كُنْتُ be in Arabic
كُنْتُ is how you say “be” in Arabic.
Arabic
English
The audio uses AI voices.
Example sentence
كُنْت خَلْفَ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه و سلم يَوْمًا،
One day, I was behind the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him),
كُنْتُ I was
The '-tu' ending is the speaker 'I', and the verb is 'was', the verb of being. This verb casts whatever describes the subject into the accusative, so the position-phrase that follows is its accusative-style complement.
The English is machine-translated.
Practise this word in the app
One tap gives you the meaning, a grammar note and audio.
Add the words you don’t know. Practise them with spaced repetition.
Free. No ads. No subscription.
An account is needed in the app.
More example sentences
كنت رديفا للنَّبِي على حمَار
I was a riding partner of the Prophet on a donkey
كُنتُ I was
This is the past tense of the verb 'to be' with the 'I' subject built into its ending, so one Arabic word covers 'I was'. Arabic often needs this 'was' verb to anchor a description in past time, where in the present tense the same idea would simply drop the verb.
وَكُنْتُ أَسْأَلُهُ عَنْ الشَّرِّ مَخَافَةَ أَنْ يَدْرِكَنِي
And I used to ask him about evil, for fear that it might overtake me.
وَكُنْتُ and I was
A past-tense 'was' verb with a first-person 'I' suffix, opened by the attached 'and', setting up a past-habitual frame for the speaker. Paired with the present verb after it, it yields 'I used to'.
وَقَالَ كُنْتُ رَجُلًا أَكْثَرَ شُرْبًا الْمُسْكِرِ،
And he said, I used to be a man who often drank intoxicants.
كُنْتُ I was
This is the past tense of the 'to be' verb with the -tu ending fixing the subject as 'I'. Paired with the descriptive word that follows, it sets up a 'I used to be...' frame: Arabic uses this verb plus a following predicate to place a whole habitual situation in the past, which is why it colours the next phrase as an ongoing past state rather than a one-off event.
وَكُنْتُ أَقُولُ لَهُ يَا بُنَيَّ،
And I would say to him, "My son,"
وَكُنْتُ and I used to
A joining wa- ('and') on the front, then the past-tense 'to be' carrying the first-person 'I' in its -tu ending. This past verb is not asserting existence; it sets up a habit. Paired with the present-tense verb that follows, it builds a 'I used to...' frame, placing a repeated action in past time.
وَكُنْتُ أَجِدُ مَعَ ذَلِكَ حَرَارَةً فِي صَدْرِي لَا تَكَادُ تَسْكُنُ
And I used to feel a burning in my chest that scarcely subsided.
وَكُنْتُ and I used to
A joining wa- ('and') fused to the past 'to be' carrying first-person 'I' in -tu. The past verb here is not about existence; it opens a habit. Together with the present verb that follows it builds an 'I used to...' frame, and the wa- ties this habit-clause to the narrative.
فَذَهَبَ عَنْ مَا كُنْتُ أَجِدُ
So what I used to feel has gone.
كُنْتُ I used to
The past-tense 'to be' with first-person 'I' in its -tu ending, here a habit-opener. With the present verb after it, it builds an 'I used to...' frame, placing a repeated past feeling in time. Its job is to time-stamp that feeling as an ongoing past state.
وَكُنْتُ لَا أَغْبِقُ قِبَلَهُمَا أَهْلًا وَلَا مَالًا،
And I would not leave them without household provisions or money.
وَكُنْتُ and I was
A past-tense form of 'to be' carrying its 'I' subject in the ending, fronted by wa-. The wa- links this clause to the previous one as the next stroke of the speaker's account, and the 'to be' verb sets up an ongoing, habitual past.
اللَّهُمَّ إِنْ كُنْتُ فَعَلْتُ ذَلِكَ اِبْتِغَاءَ وَجْهِكَ
O Allah, if I did that seeking Your pleasure.
كُنْتُ I was
A past-tense form of 'to be' carrying its 'I' subject in the ending. Paired with the past verb that follows, it builds a 'had done' frame, deepening the condition into a settled-in-the-past supposition.
اللَّهُمَّ إِنْ كُنْتُ فَعَلْتُ ذَلِكَ إِبْتِغَاءَ وَجْهِكَ
O Allah, if I have done that seeking Your face.
كُنْتُ I was
A past-tense form of the verb 'to be' with the 'I' subject in its '-tu' ending. Paired with the verb after it, it builds a layered past, framing the action as something already in effect; Arabic stacks two verbs here where English would use 'had done'.
اللَّهُمَّ فَإِنْ كُنْتُ فَعَلْتُ ذَلِكَ ابْتِغَاءَ وَجْهِكَ
O Allah, so if I did that seeking Your pleasure.
كُنْتُ I was
A past-tense form of 'to be' with the 'I' subject in its '-tu' ending. Joined with the verb after it, it builds a layered past inside the 'if'-clause, framing the deed as already accomplished; English would fold this into 'if I had done'.
إِنْ كُنْتُ لَأَعْتَمِدُ بِكَبِدِي عَلَى الْأَرْضِ مِنَ الْجُوعِ،
If I were to lean my side on the ground because of hunger,
كُنْتُ I were
This is the verb 'to be' in the past with the speaker 'I' folded into its ending, so no separate word for 'I' is needed. Here it works inside the conditional opened by the previous particle, anchoring the supposition in the past frame ('if I were...'). Arabic routinely builds these layered 'if I had been doing X' constructions by combining this past 'to be' with a following present-tense verb.
وَإِنْ كُنْتُ لَأَشُدُّ الْحَجَرَ عَلَى بَطْنِي مِنَ الْجُوعِ،
And if I were to press a stone against my belly from hunger,
كُنْتُ if I were
Past 'to be' with the speaker folded into the ending, carrying the supposition into the past frame again. Working under the 'if' just before it, it sets up 'if I were (in the habit of) pressing'. The pairing of this past 'be' with the following present verb is what produces the ongoing, repeated sense.
كُنْتُ أَحَقُّ أَنَا أَنْ أُصِيبَ مِنْ هَذَا اللَّبَنِ شَرْبَةً أَتَقَوَّى بِهَا،
I was more entitled to take a drink of this milk to strengthen myself.
كُنْتُ I was
Past 'to be' with 'I' built in, here setting up a past state ('I was...'); it leans on the comparative that follows to mean 'I was more deserving'. Arabic uses this past 'be' to put a description firmly in the past. The 'I' lives in the ending.
فَإِذَا جَاءَ أَمَرَنِي فَكُنْتُ أَنَا أُعْطِيهِمْ،
So when he came, he ordered me, so I was the one who would give to them.
فَكُنْتُ so I was
This joins the connector 'so' to the past 'to be' with 'I' built in, giving 'so I was'; it pairs with the following present verb to express a past habit ('I used to'). The 'so' marks the consequence of being ordered. Arabic builds 'I used to give' from this past 'be' plus a present verb.
إِنْ تَكُنْ خُنْتَنَا فَعَنْكَ عَفَا اللَّهُ وَإِنْ كُنْتُ خُنْتُكُمْ فَاعْفُ عَنِّي
If you betrayed us, may God forgive you; and if I betrayed you, forgive me.
كُنْتُ I was
A past 'to be' verb with its first-person 'I' built in by its ending, opening the reversed condition 'and if I was ...'. As a state verb it leads into the betrayal stated next. The ending fixes the 'I'.
وفى رواية كنت أحبها كأشد ما يحب الرجال النساء،
In a narration, I used to love her as intensely as men love women.
كُنْتُ I used to
This is the past 'to be' verb with 'I' in the ending, teaming with the present verb after it to make a habitual past, 'I used to...'. It marks the loving as a customary, repeated state rather than a one-time act.