أَلَاdo not

Example sentences

• أَلا تَرَى أَنَّ الطِّفْلَ يُؤْثِرُ مَا يَهْوَى وَإِنْ أَدَّاهُ إِلَى التَّلَفِ

  Do you not see that a child prefers what he desires, even if it leads to his ruin?

  أَلَا — do not. A particle fusing a question marker with 'not' to launch a rhetorical 'don't you...?' — it angles for agreement, not information.

  From: The Discipline of Foresight →

• وَقَوله أفضل كلمة قَالَهَا الشَّاعِر كلمة لبيد أَلا كل شَيْء مَا خلا الله بَاطِل

  And his saying: "The best word said by a poet is the word of Labid: Behold, everything other than Allah is futile."

  أَلَا — behold. 'lo, behold!' — an opening attention-particle that flags what follows as important. It rouses the listener before the famous line.

  From: The Declaration of Faith →

• أفضل كلمة قَالَهَا الشَّاعِر كلمة لبيد أَلا كل شَيْء مَا خلا الله بَاطِل

  "The best phrase the poet Labid said: 'Indeed, everything besides Allah is false.'"

  أَلَا — Indeed. 'lo, behold!' — an opening attention-particle flagging what follows as important.

  From: Small Deeds, Great Reward →

• أَلَا وَإِنَّ لِكُلِّ مَلِكٍ حِمًى،

  No doubt, every king has a sanctuary.

  أَلَا — no doubt. This opening particle rouses attention, 'truly, take heed'. It flags an important pronouncement to come, here a general principle about kings and their preserves.

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

• أَلَا وَإِنَّ حِمَى اللَّهِ مَحَارِمُهُ،

  No doubt, the sanctuary of Allah is His prohibitions.

  أَلَا — no doubt. The attention-rousing 'truly' again, heading the key application of the principle. It signals the punchline: what God's own preserve is.

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

• أَلَا وَإِنَّ فِي الْجَسَدِ مُضْغَةً إذَا صَلَحَتْ صَلَحَ الْجَسَدُ كُلُّهُ،

  Indeed, in the body there is a morsel of flesh which, if it is sound, the whole body is sound,

  أَلَا — indeed. The attention-particle 'truly, take heed', opening the closing image of the hadith. It marks another weighty statement, now about the body.

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

• أَلَا وَهِيَ الْقَلْبُ

  No doubt, it is the heart.

  أَلَا — no doubt. The attention-particle one last time, building to the reveal. It caps the image: now the morsel will be named.

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

• فقال ألا أعلمكم شيئًا تدركون به من سبقكم، وتسبقون به من بعدكم، ولا يكون أحد أفضل منكم إلا من صنع مثل ما صنعتم؟

  He said: 'Shall I not teach you something by which you will catch up with those who have surpassed you, and you will surpass those after you, and no one will be better than you except those who do as you do?'

  أَلَا — Shall I not. This is an opening particle of attention and gentle prompting — 'now then / shall I not...?'. It rouses the listeners before a suggestion. Because it carries a built-in 'not', the 'yes' that answers it later will be the special contradicting 'yes'.

  From: Praises That Elevate the Poor →

• فيقول ألا تستجيبون؟

  He will say, "Will you not respond?"

  أَلَا — Will you not. This is a particle of prompting that carries a built-in 'not' — 'will you not...?'. It urges them toward an answer. Because of its hidden negative, it pushes for assent.

  From: The Return of Jesus →

• فإن قيل فقد قال تعالى ﴿أَيَحْسَبُ الإِنْسَانُ أَلَّنْ نَجْمَعَ عِظَامَهُ بَلَى قَادِرِينَ عَلَى أَنْ نُسَوِّيَ بَنَانَهُ﴾

  Then if it is said, Allah, the Exalted, stated: 'Does man think that We will not assemble his bones? Yes, We are able to proportion his fingertips.'

  أَلَّنْ — that not. This bundles several pieces: the conjunction 'that', the future-negating particle, and the 'we' subject of the coming verb. The future negation here is the emphatic kind that denies something will ever happen, and it also pushes the following verb into its subjunctive shape.

  From: Ten Proofs of Resurrection →

• أَلَا تَرَى أَنَّهُ عَدَّ الشِّرْكَ بِاللَّهِ مِنَ الْكَبَائِرِ مَعَ أَنَّ مُرْتَكِبَهُ مُخَلَّدٌ فِي النَّارِ وَلَا يُغْفَرُ لَهُ أَبَدًا؟

  Do you not see that He counted associating partners with Allah among the major sins, even though its doer will remain eternally in the Fire and will never be forgiven?

  أَلَا — Do you not. An opener that fuses a question marker with a negation to form a rhetorical 'do you not...?'. It does not expect a real answer but presses the listener to agree with what follows.

  From: What Small Worship Erases →

• أَلا وَإِن لَك ملك حمى

  Indeed, every king has a protected sanctuary.

  أَلَا — indeed. An opening alert-word, roughly 'now then, take note'. Its job is purely to flag that an important statement follows and to grab the listener's attention; it carries no subject or tense of its own.

  From: Patience in Hard Times →

• أَلا وَإِن حمى الله مَحَارمه

  Indeed, the sanctuary of Allah is His prohibitions.

  أَلَا — indeed. The opening alert-word again, signalling an important statement is coming and calling for attention. It has no subject or tense; it simply heightens what follows.

  From: Patience in Hard Times →

• أَلا وَإِن فِي الْجَسَد مُضْغَة إِذا صلحت صلح الْجَسَد كُله

  Indeed, in the body there is a piece of flesh that, if it is sound, the whole body is sound.

  أَلَا — indeed. The alert-opener once more, flagging that a weighty point follows and pulling the listener in. No subject or tense of its own.

  From: Patience in Hard Times →

• فَقُلْتُ أَلَا تُحَدِّثِينِي عَنْ مَرَضِ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسِلْمِ

  So I said, "Will you not tell me about the illness of the Messenger of God, may God bless him and grant him peace?"

  أَلَا — will you not. A particle fusing a question marker with negation, used not to truly deny but to make a gentle invitation or request, 'won't you...?'. Its real job is softening the ask that follows, beyond anything its word-by-word gloss shows.

  From: Prayer During Illness →

• فَقَالَ يَا بُنَيَّةُ، أَلَا تُحِبِّينَ مَا أُحِبُّ،

  He said, "My little daughter, do you not love what I love?"

  أَلَا — do you not. A rhetorical opener combining a softening particle with negation, used to pose a 'do you not...?' question that expects agreement. Its job is to frame the coming verb as a gentle, leading question rather than a real doubt.

  From: Wives of the Prophet →

• قَالَ النَّبِيُّ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ أَلَا تُجِيبُوا لَهُ

  The Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, said, "Will you not answer him?"

  أَلَا — will you not. An attention-particle that turns the line into a prodding rhetorical question rather than a neutral yes/no query. Its real job is not to ask for information but to urge the listeners toward the answer the speaker already wants. It sets up the negated verb that follows, giving the sense 'come now, won't you...'.

  From: A Companion at Battle →

• فَقَالَ النَّبِيُّ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ أَلَا تُجِيبُوا لَهُ

  Then the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, said, "Will you not answer him?"

  أَلَا — will you not. An attention-particle that recasts the line as an urging rhetorical question, not a neutral query. Its purpose is to push the listeners toward responding rather than to seek information. It introduces the negated verb that follows, giving the prodding 'won't you...'.

  From: A Companion at Battle →

• أَلَا تُحَدِّثُنِي مَا الَّذِي أَقْدَمَكَ

  Won't you tell me what brought you here?

  أَلاَ — Won't you. An inviting particle that softens a request into 'won't you…?', nudging rather than commanding. It opens the appeal and sets a gentle, coaxing tone over the verb that follows.

  From: A Stranger Finds the Prophet →

• وَهُمْ الَّذِينَ تَقُولُ لَهُمْ الْمَلَائِكَةُ عِنْدَ الْمَوْتِ أَلَا تَخَافُوا وَلَا تَحْزَنُوا

  They are the ones to whom the angels say at the time of death, Do not fear and do not grieve.

  أَلَا — do not. This particle opens the speech with an exhortation, the sense of 'come now' or simply flagging that an urging follows. Its job is to attract attention to the command coming next, softening the prohibition into reassurance.

  From: Three States of the Heart →

• فيقول الناس ألا ترون إلى ما أنتم فيه إلى ما بلغكم، ألا تنظرون من يشفع لكم إلى ربكم؟

  Then the people will say: "Do you not see the state we are in and what has come upon us? Will you not look for someone to intercede with your Lord for us?"

  أَلَا — Do you not. A particle that turns the following statement into a rhetorical, urging question: 'do you not...?'. It blends a question with a nudge, expecting agreement rather than information, and colours the whole clause after it.

  From: The Prophet's Intercession →

• فيقول الناس ألا ترون إلى ما أنتم فيه إلى ما بلغكم، ألا تنظرون من يشفع لكم إلى ربكم؟

  Then the people will say: "Do you not see the state we are in and what has come upon us? Will you not look for someone to intercede with your Lord for us?"

  أَلَا — Will you not. A particle that frames the next words as an urging, rhetorical question, 'will you not...?'. It expects agreement rather than facts and shifts the appeal toward a plea, setting the tone for the request that follows.

  From: The Prophet's Intercession →

• ألا تشفع لنا إلى ربك؟ ألا ترى ما نحن فيه، وما بلغنا؟

  Will you not intercede for us with your Lord? Do you not see the state we are in and what has befallen us?

  أَلَا — Will you not. A particle framing the next words as an urging, rhetorical question, 'will you not...?'. It expects agreement rather than information and turns the clause into a plea, colouring the whole request that follows.

  From: The Prophet's Intercession →

• ألا تشفع لنا إلى ربك؟ ألا ترى ما نحن فيه، وما بلغنا؟

  Will you not intercede for us with your Lord? Do you not see the state we are in and what has befallen us?

  أَلَا — Do you not. A particle reopening the rhetorical, urging question, 'do you not...?'. Repeated here, it stacks a second appeal onto the first, expecting agreement and keeping the pleading tone across the following clause.

  From: The Prophet's Intercession →