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Lesson 15: Idafa — Possession & Relationship

Idafa Construction (الإضافة)

The Idafa is one of the most important grammatical structures in the Quran. It expresses possession or relationship between two nouns.

Structure: Noun 1 + Noun 2

كِتَابُ ٱللَّهِ (Kitābu Llāh) = The Book of Allah (Allah's Book)

رَبُّ ٱلْعَٰلَمِينَ (Rabbu l-ʿālamīn) = Lord of all worlds

صِرَٰطُ ٱلْمُسْتَقِيمِ (Ṣirāṭu l-mustaqīm) = The Straight Path

Key Rules:

  • The first noun (مضاف) never takes ال or tanween
  • The second noun (مضاف إليه) is always in the genitive case (مجرور)
  • Multiple nouns can be chained: كِتَابُ رَبِّ ٱلْعَٰلَمِينَ = Book of the Lord of all worlds

Lesson Quiz

Answer all questions. You need 75% to pass and unlock the next lesson.

1.In an Idafa, does the first noun take ال (al)?

2.رَبُّ ٱلْعَٰلَمِينَ means:

3.كِتَابُ ٱللَّهِ means:

4.The second noun in an Idafa is in which case?