La al-Nafiya li-l-Jins (the 'La' That Negates the Entire Genus)
la talib-a fi al-fasl
— There is no student at all in the classroom.
la kasul-a mahbub
— No lazy person whatsoever is loved.
la ilah-a illa Allah
— There is no god whatsoever except Allah.
In these examples, 'la' is the negator of the entire genus. In the first example, it negates the genus of 'student' completely — there is not even one student, nor more, in the classroom. In the second, it negates the genus of lazy persons being loved. In the third, it negates the genus of gods except for the One God (Allah).
The Difference Between La al-Nafiya li-l-Jins and La al-Nafiya li-l-Wahda
la talib-a fi al-fasl
— No student at all in the classroom. (genus-negation: it cannot be said 'rather, two students'.)
la talib-un fi al-fasl bal taliban
— No (single) student is in the classroom — rather, two students. (negating one and affirming two.)
Conditions for the Operation of La al-Nafiya li-l-Jins
- Its noun must be indefinite (nakira): la talib-a muhmilun (correct). If its noun is definite, its operation is cancelled.
- Its predicate must be indefinite: la talib-a muhmilun (correct). If its predicate is definite, its operation is cancelled.
- Nothing may separate it from its noun: la talib-a fi al-fasl (correct). If a separator intervenes, its operation is cancelled.
- It must not be preceded by a preposition: jiʾtu bi-la zadin ('I came without provisions'). If preceded by a preposition, its operation is cancelled.
la Muhammad-un fi al-bayt-i wa-la ʿAliyy-un
— Muhammad is not in the house, nor is Ali. (the noun is definite, so the operation is cancelled.)
la fi al-fasl-i talib-un wa-la fi al-malʿab-i
— There is no student in the classroom, nor in the field. (a separator intervenes, so the operation is cancelled.)
jiʾtu bi-la zad-in
— I came without provisions. (preceded by a preposition, so the operation is cancelled.)
States of the Noun (Ism) of La al-Nafiya li-l-Jins
The noun of la al-nafiya li-l-jins has three states: it can be mufrad (single), mudaf (annexed/in construct), or shabih bi-l-mudaf (resembling the annexed). Each state has its own ruling regarding indeclension or inflection.
1 — The Mufrad Noun of La
la talib-a kasul
— No student is lazy. (mabni on fatha)
la rijal-a fi al-bayt
— No men are in the house. (broken plural, mabni on fatha)
la talibayni ghaʾiban
— No two students are absent. (dual, mabni on yaʾ)
la muhmilina najihun
— No careless persons are successful. (sound masculine plural, mabni on yaʾ)
la talibatin ghaʾibatun
— No female students (genus) are absent. (sound feminine plural, mabni on kasra)
2 — The Mudaf Noun of La
la talib-a ʿilmin madhmum
— No seeker of knowledge is blameworthy.
la sahib-a khuluqin makruh
— No man of [good] character is despised.
la faʿil-a khayrin nadim
— No doer of good is regretful.
3 — The Shabih bi-l-Mudaf Noun of La (Resembling the Annexed)
la taliʿan jabalan hadir
— No climber-of-a-mountain is present.
la hasanan khuluq-u-hu madhmum
— No one of good character is blameworthy.
la mashkuran fiʿl-u-hu nadim
— No one whose deeds are praised is regretful.
Table of the States of the Ism of La al-Nafiya li-l-Jins
| State | Ruling | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Mufrad | Indeclinable on its accusative-marker, in the position of accusative | la talib-a muhmilلا طالبَ مهملٌ |
| Mudaf | In the accusative, marked by fatha or its substitute | la talib-a ʿilmin madhmumلا طالبَ علمٍ مذمومٌ |
| Shabih bi-l-mudaf | In the accusative, marked by fatha or its substitute (with tanwin) | la taliʿan jabalan hadirلا طالعًا جبلًا حاضرٌ |
The Predicate (Khabar) of La al-Nafiya li-l-Jins
la talib-a muhmil
— No student is careless. (single-word khabar)
la muʾmin-a yakdhibu
— No believer lies. (verbal-clause khabar)
la muhadhdhab-a khuluq-u-hu sayyiʾ
— No refined person has bad character. (nominal-clause khabar)
la talib-a fi al-fasl
— No student is in the classroom. (prepositional-phrase khabar)
la tullab-a ʿinda-na
— There are no students with us. (adverbial-phrase khabar)
la baʾs
— No harm. (implying: 'no harm upon you')
la shakk
— No doubt. (implying: 'no doubt about that')
la hawla wa-la quwwata illa bi-llah
— There is no power and no strength except by Allah. (the khabar is omitted)
Repetition of La al-Nafiya li-l-Jins
la hawla wa-la quwwata illa bi-llah
— There is no power and no strength except by Allah.
la hawla wa-la quwwatun illa bi-llah
— There is no power, and no strength [either], except by Allah. (alternative parsing)
Iʿrab of La al-Nafiya li-l-Jins, Its Ism, and Its Khabar
la talib-a fi al-fasl
— No student is in the classroom.
la: a particle of genus-negation operating like inna. talib-a: ism of la al-nafiya li-l-jins, indeclinable on fatha, in the position of accusative. fi al-fasl: a prepositional phrase attached to an omitted khabar of la al-nafiya li-l-jins.
la talib-a ʿilmin madhmum
— No seeker of knowledge is blameworthy.
la: a particle of genus-negation operating like inna. talib-a: ism of la al-nafiya li-l-jins in the accusative, marked by the manifest fatha; a mudaf. ʿilmin: a mudaf ilayh in the genitive, marked by the manifest kasra. madhmum: khabar of la al-nafiya li-l-jins in the nominative, marked by the manifest damma.
What is the benefit of using la al-nafiya li-l-jins instead of la al-nafiya li-l-wahda?
Its benefit is that it conveys absolute, comprehensive negation across all members of the genus, leaving no room for exception or affirmation of any. It is therefore more eloquent in negation and stronger in emphasis — unlike la al-nafiya li-l-wahda, which negates only a single instance while leaving open the possibility of affirming others.
Additional Examples
la muʾminin-a kadhibun
— No believers are liars. (its noun is mabni on yaʾ)
la hafizatin li-l-Qurʾani daʾiʿat
— No women preservers of the Quran are lost. (its noun is mabni on kasra)
la faʿil-a khayrin nadim
— No doer of good is regretful. (its noun is mudaf)
la qaʾilan haqqan madhmum
— No one who speaks the truth is blameworthy. (its noun is shabih bi-l-mudaf)
| Type of la | Operation | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Al-Nafiya li-l-Jins | Operates like inna: noun in accusative, predicate in nominative | la talib-a muhmilلا طالبَ مهملٌ |
| Al-Nafiya li-l-Wahda | Sometimes operates like laysa, sometimes treated as ineffective | la talib-un fi al-fasl bal talibanلا طالبٌ في الفصلِ بل طالبانِ |
| Al-ʿAtifa | No operation | jaʾa Muhammad-un la ʿAliyyجاء محمدٌ لا عليٌّ |
| Al-Nahiya | Puts the present-tense verb into the jussive mood | la taksalلا تكسلْ |
Allah Most High said: "There is no deity except Him, the Ever-Living, the Sustainer of [all] existence." — Quran 2:255 / 3:2 (Sahih International)
In this noble verse, 'la' is the negator of the genus, operating like inna; 'ilah-a' is its ism, indeclinable on fatha, in the position of accusative; its khabar is omitted, with implied meaning 'mawjud' ('existing') or 'haqq' ('truly worthy of worship') — i.e., 'there is no god worthy of worship except Him.' The negation here conveys istighraq and shumul (comprehensive inclusion): there is no god deserving of worship in truth except Allah alone.