أن

Arabic

Etymology 1

Probably identical to هَمّ (hamm, “concern”) from the root ه م م (h-m-m), with sound changes typical to Arabic, as e.g. in إن (ʔin). Note also the noun هَن (han, “thing; self, synonym of نَفْس (nafs)”), often mentioned in grammars as one of “the six nouns” also known as “five nouns“, which became obsolete due to often referring to genitalia.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ʔan/

Conjunction

أَنْ • (ʔan)

1. Introduces a verb clause in place of the definite verbal noun.

   Synonym: مَا (mā)

   1. to, that; introduces a subjunctive verb (often corresponding to the English infinitive)

      سَيَنْتَخِبُ الشَّعْبُ رَئِيسًا جَدِيدًا بَعْدَ أَنْ يُكْتَبَ الدُّسْتُور.

      sayantaḵibu š-šaʕbu raʔīsan jadīdan baʕda ʔan yuktaba ad-dustūr.

      The people will elect a new president after the constitution is written.

      (literally, “...after the constitution be written”)

      أُرِيدُ أَنْ آكُلَ.

      ʔurīdu ʔan ʔākula.

      I want to eat.

      (literally, “I want that I eat.”)

      أُرِيدُ أَنْ يَأْكُلَ.

      ʔurīdu ʔan yaʔkula.

      I want him to eat.

      (literally, “I want that he eats.”)

   2. that; introduces a past-tense verb

      سَبَقَ أَنْ قُلْتُ لَكَ ذٰلِكَ

      sabaqa ʔan qultu laka ḏālika

      I already told you so.

      (literally, “it has passed that I told you so.”)

      اِنْتَخَبَ الشَّعْبُ رَئِيسًا جَدِيدًا بَعْدَ أَنْ كُتِبَ الدُّسْتُور.

      intaḵaba š-šaʕbu raʔīsan jadīdan baʕda ʔan kutiba ad-dustūr.

      The people elected a new president after the constitution was written.

      (literally, “...after the constitution was written”)

2. (literary) introduces reported speech
   • 609–632 CE, Qur'an, 7:44:

     وَنَادَىٰ أَصْحَابُ الْجَنَّةِ أَصْحَابَ النَّارِ أَن قَدْ وَجَدْنَا مَا وَعَدَنَا رَبُّنَا حَقًّا فَهَلْ وَجَدتُّم مَّا وَعَدَ رَبُّكُمْ حَقًّا ۖ قَالُوا نَعَمْ ۚ فَأَذَّنَ مُؤَذِّنٌ بَيْنَهُمْ أَن لَّعْنَةُ اللَّهِ عَلَى الظَّالِمِينَ

     (please add an English translation of this quotation)

     And the Companions of the Garden shall cry out to the Companions of the Fire "We have found true what our Lord promised us. So did ye find true what your Lord promised you?" They shall say, "Yes", then an announcer shall announce between them "God's curse is on the evildoers!"
   • 609–632 CE, Qur'an, 7:117:

     وَأَوْحَيْنَا إِلَى مُوسَى أَنْ أَلْقِ عَصَاكَ

     wa-ʔawḥaynā ʔilā mūsā ʔan ʔalqi ʕaṣāka

     And we intimated to Moses, “throw your staff!”

3. Form of أَنَّ (ʔanna)

   أَشْهَدُ أَنْ لَا إِلٰهَ إِلَّا ٱللّٰهُ.

   ʔašhadu ʔan lā ʔilāha ʔillā llāhu.

   I bear witness that there is no god but God.

   عَلِمْتُ أَنْ سَيُسَافِرُ زُهَيْرٌ

   ʕalimtu ʔan sayusāfiru zuhayrun

   I knew that Zuhayr would travel

   • 609–632 CE, Qur'an, 10:10:

     وَآخِرُ دَعْوَاهُمْ أَنِ ٱلْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ رَبِّ ٱلْعَالَمِينَ

     wa-ʔāḵiru daʕwāhum ʔani l-ḥamdu li-llahi rabbi l-ʕālamīna

     And the last of their call will be "Praise to Allah, Lord of the worlds!"

4. lest

   • 609–632 CE, Qur'an, 7:172:

     وَإِذْ أَخَذَ رَبُّكَ مِنۢ بَنِىٓ ءَادَمَ مِن ظُهُورِهِمْ ذُرِّيَّتَهُمْ وَأَشْهَدَهُمْ عَلَىٰٓ أَنفُسِهِمْ أَلَسْتُ بِرَبِّكُمْ ۖ قَالُوا۟ بَلَىٰ ۛ شَهِدْنَآ ۛ أَن تَقُولُوا۟ يَوْمَ ٱلْقِيَـٰمَةِ إِنَّا كُنَّا عَنْ هَـٰذَا غَـٰفِلِينَ

     And (remember) when your Lord brought forth from the Children of Adam, from their loins, their seed (or from Adam's loin his offspring) and made them testify as to themselves (saying): "Am I not your Lord?" They said: "Yes! We testify," lest you should say on the Day of Resurrection: "Verily, we have been unaware of this."

Usage notes

• In sense 1.2, if أَنْ (ʔan) and the clause it introduces pertain to a verb, then they are syntactically its subject. However, this clause is never allowed to precede the verb: Arabic does not accept the phrasing *أَنْ قُلْتُ لَكَ ذٰلِكَ سَبَقَ (*ʔan qultu laka ḏālika sabaqa, literally “that I told you so has passed”).
  • If the verb phrase inside the clause is relatively short, this can serve to distinguish an أَنْ-phrase from the equivalent verbal noun. A sentence like سَبَقَ أَنْ تَعَامَلْنَا (sabaqa ʔan taʕāmalnā, “we have already done business together”) is perfectly fine being reworded to تَعَامُلُنَا سَبَقَ (taʕāmulunā sabaqa) instead of سَبَقَ تَعَامُلُنَا (sabaqa taʕāmulunā), but *أَنْ تَعَامَلْنَا سَبَقَ (*ʔan taʕāmalnā sabaqa) is ungrammatical.
• Notice that sense 1 is twice shown introducing the complement of prepositions like قَبْلَ (qabla, “before”) and بَعْدَ (baʕda, “after”); this also includes phrasal ones like بِمُجَرَّدِ (bi-mujarradi, “as soon as”, بِـ (bi-, “with”) + مُجَرَّد (mujarrad, “merely”)). If this preposition is in a past context, then the verb inside the clause can in fact be either past or nonpast: the overall meaning will be past-tense either way. Compare the example above that translates to "the people elected...", which shows the use of a past-tense verb with بَعْدَ أَن (baʕda ʔan), to the following:

  مَرِضَ قَبْلَ أَنْ يُسَافِرَ

  mariḍa qabla ʔan yusāfira

  He fell sick before he traveled.

  (literally, “he fell sick before he travel”)

Derived terms

• أَلَّا (ʔallā)
• أَلَّن (ʔallan)
• أَلَّو (ʔallaw)
• لِأَنْ (liʔan)
• لِئَلَّا (liʔallā)
• أَن التَّفْسِيرِيَّة (ʔan at-tafsīriyya)

Etymology 2

Adverbial accusative of the noun underlying the former conjunction.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ʔan.na/

Conjunction

أَنَّ • (ʔanna)

1. that (introduces an equational clause or a verb phrase)

   هَلْ تَعْلَمُ أَنَّنِي أَطْوَلُ مِنْكَ؟

   hal taʕlamu ʔannanī ʔaṭwalu minka?

   Do you know that I'm taller than you?

   أَعْرِفُ أَنَّ ٱبْنَكَ سَرَقَ سَيَّارَتِي.

   ʔaʕrifu ʔanna bnaka saraqa sayyāratī.

   I know that your son stole my car.

Usage notes

• If pertaining to a verb, أَنَّ (ʔanna) and the clause it introduces are syntactically its object. This distinguishes أَنَّ (ʔanna) from أَنْ (ʔan), especially in the case outlined in the usage note above.
• أَنَّ (ʔanna) must be followed immediately by the subject of the clause it introduces, in the accusative case. An attached object pronoun can satisfy this condition.
  • The sole exception is in the relevant sense of أَنْ (ʔan) above. In that case, such a subject can appear and cause the أَنَّ (ʔanna) pronunciation to resurface, but it is only optional. Compare the following alternative phrasing:
    أَشْهَدُ أَنَّهُ لَا إِلٰهَ إِلَّا اللَّهُ

    ʔašhadu ʔannahu lā ʔilāha ʔillā l-lahu

    I bear witness that there is no god but God.

Inflection

Alternative forms

• إِنَّ (ʔinna) (after certain verbs)

Derived terms

See also

• (ʾinna and her sisters) إِنَّ وَأَخَوَاتُهَا (ʔinna waʔaḵawātuhā); إِنَّ (ʔinna), أَنَّ (ʔanna), لٰكِنَّ (lākinna), كَأَنَّ (kaʔanna), لَعَلَّ (laʕalla), لَيْتَ (layta), ^{(Category: Sisters of ʾinna)}

Etymology 3

From the root ء ن ن (ʔ-n-n), probably also related to the root ه م م (h-m-m) connected to the idea of worry, affect. Compare هَنَاة (hanāh, “misfortune, accident”).

Pronunciation

• (verb) IPA^(key): /ʔan.na/
• (noun) IPA^(key): /ʔann/

Verb

أَنَّ • (ʔanna) I, non-past يَئِنُّ‎ (yaʔinnu)

1. to moan, to sough
   • كُلَّمَا أَنَّ بِالْعِرَاقِ جَرِيحٌ / لَمَسَ الشَّرْقُ جَنْبَهُ فِي عُمَانِهِ

     kullamā ʔanna bi-l-ʕirāqi jarīḥun / lamasa š-šarqu janbahu fī ʕumānihi

     (please add an English translation of this quotation)

2. to groan

Conjugation

Noun

أَنّ • (ʔann) m

1. verbal noun of أَنَّ (ʔanna) (form I)

Declension

References

• Tropper, Josef (2003) “Sekundäres wortanlautendes Alif im Arabischen”, in Kogan, Leonid, editor, Studia Semitica (Orientalia: Papers of the Oriental Institute; III), Moscow, →ISBN, pages 207–209