كان (Was/Were) in Arabic
Overview
The verb كان (kaana) means "was" or "were" and is used to place nominal sentences in the past tense. While present-tense nominal sentences in Arabic need no verb ("The book is new" = الكتاب جديد), expressing the same idea in the past requires كان: "The book was new" = كان الكتاب جديدًا.
At the A1 level, كان is one of the most important verbs to learn because it unlocks past descriptions, past states, and past identities. كان belongs to a special group of verbs called "كان and her sisters" (كان وأخواتها), which includes verbs like أصبح (became), ظلّ (remained), and ليس (is not). These verbs all share a key grammatical feature: they put their subject in the nominative case and their predicate in the accusative case.
How It Works
Conjugation of كان (Past Tense)
| Person |
Arabic |
Transliteration |
Meaning |
| he |
كانَ |
kaana |
he was |
| she |
كانَتْ |
kaanat |
she was |
| you (m) |
كُنْتَ |
kunta |
you were |
| you (f) |
كُنْتِ |
kunti |
you were |
| I |
كُنْتُ |
kuntu |
I was |
| they (m) |
كانوا |
kaanuu |
they were |
| we |
كُنّا |
kunnaa |
we were |
Sentence Structure with كان
| Component |
Case |
Example |
| Subject (اسم كان) |
Nominative (مرفوع) |
الجوُّ (the weather) |
| Predicate (خبر كان) |
Accusative (منصوب) |
باردًا (cold) |
| Full sentence |
|
كان الجوُّ باردًا (The weather was cold) |
Sisters of كان
| Verb |
Meaning |
Example |
| أصبح |
became (in morning) |
أصبح الجو حارًّا (The weather became hot) |
| ظلّ |
remained, kept |
ظلّ يدرس (He kept studying) |
| ليس |
is not |
ليس الكتاب جديدًا (The book is not new) |
| ما زال |
still is |
ما زال صغيرًا (He is still young) |
Examples in Context
| Arabic |
English |
Note |
| كان الجو باردًا. |
The weather was cold. |
Past state |
| كانت مريضة. |
She was sick. |
Feminine conjugation |
| كنت طالبًا. |
I was a student. |
First person |
| كانوا هنا. |
They were here. |
Plural past |
| كنا سعداء. |
We were happy. |
Plural adjective |
| كان البيت كبيرًا. |
The house was big. |
Accusative predicate |
| ليس عندي وقت. |
I don't have time. |
ليس for present negation |
| أصبحت معلمة. |
She became a teacher. |
Sister of كان |
| كان الأولاد يلعبون. |
The children were playing. |
Past progressive |
| ما كان هنا. |
He was not here. |
Negation with ما |
Common Mistakes
| Wrong |
Right |
Why |
| كان الجو بارد (nominative predicate) |
كان الجو باردًا (accusative) |
The predicate of كان takes accusative case |
| كان for present-tense sentences |
No verb for present; كان only for past |
Present nominal sentences do not use a copula |
| كان هي مريضة |
كانت مريضة |
كان conjugates for gender; use كانت for "she" |
| ليس as a past-tense negation |
ليس is present; use ما كان for past negation |
ليس negates the present; ما + كان negates the past |
Practice Tips
- Practice converting present nominal sentences to past by adding كان: الجو حار → كان الجو حارًّا. Do this with ten sentences daily.
- Pay attention to the accusative ending on the predicate (ًا for indefinite, َ for definite). This is the most distinctive grammatical feature of كان.
- Learn ليس (is not) alongside كان (was) -- together they give you past and present negation of nominal sentences.
Related Concepts