Chapter 17 — Peal Participle Drill

Basics of Biblical Aramaic, Van Pelt — Ch17: Peal Participle

Instructions

For each numbered Peal participle form, enter: Act/Pass (Active or Passive), Root (3 consonants, Peal perfect 3ms), G/N (gender and number: ms / fs / mp / fp), and Translation. Click ▶ Answer to reveal the answer key row.

Quick reference — Active (qāṭēl): Qamets on R1 + Tsere on R2 → כָּתֵב.   Passive (qəṭīl): vocal Shewa on R1 + Hireq-Yod on R2 → כְּתִיב.   Plural: mp -ִין, fp -ָן. Det. ms -ָא, det. mp -יָּא.
# Form Act/Pass Root G/N Translation
1
כָּתֵב
Active כתב ms writing / one who writes
2
כְּתִיב
Passive כתב ms written / it is written
3
כָּתְבִין
Active כתב mp writing (mp) / ones who write
4
כְּתִיבִין
Passive כתב mp written (mp) / those who are written
5
קָאֵם
Active קום ms standing / one who stands (hollow II-waw)
6
שְׁלִיח
Passive שׁלח ms sent / one who has been sent
7
כָּתְבָן
Active כתב fp writing (fp) / those (f) who write
8
אֲסִיר
Passive אסר ms bound / imprisoned (I-aleph: Hateph Pathach under aleph)
9
חָזֵה
Active חזה ms seeing / one who sees (III-he: final ה mater)
10
רְשִׁים
Passive רשׁם ms inscribed / signed / registered
11
כָּתְבָה
Active כתב fs writing (fs) / one (f) who writes
12
כְּתִיבָא
Passive כתב ms the written one / the one that is written (det.)
13
שָׁמֵעַ
Active שׁמע ms hearing / one who hears (final ayin with Pathach furtivum)
14
שְׁלִיחִין
Passive שׁלח mp sent ones (mp) / envoys
15
עָבְדִין
Active עבד mp doing / serving (mp)
16
נָפֵל
Active נפל ms falling / one who falls (I-nun: nun retained as R1)
17
אֲסִירָא
Passive אסר ms the prisoner / the one who is bound (ms det.)
18
כָּתְבַיָּא
Active כתב mp the writers / the ones who are writing (mp det.)
19
בָּנֵא
Active בנה ms building / one who builds (III-he: final aleph mater)
20
יְהִיב
Passive יהב ms given / that which is given

Reflection Questions

  1. Items 1 (כָּתֵב) and 2 (כְּתִיב) are from the same root. What single feature of the vowel pattern tells you immediately which is active and which is passive? Describe the diagnostic without looking at the answer key.
  2. Items 5 (קָאֵם) and 16 (נָפֵל) are both ms active participles from different weak root classes. What root class is each? Why do the two patterns look so different?
  3. Items 12 (כְּתִיבָא) and 18 (כָּתְבַיָּא) are both in the determined state. One is passive ms; the other is active mp. How do the determined-state suffixes distinguish singular from plural?
  4. Item 9 (חָזֵה) is a III-he active participle. What is unusual about the final consonant compared to the strong verb כָּתֵב? What does the final ה indicate?
  5. Using item 3 (כָּתְבִין, mp active), write the full periphrastic expression for "they were writing" using הֲוָה + participle. What form of הֲוָה is needed?