كَانَ
1.
He or it was. A verb of the class called incomplete, (نَاقِصٌ) because, with the agent which it comprises, or to which it relates, it cannot constitute a complete proposition; i. e., non-attributive. The other verbs of this class are, ظَلَّ أَضْحَى أَمْسَى أَصْبَحَ صَارَ, مَا دَامَ مَاانْفَكَّ مَا فَتِيءَ مَابَرِحَ مَا زَالَ بَاتَ, and لَيْسَ. Each of these governs its noun, or subject, in the nom. case, and its enunciative, or predicate, in the acc. case; as, كَانَ زَيْدٌ قَايءِمًا
Zeyd was standing.
2.
(The ن in يَكُنْ and the like is often irregularly elided.)
3.
كَانَ, divested of all signification of time. is often used as a copula. (See De Sacy 's Gr. Ar. i. 196.) So too is كَايءِنٌ; for هٰذَا زَيْدٌ and هٰذَا كَايءِنٌ زَيْدًا signify the same. (Mughnee, voce أَنَّ.)
4.
كَانَ as a complete, i. e., an attributive, verb, see حَصَلَ. in three places.