أَوْشَكَbe about

Example sentences

• كَالرَّاعِي يَرْعَى حَوْلَ الْحِمَى يُوشِكُ أَنْ يَرْتَعَ فِيهِ،

  Like the shepherd who grazes around a sanctuary, nearly falling into it.

  يُوشِكُ — he is about. A verb meaning 'is on the point of, nearly', subject 'he' inside. It is one of the verbs that take an 'an' clause to complete them, here 'about to graze in it', expressing imminence.

  From: The Lawful, the Forbidden, and the Grey →

• وَأَوْشَكَ أَنْ يَنَالَ مِنْهُ غَرَضَهُ

  And his enemy was about to achieve his aim against him.

  وَأَوْشَكَ — and was about to. The joining 'wa-' on a past-tense verb meaning 'was on the verge of', which expects a following 'to...' clause to name what nearly happened. It marks imminence rather than a completed act.

  From: Staying Firm in Faith →