In each post, I will demonstrate how just by knowing one verb in its three-letter root form (Form I) will enable you to use the verb in its other forms.

I always thought that it makes more sense to be taught all the verbs from the same root at the same time rather than at different points in the language journey.

The meanings of the verb in its other forms can easily be guessed once you grasp how the 10-verbs form system works.

And I hope to demonstrate that through sentence examples and seeing for yourself the pattern that arises.

This series of posts might be especially useful for those learning Spoken Arabic without any formal background in MSA/Fosha.

So for the first post of an ongoing series, we’ll begin with a simple verb:

عرف

In Spoken Arabic, the verb عرف can be used in the following forms:

• Verb Form I
• Verb Form II
• Verb Form V
• Verb Form VII
• Verb Form VIII

*Note: Audio recordings in this post were recorded by native Syrian speakers.

Verb Form I

Meaning:

• to know
• to recognise/identify

Conjugation table:

*Inflection of verbs does differ slightly between North and South Levantine. 

Audio for the North Levantine’s verb conjugation by a native Syrian speaker:

Sentence examples:

• to know

شكلك مألوف، بعتقد اني بعرفك

You look familiar, I think I know you

 ما كِنت بعرف أنو عندك حساسية للمأكولات البحرية

I didn’t know that you are allergic to seafood

زوجي ما عرف أنو عيد ميلادي كان مبارح

My husband did not know that yesterday was my birthday

كِنتي بتعرفي ولا مابتعرفي أنو كان لازم تسلمي المشروع اليوم؟

Did you (f) know or did you not know that you were supposed to submit your project today?

مجموعة الأولاد غشّوا بفحصهن (بفحصهم) الأخير على الرغم من أنو بيعرفوا أنو ممكن ينفصلوا بسبب هي الشغلة

The group of boys cheated on their final tests even though they knew they could get expelled

• to recognise/identify

In Spoken Arabic, natives use the Form I to refer to both “know” and “recognise/identify”. Whether they mean “know” or “recognise/identify” will thus depend on the context.

Note that for contexts with a more serious or formal tone, the verb Form V is used instead to refer to “recognise/identify”. 

ما عرفتك بقصة شعرك الجديدة

I could not (did not) recognise you with your new haircut

جواد ضعف كتير لدرجة ما قدر يعرف حالو بالمراية

Jawad lost a lot of weight to the point that he cannot recognise himself in the mirror

بيقولو انو الطفل بيعرف صوت امو دغري بعد الولادة

It is said that a child (can) recognise its mother’s voice soon after birth

حابة اشتري هاد الفستان اونلاين بس كيف بدي أعرف الأصلي من التقليد؟

I want to buy this dress online but how can I tell [recognise/know] the original from the fake?!

شفت شي عم يطير بالسما اليوم بس ما قدرت أعرف شو هو

I saw something flying in the sky today but I could not identify what it was

Verb Form II

Meanings:

• to introduce
• to define
• How Would I Know?!

Conjugation table:

*Inflection of verbs does differ slightly between North and South Levantine. 

Audio for the North Levantine’s verb conjugation by a native Syrian speaker:

Sentence examples:

• to introduce

سامي، بدي أعرّفك على أخوي الأصغر مني ،حسين

Sami, I would like to introduce you to my younger brother, Hussein.

تعال على حفلتي بكرى. بدي أعرّفك على رفقاتي

Come to my party tomorrow. I want to introduce you to my friends

ممكن تعرّفني على مديرك؟ بتمنى أنو أشتغل بشركتك بعد التخرج

Is it possible for you to introduce me to your manager? I hope to work at your company after graduation.

انفصلت ليزا عن صديقا (صديقها) من جديد، وكل رفقاتا (رفقاتها) عم يحاولوا يعرّفوها على رفقاتهن (رفقاتهم) الشباب

Lisa has just broken up with her boyfriend and all her friends are trying to introduce her to their male friends.

• to define

طيب يا صفّ, سؤال…كيف بتعرّفوا السعادة؟

Ok class, a question…how do you define happiness?

ونستون تشرشل بيعرّف النجاح على أنه القدرة على الانتقال من الفشل للفشل من دون فقدان الحماس

Winston Churchill defines success as the ability to go from failure to failure without losing enthusiasm

• How Would I Know?!

This got to be one of my favourite phrases because it is usually said either in a tone of exasperation that may involve some eye-rolling, or in a tone of indifference like a half-arsed reply

So the phrase is…

شو بيعرّفني / شو بعرّفني

and you can translate it as “how would I know?”, “how am I supposed to know?”, “how in the world am I supposed to know”, “how the h*ll am I supposed to know”…you get the drift.

Here are some examples:

مين كسر الصحن؟-
وانا شو بيعرّفني؟ بكون حدا من الصغار-

Who broke the plate? // How would I know? It could be one of the children

 امتى رح ينتهي الفيروس؟-
الله أعلم, أنا شو بيعرّفني؟-

When will the virus end? // God only knows, how would I know?

Verb Form V

Meanings:

• to get to know s/one
• to be introduced to s/one or s/thing
• to get to know about something [~to learn/discover]
• to identify/recognise  (for contexts with a more serious/formal vibe)

Conjugation table:

*Inflection of verbs does differ slightly between North and South Levantine. 

Audio for the North Levantine’s verb conjugation by a native Syrian speaker:

Sentence examples:

كيف تعرّفت على ابن عمي حسين؟

How did you know my cousin Hussein?

تعرّفت على حسين بحفلة عيد ميلاد روان السنة الماضية

I got to know Hussein during Rawan’s birthday party last year.

هي تعرّفت على زوجها من خلال رحلة عمل لاسبانيا، ورح يحتفلوا بعيد زواجهن (زواجهم) العاشر الشهر الجاي

She got to know her husband during a business trip to Spain and they will be celebrating their 10th anniversary next month.

العروس والعريس تعرّفوا على بعضهم من خلال صديقهم المشترك

The bride and groom were introduced to each other through a mutual friend

بتصدقوا؟ تعرّفنا على الملكة رانيا الليلة الماضية خلال حفلة خاصّة

Can you (pl) believe it? We were introduced to Queen Rania last night at a private function

شوف هاد الفيديو ورح تتعرّف أكتر عن تاريخ هي (هاي) الدولة

Watch this video and you’ll get to know (learn) more about the history of this country

حضرنا المحاضرة مبارح وتعرّفنا على فوائد التأمل

We attended the lecture yesterday and got to know a lot about the benefits of meditation

(الدفاع المدني لاقو جثث بالبحر بس ما حدا قدر يتعرّف عليهن (عليهم

The Civil Defense found dead bodies in the sea but nobody was able to identify them

Verb Form VII

This verb form is the passive version of verb Form I.

Passive meaning that there is no subject performing the action of the verb. In other words, there is no doer of the action.

Since the tense is passive, this verb form is not as common in Spoken Arabic as the other forms.

Conjugation table:

*Inflection of verbs does differ slightly between North and South Levantine. 

Audio for the North Levantine’s verb conjugation by a native Syrian speaker:

Here are some examples:

لسا ما انعرف امتى رح يخلص الحجر

It is not yet known when the quarantine will be over

هاد الشي بينعرف لما يلاقو لقاح للمرض

This will be known when they find a vaccine for the illness

للأسف ما في دليل كافي لينعرف القاتل

(Lit. Unfortunately, there is not enough evidence for the killer to be identified)

~ Unfortunately, there is not enough evidence to identify the killer

Verb Form VIII

Meaning:

• to admit, confess, acknowledge
• to recognise (in the political sense)

Conjugation table:

*Inflection of verbs does differ slightly between North and South Levantine. 

Audio for the North Levantine’s verb conjugation by a native Syrian speaker:

Sentence examples:

عمر مابقت يصدّق خطيبته بعدما اعترفتله بأنها كذبت عليه عن ماضيها

Omar could no longer trust his fiancé after she confessed to lying to him about her past

على الرغم من أنو حسن اعترف أنو هو كان على خطأ وندمان على أخطائو، أهلو ما سامحوه

Even though Hassan has acknowledged that he was wrong and regretful for his wrongdoings, his parents did not forgive him

حبيبتي، أنا أسف، أنا بعتذر.. بعترف اني غلطت معك

Darling, I’m sorry, I apologise…I admit that I’ve wronged you

مجموعة الشباب المراهقين اعترفوا أنهن (أنهم) سرقوا من دكانة أبو علي

The group of teenage boys has confessed to stealing from Abo Ali’s shop

السودان كانت أول دولة اعترفت بسيادة جنوب السودان لما استقل ب ٢٠١١

Sudan became the first country to recognise South Sudan’s sovereignty when it gained independence in 2011

في كم دولة ما بتعترف بإنو تايوان دولة مستقلة

There are some countries that do not recognise Taiwan as an independent state

~End~

Note that the verb عرف also exists in verb X (Form 10) [استعرف – يستعرف] to mean “to ask for information”, but since it is rarely used in Spoken Arabic, I’ve decided to exclude it from this post.

Soooo are you able to see some sort of pattern from the examples provided?  The pattern or link between some verb forms might be more apparent than the others.

Anyhoo, here’s a picture taken from The 101 Most Used Verbs in Spoken Arabic by Fridrik Tiedemann that summarises how the 10-verbs form system works:

~~~

And…that’s it! The Arabic verb is, after all, JUST a three-letter word

If you found this post useful and would like me to continue with this series, make sure to leave a comment below!

Till then, take care, stay safe and I’ll see you around in the hosh.

Lyn

The post The Arabic Verb Is Just A Three-Letter Word: عرف (Levantine) appeared first on theLevanTongue.

ما بحط بذمتي

Transliteration:

ma baHut bidimtii

Alternatives:

ما بدي حط بذمتي

ma biddi/baddi Huut bi dimti

Meaning:

I ain’t taking responsibility for what I about to say

I’m not accountable for what I about to say

Erm, what?

Explanation & Examples:

Okay, so this expression has a religious undertone to it. On the day of judgment, everyone will be held accountable for his or her words and actions.

So this expression is said when people are not completely sure of the validity of what they are about to say.

And just in case, what they are about to say is completely false, they hope that they won’t be held accountable or be penalised for it on the day of judgment.

The word, ذمة, probably has no English equivalent but it is related to all things consciousness, moral integrity, ethics, etc.

So how is this expression used in spoken contexts?

Often, it is ironically said when gossiping about others.

It’s like “I know I’m going to say something unkind or questionable so I’ll say ma baHut bi dimti first just to prove I’m not a bad person”.

Here are some examples:

ما بحط بذمتي بس والله هالزلمة مو منيح. ديرو بالكم (بالكن) منو

ma baHut bidimtii bas wallah hal zalameh muu mniiH. diiru balkom (balkun) meno

I don’t mean anything by this (i.e please don’t hold this against me, God!) but I swear that man is not a good man. You guys better be careful of him.

OR

ما بحطا (بحطها) بذمتي بس روان يلي كسرتلك الموبايل, ما وقع لحالو :A

ma bahutaa (bahut-ha) bidimtii bas Rawan illi kasratlak el mobile. ma w2e3 lahaalo

I don’t mean anything by this but Rawan was the one who broke your mobile phone. It didn’t fell on its own.

!انت شو عم تحكي؟ متاكد؟ :B

enta shu 3am taHki? mit2aked?

What are you talking about?! Are you sure?!

ما بعرف انا, بس هيك حسيت :A

ma ba3ref ana. bas heik haseit

I don’t know, but this is what I feel.

The expression can also be used as a way as to not get involved in the matter (i.e to not be part of the “sin”) if you’re not the one spreading the news.

سمعت انو ماريا ما اجت عالبيت من تلات ايام والناس عم تقول انو بجوز هربت مع صاحبها لتعيش معو

sme3et eno Maria ma ejat 3al bayt men talat eyam uu el nas 3am t2ul eno bjuuz harbat ma3 saaHebha

I heard that Maria has not returned home for the last three days. People said she probably ran away to live with her boyfriend.

والله ما بعرف وما بحط بذمتي :B

wallah ma ba3ref uu maa bahut bidimtii

I swear, I don’t know anything about it and I don’t want to get involved (i.e I don’t want to be part of the sin of backbiting)

~~~

Note: There are some who refrain from using this expression because, hey, if it ain’t completely true, best not to mention it.

That’s it, folks. Check back next Friday for another ALEF post, or better still, subscribe below to be notified of new posts!

PSS: Like this post? Do me a favour and share it!

The post ALEF #01: Ma BaHut Bidimtii appeared first on theLevanTongue.

You’ll find songs in both Levantine Arabic and Fusha. And while the most obvious one is Fairouz, I have also listed Nedaa Sharara – the winner of The Voice 3 and also interestingly, one of the very few artists in the entertainment industry donning the hijab (you go girl!).

Plus, this list is not exhaustive. Don’t fret if you don’t see your favourite artist here. Feel free to name additional awesome female artists from the Levant in the comment section below

For now, scroll through the list and enjoy!

1. FAIROUZ (Lebanon)

OTHER EPIC SONGS:

• Bint el shalabiya
• Habbaytak bessayf
• ba3dak 3ala baly
• bektob esmak ya habibi

2. JULIA BOUTROS 

OTHER EPIC SONGS:

• La Bahlamak
• Yawman Ma
• Ala Shou
• Ya Osas
• 3a Slamto

3. LENA CHAMAMYAN (Syria)

OTHER EPIC SONGS:

• Ya Msafrah fil bahr
• Bali Ma3ak
• Kissat Ishk
• Hal asmar ellawn
• Ya Msafera

4. RASHA RIZK (Syria)

OTHER EPIC SONGS:

• Matar
• Sakru Shababik
• Al Jathebeyye

5. LINDA BITAR (Syria)

OTHER EPIC SONGS:

• Sar elkalam ghali
• Neesan
• Ward
• Ghazal elhawa

6. NANCY AJRAM (Lebanon)

OTHER EPIC SONGS:

• Maakoul el Gharam
• Moush Far’a Ktir
• Hassa Beek
• 3am bet3allak feek

7. HIBA TAWAJI (Lebanon)

OTHER EPIC SONGS:

• Tarik
• Helm
• Enta el fallayt
• Tir w Aalli
• Metel el Rih

8. ELISSA (Lebanon)

OTHER EPIC SONGS:

• Aaks elli shayfenha
• Ya merayti
• Betmoun
• Aa Baly Habibi

9. YARA (Lebanon)

OTHER EPIC SONGS:

• Twasa Fia
• Hob Kabeer
• Baher Hmoum
• Betrouh

10. MACADI NAHAS (Jordanian)

OTHER EPIC SONGS:

• Ya 3amma

• Hayya 3ala Hayya

• Rahal
• Ta3ban
• Tiji Nsafer

11. ABEER NEHME (Lebanon)

OTHER EPIC SONGS:

• Waynak
• Nizlo Njom El layl
• Ahwe
• Ma hada bi’abbi

12. RIM BANNA (Palestine)

OTHER EPIC SONGS:

• zedny befart alhob
• el ghaeb
• Ya layl ma atwalak
• T3am elhawa

13. FAIA YOUNAN (Syria)

OTHER EPIC SONGS:

• Fi al tariki illaik
• Wejjak Ya Helou
• Ya Laytahou Yaalam
• Baynatna fi bahr
• Mawtini

14. ASSALA NASRI (Syria)

OTHER EPIC SONGS:

• Kelma Adiyya
• Yom el raheel
• Boaadak ani
• Soaal Basit

15. MAJIDA AL-ROUMI (Lebanon)

OTHER EPIC SONGS:

• Etazalt el gharam
• Kalimat
• Ebhath Aanni
• Esmaa Alby
• Mili Ya Helwi Mili

16. NAJWA KARAM (Lebanon)

OTHER EPIC SONGS:

• Law bas ta3ref
• Habibi Min
• Ykhalili Albak
• Bawsit Abel L Nawm

17. YASMINE HAMDAN (Lebanon)

OTHER EPIC SONGS:

• Hal
• Shwey
• La’ Ba’den
• Balad
• La Mosh Ana

18. DIANA KARAZON (Jordan)

OTHER EPIC SONGS:

• Allah la yharmni menak ya ahla zein
• Insani ma bensak
• Omri law lela
• Enta el gharam
• El Omr Mashi

20. NEDAA SHRARA (Jordan)

OTHER EPIC SONGS:

• Adawar alek
• Ba3dou 3otrak
• Betkhoun
• Sahrana ana

21. TANIA SALEH (Lebanon)

OTHER EPIC SONGS:

• Hal 3ayoun
• Ma Elna Shi
• Heya la tuhebok anta
• Yabalah

WHEEEE

What are your thoughts? If there are any awesome female artists from the Levant that you think should be included in this list, let me know in the comment section below!

P.S Check out my previous list of 17 alternative rock bands and solo artists from the Levant HERE

The post 21 Female Angelic Voices From the Levant appeared first on theLevanTongue.