Modality in the Qurʾān
Summary
Drawing on contemporary linguistic theories and implementing a textual-linguistic approach, this volume explores how modal meanings are expressed in the Qurʾān through verbs, particles and syntactic constructions. It focuses on the epistemic, deontic and dynamic modalities and traces how each function in the Qurʾān.
The analyses show how modal expressions are used differently depending on whether the speaker is divine or human, and how meanings shift across contexts and discourses.
Excerpt
Table Of Contents
- Cover
- Title Page
- Copyright Page
- Contents
- Preface
- Organization of This Book
- Acknowledgments
- Introduction
- 0.1 What is Modality?
- 0.2 Modality in Arabic
- 0.3 Issues in Modality
- 0.4 The Current Study
- 0.5 Aims
- 0.6 Methodology
- Chapter 1 The Epistemic Modality
- 1.1 laʿalla and ʿasā
- 1.1.1 ʿasā llāhu vs. laʿallahum/ laʿallakum
- 1.1.2 laʿalla and the First-Person Pronoun
- 1.1.3 laʿalla and Second-Person and Third-Person Singular Pronouns
- 1.1.4 ʿasā in Reference to Individuals Other than God
- 1.1.5 ʿasā as an Expectation when Addressing God
- 1.1.6 laʿalla and ʿasā in the Context of Resurrection Day
- Conclusion
- 1.2 balā and kallā
- 1.2.1 balā and kallā as Response Particles
- 1.2.2 The Functions of balā and kallā as Affirmation and Negation Particles with Modal Meanings
- Conclusion
- 1.3 Energicus
- 1.3.1 The Epistemic Meaning of the Energicus Form
- 1.3.2 The Epistemic and Deontic Meanings of the Energicus Form
- Conclusion
- 1.4 The Verbs ẓanna and ḥasiba
- 1.4.1 The Verb ẓanna
- 1.4.2 The Verb ḥasiba
- Conclusion
- 1.5 Rarer Examples of Epistemic Modality
- 1.5.1 Specific Types of Interrogatives
- 1.5.2 Epistemic Meanings of the Verb ḫāfa
- Conclusion
- Chapter 2 The Deontic Modality
- 2.1 ʿalā
- Conclusion
- 2.2 lā ǧunāḥa ʿalā, lā ʾiṯma ʿalā and lā ḥaraǧa ʿalā
- 2.2.1 lā ǧunāḥa ʿalā and lā ʾiṯma ʿalā
- 2.2.2 lā ḥaraǧa ʿalā
- Conclusion
- 2.3 mā kāna li vs. mā yanbaġī li
- 2.3.1 Ambiguous Denotation of mā kāna li
- 2.3.2 Unambiguous Denotation of mā kāna li: Epistemic, Deontic or Dynamic Meaning
- Conclusion
- Chapter 3 Dynamic Modality
- 3.1 The Verbs istaṭāʿa vs. qadara
- 3.2 The Verb istaṭāʿa
- 3.3 The Verb qadara
- 3.4 Volition and Ability
- Conclusion
- Conclusion
- Bibliography
- Arabic Sources
- Index of Grammatical Terms
- Index of Qurʾānic Verses
Bibliographic information published by the Deutsche Nationalbibliothek
The German National Library lists this publication in the German National Bibliography; detailed bibliographic data are available on the Internet at https://dnb.dnb.de.
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Dror, Yehudit author
Title: Modality in the Qurʼān / Yehudit Dror.
Description: Oxford ; New York : Peter Lang, 2026. | Series: Contemporary studies in descriptive linguistics, 1660-9301 ; vol. 58 | Includes bibliographical references and index.
Identifiers: LCCN 2026025924 (print) | LCCN 2026025925 (ebook) | ISBN 9781805840572 paperback | ISBN 9781805840589 pdf | ISBN 9781805840596 epub
Subjects: LCSH: Qurʼan--Language, style | Arabic language--Verb | Arabic language--Particles | Arabic language--Modality
Classification: LCC PJ6696.Z5 V45247 2026 (print) | LCC PJ6696.Z5 (ebook)
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2026025924
LC ebook record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2026025925
ISSN 1660-9301
ISBN 978-1-80584-057-2 (Print)
ISBN 978-1-80584-058-9 (ePDF)
ISBN 978-1-80584-059-6 (ePUB)
DOI 10.3726/b22992
© 2026 Peter Lang Group AG, Lausanne, Switzerland
Published by Peter Lang Ltd, Oxford, United Kingdom
Yehudit Dror has asserted their right under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act, 1988, to be identified as Author of this Work.
All rights reserved.
All parts of this publication are protected by copyright.
Any utilisation outside the strict limits of the copyright law, without the permission of the publisher, is forbidden and liable to prosecution.
This applies in particular to reproductions, translations, microfilming, and storage and processing in electronic retrieval systems.
This publication has been peer reviewed.
Contact for General Product Safety Regulation (GPSR): gpsr@peterlang.com
Preface
Modality is a fundamental feature of human language and communication that enables speakers to express possibilities, necessities and certainties about events or propositions. Modality plays a pivotal role in the Qurʾān in verses that express exchanges between God, believers, unbelievers, between God and the Prophet Muḥammad, and between other interlocutors that convey commands, laws and descriptions of God. Grammarians of Arabic, commentators on the Qurʾān, as well as rhetoricians have all discussed the range of linguistic devices used to convey modality which allow speakers to express their judgment or opinion about an event, state or proposition.
Modality is a relatively well-researched topic in studies of modern Arabic Grammar. Certain modal expressions such as mumkin “it is possible” or yaǧibu ʿalā “[one] must” have attracted considerable attention. By contrast, for Classical Arabic and specifically for the Qurʾān, there are no systematic studies that analyze structures or expressions with modal meaning. The goal of this book is to respond to this need.
When I began researching modality in the Qurʾān, I quickly realized that there was no clear-cut definition of modality, especially in works on grammar. This is explicitly stated in some studies. Thus, my search protocol may have overlooked certain usages, or classified usages in ways that are debatable. Some of my classifications of modal uses may not be seen as modal at all by other researchers. A similar issue emerged when trying to determine types of modality. This volume focuses on the epistemic, deontic and dynamic modalities. Some analyses consider other types, such as the ‘boulemaic modality’, which refers to the expression of desires, wishes, hopes or wants. They were not included here because these usages can be seen as speech acts and not necessarily as modal expressions.
Modality conveys obligation, permission, ability, and intention and is used in the Qurʾān in verses that deal with moral conduct, polemic discourse, and divine guidance. Although these topics have been dealt with through a variety of approaches, perspectives and methods in Qurʾānic studies, this book innovates by taking a textual-linguistics approach that examines the functions of modal verbs, particles, and other constructions in the Qurʾān. This sometimes prompted me to analyze parallel or contrasting structures that required drawing on theories and explanations in contemporary linguistic research that are rare in exegesis. In these cases, the sub-chapters cover components that are related to each other, and show the ways in which each has its own specific semantic, syntactic and functional characteristics.
Organization of This Book
The four chapters in this volume are organized broadly as follows. The Introduction section introduces definitions of the term ‘modality’ in modern linguistics, reviews studies dealing with modality in Arabic and in the Qurʾān, and then presents the purpose of the book, the methodology and the rationale for the exclusion of certain grammatical structures.
Chapter 1 deals with epistemic modality. It consists of five sub-chapters. The first deals with the verb ʿasā “surely” and the particle laʿalla “it is possible that,” both of which tend to be seen as synonyms in syntactic analyses as well as in the interpretation of the Qurʾān because they primarily express hope (al-taraǧǧī). Nevertheless, each has its own syntactic, contextual, functional and semantic features. For example, except for one special case, laʿalla occurs when the agent is human, since the Qurʾān considers that people’s behavior is always uncertain, as is their ability to achieve their goals. By contrast, in the Qurʾān, the use of ʿasā is restricted to references to God. The second sub-chapter deals with the particles balā “yes indeed” “yes [it will surely occur]” and kallā “certainly not” which can function as either non-modal response particles or as modal expressions. balā and kallā as modal expressions mostly occur in argumentative/polemic discourse on future events. The third sub-chapter discusses the energicus form or more precisely the suffixation of nūn al-tawkīd “the emphatic nūn.” This form encodes a promise, a threat, possible actions, action planning and/or ways to accomplish it. However, in verses that use the energetic form for God’s utterances, this form implies that the action will definitely occur. The fourth sub-chapter focuses on the epistemic and non-epistemic meanings of the verbs ẓanna “to think” (lit. “he thought”) and ḥasiba “to believe” (lit. “he believed”) where the nature of the speaker impacts the interpretation of the verb. For example, when the verb ẓanna modifies a first-person pronoun, the speaker expresses certainty based on knowledge and evidence, unlike when it is used with other personal pronouns. The verb ḥasiba is generally used in utterances ascribed to God to indicate that people’s thinking is mistaken. The last sub-chapter presents special cases that have an epistemic meaning such as the question ʾannā yakūnu li “how is it possible for [someone],” which is used to express opinions as to the likelihood of an event.
Chapter 2 deals with deontic meanings. Four prominent structures are analyzed: the particle ʿalā “upon” “have to,” the expressions lā ǧunāḥa ʿalā “no inclination [to commit a crime],” lā ʾiṯma ʿalā “no sin upon” and lā ḥaraǧa ʿalā “no blame.” The latter three characterize Qurʾānic legislative language. The final sub-chapter explores the expressions mā kāna li and mā yanbaġī li- “it is not permitted,” “it is not possible” or “[one] is not able”. They are ambiguous because they can convey an epistemic and deontic denotation at the same time.
Chapter 3 deals with dynamic meanings related to the verbs qadara “can” (lit. “could”) and istaṭāʿa “is able to” (lit. “was able to”) and their derivatives. Similar to the case of ʿasā and laʿalla, these two verbs are not synonyms since qadara is used to describe divine power, while istaṭāʿa describes human ability.
The Conclusion highlights the main issues related to modality in the Qurʾān dealt with in this volume: the linguistic components that convey modality, why they are used in certain verses, and by whom. Overall, the analyses show that modal expressions are often ambiguous, since a single expression can have multiple meanings depending on the situation, seemingly similar modal expressions can have specific meanings depending on the context, and utterances ascribed to God in the Qurʾān employ modals differently than utterances attributed to humans in verses aimed to reflect unlimited knowledge and power.
This book is not comprehensive; however, I hope that it will inspire others to delve more deeply into modality in Arabic in general and in the Qurʾān in particular.
Acknowledgments
My academic journey into modality began when I took an M.A. course on the grammar of the Qurʾān taught by the late Professor Rafi Talmon, who shaped my approach to research. It was under his guidance that I first encountered the depth and complexity of Qurʾānic grammar.
A few years ago, a student asked me a seemingly simple question about modality in Arabic. At that time, I did not really know how to define it clearly. That question stuck with me and developed into a persistent curiosity. After a great deal of study, research, and teaching, I felt that the conditions were ripe for writing this book.
I am grateful to all those who took the time to read the manuscript and write reviews. I learned a great deal from their comments, which were invaluable in revising the text. Nevertheless, this book reflects my own research approach, and I bear full responsibility for all the analyses, arguments, and mistakes that may remain.
My deepest thanks go to my students at the Department of Arabic language and literature, who have enabled me to explore and teach the topic of modality. Their thoughtful reactions to my explanations were essential to shaping my understanding.
I would also like to thank the University of Haifa for its generous financial support for this project. My thanks also go to Esther Singer, my English editor, for her tireless and patient work editing the manuscript again and again with professionalism and care.
Finally, to my beloved family: Yehezkel, Viki, Yaarit, Tal, Yair and Ori, whose endless love and unwavering support sustained me throughout this work.
Details
- Pages
- XII, 186
- Publication Year
- 2026
- ISBN (PDF)
- 9781805840589
- ISBN (ePUB)
- 9781805840596
- ISBN (Softcover)
- 9781805840572
- DOI
- 10.3726/b22992
- Language
- English
- Publication date
- 2026 (September)
- Keywords
- Qurʾān Epistemic Modality Deontic Modality Dynamic Modality
- Published
- Oxford, Berlin, Bruxelles, Chennai, Lausanne, New York, 2026. xii, 186 pp., 1 table.
- Product Safety
- Peter Lang Group AG
