تَمَنَّى (tamannā) means to wish for. It is a defective Form V verb from the root م ن ي (m-n-y): تَمَنَّى (tamannā) in the past, يَتَمَنَّى (yatamannā) in the present and تَمَنَّ (tamanna) as a command. The tables below give its full conjugation in all 13 persons, active and passive, vowelled, with its participles and verbal noun.
Every form of tamannā on this page comes from the engine behind our Arabic verb conjugator and was checked against Wiktionary's conjugation table for تَمَنَّى, down to the regular Form V verbal noun تَمَنٍّ (tamannin).
Tamannā at a glance
| Root | م ن ي (m-n-y), starting with the letter mīm |
| Form | Form V, pattern تَفَعَّلَ (tafaʿʿala) |
| Verb type | defective |
| Past, he | تَمَنَّى (tamannā) |
| Present, he | يَتَمَنَّى (yatamannā) |
| Command, you (one man) | تَمَنَّ (tamanna) |
| Active participle | مُتَمَنٍّ (mutamannin) |
| Passive participle | مُتَمَنًّى (mutamannan) |
| Verbal noun (maṣdar) | تَمَنٍّ (tamannin) |
Past tense of tamannā
The past tense (al-māḍī) of tamannā ends in a vowel in the he-form, تَمَنَّى (tamannā). The weak last letter decides the rest: تَمَنَّيْتُ (tamannaytu) for I, تَمَنَّتْ (tamannat) for she, تَمَنَّوْا (tamannaw) for they.
| Person | Arabic | Transliteration |
|---|---|---|
| I · أنا anā | تَمَنَّيْتُ | tamannaytu |
| we · نحن naḥnu | تَمَنَّيْنَا | tamannaynā |
| you m.sg. · أنت anta | تَمَنَّيْتَ | tamannayta |
| you f.sg. · أنت anti | تَمَنَّيْتِ | tamannayti |
| you dual · أنتما antumā | تَمَنَّيْتُمَا | tamannaytumā |
| you m.pl. · أنتم antum | تَمَنَّيْتُمْ | tamannaytum |
| you f.pl. · أنتن antunna | تَمَنَّيْتُنَّ | tamannaytunna |
| he · هو huwa | تَمَنَّى | tamannā |
| she · هي hiya | تَمَنَّتْ | tamannat |
| they two m. · هما humā | تَمَنَّيَا | tamannayā |
| they two f. · هما humā | تَمَنَّتَا | tamannatā |
| they m.pl. · هم hum | تَمَنَّوْا | tamannaw |
| they f.pl. · هن hunna | تَمَنَّيْنَ | tamannayna |
Present tense of tamannā
The present tense (al-muḍāriʿ) of tamannā ends in a long vowel in the he-form, يَتَمَنَّى (yatamannā). Before the plural ending the weak letter disappears: يَتَمَنَّوْنَ (yatamannawna).
| Person | Arabic | Transliteration |
|---|---|---|
| I · أنا anā | أَتَمَنَّى | atamannā |
| we · نحن naḥnu | نَتَمَنَّى | natamannā |
| you m.sg. · أنت anta | تَتَمَنَّى | tatamannā |
| you f.sg. · أنت anti | تَتَمَنَّيْنَ | tatamannayna |
| you dual · أنتما antumā | تَتَمَنَّيَانِ | tatamannayāni |
| you m.pl. · أنتم antum | تَتَمَنَّوْنَ | tatamannawna |
| you f.pl. · أنتن antunna | تَتَمَنَّيْنَ | tatamannayna |
| he · هو huwa | يَتَمَنَّى | yatamannā |
| she · هي hiya | تَتَمَنَّى | tatamannā |
| they two m. · هما humā | يَتَمَنَّيَانِ | yatamannayāni |
| they two f. · هما humā | تَتَمَنَّيَانِ | tatamannayāni |
| they m.pl. · هم hum | يَتَمَنَّوْنَ | yatamannawna |
| they f.pl. · هن hunna | يَتَمَنَّيْنَ | yatamannayna |
Subjunctive and jussive of tamannā
After لن (lan, will not) the he-form of tamannā is يَتَمَنَّى (yatamannā); after لم (lam, did not) its final long vowel shortens: يَتَمَنَّ (yatamanna).
| Person | Subjunctive | Jussive |
|---|---|---|
| I · أنا anā | أَتَمَنَّى (atamannā) | أَتَمَنَّ (atamanna) |
| we · نحن naḥnu | نَتَمَنَّى (natamannā) | نَتَمَنَّ (natamanna) |
| you m.sg. · أنت anta | تَتَمَنَّى (tatamannā) | تَتَمَنَّ (tatamanna) |
| you f.sg. · أنت anti | تَتَمَنَّيْ (tatamannay) | تَتَمَنَّيْ (tatamannay) |
| you dual · أنتما antumā | تَتَمَنَّيَا (tatamannayā) | تَتَمَنَّيَا (tatamannayā) |
| you m.pl. · أنتم antum | تَتَمَنَّوْا (tatamannaw) | تَتَمَنَّوْا (tatamannaw) |
| you f.pl. · أنتن antunna | تَتَمَنَّيْنَ (tatamannayna) | تَتَمَنَّيْنَ (tatamannayna) |
| he · هو huwa | يَتَمَنَّى (yatamannā) | يَتَمَنَّ (yatamanna) |
| she · هي hiya | تَتَمَنَّى (tatamannā) | تَتَمَنَّ (tatamanna) |
| they two m. · هما humā | يَتَمَنَّيَا (yatamannayā) | يَتَمَنَّيَا (yatamannayā) |
| they two f. · هما humā | تَتَمَنَّيَا (tatamannayā) | تَتَمَنَّيَا (tatamannayā) |
| they m.pl. · هم hum | يَتَمَنَّوْا (yatamannaw) | يَتَمَنَّوْا (yatamannaw) |
| they f.pl. · هن hunna | يَتَمَنَّيْنَ (yatamannayna) | يَتَمَنَّيْنَ (yatamannayna) |
Imperative of tamannā
A Form V command is the jussive تَتَمَنَّ (tatamanna) without its prefix. The stem already starts with a vowelled letter, so no alif is added: تَمَنَّ (tamanna), تَمَنَّيْ (tamannay), تَمَنَّوْا (tamannaw).
| Person | Arabic | Transliteration |
|---|---|---|
| you m.sg. · أنت anta | تَمَنَّ | tamanna |
| you f.sg. · أنت anti | تَمَنَّيْ | tamannay |
| you dual · أنتما antumā | تَمَنَّيَا | tamannayā |
| you m.pl. · أنتم antum | تَمَنَّوْا | tamannaw |
| you f.pl. · أنتن antunna | تَمَنَّيْنَ | tamannayna |
Passive of tamannā
The passive past of tamannā ends in -iya (تُمُنِّيَ (tumunniya)) and the passive present in -ā (يُتَمَنَّى (yutamannā)).
| Person | Past passive | Present passive |
|---|---|---|
| I · أنا anā | تُمُنِّيتُ (tumunnītu) | أُتَمَنَّى (utamannā) |
| we · نحن naḥnu | تُمُنِّينَا (tumunnīnā) | نُتَمَنَّى (nutamannā) |
| you m.sg. · أنت anta | تُمُنِّيتَ (tumunnīta) | تُتَمَنَّى (tutamannā) |
| you f.sg. · أنت anti | تُمُنِّيتِ (tumunnīti) | تُتَمَنَّيْنَ (tutamannayna) |
| you dual · أنتما antumā | تُمُنِّيتُمَا (tumunnītumā) | تُتَمَنَّيَانِ (tutamannayāni) |
| you m.pl. · أنتم antum | تُمُنِّيتُمْ (tumunnītum) | تُتَمَنَّوْنَ (tutamannawna) |
| you f.pl. · أنتن antunna | تُمُنِّيتُنَّ (tumunnītunna) | تُتَمَنَّيْنَ (tutamannayna) |
| he · هو huwa | تُمُنِّيَ (tumunniya) | يُتَمَنَّى (yutamannā) |
| she · هي hiya | تُمُنِّيَتْ (tumunniyat) | تُتَمَنَّى (tutamannā) |
| they two m. · هما humā | تُمُنِّيَا (tumunniyā) | يُتَمَنَّيَانِ (yutamannayāni) |
| they two f. · هما humā | تُمُنِّيَتَا (tumunniyatā) | تُتَمَنَّيَانِ (tutamannayāni) |
| they m.pl. · هم hum | تُمُنُّوا (tumunnū) | يُتَمَنَّوْنَ (yutamannawna) |
| they f.pl. · هن hunna | تُمُنِّينَ (tumunnīna) | يُتَمَنَّيْنَ (yutamannayna) |
Participles and verbal noun of tamannā
The active participle ends in -in: مُتَمَنٍّ (mutamannin). The passive participle ends in -an: مُتَمَنًّى (mutamannan). The verbal noun (maṣdar) follows the Form V pattern tafaʿʿul: تَمَنٍّ (tamannin). The Arabic grammar books we recommend cover all ten patterns at more length.
Why tamannā conjugates this way
The last root letter of تَمَنَّى (tamannā) is ي (y), which makes it a defective verb. Form V spells it as a final -ā in the past (تَمَنَّى (tamannā)) and as -ā, spelled ى, in the present (يَتَمَنَّى (yatamannā)). Before a consonant ending it comes back as a consonant or a long vowel (تَمَنَّيْتُ (tamannaytu)), and before the plural -ū it disappears (تَمَنَّوْا (tamannaw)).
Form V is Form II with ta- in front (tafaʿʿala), the reflexive of Form II. Its present keeps a in both the prefix and the stem: يَتَمَنَّى (yatamannā). Taḥaddatha (to speak, to talk) and taʿallama (to learn) are built on the same Form V pattern.
Tamannā in sentences
أتمنى أن أرى.
I wish to see.
The verb: أَتَمَنَّى (atamannā), present, I. Source: Tatoeba sentence 7962314 by Garnetskull (CC BY 2.0 FR), unvowelled as published.
ماذا تتمنى؟
What do you wish for?
The verb: تَتَمَنَّى (tatamannā), present, you (m.sg.). Source: Tatoeba sentence 514944 by saeb (CC BY 2.0 FR), unvowelled as published.
Frequently asked questions
What is the present tense of tamannā?
The present tense of تَمَنَّى (tamannā) is يَتَمَنَّى (yatamannā) for he, أَتَمَنَّى (atamannā) for I and تَتَمَنَّى (tatamannā) for you (one man). The weak last letter turns into a long vowel at the end of the word.
What is the maṣdar (verbal noun) of tamannā?
تَمَنٍّ (tamannin), on the Form V pattern tafaʿʿul. The active participle is مُتَمَنٍّ (mutamannin), and the passive participle مُتَمَنًّى (mutamannan).
Is tamannā a regular verb?
It is regular for a defective verb: its last root letter turns into a vowel at the end of the word (تَمَنَّى (tamannā), يَتَمَنَّى (yatamannā)) and returns before a consonant ending (تَمَنَّيْتُ (tamannaytu)).