كَانَتْ was in Arabic
كَانَتْ is how you say “was” in Arabic.
Arabic
English
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Example sentence
وَإِنْ كَانَتْ سَبَبًا لِلأَلَمِ وَالأَذَى فِي الْعَاجِلِ وَمَنْعِ لَذَّاتٍ فِي الآجِلِ
Even if it causes pain and harm immediately and deprives pleasure in the future.
كَانَتْ it was
The workhorse 'was' verb, setting a state in the past; the '-at' tag marks a feminine 'it' (desire) as its subject. It leans on the predicate that follows to complete the thought.
The English is machine-translated.
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More example sentences
فالصلاة والصيام والزكاة والحج، وإن كانت مشقة على البدن، فإنها راحة للقلب، وطهارة للروح
Prayer, fasting, charity, and pilgrimage, though burdensome on the body, are comfort for the heart and purification for the soul.
كَانَتْ are
A past-tense linking verb, 'were / are', used after the concession word. It introduces a description of the acts and, like the verb 'to be', it puts that description into the object ending; here it wears a feminine ending to agree with the group of acts treated as feminine.
وكذلك الصدق والأمانة والبر والإحسان، وإن كانت تكلف الإنسان مشقة، فإنها ترفع قدره، وتزيد في حسناته
Similarly, truthfulness, trustworthiness, righteousness, and benevolence, though they cost effort, elevate one's status and increase his good deeds.
كَانَتْ they are
A past-tense linking verb, 'are', after the concession word, wearing a feminine ending to agree with the group of virtues treated as feminine. It introduces what follows as a description of them.
كَانَتْ حَفْصَةُ تَتَرَحَّمُ عَلَى هُذَيْلِ،
Hafsa was praying for mercy for Hudhayl.
كَانَتْ it was
This is the past 'to be' verb with the -at ending, here used with a following present-tense verb to build a 'used to / was (habitually)' frame. On its own it would mean 'she was', but its real role is to throw the next action into the past-habitual, marking it as an ongoing custom rather than a single act.
قَالَ إِنَّهَا كَانَتْ تَصْنَعُ ذَلِكَ بِكَ،
He said that she used to do that to you.
كَانَتْ she was
This is the past 'was' with the -t ending marking a female subject, and here it teams with a following present-shape verb to build a 'used to' habitual sense. On its own it just anchors past time; the real action comes in the verb it leans on. So 'was + present verb' here means she habitually did.
وَكَانَتْ مِنْ أَحْسَنِ الْأَشْكَالِ وَأَعْظَمِهَا،
She was among the most beautiful and greatest forms,
وَكَانَتْ and she was
'Wa-' opens the sentence and ties it to the narrative, attaching to the 'to be' verb in its past feminine-singular form. The verb supplies the 'was' Arabic usually omits and agrees with its feminine subject (the serpent); a 'from/among' phrase will describe her.
وَقَالَ الآخَرُ اللَّهُمَّ كَانَتْ لِيَّ بِنْتُ عَمٍّ كَانَتْ أَحْبَّ النَّاسِ إِلَيَّ،
And the other said, "O Allah, I had a paternal cousin; she was the dearest of people to me."
كَانَتْ it was
A past-tense form of 'to be' with a feminine 'she' ending, agreeing with the female relative it describes. Paired with the 'for me' phrase that follows, it builds the possession 'I had', Arabic's way of saying having through 'to-be plus for-someone'.
وَقَالَ الآخَرُ اللَّهُمَّ كَانَتْ لِيَّ بِنْتُ عَمٍّ كَانَتْ أَحْبَّ النَّاسِ إِلَيَّ،
And the other said, "O Allah, I had a paternal cousin; she was the dearest of people to me."
كَانَتْ it was
A past-tense form of 'to be' with a feminine 'she' ending, repeated to open a fresh predicate clause about the same woman. The 'to be' verb sets up the description that follows, stating what she was to him.
وَلِذَلِكَ كَانَتْ تُسَمَّى ذَاتَ النِّطَاقِ،
And for that reason she was called She of the Girdle,
كَانَتْ she was
A past 'to be' with the feminine 'she' marked by its -t ending; it sets up a past habitual state when teamed with the present-shaped verb after it. So 'she was' plus 'being called' gives 'she used to be called', the kaana carrying the past framing.
وَكَانَتْ إِمْرَأَةٌ تُرْضِعُ إِبْنًا لَهَا مِنْ بَنِي إِسْرَائِيلَ،
And there was a woman nursing a son of hers from among the Children of Israel,
وَكَانَتْ and it was
The wa- opens a fresh scene -- 'and there was...' -- riding on the past 'to be' verb, whose '-at' ending marks a feminine subject coming up. It shifts the story to a new strand about a nursing woman.
وَكَانَتْ أَحْمَالًا،
and they were burdens,
وَكَانَتْ and they were
The leading wa- links this remark to the listing. The verb is the past 'were' (the copula kanat), and its -at ending marks a feminine subject, agreeing with the non-human plural of books treated as a single feminine group. It frames the books as having amounted to a great deal.
وَكَانَتْ الْأَجْوَاءَ بَيْنَ الشِّيْعَةِ وَالسُّنَّةِ المَشْحُونَةَ،
And the atmosphere between the Shi'a and the Sunnis was tense.
وَكَانَتْ and it was
This couples a linking 'and' to a past 'to be' verb carrying a feminine '-t' ending — the feminine agrees with 'the atmosphere'. The 'and' opens a new scene-setting clause, and the copula puts the description that follows into the object-style case.
فَقَالَ عَلَى الْبَدِيهَةِ أَفْضَلُ النَّاسِ مَنْ كَانَتْ بِنْتُهُ تَحْتَهُ،
He said on the spur of the moment: the best of people is the one whose daughter was under him.
كَانَتْ it was
A past 'to be' verb with a feminine '-t' ending agreeing with 'his daughter' inside the relative clause. It sets up a 'whose daughter was under him' frame, placing the daughter as its topic.
كَانَتْ خَدِيجَةُ بِنْتُ خُوَيْلِدِ بْنِ أَسَدِ بْنِ الْعُزَّى بْنِ قُصَيٍّ،
She was Khadijah, daughter of Khuwaylid, son of Asad, son of al-Uzza, son of Qusayy,
كَانَتْ it was
A past-tense verb 'to be/was', marked feminine by the final '-t' to agree with the woman named next. As a 'was' verb it links a subject to a description, setting up 'she was Khadijah...' and the long parentage that follows.
قَالَ كَانَتْ لَا تَنْقَطِعُ عَنْهُمْ جُنَّتُهُمْ شِتَاءً وَلَا صَيْفًا
He said, their gardens never failed them, neither in winter nor in summer.
كَانَتْ it was
The past-tense 'to be' verb in its feminine 'she/it' form, its feminine ending agreeing with the feminine 'gardens' it describes. Paired with the negated present verb that follows, it builds a habitual past, 'they used never to fail', so it sets up an ongoing past state rather than a single event.
لَكَانَتْ صَفْقَةٌ رَابِحَةً، وَالْوَجْهَةُ الْمُفَلِّجَةُ النَّاجِحَةُ
It would have been a winning deal, and the fortunate, successful destination.
لَكَانَتْ then it would have been
An emphasis lam fused to a past feminine verb. This lam is the answering 'then it would have been' that pairs with the earlier 'if', closing the contrary-to-fact frame, and the feminine ending agrees with the feminine subject that follows.
كنا مع رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم في دعوة، فرفع إليه الذراع، وكانت تعجبه،
We were with the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, at a meal where a foreleg was presented to him, which he liked.
وَكَانَتْ and which
The wa- on the front is the linking 'and'. The verb that follows is a past 'was' form carrying a feminine ending that agrees with the foreleg; it sets up an ongoing past state, leading into 'used to please him'.
فيقول إن ربي غضب اليوم غضباً لم يغضب قبله مثله، ولن يغضب بعده مثله، وإنه قد كانت لي دعوة دعوت بها على قومي،
He says, "My Lord was angry today with an anger like none before it, and none like it will be after it, and indeed there was for me a supplication which I invoked against my people,"
كَانَتْ there was
A past 'was' form carrying a feminine ending that agrees with the feminine noun it introduces. This verb sets up an existence statement, 'there was...', leading into the 'for me a supplication' that follows.
فمن كانت سريرته صالحة كان عمله صالحًا فتبدو سريرته على وجهه نورًا وإشراقًا وحياء ومن كانت سريرته
So whoever has a righteous inner state, his actions will be righteous; then his inner state appears on his face as light, radiance, and modesty, and whoever's inner state...
كَانَتْ it was
This is the past-tense verb 'to be' in its feminine form, and that feminine shape is chosen to agree with its feminine subject coming next. As a copula it links a subject to a description; its position also reflects that it falls inside the conditional opened by 'whoever'.
فمن كانت سريرته صالحة كان عمله صالحًا فتبدو سريرته على وجهه نورًا وإشراقًا وحياء ومن كانت سريرته
So whoever has a righteous inner state, his actions will be righteous; then his inner state appears on his face as light, radiance, and modesty, and whoever's inner state...
كَانَتْ it was
The feminine past 'to be' again, agreeing with the feminine inner state about to follow, opening the condition half of the second branch. Its shape matches the earlier identical verb, so the parallel structure of the two branches is signalled by reusing the same copula.