LESSON 1:

Practice translation here:

LESSON 2:

Read, Listen, pause, re-read!

Excellent reading practice, especially to review or drill sun and moon letters, as well as WASLA, in the pronunciation of the definite article and the following consonant.

For one reason or another, language students often want to know how to say “to slap” in the language they are learning…

Well, here it is, in Arabic!

Here are the 14 most commonly used verbs when talking or writing about our daily routine (Click here to listen on the go):

In spoken Arabic, the word for “extended family”, عائلة, is often used to refer to the immediate family. People will often say: كيف العائلة؟ (in their own dialect, of course), meaning: كيف الأسرة؟.

1- You have probably seen it A LOT with adjectives, as in:

غَيرُ مُمكِنٍ = Not possible

غَيرُ صَحيحٍ ٍ = Not correct

2- With an adjective, after a negated verb, as in:

لَم يَكتُب غَيرَ رِسالةٍ واحِدةٍ =

He didn’t write except one letter, meaning he only wrote one letter

لا يُصاحِبُ غَيرَ المُثَقَّفينَ =

He doesn’t befriend except educated people, meaning he only befriends educated people

3- With a pronoun suffix (referring to a previous “understood” noun), as in:

لم أَرَ غَيرَها في الغُرفةِ =

I didn’t see (people, understood) other than her in the room, meaning I only saw her in the room

لَن أَزورَ غَيرَ مَدينةٍ واحِدَةٍ =

I will not visit (any cities, understood) except one city, meaning I will only visit one city

4- With a noun (referring to a previous “understood” noun), as in:

لَم يُقابِل غَيرَ وَزيرِ الدّاخِلِيّةِ =

He did not meet (anyone, understood) except the Interior Minister, meaning he only met the Interior Minister

ما شاهَدتُ غَيرَ فيلمٍ واحِدٍ =

I did not watch (any movies, understood) except one movie, meaning I only watched one movie

5- Followed by a noun, as in:

صافَحَ رجلا غَيرَ صَديقِهِ =

He shook hands with a man other than his friend

أَخَذَ كِتاباً غَيرَ كِتابِهِ =

He took a book other than his

Thouria Benferhat

Arabic nouns and adjectives take one of the following three declensions: marfuu3 (nominative)

manSuub (accusative)

majruur (genitive/prepositional).

NOMINATIVE = مرفوع ــــُـــــ

١- قرأ المدرسُ / مدرسٌ

٢- قرأ المدرسان/ مدرسانِ

٣- قرأ المدرسون/ مدرسونَ

4. There are other symbols that are not in the official alphabet you need to know to read and write Arabic.

5. Most letters are connectors, which means that they will connect with the next letter in a word, and therefore usually change shape in different positions (isolated, initial, medial, final).

6. Six letters in the alphabet never connect with the following letter.

7. Non-connectors keep the same shape in all positions (isolated, initial, medial, final):

8. Arabic has three short vowels a, u and i. Short vowels are written above or below consonants.

9. Arabic has a symbol called “sukuun” (silence), resembling a zero, which is written on top of a consonant to mean “zero vowel on this consonant”.

10. Short vowels, which are written above or below consonants, do not usually appear in regular books and newspapers. Click here to see this in Arabic newspapers online!

11. Arabic has three long vowels that are pronounced in the same manner as the short vowels, but longer (aa, uu, ii):

12. Long vowels are written AFTER consonants:

Click here to listen to the Arabic Alphabet!

The mark of subjunctive is known to be “fat7a”, a, in which case it is usually not visible in regular texts such as newspapers and books, and not pronounced in less formal contexts.

Students often wonder why they have to learn declensions, if they are not written or pronounced.

Well, here is a situation (among many) where they have to be written…. and pronounced!

The mark of the subjunctive is not always “fat7a”, a!

When it is not a, it’s a long suffix, which has to be written. Note that, in this case, the regular present already has a long suffix that changes in the subjunctive!

See it here, with different pronouns:

===أنا

َأريدُ أن أسافر

أتمنى أن أسافرَ

أحبُّ أن أسافرَ

===أنتِ

تريدين أن تسافري

تتمنين أن تسافري

تحبين أن تسافري

===أنتم

تريدون أن تسافروا

تتمنون أن تسافروا

تحبون أن تسافروا

Parents often ask: “What can I do to make sure my kids know and don’t forget our mother tongue?”.

Wherever you are, abroad, if you are not careful, your child will undoubtedly adopt the local language once in school, or even before. To avoid this, try the following:

1. Speak your language at home:

You should be the primary source of language for your child. You are a resource that is available 24 hours so take advantage of that.

2. Keep languages separate; be strict:

If your spouse has a different mother tongue, make sure each one of you only speaks your mother tongue to the child.

3. Regularly speak with family and friends back home:

Speaking with family and friends back home on a regular basis gives the child a window into other contexts where the language is spoken.

4. Socialize with people who speak your language:

Make sure to invite friends who speak your language (they will surely invite you back :). This creates situations where the language is spoken in a warm atmosphere, which is conducive to language acquisition.

5. Visit your home country often:

Visit your country as often as you can. After all, total immersion is the most effective way of learning a language.

6. Read in your language:

Read to your child in your language:

Not only does reading to your child create and opportunity for the child to hear the language and or read it, but it also creates an opportunity to speak the language, answering questions about the book or discussing topics or pictures in the book.

7. Children learn best at play:

Make sure to speak your language when playing with your child as children learn best at play.

8. Organize playdates with children who speak your language:

Make a point of planning as many play dates with children who speak your language as possible.

9. Watch TV and/or videos in your language:

Watching television programs or videos in your language provides a totally new corpus which will enrich your child’s vocabulary, not to speak of knowledge.

10. Only hire babysitters who speak your language:

When hiring a babysitter, try to only hire babysitters who speak your language as this creates additional language practice for your child.

11. Use positive reinforcement:

We all want to make sure our children are using the language correctly. We should however limit correction and concentrate on positive reinforcement.

12. Never give up:

All the above steps can be daunting, but it’s very important to keep in mind that this is the best way to give your child the gift of language before they grow up and have to go to school to learn it.

You may like my books, encouraging people of all ages to learn foreign languages: https://www.amazon.com/s?i=stripbooks&rh=p_27%3AThouria+Benferhat+M.A.&s=relevancerank&text=Thouria+Benferhat+M.A.&ref=dp_byline_sr_book_1

Do you have any additional tips?