Learn Arabic › A1 › إِيّا
إِيّا
you / him / me, etc. (standalone object pronoun) /ʔijˈjaː/
particleA1#676 most common
Also: beware of (in the phrase إِيّاكَ و...), it is you / him whom (fronted, emphatic object)
Example sentences
إِيّاكَ أَقْصِدُ.
You are the one I mean.
إِيّاهُ رَأَيْتُ أَمْسِ.
It was him I saw yesterday.
إِيّانا دَعَوْا إِلى العَشاءِ.
It was us they invited to dinner.
إِيّاكَ وَالغِشَّ فِي الامْتِحانِ.
Beware of cheating in the exam.
لَنْ أُسامِحَ إِلّا إِيّاهُمْ.
I will forgive no one but them.
إِيّاكَ نَعْبُدُ وَإِيّاكَ نَسْتَعِينُ.
You alone we worship, and You alone we ask for help.
Word family
إِيّايَme (as object)
إِيّاكَyou, m. sg. (as object)
إِيّاهُhim / it (as object)
إِيّاناus (as object)
إِيّاهُمْthem, m. (as object)
Etymology
إِيّا is a Classical Arabic particle whose only task is to carry the accusative pronoun suffixes when they cannot attach to a verb. Arab grammarians long argued over its nature: the Basrans treated it as a noun bearing the pronoun, while others saw it as a mere support. It has no agreed origin outside Arabic and no reliable cognates in related languages.
Learn Arabic the way that sticks.
Every word here is a full Polylex card with native audio and spaced repetition, so 4,080 words actually move into long-term memory.
Start free
Every word here is a full Polylex card with native audio and spaced repetition, so 4,080 words actually move into long-term memory.
Start free