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Lesson 13.3: Negating the Past — مَا Next
Lesson 13: Part 1 Part 2 ▶ Part 3: Negating the Past — مَا Dialogue Exercises Vocabulary

He Did NOT Go!

You can say "He went" (ذَهَبَ). You can say "She wrote" (كَتَبَتْ). But how do you say he did NOT go, and she did NOT write? One tiny word does all the work.

The Formula

مَا
Maa
Negation particle
+
ذَهَبَ
Past Tense Verb
Unchanged!
=
مَا ذَهَبَ
He did NOT go
مَا does NOT change the verb at all! The verb stays exactly the same. You simply place مَا before it. Simple.

Positive vs Negative — Side by Side

DoerHe/She went ✅He/She did NOT go ❌
Heذَهَبَمَا ذَهَبَ
Sheذَهَبَتْمَا ذَهَبَتْ
You(m)ذَهَبْتَمَا ذَهَبْتَ
You(f)ذَهَبْتِمَا ذَهَبْتِ
Iذَهَبْتُمَا ذَهَبْتُ
They(m)ذَهَبُوامَا ذَهَبُوا
Weذَهَبْنَامَا ذَهَبْنَا
Notice: مَا is always separate from the verb. And the verb never changes — the suffix that shows the doer stays exactly the same!

Negate It! Tap to reveal.

مَا كَتَبَ الطَّالِبُ
The student did NOT write.
كَتَبَ الطَّالِبُ
Negate: The student wrote.
Tap to reveal
مَا ذَهَبَتْ فَاطِمَةُ
Fatima did NOT go.
ذَهَبَتْ فَاطِمَةُ
Negate: Fatima went.
Tap to reveal
مَا جَلَسْتُ هُنَا
I did NOT sit here.
جَلَسْتُ هُنَا
Negate: I sat here.
Tap to reveal
مَا خَرَجُوا مِنَ الْمَسْجِدِ
They did NOT leave.
خَرَجُوا مِنَ الْمَسْجِدِ
Negate: They(m) left the mosque.
Tap to reveal
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