Language/Standard-arabic/Vocabulary/Idiomatic-Expressions

Standard Arabic Vocabulary - Idiomatic expressions

Hi Standard Arabic learners! 😊
In this lesson, we will learn some useful idiomatic expressions in Standard Arabic. These expressions are commonly used in conversations and will help you sound more natural and fluent. As always, feel free to ask any questions in the comments section below or find native speakers on Polyglot Club and practice with them. You can also check out our vocabulary page for more useful words and phrases. Let's get started!

Greetings

Let's start with some common Arabic greetings:

Standard Arabic	Pronunciation	English
السَّلَامُ عَلَيْكُمْ	as-salāmu 'alaykum	Hello (literally, "peace be upon you")
وَعَلَيْكُمُ السَّلَامُ	wa-'alaykumu s-salām	And upon you, peace (response to hello)
صَبَاحُ الْخَيْرِ	ṣabāḥu l-khayr	Good morning
مَسَاءُ الْخَيْرِ	masā'u l-khayr	Good evening
تَصْبِيْرَةٌ	taṣbīra	Good afternoon
تَصْبِيْرٌ	tuṣbiir	Good night
شُكْرًا	shukran	Thank you
عَفْوًا	'afwan	You're welcome
تَحِيَّةٌ	taḥiyya	Greetings

Dialogue:

• Person 1: السَّلَامُ عَلَيْكُمْ (Hello)
• Person 2: وَعَلَيْكُمُ السَّلَامُ (And upon you, peace)

Expressions of Agreement

Here are some expressions you can use to agree with someone:

Standard Arabic	Pronunciation	English
بِالتَّأْكِيدِ	bitta'kid	Absolutely
نَعَمْ	na'am	Yes
طَبْعًا	ṭab'an	Of course
مِنْ طَرَفِي	min ṭarafī	Me too
مَا فِي شَكْ	mā fī shak	No doubt
وَاللَّهِ	wallāhi	By God (I swear)

Dialogue:

• Person 1: هَلْ تَفْهَمُ اللُّغَةَ الْإِنْجْلِيْزِيَّةَ؟ (Do you understand English?)
• Person 2: نَعَمْ، بِالتَّأْكِيدِ. (Yes, absolutely.)

Expressions of Disagreement

On the other hand, here are some expressions you can use to disagree with someone:

Standard Arabic	Pronunciation	English
لَا	lā	No
مَا فِي أَمْرَ	mā fī amra	It doesn't matter
لِيْشَ؟	līsh?	Why?
مَا أَظُنُّ	mā 'adhunnu	I don't think so
مَا يَنْفَعَ	mā yanfaa	It's no use
بِالْعَكْسِ	bil'aks	On the contrary

Dialogue:

• Person 1: هَذَا الْمَطْعَمُ جَيِّدٌ جِدًّا. (This restaurant is very good.)
• Person 2: مَا أَظُنُّ، الْمَطْعَمُ سَيِّئٌ. (I don't think so, the restaurant is bad.)

Expressions of Emphasis

Sometimes, you want to emphasize a point in the conversation. Here are some expressions for that:

Standard Arabic	Pronunciation	English
حَقًّا	ḥaqqan	Really
بِكُلِّ صِرَاحَةٍ	bikulli ṣirāḥatin	To be honest
كَمَا قُلْتُ لَكَ	kamā qultu laka	As I told you
لَا شَكَّ بِأَنَّ	lā shakka bi'anna	There's no doubt that

Dialogue:

• Person 1: هَذَا الْكِتَابُ رَائِعٌ. (This book is wonderful.)
• Person 2: حَقًّا، لَقَدْ أَعْجَبَنِي كَثِيْرًا. (Really, I liked it very much.)

Conclusion

That's it for this lesson on Standard Arabic idiomatic expressions. Remember to practice using these expressions in real conversations to improve your fluency. If you have any questions, please ask them in the comments section below. And don't forget to check out our vocabulary page for more useful words and phrases in Standard Arabic. Good luck! 😊

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➡ If you have any questions, please ask them in the comments section below.
➡ Feel free to edit this wiki page if you think it can be improved. 😎

Congratulations on finishing this lesson! Explore these related pages to keep learning: Parts of the Body & Animal Sounds.

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• At Home
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