Archive for 'Grammar'
How to survive in a restaurant in Egypt? Useful phrases in Egyptian Arabic Posted by Hanan Ben Nafa on Aug 16, 2017
Today, we’re looking at a near-authentic, restaurant scenario you may come across during your stay in Egypt. The scenario includes many important phrases you’ll need to use to order your meal and pay for it. It also includes important questions that you may be asked by the waiter, from the beginning of your visit till…
Arabic Verb Forms [Transitive vs. Intransitive] Posted by Ibnulyemen اِبْنُ اليَمَن on Aug 10, 2017
We use the language to share our feelings and thoughts. This entails expressing a state of being or an action. In Arabic, the latter is done using a verbal sentence. As the name suggests, it should contain a verb; plus, it, the verb, must occur sentence-initially. To make sense, it is essential that we know…
When to pronounce the final tied-up taa’ (taa’ Marboutah)? Posted by Hanan Ben Nafa on Aug 2, 2017
I recently had to explain to one of my students the reason I sometime pronounce the tied-up taa’ ـة , which is found at the end of a word, and sometimes I don’t! This blog post will provide you with some tips so you can recognise the two often-confused forms of the bound-up…
Remember Your Pronouns! Posted by jesa on Jul 29, 2017
Marhaba! In my posts, I always encourage you to learn more vocabulary and better comprehension of the Arabic language through various exercises, songs, and other activities. Today, I want to take you back to the basics! Let’s learn or refresh our memory on some of our pronouns, subject and possessive pronouns. Remember, possessive pronouns in…
Conjugating لَيْسَ laysa and كَاْنَ kaana Posted by Ibnulyemen اِبْنُ اليَمَن on Jul 27, 2017
The Arabic sentence is either اِسْمِيَّة ismiiyah ‘nominal’, i.e. has no verb, or فِعْلِيَّة fi‘liiyah ‘verbal’. Their frequency is similar. لَيْس laysa ‘not’ and كَانَ kaana ‘was/were’ are mainly associated with the nominal. Therefore, both are important and frequent; knowing the regularity and irregularity of their تَصْرِيْف taSriif ‘conjugation’ is essential for easier learning and…
Telling the time in Libyan Colloquial Arabic Posted by Hanan Ben Nafa on Jul 26, 2017
A few weeks ago, we looked at how we ask for the time and also learnt some time-related vocabulary, using a kids song. This week, we’re going to learn how to tell the time in Libyan colloquial Arabic. Although I’m focusing on the Libyan dialect here, it’s worth mentioning that this is not at…
Meet An Emirati Sports Champion (2) Posted by jesa on Jul 25, 2017
Marhaba! Listening to Maha talk about her passion for her sports has enticed me to go ahead and exercise myself! I hope you enjoyed Maha’s story as well. As more and more female athletes break barriers in the Arab world and around the world, champions like Maha are indeed an inspiration. I have provided you…