ثَلَاثَةُthree

Example sentences

• اِنْطَلَقَ ثَلَاثَةُ رَهْطٍ مِمَّنْ كَانَ قَبْلَكُمْ

  Three men set out from among those who were before you.

  ثَلَاثَةُ — three. A counting word heading a 'three of' pairing with the following noun. It leans onto that noun to say how many, and in Arabic the counted thing it governs is pulled in as the thing-counted, here giving the group its number.

  From: Trapped and Delivered →

• بَاعِثُ الدِّينِ بِالإِضَافَةِ إِلَى بَاعِثِ الهَوَى لَهُ ثَلَاثَةُ أَحْوَالٍ

  The motive of religion, together with the motive of desire, has three states.

  ثَلَاثَةُ — three. This is the cardinal number 'three', and Arabic numbers from three to ten govern the counted noun and put it in the genitive plural. It also, oddly to an English speaker, takes the opposite gender to the noun it counts, which is why its shape may not match the noun it precedes.

  From: Three States of the Heart →

• قَالَ ثَلَاثَةُ نَفَرٍ بِمَسْجِدِ الشِّيرَازِيِّ

  He said, "Three people in the mosque of the Shirazi."

  ثَلَاثَة — three. A counting word 'three' in the subject case, naming the head-count that answers 'who'. Arabic number-words pair with their counted noun in a fixed way, and this one leads into 'people' that follows. It opens the figure's tally of the three.

  From: Seeking Refuge from the Devil →

• فَيَنْتَزِعُ الاِثْنَانِ مِنْهُمْ أَوْ الثَّلاَثَةُ آيَةً مِنَ الْقِرَاءَةِ،

  Then two or three of them step forward to take a verse for recitation.

  الثَّلاَثَةُ — the three. A definite numeral 'the three', the alternative subject offered by 'or', so it stands in the subject-style case parallel to 'the two'. The al- treats it as a known small group. It is the second option for how many step forward.

  From: Public Preaching →