Useful Arabic Words and Phrases
August 21, 2008 · Print This Article
Here’s a list of common Arabic words and phrases which you’ll find useful when traveling to Syria, or indeed any Arabic speaking country. Familiarize yourself with them, but also remember that a lot of people in Syria speak English and quite a few speak French too, so you shouldn’t have too much of a problem communicating.
Notes:
- There are two types of Arabic, the first is called classical or formal, and is used in all official documents, school and university text books, news broadcasts, and most newspapers and magazines. It adheres to very strict grammatical, spelling and pronunciation rules, and is therefore understood by any Arab speaker even though it is never used in everyday conversation. The second type of Arabic is known as common, or local. It’s akin to slang, and is used primarily for conversation. This type of Arabic varies widely from country to country, and region to region. It has almost no rules whatsoever, and much of it’s vocabulary contains non Arabic words. Consequently, this type of Arabic is heavily accented, and will usually not be understood by other Arab speakers from outside the region. The type of common Arabic spoken in Syria and the surrounding countries is known as Levantine Arabic.
- “el” or “al” in Arabic, are the equivalent of “the” in English, ie: definite article.
- an ‘ apostrophe, is used to denote a glottal stop.
- There are quite a lot of Latin words used in common Syrian Arabic, a legacy of the French mandate.
- The following words and phrases are in common Levantine Arabic, and will be understood throughout the Levantine region.
Airports, Borders, Customs:
Gamarek, Gimrok - customs
Hidood - border
Hajez - checkpoint
Basbor - passport
Visa - visa
Ta’sheera - entry, exit stamp
Rosoom - fees
Souk el Hurra - duty free
Mamnoo’ - banned, no entry
Bawabeh - gate
Dokhool - entry
Khorooj - exit
Greeting:
Al Salamu Aleykom - translates to peace be upon you. used to greet and sometimes also to say goodbye. This is the formal type of greeting.
Wa Alaykom el Salam - translates to : and peace upon you too. used to reply to the greeting/farewell above.
Ma al Salamah: translates to - peace be with you. used to say farewell.
Marhaba: translates to hello. Informal greeting, used with friends and close associates.
Shopping, Bartering:
Andak - Do you have
Kam, Be Kam - How much is it.
Kteer - its too much
Gheir lon- different color
Qmasheh, Qmash - Fabric, fabrics
Sigadeh - carpet, rug
Sigadeh Ajameyeh - persian rug
Kindra, Kanader - shoe, shoes
Amis - shirt
bantalon - trousers
Slib - underpants
Jrab - socks
Shahata - slippers
Klasheh - sandals
Mayo- swimwear
Manshafeh - towel
zeit - sunblock
Nadarat - eye glasses
Nadarat shamseya - sun glasses
Situational, Assistance, Places:
Shokran - thank you
Afwan - when used to reply to the above, it means you’re welcome. when used on its own, it can mean sorry or excuse me.
Min Fadlak, Lao Samahet - please
Bidee - i want
Taxi - Taxi
Ila el - to the
Wakef Andak - stop here
Wein el, Ayna el - where is the
Mathaf - museum
Bolice, Shirta - police
Makhfar Shirta, bolice - police station
Hotel - hotel
Matar - airport
Mahtat Bas, Bolman - bus, coach station
Mahatat Qitar - train station
Toilet, Hammam - toilet, bathroom, washroom
Mashfa, Mostashfa - hospital
Safara - embassy
Mat’am - restaurant
Souk - shops
Mak’ha - cafe
Mak’ha Internet - internet cafe
Talephone - telephone
Food, drink:
Akel - food
Khobez - bread
Somen - Buns
Maiye (pronounced “my”) - water
Kazooz, kola - soft drink
Fawakeh - Fruit
Beera - beer
Nbeet - wine
That is a good introductory list. What is interesting though is that this is a “Syrian path,” but you give the Egyptian phrase for “how much.” I was told that Shami dialect prefers:
‘edaysh (اديش، from قد ايش)
Is this not correct?
Hello, yes this list is indeed in Shami, or Levantine common Arabic, but it’s also meant to be as simple as possible to avoid any confusion.
You see, ‘edaysh is used in Damascus, whereas in Aleppo for example, shkad or kam is used instead. This is ofcourse just an example of different usages or preference, and you could use any of these words and still be understood. On the other end of the scale however, some cities use words that won’t be understood at all in other parts of the country. For example, in Aleppo alot of Turkish words are used which will not be known by anyone from outside Aleppo.
Can you send me to my @mail new phrases Because I Am study Arabic. and up date
Thank
Fernando
Hello Fernando,
I’m not quite sure how I’m supposed to send new Arabic phrases to your email, but if you have any questions about Arabic I’d be more than happy to help you out. Just sign up at the forums and post your questions there.
marhaba,
i am studying syrian arabic. who can send me an offline dictionary about syria (not modern arabic, about syria)
my email address bayramusoglu@mynet.com.
you can also send me list of vocabulary, put please with their arabic script.
hatrak