Arabic Speaking

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Table of ContentsIntroduction.....................................................................................................................1

Learning Moroccan Arabic......................................................................................................................1Transcription of Moroccan Arabic...........................................................................................................1

Getting Started with Moroccan Arabic.............................................................................5Greetings.................................................................................................................................................5Independent Pronouns............................................................................................................................6Possessive Pronouns...............................................................................................................................8Masculine and Feminine Nouns.............................................................................................................9

Describing Yourself........................................................................................................10Nationalities, Cities, and Marital Status................................................................................................10The Possessive Word dyal...................................................................................................................13Demonstrative Adjectives & Demonstrative Pronouns.........................................................................14Asking about Possession........................................................................................................................17

Useful Expressions.........................................................................................................19Numerals.......................................................................................................................22

Cardinal Numbers.................................................................................................................................22Ordinal Numbers / Fractions................................................................................................................28Time.......................................................................................................................................................29

Getting Started Shopping...............................................................................................32Money....................................................................................................................................................32At the Hanoot........................................................................................................................................33Verb to want.......................................................................................................................................35Kayn for There is................................................................................................................................36

Family............................................................................................................................37Family Members....................................................................................................................................37Verb to have........................................................................................................................................39

Directions.......................................................................................................................41Prepositions...........................................................................................................................................41Directions..............................................................................................................................................42

Past Events.....................................................................................................................44Time Vocabulary...................................................................................................................................44Past Tense Regular Verbs...................................................................................................................45Past Tense Irregular Verbs.................................................................................................................47Negation................................................................................................................................................50Have you ever... / Ive never..................................................................................................................52Object Pronouns....................................................................................................................................53Question Words.....................................................................................................................................54

Daily Routines................................................................................................................57

Present Tense Regular Verbs.............................................................................................................57Present Tense Irregular Verbs with Middle a.................................................................................59Present Tense Irregular Verbs with Final a....................................................................................64Using One Verb after Another..............................................................................................................68The Imperative......................................................................................................................................69

Bargaining......................................................................................................................71Bargaining..............................................................................................................................................71Clothing.................................................................................................................................................73Adjectives..............................................................................................................................................78Comparative and Superlative Adjectives..............................................................................................80

Shopping For Food.........................................................................................................84Fruits and Vegetables............................................................................................................................84

Buying Produce.....................................................................................................................................85Spices and Meat....................................................................................................................................88


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Food and Drink..............................................................................................................89Food and Drink.....................................................................................................................................89The Reflexive verb to please / to like..................................................................................................91The Verb to need, to have to, must, should........................................................................................95The Verb to want, to like....................................................................................................................96

Medical & Body...............................................................................................................97

Body Parts..............................................................................................................................................97Health Problems....................................................................................................................................97

Site Visit Expressions...................................................................................................100Travel...........................................................................................................................102

Future Tense........................................................................................................................................102Travel...................................................................................................................................................106

At the Hotel...................................................................................................................110Hotel Accommodation.........................................................................................................................110The Conditional....................................................................................................................................111

At the Post Office...........................................................................................................113The Post Office.....................................................................................................................................113Using Prepositions with Pronoun Endings & Verbs............................................................................115

Describing the Peace Corps Mission.............................................................................120Peace Corps..........................................................................................................................................120Youth Development..............................................................................................................................121Environment........................................................................................................................................122Health..................................................................................................................................................123Small Business Development..............................................................................................................124

Renting a House............................................................................................................125Finding a House...................................................................................................................................125Furnishing a House.............................................................................................................................126

Safety and Security.......................................................................................................129Sexual Harassment..............................................................................................................................129At the Taxi Stand.................................................................................................................................130

At Work................................................................................................................................................132Forgetting a Wallet in a Taxi / Filing a Report....................................................................................133Butagas................................................................................................................................................134Hash.....................................................................................................................................................135Theft.....................................................................................................................................................136House Security / Doors and Windows................................................................................................138Political Harassment...........................................................................................................................140

Appendices...................................................................................................................142Pronunciation of Moroccan Arabic...............................................................................143

Understanding How Sounds Are Made...............................................................................................143Pronunciation of Non-English Consonants.........................................................................................143Pronunciation of Shedda.....................................................................................................................145

The Definite Article..............................................................................................................................146Supplementary Grammar Lessons...............................................................................148

Making Intransitive Verbs into Transitive Verbs................................................................................148Passive Verbs.......................................................................................................................................149The Past Progressive............................................................................................................................150The Verb to remain............................................................................................................................151Verb Participles....................................................................................................................................151Conjunctions........................................................................................................................................154

More Useful Expressions..............................................................................................157Moroccan Holidays.......................................................................................................159

Religious Holidays...............................................................................................................................159National Holidays................................................................................................................................162

Glossary of Verbs..........................................................................................................164Grammar Index............................................................................................................192


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Peace Corps / Morocco 3

Vocabulary Index..........................................................................................................193


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IntroductionLearning Moroccan ArabicEven under the best conditions, learning a new language can be challenging. Add to this challenge the rigors of Peace

Corps training, and youre faced with what will be one of the most demandingand rewardingaspects of your Peace Corps

experience: learning to communicate to Moroccans in their own language. But it can be done. And rest assured that you

can do it. Here are a few reasons why:

You are immersed in the language: Some people may need to hear a word three times to remember it; others

may need thirty. Learning Moroccan Arabic while living and training with Moroccans gives you the chance to hear

the language used again and again.

You have daily language classes with Moroccan teachers:Youre not only immersed in the language; you

also have the opportunity to receive feedback from native speakers on the many questions that predictably crop

up when one learns a new language.

Peace Corps has over forty years of experience in Morocco: Your training, including this manual, benefits

from the collective experience gained by training thousands of Americans to live and work in Morocco. You will

benefit from and contribute to that legacy.

Despite these advantages, at times you may still feel like the task of learning Moroccan Arabic is too much to handle.

Remember that volunteers like you having been doing it for decades, however. One of the most rewarding aspects of your

time will be communicating with Moroccans in Arabic, surprising them and yourself with how well you know the language.

When that time arrives, your hard work will have been worth it.

Transcription of Moroccan ArabicIn order for trainees to move quickly into Moroccan Arabic (also called Darija), Peace Corps uses a system of transcriptionthat substitutes characters of the Latin alphabet (a, b, c, d, . . . ) for characters from Arabic script ( . . .). Withthis system, it isnt necessary for a trainee to learn all of Arabic script before he or she begins to learn the language. On thecontrary, once you become familiar with the system of transcription, you will be able to read and write Moroccan Arabic

fairly quicklyusing characters you are familiar with. You will also learn Arabic script during training, but with transcriptionit isnt necessary to know it right away. Throughout the book, therefore, you will always see both the original Arabic scriptand the transcription. Becoming familiar with the Peace Corps system of transcription is one of the best thingsyou can do, early on, to help yourself learn Moroccan Arabic. Practicing the different sounds of Moroccan

Arabic until you can reproduce them is another. This introduction is intended mainly to help you get started with thesystem of transcription, and as a result it will mention only briefly the different sounds of Arabic. However, a fullerexplanation can be found on page 143.

Sounds You Already KnowThe large majority of consonants in Moroccan Arabic are similar to sounds that we have in English. The

vowels in Arabic are also similar to English vowels. In the following table, each transcription character thatrepresents a sound you already know will be explained. The sounds are not necessarily what you mayexpect, but each character was matched with a sound for good reasons.

Transcription Character

ArabicCharacter Description

a / _ / sometimes the // in father, sometimes the /a/ in madb the normal English sound /b/d the normal English sound /d/

e / _

the short e sound /e/ as in met (this transcription character isnot used often, only when confusion would be caused by using thetranscription character a)

f the normal English sound /f/


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2 Moroccan Arabicg the normal English sound /g/ as in goh the normal English sound /h/ as in hi.i / _ the long ee sound // as in meetj the /zh/ sound represented by the s in pleasurek the normal English sound /k/l the normal English sound /l/

m the normal English sound /m/n the normal English sound /n/

o the long o sound // as in bone (this transcription character isnot used often, mainly for French words that have entered Moroccan Arabic)

p the normal English sound /p/

rthis is not the normal English r, but a flap similar to theSpanish r or to the sound Americans make when theyquickly say gotta as in I gotta go.

s the normal English sound /s/

t the normal English sound /t/u the long oo sound // as in foodv the normal English sound /v/w the normal English sound /w/y the normal English sound /y/z the normal English sound /z/ the normal English sound /sh/ as in she

Some vowel combinations

ay the ay as in sayau the ow as in cowiu the ee you as in see you later

New SoundsThere are eight consonants in Moroccan Arabic that we do not have in English. It may take you some time tobe able to pronounce these correctly. At this point, whats important is that you learn the transcriptioncharacter for each of these sounds. See page 143 for more information on how to pronounce the sounds inMoroccan Arabic.

Transcription Character

ArabicCharacter Sound

d the Arabic emphaticd These sounds are pronounced liketheir non-emphatic counterparts,but with a lower pitch and a greatertension in the tongue and throat.

s the Arabic emphatics

t the Arabic emphatictq like the English /k/ but pronounced further back in the throat

x like the ch in the German Bach; some people use this

sound to sayyech! like the x sound above, but pronounced using your voice


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Peace Corps / Morocco 3box; similar to the French r

like the English h, except pronounce deep in the throat asa loud raspy whisper.This sound will be difficult at first. It can be approximatedby pronouncing the a in fat with the tongue against thebottom of the mouth and from as deep in the throat aspossible

SheddaIf you see a transcription character doubled, that means that a shedda is over that character in theArabic script. For example, in the following table, you will see how the transcription changes for shedda,and thus the pronunciation.

EnglishTranslation Transcription

ArabicScript

woman mratime (as in: Ive seen

him one time)

marra

Notice that these two words are spelled differently in the transcription. The word woman does not have ashedda on the r in Arabic script, and that is why there is only one r in the transcription. The word timedoes have a shedda in the Arabic script, and that is why the transcription doubles the letter r. These twowords are pronounced differently, so you must pay attention to doubled letters in transcription.

To learn more about how we pronounce the shedda in Arabic, see page 145. For now, whats important is thatyou understand the transcription.

Other SymbolsSometimes, you will see a hyphen used in the transcription. This has three purposes:

1. It indicates the definite article: For some letters, the definite article (the word the) is made byadding the letter l. For others, it is made by doubling the first letter. In both cases, a hyphen will be

used to indicate to you that the word has the definite article in front of it. See page 146 for more infoon the definite article.2. It connects the present tense prefix: The present tense prefix (kan, kat, or kay) will be

connected to the verb with a hyphen. This will make it easier for you to understand what verb you arelooking at.

3. It connects the negative prefix (ma) and the negative suffix () to averb.

In these instances, the hyphen does not necessarily indicate a change in pronunciation. The hyphen isthere to make it easy for you to see when a definite article is being used, for example, or which verb is beingused. It is a visual indicator, not an indicator of pronunciation. Sometimes the rhythm of speech may seem tobreak with the hyphen; other times the letters before and after the hyphen will be pronounced together.

Another symbol you will sometimes see is the apostrophe ( ' ). When you see an apostrophe, it indicates a

glottal stop, which is the break between vowels as heard in the English exclamation uh oh. That is to say,if you see an apostrophe you should not connect the sounds before the apostrophe with the sounds after theapostrophe. Pronounce them with a break in the middle.

Words & Syllables Without VowelsSometimes you will see syllables or even whole words without any vowels written in them. This is normal inMoroccan Arabic. To the English speaker, however, this seems impossible, since we have always been taughtthat all words must contain a vowel sound. Which side is correct? Well, in a sense they both are. In reality, itis indeed possible to pronounce consonants together without articulating a vowel sound; we do it a lot inEnglish at the beginning of words. Think about the word street. We pronounce three consonantss, t, and rwithout any vowels between them. So it is possible. The only challenge with Arabic is that the consonantcombinations are new for English speakers (we dont put the /sh/ sound next to the /m/ sound, for example,but in Arabic they do).

However, try for a moment to pronounce onlythe letters str, not the whole word street. In this case, mostEnglish speakers will hear something that sounds like the word stir. With certain consonant combinations,

This smallcharacter, whichlooks like a w,is the shedda.

That is why the


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4 Moroccan Arabicthat is to say, it sounds to the English speaker like there is a vowel in the middle, even if there isnt. Thevowel is in reality just the normal sound made as one consonant sound transitions to another.

Part of learning Moroccan Arabic is becoming comfortable with new consonant combinations and practicingthose combinations without necessarily placing a vowel in the middle. The transcription words, you willnotice, only include characters for vowels when there really is a vowel in the word. It may seem difficult atfirst, but it is better to accustom yourself to this as early as you can.

Why Not Just Write sh?A final point about the transcription. At times it may seem overly complicated to someone beginningMoroccan Arabic. For example, why doesnt it just use sh for the /sh/ sound? The answer is this: everysound must have just a single character to represent it. Why? Well, in Arabic it is normal for the /h/ sound tofollow the /s/ sound. If we used sh to represent the /sh/ sound, there would not be any way to representan /s/ plus /h/ sound, because it too would look like sh. Using the symbol to represent /sh/ makes itpossible to represent /s/ plus /h/ and /sh/ plus /h/ (yes, in Arabic both these combinations are used).

All of this concerns a larger point: the transcription system used in this book may appear complex atfirst, but it has been carefully thought out and in the end it is the easiest system possible. That said, thesooner you can make the transition to reading Arabic script, the easier it will be to pronounce Arabic correctly.


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Getting Started with Moroccan ArabicObjective: By the end of the chapter, you will be able to:

greet people and introduce yourself use independent pronouns to make simple sentences

use possessive pronouns to indicate possession distinguish between masculine and feminine nouns

GreetingsCultural Points

Greetings and farewells (good byes) are two important aspects of Moroccan life. Greetings are not to becompared with the quick American hi. It takes time for two people to exchange different questions andanswers which interest them about each other, their families, and life in general. Greetings change from oneregion to another, both in the questions posed and in the fashion of the greeting (i.e. shaking hands, kissingcheeks head or hands, or putting ones hand over ones heart after shaking hands).

If you greet a group of people, then the way you greet the first person is the way you should greeteveryone in the group. Dont be surprised if you are greeted by a friend but he does not introduce you toother people with whom he may be talking. Do not be surprised if you are in a group and you are not greetedas others are in the group (people may be shy to greet a stranger.) It is also not necessary to give an overlydetailed response to a greetingonly the usual response is expected. For example, How are you? requiresonly a simple Fine, thanks be to God.

How do people greet eachother in different cultures?

Greeting expressions and appropriate responsesA: Peace be upon youB: And peace be upon you(too)

s-salamu alaykumwa alaykum s-salam

A: Good morningB: Good morning

sbaH l-KHirsbaH l-KHir

A: Good afternoon / eveningB: Good afternoon / evening

msa l-KHirmsa l-KHir

name smiyaWhats your name? nu/chnou smitk?my name... smiti... ...your name... smitk... ...his name... smitu... ...her name... smitha... ...Nice to meet you. mtrfinHow are you (masc.)? kif dayr?How are you (fem.)? kif dayra?Are you fine? labas?

Good, thanks be to God. labas, l-amdullah


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6 Moroccan Arabic

Good, thanks be to God. bixir, l-amdullahEverything is fine. kuli bixirGood-bye bslamaGood night layla sa ida

Greetings DialogueJohn: s-salamu alaykum. :

Mohamed: wa alaykum s-salam. :John: kif dayr? :

Mohamed: labas, l-amdullah. u nta? . :John: bixir, l-amdullah. :

Mohamed: nu smitk? :John: smiti John. u nta? . :

Mohamed: smiti Mohamed. :John: mtrfin. :

Mohamed: mtrfin. :

Exercise: Put this dialogue in the correct order.Chris: sbah l-khir. :Amy: mtrfin. :Chris: kif dayra? :Amy: nu smitk? :Chris: labas, l-hamdullah. :Amy: smiti Amy. :Chris: smiti Chris. u nti? . :

Amy: sbah l-khir. :Chris: mtrfin. :Amy: bikhir, l-hamdullah. u nta? :

Independent PronounsWe call the following pronouns independent because they are not attached to other words, suchas nouns, verbs, or prepositions (see Possessive Pronouns, next page, and Object Pronouns,page 53). The pronouns are often used in a number of different ways.

I ana

you (masc. singular) nta

Transcription Reminder see page 1 for the full table with all transcription characters.:the /sh/ sound as in shea:the a in father or the a in madx:the ch in the German Bach or

thei:the ee in meetScottish loch See page144.u:the oo in food


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you (fem. singular) ntihe huwashe hiyawe Hna

you (plural) ntumathey huma

When they are followed by a noun or an adjective, the verb to be is not necessary. It is impliedalready, and simple sentences can be made by using independent pronouns with a nouns oradjectives.

I am a teacher. ana ustad. .She is tired. hiya iyana. .

Transcription Reminder see page 1 for the full table with all transcription characters.h:the normal English /h/ sound as in:like the English h, except pronounce ithello.deep in the

throat as a loud raspy whisper. See page 145.


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8 Moroccan Arabic

Possessive PronounsIn Darija, a suffix (ending) may be added to the end of words in order to expresspossession.

my i / ya* /

your (singular) khis u / h* /her haour nayour (plural) kumtheir hum

* For the my and his forms, the first ending is used for words ending in consonants, while the second isused with words ending in vowels. For example, smiti (my name), but xuya (my brother).

Example of possessive pronouns with the noun book.

book ktabmy book ktabiyour (sing.) book ktabkhis book ktabuher book ktabhaour book ktabnayour (plur.) book ktabkumtheir book ktabhum

Most feminine nouns in Arabic have an a sound at the end of the word. In Arabic script, this a is actually asilent t that is only pronounced on certain occasions. For all feminine words ending in this silent t ( ),we drop the sound a and substitute it with t before adding a possessive pronoun. For example, thefeminine noun magana (a watch).

watch maganamy watch magantiyour (sing.) watch magantkhis watch magantuher watch magantha

our watch magantnayour (plur.) watch magantkumtheir watch maganthum

Exercise: Use the following words with the appropriate possessivepronoun.

dar (house) blasa (place) ktab (book) wrqa (sheet of paper,ticket)1. your (plur.) house 6. their place

2. my place 7. her house3. his book 8. his ticket


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4. our place 9. your (sing.) book5. your (sing.) ticket 10. their house

Masculine and Feminine NounsIn Arabic, all nouns are either masculine or feminine. In general, nouns ending in a (thesilent t ( ) in Arabic script) are feminine. For example:

name smiyacity mdinachicken (a single one) djajatelevision tlfaza

The feminine is formed from the masculine (for nouns indicating professions orparticiples) by adding a (the silent t ( ) in Arabic script) to the end of the word. Forexample:

male teacher ustadfemale teacher ustada

working (masc.participle) xddam

working (fem. participle) xddama

Some words without a (the silent t ( ) in Arabic script) are nonetheless feminine.First, words and proper names which are by their nature feminine:

mother omAmal (girls name) amal

Second, most (though not all) parts of the body that come in pairs are feminine:

an eye ina hand yda foot rjlan ear udn

Third, a small number of nouns which do not fall into any category and yet are feminine:

the house d-darthe sun -ms

Transcription Reminder see page 1 for the full table with all transcription characters.j:the /zh/ sound, like the s in the Remember that if two characters in a row areword pleasure.thesame, a shedda is used, and we pronounce :See page 146.that sound longer. See pages 3 and

146.


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10 Moroccan Arabic

Describing YourselfObjective: By the end of the chapter, you will be able to:

ask and answer questions about nationalities, cities, age, andmarital status

use the possessive word dyal to indicate possession use demonstrative pronouns and adjectives in simple sentences ask questions about possession

Cultural PointsAvoid asking about the salary and age (sometimes) of people, especially women.

Men should not enquire about the wives or other female relations of someonethis couldbe seen as expressing an inappropriate interest. People wont always tell you about their

jobs and other personal concerns if not asked. Religion can be a sensitive issue andsometimes people are not willing to express their views.

Nationalities, Cities, and Marital Status

Vocabulary and ExpressionsWhere are you (masc.)from? mnin nta?

Where are you (fem.) from? mnin nti?I am from the U.S. ana mn mirikan. .I am American. ana mirikani(ya). ) ).I am from Morocco. ana mn l-mrib. .I am Moroccan. ana mribi(ya). ) ).Are you ... ? we nta/nti ... ? ... /Are you from the U.S.? we nta/nti mn mirikan? /Where are you from in theU.S.? mnin nta/nti f mirikan? /

And you? u nta/nti? /city mdinastate wilayabig (fem.) kbirasmall (fem.) sira

Excuse me. (to man /woman) sm li / smi li /I am not ... ana mai ... ...but welakinengaged (fem.) mxtubamarried (masc. / fem.) mzuwj / mzuwja /No, not yet. lla mazal / lla baqi /Are you a tourist? we nta/nti turist? /

I work with the Peace Corps. ana xddam(a) m a hay'at

s-salam.( ) .


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DialogueFatima: s-salamu alaykum. :

Tom: wa alaykum s-salam. :Fatima: sm li, we nta fransawi? :

Tom: lla, ana mirikani. . :

Fatima: mnin f mirikan? :Tom: mn mdint Seattle f wilayatWashington. u nti?

. :

Fatima: mn Rabat. . :Tom: al f mrk? :

Fatima: tnayn u rin am. u nta? . :Tom: rb a u tlatin am. . :

Fatima: we nta mzuwj wlla mazal? :Tom: mazal. u nti? . :

Fatima: lla, baqiya. we nta turist? . :Tom: lla, ana xddam m a

hay'at s-salam. . :Fatima: bslama. . :

Tom: n-ufk mn b d. . :


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12 Moroccan Arabic

Exercise:Complete each section of this dialogue.


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The Possessive Word dyalIn Moroccan Arabic, you have already learned that possession can be expressed byadding the possessive pronouns to the end of a word (see page 8). Another way toexpress possession is through the word dyal. It is placed after a noun with the definitearticle the, which in Arabic may be either the letter l or a doubling of the first

consonant of a word (see page 146 for more information on the Arabic definite article).The same possessive pronouns you learned before are attached to the end ofdyal. Youcan also use a name with dyal. Some examples:

Using Possessive Pronoun Using dyal

book ktab the book l-ktab

my book ktabi my book l-ktab dyali

Johns book l-ktab dyal John

Here is a list ofdyal with all of the possessive pronoun endings:

my / mine dyaliyour / yours (sing.) dyalkhis / his dyaluher / hers dyalhaour / ours dyalnayour / yours dyalkum

their / theirs dyalhumAs the list above shows, the forms dyali, dyalk, etc. also mean mine, yours, etc.

This pen is mine. had s-stilo dyali. .That rug is yours. dik z-zrbiya dyalk. .

Exercise:Substitute the underlined words by thecorresponding possessive pronoun endings.

1. s-stilu dyal John. .2. l-ktab dyal Amber. .3. d-dar dyal Driss u Zubida. .


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14 Moroccan Arabic

Demonstrative Adjectives & DemonstrativePronouns

This, that, these, and those are used often in Arabic, like in English. But, unlike inEnglish, in Arabic we must be aware of whether they act as adjectives or pronouns. Think

about how we use these words in English. Sometimes, we use them before a noun. Whenwe use them before a noun, they are called demonstrative adjectives.This car is Johns. I like these towels.I wantthatbook. Those flowers smell lovely.

Sometimes, we use them by themselves. In this case, they are called demonstrativepronouns.

This is Johns. I like these.I wantthat. Those smell lovely.

It isnt necessary to know their names, but it is necessary to pay attention to whetherthey are before a noun or not. Lets first look at the pronoun forms in Arabic, which youwill use often even as a beginner.

DemonstrativePronounsthis (masc.) hadathis (fem.) hadithese (plur.) haduthat (masc.) hadakthat (fem.) hadikthose (plur.) haduk

These forms may be used at the beginning of a sentence, in the middle or at the end of asentence, or in questions. In Arabic, these pronouns can represent people.

This is a chair. hada kursi. .This is a table. hadi tbla. .This is Abdallah. hada Abdallah. .This is Aicha. hadi Aicha. .Whats this? (masc. object) nu / a hada? /Whats this? (fem. object) nu / a hadi? /Who is this? (masc.) kun hada?Who is this? (fem.) kun hadi?

What is that? (masc. object) nu / a hadak? /Who is that? (fem.) kun hadik?

At first, you may have difficulty knowing whether to use the masculine or feminine form ofthis or that. Moroccans should understand you even if you make an error with gender,however.

Exercise:Write as many correct sentences as you can using thewords from the following table.


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e.g. hada rajl mzyan. .(This is a good man.)

hada wld (masc. sing.) mzyan (masc. sing.)

hadi bnt (fem. sing.) mzyanin (masc. plur.)hadu qhwa (fem. sing.) mzyana (fem. sing.)

hadak wlad (masc. plur.) mzyanat (fem. plur.)

hadik rajl (masc. sing.) kbir (masc. sing.)

haduk dar (fem. sing.) kbira (fem. sing.)

yalat (fem. plur.) kbar (masc./fem. plur.)

mdina (fem. sing.) fran (masc. sing.)

bnat (fem. plur.) franin (masc. plur.)

blad (masc. sing.) frana (fem. sing.)

franat (fem. plur.)

Transcription Reminder see page 1 for the full table with all transcription characters.:the /sh/ sound as in shea:the a in father or the a in madx:the ch in the German Bach or

thei:the ee in meetScottish loch See page144.u:the oo in food:the French r, like a light

garglek:the normal /k/ soundSee page 145.q:like the English /k/ but pronounced t: pronounced liket, d, and s, but with a lower pitch and a greater tension in the tongue and throat. See page145.further back in the throat. See page 144.d: s:


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16 Moroccan Arabic

Demonstrative Adjectivesthis/these (masc. / fem. /plur.) had

that (masc.) dakthat (fem.) dikthose (plur.) duk

As you can see, the this/these form (had) is the same for masculine, feminine, andplural. For all the demonstrative adjectives, you must use the definite article in front ofthe nouns that follow them. This means using an l in front of moon letters or doublingthe first letter of sun letters (see page 146).

this man had r-rajlthis woman had l-mrathese men had r-rjal

these women had l- yalat This city is big. had l-mdina kbira. .That house is big. dik d-dar kbira. .

Talking about a General SituationSometimes in English, we use the words this and that to talk about general situations,not about specific things.

Some of the students are always late for class. I dont like that.In Arabic, different expressions are used for these meanings.

this (general situation) had -i

that (general situation) dak -i

After some experience hearing native speakers, you should be able to know when to usethe normal demonstrative pronouns and when to use these expressions. Some examples:

What is this? (this thing, thisobject) a hada?

What is this? (situation,affair) a had -i?

I want that. (that thing, thatobject) bit hadak. .

Thats what I want. (asituation or outcome) dak -i l-li bit. .

Using a Demonstrative Pronoun to Express DurationWith a present tense verb form, an active participle expressing current activity, or anequational sentence, the demonstrative pronoun hadi is used to express duration, like theEnglish present perfect tense or present perfect progressive tense. It is used with a timeexpression and u (and) followed by the rest of the sentence:

hadi + time expression + u + rest of sentence

Ive been waiting for you fortwo hours. (Literally: This is

hadi sa tayn u anakan-tsnak.

.

IntermediateTopic

IntermediateTopic


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two hours and I am waitingfor you.)Hes been asleep for a longtime. (Literally: This is a longtime and he is sleeping.)

hadi muda u huwa na s. .

Hes been in Morocco forthree years. (Literally: This isthree years and he is inMorocco.)

hadi tlt snin u huwaf l-marib. .

Asking about PossessionThe possessive word dyal ( ) may be used with mn ( ) to mean whose.

Whose book is this? dyal mn had l-ktab?This is Ambers book. had l-ktab dyal Amber. .

Is this Hichams book? we had l-ktab dyal Hicham?No, its not his. lla, mai dyalu. .Whose house is this? dyal mn had d-dar?

This house is Malikas. had d-dar dyal Malika. .Is this house Malikas? we had d-dar dyal Malika?

Yes, its hers. iyeh, dyalha. .

we hadddar dyal Malika?

iyeh,dyalha.


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18 Moroccan Arabic

Exercise:Ask a question about possession for each picture.Then, give the correct answer. The first one is done foryou.

Q: dyal mn had l-bisklit?A: had l-bisklit dyal Hassan.

Hassan

.

SaidQ: _______________________?A: ___________________Said. _______________

____________ .

Q: _______________________?

A: __________________Ahmed.

Ahmed

___________________________ .

Q: _______________________?

A: ___________________Aziz.

Aziz

___________________________ .

?

?

?

?


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Useful ExpressionsHere are some expressions to help you with homestay, travel, and other situations whereyour language may not yet be at a point where you are able to communicate well inMoroccan Arabic. If you follow the pronunciation of the transcriptions, Moroccans should

understand you. More expressions can be found in the appendix. See page 157.Mealtime ExpressionsIn the name of God (said whenyou begin an activity: eating,drinking, working, studying,traveling, etc.).

bismillah

Thanks to God (said afterfinishing a meal, or afterexpressing that all is well in life).

l-amdullah

I dont eat ... meateggsfishchicken

ma-kan-akul-...l-lml-bidl-utd-djaj

/ //.

I drink tea / coffee withoutsugar.

kan-rb atay / l-qhwa blaskkar. / .

I eat everything. kan-akul kuli. .I eat vegetables only. kan-akul ir l-xodra. .I dont feel like eating. ma-fiya ma-y-akul. .I want just/only ... bit ir ... ...

I dont want to havebreakfast. ma-bit- n-ftr. .

The food is delicious. l-makla bnina. .Im full. b t. .I want to learn how to cook. bit n-t llm n-tiyb. .May God replenish / rewardyou. (said after a meal to thankhost)

lla y-xlf. .

To your health (said to someoneafter eating, drinking, coming out

of the hammam, wearing newclothes, having a hair cut, etc.) bssa. .May God grant you healthtoo. (response to the above) lla y- tik ssa .

Thanking ExpressionsThank you. ukran.Youre welcome. bla jmil. .


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20 Moroccan Arabic

Expressions for Nighttime / SleepingIm tired. (male speaker) ana iyan. .Im tired. (female speaker) ana iyana. .I want to read a little bit. bit n-qra wiya. .

I want to go to bed. bit n-n s. .Where I am going to sleep? fin adi n-n s. Excuse me, I want to go tobed. (addressing a group ofpeople)

smu li, bit n-mi n-n s. .

I want to go to bed early. bit n-n s bkri. .I want to get up early. bit n-fiq bkri. .I want a blanket. bit wad l-manta. .

Hygiene/Cleanliness ExpressionsI want to wash my handswith soap. bit n-sl yddi b s-sabun. .

I want to brush my teeth. bit n-sl snani. .I want hot water, please. bit l-ma s-sxun afak. .I want to take a shower. bit n-duw. .I want to go to thehammam. bit n-mi l-mmam. .

I want to change my clothes. bit n-bddl wayji. .

Where is the toilet? fin bit l-ma?I want to do laundry. bit n-sbbn wayji. .Where can I do laundry? fin ymkn n-sbbn wayji. .

Offering Help / Asking for FavorsCan I help you? we n- awnk? Excuse me. (to a man) sm li. .Excuse me. (to a woman) smi li. .

Give me ... please. tini ... afak. ... .Being SickIm sick. (male speaker) ana mrid. .Im sick. (female speaker) ana mrida. .I want to rest a bit. bit n-rta swiya. .Do you feel better? briti wiya?

Transportation ExpressionsI want to go to ... bit n-mi l ... ...


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Take me to ... please. ddini l ... afak. ... .Stop here, please. wqf hna afak. .Is the meter on? we l-kuntur xddam?

Turn on the meter, please. xddm l-kuntur afak. .

Responses to Problems/Difficulties/ApologiesIts not a problem. mai mukil. .

There is no problem. ma-kayn mukil. .

CongratulationsCongratulations. mbrukHappy holiday. mbruk l- id. .May God grant you grace.(response to the above) lla y-bark fik. .

CommunicationI dont understand. ma-fhmt-. .I dont know. ma-n- rf. .Slowly please. b wiya afak. .Repeat please. (to a man) awd afak. .Repeat please. (to a woman) awdi afak. .

What did you say? nu glti?


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22 Moroccan Arabic

NumeralsObjective: By the end of the chapter, you will be able to :

count in Moroccan Arabic combine numbers with nouns to indicate amounts

ask and answer questions about timeWhen we talk about numerals, we want to be able to do two things. First, we have to beable to count. That is, we have to learn our numbers. Second, we have to be able to usethe numbers with objects. In other words, we have to be able to say things like fiveapples or twenty-seven students or one hundred forty-three volunteers.In English, we never think of these two tasks separately. We simply use a number incombination with the plural form of some object. In Arabic, however, we have to learnhow to combine different numbers with objects, sometimes using a plural form,sometimes a singular, sometimes with a letter in between the two, sometimes not. As inall things Arabic, what seems difficult now becomes natural with time.

Cardinal NumbersCardinal numbers refer to the normal numbers we use (one, two, three...). They aredifferent than ordinal numbers (first, second, third...) and fractions (one-half, one-third,one-fourth...). For now, we start with the cardinal numbers. We will work with ordinalnumbers and fractions later.

Numbers 1 thru 10In Moroccan Arabic, there are two ways to combine the numbers 3 thru 10 with an object.We sometimes use the full or normal form of the number, and sometimes we use ashort form of the number. Here is a table listing the full form of numbers 1 thru 10 andthe short form of numbers 3 thru 10.

Full Forms Short Forms

one (masc.) wad one (fem.) wda two juj three tlata tltfour rb a rbfive xmsa xmssix stta stt

seven sb a sbeight tmnya tmnnine ts ud tsten ra r


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For the numbers 3 thru 10, we combine the full form of a number and a noun like this:number (full form) + d ( ) + plural noun with definite article

For the numbers 3 thru 10, we combine the short form of a number and a noun like this:number (short form) + plural noun (no definite article)

Eight books (using full form) tmnya d l-ktubFive dirhams (using fullform) xmsa d d-drahm

Five dirhams (using shortform) xms drahm

The numbers one and two have some special qualities.

The number one (wad/wda) differs from all other numbers because in Arabic, it actslike an adjective. This means that it comes aftera noun, like other adjectives, and that itmust agree in genderwith the noun, like other adjectives.

one book (book is masc.) ktab wadone girl (girl is fem.) bnt wda

Sometimes, you may hear wad (not wda) used before a noun. In this case, itis not acting as a number, but rather as an indefinite article (like the English aor an). Dont worry about it now, just be aware of it.

a book wad l-ktab

a girl wad l-bntThe number two (juj) can be used as a full or short form with plural nouns.

two books juj d l-ktubtwo books juj ktub

However, when two is part of a compound number (as in twenty-two), a different form isused. Here, we use the form tnayn ( ). This will be shown in the section on numbersfrom 20 thru 99.

Dual noun formsIn English, nouns have a singular and a plural form. In Arabic, nouns also have a singularand plural form, but a small number of nouns also have a dual form. The dual form isused for these nouns when we refer to two of something. For nouns that have a dualform, therefore, we dont use juj. The dual form includes the idea of two. The dualform is usually made by adding ayn to the end of the singular form. In the followingtables, the first three examples have dual forms, but the last two are normal andtherefore use their plural form.

IntermediateTopic


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24 Moroccan Arabic

Singular Form Dual Form

day yum yumaynmonth hr hraynyear am amayn

But...

Singular Form Plural Form

week simana juj d s-simanat

minute dqiqa juj dqayq

Numbers 11 thru 19The numbers 11 thru 19 do not have a short form. Only numbers 3 thru 10 have a short

form.eleven datwelve tnathirteen tltafourteen rb tafifteen xmstasixteen sttaseventeen sb ta

eighteen tmntanineteen ts ta

For numbers 11 thru 19, we can combine a number and a noun like this:

number + + singular noun (no definite article)

sixteen years stta r am

sixteen years stta l am eighteen girls tmnta r bnteighteen girls tmnta l bnt

Numbers 20, 30, 40 ... 99For a multiple of ten (20, 30, 40 etc.) in Arabic, we simply use the name for that number,like in English. For numbers such as 21, 22, or 23, however, it is not like English. InArabic, the ones digit is pronounced first, followed by the word and, then followed bythe tens digit. For example, in Arabic the number 21 is literally one and twenty whilethe number 47 is literally seven and forty. Also, remember that for the numbers 22, 32,

42, 52, 62, 72, 82, and 92, we do not use juj. Rather, we use tnayn. Here is a list of themultiples of ten, with examples of numbers between each multiple:

r ( )

or

l ( )

Yes thesingular!In Arabic, theplural form isonly used fornumbers 2


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twenty rintwenty-oneliterally: one and twenty wad u rin

twenty-twoliterally: two and twenty

Remember: tnayn, not juj

tnayn u rin

twenty-threeliterally: three and twenty tlata u rin

twenty-four rb a u rin thirty tlatin

thirty-one wad u tlatinthirty-two tnayn u tlatinthirty-three tlata u tlatin

forty rb in

forty-one wad u rb in forty-two tnayn u rb in

fifty xmsinsixty sttinseventy sb ineighty tmaninninety ts in

ninety-nine ts ud u ts in

For numbers 20 thru 99, we can combine a number and a noun like this:number + singular noun (no definite article)

forty-two years tnayn u rb in am ninety dirhams ts in drhm thirty-eight books tmnya u tlatin ktab

Numbers 100, 200, 300 ... 999The Arabic word for 100 is miya. For 200, there is a dual form ofmiyatayn. For 300 thru

900, we use the short form of the numbers 3 thru 9 plus miya. For numbers such as 107or 257, we will use the appropriate multiple of 100 followed by the word and and thenthe rest of the number. Some examples:

one hundred miyaone hundred oneliterally: one hundred and one miya u wad

one hundred twoliterally: one hundred and two miya u juj

one hundred tenliterally: one hundred and ten miya u ra

one hundred eleven miya u da


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26 Moroccan Arabic

one hundred twenty-oneliterally: one hundred and oneand twenty

miya u wad u rin

one hundred twenty-twoliterally: one hundred and twoand twenty

miya u tnayn u rin

one hundred ninety-nine miya u ts ud u ts in two hundred miyatayn

two hundred fifty-sevenliterally: two hundred andseven and fifty

miyatayn u sb a u xmsin

three hundred tlt miyathree hundred forty-fiveliterally: three hundred and fiveand forty

tlt miya u xmsa u rb in

four hundred rb miya

five hundred xms miyasix hundred stt miyaseven hundred sb miya eight hundred tmn miyanine hundred ts miya

nine hundred ninety-nine ts miya u ts ud u ts in

Exact multiples of 100 (100, 300, 400, etc. not 137 or 278) are combined with a nounlike this:

number + t ( ) + singular nounfour hundred chairs rb miyat kursi six hundred ryal stt miyat ryal

But when a number between 100 and 999 is not an exact multiple of 100 (e.g. 167, 492,504), we combine the number with a noun according to the rule for the final digits of thenumber.

105 books (use the rule for 5) miya u xmsa d l-ktub214 books (use the rule for14) miyatayn u rb ta r ktab

657 books (use the rule for57) stt miya u sb a u xmsinktab

Exercise:Match the number with the correct Arabic translation.

199 miya u ts ud u rb in 2 ts ud u sttin

11 miya u stta u xmsin149 xmsa u sb in

137 miya u ts ud u ts in 75 da


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69 miya u sb a u tlatin 156 juj

Numbers 1000, 2000, 3000 ...The word for thousand has the singular form alf, the dual form alfayn, and the pluralform alaf. The plural form is used with the short form of the numbers 3 thru 10 from 3thousand to 10 thousand. Then we return to the singular form (like we do for all Arabicnouns). Like the word for hundred, it is followed by and when the number is not anexact multiple of 1000 (e.g. 1027 or 4738). From 1000 onward:

one thousand alf one thousand one alf u wadone thousand fifteen alf u xmstaone thousand threehundred sixty-seven(literally: one thousand andthree hundred and seven andsixty)

alf u tlt miya u sb a u

sttin

two thousand alfayntwo thousand twenty-two alfayn u tnayn u rin

three thousand tlt alaf three thousand sevenhundred and fifty

tlt alaf u sb miya uxmsin

four thousand rb alaf five thousand xms alaf

six thousand stt alaf seven thousand sb alaf eight thousand tmn alaf nine thousand ts alaf

nine thousand ninehundred ninety-nine

ts alaf u ts miya u tsud u ts in

ten thousand r alaf eleven thousand da r alf two hundred thousand miyatayn alf

999,999ts miya u ts ud uts in alf u ts miyau ts ud u ts in

Exact multiples of 1000 can be combined with nouns in two ways:number + singular noun

Or...number + d ( ) + plural noun with definite article

five thousand boys xms alaf wld

five thousand boys xms alaf d l-wlad


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28 Moroccan Arabic

Numbers larger than 1000 that are not exact multiples of 1000 are combined with nounsaccording to the rules for the final digits, as you saw with numbers that were not exactmultiples of 100.

Larger Numbers

Singular Pluralmillion(s) mlyun mlaynbillion(s) mlyar mlayr

Exercise:Correctly combine numbers with nouns by filling inthe blanks using the following numbers and anynecessary letters: 1, 3, 8, 13, 20, 400, or 1000. Theremay be more than one correct answer for each.

3 d l-bnat (the girls) 3dar (house)

stilu (pen)

drhm (dirham)mutatawwi (volunteer)

rjal (men)

ustad (teacher)

otil (hotel)

magana (watch)l- yalat (the women)

Ordinal Numbers / FractionsOrdinal NumbersFor numbers 1 thru 12, there is a separate form for cardinal and ordinal numbers. From13 on there is no difference between the cardinal and ordinal number.

first l-luwl

second t-tenithird t-taltfourth r-rabfifth l-xamssixth s-sat / s-sads /seventh s-sabeighth t-tamnninth t-tas

tenth l- areleventh l-ad


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twelfth t-tan

Ordinal numbers act like adjectives, and therefore must agree in gender and number withthe noun they describe. Listed are the masculine singular forms. To make the feminine

form, add a ( ) to the ordinal number. To make it plural, add in ( ).Masculine Feminine Plural

firstl-luwl l-luwla l-luwlin

thirdt-talt t-talta t-taltin

Fractionshalf ns

third tulutfourth rubu / rb /

TimeTo express time, we use the demonstrative pronoun hadi and the appropriate numberwith the definite article (see page 146 for more info on the definite article). This meansthat for 1:00, 5:00, 10:00, and 11:00, we will use the letter l ( ) before the number, whilefor the others, we will double the first consonant.

one l-wda sevens-sb a

two j-juj eight t-tmnyathree t-tlata nine t-ts udfour r-rb a ten l- rafive l-xmsa eleven l-dasix s-stta twelve t-tna

Like in English, Arabic uses certain words to express things like quarter to five, halfpast seven, etc.

before ql twentyminutes tulut

and u half nsexactly nian quarter to lla robquarter rb five minutes qsm

ten minutes qsmayn

Some examples of asking and answering about time:

What time is it? al hadi f s-sa a?

It is exactly one oclock. hadi l-wda nian. .


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30 Moroccan Arabic

It is five minutes past two. hadi j-juj u qsm. .It is ten minutes past three. hadi t-tlata u qsmayn. .It is a quarter past four. hadi r-rb a u rb . .It is twenty minutes pastfive. hadi l-xmsa u tulut. .

It is twenty-five minutespast six. hadi s-stta u xmsa u rin. .

It is seven thirty. hadi s-sb a u ns. .It is eight thirty-five. hadi tmnya u xmsa u tlatin. .It is twenty minutes to nine. hadi t-ts ud ql tulut. .It is a quarter to ten. hadi l- ra lla rob. .It is ten minutes to eleven hadi l-da ql qsmayn. .It is five minutes to twelve. hadi t-tna ql qsm. .6:30 A.M. s-stta u ns d s-sba

5:15 P.M. l-xmsa u rb d l- iya .

Exercise:Match the times with the correct Arabic translation.

10:30 l-wda u qsm12:00 l-da u qsmayn1:05 t-tna nihan2:20 l- ra ql tulut

11:10 l- ra u ns

9:40 j-juj u tulut


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Exercise:Give the time in Arabic for each clock or watch.


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32 Moroccan Arabic

Getting Started ShoppingObjective: By the end of the chapter, you will be able to:

convert between dirhams, ryals, and franks buy items you need from a store

use the verb ba in simple sentences to indicate a desire indicate the presence or absence or someone or something withkayn

Moneyl-flus

When converting ryals to dirhams, divide by 20.e.g. 100 ryals: 100 20 = 5 DH.

From franks to ryals, divide by 5. For example, 200 franks 5 = 40 ryals.From franks to dirhams, divide by 100. For example, 200 franks 100 = 2 DH.From ryals to dirhams, divide by 20. For example, 40 ryals 20 = 2 DH.

From ryals to franks, multiply by 5. For example, 40 ryals

5 = 200 franks.From dirhams to ryals, multiply by 20. For example, 2 DH 20 = 40 ryals.From dirhams to franks, multiply by 100. For example, 2 DH 100 = 200 franks.

Exercise:Convert the money amounts.1. Convert to dirhams

35 ryal 150 ryal 365 ryal 270 ryal 555 ryal2. Convert to ryals

10 DH 30 DH 25 DH 125 DH 19 DH

100 frank 20 ryal1 dirham

5

5

100

100

20

20


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At the HanootVocabularystore anut peanuts kaw kawstore keeper mul l-anut almonds l-luzsoda l-monada bottle l-qr a

chocolate -klat bottle ofwater qr a d l-ma

candies l-lwa Kleenex kliniks

gum l-mska toilet paper ppapiyi jinikcookies l-biskwi tooth paste dontifrisjuice l- asir soap s-sabunbread l-xubz shampoo -ampwan

jam l-konfitur detergent tidbutter z-zbda bleach javel

eggs l-bid batteries l-jrat dr-radyu

yogurt danon razor r-razwar

milk l-lib tobacco store s-sakacoffee l-qhwa cigarettes l-garrutea atay package(s) bakiya(t) /sugar s-skkarcheese l-frmaj money l-flusoil z-zit change s-srf

Expressions

Do you have ... ? we ndk ... ? ...Yes, I do (have). iyeh, ndi. .


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34 Moroccan Arabic

No, I dont (have). lla, ma- ndi-. .Is there ... ? we kayn ... ? ...

Yes, there is. (masc.) iyeh, kayn / mujud /

Yes, there is. (fem.) iyeh, kayna / mujuda /No, there isnt. (masc.) lla, ma-kayn-.No, there isnt. (fem.) lla, ma-kayna-.Give me ... please. tini ... afak. ... .What do you want maam /sir? nu biti a lalla/sidi? /

How much? bal?Do you have change? we ndk s-srf? Do you have change for ... ? we ndk s-srf dyal..? ...

Literliter itru liter rubu itru liter ns itru1 liter wad itru2 liters juj itruI want a liter of milk. bit ns itru d l-lib. .

DialogueKarla: s-salamu alaykum. :

mul l-anut: wa alaykum s-salam.nu biti a lalla?

. :

Karla: we ndk klat? :mul l-anut: iyeh, mujud a lalla. . :

Karla: tini juj bakiyat.bal?

. :

mul l-anut: tna l drhm. . :

Karla: hak, barak llah u fik. . :mul l-anut: bla jmil . :

1. feen kayna Karla? 1.2. we rat l-lib? 2.3. nu rat mn l-anut? 3.4. al mn bakiya? 4.5. bal? 5.


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Verb to wantIn Moroccan Arabic, the verb to want is ba ( ). This verb uses the past tense but hasa present tense meaning. When conjugated in the present tense, ba means to like(see page 96).

I want bityou want (sing.) bitihe wants bashe wants batwe want binayou want (plur.) bituthey want bau

Verb + Noun Examples

I want tea. bit atay. .Do you want coffee withsugar? we biti l-qhwa b skkar?

Ali wants a glass of water. Ali ba kas d l-ma. .Driss and Fatima dont wantsoda.

Driss u Fatima ma-bau-l-monada.

.

Exercise:Make as many sentences as you can.e.g. Hicham ba kuka.

Hicham bgit atay

hiya ba l-libFatima bau lwa b klat

huwa bat l-qhwahuma biti asir l-limun

ana bina qhwa bla skkar

na bitu kukantumantanti

Listening Exercisegarsun: s-salamu alaykum. :

Amy, Jack,& Chris: wa alaykum s-salam.

:

garsun: a b l-xatr? :


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36 Moroccan Arabic

Jack: ana bit asir l-limun. . :garsun: waxxa a sidi, u nta? :

Chris: ana bit qhwa ns ns. . :garsun: waxxa a sidi, u nti? :

Amy: bit qhwa kla. . :garsun: mrba, la r-ras u l- in. . :

1. nu ba Jack? 1.2. we Amy bat lib sxun? 2.3. nu ba Chris? 3.

Kayn for There isThe words kayn, kayna, and kaynin are actually the participles for the verb to be. InDarija, however, we use them most often in the sense of there is or there are.

Affirmativethere is (masc. sing.) kaynthere is (fem. sing.) kaynathere are (plur.) kaynin

Negative

there is not (masc. sing.) ma-kayn-there is not (fem. sing.) ma-kayna-there are not (plur.) ma-kaynin-

Driss is at home. kayn Driss f d-dar. .Is there water in the bottle? we kayn l-ma f l-qr a?

Tom is not at the caf. ma-kayn- Tom f l-qhwa. .There is food in the fridge. kayna l-makla f t-tlaja. .There are many books onthe table.

kaynin bzzaf d l-ktub fuqtbla. .


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FamilyObjective: By the end of the chapter, you will be able to:

describe family members use the verb to have in simple sentences

Cultural PointsFamily ties are very strong in Morocco. Children remain in touch or live with the

family even if they get married (taking into consideration space available within thehouse). Men are not expected to help in the kitchen. Roles of men and women may differin the city and in the country.

Family MembersVocabulary

woman/wife mra in-law(s) nsib / nsab /

man/husband rajl step-son rbibgirl/daughter bnt step-daughter rbibaboy/son wld grandfather jddgirls/daughters bnat grandmother jddaboys/sons/children wlad

uncle(paternal) mm

the parents l-walidin aunt (paternal) mmauncle(maternal) xal

the father l'ab These formsare rarelyused inMoroccanArabic.Sometimesthey are usedwith dyal.More often,we use theforms myfather, mysister, etc.

aunt(maternal) xala

the mother l'om my nephew(brothers side) wld xuya

the brother l'ax my niece(brothers side) bnt xuya

the sister l'oxt my nephew(sisters side) wld xti

my niece(sisters side) bnt xti

(my) brother xu(ya)my cousin(mas.,paternal)

wld mm(t)i /

brothers/siblings xut

my cousin(mas.,maternal)

wld xal(t)i /

(my) sister xt(i) my cousin(fem, paternal) bnt mm(t)i

/

sisters xwatat my cousin bnt xal(t)i


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38 Moroccan Arabic

(fem,maternal) /

For father, mother, brother, sister, aunt, and uncle, the word is almost always used witha possessive pronoun. Thus, we say my father or his mother or your brother, butrarely ever use them alone. The words brother, sister, aunt, and uncle take thepossessive pronoun endings you already learned (see page 8), but father and motherhave a couple irregularities.

my father bba my mother mmiyour father bbak your mother mmkhis father bbah his mother mmuher father bbaha her mother mha

Exercise:Add the possessive endings to the following:

sister xtbrother xuuncle mmaunt mma

ExpressionsHow is Mohamed related toyou? a kay-jeek Mohamed?

How is Amina related toyou? a kat-jeek Amina?My mom doesnt work. mmi ma-xddama-. .My mom and dad aredivorced. bba u mmi mtllqin. .

I have two twin siblings. ndi juj xut twam. .How many siblings do youhave? al d l-xut ndk?

How many sisters do youhave? al mn oxt ndk?

Whats your fathers name? nu smit bbak?How old is your brother? al f mr xuk? I have a younger brother. ndi xuya sr mnni. .My (male) cousin and I arethe same age. ana u wld mmi qd qd. .

My older sister is a teacher. xti lli kbr mnni ustada. .My younger brother goes toschool. xuya lli sr mnni kay-qra. .


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Exercise:Describe the relationships between family membersfor each arrow.

Verb to haveThe verb to have nd ( ) in the present tense:

I have ndiyou have (sing.) ndkhe has ndushe has ndhawe have ndnayou have (plur.) ndkumthey have ndhum

Moha and Fatima have two

daughters and a son.

Moha u Fatima ndhum juj

bnat u wld.

.We have a good teacher. ndna ustad mzyan. .

To negate the verb, use ma ... ( ... ).

Do you have a house inMorocco? we ndk dar f l-mrib?

No, I dont. I have a housein the U.S.

lla, ma- ndi-. ndi dar fmirikan.

..

11

FatimaAziz

Ahmed

Samira Mohamed YounessRachid

Karima

ex: 1. Fatima ______ Samira.

12 13


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40 Moroccan Arabic

Exercise:Put the verb nd in the correct form.1. xti _________ 24 am. ________24 .2. xuya _________ 2 wlad. ________ 2 .3. na _________ wld u tlata d

l-bnat. ________ .

4. huma _________ famila kbira. ________ .5. we Mohamed _________ tomobil? ________ 6. lla, _________. ________.

Exercise:Put sentences A thru I in the correct order for thisletter from Karim to Tom.

sabi Tom, bitini n-hdr lik la l-famila dyali? A. bba smitu Ali. . .AB. mmi ndha ir 52 am. 52 . .BC. Hassan ndu 15 am u Mohamed ndu

20 am. 1520 . .CD. (kay-sknu m ana f d-dar) welakin xti

mzuwja. ( ( . .DE. rajlha smitu Moha. ndhum wad l-bnt

smitha Nadia..

. .E

F. ndoo 26 am. 26 . .FG. smitha Hakima . .GH. ndi juj xut. . .HI. ana deba xal! ! .I

hdr liya la l-famila dyalk ta nta. .sabk, Karim

Practice Textsmiti John. baba smitu Stephen u mamasmitha Judy. ndi tlata d l-xut: juj bnat uwld. xuya smitu Brian. huwa xddam fwad -arika. xti Kathy. mzuwja u ndha

jooj drari: wld u bnt. l-wld mazal sir ndutlt hur. l-bnt ndha tmn snin u kat-mi ll-mdrasa. xti s-sira, Mary, mazal kat-qra fl-jami a.

.. : .. .. : .

..

.

1. bat John, nu smitu? 1.2. u mmu, nu smitha? 2.3. al d l-xut nd John? 3.4. kun s-sir f l- a'ila d John? 4.5. we bnt xt John xddama? 5.


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DirectionsObjective: By the end of the chapter, you will be able to:

use prepositions to describe the locations of objects give and receive directions to places around town

Prepositionsto / for l until tta lin / at f above / on fuqfrom mn below / under ttwith(someone) m a in front of qddam

with / by / bymeans of b facing mqabl m a

without bla behind muraon / about la next to dabetween bin before qblof, belongingto d / dyal / after b d

Exercise:fin l-kora?

1 2 3

l-kora fuq s-snduq..

5 6 7

4

kora snduq


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42 Moroccan Arabic

Directions

Vocabulary

hotel l-otil hospital /

health center

s-sbitar

post office l-bosta pharmacy l-frmasyantrain station la-gar mosque j-jam

bus station l-matta dl-kiran public phone t-telebutik

city bus stop l-matta dt -tubisat store l-anut

bank l-banka avenue -aripublic bath l-mmam street z-znqa

restaurant r-ristora alley d-drbcaf l-qhwa far (from) b id (mn) ) )cyber caf s-siber close (to) qrib (mn) ) )school l-mdrasa here hnaweeklymarket s-suq there tmma

ExpressionsWhere is ... please? fin kayn(a) ... afak. ... ( ) .

Is there a ... close? we kayn(a) i ... qrib(a)? ( ) ... ( )Go straight. sir nian. .

Turn right. dur l limn. .Turn left. dur l lisr. .Go ahead a bit. zid wiya l qddam. .Pass the first street. fut z-znqa l-luwla. .

The 2nd street, yes. z-znqa tenya iyeh. .


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DialogueJason u Brahim f l-matta d l-kiran. .

Jason: s-salamu alaykum. . :Brahim: wa alaykum s-salam. . :

Jason: fin la-gar afak? :Brahim: sir nian tta l z-znqa t-taltau dur l lisr, u mn b d zidnian tta l l-bar u dur llimn. tmma la-gar.

. .

:

Jason: barak llah u fik. . :Brahim: kat-tkllm l- rbiya mzyan! ! :Jason: wiya u safi. . :

Brahim: we nta fransawi? :Jason: lla, ana mirikani. lla y-hnnik. . . :

Brahim: bslama. . :

Exercise:Using the same map, give each person directions.1. Dave is in the sbitar and wants to go to l-bosta.2. Anna is in the matta and wants to go to l-otil.3. Stephen is in the mari and wants to go to s-siber.4. Hakim is in the anut and wants to go to l-mmam.

l-mmam


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44 Moroccan Arabic

Past EventsObjective: By the end of the chapter, you will be able to:

talk about past activities with regular and irregular verbs talk about what you did notdo using negative sentences

ask about past experiences (Have you ever...) and respond (Ivenever...) use object pronouns with verbs ask varied questions with different question words

Time VocabularyBefore we begin the past tense, lets learn some words that will help us describe whenpast events took place. Then we will be ready to talk about some of our past activities.

Days of the Weekday yum / nhar / Tuesday t-tlat ) )

week simana Wednesday l-arb ) )Sunday l-dd ) ) Thursday l-xmisMonday l-tnin ) ) Friday j-jm a

Saturday s-sbt

Months of the Yearmonth hr June yunyuyear am July yulyuz

January yanayr August utFebruary fbrayr September utnbirMarch mars October oktobrApril abril November nuwanbirMay may December dujanbir

The Seasonsseason fasl summer s-sifseasons fosul fall l-xrif

spring r-rbi winter -ta

Time Expressionsthis year had l- am last year l- am lli fat last month -hr lli fatlast week s-simana lli fattyesterday l-bartoday l-yum

on (+ day of the week) nhar ...

For information about the months of the Islamic calendar and some of the major religious eventsof the year, see Moroccan Holidays on page 159.


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on Friday nhar j-jm a in (+ month) f hr ...

in August f hr utf hr tmnya

at (+ time) f

at 9:00 f t-ts ud at dawn f l-fjrin the morning f s-sbain the afternoon / evening f l- iya at night f l-lilat midnight f ns l-lil

Past Tense Regular VerbsVerbs in General

When learning verbs in a foreign language, we usually learn the infinitive form of theverb (e.g. to eat), and then learn how to conjugate from that infinitive (I eat, he eats,they eat). In Arabic, there are not infinitives for verbs in this way. Rather, we learn thehe form of the verb (i.e. third person masculine singular) in the past tense, and thenlearn how to conjugate the other forms (I, you, she, etc.) from the he form. Because weuse this past tense he form like an infinitive for the purposes of learning verbs, if yousee something referred to as an infinitive, it is this form. Some examples:

he drank rbhe hit drbhe sat gls

Whenever you are given a new verb in this book or by your teacher, it will be given to youin this form. You will be able to conjugate verbs in the past or present tense based uponthis infinitive form.

The vast majority of Darija (Moroccan Arabic) verbs are made up of three letters (seethe verbs above). To these stems we can add prefixes (letters that we attach to thebeginning of a word) and suffixes (letters we attach to the end of a word) in order toconjugate the verb. Stems with a vowel in the middle and stems with a vowel at the endwill differ from verbs with three consonants.Regular Verbs in the Past TenseWhen we say regular verb, we mean a verb that is conjugated according to rules that

the large majority of verbs in the language use. An irregular verb is conjugatedaccording to different rules. There are regular and irregular verbs for both the past andpresent tense in Darija. However, irregular verbs that are similar in the past may bedifferent in the present. So, you need to realize that the groups of verbs categorizedtogether for the past tense may not always correspond to the groups in the present tense.In general, regular verb refers to:

All 3-letter verbs withoutthe long vowel a ( / ) in the middle or end position(i.e. 3-letter verbs made up only of consonants)

All verbs with more than 3 letters and not ending in a ( / )To conjugate a regular verb in the past tense, we add the following suffixes (endings):

to write ktb

past tensehe form:

like an

Rememberthat the

infinitive isthe same as

the past tensehe form.

In thepasttense,you

(masc.)and you(fem.)are the

same. In


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46 Moroccan Arabic

I wrote ktbtyou wrote (masc.sing.) ktbti

you wrote (fem.sing.) ktbti

he wrote ktbshe wrote ktbatwe wrote ktbnayou wrote (plur.) ktbtuthey wrote ktbu

Some Regular Verbsto drink rb to understand fhmto know rf to work xdm

to play l b to hit drbto draw rsm tostop/ stand

upwqf

to sleep n s to arrive wsl

to wear lbs to hear /listen sm

to stay / sit gls to ask suwlto enter dxl to travel safrto go out xrj to help awnto return rj to send siftto watch tfrrj to wash slto use st ml to speak tkllmSome examples:

Yesterday, I drank teawithout sugar. l-bar, rbt atay bla skkar. .

Last week, Said wrote aletter to his friend.

s-simana lli fatt, Said ktb bral sabu.

.

Last year, we traveled toNew York.

l- am lli fat, safrna l NewYork.

.

Exercise:Put the verbs in parentheses in the correct form.Mohamed: we (n s) bkri l-bar? ( ) :

Hassan: lla . :Mohamed: la? :

Hassan: (gls) m a l- a'ila dyali u(tkllm) m ahum wiya. mnb d, {na}(xrj). mlli (rj ), (lb) l-karta u (tfrrj) f t-tlfaza.

mn b d {ana}(dxl) l l-bit

dyali u (n s).

(( ) ({ } .( ) ( ) .( )

. ( )( ) { }

) ).

:


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l-dd lli fat, ( awn) xti f l-kuzina: (sl)l-mma n u (tiyb) l-da.

( ) : ( )( ) .

Past Tense Irregular VerbsWhen we speak about irregular verbs for the past tense, we refer to three categories: 1.three-letter verbs with the long vowel a ( ) in the middle position, 2. any verb with thelong vowel a ( / ) at the end, and 3. two-letter verbs.1st Category: long vowel a ( ) in the middle position

To conjugate a three-letter verb in the past tense with the long vowel a in the middleposition, remove the long vowel a for the I, you (sing.), we, and you (plur.) formsbefore adding the past tense endings. For the she form, only add a t. The he and theyforms are like regular verbs.

to be kanI was kntyou were (masc. sing.) kntiyou were (fem. sing.) kntihe was kanshe was kantwe were knnayou were (plur.) kntuthey were kanu

Some Irregular Verbs with long vowel a ( ) in the middle positionto see af to get up /

stand up

nad

to do / make dar to throw lato swim am to pass / pass bydazto sell ba to pass fat

to bring jab to love / bedying for mat la

to say gal to increase zadto fast sam to be scared xaf to drive sag to live a

Some examples:This morning I got up at7:00. had s-sba ndt f s-sb a. .

What did you do yesterday? nu drti l-bar?Whats done is done.(proverb) lli fat mat. .

Exercise:Put the verbs in parentheses in the correct form.s-simana lli fatt, ana u sabi ( am) fla-ppisin. ( ) .

Sara ( a) f mirikan amayn. ( ) .

In these forms,we keep themiddle a andthen add theendings.

In these forms,we remove themiddle a andthen add the

endings.


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48 Moroccan Arabic

nhar s-sbt f l- iya, ana u sabati (kan) fl-mmam. mlli xrjna (daz) l l-qhwa.

( )( ) . .

2nd Category: long vowel a ( / ) at the endTo conjugate a verb with the long vowel a at the end, change the vowel to i for the I,

you (sing.), we, and you (plur.) forms, then add the normal endings. For the sheform, only add a t. The he and they forms are like regular verbs.to eat kla

I ate klityou ate (masc. sing.) klitiyou ate (fem. sing.) klitihe ate klashe ate klatwe ate klina

you ate (plur.) klituthey ate klau

Some Irregular Verbs with the long vowel a ( / ) at the endto go ma to rent krato start bda to run jrato buy ra to finish salato sing nna to have lunch tdda

to give ta to havedinner t a

to forget nsa to hope tmnato cry bka to wait tsna

to want ba to read /study qra

to take xda to meet tlaqato come ja

Some examples:

Last Sunday, I went to the

medina and bought ajellaba. l-dd lli fat, mit l l-mdina urit jllaba. .

They sang at the party onSaturday.

huma nnau f l-fla nhars-sbt. .

Exercise:Put the verbs in parentheses in the correct form.John u Amy (kra) dar zwina f Marrakech. ( ) .l-bar ana u Paul (tlaqa) m a sabna fr-ristora u (tdda) mjmu in.

( )( ).

s-simana lli fatt, huma (sala) l-xdmadyalhum f l-mrib.

( ).

In these forms,we keep the finala and then addthe endings.

In these forms,we change thefinal a to ithen add theendings.


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3rd Category: two-letter verbs

When we say two-letter verbs, some confusion can arise. When we write them inArabic, they have only two letters. However, there is a shedda on the second letter (seepages 3 and 145), so in the transcription we double the second letter, making them looklike three-letter verbs. In this case, you can still recognize them because the second andthird letters are the same. Or, look at the Arabic script and you can be sure of the factthat they are, indeed, two-letter verbs.

To conjugate this type of verb, we add the long vowel i to the I, you (sing.), we, andyou (plur.) forms, then add the normal endings. The he, she, and they forms are likeregular verbs.

to open ll

I opened llityou opened (masc.sing.) lliti

you opened (fem.sing.) lliti

he opened llshe opened llatwe opened llinayou opened (plur.) llitu

they opened lluSome two-letter verbsto close sdd to be able qddto smell mm to pick up hzzto hand mdd to think dnnto answer /return back rdd to be bored mll

to pour kbb to take /catch dd

to feel ss to pull / drag jrr

Moroccan Wisdom:.

l-li ba l- sl y-sbr l qris n-nl.

The one w ho wants honey must tolerate bee stings.

English equivalent: Every rose has its thorn.

In these forms,we simply addthe normalendings.

In these forms,

we add i to theverb, then addthe normalendings.

A two-letterverb withsheddaon the


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50 Moroccan Arabic

to put tt

Some examples:

I opened the window and Iclosed the door llit s-srjm u sddit l-bab. .

I felt cold ssit b l-brd. .

Exercise:Put the verbs in parentheses in the correct form.l-bar f s-sba, Mary (rdd) l-ktab l l-xizana. ( ) .mlli kan l- jaj, {ana} (sdd) s-srajm. ( ) { } .{na} (tt) l-wayj f l-makina d s-sabun. { ( ) { .

NegationNormal Negative Form

In order to express the negative of a verb (i.e. didnt, or dont, or doesnt), we addthe prefix ma ( ) to the beginning of a verb and the suffix ( ) to the end of a verb.

We drank. rbnaWe didnt drink. ma-rbna-

Exercise:Conjugate the verbs in parentheses in the negativeform.

huwa (safr) s-simana lli fatt. ( ) .l-bar f l-lil (qra) l-ktab dyali it knt iyan. ( ) .

iya (gls) m ana it (sala) l-xdma dyalha. ( ) ( ) .na (n s) bkri it (t a) bkri. ( ) ( ) .Kari (lbs) l-kswa j-jdida f l-fla it (kan)ndha l-wqt.

( ) ( ).

mlli ja l l-mrib (sift) bra l l-walidin dyalu. ( ) .kant l-brd u {ana} (ll) s-srajm. ( ) { } .

Additional Negative FormsThe following negative forms replace the ( ) we use for the normal negative form. Westill use ma ( ) before the verb, but we use these forms after the verb or, sometimes,

before the verb (and thus before ma).nothing walunothing tta ajanothing tta ino one tta wadno one (tta) dd ( (neither ... nor la ... wala ...only / just ir

Some examples:


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I knew nothing. ma- rft walu. .I ate nothing. ma-kleet tta aja. .No one came. tta wad ma-ja. .He saw no one. ma-af tta wad / dd. / .I met neither Mohamed norAmber.

ma-laqit la Mohamed walaAmber. .

I drank only water. ma-rbt ir l-ma. .

Exercise:Put the verbs in parentheses in the proper form.l-dd lli fat (gls) f d-dar, (xrj negative)laqqa (kan) -ta. f l- iya sabi (ja) u

(ma) l s-siber bjooj. mn b d (ma) ls-sinima. (af) wad l-film zwin. mlli (xrj),(daz) l s-suq. (ra) l-xodra. mn b d (dd)tobis u (rj ) l d-dar.

( ) ( )( ) ( ) . ( )

( ) . ( ) .. ( ) ( ) .

( ) ( ) . ( ).


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52 Moroccan Arabic

Exercise:Write a paragraph from these pictures.

Have you ever... / Ive never...

Have you ever...?We can use the word mmr ( ) to express the English equivalent of the present perfecttense: Have you ever...? and I have never... We conjugate it as follows:

Have I ever... we mmri / mmrni /Have you (sing.) ever... we mmrk Has he ever... we mmru Has she ever... we mmrha Have we ever... we mmrna Have you (plur.) ever... we mmrkum

Have they ever... we mmrhum


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The verb that follows mmr is often in the past tense. Some examples:

Have you ever gone toFrance? we mmrk miti l Fransa?

Have they ever eatencouscous? we mmrhum klau l-ksksu?

Have you ever drunk minttea in America? we mmrkum rbtu atay b n-nna f mirikan?

Ive never...This is like the conjugation above, with the addition ofma ( ) at the beginning of mmr (

).

I have never... ma- mmri / ma- mmrni /you (sing.) have never... ma- mmrk he has never... ma- mmru she has never... ma- mmrha we have never... ma- mmrna you (plur.) have never... ma- mmrkum they have never... ma- mmrhum

Some examples:

Ive never eaten hamburger. ma- mmrni kleet l-hamborgr. .She has never been abroad. ma- mmrha safrat l l-xarij. .He has never spoken Arabic. ma- mmru tkllm l- rbiya. .

Object PronounsIn English, we have pronouns for the subject of a sentence: I, you, he, she, we, and they.But we also have object pronouns that we use after verbs:

He hitme. I saw her.Askhim a question. We gave them some cake.

So far, you have

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