The verb 'was' in Arabic
Hello everybody!

What is the best way to use the past tense 'was' in Arabic, for example:
it was a big house
Everybody was there
He was good looking
It was a gift

Would the last sentence b:كان هدية or كنت هدية?

Thanks in advance :)

Question

The verb 'was' in Arabic
Hello everybody!

What is the best way to use the past tense 'was' in Arabic, for example: 
it was a big house
Everybody was there
He was good looking
It was a gift

Would the last sentence b:كان هدية or كنت هدية?

Thanks in advance :)

Answer

was in Arabic is كان , and you should accord it with its subject; if it is masculine we said كان for singular and كانوا for plural, and for feminine كانت for singular and كنّ .
الهدية is feminine so you says كانت
بالتوفيق

Answer

"was"
for single "I"= كنت = kont
for single masculine "You"= كنتَ = konta
for single feminine "You"= كنتِ = konti
for single masculine "He/It"= كان = kana
for single feminine "She"= كانت = kanat

"were"
for plural masculine & feminine "We"= كنّا = konna
for plural masculine "They"= كانوا = kano
for plural feminine "They"= كنّ = konna
for plural masculine "You"= كنتم = kontom
for plural feminine "You"= ّكنتن = kontonna

Hope it was helpful :)

Answer

I think the best verb is كان  , your Example will be like :
لقد كان منزلا ضخم 
الجميع كان هناك 
لقد كان وسيما 
لقد كانت هدية 
I hope that were useful