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

• Nominal Sentences