ما Clauses in Arabic

In Brief

Arabic ما appears in several useful clause patterns, but it does not have one fixed English translation. It can introduce what someone does (ما تفعله), and it also forms connectors such as مهما “whatever,” عندما “when,” بما أنَّ “since,” and ما دام / طالما “as long as.” Learn each connector as a complete unit rather than trying to translate ما separately every time.

Overview

A clause is a group of words built around a verb or a subject and predicate—in plain terms, a small sentence that can sit inside a larger one. In أعرف ما تريد “I know what you want,” the words ما تريد form a clause and fill the same role that a noun could fill: they tell us what is known.

At B2, ما becomes especially important because it occurs in several connectors that organize time, reason, condition, and duration. Some are visibly built from a preposition or another word plus ما, but they do not all follow one interchangeable rule. عندما locates an event in time, بما أنَّ presents a reason, and مهما introduces a condition whose outcome does not change.

For an English-speaking learner, the main trap is translation. English “since” can refer either to a cause or to a starting time, while Arabic normally uses بما أنَّ only for the causal meaning. English “as long as” can express duration or a condition; Arabic ما دام covers both closely related ideas, while طالما has additional meanings. The sections below separate these patterns.

How It Works

1. ما + a clause: “what” or “that which”

When ما stands for an unspecified thing, action, or idea and connects it to a following clause, traditional grammar calls it ما الموصولة, a relative word (a word that introduces information identifying “what” is meant). The whole ما clause acts like a noun phrase—a unit that can serve as the subject, object, or complement of a sentence.

Function of the whole clause	Pattern	Example	Meaning
Object	verb + ما + clause	أعرف ما تريد.	I know what you want.
Subject	ما + clause + predicate	ما حدث كان مفاجئاً.	What happened was surprising.
After a preposition	preposition + ما + clause	تحدثنا عما حدث.	We talked about what happened.
With كل	كل ما + clause	هذا كل ما أعرفه.	This is all that I know.

Prepositions may join ما in writing: عن + ما → عمّا, في + ما → فيما, and بـ + ما → بما. The spelling بما alone therefore does not automatically mean “since”; it may simply mean “with/by what,” as in فكّر بما قلته “Think about what I said.” The complete connector بما أنَّ is different.

Context distinguishes relative ما from negative ما:

• فهمتُ ما قلتَ. — “I understood what you said.”
• ما فهمتُ ما قلتَ. — “I did not understand what you said.”

The first ما in the second sentence negates the verb; the second introduces the object clause. Word-for-word translation is less reliable than asking what job each ما performs.

2. مهما: “whatever” or “no matter what”

مهما introduces a concessive condition: a condition that does not prevent the result. In everyday English it is often “whatever,” “no matter what,” or, with كان, “however.”

Pattern	Typical meaning	Example
مهما + verb, result	whatever someone does	مهما تحاول، لن تغيّر رأيه.
مهما + كان + noun/adjective	whatever/however … may be	مهما كان السبب، يجب أن نتحقق.
مهما + يكن + noun/adjective	whatever/however … may be	مهما يكن الثمن، لن أتنازل عن حقي.

In fully marked formal Arabic, مهما is a conditional word that can put an imperfect verb into the jussive (a verb form used after certain particles and in certain conditions): مهما تفعلْ. A second imperfect verb serving directly as the result may also be jussive. In many real sentences, however, the result begins with an element that governs its own verb, such as لن, سـ, سوف, قد, or an imperative. Formal writing often marks such a result with فـ:

• مهما تفعلْ، فلن أغيّر قراري. — “Whatever you do, I will not change my decision.”
• مهما حدث، فاتصل بي. — “Whatever happens, call me.”

Because ordinary unvocalized text does not show final short vowels, the jussive is often invisible. It becomes noticeable with forms such as يكون → يكن or verbs whose final weak letter changes. Recognition matters before production: first learn the connector and meaning, then refine the verb endings.

3. عندما: “when”

عندما is a neutral Modern Standard Arabic time connector. It introduces the time at which the main event occurs.

Time relationship	Common pattern	Example
Completed event	عندما + perfect (past-form) verb	عندما وصلتُ، بدأ الاجتماع.
Repeated or ongoing situation	عندما + imperfect verb	عندما أعمل من المنزل، أبدأ مبكراً.
Expected future event	عندما + imperfect verb, future main clause	عندما تصل، سأتصل بك.

English speakers should not copy English tense labels mechanically. In عندما تصل، سأتصل بك, the verb تصل has an imperfect form but refers to a future arrival; the future marker appears in the main clause. Arabic verb choice here reflects whether the action is viewed as complete, ongoing, repeated, or expected—not simply the English present/past label.

Do not confuse عندما “when” with عند ما written as two genuinely separate words in the rare case where عند keeps its literal meaning “at/with” and ما belongs independently to what follows. As a time connector, the normal spelling is one word: عندما.

4. بما أنَّ: “since,” “given that,” or “because”

بما أنَّ introduces a reason treated as a fact or shared premise. It is especially natural when the speaker starts from known information and draws a conclusion: “Given that X is true, Y follows.”

The أنَّ in this expression is followed by its noun or an attached pronoun. In fully vocalized formal Arabic, that noun is accusative (it normally takes ـَ or another accusative ending), while the predicate states what is true about it:

• بما أنَّ الجوَّ باردٌ، سنبقى في البيت. — “Since the weather is cold, we will stay home.”
• بما أنك هنا، ساعدني. — “Since you are here, help me.”

With pronouns, learn the attached forms as chunks:

Person	Form	Meaning
I	بما أنني	since I am / given that I…
you (masculine / feminine singular)	بما أنكَ / بما أنكِ	since you…
he / she	بما أنه / بما أنها	since he… / since she…
we	بما أننا	since we…
you (plural)	بما أنكم	since you all…
they	بما أنهم	since they…

English “since” is ambiguous. Use بما أنَّ for a reason: “Since you are ready, let us begin.” For a starting point in time—“I have lived here since 2020”—use منذ, not بما أنَّ.

5. ما دام: duration with a continuing condition

ما دام means “as long as,” “while,” or “for as long as.” Although دام has the shape of a past-tense verb, the complete construction normally describes a condition that continues over the time relevant to the main clause.

دام changes to agree with its subject:

Subject	Form	Example
I	ما دمتُ	ما دمتُ حياً
you (masculine singular)	ما دمتَ	ما دمتَ مستعداً
he / it	ما دام	ما دام الباب مفتوحاً
she / it	ما دامت	ما دامت الفرصة متاحةً
we	ما دمنا	ما دمنا متفقين
they	ما داموا	ما داموا يعملون

دام behaves like كان and its sisters: it links a subject to a predicate. In careful fully vocalized Arabic, the predicate is accusative, as in حيًّا and مفتوحًا. Most everyday writing omits those case endings, but they explain the forms you may hear in formal speech.

The main clause may express either duration or a condition dependent on that duration:

• سأبقى هنا ما دمتَ تحتاج إليّ. — “I will stay here as long as you need me.”
• يمكنك استخدام المكتب ما دام فارغاً. — “You may use the office as long as it is empty.”

6. طالما: “as long as,” but not only that

In contemporary Standard Arabic, طالما commonly introduces a reason or continuing condition and can often be translated “as long as,” “since,” or “given that”:

• طالما أنك وافقت، فلنبدأ. — “Since you have agreed, let us begin.”
• يمكنك البقاء طالما تحترم القواعد. — “You may stay as long as you respect the rules.”

The supplied pattern طالما أنت تريد conveys “as long as you want,” but طالما أنك تريد ذلك is clearer and more idiomatic in careful prose when a full nominal clause follows. Unlike ما دام, طالما does not conjugate for the subject.

There is also an older and still current use in which طالما + past verb means “often” or “for a long time”: طالما حلمتُ بهذه اللحظة means “I have long dreamed of this moment.” Context therefore matters. If ambiguity would be inconvenient, ما دام is usually the clearest choice for a literal continuing “as long as.”

Examples in Context

Arabic	English	Note
أعرف ما تقصده.	I know what you mean.	The ما clause is the object of أعرف.
ما حدث أمس غيّر خطتنا.	What happened yesterday changed our plan.	The whole clause is the subject.
هذا كل ما أحتاج إليه الآن.	This is all I need right now.	كل ما means “all that.”
مهما فعلت، لن أنجح.	Whatever I do, I won't succeed.	A result presented as unchanged by the condition.
مهما كان القرار صعباً، يجب أن نتخذه.	However difficult the decision is, we must make it.	مهما كان + description.
عندما انتهى الدرس، بقيت لأسأل المعلمة.	When the lesson ended, I stayed to ask the teacher.	Completed past event.
عندما تسافر غداً، أرسل لي رسالة.	When you travel tomorrow, send me a message.	Imperfect form with future time supplied by context.
بما أنك هنا، ساعدني.	Since you're here, help me.	A known fact gives the reason for a request.
بما أن الوقت قصير، سنناقش النقاط الأساسية فقط.	Given that time is short, we will discuss only the main points.	Formal causal framing.
طالما أنت تريد.	As long as you want.	Understandable elliptical wording; طالما أنك تريد ذلك is clearer in careful prose.
يمكنك الانتظار هنا طالما أنك هادئ.	You can wait here as long as you are quiet.	Continuing permission with a condition.
ما دمت حياً.	As long as I'm alive.	دمت agrees with an implied “I.”
سأدافع عنك ما دمتُ مقتنعاً ببراءتك.	I will defend you as long as I am convinced of your innocence.	The duration of one state limits the main action.
طالما تمنيتُ أن أزور القدس.	I have long wished to visit Jerusalem.	Here طالما means “for a long time,” not “as long as.”

Common Mistakes

Treating every ما as negation

• Wrong interpretation: أعرف ما كتب = “I know he did not write.”
• Right: أعرف ما كتب = “I know what he wrote.”
• Why: Here the entire ما كتب clause is the object of أعرف. Negative ما would negate the verb that directly follows it in an independent statement.

Using بما أنَّ for temporal “since”

• Wrong: أعيش هنا بما أن عام 2020.
• Right: أعيش هنا منذ عام 2020.
• Why: بما أنَّ gives a cause or accepted premise. منذ marks a starting point in time.

Leaving دام unconjugated

• Wrong: ما دام أنا حياً.
• Right: ما دمتُ حياً.
• Why: دام is a verb and agrees with its subject. The first-person singular form is دمتُ.

Adding a future marker after عندما by copying English logic

• Awkward: عندما ستصل، سأتصل بك.
• Better: عندما تصل، سأتصل بك.
• Why: In a future time clause, Arabic commonly uses the plain imperfect after عندما and marks the main clause as future. This resembles English “when you arrive,” not “when you will arrive.”

Assuming طالما always means “as long as”

• Wrong interpretation: طالما انتظرتُ هذه الفرصة = “As long as I waited for this opportunity.”
• Right: “I waited a long time for this opportunity” or “I have long awaited this opportunity.”
• Why: Before a past verb, طالما often expresses long duration or repeated occurrence. Read the entire sentence before choosing a translation.

Translating “whatever” with مهما in every sentence

• Wrong: سآكل مهما طبختَ when the intended meaning is simply “I will eat what you cooked.”
• Right: سآكل ما طبختَ.
• Why: ما identifies the thing cooked. مهما means that the result holds regardless of what is cooked: مهما تطبخْ، سآكله “Whatever you cook, I will eat it.”

Usage Notes

These connectors belong comfortably to Modern Standard Arabic, the variety used in formal writing, news, education, and cross-regional communication. Spoken dialects often prefer other time and reason connectors. For example, forms based on لما are common for “when” in many regions, but their exact grammar and meaning vary. عندما is the safe cross-regional choice when writing Standard Arabic.

Punctuation is helpful but not the grammar itself. A comma often separates an introductory clause—عندما وصلت، بدأ الاجتماع—from the main clause. In carefully structured conditional sentences, فـ may introduce the result, particularly when that result is a command, a nominal sentence, or begins with particles such as لن: مهما حدث، فلا تقلق. Modern prose is not perfectly uniform about writing this link in every possible sentence.

Case and mood endings are mostly absent from unvocalized text. You can therefore understand and write many of these patterns before you can produce every final vowel in formal speech. Still, pay attention to endings when a text is vocalized: they reveal why forms such as تفعلْ, يكن, and حيًّا occur.

Beyond the Basics / Advanced Use

Traditional Arabic grammar gives several different labels to ما, because identical spelling can hide different grammatical jobs. Relative ما in أحب ما كتبتَ means “what/that which.” ما المصدرية turns the following clause into the idea of an action, close to an English “-ing” phrase or an abstract noun. In some sentences, the relative and action readings overlap: سرّني ما فعلتَ can be understood naturally as “What you did pleased me” or “Your doing that pleased me.” You rarely need to force a label when the meaning is clear, but the distinction explains why dictionaries list many uses.

Do not confuse clause-introducing ما with interrogative ما “what?” A direct question can be ما هذا؟ “What is this?” or ماذا تريد؟ “What do you want?” An embedded statement uses أعرف ما تريد “I know what you want,” with no question mark and no question intonation.

There is also a useful contrast between open and human reference. Relative ما normally points to things, actions, or unspecified content. For a specific person, Standard Arabic normally uses مَن “who/whomever” or a relative pronoun such as الذي / التي:

• أعرف مَن اتصل. — “I know who called.”
• أعرف ما حدث. — “I know what happened.”

Finally, ما دام and طالما overlap without being exact synonyms. ما دام explicitly ties the main statement to the duration of a state and changes form with its subject. طالما is fixed in form and, depending on context, can signal a continuing condition, an accepted reason, repeated occurrence, or long duration. Advanced reading depends on recognizing that range rather than assigning one English equivalent permanently.

Practice Tips

1. Sort by relationship, not spelling. Make five columns labeled “content,” “regardless,” “time,” “reason,” and “duration.” Place new examples under ما, مهما, عندما, بما أنَّ, and ما دام / طالما according to the relationship they express.
2. Transform one core sentence. Start with أنت هنا “you are here,” then build بما أنك هنا… and ما دمت هنا…. Explain aloud how “since you are here” differs from “as long as you are here.”
3. Drill the forms of دام. Say or write ما دمتُ، ما دمتَ، ما دام، ما دامت، ما دمنا، ما داموا with a short predicate. This prevents the common habit of treating ما دام as a completely frozen connector.

Related Concepts

• Prerequisite: Conditional Sentences — provides the foundation for understanding conditional meaning and verb forms after words such as مهما.