Hafiz soon
Adh-Dhariyat · 51:39

But he turned away with his supporters and said, "A magician or a madman."

Sahih International

Word 1 of 6

فَتَوَلَّىٰ

fatawallā

But he turned away

Word breakdown

ف

Harf · Resumption particle

then

تولى

Fi'l · Verb

But he turned away

Rootوليwly

to be a protector/guardian, turn towards/away, friend

232× in the Quran · Common

LemmaتَوَلَّىٰVerb (form V) - to turn

Grammar rules

Past tense verb

فَتَوَلَّىٰ (But he turned away) is a past tense verb — the action already happened and is complete.

We translate it in past tense — "did", "created", "said", etc.

Lesson 8 · Verbs — Past & Present
Verb form V — doing to oneself

فَتَوَلَّىٰ (But he turned away) uses form V (تَفَعَّلَ) — it's the reflexive of form II, meaning doing the action to yourself.

We translate it as "to [verb] oneself".

Lesson 13 · Verb Families V–X