ (darknesses) is grammatically feminine but has no real gender. In the context of this ayah it is separated from the verb by another element, making the ta' optional. The Quran uses the form without ta' in this location.
Contrast: When Ta' is Obligatory
If the subject is a real female person and stands directly beside the verb, the ta' is required:
جَاءَتْ هِنْدٌ — Hind came. (ta' is obligatory)
The Complete Rule — Refined in Surah Yusuf Session 9
Session 9 laid the rule out in full, and refined the "real feminine" case above: separation matters there too.
One Rule Set Covers Both فِعل/فَاعِل and كَانَ/اِسمُهَا
The rules for making كَانَ feminine to agree with its اِسْم are exactly the same as those for making a verb feminine to agree with its فَاعِل.
Obligatory (تَاء required)
| # | Condition | Example |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | The ism/fāʿil is a real (biological) feminine and is not separated from the verb | جَاءَتْ فَاطِمَةُ — جَاءَ فَاطِمَةُ is wrong |
| 2 | The ism/fāʿil is a ضَمِير (pronoun) referring to a feminine — whether real or not | see below |
Condition 2 — the Pronoun Case
Compare:
كَانَتْ فَاطِمَةُ ... — the ism of kāna is the visible noun.
فَاطِمَةُ جَاءَتْ — a جُملَة اِسمِيَّة whose khabar is a جُملَة فِعلِيَّة; the فَاعِل of جَاءَتْ is a hidden pronoun (هِيَ) referring back to Fāṭimah.
Because the fāʿil is a pronoun pointing at a female, the tāʾ is compulsory — فَاطِمَةُ جَاءَ is wrong.
Even a Non-Real Feminine, If It Is a Pronoun
The striking part of condition 2 is that it applies even when the referent is only grammatically feminine. الشَّمْس and النَّافِذَة are not real females — but if the ism/fāʿil is a pronoun referring to them, the tāʾ is still required. This is the case where the "non-real feminine → optional" rule does not apply.
Optional (either form correct)
| # | Condition | Example |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Real feminine, but separated from the verb by another word | جَاءَ اليَوْمَ فَاطِمَةُ or جَاءَتِ اليَوْمَ فَاطِمَةُ |
| 2 | Non-real (مَجَازِي) feminine — feminine only in the language | طَلَعَ الشَّمْسُ or طَلَعَتِ الشَّمْسُ |
Two Things Worth Noticing
- In case 1, remove the separating word and the choice disappears — the tāʾ becomes obligatory again.
- In case 2, nothing needs to separate verb and subject. Non-real femininity on its own licenses either form. (This refines the two-conditions formulation above, which describes the commonest situation rather than the full rule.)
Applied to Sūrat Yūsuf 12:7
Two Reasons كَانَ Stays Masculine
لَّقَدْ كَانَ فِي يُوسُفَ وَإِخْوَتِهِ آيَاتٌ لِّلسَّائِلِينَ
- آيَات is a non-real feminine — signs are not biologically female.
- آيَات is separated from كَانَ by the whole phrase فِي يُوسُفَ وَإِخْوَتِهِ.
Either condition alone would license the masculine form; here both apply.
Session References
- Surah An-Noor Session 1: rule explained in context of Ayah 40 (تَرَاكَمَ الظُّلُمَاتُ)
- Surah Yusuf Session 9: The complete obligatory/optional rule, extended to كَانَ and its اِسْم; the pronoun condition (obligatory even for a non-real feminine); applied to آيَاتٌ in Āyah 7.