Mashrabaمشربة

Kam, Kaʾayyin and Kadhā

كَمْ وَكَأَيِّنْ وَكَذَا

Verses 746–749 · chapter 63 of 78

The chapter covers the specifying noun (tamyīz) after the number-words kam, kaʾayyin and kadhā. Interrogative kam takes a singular accusative tamyīz like ʿishrūn, which may be genitive through an understood min when a preposition precedes kam. Declarative kam takes a genitive tamyīz, plural like that of ʿashara or singular like that of miʾa. Kaʾayyin and kadhā work like declarative kam in meaning, but their tamyīz is accusative or introduced by min.

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  1. 746

    الرَّجَزal-rajaz––∪–مُسْتَفْعِلُنْ––∪–مُسْتَفْعِلُنْ∪–∪–مَفَاعِلُنْ––∪–مُسْتَفْعِلُنْ–∪∪–مُفْتَعِلُنْ––∪–مُسْتَفْعِلُنْ

    Ibn Jinnī on al-rajaz, “the trembling”

    وهو على ستة أجزاء مستفعلن مستفعلن مستفعلن مستفعلن مستفعلن مستفعلن

    It has six feet: mustafʿilun, six times. Kitāb al-ʿArūḍ, lines 842–843 (p. 101) ↗

    Scanned by rule, not by a model. The vowelled text is read as it is pronounced, as Ibn Jinnī says scansion must be: doubled letters count twice, tanwīn adds an n, long vowels lengthen, the connecting alif drops inside the line, the article's l merges into a sun letter, and the last vowel of a line is drawn out. The syllables, long (–) and short (∪), are then fitted to each metre's feet with the common licences (zihāfāt) and line-endings. A poem has one metre: the one that fits most of its verses. A verse that does not fit it is marked 'not scanned'; nothing is guessed. Vowels scanned: AI vowelling (no vowelled edition is available to us).

    Scanned by rule English: AI translation

    Ibn Jinnī (d. 392/1002), Kitāb al-ʿArūḍ, ed. Aḥmad Fawzī al-Hayb (Kuwait: Dār al-Qalam, 1407/1987). Digital text: 0392IbnJinniMawsili.Carud.JK000956-ara1 (OpenITI RELEASE v2025.1.9). CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 (OpenITI digital text); the classical text is public domain, the modern edition is not.

    In a question, give kam a specifying noun of the same kind you gave ʿishrūn ('twenty') [a singular noun in the accusative], as in kam shakhṣan samā? 'How many persons rose high?'

    OpenITI line 972 · vol. 1, p. 60 ↗
  2. 747

    الرَّجَزal-rajaz∪∪∪–فَعِلَتُنْ∪–∪–مَفَاعِلُنْ––∪–مُسْتَفْعِلُنْ–∪∪–مُفْتَعِلُنْ––∪–مُسْتَفْعِلُنْ––∪–مُسْتَفْعِلُنْ

    Ibn Jinnī on al-rajaz, “the trembling”

    وهو على ستة أجزاء مستفعلن مستفعلن مستفعلن مستفعلن مستفعلن مستفعلن

    It has six feet: mustafʿilun, six times. Kitāb al-ʿArūḍ, lines 842–843 (p. 101) ↗

    Scanned by rule, not by a model. The vowelled text is read as it is pronounced, as Ibn Jinnī says scansion must be: doubled letters count twice, tanwīn adds an n, long vowels lengthen, the connecting alif drops inside the line, the article's l merges into a sun letter, and the last vowel of a line is drawn out. The syllables, long (–) and short (∪), are then fitted to each metre's feet with the common licences (zihāfāt) and line-endings. A poem has one metre: the one that fits most of its verses. A verse that does not fit it is marked 'not scanned'; nothing is guessed. Vowels scanned: AI vowelling (no vowelled edition is available to us).

    Scanned by rule English: AI translation

    Ibn Jinnī (d. 392/1002), Kitāb al-ʿArūḍ, ed. Aḥmad Fawzī al-Hayb (Kuwait: Dār al-Qalam, 1407/1987). Digital text: 0392IbnJinniMawsili.Carud.JK000956-ara1 (OpenITI RELEASE v2025.1.9). CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 (OpenITI digital text); the classical text is public domain, the modern edition is not.

    You may also put it [the tamyīz of interrogative kam] in the genitive, with min understood as the governor, if kam comes directly after an expressed preposition, as in bi-kam dirhamin ishtarayta? 'For how many dirhams did you buy it?' [that is, bi-kam min dirhamin].

    OpenITI line 973 · vol. 1, p. 60 ↗
    Ibn ʿAqīl on verses 746–747Arabic

    كم اسم والدليل على ذلك دخول حروف الجر عليها ومنه قولهم على كم جذع سقفت بيتك وهي اسم لعدد مبهم ولا بد لها من تمييز نحو كم رجلا عندك وقد يحذف للدلالة عليه نحو كم صمت أي كم يوما صمت

    Ibn ʿAqīl, OpenITI line 7089 · vol. 4, p. 81 ↗

    وتكون استفهامية وخبرية فالخبرية سيذكرها والاستفهامية يكون مميزها كمميز عشرين وأخواته فيكون مفردا منصوبا نحو كم درهما قبضت ويجوز جره من مضمرة إن وليت كم حرف جر نحو بكم درهم اشتريت هذا أي بكم من درهم فإن لم يدخل عليها حرف جر وجب نصبه

  3. 748

    الرَّجَزal-rajaz––∪–مُسْتَفْعِلُنْ––∪–مُسْتَفْعِلُنْ∪∪∪–فَعِلَتُنْ––∪–مُسْتَفْعِلُنْ∪–∪–مَفَاعِلُنْ––∪–مُسْتَفْعِلُنْ

    Ibn Jinnī on al-rajaz, “the trembling”

    وهو على ستة أجزاء مستفعلن مستفعلن مستفعلن مستفعلن مستفعلن مستفعلن

    It has six feet: mustafʿilun, six times. Kitāb al-ʿArūḍ, lines 842–843 (p. 101) ↗

    Scanned by rule, not by a model. The vowelled text is read as it is pronounced, as Ibn Jinnī says scansion must be: doubled letters count twice, tanwīn adds an n, long vowels lengthen, the connecting alif drops inside the line, the article's l merges into a sun letter, and the last vowel of a line is drawn out. The syllables, long (–) and short (∪), are then fitted to each metre's feet with the common licences (zihāfāt) and line-endings. A poem has one metre: the one that fits most of its verses. A verse that does not fit it is marked 'not scanned'; nothing is guessed. Vowels scanned: AI vowelling (no vowelled edition is available to us).

    Scanned by rule English: AI translation

    Ibn Jinnī (d. 392/1002), Kitāb al-ʿArūḍ, ed. Aḥmad Fawzī al-Hayb (Kuwait: Dār al-Qalam, 1407/1987). Digital text: 0392IbnJinniMawsili.Carud.JK000956-ara1 (OpenITI RELEASE v2025.1.9). CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 (OpenITI digital text); the classical text is public domain, the modern edition is not.

    Use it [kam] declaratively [kam al-khabariyya, stating a large number] like ʿashara ('ten') or like miʾa ('hundred') [its tamyīz is genitive, either plural as after ʿashara or singular as after miʾa], as in kam rijālin 'how many men!' or kam marah 'how many a woman!' [marah is marʾah with the hamza lightened].

    OpenITI line 974 · vol. 1, p. 60 ↗
  4. 749

    الرَّجَزal-rajaz∪–∪–مَفَاعِلُنْ–∪∪–مُفْتَعِلُنْ∪–∪–مَفَاعِلُنْ––∪–مُسْتَفْعِلُنْ∪–∪–مَفَاعِلُنْ––∪–مُسْتَفْعِلُنْ

    Ibn Jinnī on al-rajaz, “the trembling”

    وهو على ستة أجزاء مستفعلن مستفعلن مستفعلن مستفعلن مستفعلن مستفعلن

    It has six feet: mustafʿilun, six times. Kitāb al-ʿArūḍ, lines 842–843 (p. 101) ↗

    Scanned by rule, not by a model. The vowelled text is read as it is pronounced, as Ibn Jinnī says scansion must be: doubled letters count twice, tanwīn adds an n, long vowels lengthen, the connecting alif drops inside the line, the article's l merges into a sun letter, and the last vowel of a line is drawn out. The syllables, long (–) and short (∪), are then fitted to each metre's feet with the common licences (zihāfāt) and line-endings. A poem has one metre: the one that fits most of its verses. A verse that does not fit it is marked 'not scanned'; nothing is guessed. Vowels scanned: AI vowelling (no vowelled edition is available to us).

    Scanned by rule English: AI translation

    Ibn Jinnī (d. 392/1002), Kitāb al-ʿArūḍ, ed. Aḥmad Fawzī al-Hayb (Kuwait: Dār al-Qalam, 1407/1987). Digital text: 0392IbnJinniMawsili.Carud.JK000956-ara1 (OpenITI RELEASE v2025.1.9). CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 (OpenITI digital text); the classical text is public domain, the modern edition is not.

    Kaʾayyin and kadhā are like kam [the declarative kam, expressing number]. The tamyīz of these two is put in the accusative, as in kaʾayyin rajulan laqītu 'how many a man I have met!' and malaktu kadhā dirhaman 'I owned so-and-so many dirhams'. Alternatively, attach min to it and you will be correct [this is frequent with kaʾayyin, as in wa-kaʾayyin min nabiyyin, Q 3:146].

    OpenITI line 975 · vol. 1, p. 60 ↗
    Ibn ʿAqīl on verses 748–749Arabic

    تستعمل كم للتكثير فتميز بجمع مجرور كعشرة أو بمفرد مجرور كمائة نحو كم غلمان ملكت وكم درهم أنفقت والمعنى كثيرا من الغلمان ملكت وكثيرا من الدراهم أنفقت

    Ibn ʿAqīl, OpenITI line 7098 · vol. 4, p. 83 ↗

    ومثل كم في الدلالة على التكثير كذا وكأي ومميزهما منصوب أو مجرور بمن وهو الأكثر نحو قوله تعالى ﴿ وكأين من نبي قاتل معه ﴾ وملكت كذا درهما

    وتستعمل كذا مفردة كهذا المثال ومركبة نحو ملكت كذا كذا درهما ومعطوفا عليها مثلها نحو ملكت كذا وكذا درهما

    وكم لها صدر الكلام استفهامية كانت أو خبرية فلا تقول ضربت كم رجلا ولا ملكت كم غلمان وكذلك كأي بخلاف كذا نحو ملكت كذا درهما