Shami has a few more complex structures that do not involve simply conjugating verbs.
Future
There are various ways to express the future. One is by using the simple present with b- on its own:
بروح معك bruu7 ma3ak ‘I’ll go with you’
One is by using bédd- (literally ‘want’):
بدي امرق لعندو بكرا béddi émro2 la-3éndo bukra – I’m going to go to his house tomorrow
Another common way is with the particle رح ra7(a)- or the prefix حـ 7a-:
رح روح ra7 ruu7 – I’ll go
حشوفك بكرا 7a-shuufak bukra – I’ll see you tomorrow
There are differences in nuance between these different forms and the use of the bare present, as there are between ‘going to’, ‘will’ and the present continuous in English, but these differences are difficult to pin down. Native speakers have an intuition about what sounds right and wrong in different sentences, and the only way to gain that sort of intuition as a non-native speaker is from practice.
Continuous
The continuous is formed with 3am which can be combined with the subjunctive or b-present. It typically lines up with the English continuous form in that it suggests repetitive action over a specific period of time:
عم ادرس 3am édros – I’m studying
ضرسي ما عم ينوملي الليل Dersi maa 3am ynawwemni élleel – my tooth is stopping me from sleeping at night [= is not letting me sleep]
One small difference in usage is that 3am can be used with many verbs that in English do not permit a continuous:
ما عم بقدر افتح الباب maa 3am bé2der éfta7 élbaab – I can’t get the door open [= I’m not being able to…]
Combinations of kaan and other verb forms
كان can be used with other verb forms to make compound tenses, as in fuSHa. With the subjunctive past kaan can be used to form a past habitual:
كان يدرس kaan yédros – he used to study
With the continuous it can be used to form a past continuous:
كنت عم ادرس ként 3am édros – I was studying
With the future the past form of kaan can be used to form a future-in-past:
كان رح يشتي kaan ra7 yshatti – it was going to rain
كان بدو يفوت kaan béddo yfuut – he was about to go in (or ‘he wanted to go in’)
With the past, it can form a pluperfect:
كان راح kaan raa7 – he’d gone
The present form bikuun can also be used with past, continuous and future in a similar way to express either assumptions or to centre the action on the future:
بكون عم يدرس bikuun 3am yédros – he must be studying, he’ll be studying
بكون خلص bikuun khallaS – he’ll have finished, he must have finished
بكون بدو يفوت bikuun béddo yfuut – he’ll be about to go in
The b-less form can be used similarly where it is triggered by something:
خايف يكون فات من الباب التاني khaayef ykuun faat mn élbaab éttaani – I’m afraid he might have come in through the other door