Egyptian Colloquial Arabic – Consolidated Study Notes
Invariable Demonstrative/Interjection Forms
• 3 basic forms used to point out or draw attention: Saadi, Saho, Sahe (صاحي)
• Universal alternative = faadi (فاضي)
• ALWAYS precedes the word it qualifies: faadi maḥaṭṭitna “Here is our stop”
• Must take suffixed pronouns, not independent ones
• 1st-person singular suffix is verbal -ni not -i
• Example: faadi-ni geet “Here I am!”
• Reduplication/stacking allowed: Saho-Sadi ffêex ʔazîz ahoh! “Look, there’s Sheikh ʔAzîz!”
Sample Translation / Drill Sentences
• “da rāgil fātir, yāgib innu yitráqqa” → “That man is experienced; he must be promoted.”
• “tiʔdar taʔxud il-kitāb iṣ-ṣugáyyar da balāš” → “You can take this small book for free.”
• “Gādi l-mudárres bitāʕi gāyyi-hnāk ahoh” → “There comes my teacher over there.”
• “Gahe š-šuffāra ʔárabit, yalla bīna” → “The convoy is getting close, let’s go!”
Lesson 17 – The Relative Particle illi
• Joins a clause to a DEFINITE noun, giving English “who / which / that”
• huwwa r-rāgil illi biyizzal bi-súrʕa = “He’s THE man who loses his temper quickly.”
• No relative particle if the antecedent is INdefinite
• huwwa rāgil biyizzal bi-súrʕa = “He is a man who loses his temper quickly.”
• Definite status can be created by:
• the article
• a possessive suffix → ṣáḥib-na illi tigrafu-uh “our friend whom you know”
• Object or possessive relationships expressed by retaining a pronoun inside the clause
• “Did you like the pen which I showed YOU yesterday?” → ʕagabak il-ʔalam illi warrēt-u-lak imbāriḥ?
• Arabic does not morphologically mark “who / whom / whose”; context + suffixed pronoun does the job.
Relative-Clause Mechanics (Quick Reference)
• Rule 1 – If noun is definite ⇒ must add illi.
• Rule 2 – If noun is indefinite ⇒ illi optional/omitted.
• Rule 3 – Keep resumptive pronoun inside the clause whenever English uses “whom / whose / which”.
• Common error: doubling article + possessive (əl-kitāb-u) then forgetting illi.
Dialogue – Master & Servant (Travel Preparation)
• Wake-up command: ṣaḥḥīni s-sāʕa sitt-a w-nuṣṣ
• Typical service verbs:
• ṭayyib, ḥāḍir = “Very well / Yes sir”
• haḍḍar-li l-futūṛ = “prepare my breakfast”
• ḥuṭṭ-ha f šanta ṣaɣɣyara = “pack them in a small bag”
• Time expressions:
• baʕd ēyōmēn = “in two days”
• tilt sāʕa = “20 min” (⅓ hour)
• Travel verbs: sa-msāfir bukra, hargaʕ baʕdēn, hatgassa hina (= dine here)
• Money/expenses: sadi gineeh li-maṣrūf il-yōmēn
Industrial / Technical Vocabulary
Petroleum & Chemical Products
• Early uses: lighting & medicine only
• Today > 2000 derivatives; lubricating oil alone has > 200 grades
• Domestic trade names: Shell-Tox, Teepol (insecticide & detergent)
• Sector-specific chemicals:
• agriculture (pesticides & fertilisers)
• plastics industry
• paint & surface-coating industry
Safety & Accident-Prevention Concepts
• Safety dept. (“šūʔūn al-wiqāya”): goal = prevent accidents before they occur
• Each incident demands an investigation; otherwise (recurrence).
• Typical consequences: injury (يِغْوار), possible death; plus hidden costs (downtime, loss).
Personnel Department Functions
• Handles both ʕummāl (workers) & muwaẓẓafīn (clerical/staff)
• Sub-sections commonly under Personnel:
• Industrial Relations (العلاقات الصناعية)
• Medical / Occupational Health (الطب)
• Safety (الوقاية)
• Canteens & Catering (المطاعم)
• Welfare / Recreation (الترفيه)
• Training (التدريب)
• Interaction with line supervisors: Personnel can absorb employee issues that supervisors escalate.
• Supervisor-improvement courses: aim at raising both managerial skill & workforce morale.
Quick Grammar & Vocabulary Reminders
• faadi, saho, saadi → attention-getting; remember placement & pronoun suffix rules.
• illi relative clause; always repeat object pronoun inside clause when needed.
• Common temporal adverbs:
• dilwaʔti “now”
• imbāriḥ “yesterday”
• bukra “tomorrow”
• Useful servant-master verbs:
• ṣaḥḥa “wake up”
• haḍḍar “prepare”
• ʔalbis “put on (clothes)”
• ilbis badla “wear a suit”
Exam-Tips Checklist
• Be able to replace indefinite clauses with illi when antecedent becomes definite.
• Practise pronoun-retention inside relative clauses; e.g. warrēt-u-lak pattern.
• Memorise service-context commands in imperative + polite particles (ḥāḍir, law samaḥt).
• Know at least 5 petroleum-product examples & their modern applications.
• Recall the 6 internal divisions of a Personnel Department for short-answer questions.