Arabic Phrases For Dummies

A portable guide to help you quickly learn common phrases in Modern Standard Arabic

Today, Arabic is spoken throughout the Middle East, from Morocco to Iraq. The language of the Koran and Islam, Arabic is also studied by more than one billion people for religious reasons. This practical guide offers help on basic Arabic words and phrases and eases communication with Arabic speakers.

Written as a companion to Arabic For Dummies, Arabic Phrases For Dummies provides readers with the tools to converse with others in Modern Standard Arabic (MSA) on a basic level. The most widely used and understood form of Arabic in the world, MSA is used in schools, news broadcasts, and other formal settings. If you want to brush up on your Arabic language skills or have little to no experience with the language, this book can help you quickly learn everyday expressions so you can communicate basic information in Arabic.

Although Arabic Phrases For Dummies focuses on MSA, this concise book includes examples from regional dialects, the most informal type of Arabic. You'll have many opportunities to practice Arabic language skills in various scenarios:

• Counting days and money

• Telling the time

• Introducing yourself and making small talk

• Ordering meals and shopping

• Engaging in leisure or work activities

• Finding transportation and lodging

• Taking care of emergencies

Additionally, the book has plenty of real-world phrases to illustrate grammatical concepts, and a chapter on proverbs to emphasize the poetic nature of Arabic. To start speaking conversational Arabic, get your copy today.

Auteur
Amine Bouchentouf is a native Arabic, English, and French speaker born and raised in Casablanca, Morocco. He teaches Arabic and lectures about relations between America and the Arab world.

Contenu

Introduction 1

About This Book 1

Conventions Used in This Book 2

Foolish Assumptions 3

Icons Used in This Book 3

Where to Go from Here 4

Chapter 1: I Say It How? Speaking Arabic 5

Taking Stock of What's Familiar 5

Discovering the Arabic Alphabet 7

All about vowels 7

All about consonants 10

Tackling Tough Letters and Words 15

Addressing Arabic Transcription 15

Chapter 2: Grammar on a Diet: Just the Basics 17

Introducing Nouns, Adjectives, and Articles 17

Getting a grip on nouns 18

Identifying adjectives 18

Discovering definite and indefinite articles (and the sun and moon) 19

Understanding the interaction between nouns and adjectives 21

Creating Simple, Verb-Free Sentences 23

To be or not to be: Sentences without verbs 23

Building sentences with common prepositions 25

Using demonstratives and forming sentences 26

Forming to be sentences using personal pronouns 28

Creating negative to be sentences 30

To be in the past tense 32

Working with Verbs 33

Digging up the past tense 33

Examining the present tense 36

Peeking into the future tense 39

Chapter 3: Numerical Gumbo: Counting of All Kinds 41

Talking Numbers 41

Discovering Ordinal Numbers 43

Telling Time in Arabic 45

Specifying the time of day 46

Specifying minutes 47

Referring to Days and Months 49

Money, Money, Money 52

Opening a bank account 52

Using the ATM 54

Exchanging currency 55

Chapter 4: Making New Friends and Enjoying Small Talk 57

Greetings! 57

You say hello 58

I say goodbye 58

How are you doing? 59

I'm doing well! 59

Making Introductions 60

Asking What's your name? 60

Responding with My name is . 60

Talking about Countries and Nationalities 61

Asking Where are you from? 61

Answering I am from . 62

Asking Questions 63

Talking about Yourself and Your Family 65

Talking about Work 67

Shooting the Breeze: Talking about the Weather 69

Chapter 5: Enjoying a Drink or a Snack (or a Meal!) 73

All about Meals 73

Breakfast 74

Lunch 76

Dinner 81

Enjoying a Meal at Home 82

Dining Out 83

Perusing the menu 83

Placing your order 85

Finishing your meal and paying the bill 87

Chapter 6: Shop 'til You Drop! 89

Going to the Store 89

Browsing the merchandise 90

Getting around the store 91

Asking for a Particular Item 92

Comparing Merchandise 95

Comparing two or more items 95

Picking out the best item 98

Shopping for Clothes 100

Chapter 7: Making Leisure a Top Priority 103

Visiting Museums 103

Going to the Movies 106

Touring Religious Sites 109

A few rules to keep in mind 109

The Hajj 110

Sporting an Athletic Side 111

Going to the Beach 115

Playing Musical Instruments 115

Popular Hobbies 116

Chapter 8: When You Gotta Work 119

Landing a Job 119

Managing the Office Environment 122

Interacting with your colleagues 124

Giving orders 129

Supplying your office 131

Picking Up the Phone 132

Dialing up the basics 132

Beginning a phone conversation 132

Asking to speak to someone 133

Making business appointments 133

Dealing with voice mail 135 **Chapter 9...