A Hundred and One Rules in Arabic Grammar!

  1. The Accusative of Distinction (Revisited)  ألتمييز . =========================================================

In point # 48 we mentioned that** کـَم** , which means "how many," should always be followed by an idefinite noun

in the accusative case. Arab Grammarians called this nounالتمييز العَدَدي "The Distinction of Number." Consider the following example:

**قـَرأتُ عِشرينَ** کِتاباً **خِلالَ العُطلـَةِ.**

I read twenty books during the break.

The underlined word could be articles, reports, magazines, charts, etc.

There is another form of this accusative noun which deals with kind/type. It is called      .التمييز النوعي Usually it is an indefinite singular noun/verbal noun which has the meaning of "with respect to, in terms of, as to," and thus involves some level of comparison.

**هي أکثرُ الطلابِ** استِعداداً **للأمتحانِ.**

As to preparedness for the exam, she is the most among all students.

However, it is not necessary that the accusative of distinction is limited to expressing comparison. Consider the following sentence:

**مَلأتِ الأمُّ البَيتَ سَعادَةً.**

The mother filled the house (with) happiness.