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ContentsSection I
IntroductionEssentials
Section II - Grammar
NounsPronounsAdjectivesVerbsAdverbsPrepositionsConjunctions
Section III - Usage
CourtesiesQuestionsNegationOwnershipNumbersQuantitiesWhich one?
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Which one?Time
Section IV - How to say...
This section will be coming soon...
Appendices
Arabic writing and pronunciationMore about verbs than you will ever want to knowIrregular verbsAbout this documentCopyright
IntroductionThis document is a concise reference to grammar for people who are learning the spoken arabic ofEgypt. It is intended to be used alongside other study aids available free of charge atwww.lisaanmasry.com.
If you want to see a wider range of examples of Egyptian Arabic, check out the Lonely Planetpublication "Egyptian Arabic Phrasebook" by Siona Jenkins. It is a very useful pocket guide.
Getting started
This document is made up of three main sections:
essentials - an introduction to grammatical terms and to Egyptian arabic, pointing out the
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similarities and differences between Egyptian and Englishgrammar - a description of how to build sentences using the standard language elementsusage - commonly used words, phrases and expressions
A word about arabic writing
It is not difficult to learn to read and write in arabic, but it is an additional barrier to learning.Realistically, you are unlikely ever to see Egyptian Arabic in print: notices, packaging, adverts, websites etc are written in Modern Standard Arabic. And if you want to read Arabic handwriting, that's adifferent ballgame altogether. An understanding of the Arabic alphabet can sometimes be useful,but it is by no means essential.
The examples in this document are therefore written in both arabic and roman letters. There are twoways of writing arabic using roman letters: the transliterated form tells you exactly how it would bewritten in arabic, and the pronounced form gives you an indication of how to pronounce it ineuropean letters. For the pronounced form, I have chosen to write things how and english personwould. My apologies to people whose first language is not english.
The pronunciation rules, the arabic alphabet and the transliterated and pronounced spelling areexplained in the section on arabic writing and pronunciation
The examples in the PDF version are this document are written in arabic and in pronounced form.
The essentials- Same same but differentIn many cases, Egyptian uses the same structure as English: let's first look at some simpleexamples where the structure is similar, then move on to the differences.
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Nouns and verbs
Here is a simple sentence in both english and Egyptian:
Ahmed loves sarahaacHmad biyiHibb saarao
Element English Egyptian
subject noun Ahmed 'ahmadأحمـد
verb loves biyihibbبـیـحـب
object noun Sarah saaraسا ر ة
In both the English and Egyptian examples, there are three words: two words are nouns (people,things or ideas) and the middle word is a verb, which explains what is happening. In both cases, thenoun before the verb (Ahmed) is the subject (the person or thing that is doing something) and thenoun after the verb (Sarah) is the object- is the person or thing that is having something done to it.
We can change the meaning by turning the words around, like this:
Sarah loves Ahmedsaarao bitHibb aacHmad
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Element English Egyptian
subject noun Sarah saaraسا ر ة
verb loves bitihibbبـتـحـب
object noun Ahmed 'ahmadأحمـد
The nouns do not change, they have just moved: we know from the order of the words that Sarah isnow the subject- the one who is loving, and Ahmed is now the object, the one who is loved. Inenglish, the verb does not change at all, but in Egyptian it changes a little because the subject isnow female, not male. We will look in more detail at how exactly verbs change to match the subjectlater, in the section on verbs.
Subject and Object
The subject and object can be a name, for example Sarah and Ahmed, but there are some otherpossiblities as well. Here are some examples:
Element English Egyptian
name Sarah saaraسا ر ة
irraagil
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noun (specific) the man irraagilا لرا جـل
the woman issittا لسـت
the cat il'uttaا لقـطـة
the idea ilfikraا لفـكر ة
noun(general) a man raagilرا جـل
a woman sittسـت
a cat 'uttaقـطـة
an idea fikraفـكر ة
noun(quantity) some men shwyit rigalaeشویـة ر جا ال ة
five men chamas rigalaخـمـس ر جا ال
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any man 'ay raagilأي را جـل
pronoun(subject) he huwwaهـو
she hiyaهـي
pronoun(object) him -uhــه
her -haـها
The word il- ا لـ is corresponds to 'the' in english, but there is no equivalent to 'a'. The noun justappears on its own.
Note that adding il- ا لـ to a word affects the pronunciation if it begins with a sun letter.
Pronouns
Pronouns are the short words like I and they that often replace nouns in spoken English andEgyptian, to make our speech clearer and more concise. Here is a simple example:
I love heraacnaa baHibbahaa
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Element English Egyptian
subject pronoun I 'anaأنا
verb love bahibbبـحـب
object pronoun her -ahaــها
We can see that the subject is still at the start of the sentence and the object is still at the end of thesentence, but in Egyptian the object pronoun is attached to the end of the verb. Let's turn that roundand see what happens:
she loves mehiya bitiHibb-ny
Element English Egyptian
subject pronoun she hiyaهـي
verb loves bitihibbبـتـحـب
object pronoun me -nyـني
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Woa, what happened there? Everything changed, in both English and Egyptian! The reason is that,in both languages, there are different forms of the pronoun for subject and object. There is a thirdform of the pronoun that indicates ownership (my/his/your/their/its) but we will save that until wecover pronouns in more detail. For now, let's just look at the subject and object pronouns.Remember that object pronouns are attached to the end of the verb.
Subject Object
English Egyptian English Egyptian
I 'anaأنا me -ny
ـني
we 'ihnaإحنا us -na
ـنا
you(m) 'intaإنت you(m) -ak
ــك
you(f) 'intiإنت you(f) -ik
ــك
you(pl) 'intuإنتوا you(pl) -ukw
ــكو
he/it(m) huwwaهـو him/it(m) -uh
ــهhiya -ha
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she/it(f) hiyaهـي her/it(f) -ha
ـها
they hummaهـم them -uhum
ــهـم
Here are a few more examples:
English Egyptian
I know him 'ana Aaarifuhأنا عا ر فـه
Ahmed knows him 'ahmad Aaarifuhأحمـد عا ر فـه
Sarah knows him saara Aaarifahسا ر ة عا ر فـه
I smoke cigarettes 'ana bashrab sagaeyarأنا با شر ب سـجا یـر
I write books 'ana baktib kutubأنا با كتـب كـتوب
Ahmed writes books 'ahmad biyiktib kutubأحمـد بـیـكتـب كـتوب
he writes books huwwa biyiktib kutub
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he writes books هـو بـیـكتـب كـتوب
Note that the subject pronoun can be omitted if the meaning is still clear
There is no 'is'
The word is/am/are is one of the most commonly use verbs in english.... but, if you are talking aboutsomething now (not the past or future), there is no word in Egyptian for 'is'. That's quite a bigdifference, but it's not too difficult. Let's take a look at some examples:
English Egyptian
I am tired 'ana taAbaenأنا تـعبا ن
Ahmed is Egyptian 'ahmad masryأحمـد مـصري
the cats are in the garden il'utat fy ilginynaا لقـطـط في ا لجـنینـة
Sarah is available saara mawgudaسا ر ة مـوجود ة
today is friday innahaarda ilgumAaا لنـها رد ة ا لجـمعـة
dy miraaty
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this is my wife dy miraatyدي مـرا تي
my husband is at home guzy fy ilbiytجوزي في ا لبـیت
When you are talking about a past or future situation, then the Egyptian words kaen كا ن - was andhaykun هـیكون - will be are used. This will be covered in more detail later under verbs. Here aresome simple examples:
English Egyptian
I am tired 'ana taAbaenأنا تـعبا ن
Ahmed is tired 'ahmad taAbaenأحمـد تـعبا ن
I was tired 'ana kunt taAbaenأنا كـنت تـعبا ن
Ahmed was tired 'ahmad kaen taAbaenأحمـد كا ن تـعبا ن
I will be tired 'ana hakun taAbaenأنا هـكون تـعبا ن
Ahmed will be tired 'ahmad hayikun taAbaen
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Ahmed will be tired أحمـد هـیـكون تـعبا ن
There is no 'have'
The verb have is widely used in English, but there is no equivalent verb in Egyptian. Have is usedin many ways in English, and in Egyptian a different word is used for each meaning.
Meaning English Egyptian
have with me I have matches maAaya kabrytمـعـیا كـبریت
own I have a house Aandy biytعـندي بـیت
must I have to go laezim 'aruwhال ز م أر وح
eat, etc I will have dinner(I will dine)
hatAashshaهـتعـشا
take I will have a nap(I will take a nap)
haechuz taAsylaها خـذ تـعسیلـة
Masculine, feminine, plural
Like many european languages, all Egyptian nouns are either masculine or feminine. Here are
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some examples:
Gender English Arabic
masculine book kitaebكـتا ب
masculine dog kalbكـلب
masculine man raagilرا جـل
masculine biyt biytبـیت
masculine milk labanلـبـن
masculine peace salaemسـال م
masculine teacher mudarrisمـد ر س
feminine teacher mudarrisaمـد ر سـة
fikra
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feminine idea fikraفـكر ة
feminine tabletarabyza
تـرا بیزة
feminine workshop warshaو رشـة
feminine woman sittسـت
feminine daughtergirl
bintبـنت
feminine fire naarنا ر
feminine head raasرا س
As you can see, the majority of feminine nouns end in -a ــة. There are a few exceptions though:some are obvious, like woman and daughter, but others, you just need to learn them. We will coverthis in more detail in the section on nouns.
In both english and Egyptian, there are two forms of a noun: singular and plural. Here are someexamples of plurals:
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English Arabic
Singular Plural Singular Plural
book books kitaebكـتا ب
kutubكـتـب
dog dogs kalbكـلب
kilaebكـال ب
man men raagilرا جـل
riggalaر جا ال
child children tiflطـفل
'atfaelأطفا ل
house house biytبـیت
buyutبـیوت
milk labanلـبـن
peace salaemسـال م
teacher(m) teachers mudarrisمـد ر س
mudarrisynمـد ر سین
teacher(f) teachers mudarrisa mudarrisaet
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teacher(f) teachers مـد ر سـة مـد ر سا ت
idea ideas fikraفـكر ة
'afkaarأفكا ر
table tablestarabyza
تـرا بیزة
tarabyzaetتـرا بیزا ت
workshop workshops warshaو رشـة
wirashو ر ش
woman women sittسـت
sattaetسـتا ت
daughtergirl
daughtersgirls
bintبـنت
banaetبـنا ت
fire fires naarنا ر
nyraanنیرا ن
head heads raasرا س
ru'wusوس ر
In english, the majority of plural nouns are the same as the singular, with a suffix of -s for examplebook/books, but there are a small number of words with unusual plurals, for example man/men andchild/children. In Egyptian, feminine nouns that end in -a ــة have a very straightforward plural- or -atplurals of masculine nouns vary quite a lot- the vowels move about a bit but the consonants :ـا ت
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remain the same. You will need to learn them.
Note that, both in english and Egyptian, some words do not have a plural- for example milk andpeace.
Adjectives
Adjectives are words that describe something- for example, good or small. In english, adjectives donot change, but in Egyptian there are different forms of an adjective for masculine, feminine andplural. Here are some examples:
English Egyptian
he is tired huwwa taAbaenهـو تـعبا ن
she is tired hiya taAbaenaهـي تـعبا نـة
they are tired humma taAbanynهـم تـعبا نین
he is good huwwa kuwayisهـو كـو یـس
she is good hiya kuwayisaهـي كـو یـسـة
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they are good humma kuwayisynهـم كـو یـسین
The good news is that the majority of adjectives require just a different ending for feminine- -a ــةand plural -yn ـین forms. We will cover this in more detail in the section on adjectives
Adverbs
Just as adjectives describe a noun, adverbs say something about a verb - where, when, how often,how much etc. They can also be used to describe the extent of an adjective (very good) or evenanother adverb (very slowly). Many English adverbs end with -ly. Usage of adverbs is very similarin English and Egyptian: here are some examples
describing English Egyptian
verb I will come back soon 'ana hargaA baAd shuwayaأنا هـرجـع بـعد شـو یـة
verb Ahmed walks quickly 'ahmad biyimshy bisuraAaأحمـد بـیـمشي بـسـر عـة
adjective Ahmed is extremely clever 'ahmad shaatir giddaenأحمـد شا طـر جـدا
adverb Ahmed drives reasonably fast 'ahmad biyisu' bisuraAa maA'ulaأحمـد بـیـسوق بـسـر عـة مـعقولـة
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Prepositions
In English, prepositions link to a noun. This is possible in Egyptian, but prepositions are alsocommonly used in place of verbs.
In Egyptian, prepositions are widely used in place of verbs, for example have is usually expressedusing the prepositions Aand عـند (own) and maAa مـع (have with you): see ownership for moreinformation. Here are some examples of prepositions:
English Egyptian English Egyptian
after baAdبـعد she came after dinner hiya gaet baAd ilAashaa'
هـي جا ت بـعد ا لعـشا ء
behind waraو را the garden is behind the house ilginyna wara ilbiyt
ا لجـنینـة و را ا لبـیت
have Aandعـند I have a house in Cairo Aandy biyt fy il'aehira
عـندي بـیت في ا لقا هـر ة
there is fyفي there is water fy mayae
في مـیا ة
Conjunctions
A conjunction joins two clauses to make a much more complex sentence. Here is an example:
I want to make bread but I don't have enough flour
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Aaayiz aacAamil Aiysh lakin maAandysh diqyq kifaayao
Part English Egyptian
Main clause I want to make bread Aaeyiz 'aAamil Aiyshعا یـز أعـمـل عـیش
Conjunction but lakinلـكـن
Second clause I don't have enough flour maAandysh di'y' kifaeyaمـعـندیش د قیق كـفا یـة
In English, the same word is often used for a preposition and a conjunction, but in Egyptian it maybe different. Sometimes it is only necessary to add the word ma ما to convert a preposition to aconjunction.
Element English Egyptian
preposition(dinner is a noun) wash your hands before dinner 'iGsil iydyk 'abl ilAashaa'
إغسـل ا یدیك قـبل ا لعـشا ءconjunction(you eat is a clause-it contains a verb)
wash your hands before you eat'iGsil iydyk 'abl ma taekulإغسـل ا یدیك قـبل ما تا كـل
Nouns
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A noun represents a person, thing or concept. Here are some examples:
Type English Arabic
person Ahmed 'ahmadأحمـد
person man raagilرا جـل
person player laeAibال عـب
thing leather gildجـلد
concept wisdom hikmaحـكمـة
concept appointment myAaedمیعا د
Masculine and feminine
In arabic, nouns can be masculine or feminine. This does not necessarily mean that they belong tomale and female persons. Most words that end with -a ــة are feminine. In addition, there are a smallnumber of words that do not end in -a ــة that are also feminine. Some of these words are obvious:others less so. Here are some examples of feminine nouns:
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English Arabic
idea fikraفـكر ة
woman sittسـت
daughter bintبـنت
fire naarنا ر
head raasرا س
Plurals
If there is more than one of something, the noun becomes a plural. For many nouns, only the endingchanges.
Gender Ending Singular Plural
masculine -ynـین
muhaesibمـحا سـب
muhaesibynمـحا سـبین
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feminine -atـا ت
muhasbaمـحا سبـة
muhaesibatمـحا سـبا ت
Occupations
Generally speaking, the plural for trades ends with either -yn ـین or -aya ــيـة, but for professionsthere are different endings for men -yn ـین and women -at ـا ت.
English Singular Plural
carpenter naggaarنـجا ر
naggaarynنـجا رین
greengrocer chudaryخـضـري
chudariyyaخـضـر ییـة
male teacher mudarrisمـد ر س
mudarrisynمـد ر سین
female teacher mudarrisaمـد ر سـة
mudarrisatمـد ر سا ت
Collective nouns
In english, fish can mean pieces of fish or one fish or several: the former is described as acollective noun. In Egyptian, many foods- and some other things- have a collective noun. You can
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talk about one item, for example one fish, by adding -a ــة ending
English Collective one
eggs biydبـیض
biydaبـیضـة
fish samakسـمـك
samakaسـمـكـة
flies dibbaenد با ن
dibbaenaد با نـة
Many materials- things that can be used to make something from, like leather or cloth, are treated inthe same way: you add -a ــة to give the meaning a piece of...
English Collective a piece
wood chashabخـشـب
chashabaخـشـبـة
soap sabunصا بون
sabunaصا بونـة
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Pairs
The egyptian word for shoes (gazma جـزمـة) relates to a pair. For a single shoe, it is necessary tosay fardit gazma فـرد ة جـزمـة.
English Egyptian
shoes gazmaجـزمـة
socks sharaabشـرا ب
gloves guwantyجـوا نتي
Duals
If you want to talk about two people, or specify a quantity of two, see the section on two in numbers.
If you want to talk about two things (not people or quantities), you should use the dual suffix -yn ـین.This is equivalent to a couple which can mean exactly two, or approximately two. There are slightlydifferent forms for feminine nouns and words ending in -y ـي. Here are some examples:
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English Egyptian Suffix English Egyptian
book (m) kitaebكـتا ب
-ynـین two books kitaabyn
chair(ends with y)
kursyكـرسي
-tynـتین two chairs kursiyyin
minute (f) di'y'aد قیقـة
-iyyinــييـن a couple of minutes diqiqtyn
Ownership
One way to express belonging is to add a posessive pronoun to the end of a noun. See ownershipfor information about other methods. Here are some examples:
English on its own with pronoun
his book kitaebكـتا ب
kitaebuhكـتا بـه
my wife does not exist on its own miraatyمـرا تي
your(m) idea fikraفـكر ة
fikritakفـكر تـك
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Compound nouns
You can describe a noun using another noun, for example to say what material it is made from. Thequalifying noun is always singular. If the main noun is preceded by il- ا لـ the qualifying noun is alsopreceded by il- ا لـ . Note that adding il- ا لـ to a word affects the pronunciation if it begins with a sunletter.
English Arabic
a plastic bag kys blastikكیس بال ستـك
the plastic bag ilkys ilblastikا لكیس ا لبال ستـك
plastic bags 'akyaes blastikأكیا س بال ستـك
the plastic bags il'akyaes ilblastikا ألكیا س ا لبال ستـك
PronounsPronouns are short words that are used to replace nouns in spoken English and Arabic, to makeour speech clearer and more concise. In this example, Ahmed is the noun and He is the pronoun:
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Ahmed has a dog. He walks with it every dayaacHmad Aand-uh kalb wa huwwa biyitmashshY maAa-uh kul ywm
There are four main groups of pronoun:
personal pronouns - I, you, he, etcdemonstrative pronouns - this, thatindefinite pronouns - somebody, anywhererelative pronouns - who, which, that
Personal pronouns
In English, there are four versions of the personal pronoun (he, him, his, himself): in Egyptian, thereis an additional version (to him).
English Egyptian Form
he huwwaهـو subject
him -uhــه object
to him -luhـلـه indirect object
-uh
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his -uhــه posessive
himself nafsuhنـفسـه reflexive
In Egyptian, there are separate forms of you for masculine, feminine and plural, but there is noneuter (it): instead, it is necessary to use the he or she form, depending on the gender of the noun
Subject pronouns
A subject is the noun that appears before the verb- the person or thing that is doing something.
I like to readaacnaa baaHib aacktib
The subject pronouns are:
English Egyptian
I 'anaأنا
we 'ihnaإحنا
you(m) 'intaإنت
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you(f) 'intiإنت
you(pl) 'intuإنتوا
he/it(m) huwwaهـو
she/it(f) hiyaهـي
they hummaهـم
Personal pronouns are not needed with verbs, as it is clear from the verb, but it is common to usethem, especially for emphasis. They are often used with participles.
Object pronoun suffixes
You can attach an object pronoun (for example me or him) as a suffix to an imperative, verb orparticiple. to refer to the object.
give me the knife
iicddyny iil-sikkynao
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The object suffixes are similar to posessive suffixes on nouns:
English Suffix
me -niـن
us -naـن
You(m) -akــك
You(f) -ikــك
You(pl) -kumـكـم
Him/it(m) -uـ
Her/if(f) -haـه
Them -humـهـم
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ـهـم
If there is an I before the last consonant and the suffix starts with a vowel, the -i- is dropped, so...
possessive pronoun suffix
Things that would be expressed using a posessive pronoun (my, your... etc) in English can behandled using a possessive suffix attached to the noun, or using bitaA بـتـع. The latter is used formost imported words.
what (is) your name?
iicsm-ak iicyh?
The posessive pronouns themselves are pretty easy to learn, but when the pronouns are attachedto nouns, the vowels do a little dance to make sure that you don't get three consonants in a row.Here are examples for nouns that end with one or two consonants:
Nouns ending in two consonants
English after -C after -CC
saahibصا حـب
kalbكـلب
my -yـي
saahibyصا حـبي
-yـي
kalbyكـلبي
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our -naـنا
saahibnaصا حـبنا
-inaــنا
kalbinaكـلبـنا
your(m) -akــك
saahibakصا حـبـك
-akــك
kalbakكـلبـك
your(f) -ikــك
saahibikصا حـبـك
-ikــك
kalbikكـلبـك
your(pl) -kumـكـم
saahibkumصا حـبكـم
-ukumــكـم
kalbukumكـلبـكـم
his/its(m) -uhــه
saahibuhصا حـبـه
-uhــه
kalbuhكـلبـه
her/its(f) -haـها
saahibhaصا حـبها
-ahaــها
kalbahaكـلبـها
their -humـهـم
saahibhumصا حـبهـم
-uhumــهـم
kalbuhumكـلبـهـم
For nouns ending in -a ــة, the -a ــة is replaced by -t ـت or -it ــت and then the ending is added.
Nouns ending in -a ــة
English after -C after -CC
kura shanta
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كور ة شـنطـة
my -tyـتي
kurtyكورتي
-ityــتي
shantityشـنطـتي
our -itnaــتنا
kuritnaكور تنا
-itnaــتنا
shantitnaشـنطـتنا
your(m) -takـتـك
kurtakكورتـك
-itakــتـك
shantitakشـنطـتـك
your(f) -tikـتـك
kurtikكورتـك
-itikــتـك
shantitikشـنطـتـك
your(pl) -itkumــتكـم
kuritkumكور تكـم
-itkumــتكـم
shantitkumشـنطـتكـم
his/its(m) -tuhـتـه
kurtuhكورتـه
-ituhــتـه
shantituhشـنطـتـه
her/its(f) -ithaــتها
kurithaكور تها
-ithaــتها
shantithaشـنطـتها
their -ithumــتهـم
kurithumكور تهـم
-ithumــتهـم
shantithumشـنطـتهـم
Nouns that end in alif -a ـا are treated almost like feminine nouns, ie the alif is replaced by -it ـا تand then the ending is added.
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Nouns ending in -y ـي or -w ـو are listed below.
Note that for most words ending in -w ـو, for example baltw بـلتو, one would normally use bitaA بـتـعrather than a posessive suffix.
Nouns ending in a vowel
English -aـا
-yـي
-wـو
vylaڤیال
kursyكورسي
Aadwعـدو
my -yaـي
vylityڤیال تي
kursyaكورسیا
Aadwyعـدوي
our -naـنا
vylitnaڤیال تنا
kursynaكورسینا
Aadwnaعـدونا
your(m) -kـك
vylitakڤیال تـك
kursykكورسیك
Aadwkعـدوك
your(f) -kiـك
vylitikڤیال تـك
kursykyكورسیكي
Aadwikعـدو ك
your(pl) -kumـكـم
vylitkumڤیال تكـم
kursykumكورسیكـم
Aadwkumعـدوكـم
-h vylituh kursyh Aadwh
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his/its(m) -hـه
vylituhڤیال تـه
kursyhكورسیه
Aadwhعـدوه
her/its(f) -haـها
vylithaڤیال تها
kursyhaكورسیها
Aadwhaعـدوها
their -humـهـم
vylithumڤیال تهـم
kursyhumكورسیهـم
Aadwhumعـدوهـم
Father and brother 'abb أب and brother 'achch أخ become 'abw- أبوـ and brother 'achw- أخوـ when apossessive pronoun is added.
English fatheraacbb
brotheraacKK
my 'abwyaأبویا
'achwyaأخویا
our 'abunaأبونا
'achunaأخونا
your(m) 'abukأبوك
'achukأخوك
your(f) 'abukyأبوكي
'achukyأخوكي
your(pl) 'abukum 'achukum
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your(pl) أبوكـم أخوكـم
his/its(m) 'abuhأبوه
'achuhأخوه
her/its(f) 'abuhaأبوها
'achuhaأخوها
their 'abuhumأبوهـم
'achuhumأخوهـم
reflexive pronouns (myself, yourself, himself)
Reflexive pronouns can be used after a noun or a verb.
English Egyptian
I can look after myself haechud baly min nafsyها خـد با لي مـن نـفسي
The man himself irraagil nafsuhا لرا جـل نـفسـه
He did it by himself huwwa Aaemalha binafsuhهـو عا مـله بـنـفسـه
Demonstrative pronouns
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These are the words that you use when you want to point at something.
English Egyptian
this (man) dahد ه
this (woman, thing) dyدي
those (men) dulدول
those (women,things) dyhدیه
If you want to use one of these with a noun, to indicate which one, (for example, this book), youshould use a Demonstrative adjective. Fortunately, in both English an Egyptian, the demonstrativepronouns are the same as the demonstrative adjectives. Note that, when using demonstrativeadjectives in Egyptian, the noun retains its il- ا لـ prefix.
demonstrative English Egyptian
pronoun how much is this bikaem dahبـكا م د ه
pronoun how much is this book bikaem ilkitaeb dahبـكا م ا لكـتا ب د ه
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بـكا م ا لكـتا ب د ه
Indefinite pronouns
These are words like anybody, something etc. In Egyptian, these are made up of two words, butthey are used in exactly the same way as in English.
English Egyptian
somebody haddحـد
anybody 'ay haddأي حـد
nobody wala haddو ال حـد
something haegaحا جـة
anything 'ay haegaأي حا جـة
nothing wala haegaو ال حا جـة
somewhere makaenمـكا ن
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anywhere 'ay makaenأي مـكا ن
nowhere wala makaenو ال مـكا ن
Relative pronoun
The relative pronoun illy ا لي is used to represent that, who and which
the left turn that is coming (ie the next left)iil-yimyn iilly gayy
the man who lives hereiil-raagil iilly saakin hinaa
AdjectivesAdjectives can be used in two ways: to describe something, or to specify which one of several youare talking about.
English Egyptian
describe a cherry is red kiryza hamraكـریز ة حـمرا
describe the ball is red ilkura hamraا لكور ة حـمرا
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describe I want a red ball Aaeyiz kura hamraعا یـز كور ة حـمرا
specify I want the red ball Aaeyiz ilkura ilhamraعا یـز ا لكور ة ا لحـمر ة
describe the book is big ilkitaeb kibyrا لكـتا ب كـبیر
describe I have read a big book 'araa't kitaeb kibyrقـرا ءت كـتا ب كـبیر
specify I have read the big book'araa't ilkitaeb ilkibyr
قـرا ءت ا لكـتا ب الكـبير
describe the man is blind irraagil 'aAmaا لرا جـل أعمى
describe a blind man is outside raagil 'aAma barraرا جـل أعمى بـرا
specify the blind man is outside irraagil il'aAma barraا لرا جـل ا ألعمى بـرا
In English, when you use an adjective to specify which one of several you are talking about, you putthe word the in front of the adjective. It is almost the same in Egyptian, but you put il- ا لـ beforeboth the adjective and the noun: the il- ا لـ before the adjective is the one that means that the
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adjective is specifying which one you mean. Note that adding il- ا لـ to a word affects thepronunciation if it begins with a sun letter.
Masculine, feminine, plural
In english, there is only one form of an adjective, but in Egyptian, most adjectives must agree ingender and number with the noun that they relate to. Here are some examples:
English Egyptian
the man is clever irraagil shaatirا لرا جـل شا طـر
the woman is clever issitt shaatrahا لسـت شا طر ه
the children are cleveril'atfael shaatiryn
ا ألطفا ل شاطـرين
The following table shows some typical feminine and plural forms:
English Egyptian
masculine feminine plural
-ah -yn
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ــه ـین
big kibyrكـبیر
kibyrahكـبیر ه
kubaarكـبا ر
good kuwayisكـو یـس
kuwayisahكـو یـسـه
kuwayisynكـو یـسین
red 'ahmarأحمـر
hamrahحـمر ه
humrحـمر
easy sahlسـهل
sahlahسـهلـه
sahlynسـهلین
nice latyfلـطیف
latyfahلـطیفـه
lutaafلـطا ف
free faadyفا ضي
faadyahفا ضیـه
faadyyinفا ضییـن
brown bunnyبـني
bunnyبـني
bunnyبـني
The feminine form of most adjectives is made by adding the suffix -ah ــه, and the plural is formed byadding the suffix -yn ـین. Note that adding a suffix may affect the pronunciation.
We will look at some of the common exceptions later. Note that some words, for example brownbunny بـني are invariable- you use the same form for masculine, feminine and plural.
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Countries
A country name is usually converted to an adjective by adding -y ـي. This can be used to refer to aperson, a language or something from a country.
English Country m f pl
-yـي
-iyaــيـة
iyyinییـن
Egypt masrمـصر
masryمـصري
masriyaمـصر یـة
masriyyinمـصر ییـن
Greece ilyunaenا لیونا ن
yunanyیونا ني
yunaeniyaیونا نـیـة
yunaeniyyinیونا نـییـن
Italy 'iytalyaإیطا لیا
'iytalyإیطا لي
'iytalyaإیطا لیـة
'iytalyyinإیطا لییـن
Sweden issiwydا لسـوید
siwydyسـویدي
siwydyaسـویدیـة
siwydyyinسـویدییـن
the North ishshimaelا لشـما ل
shimalyشـما لي
shimaeliyaشـما لـیـة
shimaeliyyinشـما لـییـن
Europe'uurubba
أ ور با'uurubby
أ وروبي'uurubbiyaأ وروبـیـة
'uurubbiyyinأ ور
بـييـن
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Irregular ones...
India ilhindا لهـند
hindyهـندي
hindyaهـندیـة
hunudهـنود
America 'amrykaأمریكا
'amryky أمریكي(people)'amrikany أمر كا ني (things)
amrikiyaا مر كـیـة
amrykaenا مریكا ن
For some countries eg England, the adjective is made from the collective noun. Here are someexamples:
English Country m f collective noun
-yـي
-iyaــيـة
England 'ingiltiraإنجـلتـرا
'ingilyzyإنجـلیزي
'ingilyziyahإنجـلیز یـه
'ingilyzإنجـلیز
Arabia Aarabyعـر بي
Aarabyعـر بي
Aarabiyahعـر بـیـه
Aarabعـر ب
Russia rusyaروسیا
rusyروسي
rusyahروسیـه
rusروس
Germany 'almanyaألما نیا
'almanyألما ني
'almanyahألما نیـه
'almaenألما ن
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Spain 'asbanyaأسبا نیا
'asbanyأسبا ني
'asbanyahأسبا نیـه
'asbaenأسبا ن
For countries ending in two consonants and alif, the ending is -awy ـا وي.
English Country m f pl
-awyـا وي
-awiyaـا و یـة
-awiyyinـا و ییا ن
Austria innimsaا لنـمسا
nimsaewyنـمسا وي
nimsawiyyahنـمسـو ییـه
nimsawiyyinنـمسـو ییـن
France faransaفـر نسا
faransaewyفـر نسا وي
faransawiyahفـر نسـو یـه
faransawiyyinفـر نسـو ییـن
One common usage of the country adjective is to talk about a person from that country. Here aresome examples:
English Egyptian
an Egyptian man waehid masryوا حـد مـصري
an Egyptian woman wahda masryaوا حد ة مـصریـة
waehid 'ingilizy
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an englishman waehid 'ingilizyوا حـد إنجـلـزي
an englishwoman wahda 'ingilyzyaوا حد ة إنجـلیزیـة
a frenchman waehid faransawyوا حـد فـر نسـوي
a frenchwoman wahda faransawiyaوا حد ة فـر نسـو یـة
The feminine and plural are used only for people. For inanimate objects, the masculine form only isused. Here are some examples:
English Egyptian
a greek boat markib yunanyمـركـب یونا ني
French cheese gibna faransaewyجـبنـة فـر نسا وي
american carsilAarabiyaet 'amrikany
ا لعـر بـیا ت أمر كاني
Colours
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The main colours follow a pattern. Here are some examples:
English m f pl
C=consonant aCCaC CaCCah CuCC
white 'abyadأبیـض
biydaبـیضا
biydبـیض
black 'iswidإسو د
sudaسودا
suwdسـود
yellow 'asfarأصفـر
safraصـفرا
sufrصـفر
blue 'azra'أزر ق
zar'ahز رقـه
zur'ز رق
green 'achdarأخضـر
chadraخـضرا
chudrخـضر
red 'ahmarأحمـر
hamraحـمرا
humrحـمر
Colours derived from a material or thing just have a -y ـي added. They are invariable: the feminineand plural form is the same as the masculine form.
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English m/f/pl
browncoffee
bunnyبـني
golden zahabyذ هـبي
silver faddyفـضي
copper nahasyنـحا سي
light grey rumadyر ما دي
dark greylead
rusaasyر صا صي
dark greenolive
zytyزیتي
dark blue kuhlyكـحلي
pale blue labanyلـبـني
nibyty
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dark redwine
nibytyنـبیتي
chestnut kastanae'yyكـستـنا ئي
light brownhoney
Aasalyعـسـلي
purpleviolet
banafsigyبـنـفسـجي
orange burtu'alyبـرتـقا لي
deep purpleaubergine
bitanganyبـتـنجا ني
Personal attributes
Personal attributes or disabilities follow the same pattern as the basic colours:
English m f pl
C=consonant aCCaC CaCCah CuCC
foolish 'ahbalأهبـل
hablaهـبلـة
hublهـبل
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squinting 'ahwalأحو ل
hulaa'حوال ء
huwlحـول
bald 'a'raAأقر ع
'arAaقـرعـة
'urAقـرع
bald 'aslaAأصلـع
salAaa'صـلعا ء
sulAصـلع
fair skinblonde
'ash'arأشقـر
sha'araشـقـر ة
shu'rشـقر
dark skinbrunette
'asmarأسمـر
samraسـمر ة
sumrسـمر
frizzy haired 'akratأكر ت
kartaكـرتـة
kurtكـرت
left handed 'ashwalأشو ل
shulaشولـة
shulشول
right handed 'aymanأیمـن
yimnaیـمنـة
yumnیـمن
lame 'aAragأعر ج
Aargaعـرجـة
Aurgعـرج
blind 'aAmaأعمى
Aamyaعـمیـة
Aumyعـمي
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deaf 'atrashأطر ش
turshaa'طـرشا ء
turshطـرش
deaf 'asamأصـم
samaa'صـما ء
summصـم
mute 'achrasأخر س
charsaخـرسـة
chursخـرس
Slightly, Very... Extremely...
The following adverbs can be placed after the adjective:
English Egyptian
slightly shwayaشو یـة
moderately bi'iAtidaelبـإعتـدا ل
very 'awyقـوي
extremely chaalisخا لـص
giddaen
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giddaenجـدا
Aail'achirعـا ألخـر
too 'awyقـوي
Here are some examples:
English Egyptian
the car is slightly damaged ilAarabiya 'itdarrarit shwayaا لعـر بـیـة إتضـر ر ت شو یـة
the carpet was very expensiveissigaeda kaenit Galya 'awy
ا لسـجا د ة كا نـت غا لیـةقـوي
he is extremely rich huwwa Gany giddaenهـو غـني جـدا
this house is too big ilbiyt dih kibyr 'awyا لبـیت د ه كـبیر قـوي
You may have noticed that the word qawy has two meanings: very and too. This sometimescauses confusion when Egyptians speak english: they say, for example, too much when they
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mean very much.
Comparatives
In english we take an adjective like big and add suffixes -er to make comparative bigger and -estto make the superlative biggest. In Egyptian there is one word, a comparative, that is used for both.The context indicates the meaning.
We can compare two things using min مـن:
English Egyptian
Ahmad is taller than me 'ahmad 'atwal minnyأحمـد أطو ل مـني
he is more stupid than I thought huwwa 'aGba min makunt faekirهـو أغبى مـن مـكـنت فا كـر
We can also make comparison without specifying the second thing like this:
English Egyptian
Ahmad is a lot taller 'ahmad 'atwal bikityrأحمـد أطو ل بـكـتیر
the weather will be a little better tomorrow ilgaww haykun 'ahsan shuwaya bukraا لجـو حـیكون أحسـن شـو یـة بـكر ة
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For the superlative (best, biggest) the comparative is used immediately before a noun:
English Egyptian
mohammed is the tallest student muhammad 'atwal taalibمـحـمـد أطو ل طا لـب
he is the youngest boy huwwa 'asGar waladهـو أصغـر و لـد
the tallest student is 1m90ittaalib il'atwal tuluh mitr 1 wa 90 santy
ا لطا لـب ا ألطو ل طولوه مـتر ١ و ٩٠سـنتي
the most expensive drink is 20 pounds ilmashrub il'aGla 20 ginyhا لمـشروب ا ألغلى ٢٠ جـنیه
this is the prettiest dress in the shop dih 'ahla fustaen fy ilmahalد ه أحلى فـستا ن في ا لمـحـل
it was the best day in my life kaen 'ahsan yum fy hayatyكا ن أحسـن یوم في حـیا تي
Making comparatives
As you may have noticed from the previous examples, the comparative is often derived from theadjective as follows:
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English adjective comparative
big kibyrكـبیر
'akbarأكبـر
easy sahlسـهل
'ashalأسهـل
tall tawylطـویل
'atwalأطو ل
classy raqyرا قي
'arqaأرقى
exceptions
good kuwayyisكـو ییـس
'ahsanأحسـن
For adjectives with two consonants and ending in -y ـي or -w ـو, the final letter changes to alif-layena-a ـى.
English adjective comparative
pretty hilwحـلو
'ahlaأحلى
expensive Galy 'aGla
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expensive غا لي أغلى
loud/high Aalyعا لي
'aAlaأعلى
rich Ganyغـني
'aGnaأغنى
healthy sahyصـحي no comp
stupid Gabyغـبي
'aGbaأغبى
clever zakyذ كي
'azkaأذكى
For adjectives with three consonants where the last two consonants are the same, the middle vowelis replaced with a fatha -a ـ.
English adjective comparative
serious gaddجـد no comp
new gidydجـدید
'agdadأجد د
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important muhimmمـهـم
'ahammأهـم
numerous Aadydعـدید no comp
lucky mahzuzمـحظوظ no comp
popular mahbubمـحبوب
'ahabbأحـب
light chafyfخـفیف
'achaffأخـف
delicious lazyzلـذیذ
'alazzألـذ
few 'alayilقـلـیـل
'a'aelأقا ل
In English, it is not possible to make a comparative in the usual way from some adjectives, forexample interesting: instead, we say more interesting. The same is true in Egyptian: the words'aktar أكتـر - more and 'a'ael أقا ل - less are used with the adjective. Here are examples of adjectivesthat are handled this way
Group English Egyptian
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participlesbeginning with m-مـ
the contract is more acceptable likethis
ilAa'd ma'bul 'aktar kidahا لعـقد مـقبول أكتـر كـد ه
participlesbeginning with ta-تـ
I am less traditional than you'ana ta'lidy 'a'ael minnak
أنا تـقلـدي أقا ل مـنـك
adjectivesbeginning with 'a- أـ he gets more selfish every day
huwwa biyib'a 'anany 'aktar kulyum
هـو بـیـبقا أنا ني أكتـر كـل یومadjectivesending with -an ـا Sarah is more tired than Ahmed saara taAbaena 'aktar min 'ahmad
سا ر ة تـعبا نـة أكتـر مـن أحمـد
VerbsA verb tells you what is happening- for example, reading, walking etc. In Egyptian, the generalmeaning of a word is defined by the consonants, and several related words may contain this set ofletters. For example, the letters ktb are used to make the words write, type, book, writer, written,writing, office and desk. The exact meaning is affected by the vowels, prefixes and suffixes (extrabits at the beginning and the end). Here are some of the ways the exact meaning can change forverbs:
tense - when something happens (past, present, future)case - who is doing it (I, you, he, etc)mode - must, could etc
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pronouns - who is doing it, who is having it done to themnegation - say something is NOT happening
The examples that follow use the verb katab كـتـب, which means write: about 30% of verbs followthis pattern, and there are probably about three or four other patterns.
The web site www.lisaanmasry.com and the windows and Android apps that you can downloadfrom the web site all provides full details for the majority of verbs.
Pronouns
There are three main types of pronouns that can be used with verbs:
subject - I, we, you, he, she, it, theyobject - me, us, you, him, her, it, themindirect object - to me, to us, to you, to him, to her, to it, to them
In Egyptian, the subject pronoun is a separate word before the verb: the object and indirect objectpronouns are attached to the end of the verb. Here are a some examples:
Pronoun English Arabic
Subject I know Ahmed 'ana Aaarif 'ahmadأنا عا ر ف أحمـد
Subject, object I know him 'ana Aaarifuhأنا عا ر فـه
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Object Ahmed saw her yesterday 'ahmad shaefha 'imbaarihأحمـد شا فها إمبا ر ح
Object Sarah knows him saara Aaarifahسا ر ة عا ر فـه
Object, Indirect give it to me! iddyhwlyا دیهولي
Subject pronoun
The subject pronoun appears before the verb or participle.
English Arabic
I 'anaأنا
we 'ihnaإحنا
you(m) 'intaإنت
you(f) 'intiإنت
you(pl) 'intu
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you(pl) إنتوا
he/it(m) huwwaهـو
she/it(f) hiyaهـي
they hummaهـم
Object pronoun
You can attach an object pronoun (for example me or him) to the end of an imperative, verb orparticiple. See pronouns for more information.
Ahmed envies me
aacHmad biyiHsad-ny
English Suffix
me -nyـني
us -naـنا
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you(m) -akــك
you(f) -ikــك
you(pl) -kumـكـم
him/it(m) -uhــه
her/it(f) -haـها
them -humـهـم
If there is an -i- ــ before the last consonant and the suffix starts with a vowel, the -i- ــ is dropped. Ifthe verb requires a preposition (to, from etc) the object goes on the preposition.
Here are some examples:
English Egyptian
show me! warrynyو ریني
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nobody helped us mahaddish saeAidnaمـحـد ش سا عـدنا
I saw you(m) 'ana shuftakأنا شـفتـك
I love you(f) 'ana bahibbikأنا بـحـبـك
I know him 'ana Aaarifuhأنا عا ر فـه
I told them 'ana 'ultilhumأنا قـلتـلهـم
Indirect object
Some verbs require two objects- for example:
give it(f) to me
iiddy-haa-ly
It is the direct object and to me is the indirect object. The indirect object suffixes are as follows:
English Suffix
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to me -lyـلي
to us -linaـلـنا
to you(m) -lakـلـك
to you(f) -likـلـك
to you(pl) -lukuـلـك
to him/it(m) -luـل
to her/it(f) -lahaـلـها
to them -luhumـلـهـم
Tenses
In both english and Egyptian, a verb has different tenses to indicate when something happens- inthe past, now or in the future. The usage of each tense will be explained in more details later. Here
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are some examples using katab كـتـب:
Form Example Meaning No ofcases
perfect katabكـتـب he wrote 8 (i/we/you, etc)
simple imperfect yiktibیـكتـب
used with modals - eg he must writeand kaen كا ن - he used to write 8 (i/we/you, etc)
bi-imperfectbiyiktib
بـیـكتـبhe is writinghe writeshe knows how to write used with kaen كا ن
8 (i/we/you, etc)
ha-imperfect hayiktibهـیـكتـب
he will writeused with kaen كا ن 8 (i/we/you, etc)
active participle kaetabكا تـب (he is) writing 3 (m/f/pl)
passive participle maktubمـكتوب (it is) written 3 (m/f/pl)
imperative iktibا كتـب write! 3 (m/f/pl)
verbal noun kitaebaكـتا بـة (the box is covered with) writing 2 (s/pl)
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place maktabمـكتـب writing place (desk or office) 2 (s/pl)
Case
The two main tenses of a verb are the perfect and the simple imperfect: the bi-and ha- imperfectjust have prefixes added to the simple imperfect. The usage of these tenses will be explained inmore detail the section on time. Here is the he case of each tense:
Tense English Egyptian
perfect he wrote huwwa katabهـو كـتـب
simple imperfect he must write huwwa laezim yiktibهـو ال ز م یـكتـب
bi-imperfect he writes huwwa biyiktibهـو بـیـكتـب
ha-imperfect he will write huwwa hayiktibهـو هـیـكتـب
There are eight possible cases for each tense, corresponding to the eight pronoun forms(I/we/you/he, etc). Remember that the three imperfect forms are very similar.
Perfect
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Perfect
Here is an example of the perfect, which is used for things that occurred in the past.
Perfect
English Pronoun Verb
I wrote 'anaأنا
katabtكـتـبت
we wrote 'ihnaإحنا
katabnaكـتـبنا
you(m) wrote 'intaإنت
katabtكـتـبت
you(f) wrote 'intiإنت
katabtyكـتـبتي
you(pl) wrote 'intuإنتوا
katabtuكـتـبتوا
he/it(m) wrote huwwaهـو
katabكـتـب
she/it(f) wrote hiyaهـي
katabitكـتـبـت
they wrote humma katabu
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they wrote هـما كـتـبوا
Simple imperfect
The imperfect has no meaning on its own: it is used in four ways:
with kaen كا ن for things that happened in the pastwith modals like must, could, should etc.with bi-prefix for things happening nowwith ha-prefix for things that will happen
Here is an example with laazim, which means must.
Simple Imperfect
English Pronoun modal Verb
I must write 'anaأنا
laezimال ز م
'aktibأكتـب
we must write 'ihnaإحنا
laezimال ز م
niktibنـكتـب
you(m) must write 'intaإنت
laezimال ز م
tiktibتـكتـب
you(f) must write 'intiإنت
laezimال ز م
tiktibyتـكتـبي
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you(pl)must write 'intuإنتوا
laezimال ز م
tiktibuتـكتـبوا
he/it(m)must write huwwaهـو
laezimال ز م
yiktibیـكتـب
she/it(f)must write hiyaهـي
laezimال ز م
tiktibتـكتـب
they must write hummaهـما
laezimال ز م
yiktibuیـكتـبوا
The english word must is a proper modal, it is the same for all cases. The Egyptian word
laezim ال ز م is a proper modal. Later on, you will learn how to use participles and verbs as modals,and you will see how they will change to match the case.
bi-imperfect
For the majority of verbs, the bi-imperfect is used to describe things happening now, and forhabitual actions. See active participles for the exceptions
It is the same as the simple imperfect, with a bi- بـ in front. Note that there are some small changesto the beginning of the imperfect when the prefix is added.
bi-imperfect
English Pronoun verb
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I write 'anaأنا
baktibبـكتـب
we write 'ihnaإحنا
biniktibبـنـكتـب
you(m) write 'intaإنت
bitiktibبـتـكتـب
you(f) write 'intiإنت
bitiktibyبـتـكتـبي
you(pl) write 'intuإنتوا
bitiktibuبـتـكتـبوا
he/it(m) writes huwwaهـو
biyiktibبـیـكتـب
she/it(f) writes hiyaهـي
bitiktibبـتـكتـب
they write hummaهـما
biyiktibuبـیـكتـبوا
ha-imperfect
The ha-imperfect is used for things that will happen at some time in the future.
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It is the same as the simple imperfect, with ha- هـ in front. Note that there are some small changes tothe beginning of the imperfect when the prefix is added.
ha-imperfect
English Pronoun Verb
I will write 'anaأنا
haktibهـكتـب
we will write 'ihnaإحنا
haniktibهـنـكتـب
you(m) will write 'intaإنت
hatiktibهـتـكتـب
you(f) will write 'intiإنت
hatiktibyهـتـكتـبي
you(pl) will write 'intuإنتوا
hatiktibuهـتـكتـبوا
he/it(m) will write huwwaهـو
hayiktibهـیـكتـب
she/it(f) will write hiyaهـي
hatiktibهـتـكتـب
humma hayiktibu
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they will write hummaهـما
hayiktibuهـیـكتـبوا
is/was/will be
As mentioned earlier, there is no word for is in Egyptian. There are, however, words for was - kaen.هـیكون and will be - haykun كا ن
kaan
kaen كا ن can be used on its own to talk about some situation in the past, or it can be used with theimperfect and bi-imperfect to move the meaning of the verb into the past, and with the ha-imperfectto indicate something that almost or nearly happened.
kaan
English Pronoun Verb
I was anaا نا
kuntكـنت
we were ihnaا حنا
kunnaكـنا
you(m) were 'intaإنت
kuntكـنت
you(f) were 'inti kunty
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you(f) were إنت كـنتي
you(pl) were 'intuإنتوا
kuntuكـنتوا
he/it(m) was huwaهـو
kaenكا ن
she/it(f) was hiyaهـي
kaenitكا نـت
they were hummaهـما
kanuكا نوا
Here are some examples:
English Egyptian
he was here kaen hinaكا ن هـنا
I was too tired kunt taAbaen 'awyكـنت تـعبا ن قـوي
the party was goodilhafla kaenit kuwayisa
ا لحـفلـة كا نـت كـويـسـة
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preposition there was water, but it's finished kaen fy mayaeh wa chilsitكا ن في مـیا ه و خـلصـت
preposition we had a house kaen Aandina biytكا ن عـند نا بـیت
bi-imperfect he was smoking a cigarette kaen biyishrab sygaaraكا ن بـیـشر ب سیجا ر ة
bi-imperfect he used to smoke cigarettes kaen biyishrab sigaeyarكا ن بـیـشر ب سـجا یـر
ha-imperfect I almost ran him over kunt hadusuhكـنت هـدوسـه
Note that, for prepositional sentences, kaen كا ن does not change with the subject of the sentence -it is always kaen كا ن - it was.
haykwn
haykun هـیكون simply means will be. Here are some examples:
haykwn
English Pronoun verb
I will be anaا نا
hakunهـكون
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we will be ihnaا حنا
hankunهـنكون
you(m) will be 'intaإنت
hatkunهـتكون
you(f) will be 'intiإنت
hatkunyهـتكوني
you(pl) will be 'intuإنتوا
hatkunuهـتكونوا
he/it(m) will be huwaهـو
haykunهـیكون
she/it will be(f) hiyaهـي
hatkunهـتكون
they will be hummaهـما
haykunuهـیكونوا
Here are some examples:
English Egyptian
the party will be good ilhafla hatkun kuwayisaا لحـفلـة هـتكون كـو یـسـة
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there will be a lot of wind tomorrow haykun fy hawaa' kityr bukraهـیكون في هـوا ء كـتیر بـكر ة
I will be free at five 'ana hakun faady issaeAa chamsaأنا هـكون فا ضي ا لسا عـة خـمسـة
Note that, for prepositional sentences, haykun هـیكون does not change with the subject of thesentence - it is always haykun هـیكون - it will be.
Time
Here is a summary of ways to express when something happens:
Construction Example Meaning
perfect katabكـتـب he wrote
kaen كا ن + imperfect kaen yiktibكا ن یـكتـب he was writing
he used to writekaen كا ن + bi-imperfect kaen biyiktib
كا ن بـیـكتـب
bi-imperfectbiyiktib
بـیـكتـبhe is writinghe writeshe can write
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ha-imperfect hayiktibهـیـكتـب he will write
kaen كا ن + ha-imperfect
kaen hayiktibكا ن هـیـكتـب he intended to write
kaen haymutكا ن هـیموت he almost died
raayih را یـح + imperfect raayih yiktibرا یـح یـكتـب
he is going to writehayruh حـیروح + imperfect hayruh yiktib
هـیروح یـكتـب
Participles
In both English and Egyptian, a participle is derived from a verb, but is used like an adjective. Thereare two types of participle- active and passive. As they are adjectives, in Egyptian, there are threeforms- masculine, feminine and plural.
Participle English Masculine Feminine Plural
-aــة
-ynـین
Active wanting Aaeyizعا یـز
Aaeyizaعا یـز ة
Aaeyizynعا یـزین
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Active knowing Aaarifعا ر ف
Aaarifaعا ر فـة
Aaarifynعا ر فین
Active understanding faehimفا هـم
faehimaفا هـمـة
faehimynفا هـمین
Active boiling Galayaenغـلـیا ن
Galayaenغـلـیا ن
Galayaenغـلـیا ن
Active daydreaming sarhaenسـرحا ن
sarhaenaسـرحا نـة
sarhanynسـرحا نین
Passive bound mitgalidمـتجـلـد
mitgalidaمـتجـلـد ة
mitgalidynمـتجـلـدین
Passive blessed mubaarakمـبا ر ك
mubaarakaمـبا ر كـة
mubaarakynمـبا ر كین
Passive born mawludمـولود
mawludaمـولود ة
mawludynمـولودین
Passive understood mafhumمـفهوم
mafhumaمـفهومـة
mafhumynمـفهومین
Active Participles
In English, we can describe something happening now by using the present tense or the activeparticiple:
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present I look a single event or habitual action
present I am looking a continuous action
In Egyptian, for some verbs, the active participle is the normal way of expressing what somebody isdoing right now. For other verbs, the bi-imperfect is used. Generally, participles are used for verbsthat relate to a state or continuous actions, but there is no flexibility: you have to use a participle fora particular verb whether the action is continuous or not. The four groups of verbs where theparticiple is used are:
movement: going, coming etcsenses: seeing, hearingstates of mind: knowing, understanding, angrystates of body: sleeping
English Verb ActiveParticiple
put hattحـط
haatytحا طیت
travel saefirسا فـر
misaefirمـسا فـر
know Airifعـر ف
Aaarifعا ر ف
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understand fihimفـهـم
faehimفا هـم
sleep naemنا م
naeyimنا یـم
angry ziAilز عـل
zaAlaenز عال ن
Active participles are like adjectives, and have masculine, feminine and plural forms. Here are someexamples showing how the participle agrees with the subject
English Verb
I(m) know Ahmed 'ana Aaarif 'ahmadأنا عا ر ف أحمـد
I(f) know Ahmed 'ana Aaarifa 'ahmadأنا عا ر فـة أحمـد
we know Ahmed ihna Aaarifyn 'ahmadا حنا عا ر فین أحمـد
you(m) know Ahmed 'inta Aaarif 'ahmadإنت عا ر ف أحمـد
you(f) know Ahmed 'inti Aaarifa 'ahmadإنت عا ر فـة أحمـد
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you(pl) know Ahmed 'intu Aaarifyn 'ahmadإنتو ا عا ر فین أحمـد
he knows Ahmed huwwa Aaarif 'ahmadهـو عا ر ف أحمـد
she knows Ahmed hiya Aaarifa 'ahmadهـي عا ر فـة أحمـد
they know Ahmed humma Aaarifyn 'ahmadهـما عا ر فین أحمـد
The participle is also used for an action that took place in the past but whose effect is still in force,for example reserving a room:
Element English Arabic
perfect tabacht ilAashaطـبـخت ا لعـشا I cooked dinner (a long time ago)
participle 'ana taabach Aashaأنا طا بـخ عـشا I cooked dinner (it is reaady now)
Passive Participles
A passive participle describes something that has had something done to it. In English it often endswith -ed, and in Egyptian, it often begins with ma- مـ. Passive participles are like adjectives, and
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have masculine, feminine and plural forms.
English Arabic Verb
the food is cooked il'akl matbuchا ألكل مـطبوخ
tabachطـبـخ
the bowl is broken issultaniya maksuraا لسـلطـنـیـة مـكسور ة
kasarكـسـر
the floors are washed il'ardiyaet maGsulynا ألرضـیا ت مـغسولین
Gasalغـسـل
I was married kunt mitgawwizكـنت مـتجـو ز
'itgawwizإتجـو ز
smoked salami salamy mudachanسـال مي مـد خـن
dachchanد خـن
modals: possibility, preference etc
You can use a modal together with the simple imperfect to indicate whether something must, may,could happen. Most proper modals are invariable- there is no I/you/he form. Here are someexamples:
Modal Example Meaning
laezim laezim yiktib
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laezimال ز م
laezim yiktibال ز م یـكتـب he must write
mumkinمـمكـن
mumkin yiktibمـمكـن یـكتـب he could write
mihtaegمـحتا ج
mihtaeg yiktibمـحتا ج یـكتـب he needs to write
yimkinیـمكـن
yimkin yiktibیـمكـن یـكتـب he might write
ilmafrudا لمـفروض
ilmafrud yiktibا لمـفروض یـكتـب he should> write
daruryضـروري
darury yiktibضـروري یـكتـب it is essential that he should write
Aalashaenعـلـشا ن
pronounced Aashaenعـشا ن
Aalashaen yiktibعـلـشا ن یـكتـب in order to write
There are also some verbs or participles that can be used as modals. Here are some examples:
Type Modal Example Meaning
Aaewiz Aaewiz yiktib
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participle Aaewizعا و ز
Aaewiz yiktibعا و ز یـكتـب he wants to write
participle naewyنا وي
naewy yiktibنا وي یـكتـب he intends to write
noun nifsنـفس
nifsuh yiktibنـفسـه یـكتـب he wishes he could write
verb 'idir, yi'darقـد ر، یـقد ر
yi'dar yiktibیـقد ر یـكتـب he is able to write
verb Airif, yiArafعـر ف، یـعر ف
yiAraf yiktibیـعر ف یـكتـب he knows how to write
verb habb, yihibbحـب، یـحـب
yihibb yiktibیـحـب یـكتـب he likes to write
verb lihi', yihla'لـحـق، یـحلـق
lihi' yiktibلـحـق یـكتـب he managed to write
verb raah, yiruhرا ح، یـروح
raah yiktibرا ح یـكتـب he went to write
verb nisy, yinsaنـسي، یـنسى
nisi yiktibنـس یـكتـب he forgot to write
Participles must agree with the gender and number, and verbs must be the appropriate case. Truemodals like laezim ال ز م do not change. Here are some examples.
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Type English Arabic
modal I must write 'ana laezim 'aktibأنا ال ز م أكتـب
modal you(m) must write 'inta laezim tiktibإنت ال ز م تـكتـب
modal he must write huwwa laezim yiktibهـو ال ز م یـكتـب
modal they must write humma laezim tiktibuهـم ال ز م تـكتـبوا
participle I want to write 'ana Aaeyiz 'aktibأنا عا یـز أكتـب
participle she wants to write hiya Aaeyiza tiktibهـي عا یـز ة تـكتـب
participle they want to write humma Aaeyizyn yiktibuهـم عا یـزین یـكتـبوا
verb I like to write ana baehibb 'aktibا نا با حـب أكتـب
verb he likes to write huwwa biyihibb yiktibهـو بـیـحـب یـكتـب
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verb she likes to write hiya bitihibb tiktibهـي بـتـحـب تـكتـب
verb they like to write humma biyihibbu yiktibuهـم بـیـحـبو ا یـكتـبوا
If the subject of the verb is not the same as the subject of the modal
I want to go (same)I want him to go (different)
in both english and egpytian you add an object pronoun to the modal: in Egyptian it is attached tothe modal, or to any preposition associated with it.
English Arabic
she wants me to write hiya Aaeyizany 'aktibهـي عا یـز ني أكتـب
she wants to write hiya Aaeyiza tiktibهـي عا یـز ة تـكتـب
she wants him to write hiya Aaeyizah yiktibهـي عا یـز ه یـكتـب
he wants her to write huwwa Aaeyizha tiktibهـو عا یـزها تـكتـب
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she likes him to write bitihibbuh yiktibبـتـحـبـه یـكتـب
he likes her to write biyihibbha tiktibبـیـحـبها تـكتـب
I let him write chalitw yiktibخـلـتو یـكتـب
I asked him to write talabt minnuh yiktibطـلـبت مـنـه یـكتـب
Imperatives
When you want to tell somebody to do something, you use an imperative. In Egyptian, there arethree forms- masculine, feminine and plural. Here are some examples.
English Verb Masculine Feminine Plural
Imperfect -yـي
-uـوا
look! yibussیـبـص
bussبـص
bussyبـصي
bussuبـصوا
go! yiruhیـروح
ruwhر وح
ruwhyر وحي
ruwhuر وحوا
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come!
yiygyیـیجي
irregular
taAaelaتـعا ل
taAalyتـعا لي
taAaluتـعا لوا
eat! yaekulیا كـل
kulكـل
kulyكـلي
kuluكـلوا
shut up! yuskutیـسكـت
'iskutإسكـت
'iskutyإسكـتي
'iskutuإسكـتوا
calm down! yihdaیـهدى
'ihdaإهدى
'ihdyإهدي
'ihduإهدوا
walk!(go away)
yimshyیـمشي
'imshyإمشي
'imshyإمشي
'imshuإمشوا
verbal nouns
It is sometimes useful to make a noun from a verb. Here are some examples:
English Arabic Verb
wash your hands before eating iGsil iydyk 'abl il'aklا غسـل ا یدیك قـبل ا ألكل
kalكـل
I have a reservation Aandy hagzعـندي حـجز
haegizحا جـز
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This game is for four playersilliaAba dih li'arbAa laAyba
ا لــعبـة د ه لـأربع العيبا
liAibلـعـب
Negation of verbs
You can say that something is not happening using the word mish مـش. It can appear before a verb,or wrapped around it. Here are some examples:
English Egyptian
he is not here huwwa mish hinaهـو مـش هـنا
he was not here huwwa makansh hinaهـو مـكا نش هـنا
I have not travelled outside egypt masafirtish barra masrمـسـفـرتـش بـرا مـصر
I do not know 'ana mish Aaarifأنا مـش عا ر ف
he was not able to come ma'dirsh yigyمـقد رش یـجي
he will not come mish hayigy
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he will not come مـش هـیـجي
don't go! matimshyshمـتـمشیش
See Negation for more details.
AdverbsA verb explains what is being done: adverbs can be used to specify how, when, where and in whatmanner it is being done. There can be more than one adverb- they are placed after the verb. Hereare some examples.
English Egyptian
direction Ahmed is going up (stairs) 'ahmad taalaA fu'أحمـد طا لـع فوق
position Ahmed is coming here 'ahmad gayy hinaأحمـد جـیي هـنا
time Ahmed will come tomorrow evening 'ahmad hayigy bukra biillylأحمـد حـیـجي بـكر ة بـا لیل
frequency Ahmed always walks 'ahmad biyimshy daymaenأحمـد بـیـمشي د یما
quality Ahmed walks quickly 'ahmad biyimshy bisuraAa
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quality Ahmed walks quickly أحمـد بـیـمشي بـسـر عـة
extent Ahmed walks extremely quickly 'ahmad biyimshy bisuraAa giddaenأحمـد بـیـمشي بـسـر عـة جـدا
Ahmed always walks slowly upstairs inthe evening
'ahmad biyitaalaA issalaelim daymaenbishwysh fy illyl
أحمـد بـیـطا لـع ا لسـال لـم د یما بـشویش فيا لیل
direction
Direction adverbs can be used with verbs like go
English Egyptian English example Egyptian example
up fu'فوق I am going upstairs 'ana taalaA fu'
أنا طا لـع فوق
down tahtتـحت he dived down Gitis taht
غـطـس تـحت
left shamaelشـما ل turn left! chushsh shamael
خـش شـما ل
right yimynیـمین look right! buss yimyn
بـص یـمین
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straight aheadAala tul
عـلىطول
go(walk) straight ahead'imshy Aala tul
إمشي عـلى طول
location
Location adverbs can be used with verbs like go
English Egyptian English example Egyptian example
here hinaهـنا come here! taAala hina
تـعا لى هـنا
there hinaekهـنا ك I have to go there tomorrow laezim 'aruwh hinaek bukrah
ال ز م أر وح هـنا ك بـكر ه
time
Time adverbs are used to specify when you do something: they can be used with almost any verb.Here are some examples:
English Egyptian English example Egyptian example
immediately halaenحا ال I will open it immediately haftahuh halaen
هـفتـحـه حا الdilwa'ty 'ihna gaehizyn dilwa'ty
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now dilwa'tyد لو قتي we are ready now 'ihna gaehizyn dilwa'ty
إحنا جا هـزین د لو قتي
already noequivalent he (is) already here huwwa mawgwd
todayinnahaarda
ا لنـها رد ة the party is this eveningilhafla innahaarda biillyl
ا لحـفلـة ا لنـها رد ة بـاليل
tomorrow bukrahبـكر ه I will go to Alexandria tomorrow
haruwh il'iskandiraayabukrah
هـر وح ا إلسكـند را یـةبـكر ه
the day aftertomorrow
baAd bukrahبـعد بـكر ه
I will come back the day aftertomorrow
'ana hargaA baAd bukrahأنا هـرجـع بـعد بـكر ه
yesterday 'imbaarihإمبا ر ح she arrived yesterday wasalt 'imbaarih
و صـلت إمبا ر ح
day beforeyesterday
'awil'imbaarihأو ل إمبا ر ح
I bought it the day before yesterday'ashtarytuh 'awil 'imbaarih
أشتـریتـه أو ل إمبا ر ح
next week
il'usbwaAilligaey
ا أل سبو ع we will go home next week
hanrawwah il'usbwaAilligaey
هـنر و ح ا أل سبو ع ا لـجا
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ا لـجا ي ي
this weekil'usbwaA dih
ا أل سبو عد ه
we are on holiday this week
ihna fy 'agaeza il'usbwaAdih
ا حنا في أجا ز ة ا أل سبوع د ه
last week
il'usbwaA 'illyfaet
ا أل سبو عإلي فا ت
I saw her last weekshuftaha il'usbwaA 'illyfaetشـفتـها ا أل سبو ع إلي فا ت
early badryبـدري we must get up early tomorrow laezim ni'um badry bukrah
ال ز م نـقوم بـدري بـكر ه
evening biillylبـا لیل there is a party this evening fy hafla biillyl
في حـفلـة بـا لیل
later baAdynبـعدین see you later hashufak baAdyn
حـشوفـك بـعدین
againkamaenmarrah
كـما ن مـر هplay that song again
Ganny il'aGniya dihkamaen marrah
غـني ا ألغنـیـة د ه كـما نمـر ه
afterwards baAd kida we will eat and afterwards we willhanaekul wa baAd kidahani'Aad fyilginyna
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afterwards baAd kidaبـعد كـد ة
we will eat and afterwards we willsit in the garden هـنا كـل و بـعد كـد ة هـنـقعـد
فیا لجـنینـة
ago minمـن
I have lived here for a long time (lit.since a long time ago
sikint hina min zamaenسـكـنت هـنا مـن ز ما ن
frequency
This group of adverbs specifies how frequently you do something. Here are some examples:
English Egyptian English example Egyptian example
usuallyAaedataen
عا د تا I usually take a nap after lunchbaechud Aadataen taAsylla baAdilGadaa'
با خـد عـد تا تـعسیلـة بـعد ا لغـدا ء
always daymaenد یما his office is always neat maktabuh mitsattif daymaen
مـكتـبـه مـتسـتـف د یما
rarely naediraanنا د را I rarely see Ahmed 'ana bashuf ahmad naediraan
أنا با شوف ا حمـد نا د را
regularly bi'intizaemبـإنتـظا م I go to the gym regularly baruh ilgym bi'intizaem
بـروح ا لجیم بـإنتـظا م
recentlymin 'urayib
مـن قـر یـبsomebody asked me about thatrecently
hadd s'aalny Aanuh dih min'urayib
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recently مـن قـر یـب recently حـد سأ لني عـنـه د ه مـن قـر یـب
at all 'abadaenأبـدا I don't know him at all mish Aaarifuh 'abadaen
مـش عا ر فـه أبـدا
again thanyثا ني I would like to go there again Aaeyiz 'aruh hinaek thany
عا یـز أروح هـنا ك ثا ني
often Galibaenغـلـبا she is often tired hiya taAbaena Galibaen
هـي تـعبا نـة غـلـبا
forever lil'abadلـألبـد nobody lives for ever mahaddish biyiAish lil'abad
مـحـد ش بـیـعـش لـألبـد
all day tul ilyumطول ا لیوم it rained all day mattar tul ilyum
مـطـر طول ا لیومall(my/his/her)life
tul ilAumrطول ا لعـمر
he smoked cigarettes all hislife
kaen biyishrib sagaeyar tulAumruhكا ن بـیـشر ب سـجا یـر طول عـمر ه
firstly 'awilaenأو ال
finally 'achyraanأخیرا he finally visited london zaar lundun 'achyraan
زا ر لـند ن أخیراmin wa'tlilthany baruh ilginyna min wa't lilthany
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occasionallylilthany
مـن و قتلـلثا ني
I go to the park occasionally بـروح ا لجـنینـة مـن و قت لـلثاني
hourly biissaeAaبـا لسا عـة you must check hourly laezim titammim biissaeAa
ال ز م تـتـمـم بـا لسا عـة
sometimes'ahyanaen
أحیا ناwe sometimes see sharkshere
binishuf samak 'irsh 'ahyanaenhina
بـنـشوف سـمـك قـرش أحیا نا هـنا
sometimes'aw'aet
أوقا ت it sometimes rains in Egypt
'aw'aet bitmattar fy masrأوقا ت بـتمـطـر في مـصر
Note: always goes at beginning ofsentence
Extent
The following adverbs can be placed after an adjective or another adverb to indicate the extent:
English Egyptian
slightly shwayaشو یـة
reasonably maA'ulaمـعقولـة
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very 'awyقـوي
extremely chaalisخا لـص
giddaenجـدا
Aail'achirعـا ألخـر
too 'awyقـوي
Derived adverbs
Most adjectives in english can be converted to an adverb by adding the letters -ly, for example nicebecomes nicely. In Egyptian, the adjective can be converted to an adverb by adding the ending -anـا
English adjective adverb
officially rasmyر سمي
rasmyaenر سمیا
theoretically nazary nazariyaen
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theoretically نـظـري نـظـر یا
naturally tabyAyطـبیعي
tabyAyaenطـبیعیا
literally harfyحـرفي
harfyaenحـرفیا
generally Aumumyعـمومي
Aumumaenعـموما
normally Aadyعا دي
Aadataenعـد تا
slightly 'ulayilقـلـیـل
'alayalaenقـلـیـال
Similarly, a noun can be converted to an adverbal phrase by adding the word with, for examplewith care. In Egyptian, the same can be achieved by adding bi- بـ at the start of the word.
English Egyptian English Egyptian
with care bihazarبـحـذ ر he opened the box carefully fatah ilAalba bihazar
فـتـح ا لعـلبـة بـحـذ ر
with speed bisurAaبـسـرعـة Ahmed drives very fast 'ahmad biyisu' bisurAa 'awy
أحمـد بـیـسوق بـسـرعـة قـويbiirraaha 'ilaAbu biirraaha
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with calm biirraahaبـا لرا حـة play (pl) quietly! 'ilaAbu biirraaha
إلـعبو ا بـا لرا حـة
with precisionbiizzabtبـا لظـبط
the meeting took exactly onehour
il'igtimaeA 'achad saeAabiizzabtا إلجتـما ع أخـد سا عـة بـا لظـبط
withmoderation
bi'iAatidaelبـإعـتـدا ل eat moderately 'akul bi'iAatidael
أكـل بـإعـتـدا ل
in the evening biillylبـا لیل there is a party this evening fy hafla biillyl
في حـفلـة بـا لیل
Miscellaneous
English Egyptian English example Egyptian example
together(people)
sawaسـوا we will travel together 'ihna misaefiryn sawa
إحنا مـسا فـرین سـواtogether(people andthings)
maAa baAdمـع بـعض we will travel together
'ihna misaefiryn maAa baAdإحنا مـسا فـرین مـع بـعض
separatelykul wahidliwahduhكـل و حـد لـو حد ه
we will travelseparately
'ihna misaefiryn kul wahidliwahduhإحنا مـسا فـرین كـل و حـد لـو حد ه
well kuwayis he sings very well huwwa biyiGanny kuwayis 'awy
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well كـو یـس he sings very well هـو بـیـغـني كـو یـس قـوي
PrepositionsPrepositions define a relationship (in time, space,etc) between a noun and something else. In bothenglish and Egyptian, the preposition goes before the noun that it defines the relationship to. Hereare some examples:
Domain English Egyptian English Egyptian
time after baAdبـعد she came after dinner hiya gaet baAd ilAashaa'
هـي جا ت بـعد ا لعـشا ء
space behind waraو را
the garden is behind thehouse
ilginyna wara ilbiytا لجـنینـة و را ا لبـیت
quality like zayyز یي
I need another pen likethis
mihtaeg 'alam thany zayy dahمـحتا ج قـلـم ثا ني ز یي د ه
reference accordingto
hasabحـسـب
according to the police,the riot started at 2am
hasab kalaem ilbulys, ishshaGab'ibtada issaeAa ithnyn
حـسـب كـال م ا لبولیس، الشـغـب إبتـدى ا لسا عـة ا ثنين
ownership have Aandعـند I have a house in Cairo Aandy biyt fy il'aehira
عـندي بـیت في ا لقا هـر ة
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The noun can be one of the following:
Element Preposition English Egyptian
name Ahmed she is with Ahmed hiya maAa 'ahmadهـي مـع أحمـد
simple noun the house the cat is inside the house il'utta guwwa ilbiytا لقـطـة جـوا ا لبـیت
complexnoun
the manwho...
I arrived after the man whodelivered the carpet
wasalt baAd irraagil illy wasalissigaeda
و صـلت بـعد ا لرا جـل ا لي وصـل ا لسـجا د ة
objectpronoun her I arrived after her wasalt baAdaha
و صـلت بـعد هqualifyingpronoun this I need another pen like this mihtaeg 'alam thany zayy dah
مـحتا ج قـلـم ثا ني ز یي د ه
Be careful! If it's not a noun, but a complete clause (ie it has a verb), you have to use aconjunction. In english, it's confusing because the preposition and conjunction are often the sameword: in Egyptian it is necessary to insert the word maa to convert a preposition ot a conjunction.See more about this below.
Prepositions of time
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English Egyptian English Egyptian
after baAdبـعد we will start after the feast hanibtidy baAd ilAiyd
هـنـبتـدي بـعد ا لعـید
before 'ablقـبل
I must paint the house beforesummer
laezim 'adhin ilbiyt 'abl issyfال ز م أدهـن ا لبـیت قـبل ا لصیف
during athnaa'ا ثنا ء smoking is forbidden during dinner ittadchyn mamnuA 'athnaa' ilAashaa'
ا لتـدخین مـمنوع أثنا ء ا لعـشا ء
till lihaddلـحـد I will be here till dinner 'ana mawgud lihadd ilAashaa'
أنا مـوجود لـحـد ا لعـشا ء
tillliGaeyit
لـغا یـة they are busy until 8pmhumma mawgudyn liGaeyit saeAatamanya
هـم مـوجودین لـغا یـة سا عـة تـما نیـة
Prepositions of space
English Egyptian English Egyptian
from minمـن he is from Cairo huwwa min ilqaahira
هـو مـن ا لقا هـر ة
away from Aanعـن the dog ran away from me ilkalb garry minny
ا لكـلب جـري مـني
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at/toward Aalaعـلى that man is looking at us irraagil dah bass Aalyna
ا لرا جـل د ه بـص عـلینا
at fyفي my husband is at home guzy fy ilbiyt
جوزي في ا لبـیت
above fu'فوق my apartment is above the laundry sha''aty fu' ilmaGsala
شـقـتي فوق ا لمـغسـلـة
below tahtتـحت
there are many many fish under thewater
fy samak kityr taht ilmayaehفي سـمـك كـتیر تـحت ا لمـیا ه
opposite 'usaadقـصا د
the restaurant is opposite the railwaystation
ilmataAm 'usaad mahattitil'ataar
ا لمـطـعم قـصا د مـحـطـة ا لقـطار
opposite 'ubaelقـبا ل
facingfywishshفي و ش
the house is facing the desertilbiyt fy wishsh issaharaa'
ا لبـیت في و ش ا لصـحـرا ء
atAand
عـند the customs office is at the airportmaktab ilgamaarik Aandilmataarمـكتـب ا لجـما ر ك عـند ا لمـطا ر
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atAand
عـند turn right at the pharmacychushsh yimyn Aandissayidaliya
خـش یـمین عـند ا لصـیـد لـیـة
behind waraو را the cat is behind you (f) il'utta waraaky
ا لقـطـة و را كي
beside gambجـمب
there was an accident beside themosque
kaen fy hadtha ganb ilgamAaكا ن في حا دثـة جـنب ا لجا مع
in fyفي the dog is in the garden ilkalb fy ilginyna
ا لكـلب في ا لجـنینـة
inside guwaجـوا we must stay inside the house laezim ni'Aud guwa ilbiyt
ال ز م نـقعـد جـوا ا لبـیت
outside baraبـرا do you want anything from outside? Aaeyiz haga min baraa?
عا یـز حـجـة مـن بـرا ؟
on Aalaعـلى the bread is on the table ilAysh Aala ittarabyza
ا لعیش عـلى ا لتـر بیز ة
between bynبین
Hurghada is between the desert andthe sea
ilGarda'a byn issaharaa' wailbahr
ا لغـرد قـة بین ا لصـحـرا ء و البـحر
biittulfy Aawamyd nur biittulishshaariA
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along biittulبـا لطول there are lamp posts all along the street
ishshaariAفي عـوا مید نور بـا لطول ا لشا
ر ع
surrounding hawalynحـو لین
The view surrounding the house isvery beautiful
ilmanzar hawalyn ilbiyt gamyl'awy
ا لمـنظـر حـو لین ا لبـیتجـمیل قـوي
Note that you don't need a prepositional to after words like raah را ح - go.
I am going to Cairoaacnaa raayiH iil-Qaahirao
Miscellaneous Prepositions
English Egyptian English Egyptian
concerning
'amae...fa...
أما ٫٫٫فـ٫٫٫
like zayyز یي do you have something like this? Aandak haega zayy dih?
عـند ك حا جـة ز یي د ه؟
there is fy there is a stain on this shirt fy bu'Aa Aala il'amys dih
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there is في there is a stain on this shirt في بـقعـة عـلى ا لقـمیص د ه
about Aanعـن
I am reading a book about therevolution
ba'ra kitaeb Aan iththuraبـقرا كـتا ب عـن ا لثور ة
accordingto
hasabحـسـب
according to Ahmed, it will bewindy tomorrow
hasab kalaem 'ahmad, haykun fyhawaa' kityr bukrah
حـسـب كـال م أحمـد، حـیكون في هـوا ءكـتیر بـكر ه
contrary Aaksعـكس my opinion is contrary to yours r'ayy Aaks r'ayak
رأیي عـكس رأیـك
except 'ilaإال
there is no food except thisbread
mafish akl 'ila ilAayshsh dahمـفـش ا كل إال ا لعـیش د ه
except maAadaمـعـدا
instead of baddalبـد ل give us chicken instead of beef 'idyna firaach baddal illahma
إدینا فـرا خ بـد ل ا لـحمـة
despite
biirraGmminبـا لر غم
مـنhe succeeded despite his injuries nigih biirraGm min ziraaAuh ilmaksur
نـجـح بـا لر غم مـن ذ را عـه ا لمـكسور
fy Aashara duyuf zae'yid 'ithnyn
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plus zae'yidزا ئـد
there are ten guests plus twostaff
muwazafynفي عـشـر ة ضـیوف زا ئـد إثنین مـو
ظـفين
Prepositions of ownership
This important group is discussed in more detail in the section on ownership.
English Egyptian English Egyptian
own Aandعـند I own a car Aandy Aarabiya
عـندي عـر بـیـة
have with you maAaمـع I have a cigarette lighter maAayah walaeAa
مـعـیـه و ال عـة
have got lyلي I have two legs ly riglyn
لي ر جلین
for Aalashaenعـلـشا ن there was a phone call for you kaen fy mukalma Aalashaenak
كا ن في مـكـلمـة عـلـشا نـك
Subordinate clauses: maa
A preposition connects a noun to a sentence. If you want to connect a clause (something with averb) to a sentence, you need to use a conjunction.
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In English, many conjunctions are the same as prepositions: In Egyptian, some prepositions can beconverted to a conjunction by adding the word ma ما. Here are some examples:
Element English Egyptian
preposition wash your hands before dinner 'iGsil iydyk 'abl ilAashaa'إغسـل ا یدیك قـبل ا لعـشا ء
conjunction wash your hands before you eat 'iGsil iydyk 'abl ma taekulإغسـل ا یدیك قـبل ما تا كـل
preposition she arrived after the bus hiya wasalit baAd ilmasarahiyaهـي و صـلـت بـعد ا لمـسـر حـیـة
conjunction she arrived after the bus had gone hiya wasalit baAd ma ilmasrahiya 'ibtaditهـي و صـلـت بـعد ما ا لمـسر حـیـة إبتـد ت
preposition he acts like the owner biyitsarraf zayy ilmaelikبـیـتصـر ف ز یي ا لما لـك
conjunction he acts as if he owns the place biyitsarraf zayy ma yikun ilmakaen bitaeAuhبـیـتصـر ف ز یي ما یـكون ا لمـكا ن بـتا عـه
yikun یـكون is added in the last example because it is something that is unlikely to happen. See kaanfor more details.
Conjunctions
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Conjunctions are the useful little words that join clauses together to make more complex sentences.
I want to make bread but I don't have enough flourAaayiz aacAamil Aiysh lakin maAandysh diqyq kifaayao
Part English Egyptian
Main clause I want to make bread Aaeyiz 'aAamil Aiyshعا یـز أعـمـل عـیش
Conjunction but lakinلـكـن
Second clause I don't have enough flour maAandysh di'y' kifaeyaمـعـندیش د قیق كـفا یـة
If you just want to attach a noun, you should use a preposition, but if you want to attach a clause(ie, there is a verb on both sides), then a conjunction is required. In English, the same word is oftenused for both preposition and conjunction, but there are differences in Egyptian: see prepositionsand conjunctions for more details.
If there is a subject pronoun in the second clause, it becomes an object pronoun attached to theconjunction. For example:
I feared that she was lostaanaa Kuft iinnahaa tikwn taahit
The following table lists most of the common conjunctions, and gives examples how they can be
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used.
English Egyptian English Example Egyptian Example
that 'innإن I feared that she was lost ana chuft 'innaha tikun taehit
ا نا خـفت إنـها تـكون تا هـت
as longas
tul maطول ما
as long as you water the garden,the plants will grow
tul ma bitis'y ilginyna, izzaraAhayikbar
طول ما بـتـسقي ا لجـنینـة، ا لز رع حـيـكبـر
because
Aalashaenعـلـشا ن
pronouncedAashaen
I don't have a car because there isnot enough money
maAndysh Aarabiya Aalashaenmafiysh filus kifaeya
مـعندیش عـر بـیـة عـلـشا ن مـفـیشفـلوس كـفا یـة
in orderto
Aalashaenعـلـشا ن I need money in order to buy food
mihtaeg filus Aalashaen 'ashtiry'akl
مـحتا ج فـلوس عـلـشا ن أشتـري أكل
after baAd maبـعد ما
we will leave after the movie hasfinished
hanimshy bAad ma ilfylm yichlasحـنـمشي بعـد ما ا لفیلم یـخلـص
and wiو
I went to the bank and it wasclosed
raht ilbank wi kaen ma'fulر حت ا لبـنك و كا ن مـقفول
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as if Aala 'innعـلى إن
as if kae'innكا إن he spends money as if he is rich biyusrif filus kae'innuh Gany
بـیـصر ف فـلوس كا إنـه غـني
as ifzayy ma
ز یي ما he spends money as if he is richbiyusrif filus zayy ma yikun Gany
بـیـصر ف فـلوس ز یي ما یـكونغـني
before 'abl maقـبل ما
but bassبـس
I would like to go but I don't havetime
nifsy aaruh bass maAandysh wa'tنـفسي ا روح بـس مـعـندیش و قت
but lakinلـكـن ditto
if 'inإن If you go, you will get into a fight 'inn ruht hinaek, haetit chaani'
إن روحت هـنا ك، حا تـت خا نـق
if 'izaإذا
if you have some money, lend mefifty pounds
'iza kaen maAaek filus, salifnychamsyn ginya
إذا كا ن مـعا ك فـلوس، سـلـفنيخـمسین جـنیـة
instead badal ma instead of going, call them badal ma matruh, kalimhum
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insteadof بـد ل ما instead of going, call them بـد ل ما مـتروح، كـلـمهـم
likezay ma
ز ي ماas you did for him, he will do foryou
zayy ma Aamalt fyh hayitAamilfyk
ز یي ما عـمـلت فیه هـیـتعـمـل فیك
neither..nor..
lae...walaeh..ال ٫٫٫ و ال ه٫٫
neither this is working nor is thisworking
la dah naefaA walaeh dahbiyinfaA
ال د ه نا فـع و ال ه د ه بـیـنفـع
or 'awأو we can eat fish or chicken mumkin naekul samak 'aw firaach
مـمكـن نا كـل سـمـك أو فـرا خ
or (inquestion)
walaو ال would you like fish or chicken?
Aaewiz taekul samak walafiraach?
عا و ز تا كـل سـمـك و ال فـرا خ؟ratherthan
'ahsanأحسـن
I would prefer to eat fish ratherthan chicken
'akul issamak 'ahsan min ilfiraachأكـل ا لسـمـك أحسـن مـن ا لفـرا خ
otherwise wa 'illaو إال shut up otherwise we go home! 'ichrassy wa 'illa haarawahik
إخر سي و إال ها ر و حـك
unless 'ila 'izaإال إذا
don't give him any money unless Iallow you to
matidyhush filus 'ila 'iza 'anasamahtylak
مـتـدیهوش فـلوس إال إذا أنا سـمـحتیلـك
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conditional clauses (if.. then...)There are two words meaning if: they are 'iza إذا and law لـو. 'iza إذا can be used under allcircumstances: law لـو cannot be used with the imperfect form of a verb or a preposition.
In English, the word then is occasionally used to complement if In Egyptian, there is no equivalentword.
If I were rich...
If an event or situation is improbable or impossible, in English we use modals like 'would' and 'were'.In Egyptian, the word kaen كا ن is used after law لـو. Compare these two sentences:
if I have time, I will read the bookiicdhaa Aandy waqt, haaqraac iil-kitaab
if I had time, I would read the booklaw kaan Aandy waqt, kunt qaryt iil-kitaab
When conditional clause
past 'iza kaen إذا كا ن + perfect
present 'iza kaen إذا كا ن + imperfect
future 'iza kaen إذا كا ن + imperfect
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CourtesiesThis section summarises the expressions that are used daily to greet and say goodbye to people,ask for things and thank people on a day to day basis.
Religion
Religion is very important in Egypt. There are several phrases that you will hear regularly in anyconversation.
Egyptian English
ilhamdu lillahا لحـمد لـلـه thanks to Allah
'allah yisalaemakألـه یـسـال مـك may god protect you m
'allah yisalaemikألـه یـسـال مـك may god protect you f
'inn shaa' 'allahإن شا ء ألـه god willing
ya rabیا ر ب Oh god!
rabbina
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rabbinaر بـنا our god!
greeting issalaem Aalykumا لسـال م عـلیكـم
peace be with you m/fresponse Aalykum issalaem
عـلیكـم ا لسـال م
Addressing somebody
ya یا is often used before somebody's name or title as a greeting
Egyptian English
ya 'ahmadیا أحمـد hey, Ahmad!
ya rayisیا ر یـس hey, boss!
ya 'ustahیا أ سطـه driver!
ya 'ustaezیا أ ستا ذ
hey mister(teacher)!to a respectable person
ya 'ustaezaیا أ ستا ذ
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یا أ ستا ذة
hey madam!
bashaبا شا pasha m/f
In addition to the standard pronouns for you, there are some more formal versions:
Egyptian English
informal
'intaإنت you m
'intiإنت you f
'intuإنتوا you pl
formal
hadritakحـضر
تـكsir
hadritikحـضر
تـكmadam
siyadtak
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siyadtakسـیـدتـك sir
siyadtikسـیـدتـك madam
'afandimأفـند م Sir/Madam
Greetings
To welcome somebody, you can use one of these phrases...
Egyptian English
greeting 'ahlaen wa sahlaenأهال و سـهال welcome and ease
response 'ahlaen wa sahlaenأهال و سـهال welcome and ease
response 'ahlaen bykأهال بیك welcome to you m
response 'ahlaen bykyأهال بیكي welcome to you f
greeting hamd illah Aala salamtak thank god for protecting you m
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greeting حـمد لـه عـلى سـلا متـك thank god for protecting you m
greeting hamd illah Aala salamtikحـمد لـه عـلى سـلا متـك thank god for protecting you f
Whenever you meet somebody that you already know, you should shake hands (very gently) anduse one of the following greetings.
Before sunset, the following informal greetings are used:
Egyptian English
greeting sabaeh ilchyrصـبا ح ا لخیر a day of wellbeing
response sabaeh innurصـبا ح ا لنور a day of light
response sabaeh il'ishtaصـبا ح ا لقـشطـة a day of cream
response sabaeh ilfulصـبا ح ا لفـل a day of daisies
After sunset, the following informal greetings may be used: I have heard them very rarely, though.
Egyptian English
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greeting misaa' ilchyrمـسا ء ا لخیر an evening of wellbeing
response misaa' ilchyrمـسا ء ا لخیر an evening of wellbeing
response misaa' ilfulمـسا ء ا لفـل an evening of daisies
Next, you should ask how they are:
Egyptian English
question Aaemil 'iyh?عا مـل إیه؟ what are you m doing?
question Aaemila 'iyh?عا مـلـة إیه؟ what are you f doing?
question 'izayak?إز یـك؟ how are you m
question 'izayik?إز یـك؟ how are you f
question il'achbaar 'iyh?ا ألخبا ر إیه؟ what's new?
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response kuluh tamaem, ilhamdu lillahكـلـه تـما م، ا لحـمد لـلـه all ok, thank god
response miya miya, ilhamdu lillahمـیـة مـیـة، ا لحـمد لـلـه 100% thank god
response kuwayis, ilhamdu lillahكـو یـس، ا لحـمد لـلـه I m am good, thank god
response kuwayisa, ilhamdu lillahكـو یـسـة، ا لحـمد لـلـه I fgood, thank god
response nus nusنـص نـص half and half
response mish battaalمـش بـطا ل not bad
question wa 'inta?و إنت ؟ and you m?
question wa 'inti?و إنت ؟ and you f?
If you know them well, you should ask how their wives, children, etc...
Introductions
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Egyptian English
'ismak 'iyh?إسمـك إیه؟ what is your m name?
'ismik 'iyh?إسمـك إیه؟ what is your f name?
'ismy ...إسمي ٫٫٫ my name is ...
tisharrafnaتـشـر فنا pleased to meet you
Making you comfortable
Egyptian English
'istirayahإستـر یـح make yourself m comfortable
'istirayahyإستـر یـحي make yourself f comfortable
tishrab 'iyh?تـشر ب إیه؟ what will you m drink?
tishraby 'iyh? what will you f drink?
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تـشر بي إیه؟ what will you f drink?
Meal time
Egyptians normally have two big meals a day, plus a snack before bedtime.
English Time Types of food Egyptian
breakfast 11-12am bread with salads, dips, luncheon meats, omelette withbastirma, tamiyya
fitaarفـطا ر
breakfast(Ramadan) sunset cooked meat, rice and vegetables, juice, sweet things 'iftaar
إفطا ر
lunch 5-8pm cooked meat or fish, rice and vegetables Gadaغـدا
dinner beforesleeping yogurt, fruit Aasha
عـشا
Here are some expressions that are often used around meal times
Egyptian When to say it
remark biilhanna wa ishshiffaبـا لهـنا و ا لشـفا before or after eating
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remarksufrah daeymaen
سـفر ه دا یماsay to hostbefore leaving tablelike "thanks for the meal"
response biilhanna wa ishshiffaبـا لهـنا و ا لشـفا
Please
Egyptian English
to m Aan 'iznakعـن إذنـك excuse me
to get past someoneto f Aan 'iznik
عـن إذنـك
to m law samahtلـو سـمـحت
pleaseto f law samahty
لـو سـمـحتي
to m min fadlakمـن فـضلـك
pleaseto f min fadlik
مـن فـضلـك
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request mumkin...مـمكـن٫٫٫ Please could you/I.....
response mumkinمـمكـن Yes (it's possible)
Thank you
Egyptian English
remark shukraanشـكرا
remark 'alf shukrألف شـكر
remark mutshakir a'wyي مـتشـكـر ا
reply Aafwaenعـفوا
don't mention ityou are welcome
reply ilAafwا لعـفو you are welcome
Goodbyes
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Egyptian English
remark maAa issalaemaمـع ا لسـال مـة with safety
reply maAa issalaemaمـع ا لسـال مـة with safety
hashufak 'imtae?هـشوفـك إمتا ؟ When will I see you f?
hashufik 'imtae?هـشوفـك إمتا ؟ When will I see you f?
hashufak baAdynهـشوفـك بـعدین See you m later
hashufik baAdynهـشوفـك بـعدین See you f later
Achievement
Egyptian English
hazz saAydحـظ سـعید good luck!
remark mabruk congratulations
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remark مـبروك congratulations
response 'allah yibaarak fykألـه یـبا ر ك فیك god bless you m
response 'allah yibaarik fykyألـه یـبا ر ك فیكي god bless you f
Occasions
Egyptian English
kul sana wa 'inta tayibكـل سـنـة و إنت طـیـب
every year and you are happybirthdays, new year, feasts
remark ramadaan karymر مـضا ن كـریم during ramadan
response 'allah 'akramألـه أكر م during ramadan
Opinions
Egyptian English
question 'iyh r'ayak?إیه رأیـك؟ what do you m think?
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question 'iyh r'ayik?إیه رأیـك؟ what do you f think?
question tamaem?تـما م؟ OK?
question tamaem kidah?تـما م كـد ه؟ Ok like this?
response 'aywaأیوا yes
response mashyما شي
It goesok
response tamaemتـما م good
response tayibطـیـب fine
response haadirحا ضـر right away
response mayinfaAshمـیـنفـعش it's no use
response mish mumkinمـش مـمكـن not possible
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response laa'ال ء no
response laa' 'abadaenال ء أبـدا never!
response 'ahaأحا offensive way of disagreeing
response Aafwaen?عـفوا؟
Pardon?if you didn't hear
response 'ana mish 'akydأنا مـش أكید I m/f am not sure
response 'ana mish Aaarifأنا مـش عا ر ف I m don't know
response 'ana mish Aaarifaأنا مـش عا ر فـة I f don't know
response 'ana mish faehimأنا مـش فا هـم I m don't understand
response 'ana mish faehimaأنا مـش فا هـمـة I f don't understand
Hassle
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'imshyإمشي go away!
chalaas kidahخـال ص كـد ه stop this
haraam Aalykحـرا م عـلیك shame on you m!
haraam Aalykyحـرا م عـلیكي shame on you f!
chalyk muhtaramخـلیك مـحتـر م be respectful!
if a man getsover-friendly to a woman'ihtirim nafsak
إحتـر م نـفسـك
Insults
remark humaarحـما ر
donkeyoffensive
remark 'ibn marahإبن مـر ه
your father is a womanvery offensive
remark 'ibn sharmutaإبن شـرموطـة
son of a whore/bitch
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remark إبن شـرموطـة very offensive
response 'ifandim???إفـند م؟؟؟ pardon????
NegationThe word mish مـش is used to negate a phrase. It is either placed in front of the verb or preposition,or wrapped around it.
Structure English Arabic
Preposition
I have cigarettes Aandy sagaeyarعـندي سـجا یـر
I don't have any cigarettes maAandysh sagaeyarمـعـندیش سـجا یـر
There is water fy mayaehفي مـیا ه
There is no water mafysh mayaehمـفیش مـیا ه
kaanI was there 'ana kunt hinaek
أنا كـنت هـنا ك'ana makuntish hinaek
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I was not there 'ana makuntish hinaekأنا مـكـنتـش هـنا ك
perfectI saw Ahmed 'ana shuft 'ahmad
أنا شـفت أحمـد
I did not see Ahmed 'ana mashuftish 'ahmadأنا مـشـفتـش أحمـد
participle
I know 'ana Aaarifأنا عا ر ف
I do not know
'ana mish Aaarifأنا مـش عا ر ف
aacnaa maAaarifsh
imperfect
He wants to eat Aaeyiz yaekulعا یـز یا كـل
He does not want to eat mish Aaeyiz yaekulمـش عا یـز یا كـل
he must not eat mayaekulshمـیا كـلش
I like this book bahibb ilkitaeb dahبـحـب ا لكـتا ب د ه
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bi-imperfectI do not like this book
mabahibbsh ilkitaeb dahمـبـحـبش ا لكـتا ب د ه
less common...mish bahibb ilkitaeb dah
مـش بـحـب ا لكـتا ب د ه]
Ha-imperfectI will buy the book hashtiry ilkitaeb
ها شتـري ا لكـتا ب
I will not buy the book mish hashtiry ilkitaebمـش ها شتـري ا لكـتا ب
imperative
go away! iimshy!
don't go!use mish+you-imperfectmatimshysh
مـتـمشیش
Sometimes ma- is used on it own- the -sh does not appear after the word. There are no rules aboutwhen this can happen.
NumbersArabic digits are not the same as Roman digits:
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Digit English Egyptian
0٠ zero sifr
صـفر1
١ one waehidوا حـد
2٢ two 'itnyn
إتنین3
٣ three talaetaتـال تـة
4٤ four 'arbaAa
أربـعـة5
٥ five chamsaخـمسـة
6٦ six sitta
سـتـة7
٧ seven sabAaسـبعـة
8٨ eight tamanya
تـما نیـة
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9٩ nine tisAa
تـسعـة10
١٠ ten Aasharaعـشـر ة
Cardinals and Ordinals
In both English and egyptian, there are two forms of number- cardinals and ordinals. Cardinals areused to count things (one, two, three), Ordinals are used to describe sequence (first, second, etc).
Example Function
Cardinal five used to count things
Ordinal fifth used to describe the order, or position in sequence, of something
Cardinals
Cardinals are used for counting and specifying how many of something. Usage of the first fewnumbers is complicated, but it gets easier after that :-). There are special rules for:
People of a particular nationality (eg one englishman)Quantities- weight, money, and when you are ordering something (eg teas)People in general (men, women etc)Things - everything else
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The following table gives an overview of the situation:
Number Form NationalsEgyptians
Quantitiesweightmoneytea
Peoplemenwomen
Thingsbookschairsminutes
zero
sifrصـفر
mafyshمـفیش
+pluralnoun
masriyyinمـصر ییـن
waznو زن
filusفـلوس
shaeyشا ي
rigalaر جا ال
sittaetسـتا ت
kutubكـتوب
karasyكـرا سي
da'aeyi'د قا یـق
waehidوا حـد
+singnoun
masryمـصري
kylwكیلو
ginyhجـنیه
shaey
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one
شا يwahda
وا حد ة
+singnoun
masriyaمـصر یـة
nson its own
raagilرا جـل
sittسـت
kitaebكـتا ب
kursyكـرسي
di'y'aد قیقـة
'itnynإتنین
+pluralnoun
masriyyinمـصر ییـن
rigalaر جا ال
sittaetسـتا ت
'itnynإتنین
kylwكیلو
gynyh
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two+singnoun
جینیه
shaeyشا ي
noun-yn
kitabynكـتا بین
kursiyyinكـرسـییـن
di'i'tynد
قـقتين
three
talaetaتـال تـة
+singnoun
masryمـصري
masryaمـصریـة
kylwكیلو
gynyhجینیه
shaeyشا ي
talat rigala
kutubكـتوب
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talatتـلـت
+pluralnoun
rigalaر جا ال
sittaetسـتا ت
karasyكـرا سي
da'aeyi'د قا یـق
four thru nine, same as 3
Zero
For zero, there is no equivalent of no as in no books. Instead, the verb or preposition is negatedwith mish مـش. As in english, the noun is a plural. Alternatively, you can use or without- min Gyr مـن.غیر
English Egyptian
zero sifrصـفر
no egyptians (m/f) mafysh masriyyinمـفیش مـصر ییـن
no weight waznو زن
no money filus
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no money فـلوس
no tea shaeyشا ي
no men ragalaرا جا ال
no women sittaetسـتا ت
no books kutubكـتوب
no chairs karasyكـرا سي
no seconds da'aeyi'د قا یـق
One
The number one has a masculine and feminine form. Both forms are used for people of a particularnationality eg an englishman.
For weights, money and when ordering things, the masculine form only is used.
In English, we would usually say a book rather than one book: the same is true in Egyptian, but
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there is no word for a - the noun is simply used on its own.
English Egyptian
one waehidوا حـد
one egyptian (m) waehid masryوا حـد مـصري
one egyptian (f) waHdao maSriyao
a kilo waaHid kylw
a guinea waaHid ginyh
one tea waaHid shaay
a man raagil
a woman sitt
a book kitaab
a chair kursy
a minute diqyqao
Two
For people of a particular nationality, eg two englishmen or two egyptians, use the number 'itnyn إتنین
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followed by a plural noun.
For weights, money and orders, use the number 'itnyn إتنین followed by a singular noun.
For things, you should use the suffix -yn ـین for masculine nouns and -tyn ـتین for feminine nouns.Nouns ending in -y ـي take the ending -iyyin ــييـن. This is equivalent to a couple which can meanexactly two, or approximately two.
English Egyptian
two 'itnynإتنین
two egyptians (m/f) 'itnyn masryyinإتنین مـصرییـن
two kilos iictnyn kylw
two guineas iictnyn ginyh
two teas iictnyn shaay
two men iictnyn ragaalaa
two women iictnyn sittaat
two books kitaabyn
two chair kursiyyin
two minutes diqiqtyn
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Three to Ten
For People of nationalities, use the number followed by a plural noun.
For weights, money and when ordering things, use the number followed by a singular noun.
For people and things, use the short form listed below followed by a plural noun:
Digit English Egyptian English Egyptian
3٣ three talaeta
تـال تـة three books talat kutubتـلـت كـتـب
4٤ four 'arbaAa
أربـعـة four books 'arbaAa kutubأربـع كـتـب
5٥ five chamsa
خـمسـة five books chamas kutubخـمـس كـتـب
6٦ six sitta
سـتـة six books sitt kutubسـت كـتـب
7٧ seven sabAa
سـبعـة seven books sabaA kutubسـبـع كـتـب
8٨ eight tamanya
تـما نیـة eight books taman kutubتـمـن كـتـب
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9٩ nine tisAa
تـسعـة nine books tisAa kutubتـسع كـتـب
10١٠ ten Aashara
عـشـر ة ten books Aashara kutubعـشـر ة كـتـب
Eleven to Ninety Nine
From 11 onwards, if the number is followed by a noun, the noun must be singular:
English Egyptian English Egyptian
eleven hidaesharحـدا شـر eleven books hidaeshar kitaeb
حـدا شـر كـتا ب
twelve 'itnaesharإتنا شـر twelve books 'itnaeshar kitaeb
إتنا شـر كـتا ب
thirteen talatsharتـال تشـر thirteen books talatshar kitaeb
تـال تشـر كـتا ب
fourteen 'arbaAtasharأربـعتـشـر fourteen books 'arbatAshar kitaeb
أربـتعشـر كـتا ب
fifteen chamastasharخـمـستـشـر fifteen books chamastashar kitaeb
خـمـستـشـر كـتا ب
sixteen sittashar sixteen books sittashar kitaeb
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sixteen سـتـشـر sixteen books سـتـشـر كـتا ب
seventeen sabaAtasharسـبـعتـشـر seventeen books sabaAtashar kitaeb
سـبـعتـشـر كـتا ب
eighteen tamantasharتـمـنتـشـر eighteen books tamantashar kitaeb
تـمـنتـشـر كـتا ب
nineteen tisAatasharتـسعـتـشـر nineteen books tisAatashar kitaeb
تـسعـتـشـر كـتا ب
The digits in Egyptian numbers are written in the same order as in European numbers. Whenexpressed as words, however, the two digits are stated as units and tens, as in german not english,with wa و in between:
35٣٥
thirty fiveKamsao wa talatyn
Here are the numbers from 20 to 90:
English Egyptian
twenty Aasharynعـشـرین
talatyn
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thirty talatynتـلـتین
forty 'arbaAynأربـعین
fifty chamsynخـمسین
sixty sittynسـتین
seventy sabaAynسـبـعین
eighty tamanynتـمـنین
ninety tisAynتـسعین
Hundreds
Here are the numbers from one to nine hundred. Note that the short form myt میت is used whenhundreds are followed by a noun (which must be singular):
English Egyptian short form+ singular noun
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one hundred miyaمـیـة
myt kitaebمیت كـتا ب
two hundred mitynمـتین
mityn kitaebمـتین كـتا ب
three hundred tultumiyaتـلتـمـیـة
tultumyt kitaebتـلتـمیت كـتا ب
four hundred rubAumiyaر بعـمـیـة
rubAumyt kitaebر بعـمیت كـتا ب
five hundred chamsumiyaخـمسـمـیـة
chamsamyt kitaebخـمسـمیت كـتا ب
six hundred suttumiyaسـتـمـیـة
suttumyt kitaebسـتـمیت كـتا ب
seven hundred subuAmiyaسـبـعمـیـة
subuAamyt kitaebسـبـعـمیت كـتا ب
eight hundred tumunumiyaتـمـنـمـیـة
tumunumyt kitaebتـمـنـمیت كـتا ب
nine hundred tusAumiyaتـسعـمـیـة
tusAumyt kitaebتـسعـمیت كـتا ب
Thousands
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Here are the numbers from one to nine thousand. Five thousand should really be chamsaet 'alf خـمسا.but it is pronounced as below ,ت ألف
English Egyptian
one thousand alfا لف
two thousand alfynا لفین
three thousand talat talaefتـلـت تـال ف
four thousand 'arbaA talaefأربـع تـال ف
five thousand chamas talaefخـمـس تـال ف
six thousand sit talaefسـت تـال ف
seven thousand sabaA talaefسـبـع تـال ف
eight thousand taman talaefتـمـن تـال ف
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nine thousand tisaA talaefتـسـع تـال ف
ten thousand Aashar talaefعـشـر تـال ف
Ordinals
To explain the sequence of things (first, second, third), you use the ordinal. It can be either as anadjective or as a noun in the genitive form: As an adjective, the ordinal be preceded by il ا ل and, for1 to 9, must agree with the gender of the noun. From 11 onwards, the cardinal numbers are thesame as ordinals, and are used as adjectives only.
English Egyptian
the third day ilyum ittaelitا لیوم ا لتا لـت
third day taelit yumتا لـت یوم
the third time ilmarra ittaltaا لمـر ة ا لتا لتـة
third time taelit marraتا لـت مـر ة
the tenth day ilyum ilAaeshir
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the tenth day ا لیوم ا لعا شـر
tenth day Aaeshir yumعا شـر یوم
the tenth time ilmarra ilAaeshiraا لمـر ة ا لعا شـر ة
tenth time Aaeshir marraعا شـر مـر ة
the eleventh day ilyum ilhidaesharا لیوم ا لحـدا شـر
eleventh time ilmarra ilhidaesharا لمـر ة ا لحـدا شـر
the twentieth day ilyum ilAasharynا لیوم ا لعـشـرین
twentieh time ilmarra ilAasharynا لمـر ة ا لعـشـرین
Here are the first ten ordinals:
English Egyptian English Egyptian
first awwil the first book ilkitaeb il'awwil
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first ا و ل the first book ا لكـتا ب ا ألو ل'uula
أ وال the first cat il'utta il'uulaا لقـطـة ا أل وال
second tanyتا ني the second book ilkitaeb ittany
ا لكـتا ب ا لتا نيtanya
تا نیـة the second cat il'utta ittanyaا لقـطـة ا لتا نیـة
third taelitتا لـت the third book ilkitaeb ittaelit
ا لكـتا ب ا لتا لـتtalta
تا لتـة the third cat il'utta ittaltaا لقـطـة ا لتا لتـة
fourth rabAaرا بع the fourth book ilkitaeb irrabAa
ا لكـتا ب ا لرا بعrabAa
ر بعـة the fourth cat il'utta irrabAaا لقـطـة ا لر بعـة
fifth chamsخا مس the fifth book ilkitaeb ilchaamis
ا لكـتا ب ا لخا مـسchamsa
خـمسـة the fifth cat il'utta ilchamsaا لقـطـة ا لخـمسـة
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sixth saedisسا د س the sixth book ilkitaeb issaedis
ا لكـتا ب ا لسا د سsaetit
سا تـة the sixth cat il'utta issaetitا لقـطـة ا لسا تـة
seventh saebiAسا بـع the seventh book ilkitaeb issaebiA
ا لكـتا ب ا لسا بـع
seventh saebiAaسا بـعـة the seventh cat il'utta issaebiAa
ا لقـطـة ا لسا بـعـة
eighth taeminتا مـن the eighth book ilkitaeb ittaemin
ا لكـتا ب ا لتا مـن
eighth tamnaتـمنـة the eighth cat il'utta ittamna
ا لقـطـة ا لتـمنـة
ninthtaesiA
تا سـع the ninth bookilkitaeb ittaesiA
ا لكـتا ب ا لتاسـع
ninth tasAaتا سعـة the ninth cat il'utta ittaesiAa
ا لقـطـة ا لتا سـعـة
tenth Aaeshirعا شـر the tenth book ilkitaeb ilAaeshir
ا لكـتا ب ا لعا شـر
tenth Aaeshira the tenth cat il'utta ilAaeshira
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tenth عا شـر ة the tenth cat ا لقـطـة ا لعا شـر ة
From the eleventh onwards, the cardinal and ordinal are the same. Here are some examples:
Number Ordinal English Egyptian
eleven hidaesharحـدا شـر the eleventh book ilkitaeb ilhidaeshar
ا لكـتا ب ا لحـدا شـر
twelve 'itnaesharإتنا شـر the twelfth book ilkitaeb il'itnashar
ا لكـتا ب ا إلتنـشـر
thirteen talaetasharتـال تـشـر the thirteenth book ilkitaeb ittalaetashar
ا لكـتا ب ا لتـال تـشـر
twenty Aasharynعـشـرین the twentieth book ilkitaeb ilAasharyn
ا لكـتا ب ا لعـشـرین
thirty thalatynثـلـتین the thirtieth book ilkitaeb ittalatyn
ا لكـتا ب ا لتـلـتین
forty 'arbaAynأربـعین the fortieth book ilkitaeb il'arbaAyn
ا لكـتا ب ا ألربـعین
one hundred miyaمـیـة the hundredth book ilkitaeb ilmiya
ا لكـتا ب ا لمـیـة
two hundred mityn the two hundredth book ilkitaeb ilmityn
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two hundred مـتین the two hundredth book ا لكـتا ب ا لمـتین
three hundred tultumiyaتـلتـمـیـة the three hundredth book ilkitaeb ittultumiya
ا لكـتا ب ا لتـلتـمـیـة
one thousand 'alfألف the thousandth book ilkitaeb il'alf
ا لكـتا ب ا أللف
Fractions
The following fractions are widely used:
English Egyptian
half nusنوص
a third tiltتـلت
a quarter rubaAر بـع
three quarters talaet 'arbaAaتـال ت أربـع
Questions
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To ask how many people or things, you should use kam كـم before the noun. To ask for asequence or reference number (what or which, you put the kam كـم after the noun. In all of thesecases, the noun is singular.
Type English Egyptian
count How many children do you have? Aandak kam walad?عـند ك كـم و لـد؟
count How many days will you stay? kam yum hatinizil?كـم یوم هـتـنـز ل؟
count How many guests tomorrow? kam zibun bukrah?كـم ز بون بـكر ه؟
what What is your telephone number? nimritak kaem?نـمر تـك كا م؟
what What time is it? issaeAa kaem?ا لسا عـة كا م؟
what What time is the meeting? il'igtimaeA issaeAa kaem?ا إلجتـما ع ا لسا عـة كا م؟
what What is your apartment number? sha''ytak raqam kaem?شـقیتـك ر قـم كا م؟
which Which floor do you want? Aaeyiz dur kaem?
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which Which floor do you want? عا یـز دور كا م؟
OwnershipThere are several different ways to indicate ownership and belonging. These are:
Egyptian Meaning Egyptian English
possessivepronoun my/your/his 'ismuh
إسمـه his name
simplegenitive of ism ilwalad
ا سم ا لو لـد the name of the boy
bitaeAبـتا ع belonging
ilbasbur bitaeAyا لبـسبور بـتا
عيmy passport
Aandعـند ownership Aandy biyt
عـندي بـیت I have a house
maAaمـع have with you maAaek kabryt?
مـعا ك كـبریت؟ Do you have matches (on you)?
lyلي
having for a purposeintended forattached
fy busta lykفي بوسطـة لیك there is some post for you
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milkمـلك (my/your/his) property ilbiyt dah milkuh
ا لبـیت د ه مـلكـه that house is his property
possessive pronoun
In both english and arabic, the most common way of expressing ownership is with a posessivepronoun (my, your... etc). In egyptian, this is a suffix attached to the noun. Here are some examples:
English Arabic
my name 'ismyإسمي
your(m) name 'ismakإسمـك
your(f) name 'ismikإسمـك
my house biytyبـیتي
his house biytuhبـیتـه
my father 'abwyaأبویا
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your(f) father 'abuhaأبوها
his father 'abuhأبوه
our god rabbinaر بـنا
The posessive pronouns themselves are pretty easy to learn, but when the pronouns are attachedto nouns, the vowels do a little dance to make sure that you don't get three consonants in a row.See pronouns for more information.
simple genitive
In english, the simple genitive can take two forms: both are expressed in the same way in arabic.
English Egyptian
the man's name'ism irraagil
إسم ا لراجـل
the name of the man'ism irraagil
إسم ا لراجـل
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il- ا لـ can be attached to the second noun if required, but must never be attached to the first noun. Ifthe first noun is feminine, the -a ــة ending changes to -it ــت. Nothing must be placed between thetwo nouns. Adjectives go after the second noun, but must agree in gender and number with the firstnoun. If a possessive suffix is required, it must go on the second word (or use bitaeA بـتا ع). Here aresome examples:
English Egyptian
the boy's name is strange 'ism ilwalad Garybإسم ا لو لـد غـریب
I have her telephone number Aandy nimrit tilyfunhaعـندي نـمر ة تـلیفونها
Where is the railway station? mahatit il'atr fyn?مـحـطـة ا لقـطر فین؟
Do you know my cousin? (uncle's son) 'inta Aaarif 'ibn Aammy?إنت عا ر ف إبن عـمي؟
Do you know my cousin? (uncle's son) tiAarif 'ibn Aammy?تـعـر ف إبن عـمي؟
Have you seen the boss's new car? 'inta shuft Aarabiyit ilmudyr ilgidyda?إنت شوفت عـر بـیـة ا لمـدیر ا لجـدید ة؟
Have you seen the new boss's car?'inta shuft ilAarabiya 'illy maAa ilmudyr ilgidyd?
إنت شوفت ا لعـر بـیـة إلي مـع ا لمـدیر ا
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لجـديد؟
I want a bottle of water Aaeyiz 'izzaezit mayaehعا یـز إزا ز ة مـیا ه
give me this bottle of wateriddyny 'izzaezit ilmayaeh
ا دیني إزا ز ة ا لمـیا هdyh
Belonging- bitaA بـتـع
bitaA بـتـع is used in several ways:
noun + bitaA + possessive suffix, to indicate ownershipnoun + bitaA + possessive suffix, as an alternative to a genitivebitaA + product (milk, onions, tyres etc), to indicate somebody who sells the productbitaA + possessive suffix, to refer to a man's or woman's private parts
bitaA بـتـع is always used for ownership when the noun ends in -yn ـین and for imported words (myvilla). It is not used for parts of the body (my leg).
English Egyptian
I have lost my passport 'ana daayAt ilbasbur bitaAyأنا ضا یعت ا لبـسبور بـتا عي
Aandak kam 'uuda fy ilvyla bitaAtak?
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how many rooms does your villa have? عـند ك كـم أ وضـة في ا لڤیال بـتاعتـك؟
Where are your teachers? fyn ilmudarrisyn bitwaAak?فین ا لمـد ر سین بـتو عـك؟
He is a vegetable seller huwwa bitaeA chudaarهـو بـتا ع خـضا ر
He is a milk sellermeans he's a ladies' man
huwwa bitaeA labanهـو بـتا ع لـبـن
Stop scratching yourself! battal tuhrush fy bitaeAakبـطـل تـهر ش في بـتا عـك
bitaeA بـتا ع is like a participle, so it has to agree in gender and number with the noun. Here are all ofthe possible endings:
English m f pl
the book the bag the books
ilkitaeb bitaeA-ا لكـتا ب بـتا عـ
ishshanta bitaAt-ا لشـنطـة بـتا عتـ
ilkutub bituA-ا لكـتوب بـتوعـ
belonging to me bitaAyبـتا عي
bitaAtyبـتا عتي
bituAyبـتوعي
bitaAna bitaeAitna bituAna
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belonging to us bitaAnaبـتا عنا
bitaeAitnaبـتا عـتنا
bituAnaبـتوعنا
belonging to you(m) bitaeAakبـتا عـك
bitaAtakبـتا عتـك
bituAakبـتوعـك
belonging to you(f) bitaeAikبـتا عـك
bitaAtikبـتا عتـك
bituAikبـتوعـك
belonging to you(pl) bitaAkumبـتا عكـم
bitaeAitkumبـتا عـتكـم
bituAkumبـتوعكـم
belonging to him bitaeAuhبـتا عـه
bitaAtuhبـتا عتـه
bituAuhبـتوعـه
belonging to her bitaAhaبـتا عها
bitaeAithaبـتا عـتها
bituAhaبـتوعها
belonging to them bitaAhumبـتا عهـم
bitaeAithumبـتا عـتهـم
bituAhumبـتوعهـم
Ownership - Aand عـند
Aand عـند means that you own something but don't necessarily have with you. It can also be usedabout members of your family. An object pronoun can be added to indicate who owns something.Here are some examples:
English Egyptian
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I have a car Aandy Aarabiyaعـندي عـر بـیـة
he has two children Aanduh waladynعـند ه و لـدین
do you have any books? Aandak kutub?عـند ك كـتـب؟
Here are all of the possible forms.
English Arabic
I have Aandyعـندي
we have Aandinaعـند نا
you(m) have Aandakعـند ك
you(f) have Aandikعـند ك
you(pl) have Aandukumعـند كـم
Aanduh
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he has Aanduhعـند ه
she has Aandahaعـند ها
they have Aanduhumعـند هـم
Having with you maAa مـع
maAa means that you have something or somebody with you. It takes an object suffix to say who itis with.
English Egyptian
Do you have the keys? maAak ilmafatyh?مـعـك ا لمـفا تیح؟
I will go with you 'ana haaruh maAaakأنا ها روح مـعــك
Do you have any change? maAak fakka?مـعـك فـكـة؟
Here are all of the possible forms:
English Egyptian
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I have maAaeyaمـعا یا
we have maAanaمـعا نا
you(m) have maAaekمـعا ك
you(f) have maAakyمـعا كي
you(pl) have maAaekumمـعا كـم
he has maAaehمـعا ه
she has maAahaمـعا ها
they have maAaehumمـعا هـم
intended for - ly- لیـ
ly لي can be used for parts of the body, members of your family, for something that is attached, and
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for something that is intended for somebody or something. It is also used when an inanimate objecthas something. Here are some examples:
English Egyptian
he has only one leg lyh rigl wahda basلیه ر جل وا حد ة بـس
she has two children lyha waladynلیها و لـدین
there is mail for you (f) fy busta lykyفي بوسطـة لیكي
I owe you five poundsLit: I have five founds for you(m)
Aandy chamsa giny lykعـندي خـمسـة جـنیة لیك
this present is for (all of) you(pl) ilhidaya dy lykumا لهـد یـة دي لیكـم
I want a garden seatA seat intended for the garden
Aaeyiz kursy lilginiynaعا یـز كـرسي لـلجـنـینـة
the flat has a garage ishsha''a lyha garaajا لشـقـة لیها جـرا چ
the flat has two bedroomsuse fy في because rooms are inside
ishsha''a fyhae'uudtynا لشـقـة فیها أ وضتین
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Here are all of the possible forms:
English m
I have liyaلـي
we have lynaلینا
you(m) have lykلیك
you(f) have lykyلیكي
you(pl) have lykumلیكـم
he has lyhلیه
she has lyhaلیها
they have lyhumلیهـم
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Possession property milk مـلك
Ownership of real estate - houses, land etc, can be expressed with milk- مـلكـ plus a suffix.
English Egyptian
He has his own house Aanduh biyt milkuhعـند ه بـیت مـلكـه
I own land in HurghadaAandy 'ard milk fy ilGarda'a
عـندي أرض مـلك في ا لغـردقـة
QuantitiesYou can specify a quantity in several ways:
measures - metres, kilos etcnumberscontainers - packs, bottles etcapproximate amounts - a little, a lot etc
Measures
For weights, lengths and other measurements, you use a number followed by a singular noun.
'ahmad tuluh mitr 1 wa 90 santy
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Ahmed is 1m90 tall 'ahmad tuluh mitr 1 wa 90 santyأحمـد طولوه مـتر ١ و ٩٠ سـنتي
this bag is 20 pounds ishshanta dih bi Aishryn ginyhا لشـنطـة د ه ب عـشرین جـنیه
2 kilos of potatoes, please 'itnyn kylw bataatis, law samahtإتنین كیلو بـطا طـس، لـو سـمـحت
I want a hundred grams of salami Aaeyiz myt garam salamyعا یـز میت جـر م سـال مي
I need a quarter kilo of butter mihtaeg rubaA kylw zibdaمـحتا ج ر بـع كیلو ز بد ة
the truck brought eight tonnes of waterilAarabiya gaebit tamanya tun mayae
ا لعـر بـیـة جا بـت تـما نیـة طـن مـیاة
Numbers
See the section in numbers for more information about this.
Containers
If you want something in a container of some sort: carton, bottle, etc, you use the genitive of thecontainer. The main effect of this is that words ending in tee-marbuta -a ــة are pronounced -it ــت.Here are some examples:
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you must take one spoonful of medicine laezim tachuz maAla'it dawaa'ال ز م تـخـذ مـعلـقـة د وا ء
I want a pack of cigarettes Aaeyiz Aalbit sagaeyarعا یـز عـلبـة سـجا یـر
a bottle of water, please 'izzaezit maeya, law samahtإزا ز ة ما یـة، لـو سـمـحت
Approximate measures
tea without sugar shaey myn Gyr sukkarشا ي مین غیر سـكـر
normal tea(with three sugar)
shaey mazbutشا ي مـزبوط
weak tea shaey chafyfشا ي خـفیف
strong tea shaey ti'ylشا ي تـقیل
a little milk shuwayit labanشـو یـة لـبـن
I don't have enough money maAandysh filus kifaeya
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I don't have enough money مـعـندیش فـلوس كـفا یـة
he has a lot of money Aanduh filus kityrعـند ه فـلوس كـتیر
you have a lot of friendsinformal
Aandak 'ashaeb yamaعـند ك أصحا ب یا ما
QuestionsThere are four main groups of questions.
Direct- what, when, whyIndirect- courteous question and whetherConfirmation - isn't it so?Rhetorical- you are making a point and don't expect an answer
English quirks
In english, it is possible to ask a question in many different ways. some of these translate easily intoEgyptian: others require a little thought. The ones you need to watch out for are:
sentences with 'do' where you are not doing anythingsentences with 'got' where you are not getting anythingsentences with how followed by an adverb or adjective (see adverbal question)
For all english verbs except is and have, you can turn a statement into a question by putting do in
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front of it.
you know Johndo you know John?
.
In egyptian, you can either add huwwa هـو at the start of the sentence or use inflection you knowjohn?
The word have is somewhat overused in english, and English speakers often reduce the risk ofconfusion by saying have you got rather than the older form, still used by most americans, do youhave...?. There is no equivalent in egyptian, so inflection is used
Direct questions
It is possible to frame a direct question in several ways:
using a query word at the end of the sentencepreceding a sentence with huwwa هـوby inflection
Query words
In english, a query word normally start the sentence: in egyptian it is normally at the end of thesentence. For example
where are you going?raayiH fyn?
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The following query words can be used:
English Egyptian
what 'iyhإیه
when 'imtaإمتى
where fynفین
where from minynمـنین
how 'izzayإز ي
which 'anhwأنهو
how many
kaemكا م
followed by singular noun
kaem
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what (number) kaemكا م
how much (of something) 'add iyhقـد ا یه
how much (money) bikaemبـكا م
why lyhلیه
The simple imperfect ('aAamil, tiAuz, yiruh أعـمـل، تـعوز، یـروه is often used in questions. Here are someexamples:
English Egyptian
how are you? 'izzayak?إز یـك؟
how are you?lit. what are you doing?
'aAamil 'iyh?أعـمـل إیه؟
what are you doing? bitaAamil 'iyh?بـتـعـمـل إیه؟
'ashufak 'imta?
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when will I see you? 'ashufak 'imta?أشوفـك إمتى؟
where is the station? ilmahatta fyn?ا لمـحـطـة فین؟
where can I buy flowers from? mumkin 'ashtiry ward min fyn?مـمكـن أشتـري و رد مـن فین؟
where can I buy flowers from? minyn mumkin 'ashtiry ward?مـنین مـمكـن أشتـري و رد؟
where are you from? 'inta minyn?إنت مـنین؟
how do I charge this phone? 'ashhan ittilyfun dah 'izzay?أشحـن ا لتـلیفون د ه إز ي؟
which book (m) do you(m) want? Aaewiz ilkitaeb 'anhw?عا و ز ا لكـتا ب أنهو؟
which glass (f) is yours(m)? 'anhw ilkubaeya bitaAitak?أنهو ا لكـبا یـة بـتـعـتـك؟
how much milk would you like? Aaewiz laban 'add iyh?عا و ز لـبـن قـد ا یه؟
how much is this bag? ishshanta dy bikaem?ا لشـنطـة دي بـكا م؟
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why is he going? huwwa raayih lyh?هـو را یـح لیه؟
Here are some common answers to questions
English Egyptian
How much? This much 'add iyh? 'add kidahقـد ا یه؟ قـد كـد ه
Why? Because. lyh? Aalashaenلیه؟ عـلـشا ن
Why? It's like that lyh? kidahلیه؟ كـد ه
Why? Better like this lyh? 'ahsan kidahلیه؟ أحسـن كـد ه
Why? Why not? lyh? lyh laa'?لیه؟ لیه ال ء؟
To ask how many people or things, you should use kaem كا م before the noun. To ask for asequence or reference number (what or which, you put the kaem كا م after the noun. In all of these
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cases, the noun is singular.
English Egyptian
How many children do you have? Aandak kaem walad?عـند ك كا م و لـد؟
How many days will you stay? hatinizil kaem yum?هـتـنـز ل كا م یوم؟
How many guests tomorrow? kaem zibun bukrah?كا م ز بون بـكر ه؟
What is your telephone number? nimritak kaem?نـمر تـك كا م؟
What time is it? issaeAa kaem?ا لسا عـة كا م؟
What time is the meeting? il'igtimaeA issaeAa kaem?ا إلجتـما ع ا لسا عـة كا م؟
What is your apartment number? sha''itak ra'am kaem?شـقـتـك ر قـم كا م؟
Which is your apartment? sha''itak 'anhw?شـقـتـك أنهو؟
Aaeyiz dur kaem?
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Which floor do you want? Aaeyiz dur kaem?عا یـز دور كا م؟
Pronoun questions
In english, it is possible to make a question by swapping the subject and verb. For example,
he is englishis he english?
The equivalent in Egyptian arabic is to put the query pronoun huwwa هـو at the start of thesentence. You should think of this as "Is it so that..."
huwwa iicnta gaay maAa-naa?Is it so that you are coming with us?
Inflection
In english, you can make a statement by saying she is coming. or turn it into a question, she iscoming? just by the tone of your voice: the pitch rises a little at the end of the sentence to indicatea question. You can do exactly the same thing in Arabic. hiya gayya هـي جـییـة is a statement nd hiyagayya? هـي جـییـة؟ is a question.
Indirect questions (whether)
An indirect question is made up of two clauses: the first clause is often a courtesy clause "Couldyou possibly..." and the second clause is the real question. Here are some examples of direct andindirect questions.
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Direct Indirect
where is the station? Can you tell me where the station is?
what is the time? Do you know what the time is?
is he coming? Do you know whether he is coming?
The query-word whether is used only in indirect questions: in egyptian, 'iza إذا is used for this.
English Egyptian
Can you tell me where the station is? mumkin ti'uly fyn ilmahatta?مـمكـن تـقـلي فین ا لمـحـطـة؟
Do you know what the time is? 'inta Aaarif issaeAa kaem?إنت عا ر ف ا لسا عـة كا م؟
Do you know whether he is coming? 'inta Aaarif 'iza huwwa gayy?إنت عا ر ف إذا هـو جـیي؟
Confirmation questions
If you are pretty sure about something but want to check, you can use one of the following methods:
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English Arabic
he's coming, isn't he? huwwa mish gaey?هـو مـش جا ي؟
he's coming, isn't that so? huwwa gaey, mish kidah?هـو جا ي، مـش كـد ه؟
he's coming, right? huwwa gaey, sahh?هـو جا ي، صـح؟
Rhetorical questions
A rhetorical question is used to make a point: you don't expect an answer. Any of the abovemethods can be used to ask rhetorical questions.
English Arabic
wouldn't it be better if you(m) shut up? mish tiskut 'ahsan?مـش تـسكـت أحسـن؟
you(m) must be kidding! bithazzar, mish kidah?بـتهـز ر، مـش كـد ه؟
you(m) are an idiot, right? 'inta 'ahbal, sahh?إنت أهبـل، صـح؟
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Adverbal and adjectival questions
In english, it is possible to ask a question using how followed by an adjective or adverb. There isno similar construction in Egyptian, so it is necessary to re-phrase the question, usually so that youare asking for a number. Here are some examples:
English re-phrased Egyptian
How fast were you driving? how many kilometers anhour..
kaem kylumitr fy issaeAaكا م كیلومـتر في ا لسا عـة
How often do you go to thegym? how many times a week... kaem marra fy il'usbwaA...
كا م مـر ة في ا أل سبو ع٫٫٫
How hot is the oven? what is the temperature? ilharraara kaemا لحـرا ر ة كا م
How difficult was the exam? was the exam difficulthuwwa il'imtihaen kaensaAb?
هـو ا إلمتـحا ن كا ن صـعب؟
TimeTime can be expressed in several different ways:
units of time - days, weeks etcparts of the day - morning/afternoon
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time of day - 6.30relative time (before/after) - today/yesterday etcdays of the weekdates
Units of time
English Egyptian Plural
moment lahzaلـحظـة
lahzaetلـحظا ت
second thanyaثا نیـة
thawanyثـوا ني
minute di'y'aد قیقـة
da'aeyi'د قا یـق
hour saeAaسا عـة
saAaetسا عا ت
day yumیوم
'ayaemأیا م
week 'usbuAأ سبوع
'asaebiyAأسا بـیع
month shahr shuhur
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month شـهر شـهور
year sanaسـنـة
sinynسـنین
lifetime Aumrعـمر
'aAmaarأعما ر
Parts of the day
The main events in the day are sunrise and sunset. Midnight, noon and the six prayer times canalso be used to specify an approximate time.
English Arabic
last prayers till dawn illylا لیل
dawn until sunset issubhا لصـبح
after sunset masaa'مـسا ء
dawn fagrفـجر
idduhr
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noon idduhrا لضـهر
after noon baAd idduhrبـعد ا لضـهر
sunset ilmaGribا لمـغر ب
midnight nus illylنـص ا لیل
Time of day
In English, it is normal to use half and quarter hours to describe time. In addition, in Egyptian, thirdsare used. Here is a list of the words that can be used:
English Arabic
half nusنـص
a third tiltتـلت
a quarter rubAر بع
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and waو
less 'ilaإال
Here are all the times at five minute intervals:
English Arabic
seven o'clock sabAaسـبعـة
five past seven past sabAa wa chamsaسـبعـة و خـمسـة
ten past seven sabAa wa Aasharaسـبعـة و عـشـر ة
quarter past seven sabAa wa rubAسـبعـة و ر بع
twenty past seven sabAa wa tiltسـبعـة و تـلت
twenty five past seven sabAa wa nus 'ila chamsaسـبعـة و نـص إال خـمسـة
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half past seven sabAa wa nusسـبعـة و نـص
twenty-five to eight sabAa wa nus wa chamsaسـبعـة و نـص و خـمسـة
twenty to eight tamanya 'ila tiltتـما نیـة إال تـلت
quarter to eight tamaanyao iiclaa rubaA
ten to eight tamanya 'ila Aasharaتـما نیـة إال عـشـر ة
five to eight tamanya 'ila chamsaتـما نیـة إال خـمسـة
Relative time
English Arabic
the day before yesterday 'awil 'imbaarihأو ل إمبا ر ح
yesterday 'imbaarihإمبا ر ح
today innahaarda
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today ا لنـها رد ة
tomorrow bukrahبـكر ه
the day after tomorrow baAd bukrahبـعد بـكر ه
English Arabic
last week iluusbwaA 'ily faetا ال سبو ع إلي فا ت
this week iluusbwaA dihا ال سبو ع د ه
next week iluusbwaA 'ily gaeyا ال سبو ع إلي جا ي
English Arabic
now dilwa'tyد لو قتي
soon baAd shuwayao
later baAdynبـعدین
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not yet lissahلـسـه
early badryبـدري
late (at night) wachryو خري
Days of week
English Arabic
Sunday yum ilaahadیوم ا ال حـد
Monday yum il'ithnynیوم ا إلثنین
Tuesday yum ittalaetیوم ا لتـال ت
Wednesday yum il'arbaAaیوم ا ألربـع
Thursday yum ilchamysیوم ا لخـمیس
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Friday yum ilgumaAaیوم ا لجـمـعـة
Saturday yum issabtیوم ا لسـبت
Dates
Which one?This section explains how to specify which of several things we are interested in, or talking about.
Definite article
To talk about a particular man, we say 'the man' in english. In arabic, we attach il- ا لـ to the front ofthe noun.
the man is reading his bookiil-raagil biyiqraac kitaab-uh
Note that adding il- ا لـ to a word affects the pronunciation if it begins with a sun letter.
Indefinite article
If we don't want to refer to any man in particular, we say 'a man' in english. There is no equivalent of
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a in arabic, you just use the noun on its own.
I want a dogaacnaa Aaayiz kalb
If you want to make it clear that you are talking about just one, you can use the word waaHid- one.When used for emphasis like this, you place it after the noun.
I want (just) one dog
aacnaa Aaayiz kalb waaHid
You also use it with nationalities to indicate that you are talking about a person, rather than (forexample) the language.
an English man (or woman)waaHid iingilyzy
waaHdao iingilyziyao
Adjectives
In both English an Egyptian, you can use an adjective to specify which one you are interested in:you simply put the - il- ا لـ in front of the adjective. Note that, in Egyptian, the noun still retains its il-ا لـ prefix.
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English Egyptian
describe I want a red ball Aaeyiz kura hamraعا یـز كور ة حـمر ة
specify I want the red ball Aaeyiz ilkura ilhamraعا یـز ا لكور ة ا لحـمر ة
specify I have read the big book'araa't ilkitab ilkibyr
قـرا ءت ا لكـتـب الكـبير
Demonstrative adjectives
One particular type of adjective is a demonstrative adjective. These are almost the same as thedemonstrative pronouns.
this maniil-raagil dah
The demonstrative adjectives are:
English Arabic
this (man) irraagil dahا لرا جـل د ه
ilkitaeb dah
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this (thing, m) ilkitaeb dahا لكـتا ب د ه
this (thing, f) ilhaga dahا لهـجـة د ه
this (woman) issitt dyا لسـت دي
these (men) irragala dulا لر جا ال دول
these (men) nearer irragala dyا لر جا ال دي
these (women) issittaet dulا لسـتا ت دول
these (things,m) ilkutub dyا لكـتوب دي
these (things,f) ilhagaet dyا لهـجا ت دي
over there (m) 'ahwأهو
over there [f] 'ahyأهي
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over there (pl) 'ahumأهوم
Comparatives
You can use a comparative in the same was as an adjective to specify which one you mean:
English Egyptian
mohammed is the tallest student muhammad 'atwal taalibمـحـمـد أطو ل طا لـب
he is the youngest boy huwwa 'asGar waladهـو أصغـر و لـد
the tallest student is 1m90ittaalib il'atwal tuluh mitr 1 wa 90 santy
ا لطا لـب ا ألطو ل طولوه مـتر ١ و ٩٠سـنتي
the most expensive drink is 20 pounds ilmashrab il'aGla 20 ginyhا لمـشر ب ا ألغلى ٢٠ جـنیه
this is the prettiest dress in the shop dih 'ahla fustaen fy ilmahalد ه أحلى فـستا ن في ا لمـحـل
it was the best day in my life kaen 'ahsan yum fy hayatyكا ن أحسـن یوم في حـیا تي
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Arabic Writing and pronunciationThis chapter describes the arabic alphabet, and how it can be written using roman letters, thengoes on to explain the general pronunciation rules of the language.
Please remember that Egyptian Arabic is an oral language. When people are asked to write it, somewrite in Modern Standard Arabic and then pronounce it the Egyptian way, others write it as anEgyptian would say it. As a result, there may some variation in the way things are spelt.
Arabic script
There are 28 basic letters in Egyptian arabic, and about a dozen modifiers.
Writing goes from right to left, and the majority of arabic letters join onto the following letter and sothere are therefore four forms of each letter: solitary, initial, middle and final. For the six letters thatdo not join, there are just two forms- solitary and final.
position normal letter non-joining letter
solitary ج د
initial جـ
middle ـجـ
final ـج ـد
The three short vowels a , i and u and shadda , which doubles the length of a consonant, are
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collectively called tashkyl تـشكیل or vowellization. Tashkyl is not normally used in written arabic apartfrom in the Quran. If they are used, they are written above a consonant but pronounced after it: forthe convenience of non-arabic readers, I have included the tashkyl, but written it after theconsonant.
Transliterated arabic
The transliterated form is an exact representation of the arabic script in roman letters: this is notalways straightforward, as there are a lot more letters and modifiers in arabic than there are in theroman alphabet.
If you want to be able to say words accurately, you need to be able to read either arabic or thetransliterated form- for example, so that you can see the difference between syn and saad.
Here is a summary of the less obvious features of the system:
Letter Transliterated Pronounced/arabic
short vowel a [e] i u a e i u
long vowel (alif) aa ee ii uu a 'e i uuا آ ا ا
alif with hamza aac iic uuc 'a 'i 'uأ إ أ
y w
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other long vowels y w y wي و
other long vowels with hamza yc wc 'y 'wئ
gluttal stop qaf q 'ق
voiced qaf Q qق
soft consonant d h s t z d h s t zد ه س ت ز
hard consonant D H S T Z d h s t zض ح ص ط ظ
double-letter consonants dh sh th z sh thذ ش ث
t-marbuta o -aــة
alif-layena Y -aـى
It is readable if you ignore hamza ' ء and tee-marbuta - ـة, and read atif-layena a ى as a.
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Pronounced arabic
The pronounced form is supposed to be how an english person would write a word or phrase. Forease of reading, the pronounced arabic in this document does not follow the rules that join wordstogether, for example sun letters and consonant clusters.
the alphabet
This table shows how to read and pronounce the arabic letters, and how they are written in romanletters throughout the dictionary.
name arabic transliterated pronounced examples Notes
alifhamza above
أـــــأ aac 'a
'aywaأیوا
mas'alaمـسألـة
bad'aبـدأ
ae as inaeroplane
'intaegإنتا ج
luGaetلـغا ت
makaenمـكا ن
after soft consonant
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aliffatha
اـــــا aa
مـكا ن
aa as in hard
hamraa'حـمرا ء
faarفا ر
Gataغـطا
after hard consonantbefore r
alifkasra
اـــــا ii i ilwalad
ا لو لـد
alifhamza below إ iic 'i
'ismإسم
'istannaإستـنى
'itfaehimإتفا هـم
alifdamma أ uuc 'u
'ummأ م
'ustaezأ ستا ذ
alif آ ee ee
'esifآسـف
mut'ekilمـتآكـل
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madda ـــــآ ee ee مـتآكـل'echir
آخـر
by
ببــــــــــبــــــــــب
b b
baAdبـعد
kibyrكـبیر
gawaebجـوا ب
ty
تتــــــــــتــــــــــت
t t
tahtتـهت
'aktarأكتـر
kursaetكـرسا ت
thy
ثثــــــــــثــــــــــث
th th
thabbitثـبـت
mathalمـثـل
bahthبـحث
gaeb
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gyn
ججــــــــــجــــــــــج
g g
جا بmagmuAa
مـجموعchurraag
خورا ج
jyn
چچــــــــــچــــــــــچ
j j
jaekitچا كـت
'ajindaأچـندا
byjبیچ
not arabicborrowed from farsi
ha
ححــــــــــحــــــــــح
H h
haedithد ث حــ
'ihnaإحنا
yiruhیـروح
kha
خخــــــــــخــــــــــخ
K chas in loch
chaafخا ف
achazا خـذ
taarychتا ریخ
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dal دـــــد d d
daemدا م
nadyنا دي
zaedزا د
thal ذـــــذ dh z
th as in there
zaekarذا كـر
kizbكـذب
'ustaezأ ستا ذ
ray رـــــر r r
raahرا ح
tary'طـریق
'iftakarإفتـكـر
zyn زـــــز z z
zayyز یي
gazarجـز ر
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gahhizجـهـز
syn
سســــــــــســــــــــس
s s
sittسـت
masaa'مـسا ء
darsد رس
shyn
ششــــــــــشــــــــــش
sh sh
shaefشا ف
rashwaر شو ة
mishمـش
saad
صصــــــــــصــــــــــص
S s
sanfصـنف
'asadقـصـد
chaalisخا لـص
ضضـــــ
dahrضـهر
hadritak
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daad ضــــــــــضــــــــــض
D d hadritakحـضر تـك'abyad
أبیـض
taa
ططــــــــــطــــــــــط
T t
taba'aطـبـقـة
batalبـطـل
Galatغـلـط
zaa
ظظــــــــــظــــــــــظ
Z z
zarfظـرف
yizharیـظهـر
hazzحـظ
ain
ععــــــــــعــــــــــع
A A - nasal a
Aalaعـلى
baAdبـعد
taebiAبـع تــ
Galab
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gin
غغــــــــــغــــــــــغ
G G - gargling noise
غـلـبsuGayar
صـغـیـرbaeliG
با لـغ
fah
ففــــــــــفــــــــــف
f f
fiAlaenفـعال
mifalisمـفـلـس
nidyfنـضیف
veh
ڤڤــــــــــڤــــــــــڤ
v v
vylaڤیال
nuvimbirنوڤـمبـر
not arabicborrowed from farsi
qaf
ققــــــــــقـــــ
q'as in cockney bottle(bo'le)
'udaemقـدا م
nu'taنـقطـة
sadda'صـد ق cannot tell from arabic
whether qaf is pronouncedqana
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ـــــقــــــــــق
q ksounds swallowed
qanaقـنا
raqamر قـم
sadyqصـدیق
upper egyptians say g
kef
ككــــــــــكــــــــــك
k k
kaenكا ن
'aktarأكتـر
hadritakحـضر تـك
lem
للــــــــــلــــــــــل
l l
lakinلـكـن
Aalaعـلى
fulفول
mym
ممــــــــــمــــــــــم
m m
mumkinمـمكـن
Aaemilعا مـل
naem
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نا م
nwn
ننــــــــــنــــــــــن
n n
nashaatنـشا ط
'ihnaإحنا
sinynسـنین
hey
ههــــــــــهــــــــــه
h h
hinaهـنا
zaharز هـر
tee-marbutaــــــة _ah a sura
صور ة
ــــــة _it it 'izzaezit zytإزا ز ة زیت
genitivebottle of oil
wow وـــــو w w
wishshو ش
yumیوم
Audwعـدو
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wow-hamza ـــــ wc 'w
s'waelا ل س
mas'wliyaلـیـة مـس
wow-alif واـــــوا oo u 'intu
إنتواunusual pronunciationfor verb endings
yeh
يیــــــــــیــــــــــي
y y
yizharیـظهـر
taarychتا ریخ
zayyز یي
yeh-hamzaئـــــئــــــــــئ
yc 'y
ra'yysر ئیس
daf'yدا فئ
alif-layena ىـــــى Y a
Aalaعـلى
nadaنا دى
used at end of words
alif-layenamadda ـــــى ى Ye e muthannae
مـثـنى
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short vowels
fatha a a
dawlaد ولـة
basalبـصـل
'intaإنت
'arbaAaأربـع
madda e e short e rarely used
kasra i i
minمـن
kibyrكـبیر
'intiإنت
damma u u
sufrahسـفر ه
tulaebطـال ب
'anhuh
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أنهوهsukun silent means that there is no vowel
other symbols
shadda
sadda'صـد ق
haddحـد
doubles the letterit is above
fathatantanwyn N n daeymaen
دا یماused on alifat end of word
tatwyl ـ used for spacing
hamza
أـئـ
ـ
aacycwc '
as in cockney bottle(bo'le)
'anaأنا
r'yaرئـة
s'waelا ل س
small above alif, yeh, wow
ء C
hawaa'هـوا ء
laa'ال ء
full size, on its own
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©Copyright Mike Green 2010-2012
You can print out this table and keep it handy for reference.
Stress
In most words, the second to last syllable is usually stressed.
'iftakar إفتـكـرkitaeb كـتا ب
mudachan مـد خـن
The stress moves to the last syllable if it contains a long vowel (alif, wow, yeh) or ends with adouble consonant. Remember that the letter AIN is treated as a consonant.
taAbaen تـعبا نmaftuh مـفتوح
yidu'' یـد ق
This means that the stress will move if suffixes are added to a word.
Feminine endings
When a word ends in _aaCiC (where C is any consonant) has a feminine ending attached, the idisappears and the aa is pronounced as an a.
waehid وا حـد -> wahda وا حد ة
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Elision
If a word ends with a vowel and the first vowel of the next word is either an i or a u, the words arerun together (elided) and the i or u omitted.
'inta minyn? إنت مـنین؟ -> 'intamnyn? إنتـمنین؟
This also happens if you attach an object suffix that begins with an i.
consonant clusters
If putting two words next to each other makes more than two consonants in a row, a shwa (whichsounds like a short a) is inserted between the words.
baAd kidah بـعد كـد ه -> baAdakidah بـعد كـد ه
Sun letters
If the definite article, il- ا لـ , is attached to a word that begins with a sun-letter (t t d d l r n s s z z ت ط:the l is dropped and the sun-letter is doubled (د ض ل ر ن س ص ز ظ
il- shams ا لـ شـمس -> ishshams ا شـمس
Pronunciation exceptions
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The pronunciation of some pronoun and verb endings is a little unusual. For the you(pl) 'intu إنتواsubject pronoun and for you(pl) and they in the verb perfect, the ending is written -w a ـو ا butpronounced -uh ــه.
The word because is written Aalashaen عـلـشا ن but pronounced Aashaen عـشا ن.
The word orange is written burtu'ael بـرتـقا ل but pronounced burtu'aen بـرتـقا ن.
Irregular verbsThere are very few irregular verbs in Egyptian: here are all the ones that I know of:
be/was - kaen كا نeat - kul كـلtake - chud خـدcome - gih جـهgive - idda دfall - wi'iA و قـعstop - wi'if و قـف
Be - kaen كا ن
The verb 'to be' does not exist in the present tense. It is used only in the perfect and Ha-imperfectforms.
English Pronoun Perfect Ha-Imperfect
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I 'anaأنا
kuntكـنت
hakunهـكون
we 'ihnaإحنا
kunnaكـن
hankunهـنكون
you (m) 'intaإنت
kuntكـنت
hatkunهـتكون
you (f) 'intiإنت
kuntyكـنتي
hatkunyهـتكوني
you (pl) 'intuإنتوا
kuntuhكـنتـه
hatkunuhهـتكونـه
he huwwaهـو
kaenكا ن
haykunهـیكون
she hiyaهـي
kaenitكا نـت
hatkunهـتكون
they hummaهـما
kanuhكا نوه
haykunuhهـیكونـه
Eat- kul كـل
kul has irregular imperfect froms
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Pronoun Perfect Imperfect Imperative ActiveParticiple
'anaأنا
kaltكـلت
akulا كـل
ihnaا حنا
kalnaكـلنا
naekulنا كـل
'intaإنت
kaltكـلت
taekulتا كـل
kulكـل
'intyإنتي
kaltyكـلتي
taklyتـكلي
kulyكولي
'intuإنتوا
kaltuكـلتوا
kaluكـلوا
kulwكـلو
huwaهـو
kalكـل
yaekulیا كـل
hiyaهـي
kalitكـلـت
taekulتا كـل
hummaهـما
kalwكـلو
yakluhیـكلوه
Take- chud خـد
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Kud has irregular imperfect froms
Pronoun Perfect Imperfect Imperative ActiveParticiple
'anaأنا
chudtخـدت
achudا خـد
ihnaا حنا
chadnaخـدنا
naechudنا خـد
'intaإنت
chudtخـدت
taechudتا خـد
chudخـد
'intyإنتي
chadyخـدي
tachdyتـخدي
chudtyخـدتي
'intuإنتوا
chadtwخـدتو
chadtwخـدتو
chudwخـدو
huwaهـو
achadا خـد
yaechudیا خـد
hiyaهـي
chaditخـد ت
taechudتا خـد
hummaهـما
achaduا خـدوا
yachduhیـخد ه
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Come- gih جـه
Pronoun Perfect Imperfect Imperative ActiveParticiple
'anaأنا
gytجیت
'egyآجي
ihnaا حنا
gynaجینا
nygyنیجي
'intaإنت
gytجیت
tygyتیجي
taAaelaتـعا ل
gaeyجا ي
'intyإنتي
gytyجیتي
tygyتیجي
taAalyتـعا لي
gaeyaجا یا
'intuإنتوا
gytuجیتوا
tyguتیجوا
taAaluتـعا لوا
gayyinجـییـن
huwaهـو
gihجـه
yigyیـجي
hiyaهـي
gaetجا ت
tigyتـجي
hummaهـما
gumجوم
yiguیـجوا
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Give- idda دى
Pronoun Perfect Imperfect Imperative ActiveParticiple
'anaأنا
'idytإدیت
addyا دي
ihnaا حنا
'iddynaإدینا
niddyنـدي
'intaإنت
'iddytإدیت
tiddyتـدي
'iddyإدي
'intyإنتي
'iddytyإدیتي
tiddyتـدي
'idditإد ت
'intuإنتوا
'iddytuإدیتوا
tidduتـدوا
'idduإدوا
huwaهـو
'iddaإدى
yiddyیـدي
hiyaهـي
'iddytإدیت
tiddyتـدي
hummaهـما
'idduإدوا
yidduیـدوا
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fall- wi'iA و قـع
Pronoun Perfect Imperfect Imperative ActiveParticiple
'anaأنا
wi'iAtو قـعت
a'aAا قـع
ihnaا حنا
wi'iAnaو قـعنا
nu'aAنـقـع
'intaإنت
wi'iAtو قـعت
tu'aAتـقـع
wae'iAوا قـع
'intyإنتي
wi'iAtyو قـعتي
tu'aAyتـقـعي
wa'Aitوا قعـت
'intuإنتوا
wi'iAtuو قـعتوا
tu'aAuتـقـعوا
wa'Aynوا قعین
huwaهـو
wi'iAو قـع
yu'aAیـقـع
hiyaهـي
wi'Aitو قعـت
tu'aAتـقـع
humma wi'Au yu'aAu
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هـما و قعوا یـقـعوا
stand- wi'if و قـف
Pronoun Perfect Imperfect Imperative ActiveParticiple
'anaأنا
wi'iftو قـفت
a'afا قـف
ihnaا حنا
wi'ifnaو قـفنا
nu'afنـقـف
'intaإنت
wi'iftو قـفت
tu'afتـقـف
uu'afا قـف
wae'ifوا قـف
'intyإنتي
wi'iftyو
قـفتيtu'afy
تـقـفيuu'afy
ا قـفيwae'ifty
واقـفتي
'intuإنتوا
wi'iftuو
قـفتواtu'afu
تـقـفواuu'afu
ا قـفواwae'ifynوا قـفین
huwaهـو
wi'ifو قـف
yu'afیـقـف
hiya wi'fit tu'af
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هـي و قفـت تـقـفhumma
هـماwi'fu
و قفواyu'afu
یـقـفوا
Verbs: Root and StemA verb is made up of a root (a set of consonants) and a stem (a prefix and the vowels between).There may be more than one verb derived from the same root- for example, starting with fhm, youcan make fihim (to understand) and fahhim (to make somebody understand).
Most roots have three consonants: it is conventional to describe this type of verb using the lettersK, T and B, as in kitab كـتـب, write. For words with four consonants, the letter L is used as well. Asmall number of roots have two or four consonants. There are five main roots, and each of thesecan make three main stem types, as per the following table. Note that, in arabic, AIN is treated aconsonant, so Airif is of the form KiTiB.
A B C D E
1 KVT KvTv KvTT KvTvB KvTBvL
2 KvVVvT KvTTv KvTTvT KvTTvB
3 KaaViT KaaTi KvTT KaaTiB KvTBvL
KTBL=root consonants v=aiu V=wy
From any of these main stems, it is possible to derive more stems by adding prefixes. Here are
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some examples:
Prefix Main stem Derived stem Meaning
iit- KvTvB iitKvTvByitKvTvB
passive (be *-ed)reflexive (* oneself)
iit- KvTTvB iitKaTTaByitKvTTvB
passive (be *-ed)reflexive (* oneself)
iit- KaaTiByiKTvB
iitKaaTiByitKaaTiB each other
iiKt- KvTvB iiKtvTvByiKtvTvB as iit-
iin- KvTvB iinKvTvByinKvTvB as iit-
iista- KvTvB iistaKvTvByistaKvTvB consider or seek
There are also some verbs that are derived from classical arabic- the perfect genarally begins withaa-, and the imperfect with yu-.
About this documentI would like to thank the residents of the White House, Suze Labib and Rana el Hindy for helpingme to make this possible.
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The logo was designed by Khaled Adel of Absolute Studios.
This document is a work in progress. It was developed and revised over several years as a studyaid for my own use: It has been extensively checked, but I am sure that there are still mistakes andomissions.
The dictionary and grammar are supplied 'as is': you are welcome to use them on condition that youdo not hold me responsible for any loss, injury or embarrassment that may result from their use. Seethe copyright notice if you wish to publish any part of this document.
If you notice any errors or omissions or have suggestions for improvements, you can contact meusing the Contact us page.
Cookies
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CopyrightThis material is Copyright © 2007-2012 Mike Green.
You may distribute the documents and applications free of charge if it is strictly for non-commercialuse, and:
either the material is supplied complete and in its existing form
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or extracts from the material are attributed to www.lisaanmasry.com and carry the originalcopyright details of the document
If you need to access the entire dictionary database for any reason, please ask and maybe I cansupply it in a more convenient form.
Mike Green