Hafiz soon
Al-Baqarah · 2:65

And you had already known about those who transgressed among you concerning the sabbath, and We said to them, "Be apes, despised."

Sahih International

Grammar, phrase by phrase

وَلَقَدْ عَلِمْتُمُ

(And you had already known)

Root علمto know, knowledge · 854 times in the Quran

Grammar — lesson evidence

وَلَقَدْword 1

Conjunction · حرف عطفA conjunction is a small joining word like 'and' that ties sentences together. The prefix وَ joins this reminder to what came before. L4 · R4

Emphatic Lām & Nūn · لام التوكيد ونون التوكيدThe emphatic لَـ at the front of a word — like the لَ of لَقَدْ — presses down on the statement to say it is really, surely true, changing no ending. Here it seals the reminder: you SURELY knew. L20 · R14

Certainty Particle (قَدْ) · حرف تحقيقThe certainty particle قَدْ, placed before a past tense verb, stresses that the action truly happened. Here it stands before عَلِمْتُمُ 'you knew': you certainly knew what happened to the Sabbath-breakers. L20 · R16

عَلِمْتُمُword 2

Verb · فعلA verb is a word for an action tied to a time. عَلِمْ names an action — knowing — from the root علم: to know, knowledge. L1 · R7

Past Tense Verb · فعل ماضٍA past tense verb describes an action already completed, and who did it is shown by an ending added to the verb. The ending تُمُ — the 'you all' marker — sits on عَلِمْتُمُ: 'you knew', already settled. L8 · R2

Attached Pronoun · ضمير متصلAn attached pronoun is a mini-word glued onto the end of a verb. The ending تُمُ on عَلِمْتُمُ is such a suffix, standing for 'you all'. L3 · R7

Doer (Fa'il) · فاعلThe doer is the one performing the action, standing in the nominative — the doer's form, usually a ḍammah ـُ, a small curl above the last letter. The ending تُمُ is that doer, 'you all' — the ones who knew; a pronoun keeps one fixed shape, so no ḍammah appears — the nominative is the role it fills. L9 · R4

Significance — from the tafsir

This Ayah means: O Jews! Remember that Allah sent His torment on the village that disobeyed Him and broke their pledge and their covenant to observe the sanctity of the Sabbath.

Ibn Kathir (abridged), on 2:65–66

ٱلَّذِينَ ٱعْتَدَوْا۟ مِنكُمْ

(…about those who transgressed among you)

Root عدوto be an enemy, enmity, hostility, to transgress · 106 times in the Quran

Grammar — lesson evidence

ٱلَّذِينَword 3

Relative Pronoun · اسم موصولA relative pronoun hooks a whole describing sentence onto something, and ٱلَّذِينَ is the form for a group: 'those who' — described by the little sentence 'transgressed'. L5 · R13

Direct Object · مفعول بهThe direct object is the one the action lands on, standing in the accusative — the landed-on form, usually a fathah ـَ, a small slanted stroke above the last letter. 'Those who transgressed' are the ones the knowing landed on; ٱلَّذِينَ keeps one fixed written shape, so no fathah appears — the accusative is the role it fills. L9 · R3

ٱعْتَدَوْا۟word 4

Verb · فعلA verb is a word for an action tied to a time. ٱعْتَدَ names an action — transgressing — from the root عدو: to be an enemy, enmity, hostility, to transgress. L1 · R7

Past Tense Verb · فعل ماضٍA past tense verb describes an action already completed, and who did it is shown by an ending added to the verb. The ending وْا۟ — the 'they' marker — sits on ٱعْتَدَوْا۟: 'they transgressed', already done. L8 · R2

Weak Verb · فعل معتلA weak verb has at least one of the weak letters و or ي among its root letters, named by which slot is weak. The root عدو carries the weak و as its last letter — and that letter does not stand on the page: only the ع and د of the root show before the ending. L24 · R2

Form VIII Verb · اِفْتَعَلَA Form VIII verb is identified by an extra ت tucked in just after the first root letter. ٱعْتَدَ shows exactly that: the root's ع, then the inserted تَ, then the د — the mark of this form: 'they transgressed'. L13 · R4

Attached Pronoun · ضمير متصلAn attached pronoun is a mini-word glued onto the end of a verb. The ending وْا۟ on ٱعْتَدَوْا۟ is such a suffix, standing for 'they'. L3 · R7

Doer (Fa'il) · فاعلThe doer is the one performing the action, standing in the nominative — the doer's form, usually a ḍammah ـُ, a small curl above the last letter. The ending وْا۟ is that doer, 'they' — the transgressors; a pronoun keeps one fixed shape, so no ḍammah appears — the nominative is the role it fills. L9 · R4

مِنكُمْword 5

Particle · حرفA particle is a small helper word with no meaning standing alone; it takes no ending and does not name or act. مِن is such a helper word here. L1 · R8

Preposition · حرف جرA preposition is a little word that relates one thing to another and pulls the naming word after it into the genitive — the after-preposition ending, usually a kasrah ـِ, a small stroke below the last letter. مِنْ 'from/of' is one of the common prepositions: transgressors 'from among' you. L4 · R2

Attached Pronoun · ضمير متصلAn attached pronoun is a mini-word glued onto the end of another word; glued to a particle, it is governed by that particle. The ending كُمْ on مِنكُمْ stands for 'you all' — the transgressors were from your own ranks. L3 · R6

فِى ٱلسَّبْتِ

(…concerning the sabbath,)

Root سبتSabbath, Saturday, day of rest · 9 times in the Quran

Grammar — lesson evidence

فِىword 6

Particle · حرفA particle is a small helper word with no meaning standing alone; it takes no ending and does not name or act. فِى is such a helper word here. L1 · R8

Preposition · حرف جرA preposition is a little word that relates one thing to another and pulls the naming word after it into the genitive — the after-preposition ending, usually a kasrah ـِ, a small stroke below the last letter. فِي 'in' is one of the common prepositions: transgressed 'in' the matter of the Sabbath. L4 · R2

ٱلسَّبْتِword 7

Definite Article · أل التعريفThe definite article is the prefix ال attached to the front of a naming word to mean 'the' — one specific, known one. On ٱلسَّبْتِ the next letter س is one of the fourteen 'solar' letters — the letters made near where ل itself is made, which swallow the ل of ال so it is written but not heard — so the س doubles, shown by the shaddah ـّ, the small w-shaped mark above it: as-sabt, 'the Sabbath'. L2 · R9

Noun · اسمA word that accepts ال — the prefix meaning 'the' — is a noun, a naming word. سَّبْتِ names the Sabbath, from the root سبت — Sabbath, Saturday, day of rest. L1 · R1

Masculine Noun · اسم مذكرArabic treats every naming word as grammatically 'he' or 'she'. This word carries no feminine marker such as a ة at its end, so it falls to the default and is treated as 'he': a masculine noun. L2 · R3

Genitive · مجرورThe genitive is the ending a naming word takes after a preposition, shown by a kasrah ـِ — a small slanted stroke below the last letter. سَّبْتِ ends in that kasrah ـِ because فِى stands before it. L2 · R12

Significance — from the tafsir

They used deceitful means to avoid honoring the Sabbath: placing nets, ropes and artificial pools of water for fishing before the Sabbath, then collecting the fish during the night after the Sabbath ended.

Ibn Kathir (abridged), on 2:65–66

So far: And you had already known about those who transgressed among you concerning the sabbath,

فَقُلْنَا لَهُمْ

(…and We said to them,)

Root قولto say, speak, tell · 1,722 times in the Quran

Grammar — lesson evidence

فَقُلْنَاword 8

Resumptive Particle · حرف استئنافA resumptive particle is a وَ or فَ that begins a fresh statement after a pause or shift. The prefix فَ here turns from their deceit to the sentence passed on them: so We said. L14 · R1

Verb · فعلA verb is a word for an action tied to a time. قُلْ names an action — saying — from the root قول, to say, speak, tell. L1 · R7

Past Tense Verb · فعل ماضٍA past tense verb describes an action already completed, and who did it is shown by an ending added to the verb. The ending نَا — the 'We' marker — sits on قُلْنَا: 'We said', already done. L8 · R2

Weak Verb · فعل معتلA weak verb has و or ي among its root letters, and those weak letters love to vanish. قُلْ looks too short for a three-letter root — only the ق and ل of قول show; the weak middle و has dropped out, and the ḍammah ـُ — the small curl above the ق — is its leftover fingerprint. L24 · R13

Attached Pronoun · ضمير متصلAn attached pronoun is a mini-word glued onto the end of a verb. The ending نَا on فَقُلْنَا is such a suffix, standing for 'We'. L3 · R7

Doer (Fa'il) · فاعلThe doer is the one performing the action, standing in the nominative — the doer's form, usually a ḍammah ـُ, a small curl above the last letter. The ending نَا is that doer, 'We'; a pronoun keeps one fixed shape, so no ḍammah appears — the nominative is the role it fills. L9 · R4

لَهُمْword 9

Preposition · حرف جرA preposition is a little word that relates one thing to another and pulls the naming word after it into the genitive — the after-preposition ending, usually a kasrah ـِ, a small stroke below the last letter. The prefix لَ 'to' is one of the common prepositions: We said 'to' them. L4 · R2

Detached Pronoun · ضمير منفصلA pronoun is a mini-word standing in for a name, here هُمْ 'them'. Though the label reads it as a standalone word, it is written joined after the preposition لَ and works like the glued-on endings for 'their/them', naming those addressed: 'to them'. L3 · R7

كُونُوا۟ قِرَدَةً خَـٰسِـِٔينَ

(…"Be apes, despised.")

Root كونto be, exist, happen · 1,390 times in the Quran

Root قردapes · 3 times in the Quran

Root خساto drive away, to reject · 4 times in the Quran

Grammar — lesson evidence

كُونُوا۟word 10

Verb · فعلA verb is a word for an action tied to a time. كُونُ names being — 'be!' — from the root كون: to be, exist, happen. L1 · R7

Imperative Verb · فعل أمرAn imperative verb is a direct command addressed to 'you', formed from the present-tense verb by removing its opening prefix. كُونُوا۟ is that command shape aimed at a group — its ending وا۟ points the order at 'you all': be! L10 · R1

Weak Verb · فعل معتلA weak verb has و or ي among its root letters, and a middle weak letter hides behind a long alif in the past tense — كَانَ 'he was' is really the root كون. In this command shape the disguise falls away: the root's middle و stands in plain view as the long و of كُونُوا۟. L24 · R4

Kāna Verb · كان وأخواتهاكَانَ is an incomplete verb: it keeps its topic in the nominative — the topic's form, usually a ḍammah ـُ, a small curl above the last letter — and puts its comment into the accusative, usually a fathah ـَ, often doubled to tanwīn ـً. Here the topic is the وا۟ 'you all' — a pronoun keeps one fixed shape, so the nominative is the role it fills — and the comment قِرَدَةً wears exactly that doubled fathah ـً: 'BE apes'. L18 · R3

Attached Pronoun · ضمير متصلAn attached pronoun is a mini-word glued onto the end of a verb. The ending وا۟ on كُونُوا۟ is such a suffix, standing for 'you all'. L3 · R7

قِرَدَةًword 11

Noun · اسمA word that ends with the tā marbūtah ة is a noun, a naming word. قِرَدَةً names apes, from the root قرد — apes. L1 · R3

Masculine Noun · اسم مذكرArabic treats every naming word as grammatically 'he' or 'she'. قِرَدَةً is treated as 'he' — a masculine noun: the ة at its end belongs to this word's plural shape rather than serving as a 'she' marker. L2 · R3

Plural Noun · جمعA plural noun refers to three or more, made either by adding an ending or by reshaping the word from the inside — a 'broken' plural. قِرَدَةً is such a reshaped plural: apes, many of them. L2 · R6

Indefinite Noun · نكرةAn indefinite noun means 'a' or 'any' — no particular one — and shows this with tanwīn, the doubled end-vowel mark. قِرَدَةً ends in the doubled fathah ـً. L2 · R8

Accusative · منصوبThe accusative is an ending shown by a fathah ـَ — a small slanted stroke above the letter — doubled to tanwīn ـً when the word is indefinite. قِرَدَةً carries that doubled fathah ـً on its ة: it is the comment of the command 'be', the part the كان-family presses into this form. L2 · R11

خَـٰسِـِٔينَword 12

Noun · اسمA noun names a person, place, thing, or quality. خَٰسِـِٔينَ names ones in a state of disgrace — despised, driven away — from the root خسا: to drive away, to reject. L1 · R6

Accusative · منصوبThe accusative is the landed-on ending, usually a fathah ـَ — a small stroke above the letter. Words with the ـُونَ/ـِينَ plural ending show their case differently: only the subject form ـُونَ looks distinct, and ـِينَ serves for the accusative. The ـِٔينَ closing خَٰسِـِٔينَ is that accusative form here, matching the apes-word it describes. L2 · R7

Adjective · صفةAn adjective is a describing word that follows its noun and matches it. خَٰسِـِٔينَ 'despised' follows قِرَدَةً 'apes' and matches it: both speak of many, both are treated as 'he', both carry the accusative role, and neither wears 'the': 'apes, DESPISED ones'. L7 · R1

Active Participle · اسم فاعلAn active participle is a naming word built on the pattern فَاعِل — first root letter, then a long ā, then a kasrah ـِ before the last root letter — naming the one in the action's state. خَٰسِـِٔينَ carries that shape: the long ā after its خ and the pattern's kasrah ـِ on the س — the ع-position of فَاعِل — while the kasrah of the final ـِينَ belongs to the case ending, not the pattern: 'ones despised and driven away'. L11 · R1

Significance — from the tafsir

Qatadah said, "These people were turned into howling monkeys with tails, after being men and women"; Ibn 'Abbas said they perished after three days without offspring. Their evil deeds appeared lawful on the surface but were in reality wicked, so their punishment was compatible with their crime.

Ibn Kathir (abridged), on 2:65–66

So far: And you had already known about those who transgressed among you concerning the sabbath, and We said to them, "Be apes, despised."