57 replies to this topic

[amats]

so since i'm going to live in Amman for a year,
i reckoned a few survival phrases would come in handy.

there's heaps of arabs on here, gimme some phrases!

stuff that is used on the streets, day to day basis stuff
since if i used MSA or fusha ppl will not understand/laugh.

colloquial dialects of jordan, syria, lebanon (levantine dialects, possible iraqi as well) only please.
not sure how useful egyptian or saudi or other will be so i'll stick with the above.

i'm not exactly sure how different colloquial dialects are to standard arabic, so i'll just ask away.

stuff like:

hello, my name is...
how much is this
take me to...
can i get some help?
sorry
please

and anything else you can think of that would be helpful in living day to day.

shukran!

[crayon]

hello, my name is... "marhaba, ismee _____"
how much is this "kam hay?"
take me to... "khudnee ila _____"
can i get some help? "mumkin musa'ada?"
sorry "asif"
please "law samaht/law samahti"

You're bound to pick up the basics of arabic by just interacting with people. Plus, many people in Amman speak English, so inshaAllah you won't have much of a problem.

[amats]

You're bound to pick up the basics of arabic by just interacting with people. Plus, many people in Amman speak English, so inshaAllah you won't have much of a problem.

thank you very much awesome.
i'm hoping to not speak any english.

[FreePalestine]

^ You're not of Arab background?

[Luci]

you'll find in Jordan/Syria most people will understand your fusha just fine... but they may look at you like you have three heads (although I have a theory that this is down to the accent rather than the strangly shakesperian words)...

small word of advice: is you are going for a whole year (i.e. will see a winter) take thermals, good socks and a super warm jacket.

[FreePalestine]

Jordan=best ice cream eva!

[muslimah_melb]

ana jee3an - I'm hungry

ta3mooni - feed me lool

el ta2as helou el youm - the weather is nice today

men ruh 3al bahar? we'll go to the beach?

desh es-saa3a? - what's the time?

haydi helwi - this is nice (like if u pick up a shirt or souvenir or something)

biddi ishtriyya - i want to buy it

biddi ishtri haydi - i want to buy this

ma7la (mahla) haadal masjid? - how nice is this mosque

shu hal yom el helou? - what is this beautiful day? (similar to saying what a beautiful day)

shu hal layli el helwi? - what is this beautiful night?

eza Allah raad bshoofak 3abukra - if Allah wills I'll see you tomorrow



lol I'm just coming up with stuff from the top of my head but if you want anything else I'll tell you how to say it in the shaami way

[Sam]

thank you very much awesome.
i'm hoping to not speak any english.

You're coming to the wrong suburb then! The locals speak to you in English, even when you try and speak Arabic with them.

[muslimah_melb]

if you're sitting with a group and then you wanna get up and leave, out of courtesy you would say:
"bil izin" - with permission.

lezim rooh - I have to go

ma tekhzooni - don't hold me to account; pardon me.



wa lay himmak - don't worry



if someone is eating or finished eating you say:

Sahtan - literally means 'two healths' but when you say it it's like you're wishing them health

if someone says Sahtan to you, you reply:

3ala albak - on your heart

[amats]

You're coming to the wrong suburb then! The locals speak to you in English, even when you try and speak Arabic with them.

this makes me sad.

alas, i will try!

[amats]

ana jee3an - I'm hungry

ta3mooni - feed me lool

el ta2as helou el youm - the weather is nice today

men ruh 3al bahar? we'll go to the beach?

desh es-saa3a? - what's the time?

haydi helwi - this is nice (like if u pick up a shirt or souvenir or something)

biddi ishtriyya - i want to buy it

biddi ishtri haydi - i want to buy this

ma7la (mahla) haadal masjid? - how nice is this mosque

shu hal yom el helou? - what is this beautiful day? (similar to saying what a beautiful day)

shu hal layli el helwi? - what is this beautiful night?

eza Allah raad bshoofak 3abukra - if Allah wills I'll see you tomorrow



lol I'm just coming up with stuff from the top of my head but if you want anything else I'll tell you how to say it in the shaami way

thanks a lot for this its very helpful, keep it coming.

so this is basically "shaami" dialect yes?

so how would you "say it shaami way"?

[muslimah_melb]

the way I wrote it is the shaami way, I meant like if you want any phrases translated I'll tell u the shaami way of saying it

[muslimah_melb]

where is..? - wein?

why? - lesh? or le?

what? - shu or eish?

I want a falafel sandwich (lol) - 3ayiz (or biddi) laffit falafel

but shu is a bit rude tbh. u shouldn't really use it as much, e.g. if someone calls your name don't be like "shu?" rather say naam. However if you wanna ask about something you can say eish haada - what is this.

you need to be able to hear the words rather than just reading them because pronunciation is crucial. Maybe ask your shaami friends to say them to you in person.

[muslimah_melb]

more random stuff (can u tell I'm a bit hungry? ):

ana jee3an wein feeni eshteri akel - I'm hungry, where can I buy food?

ana 3atshaan wein feeni eshteri 'aseer - I'm thirsty, where can I buy drink?

someone offers u food but you've already eaten, say:

"shukran bas ana aakil" - thanks but I've already eaten

ana biddi salli wein el masjid/jaami3 - I want to pray, where is the mosque?

3afwan bas wein el hammaam - sorry but where is the bathroom?


ok now common ways of thanking someone:

- shukran (thanks)
- jazakAllahu khayran (may Allah reward you with good)
- Allah yikattir khayrak or simple version is "kattir khayrak" (may Allah increase you in good)
- Allah yehfazak (may Allah protect you)

[Palo $oldier]

Jordan=best ice cream eva!

^^ bad!

[bin_farouq]

Some honest advice; if you would like to perfect your fusha, don't corrupt it with aamiyyah lol, please.

People will realise you're from outside the country by your apperance, so speaking fusha to them won't appear too abnormal, all of the locals will understand it anyway.

Besides Jordanian aamiyyah can get funny at times, it depends who you are speaking to or perhaps moreso who you are being spoken to by, for example:

how much is this

could be "kam haay" or "kam hagha" or "bi'addeesh haay" etc.

I guess it's good to learn, but the more fusha you speak the more useful you will find your studies.

[Palo $oldier]

what nationality are u amats?

[Shamsy]

Say:

Ana masri wabaheb masr gedan gedan gedan, heya gameela awi, we heya beeti el asli, heeeeh masr!

LOL

it means: I am from singapore and I love singapore lots lots lots, its beautiful a lot, and it is my original home, yay singapore!!

[Sam]

Why do Egyptians pronounce 'jeem' as 'geem' yet they still pronounce 'Egypt' as 'Ejypt'?

[FreePalestine]

^^ bad!

waaaat! I think they're delicious!!

[muslimah_melb]

I think Palo agrees with you FP lol

[amats]

what nationality are u amats?

"Singaporean Malay".

don't quote me on that though...

[amats]

Say:

Ana masri wabaheb masr gedan gedan gedan, heya gameela awi, we heya beeti el asli, heeeeh masr!

LOL

it means: I am from singapore and I love singapore lots lots lots, its beautiful a lot, and it is my original home, yay singapore!!

that's a big dirty lie!

[amats]

Some honest advice; if you would like to perfect your fusha, don't corrupt it with aamiyyah lol, please.

People will realise you're from outside the country by your apperance, so speaking fusha to them won't appear too abnormal, all of the locals will understand it anyway.

that's the main part not so sure about,
people keep telling me no one will understand you if you speak fusha
others are like you'll get laughed at but people will get you

etc
etc

when in rome, do as the romans...??

[Sam]

I think it depends on your level of proficiency.

If you speak fusha fluently, then they'll probably think you're just showing off or something. And there's probably a bit of truth in that, after all if you've been here for a little while the amiyya is pretty easy to pick up I think. You'll be saying "shway-shway" in no time.

However if you stumble and stutter like I do, then they seem to understand that you're just learning and will take what you're saying by any means they can understand it by.

[bin_farouq]

people keep telling me no one will understand you if you speak fusha
others are like you'll get laughed at but people will get you

The first scenario is very unlikely and I think quite baseless, the majority would understand fusha. As for the second lol, maybe you can tell us how it all turns out.

I would agree with Sam though; The advice was moreso for a newcomer. Besides much of the aamiyah is close to fusha, especially Jordanian aamiyyah.

As for "shway shway" lol, taxi drivers?

[Shamsy]

Why do Egyptians pronounce 'jeem' as 'geem' yet they still pronounce 'Egypt' as 'Ejypt'?

Yeah I'll never know!! Although I think it helps that they usually call it masr instead of egypt

that's a big dirty lie!

It's a very good lie!!!!

You have to love the egyptian dialect!! I say you should use it and confuse them even more!! Look singaporean, speak egyptian and live in Jordan! gold.

[amats]

quick amats update!

been here 3 weeks. fusha works, as predicted!

what i've learnt from hearing and from asking arabs

sooq-talk:

3addesh
shu biddak?
ma biddi
bikam
kam batata (or do you guys write it ba6a6a?)
3am 3atalla (this one's so weird)

taxi-talk:

dughri (so weird sounds russian)
3ala shimaal, yameen etc.

food-talk:

3endak felafel? (LOLL)
3endak ta3aam harr?
bidoon lahm

been a productive 3 weeks, no? too many damn yankees around here, haha.

any suggestions for the above categories???

[Cat]

Why do Egyptians pronounce 'jeem' as 'geem' yet they still pronounce 'Egypt' as 'Ejypt'?

We don't say Ejypt, we pronounce it Misr (musr)

But yes the jeem does become a geem in most cases.

Cat

Edit ** just noticed:

Yeah I'll never know!! Although I think it helps that they usually call it masr instead of egypt

[muslimah_melb]

quick amats update!

been here 3 weeks. fusha works, as predicted!

what i've learnt from hearing and from asking arabs

sooq-talk:

3addesh
shu biddak?
ma biddi
bikam
kam batata (or do you guys write it ba6a6a?)
3am 3atalla (this one's so weird)

taxi-talk:

dughri (so weird sounds russian)
3ala shimaal, yameen etc.

food-talk:

3endak felafel? (LOLL)
3endak ta3aam harr?
bidoon lahm

been a productive 3 weeks, no? too many damn yankees around here, haha.

any suggestions for the above categories???

that's pretty good but whats's 3am 3atalla?

and u know what all that stuff means yeah?