Apart from the iDaafe the main way of expressing possession is the particle تبع taba3 (or تع ta3), the equivalent of Egyptian bita3. This appears between the noun and its possessor. As with the iDaafe it can express various different types of relationship.

حط الستاتوس تبع الواتس بكومنت
7étt lé-status taba3 élwat@s bkooment
Put [your] Whatsapp status in a comment

اللون تبع جراباتك اللي انت لابسو حاليا هو لون قلبك
élloon taba3 jraabaatak élli inte laabso 7aaliyyan huwwe loon 2albak
The colour of the socks you’re wearing now is the colour of your heart

بيقولك راح ناس تبع جمعيات خيرية يشوفو اللاجئين
bi2éllak raa7 naas taba3 jam3iyyaat kheeriyye yshuufu llaaji2iin…
They say that people from charity organisations went to see the refugees…

What triggers use of تبع as opposed to the iDaafe is not always clear. It’s common with compounds and with loanwords (like the first example here). But it is also often used in contexts where the iDaafe would also be fine.

For some speakers تبع agrees with the possessed noun. In Syrian this is optional, but in Palestinian for example it is compulsory. The feminine is تبعت taba3et. The plural has various different forms, including تبعون tab3uun and تبعوت tab3uut.

Taba3 differs from the iDaafe in that it can be used independently, providing the only easy way to translate expressions like ‘Ahmad’s’  or ‘mine’ where the possessed noun is dropped. As with its normal use, taba3 here can express all sorts of relationships:

كسرت تبعتو
kassar@t taba3to
I broke his [one]

بدكن لايف متل تبع امبارح
béddkon laayv mét@l taba3 @mbaare7?
You want a Live (video) like yesterday’s?

بس تبع اللون الاخضر وبنات العمارة شغلة
bass taba3 élloon él2akhDar, wbanaat él3emaara shéghle
Only the green one, [because] the architecture girls are something else [in response to a question about which university canteen students prefer]

طلع تبع الضابط
Téle3 taba3 éDDaabeT
It turned out to belong to the officer/be the officer’s!

وينهم تبعون الإنجلش؟
weenhom tab3uun élinglish?
Where are the English crew?

You have to be careful with this usage, however, because تبع is also a euphemism for genitalia.

You are probably familiar with the fun (or not-so-fun) phenomenon of so-called tamyiiz (تمييز, sometimes translated into English as ‘specification’). In fuSHa, tamyiiz is one of the many uses of the accusative – you take a noun, stick it in the accusative, and it turns into something that can be (often clunkily) translated as ‘in terms of’ or ‘by way of’. This handy PDF gives some nice examples: يزداد ايمانًا ‘increase in belief’, يختلف علوًا ‘differ in height’, اجمل اسلوبًا ‘more pleasant with regard to style’. You’re probably most familiar with it from the last usage, with superlatives and comparatives.

Some arguable examples of the fuSHa forms are occasionally used in speech too (كتابةً kitaabatan ‘in writing’ for example) especially in higher registers, but productively tamyiiz constructions are formed in 3aammiyye without any case ending. This makes them more difficult to spot, but lots of examples of similar constructions do occur – and it’s important to understanding that you can recognise them.

Modifying verbs:

Tamyiiz constructions often appear modifying verbs in an adverbial sense. They can frequently but not always be translated with English ‘as’:

بشتغل مهندس béshtéghel muhandes – I work as an engineer (كـ here sounds funny and is a common non-native mistake)

جيت لجوء jiit lujuu2 – I came as a refugee [= I came refuge]

المصاري بجو شيكات élmaSaari biju sheekaat – the money comes in cheques

Sometimes they modify not the verb itself, but the object:

عطاني ياه هدية ‭3aTaani yaa hdiyye – he gave me it as a present

انت زودت الطين بلة اه inte zawwadt éTTiin bille aah – you’ve made the situation worse [increased the clay in terms of wetness]

They can modify participles, too – as in the following:

الكاس مليان مي élkaas mélyaan moyy – the glass is full of water

مبلول مي mabluul moyy – wet (with water)

compare:

عبيتو مي ‘I filled it with water’

انبليت مي ‘I got wet’

They can also modify the subject:

انقسمو قسمين n2asamu 2ésmeen – they were divided (into) two groups

I’m not sure my divisions into modifying the subject, object and verb are particularly scientific, but hopefully these examples give a decent impression of the breadth of possible semantics.

With question words

With questions with 2addeesh (‘how much’) and shu (‘what’), there is often a tamyiiz which narrows the specification of the question word. Unlike in English (‘what houses’, ‘how much change’), the tamyiiz typically appears later on:

قديش معك فراطة؟ 2addeesh ma3ak @fraaTa? – how much change do you have? [how much do you have (by way of) change?]

شو عندك افكار لتطوير البلد shu 3éndak 2afkaar la-taTwiir élbalad? – what ideas do you have for developing the country

They don’t necessarily have to be actual questions, either:

الله وحدو بيعلم شو ممكن تجيني أحاسيس و مشاعير aLLa wa7do bya3lem shu mémken tijiini a7aasiis w mashaa3iir – only God knows what feelings I might have [= what can come to me (by way of) feelings and feelings]

These are of course a subset of the versions above with subjects and objects.

Other uses in fuSHa

In fuSHa tamyiiz is also used for expressions of quantity (‘a glass of water’, ‘a kilo of sugar’) and for superlatives/comparatives where an afDal noun cannot be readily used (اكثر تعقيدًا ‘more complicated’ for example). In 3aammiyye the former is usually expressed with an iDaafe (kaasét moyy, kaast élmoyy) and the latter with a combination of a normal adjective and an afDal (معقد اكتر mu3aqqad 2aktar).

One point we didn’t cover in any of the previous posts is the very basic issue of how to express doing something to yourself (reflexives) and doing something to one another (reciprocals). Both of these are quite important and differ (to some extent) from fuSHa, so let’s cover them here!

Reflexives

The reflexive pronoun

In English we have the reflexive pronouns formed with possessives and ‘self’, and in fuSHa we have basically the same system with نفس ‘spirit’. Whilst there are contexts in which you might hear نفس with reflexive meaning in colloquial, far and away the most common reflexive pronoun in Shami is not formed with نفس but with حالـ plus possessive pronouns:

احكي عن حالك é7ki 3an 7aalak – speak for yourself!

ليش عم تجاكر حالك؟ leesh 3am @tjaaker 7aalak? – why are you spiting yourself?

مفكر حالو شي خرية كبيرة mfakker 7aalo shi kharye kbiire – he thinks he’s the shit [some big shit]

With plural pronouns 7aal remains the same and does not pluralise like English ‘self’:

شايفين حالون shaayfiin 7aalon – they’re arrogant [they’ve seen themselves]

Reflexives without 7aal

In some limited situations normal pronouns are used with a reflexive meaning:

غصبن عنك ghaSbin 3annakin spite of yourself

Reflexive-style verbs

There are some verbs which in and of themselves are often best translated as reflexive despite the absence of a reflexive pronoun:

احترقت  ‪7tara2@t – I burnt myself

انتحر nta7ar – he killed himself (نحر ‘to slaughter)

Reciprocals

These are expressions like ‘they hit one another’ where the action is being carried out by two parties on one another at the same time.

The reciprocal pronoun

Lining up with English ‘one another’ or ‘each other’, fuSHa has various expressions formed with بعض, probably originally in the sense of ‘some’ (like the long fuSHa structure, ضرب بعضُهم البعضَ, which probably originally meant ‘some of them hit some [others]’ or ‘one of them hit the [other]’). In Syrian the most common way of phrasing it is just to use بعض ba3@D on its own as a catchall ‘one another’ or ‘each other’:

ضربو بعض Darabu ba3@D – they hit one another

متل بعض mét@l ba3@D – like one another, similar

نفس بعض naf@s ba3@D – the same thing, the same as one another

طلعو ببعض TTalla3u bba3@D – they looked at one another

Reciprocal verbs

As in fuSHa, some verbs are inherently reciprocal, typically form V or form VI:

تصالحو tSaala7u – they made up (with one another – compare صالحو Saala7o  ‘he made up with him’)

تحاكو t7aaku – they spoke (with one another compare حاكاه ‘he spoke to him’)

When they are really reciprocal the subject is usually plural. However, there are lots of cases where these reciprocals actually may appear with a singular subject and an object expressed with مع. Here, of course, ‘one another’ is not an appropriate translation.

تصالحت معو tSaala7@t ma3o – I made up with him (functionally a synonym of صالحتو)

This should probably have come much earlier, but better late than never!

Possibility

ممكن mumken/mémken

This one literally means ‘is possible’ and is usually best translated as ‘can’, ‘could’ or ‘might’ depending on context. As an auxiliary, it is followed by a subjunctive verb:

ممكن تروح معنا اذا بدك mémken @truu7 ma3na iza béddak – you can go with us if you want

بتعرف انه الواحد احيانا ممكن يطلع خلقه bta3ref énno ilwaa7ed a7yaanan mumken yéTla3 khél2oyou know that sometimes, a person can lose their temper… [= that one sometimes their temper can rise]

الله وحدو بيعلم شو ممكن تجيني أحاسيس و مشاعير aLLa wa7do bya3lem shu mémken tijiini a7aasiis w mashaa3iir – only God knows what feelings I might have [= what feelings and feelings might come to me]

For the past, we have to use كان as an auxiliary. This gives a counterfactual meaning (could have, but didn’t).

كان ممكن يعمل فتنة بيني وبين امي kaan mémken ya3mel fitne beeni wbeen émmi – it could’ve caused real trouble between me and my mum

كان ممكن يعمل اي شي بدو ياه kaan mumken ya3mel eyy shi béddo yaa – he could have done anything he wanted

It can also be used with subjunctive kaan plus a past verb:

ممكن يكون راح يجيب بيكيت دخان mémken ykuun raa7 yjiib baakeet dékhkhaan – he might have gone to get a packet of cigarettes

It can be used in requests as well, like English ‘could’:

لو سمحت ممكن تسكر الشباك؟ law sama7@t mumken tsakker éshshébbaak? excuse me, could you close the window?

In this sense it can appear without a verb:

ممكن قلم؟ mumken 2alam? – could I have a pen?

It appears on its own as well:

ولا ممكن! wala mumken! – it’s just not possible (anymore!)

اي ممكن ee mumken – yeah, possibly (or yes, I can/could, yes it can/could etc)

كل شي ممكن kéll shi mémken – anything’s possible

اذا ممكن iza mumken – if that’s possible (if you can, etc etc)

يمكن yémken

Yémken is a frozen verbal form without a b- prefix. It is an adverbial form and often means ‘perhaps’ or ‘possibly’. In this sense it is much freer in terms of where it can go in the sentence than mémken is:

يمكن اكتريت المشاكل اللي بتصير بالحياة سببها انو… yémken aktariit élmashaakel élli bétSiir bi-l7ayaat sababa énno… – perhaps the reason for most of the problems that happen in life is…

لحتا تترجمها بدك يمكن تكتب هامش صفحتين شرح لالها حتا يفهمها القارئ la7atta ttarjémha béddak yémken téktob haamesh Séf@7teen shar@7 la2ilha 7atta yéfhamha lqaare2 – in order to translate it you’d need to write maybe a two-page long footnote explaining it for the reader to understand…

مو مكتوبة بصيغة صح يمكن muu maktuube bSiigha Sa77 yémken – it might not be written right

يمكن عمر بن الخطاب كان ناجح نوعا ما yémken 3omar bin al-khaTTaab kaan naaje7 naw3an ma – I guess/maybe (the TV series) Umar bin al-Khattab was sort of good

You can use it with the past too:

يمكن راح يمكن ما راح yémken raa7 yémken maa raa7 – maybe he went, maybe he didn’t

It is also used like mémken as an auxiliary with a subjunctive:

يمكن ما يتوفر معي yémken maa yétwaffar 3éndi – I might not be able to get it (= the money) [= it might not become available with me]

It occasionally acts like a proper verb meaning ‘be possible’:

اكتر ما يمكن aktar ma yémken – as much as possible

بصير biSiir

This is typically an auxiliary and means approximately ‘is it possible/acceptable?’ It appears with subjunctive verbs:

ما بصير تحكي هيك قدام الضيوف maa biSiir té7ki heek 2éddaam léDyuuf – it’s not right for you to talk like that in front of the guests!

بصير احكيلك اشتقتلك ولا الجديدة للي عندك بتغار؟ biSiir é7kiilak @shta2téllak wélla léjdiide lli 3éndak bétghaar? – am I allowed to tell you I missed you or is your new (girlfriend) the jealous type?

بصير احول خطي من اجتماعي لخط زين الجديد؟ biSiir a7awwel khaTTi min ijtimaa3i la-khaTT zeen lijdiid? – is it possible to change my (phone) contract from the ‘sociable’ one to Zain‘s new contract? [‘sociable’ was the name of one of Zain’s phone contracts]

Like mémken it can be used with nouns too:

بصير سؤال صغير؟ biSiir su2aal @zghiir? – can I just ask one question? [= a small question]

Generally this form is invariable (and should not be confused with other uses of Saar like ‘become’ and ‘happen’ which conjugate normally) but some Syrians accept the plural form with nouns like in the following sentence:

التنين بصيرو létneen biSiiru – both are possible, both work

بجوز bijuuz

بجوز is another frozen verbal form used similar to يمكن, meaning ‘possibly’ or ‘might’:

في منن بجوز اصلن من السويدا fii ménnon bijuuz aSlon mn éssweeda – there are some of them who might be originally from Sweida [= that their origin might be from Sweeda]

بجوز قلون رح يشتكي عليون bijuuz 2éllon ra7 yéshtéki 3aleyyon – maybe he told them he was going to make a complaint about them

It can appear with normal b-presents like this – if the verb refers to something general or actually present (as opposed to future):

بجوز بيرمز لشي او لشخص bijuuz byérmoz la-shi aw la-shakh@S – it might be a reference to a thing or a person

It can also appear in counterfactuals meaning ‘might have’ or ‘perhaps’ (depending on context):

لو هربو بجوز كانو نفدو law hérbu bijuuz kaanu nafadu – if they’d run away perhaps they’d have escaped/they might have escaped

Or it can act like mémken with future reference:

كمان في كلمة بجوز تفكرها مشابهة… kamaan fii kélme bijuuz tfakkérha mushaabiha – there’s another word you might think is similar…

بجوز احتاج مساعدتك bijuuz é7taaj musaa3adtak – I might need your help

بركي, بلكي bérki, belki

This one is a loanword from Turkish belki. In Damascus bérki (presumably a corruption) is more common but you will hear both. Belki is the normal form in Jordan and Palestine, I think. It is used almost exclusively with future reference, most commonly with b-present verbs:

بركي جبلك كل يوم بيتزا  bérki jéblak kéll yoom biitza – maybe I’ll bring you pizza every day

بركي منشوفك عن قريب bérki ménshuufak 3an 2ariib – maybe (hopefully) we’ll see you sometime soon

It is sometimes used with a past tense verb, but this also has future reference and carries a very specific meaning which is something like ‘but what if…’:

بركي انمسكت؟ bérki nmasak@t? – what if you get caught?!

وبركي ما قدرت ترجع؟ w-bérki maa 2dér@t térja3 – and what if you can’t come back?!

It is also used to connect two clauses with a sense that is sort of difficult to translate concisely into English. Usually the format is like this: ‘do X, bérki you’ll do Y’ and it means something like ‘so that you might’ in archaic English:

احكيلو بركي بزورنا é7kiilo bérki bizuurna – talk to him and maybe he’ll visit us

This joke illustrates this use well even if it doesn’t say much about marital life:

وحدة قالت لزوجها : حلمت انك علمتني السواقة و جبتلي سيارة كمان ، قلها زوجها ؛ كملي نومك بركي بتعملي حادث والله بياخدك wa7de 2aalet la-zoojha: 7alam@t énnak 3allamtni léswaa2a w-jébtélli siyyaara kamaan! 2éllha zoojha kammli noomek bérki bta3mli 7aades w-aLLa yaakhdik! – a woman said to her husband: ‘I dreamt you’d bought me a car and taught me to drive too!’ Her husband said: ‘go back to sleep and maybe (hopefully) you’ll have an accident!’ [= that you might have an accident, and God take you!]

مستحيل musta7iil

‘Impossible’, ‘it’s impossible’. Used with a subjunctive verb:

مستحيل انساكي musta7iil énsaaki – it would be impossible for me to forget you

The passive

The passive is often used to express general possibility/ability:

الزلمة ما بينمشى معو ézzalame maa byénmasha ma3o – you can’t get along with the guy [= he is not walked with]

ما بينهرب من هالسجن maa byénhareb mén has-séj@n – you can’t escape from this prison

Likelihood

اكيد akiid,  ع الاكيد ‪3al2akiid

Certainly, definitely, surely.

انتي اكيد مالك مقتنعة بيلي عم تقوليه inti akiid maalek méqtan3a byalli 3am t2uulii – you definitely/surely don’t believe what you’re saying

بيجي ع الاكيد خلال اسبوع byiji 3al2akiid khilaal ésbuu3 – it’ll definitely come within a week

ع الاغلب 3al2aghlab

Probably, most likely.

ع الاغلب ما في دوام لاول الشهر ‪3al2aghlab maa fii dawaam la-2awwal éshshah@r – most likely there’ll be no work ’til the beginning of next month

بكون bikuun

Bikuun is often used to express judgements about likelihood in a way similar to ‘must be’.

بدو يكون béddo ykuun

This construction is used to express judgements about likelihood in a way similar to ‘he must be’:

هلق بدو يكون مشي halla2 béddo ykuun méshi – by now he’ll have left

اجباري ijbaari

Literally ‘compulsory’, but used to mean ‘certainly’, ‘definitely’.

Ability

قدر / بيقدر ‪2éder/byé2der

This is the normal equivalent to ‘can’, but typically expresses ability of a person rather than possibility. It uses subjunctive:

بتقدر تقول مثلا بطلت من الشغل bté2der @t2uul masalan baTTal@t mn éshshégh@l – you can say for example ‘I stopped working…’

It can be used in the past to mean ‘couldn’t’, if it refers to one specific time:

بس ولله ما قدرت اعمل شي bass waLLa maa 2dér@t a3mel shi – but I swear, I couldn’t do anything

It can also be used in participle form (2édraan) referring to a specific time-delimited period:

متل اللي تعبان ومو قدران يمشي mét@l élli ta3baan w-muu 2édraan yémshi – like someone who’s worn out and can’t walk (normally)

With the preposition على it can also be used with nouns and pronouns:

اللي بتقدر عليه élli bté2der 3alee – what you can do, what you’re capable of

احسن بيحسن a7san byé7sen

Sometimes 7asan instead of a7san. In fuSHa this means ‘to do well’ or ‘do properly’ but in Syrian it’s used for simple ‘be able to’ or ‘can’ as a slightly less common synonym of 2éder:

ما احسنت نام maa a7san@t naam – I couldn’t sleep

Its participle is حسنان ‪7asnaan:

مو حسنان نام  muu 7asnaan naam – I can’t sleep

عرف / بيعرف ‪3éref bya3ref

Literally ‘to know’. Used with a subjunctive verb to indicate ‘know how to’:

انا بعرف سوق ana ba3ref suu2 – I know how to drive

Its semantics however often cover things we use ‘can’ for in English:

ما عم اعرف افتح الباب maa 3am a3ref éfta7 élbaab – I can’t work out how to open the door

لو سمحت وطي صوتك شوي! خليني اعرف كمل شغلي law sama7@t waTTi Sootak shweyy, khalliini a3ref kammel shéghli – please lower your voice and let me do my job [= know how to finish my work]

فيـ fii-

The pronominal forms of the preposition b- or a slightly different variation with an n added (fiini, fiik/fiinak, fiiki/fiinek, fii/fiino, fiyya/fiina, fiina, fiikon, fiyyon/fiinon) can be used with a subjunctive verb to express ability:

فينك تقول انو fiinak @t2uul énno – you could say that…

ما فيني امشي maa fiini émshi – I can’t walk

For the past, it requires kaan:

ما كان فيني اعمل شي maa kaan fiini a3mel shi – I wasn’t able to do anything

Obligation

لازم laazem

‘Must’, ‘have to’, ‘should’. Used with a subjunctive verb:

لازم تروح laazem @truu7 – you have to go, you should go

With a negative (either muu or maa works, though maa is more common) it usually means ‘you shouldn’t/mustn’t’ etc and not ‘you don’t have to’:

ما لازم تروح maa laazem @truu7 – you shouldn’t go

It can be used in the past, but then its meaning is almost always counterfactual ‘should have (but didn’t)’. In order to say ‘I had to’ or ‘I was forced to’ you have to make use of other verbs (e.g. njabar@t). Laazem can either be placed into the past with كان or have a past verb used directly after it:

كان لازم تروح kaan laazem @truu7 – you should have gone

لازم رحت laazem ré7@t – you should have gone

لازم can also be used as a normal adjective meaning ‘necessary’:

هي الورقة مو لازمة hayy élwara2a muu laazme – this one’s not necessary

In this sense it can take a direct pronominal object:

المصاري لازمينني élmaSaari laazmiinni – I need the money [note maSaari is plural]

Often laazem + object suffix is used almost like a verb meaning ‘to need’ which then takes direct objects normally and uses yaa- with pronoun objects:

لازمني ياهون laazémni yaahon – I need it (the money) [= I need them]

ضروري Daruuri

Usually ‘urgent’ or ‘absolutely necessary’, used with a subjunctive verb:

ضروري تضوج هيك دغري؟ Daruuri TDuuj heek déghri? – do you have to get upset like that straight away??

اضطر مضطر DTarr méDTarr

Stronger than laazem. Often appears with انو:

اضطريت اني اشتري واحد جديد DTarreet énni éshtéri waa7ed @jdiid – I had to buy a new one

It can take a nominal object with على:

ماني مضطر عليون maani méDTarr 3aleyyon – I don’t need them urgently

انجبر مجبور majbuur njabar

‘Obligated’, ‘forced’. Majbuur is the participle, انجبر is the verb.

مجبور سافر majbuur saafer – I have to/I’m obliged to go abroad

كانت الطريق مسدودة فانجبرت ارجع kaant éTTarii2a masduude fa-njabar@t érja3 – the road was blocked so I had to come back

Quadriliteral verbs are those verbs with roots consisting of four consonants. Although these verbs are less common than their triliteral equivalents, there are a lot of them in both fuSHa and colloquial.

‘Quadriliteral’ is not a pattern per se like form V or form VI. Some quadriliteral verbs are derived from nouns or adjectives with four consonants, typically although not exclusively loanwords (تلفن talfan ‘telephone’ < telefoon). Some are derived from native words with triliteral roots but incorporate part of the original pattern of that word (تمركز tmarkaz ‘centre on’ < markaz ‘centre’). Some of them are onomatopoeia (زقزق za2za2 ‘squeak’, فرفر farfar ‘flutter’). Some of them are modified forms of triliteral verbs with an additional sound added, adding an additional nuance to the verb (ترقوص tra2waS ‘dance about, dance around’ < ra2aS ‘dance’). Finally, some of them belong to less common derivational patterns like tfa3lan ‘act like’ (تحيون t7eewan ‘act like a moron’ < 7eewaan, تزلمن tzalman ‘act like a man’ < zalame) or fa3la (طعمى Ta3ma ‘feed’ < Ta3m, فرجى farja ‘show’ < tfarraj 3ala).

Regardless of the underlying pattern they belong to, however, all quadriliteral verbs fall under a small number of conjugation patterns. These are similar (but not identical) to form II and form V sound verbs. All transitive quadriliterals form their passive using the equivalent t- form (fa3fa3 > tfa3fa3, fa3fa > tfa3fa etc).

Fa3fa3, yfa3fe3

زقزق za2za2
‘squeak’
Active Participle Passive Participle
مزقزق mza2ze2 N/A
MaSdar Noun of Instance
زقزقة za2za2a N/A
Imperative:
زقزق زقزقي زقزقو

za2ze2 za2@z2i za2@z2u

Present Past
Ana za2ze2 bza2ze2 زقزق بزقزق za2za2@t زقزقت
Inte tza2ze2 bétza2ze2 تزقزق بتزقزق za2za2@t زقزقت
Inti tza2@z2i bétza2@z2i تزقزقي بتزقزقي za2za2Ti زقزقتي
Huwwe yza2ze2 biza2ze2 يزقزق بزقزق za2za2 زقزق
Hiyye tza2ze2 bétza2ze2 تزقزق بتزقزق za2za2et زقزقت
Né7na nza2ze2 ménza2ze2 نزقزق منزقزق za2za2na زقزقنا
Intu tza2@z2u bétza2@z2u تزقزقو بتزقزقو za2za2Tu زقزقنا
Hénnen yza2@z2u biza2@z2u يزقزقو بزقزقو za2za2u زقزقو

 

Tfa3lal yétfa3lal

تدحرج tda7raj
‘roll’
Active Participle Passive Participle
متدحرج métda7rej N/A
MaSdar Noun of Instance
دحرجة da7raje N/A
Imperative:
تدحرج تدحرجي تدحرجو

tda7raj tda7raji tda7raju

Present Past
Ana étda7raj bétda7raj تدحرج بتدحرج tda7raj@t تدحرجت
Inte tétda7raj btétda7raj تتدحرج بتتدحرج tda7raj@t تدحرجت
Inti tétda7raji btétda7raji تتدحرجي بتتدحرجي tda7rajTi تدحرجتي
Huwwe yétda7raj byétda7raj يتدحرج بتدحرج tda7raj تدحرج
Hiyye tétda7raj btétda7raj تتدحرج بتتدحرج tda7rajet تدحرجت
Né7na nétda7raj mnétda7raj نتدحرج منتدحرج tda7rajna تدحرجنا
Intu tétda7raju btétda7raju تتدحرجو بتتدحرجو tda7rajTu تدحرجنا
Hénnen yétda7raju byétda7raju يتدحرجو بتدحرجو tda7raju تدحرجو

 

Fa33a, yfa33i

طعمىTa3ma
‘feed’
Active Participle Passive Participle
مطعمي mTa3mi مطعمى mTa3ma
MaSdar Noun of Instance
N/A N/A
Imperative:
طعمي طعمي طعمو

Ta3mi Ta3mi Ta3mu

Present Past
Ana Ta3mi bTa3mi طعمي بطعمي Ta3meet طعميت
Inte tTa3mi bétTa3mi تطعمي بتطعمي Ta3meet طعميت
Inti tTa3mi bétTa3mi تطعمي بتطعمي Ta3meeti طعميتي
Huwwe yTa3mi biTa3mi يطعمي بطعمي Ta3ma طعمى
Hiyye tTa3mi bétTa3mi تطعمي بتطعمي Ta3met طعمت
Né7na nTa3mi ménTa3mi نطعمي منطعمي Ta3meena طعمينا
Intu tTa3mu bétTa3mu تطعمو بتطعمو Ta3meetu طعميتو
Hénnen yTa3mu biTa3mu يطعمو بطعمو Ta3mu طعمو

 

Tfa3la yétfa3la

تفرشى tfarsha

‘be brushed’

Active Participle Passive Participle
متفرشي métfarshi N/A
MaSdar Noun of Instance
N/A N/A
Imperative:
تفرشى تفرشي تفرشو

tfarsha tfarshi tfarshu

Present Past
Ana étfarsha bétfarsha اتفرشى بتفرشى tfarsheet تفرشيت
Inte tétfarsha btétfarsha تتفرشى بتتفرشى tfarsheet تفرشيت
Inti tétfarshi btétfarshi تتفرشي بتتفرشي tfarsheeti تفرشيتي
Huwwe yétfarsha byétfarsha يتفرشى بيتفرشى tfarsha تفرشى
Hiyye tétfarsha btétfarsha تتفرشى بتتفرشى tfarshet تفرشت
Né7na nétfarsha mnétfarsha نتفرشى منتفرشى tfarsheena تفرشينا
Intu tétfarshu btétfarshu تتفرشو بتتفرشو tfarsheetu تفرشيتو
Hénnen yétfarshu byétfarshu يتفرشو بيتفرشو tfarshu تفرشو

 

Foo3an, yfoo3en

Some verbs have ee instead of oo, like نيشن neeshan ‘aim at’ or Lebanese طيلع Teela3.

دوزن doozan
‘tune’
Active Participle Passive Participle
مدوزن mdoozen N/A
MaSdar Noun of Instance
دوزنة doozane N/A
Imperative:
دوزن دوزني دوزنو

doozen doozni dooznu

Present Past
Ana doozen bdoozen دوزن بدوزن doozan@t دوزنت
Inte tdoozen bétdoozen تدوزن بتدوزن doozan@t دوزنت
Inti tdoozni bétdoozni تدوزني بتدوزني doozanti دوزنتي
Huwwe ydoozen bidoozen يدوزن بدوزن doozan دوزن
Hiyye tdoozen bétdoozen تدوزن بتدوزن doozanet دوزنت
Né7na ndoozen méndoozen ندوزن مندوزن doozanna دوزننا
Intu tdooznu bétdooznu تدوزنو بتدوزنو doozantu دوزننا
Hénnen ydooznu bidooznu يدوزنو بدوزنو doozanu دوزنو

 

Tfoo3an, yétfoo3an

Some verbs have ee instead of oo, like تحيون t7eewan ‘act like a moron’.

 

تدوزن tdoozan
‘be tuned’
Active Participle Passive Participle
متدوزن métdoozen N/A
MaSdar Noun of Instance
دوزنة doozane N/A
Imperative:
تدوزن تدوزني تدوزنو

tdoozan tdoozani tdoozanu

Present Past
Ana étdoozan bétdoozan تدوزن بتدوزن tdoozan@t تدوزنت
Inte tétdoozan btétdoozan تتدوزن بتتدوزن tdoozan@t تدوزنت
Inti tétdoozani btétdoozani تتدوزني بتتدوزني tdoozanti تدوزنتي
Huwwe yétdoozan byétdoozan يتدوزن بتدوزن tdoozan تدوزن
Hiyye tétdoozan btétdoozan تتدوزن بتتدوزن tdoozanet تدوزنت
Né7na nétdoozan mnétdoozan نتدوزن منتدوزن tdoozanna تدوزننا
Intu tétdoozanu btétdoozanu تتدوزنو بتتدوزنو tdoozantu تدوزننا
Hénnen yétdoozanu byétdoozanu يتدوزنو بتدوزنو tdoozanu تدوزنو

 

Foo3a, yfoo3i

This is a very rare pattern. Booya, the only example I can think of, is derived from the noun بويا ‘polish’ (also pronounced booya), a loan from Turkish boya.

بويى booya
‘polish’
Active Participle Passive Participle
مبويي mbooyi مبويى mbooya
MaSdar Noun of Instance
N/A N/A
Imperative:
بويي بويي بويو

booyi booyi booyu

Present Past
Ana booyi bbooyi بويي ببويي booyeet بوييت
Inte tbooyi bétbooyi تبويي بتبويي booyeet بوييت
Inti tbooyi bétbooyi تبويي بتبويي booyeeti بوييتي
Huwwe ybooyi bibooyi يبوي ببوي booya بويى
Hiyye tbooyi bétbooyi تبويي بتبويي booyet بويت
Né7na nbooyi ménbooyi نبويي منبويي booyeena بويينا
Intu tbooyu bétbooyu تبويو بتبويو booyeetu بوييتو
Hénnen ybooyu bibooyu يبويو ببويو booyu بويو

 

 

tfoo3a, yétfoo3i

 

تبويى tbooya

‘be polished’

Active Participle Passive Participle
متبويي métbooyi N/A
MaSdar Noun of Instance
تبويي takhabbi N/A
Imperative:
تبويى تبويي تبويو

tbooya tbooyi tbooyu

Present Past
Ana étbooya bétbooya اتبويى بتبويى tbooyeet تبوييت
Inte tétbooya btétbooya تتبويى بتتبويى tbooyeet تبوييت
Inti tétbooyi btétbooyi تتبويي بتتبويي tbooyeeti تبوييتي
Huwwe yétbooya byétbooya يتبويى بيتبويى tbooya تبويى
Hiyye tétbooya btétbooya تتبويى بتتبويى tbooyet تبويت
Né7na nétbooya mnétbooya نتبويى منتبويى tbooyeena تبويينا
Intu tétbooyu btétbooyu تتبويو بتتبويو tbooyeetu تبوييتو
Hénnen yétbooyu byétbooyu يتبويو بيتبويو tbooyu تبويو

The non-simple (i.e. form II+) verbs have far less variation in their possible vowels. This post presents form II, III, V and VI (fa33al, faa3al, tfa33al, tfaa3al). Many form IIs are causative, whilst forms V and VII are often passives of form II and form III respectively. The only variations on these four patterns are for defective verbs (i.e. verbs whose final root letter is a semivowel). Although hollow roots, assimilating roots etc can form verbs on these patterns, they appear with semivowels patterning as normal consonants: walla3, twalla3, shaawar, tshaawar etc.

You will probably have noticed the absence of form IV (2af3al) here. 2af3al is a rare form in Syrian. The majority of fuSHa 2af3als have fa33al equivalents (if they are normal causatives). Some common ones with non-causative meanings have been reanalysed as belonging to other classes: 2aslam ‘convert to Islam’ conjugates like a quadriliteral verb (y2aslem not yuslim); 2aaman ‘believe’ conjugates like a form III (y2aamen); 2a3lan ‘announce’ has been restructured into 3alan-yé3len. A small number of fuSHa form IVs do appear in colloquial with a droppable 2a-, but their conjugation is predictable (2aSarr ySerr ‘insist’).

Note that the participles of these forms are all produced with m(é)– attached to the present stem for active and the past stem for passive. Their maSdars are generally formed the same as fuSHa.

Fa33al; yfa33el

زبّط zabbaT
‘sort out’
  Active Participle Passive Participle
مزبط mzabbeT مزبط mzabbaT
MaSdar Noun of Instance
تزبيط tazbiiT N/A
Imperative:
زبط زبطي زبطو

zabbeT zabbTi zabbTu

Present Past
Ana zabbeT bzabbeT زبط بزبط zabbaT@t زبطت
Inte tzabbeT bétzabbeT تزبط بتزبط zabbaT@t زبطت
Inti tzabbTi bétzabbTi تزبطي بتزبطي zabbaTTi زبطتي
Huwwe yzabbeT bizabbeT يزبط بزبط zabbaT زبط
Hiyye tzabbeT bétzabbeT تزبط بتزبط zabbaTet زبطت
Né7na nzabbeT ménzabbeT نزبط منزبط zabbaTna زبطنا
Intu tzabbTu bétzabbTu تزبطو بتزبطو zabbaTTu زبطنا
Hénnen yzabbTu bizabbTu يزبطو بزبطو zabbaTu زبطو

 

Fa33a, yfa33i

These forms have a regular maSdar in téf3aaye (fuSHa equivalent taf3iya, cf تعبئة ta3bi2a).

عبّى3abba
‘fill’
  Active Participle Passive Participle
معبي m3abbi معبى m3abba

معباية m3abbaaye (f)

MaSdar Noun of Instance
تعباية té3baaye N/A
Imperative:
عبي عبي عبو

3abbi 3abbi 3abbu

Present Past
Ana 3abbi b3abbi عبي بعبي 3abbeet عبيت
Inte t3abbi bét3abbi تعبي بتعبي 3abbeet عبيت
Inti t3abbi bét3abbi تعبي بتعبي 3abbeeti عبيتي
Huwwe y3abbi bi3abbi يعبو بعبو 3abba عبى
Hiyye t3abbi bét3abbi تعبي بتعبي 3abbet عبت
Né7na n3abbi mén3abbi نعبي منعبي 3abbeena عبينا
Intu t3abbu bét3abbu تعبو بتعبو 3abbeetu عبيتو
Hénnen y3abbu bi3abbu يعبو بعبو 3abbu عبو

 

Faa3al, yfaa3el

جاكر jaakar
‘tease’
  Active Participle Passive Participle
مجاكر mjaaker مجاكر mjaakar
MaSdar Noun of Instance
مجاكرة mujaakara N/A
Imperative:
جاكر جاكري جاكرو

jaaker jaakri jaakru

Present Past
Ana jaaker bjaaker جاكر بجاكر jaakar@t جاكرت
Inte tjaaker bétjaaker تجاكر بتجاكر jaakar@t جاكرت
Inti tjaakri bétjaakri تجاكري بتجاكري jaakarti جاكرتي
Huwwe yjaaker bijaaker يجاكر بجاكر jaakar جاكر
Hiyye tjaaker bétjaaker تجاكر بتجاكر jaakaret جاكرت
Né7na njaaker ménjaaker نجاكر منجاكر jaakarna جاكرنا
Intu tjaakru bétjaakru تجاكرو بتجاكرو jaakartu جاكرتو
Hénnen yjaakru bijaakru يجاكرو بجاكرو jaakaru جاكرو

 

Faa3a yfaa3i

حاكى7aaka
‘talk to’
  Active Participle Passive Participle
محاكي m7aaki محاكى m7aaka
MaSdar Noun of Instance
N/A N/A
Imperative:
حاكي حاكي حاكو

7aaki 7aaki 7aaku

Present Past
Ana 7aaki b7aaki حاكي بحاكي 7aakeet حاكيت
Inte t7aaki bét7aaki تحاكي بتحاكي 7aakeet حاكيت
Inti t7aaki bét7aaki تحاكي بتحاكي 7aakeeti حاكيتي
Huwwe y7aaki bi7aaki يحاكي بحاكي 7aaka حاكى
Hiyye t7aaki bét7aaki تحاكي بتحاكي 7aaket حاكت
Né7na n7aaki mén7aaki نحاكي منحاكي 7aakeena حاكينا
Intu t7aaku bét7aaku تحاكو بتحاكو 7aakeetu حاكيتو
Hénnen y7aaku bi7aaku يحاكي بحاكو 7aaku حاكو

 

Tfa33al yétfa33al

تعلم t3allam
‘learn’
  Active Participle Passive Participle
متعلم mét3allem متعلم mét3allam
MaSdar Noun of Instance
تعلم ta3allum N/A
Imperative:
تعلم تعلمي تعلمو

t3allam t3allami t3allamu

Present Past
Ana ét3allam bét3allam اتعلم بتعلم t3allam@t تعلمت
Inte tét3allam btét3allam تتعلم بتتعلم t3allam@t تعلمت
Inti tét3allami btét3allami تتعلمي بتتعلمي t3allamti تعلمتي
Huwwe yét3allam byét3allam يتعلم بيتعلم t3allam تعلم
Hiyye tét3allam btét3allam تتعلم بتتعلم t3allamet تعلمت
Né7na nét3allam mnét3allam نتعلم منتعلم t3allamna تعلمنا
Intu tét3allamu btét3allamu تتعلمو بتتعلمو t3allamtu تعلمتو
Hénnen yét3allamu byét3allamu يتعلمو بيتعلمو t3allamu تعلمو

 

Tfa33a yétfa33a

تخبى tkhabba

‘hide, be hidden’

  Active Participle Passive Participle
متخبي métkhabbi N/A
MaSdar Noun of Instance
تخبي takhabbi N/A
Imperative:
تخبى تخبي تخبو

tkhabba tkhabbi tkhabbu

Present Past
Ana étkhabba bétkhabba اتخبى بتخبى tkhabbeet تخبيت
Inte tétkhabba btétkhabba تتخبى بتتخبى tkhabbeet تخبيت
Inti tétkhabbi btétkhabbi تتخبي بتتخبي tkhabbeeti تخبيتي
Huwwe yétkhabba byétkhabba يتخبى بيتخبى tkhabba تخبى
Hiyye tétkhabba btétkhabba تتخبى بتتخبى tkhabbet تخبت
Né7na nétkhabba mnétkhabba نتخبى منتخبى tkhabbeena تخبينا
Intu tétkhabbu btétkhabbu تتخبو بتتخبو tkhabbeetu تخبيتو
Hénnen yétkhabbu byétkhabbu يتخبو بيتخبو tkhabbu تخبو

 

Tfaa3al yétfaa3al

تجاوب tjaawab
‘respond’
  Active Participle Passive Participle
متجاوب métjaaweb N/A
MaSdar Noun of Instance
تجاوب tajaawub N/A
Imperative:
تجاوب تجاوبي تجاوبو

tjaawab tjaawabi tjaawabu

Present Past
Ana étjaawab bétjaawab اتجاوب بتجاوب tjaawab@t تجاوبت
Inte tétjaawab btétjaawab تتجاوب بتتجاوب tjaawab@t تجاوبت
Inti tétjaawabi btétjaawabi تتجاوبي بتتجاوبي tjaawabti تجاوبتي
Huwwe yétjaawab byétjaawab يتجاوب بيتجاوب tjaawab تجاوب
Hiyye tétjaawab btétjaawab تتجاوب بتتجاوب tjaawabet تجاوبت
Né7na nétjaawab mnétjaawab نتجاوب منتجاوب tjaawabna تجاوبنا
Intu tétjaawabu btétjaawabu تتجاوبو بتتجاوبو tjaawabtu تجاوبتو
Hénnen yétjaawabu byétjaawabu يتجاوبو بيتجاوبو tjaawabu تجاوبو

 

Tfaa3a yétfaa3a

تحاكى t7aaka
‘be spoken to’
  Active Participle Passive Participle
متحاكي mét7aaki N/A
MaSdar Noun of Instance
تحاكي ta7aaki N/A
Imperative:
تحاكى تحاكي تحاكو

t7aaka t7aaki t7aaku

Present Past
Ana ét7aaka bét7aaka اتحاكى بتحاكى t7aakeet تحاكيت
Inte tét7aaka btét7aaka تتحاكى بتتحاكى t7aakeet تحاكيت
Inti tét7aaki btét7aaki تتحاكي بتتحاكي t7aakeeti تحاكيتي
Huwwe yét7aaka byét7aaka يتحاكى بيتحاكى t7aaka تحاكى
Hiyye tét7aaka btét7aaka تتحاكى بتتحاكى t7aaket تحاكت
Né7na nét7aaka mnét7aaka نتحاكى منتحاكى t7aakeena تحاكينا
Intu tét7aaku btét7aaku تتحاكو بتتحاكو t7aakeetu تحاكيتو
Hénnen yét7aaku byét7aaku يتحاكو بيتحاكو t7aaku تحاكو

This ~bonus bonus bonus~ post is pretty self-explanatory, I think. All forms given here are Syrian – minor variations occur in other dialects.

This is not a comprehensive list of all of the possible conjugation patterns of Syrian. Every Arabic verb has a present vowelling (e.g. yéf3al) and a past vowelling (e.g. fé3el). Most verbs pair a present vowelling with a past vowelling according to predictable patterns – most fé3el verbs are yéf3al verbs in the present, for example, and most fa3al verbs are either yéf3el or yéf3ol verbs in the present. There are a not-insignificant number of verbs, however, which have unpredictable or unusual pairings of a present and a past vowelling. Only a dictionary or native speakers can provide this information. Nonetheless, any verb which has fa3al vowelling in the past will conjugate in the past like katab here. Likewise, any verb which has yéf3al vowelling in the present will conjugate like yét3ab here.

Although a lot of these patterns have obvious correspondences to fuSHa patterns and are probably related to them (fa3ila > fé3el), fuSHa verbs do not necessarily have the corresponding vowelling in colloquial. The colloquial form can only be learnt from a dictionary or from natives.

Fa3al fé3el; yéf3el yéf3ol yéf3al

These are the two ‘sound’ past vowellings and three ‘sound’ present vowellings. Probably the most common pattern is fa3alyéf3el or fa3al-yéf3ol, followed by fé3el-yéf3al. The only pattern in meaning you can generally observe  is that the majority of form I verbs of becoming are fé3el-yéf3al, as té3eb is (‘get tired’). However, far from all fé3el verbs are verbs of becoming, as you can see from the second example, mések.

كتب  katab
‘to write’
Active Participle Passive Participle
كاتب  kaateb مكتوب maktuub
MaSdar Noun of Instance
كتابة  kitaabe N/A
Imperative:
كتوب كتبي كتبو
ktoob ktébi ktébu
Present Past
Ana éktob béktob اكتب بكتب katab@t كتبت
Inte téktob btéktob تكتب بتكتب katab@t كتبت
Inti ték@tbi bték@tbi تكتبي بتكتبي katabti كتبتي
Huwwe yéktob byéktob يكتب بيكتب katab كتب
Hiyye téktob btéktob تكتب بتكتب katbet كتبت
Né7na néktob mnéktob نكتب منكتب katabna كتبنا
Intu ték@tbu bték@tbu تكتبو بتكتبو katabtu كتبتو
Hénnen yék@tbu byék@tbu يكتبو بيكتبو katabu كتبو

 

 

مسك mések
‘to hold, catch’
Active Participle Passive Participle
ماسك  maasek ممسوك  mamsuuk
MaSdar Noun of Instance
مسك  mas@k مسكة  maske
Imperative:
مسيك مسكي مسكو
mseek mséki mséku
Present Past
Ana émsek bémsek امسك بمسك msék@t مسكت
Inte témsek btémsek تمسك بتمسك msék@t مسكت
Inti tém@ski btém@ski تمسكي بتمسكي msékti مسكتي
Huwwe yémsek byémsek يمسك بيمسك mések مسك
Hiyye témsek btémsek تمسك بتمسك mésket مسكت
Né7na némsek mnémsek نمسك منمسك msékna مسكنا
Intu tém@sku btém@sku تمسكو بتمسكو mséktu مسكتو
Hénnen yém@sku byém@sku يمسكو بيمسكو mésku مسكو

 

تعب  té3eb
‘get tired’
Active Participle Passive Participle
تعبان  ta3baan
MaSdar Noun of Instance
تعب  ta3@b N/A
Imperative:
تعاب تعبي تعبو
t3aab t3abi t3abu
Present Past
Ana ét3ab bét3ab اتعب بتعب t3éb@t تعبت
Inte tét3ab btét3ab تتعب بتتعب t3éb@t تعبت
Inti tét3abi btét3abi تتعبي بتتعبي t3ébti تعبتي
Huwwe yét3ab byét3ab يتعب بيتعب t3éb@t تعب
Hiyye tét3ab btét3ab تتعب بتتعب té3bet تعبت
Né7na nét3ab mnét3ab نتعب منتعب t3ébna تعبنا
Intu tét3abu btét3abu تتعبو بتتعبو t3ébtu تعبتو
Hénnen yét3abu byét3abu يتعبو بيتعبو té3bu تعبو

 

a3al; yaa3ol

This pattern only exists with two ‘hamzated’ verbs, akal  ‘eat’ and akhad  ‘take’.

اخد akhad
‘to take’
Active Participle Passive Participle
آخد aakhed مأخود ma2khuud
MaSdar Noun of Instance
اخد akh@d اخدة akhde
Imperative:
خود خدي خدو khood khédi khédu
Present Past
Ana aakhod baakhod آخد باخد akhad@t اخدت
Inte taakhod btaakhod تاخد بتاخد akhad@t اخدت
Inti taakhdi btaakhdi تاخدي بتاخدي akhatti اخدتي
Huwwe yaakhod byaakhod ياخد بياخد akhad اخد
Hiyye taakhod btaakhod تاخد بتاخد akhdet اخدت
Né7na naakhod mnaakhod ناخد مناخد akhadna اخدنا
Intu taakhdu btaakhdu تاخدو بتاخدو akhattu اخدتو
Hénnen yaakhdu byaakhdu ياخدو بياخدو akhadu اخدو

 

wé3el wa3al; yuu3al yuu3el

These are the patterns used by weak-initial verbs (‘assimilating verbs’ I seem to remember they’re called in fuSHa teaching materials). They are variations on the sound forms and act generally predictably apart from the treatment of the first consonant in the present, so we’ll only include one example here, wéSel. Note that for some speakers, at least some of these verbs act like they do in fuSHa, dropping their initial consonant entirely – so you will hear for example téSel ‘you arrive’ as well as tuuSal.

وصل wéSel

‘arrive’

Active Participle Passive Participle
واصل وصلان waaSel waSlaan N/A
MaSdar Noun of Instance
وصول wSuul N/A
Imperative:
وصال وصلي وصلو
wSaal wSali wSalu
Present Past
Ana uuSel buuSel اوصل بوصل wSél@t وصلت
Inte tuuSel btuuSel توصل بتوصل wSél@t وصلت
Inti tuuSli btuuSli توصلي بتوصلي wSélti وصلتي
Huwwe yuuSel byuuSel يوصل بيوصل wéSel وصل
Hiyye tuuSel btuuSel توصل بتوصل wéSlet وصلنا
Né7na nuuSel mnuuSel نوصل منوصل wSélna وصلنا
Intu tuuSel btuuSli توصلو بتوصلو wSéltu وصلتو
Hénnen yuuSlu byuuSlu يوصلو بيوصلو wéSlu وصلو

 

faal (fél@t); yfiil yfuul yfaal

These are the so-called hollow verbs with a semivowel (w, y) as their middle root letter. There is only one possible past vowelling in Syrian – down from one in fuSHa – because of the merger of i u to é in stressed syllables, but there are three possible present vowellings. The rarest, as in fuSHa, is yfaal. The other two are both quite common. Note the regularised passive participle.

جاب  jaab
‘to bring’
Active Participle Passive Participle
جايب  jaayeb مجيوب  majyuub
MaSdar Noun of Instance
N/A N/A
Imperative:
جيب جيبي جيبو
jiib jiibi jiibu
Present Past
Ana jiib bjiib جيب بجيب jéb@t جبت
Inte tjiib bétjiib تجيب بتجيب jéb@t جبت
Inti tjiibi bétjiibi تجيبي بتجيبي jébti جبتي
Huwwe yjiib bijiib يجيب بجيب jaab جاب
Hiyye tjiib bétjiib تجيب بتجيب jaabet جابت
Né7na njiib ménjiib نجيب منجيب jébna جبنا
Intu tjiibu bétjiibu تجيبو بتجيبو jébtu جبتو
Hénnen yjiibu bijiibu يجيبو بجيبو jaabu جابو

 

داق  daa2

‘to taste’

Active Participle Passive Participle
دايق  daaye2 مديوق  madyuu2
MaSdar Noun of Instance
دوق  doo2 N/A
Imperative:
دوق دوقي دوقو
duu2 duu2i duu2u
Present Past
Ana duu2 bduu2 دوق بدوق dé2@t دقت
Inte tduu2 bétduu2 تدوق بتدوق dé2@t دقت
Inti tduu2i bétduu2i تدوقي بتدوقي dé2ti دقتي
Huwwe yduu2 biduu2 يدوق بدوق daa2 داق
Hiyye tduu2 bétduu2 تدوق بتدوق daa2et داقت
Né7na nduu2 ménduu2 ندوق مندوق dé2na دقنا
Intu tduu2u bétduu2u تدوقو بتدوقو dé2tu دقتو
Hénnen yduu2u biduu2u يدوقو بدوقو daa2u داقو

 

 

نام  naam

‘to sleep’

Active Participle Passive Participle
نايم  naayem N/A
MaSdar Noun of Instance
نوم  noom نومة  noome
Imperative:
نام نامي نامو
naam naami naamu
Present Past
Ana naam bnaam نام بنام ném@t نمت
Inte tnaam bétnaam تنام بتنام ném@t نمت
Inti tnaami bétnaami تنامي بتنامي némti نمتي
Huwwe ynaam binaam ينام بنام naam نام
Hiyye tnaam bétnaam تنام بتنام naamet نامت
Né7na nnaam bénnaam ننام مننام némna نمنا
Intu tnaamu bétnaamu تنامو بتنامو némtu نمتو
Hénnen ynaamu binaamu ينامو بنامو naamu نامو

 

fa3a fé3i; yéf3i yéf3a

These are the ‘defective verbs’ with a semivowel as their final consonant. They generally pattern, like their sound verb equivalents, as fa3a-yéf3i and fé3i-yéf3a, although there are exceptions. Many of the second class are verbs of becoming. The other possible vowelling in fuSHa, yaf3u, does not typically appear in 3aammiyye except in classicisms like yabdu ‘it seems’. A few verbs from fuSHa with this vowelling also exist in 3aammiyye as yéf3i verbs, e.g. سطى saTa (yéSTi) ‘rob’.

طفى Tafa

‘turn off’

Active Participle Passive Participle
طافي Taafi مطفي méTfi
MaSdar Noun of Instance
طفي Tafy N/A
Imperative:
اطفي اطفي اطفو

éTfi éTfi éTfu

Present Past
Ana éTfi béTfi اطفي بطفي Tafeet طفيت
Inte téTfi btéTfi تطفي بتطفي Tafeet طفيت
Inti téTfi btéTfi تطفي بتطفي Tafeeti طفيتي
Huwwe yéTfi يطفي بيطفي Tafa طفى
Hiyye téTfi btéTfi تطفي بتطفي Tafet طفت
Né7na néTfi mnéTfi نطفي منطفي Tafeena طفينا
Intu téTfu btéTfu تطفو بتطفو Tafeetu طفيتو
Hénnen yéTfu byéTfu يطفو بيطفو Tafu طفو

 

 

نسي nési

‘forget’

Active Participle Passive Participle
نسيان nésyaan منسي ménsi
MaSdar Noun of Instance
نسي nasy N/A
Imperative:
انسى انسي انسو

énsa énsi énsu

Present Past
Ana énsa bénsa انسى بنسى nsiit نسيت
Inte ténsa bténsa تنسى بتنسى nsiit نسيت
Inti ténsi bténsi تنسي بنتسي nsiiti نسيتي
Huwwe yénsa byénsa ينسى بينسى nési نسي
Hiyye ténsa bténsa تنسى بتنسى nésyet نسيت
Né7na nénsa mnénsa ننسى مننسى nsiina نسينا
Intu ténsu bténsu تنسو بتنسو nsiitu نسيتو
Hénnen yénsu byénsu ينسو بينسو nésyu نسيو

 

Fa33; yfé33

There is only one common pattern for doubled verbs, fa33-yfé33, although there may be some with yfa33. Doubled verbs are the class which differ most radically from fuSHa in their conjugation. Their active participles are regularised (daa2e2), and their past conjugation has been radically remodelled along the lines of weak verbs. Instead of splitting the consonants apart, in colloquial -ee- is inserted between the end of the stem and the suffix.

 

دق da22

‘hit, tap’

Active Participle Passive Participle
داقق daa2e2 مدقوق mad2uu2
MaSdar Noun of Instance
دق da22 دقة da22a
Imperative:
دق دقي دقو
dé22 dé22i dé22u
Present Past
Ana dé22 bdé22 دق بدق da22eet دقيت
Inte tdé22 bétdé22 تدق بتدق da22eet دقيت
Inti tdé22i bétde22i تدقي بتدقي da22eeti دقيتي
Huwwe ydé22 bidé22 يدق بدق da22 دق
Hiyye tdé22 bétdé22 تدق بتدق da22et دقت
Né7na ndé22 méndé22 ندق مندق da22eena دقينا
Intu tdé22u bétdé22u تدقو بتدقو da22eetu دقيتو
Hénnen ydé22 ydé22u يدقو بدقو da22u دقو

Counting irregular verbs in any language is a kind of arbitrary process, since ‘irregular’ often means ‘not conjugating according to the most common patterns’ (even though a pattern may exist shared by large numbers of ‘irregular verbs’). In studies on Arabic the term very rarely appears because the tendency is to categorise all verbs which conjugate according to a pattern that appears with multiple verbs as regular. You can do this in colloquial, too, since the vast majority of verbs conjugate in a predictable way according to a pattern shared by all other verbs of a similar shape.

Nonetheless, there are a few strange outliers/rare patterns that you need to know. These include some of the most common verbs, so for one of our ~bonus posts~ here are some handy conjugation tables:

éja ‘to come’

اجى  éja
‘to come’

Active Participle Passive Participle
جاية jaaye, جايين jaayiin N/A
MaSdar Noun of Instance
N/A جيّة jayye
Imperative:
تعال تعالي تعالو ta3aal ta3aali ta3aalu
Present Past
Ana éji béji ايجي بيجي jiit éjiit جيت اجيت
Inte téji btéji تيجي بتيجي jiit éjiit جيت اجيت
Inti téji btéji تيجي بتيجي jiiti éjiiti جيتي اجيتي
Huwwe yéji byéji ييجي بيجي éja اجى
Hiyye téji btéji تيجي بتيجي éjet اجت
Né7na néji mnéji نيجي منيجي jiina éjiina جينا اجينا
Intu téju btéju تيجو بتيجو jiitu éjiitu جيتو اجيتو
Hénnen yéju béju ييجو بيجو éju اجو

 

éja is the unholy result of the loss of the hamza at the end of جاء. In Jor/Pal, the present tense has a long aa instead of é (baaji etc) and the prefixed form of the past has a short a instead of é- (ajiit etc). There is no difference in meaning between the past forms with prefixes and the ones without them. As should be obvious by now, the forms with the b- prefix are present and the forms without it are subjunctive.

اجى can take a direct object: اجاني ‘it came to me’.

جاية is used for both masculine and feminine in Syrian, although in Jor/Pal the distinction may be maintained (or jaay may be used for both). جاية takes suffixes in a slightly irregular way, attaching them to the form jaayiit- (جاييتك هلق jaayiitak halla2 ‘I’m coming to you now’).

اجى has no regular imperative, instead using the unrelated form ta3aal or its variant ta3a, ta3i, ta3u.

3aTa ‘give’

 

عطى 3aTa

‘give’

  Active Participle Passive Participle
عاطي‪ 3aaTi معطي mé3Ti
MaSdar Noun of Instance
عطي‪ 3aTi N/A
Imperative:
عطي عطي عطو

3aTi 3aTi 3aTu

Present Past
Ana a3Ti ba3Ti اعطي بعطي 3aTeet عطيت
Inte ta3Ti bta3Ti تعطي بتعطي 3aTeet عطيت
Inti ta3Ti bta3Ti تعطي بتعطي 3aTeeti عطيتي
Huwwe ya3Ti bya3Ti يعطي بيعطي 3aTa عطى
Hiyye ta3Ti bta3Ti تعطي بتعطي 3aTet عطت
Né7na na3Ti mna3Ti نعطي منعطي 3aTeena عطينا
Intu ta3Tu bta3Tu تعطو بتعطو 3aTeetu عطيتو
Hénnen ya3Tu bya3Tu يعطو بيعطو 3aTu عطو

 

3aTa conjugates straightforwardly in the past, but has an irregular imperative (3aTi). It also irregularly has /a/ in its present prefixes, a feature it shares with 3émel (‘to do’, otherwise regular) and 3éref (‘to know’, otherwise regular).

akhad ‘to take’

اخد akhad
‘to take’
Active Participle Passive Participle
آخد aakhed مأخود ma2khuud
MaSdar Noun of Instance
اخد akh@d اخدة akhde
Imperative:
خود خدي خدو khood khédi khédu
Present Past
Ana aakhod baakhod آخد باخد akhad@t اخدت
Inte taakhod btaakhod تاخد بتاخد akhad@t اخدت
Inti taakhdi btaakhdi تاخدي بتاخدي akhatti اخدتي
Huwwe yaakhod byaakhod ياخد بياخد akhad اخد
Hiyye taakhod btaakhod تاخد بتاخد akhdet اخدت
Né7na naakhod mnaakhod ناخد مناخد akhadna اخدنا
Intu taakhdu btaakhdu تاخدو بتاخدو akhattu اخدتو
Hénnen yaakhdu byaakhdu ياخدو بياخدو akhadu اخدو

 

Not strictly irregular, akhad conjugates exactly like akal, the only other hamza-initial form I verb in common use. In its past tense forms it conjugates like a regular fa3al verb. In the present, however, the expected forms *é2khod etc do not exist. Instead the hamza drops and the prefix takes a long aa.

The imperative has a long vowel in the masculine singular (khood) which is shortened and neutralised to é when suffixes are added. This applies both to the person/number suffixes -i/u (khédi khédu) and to pronoun suffixes (khédo ‘take it’).

In Jor/Pal, the prefix vowel is long oo instead (bookhod, btookhod for example), and the participle is irregular, formed with a m standing in for the hamza (maakhed).

 

la2a ‘find’

لقى la2a
‘to find’

Active Participle Passive Participle
ملاقي mlaa2i N/A
MaSdar Noun of Instance
N/A N/A
Imperative:
لاقي لاقي لاقو laa2i laa2i laa2u
Present Past
Ana laa2i blaa2i لاقي بلاقي la2eet لقيت
Inte tlaa2i bétlaa2i تلاقي بتلاقي la2eet لقيت
Inti tlaa2i bétlaa2i تلاقي بتلاقي la2eeti لقيتي
Huwwe ylaa2i bilaa2i يلاقي بلاقي la2a لقى
Hiyye tlaa2i bétlaa2i تلاقي بتلاقي la2et لقت
Né7na nlaa2i ménlaa2i نلاقي منلاقي la2eena لقينا
Intu tlaa2u bétlaa2u تلاقو بتلاقو la2eetu لقيتو
Hénnen ylaa2u bilaa2u يلاقو بلاقو la2u لقو

 

la2a is basically regular in its conjugation, but its present tense and active participle are formed as if they were form III (faa3al) verbs whilst its past is formed as if it was a form I verb (fa3al).

The passive equivalent of لقى is التقى lta2a ‘be found’.

stanna ‘to wait’

استنى stanna
‘to wait’

Active Participle Passive Participle
مستني méstanni N/A
MaSdar Noun of Instance
N/A N/A
Imperative:
استنى استني استنو stanna stanni stannu
Present Past
Ana éstanna béstanna استنى بستنى stanneet استنيت
Inte téstanna btéstanna تسنتى بتستنى stanneet استنيت
Inti téstanni btéstanni تسنتي بتستني stanneeti استنيتي
Huwwe yéstanna byéstanna يستنى بيستنى stanna استنى
Hiyye téstanna btéstanna تسنتى بتستنى stannet استنت
Né7na néstanna mnéstanna نستنى منستنى stanneena استنينا
Intu téstannu btéstannu تستنو بتستنو stanneetu استنيتو
Hénnen yéstannu byéstannu يستنو بيستنو stannu استنو

 

استنى stanna conjugates relatively straightforwardly but has a strange shape that does not look like any other verb. It can take a direct object (استناني stannaani ‘wait for me’).

 

This ~bonus post~ is a list of the most commonly used conjunctions in Shami. Some of them are probably not by any technical definition conjunctions (and some of them have e.g. prepositional uses that I’ve included here for completeness’s sake), so if you prefer the term ‘linking words’ you can go with that too.

احسن ما a7san ma

Means ‘in case’ or more precisely ‘lest’ (but obviously English stylistic concerns prevent us from translating it that way):

ما تضحك على حدا احسن ما تصير متلو maa téD7ak 3ala 7ada a7san ma tSiir métlo – don’t laugh at/trick anyone lest you become like them

This is a fixed meaning of a7san ma. But like other superlatives, a7san can also combine with ma in the meaning of ‘the best that’:

احسن ما يمكن a7san ma yémken – as good as possible, the best possible

For some Syrian speakers it can also be used in a way synonymous with احسن من انو ‘better than…’ with a following sentence.

أصبح aSba7

Syrian. Means ‘in that case’, ‘then’ (and NOT ‘became’ as in fuSHa):

أصبح بكرا بشوفك aSba7 bukra bshuufak – then I’ll see you tomorrow

او aw

‘Or’, as in fuSHa. However in colloquial aw almost never coordinates nouns, only sentences:

او فينك تحكي معها انت اذا بدك aw fiinak té7ki ma3ha inte éza béddak – or you can talk to her yourself if you want

بعدين ba3deen

Literally ‘afterwards’ or ‘later’ and often used in this meaning:

بعدين بتعرف ba3deen @bta3ref – I’ll tell you know [= you’ll find out later]

طب ممكن تطلع من قبرك تاخدني بحضنك وترجع بعدين؟ Tabb mémken téTla3 mén 2abrak taakhédni b-7aDnak w-térja3 ba3deen? – OK, can you please come back from the grave and just hug me and go back later? 

Also commonly expresses ‘then’, ‘in that case’, and ‘anyway’:

بعدين انا شو ذنبي؟ ba3deen 2ana shu zanbi? – in any case, what have I done? [= what’s my sin?]

وبعدين؟ w-ba3deen? – yeah, and what then? / so what?

بقى ba2a

Syr/Leb. Generally means ‘then, in that case’:

بقى شو بدنا نعمل؟ ba2a shu béddna na3mel – so, what are we going to do?

It can also be attached after imperatives and similar expressions. In this context it has no direct English translation but adds force to the imperative (maybe it’s equivalent to American ‘already’?):

لك خلصني بقى lak khalleSni ba2a – stop it already! [= save me already]

بس bass

The normal word for ‘but’ or ‘just’, much more common than classicising لكن:

بس ما بحبو bass maa b7ébbo! – ‘but I don’t love him!’

هدول بس hadool bass – ‘just these’

It also commonly mean ‘as soon as’, ‘when’. In this case it is usually followed by a subjunctive or a past:

امي بس تمرض ما بتركها émmi bass témroD ma bétrékha – when my mother gets ill I don’t abandon her

بس بدك تيجي لعندي اتصل فيني bass béddak tiiji la-3éndi ttaSel fiini – when you want to come here tell me

ف fa-

Used commonly for ‘so’. Can trail off at the end like English ‘so…’:

بعدين ما شفتو, فـــــ ba3deen maa shéfto, faaaaaaa – anyway, I didn’t see him, so…

كإنو ka2énno

Means ‘as if’:

كإنو مبارح تركنا ka2énno mbaare7 tarakna – [it’s] as if we broke up yesterday

Like la2énno it can be shifted to the end of the sentence:

ما حنشوفو اليوم كإنو maa 7a-nshuufo élyoom ka2énno – seems like we’re not going to see him today

It can be used on its own or with a sentence to mean something like ‘looks like…’, ‘looks that way’.

اي كإنو ee ka2énno – yeah, it looks that way

لا لا laa… laa

The structure laa… laa or لا ولا laa.. wala means ‘neither… nor’:

لا شاي ولا قهوة laa shaay wala 2ahwe – neither tea nor coffee

لا رحت ولا حروح laa ré7@t wala 7aruu7 – I didn’t go, nor will I

لإنو la2énn(o)

The equivalent to fuSHa li2anna and the normal word for ‘because’ in Syrian. Unlike in fuSHa it can be shifted to the end of the sentence as a kind of afterthought:

كل هاد لإنو قللا انو شعرا مو مظبط kéll haad la2énno 2élla énno sha3ra muu mZabbaT – all that because he told her her hair didn’t look good!

ما رح شوفو اليوم لإنو maa ra7 shuufo lyoom la2enno – because I’m not going to see him today

لـ, لحتى la-, la7atta

Both of these mean ‘until’ and ‘in order to’. The latter is distinctively Syrian:

نستنى لييجي néstanna la-yéji – let’s wait ’til he comes back

نكشت البيت لحتى جبتها nakasht élbeet la7atta jébta! – I had to turn the house upside down to get it [= I rifled through the house until I got it]

ليش لحتى لحكي معو؟ leesh la7atta é7ki ma3o? – why should I speak to him?

La- is also sometimes affixed to first person subjunctives meaning ‘let’s’ or ‘let me’:

لشوف واحد تاني lashuuf waa7ed taani – let’s speak to [= see] someone else

ما ma

On its own, ma is used to link together two sentences with a kind of causal relationship (this should not be mistaken for the occasional use of maa, with a long vowel, in various negative meanings). It is always followed by a noun or a pronoun:

ناميين فوق. ما هنن ما نامو من امبارح naaymiin foo2 – ma hénnen maa naamu mén @mbaare7 – they’re asleep upstairs. I mean, they haven’t slept since yesterday

Here ma adds the nuance that the listener and the speaker both understand the obvious intuitive causal connection between what was said before and the sentence prefixed with ma. The same applies in the following sentence although here it can be translated with ‘but’:

مو صايم؟ ما الدنيا رمضان muu Saayem? ma éddénye ramaDaan – you’re not fasting? but it’s Ramadan!

ما عاد maa3aad, مابقى maaba2a

‘No longer’, ‘not anymore’. Clearly etymologically ‘he did not return’ and ‘he did not remain’. These typically trigger subjunctive. For some people they conjugate, especially with third person feminine, though they are often invariable:

ماعاد اعرف شو بدي احكي maa3aad a3ref shu béddi é7ki – I don’t know what to say anymore/I no longer know what to say

They can also mean ‘never again’, including in negative imperatives:

ما بقى تحكي معي maaba2a té7ki ma3i – never talk to me again/stop talking to him’

معقول ما بقى نرجع؟ ma32uul maaba2a nérja3? – can it be we’ll never go back? [= is it reasonable we’ll no longer return?]

 

مادام maadaam 

‘Since’ or ‘while’. Takes pronoun suffixes:

مبسوط مدامك معي موجود mabsuuT maadaamak ma3i mawjuud – I’m happy as long as you’re with me

مادامك بالبيت maadaamak bilbeet – since you’re at home

مشان, منشان, عشان méshaan ménshaan 3ashaan

Méshaan, ménshaan, 3ashaan all mean ‘in order to’:

منشان تروح معو ménshaan @truu7 ma3o – so you (can) go with him

They are also prepositions which can be used with nouns to mean ‘because of’ or ‘for the benefit of’:

مشان هيك méshaan heek – for that reason

منشان الله ménshaan aLLah – for God’s sake

In Jor/Pal (like Egyptian) these words can be used in the sense of ‘because’ (i.e. equivalent to لإنو). This is not found in Syria.

كرمال kurmaal/kérmaal

Probably originally derived from the fuSHa kurma(tan) la- ‘in X’s honour’ this is a less common alternative to ménshaan meaning ‘in order to’, ‘for the sake of’, ‘because of’ etc. Like ménshaan it is mainly a preposition but is worth mentioning here because like ménshaan it can be used with subjunctive verbs to mean ‘in order to’.

شي, شي shi… shi

This means approximately ‘sometimes like… and sometimes…’ or ‘some… and some…’ Effectively it expresses two exclusive, alternative, but related situations:

عندون اعلى مؤهلات, شي عندو شهادة, شي عندو دكتوراه 3éndon a3la mu2ahhilaat, shi 3éndo shihaade, shi 3éndo doktuuraa… they had the highest qualifications – some of them have degrees, some of them doctorates…

هلق كتير مهم وسائل التواصل الاجتماعي لانو كل واحد صار بمكان شي بالشام شي بحلب halla2 ktiir mohumm wasaa2el éttawaaSul él2ijtimaa3i la2énno kéll waa7ed Saar b-makaan, shi b-éshshaam, shi b-7alab… – nowadays social media is very important because everybody’s in a different place, some in Damascus, some in Aleppo…

ماني عايش هون طول حياتي, انا شي باسطنبول, شي بالشام maani 3aayesh hoon Tool 7ayaati. ana shi b-IsTanbuul shi bi-shshaam – I haven’t lived here all my life – sometimes in Istanbul, sometimes in Damascus

و w-

Used as ‘and’ to coordinate sentences, nouns etc:

خبز وملح khébz w-mél@7 – bread and salt

As in fuSHa, it can be used to form 7aal sentences with present tense sentences, including verbs and participles. In this case it must be followed by a noun:

بغني وانا سايق bghanni w-2ana saaye2  – I sing when I’m driving

وهو ماشي سمع صوت w-huwwe maashi séme3 Soot – as he was walking along he heard a sound

انا وصغير كنت اقرى كتير ana w-@zghiir ként é2ra ktiir – when I was young I used to read a lot

It can also be used with all tenses in a very specific meaning of ‘when’, ‘given that’, when the first clause is a a rhetorical question:

كيف بدي ادفع عنك وراتبي خلص من يومين؟ kiif béddi édfa3 3annak w-raatbi khéleS mén yoomeen? – how am I supposed to pay for you when I used up my salary [= my salary finished] two days ago?

ولا wélla, willa

‘Or’. Used to offer two contradictory options:

بدك شاي ولا قهوة؟ béddak shaay wélla 2ahwe? – do you want tea or coffee?

Also used to mean ‘or else’, sometimes triggering the past:

سكوت ولا بضربك skoot wélla beD@rbak – shut up or [else] I’ll hit you

يا yaa, يإما ya2émma

Yaa/ya2émma means ‘or’, and offers two contradictory options. It is most commonly used in the structure يا… يا yaa… yaa ‘either… or’:

يا بتروح معي, يا بتضل هون yaa bétruu7 ma3i, yaa bétDéll hoon – either you go with me or you stay here

 

Structures with إنو

بما انو bima 2énno ‘since, given that’

بسبب إنو bésabab énno ‘because’

مع إنو ma3 énno ‘although’

لدرجة انو la-darjet énno ‘to the extent that’

Prepositions with -ma

A number of prepositions can be transformed into conjunctions by adding -ma. Many of these commonly trigger the subjunctive. Some can take pronoun suffixes, producing a form identical to the maan- or maal- negative but without a negative meaning:

متل مانك شايف mét@l maanak shaayef ‘as you see’

بعد ما ba3@d ma ‘after’

بعد ما تقرأ عن الله ba3@d ma té2ra 3an aLLah – after you read about God

قبل ما ‪2ab@l ma ‘before’

This is usually followed by a subjunctive, even when the meaning is past, e.g. قبل ما يوصل 2ab@l ma yuuSal ‘before he arrived/arrives’

لبين ما labeen ma ‘until’ or ‘by the time’

لبين ما ييجي منكون خلصنا labeen ma yiiji ménkuun khallaSna – by the time he gets here we’ll be finished

 لحد ما la7add ma ‘until’

لحد ما تموت من الضحك la7add ma tmuut mn éDDa7@k – until you die of laughing

حسب ما ‪7asab ma ‘according to how’, ‘depending on’, ‘as’

بس حسب ما شفت bass 7asab ma shéf@t – but as far as I know [= as I’ve seen]

فوق ما foo2 ma ‘on top of’

فوق ماني كذاب foo2 maani kazzaab – on top of me being a liar

متل ما mét@l ma ‘like, as’ (in Jor/Pal زي ما zayy ma)

متل ما بدك mét@l ma béddak – as you like

متل مانك عرفان mét@l maanak 3arfaan – as you know

زي ما قلت zayy ma 2ult – as I said

بلا ما bala ma, بدون ما biduun ma, من دون ما mén duun ma ‘without’

مسموح يأرغل بس بلا ما يطلع دخان بالغرفة masmuu7 y2argel bass bala ma yéTla3 dékhkhaan bé-lghérfe – he’s allowed to smoke shisha but [only] without smoke filling up the room

واحدة نزلتو بالصفحة من دون ما تتأكد من مصدر الخبر waa7de nazzaléto béSSéf7a mén duun ma tét2akkad mén maSdar élkhabar – someone uploaded it to the page without making sure of its source

 

بدال ما badaal ma, عواض ما ‪3awaaD ma ‘instead of’

بدال ما تعمل مظاهرات وتوقف بالشوارع … روح وقف ع باب دار النائب الي انتخبته وخليه يمثلك badaal ma ta3mel muZaaharaat w-@twa22ef bé-shshaare3… ruu7 wa22ef 3a baab daar énnaa2eb élli ntakhabto w khallii ymasslak – instead of demonstrating and standing around in the street, go and stand at the door of the MP you elected and make him represent you

الا ما élla ma ‘certainly’, ‘it is always the case that’

المجرم الا ما يرجع ع مسرح الجريمة élmujrem élla ma yérja3 3a masra7 éljariime – the criminal always returns to the scene of the crime

طول ما Tool ma ‘as long as, while’

طول مانك عم تتنفس عندك فرصة لواقع افضل Tool maanak 3am tétnaffas 3éndak férSa la-waaqe3 afDal – as long as you’re breathing you have the opportunity for a better reality

لما lamma ‘when’

لما شفتو استغربت lamma shéfto staghrab@t – when I saw him I was surprised

 

ياما yaama ‘how much!’

ياما في ناس هيك yaama fii naas heek – there are so many people like that

Nouns with -ma

We’ve seen a couple of these in the relative clauses post:

مكان ما makaan ma, محل ما ma7all ma, مطرح ما maTra7 ma, قرنة ما ‪2érnet ma ‘(in, from etc) the place that’

لحظة ما la7Zet ma ‘the moment that’

مجرد ما mjarrad ma ‘as soon as’, ‘the very moment that’

وقت ما wa2@t ma ‘(at) the time when’, ‘when’

ساعة ما saa2et ma ‘(at) the time when’, ‘when’

يوم ما yoom ma ‘(on) the day when’, ‘when’

Question words with -ma

These are typically combined with a past form or a subjunctive:

ايمتى ما eemta ma, eemat ma ‘whenever’

كنا ايمتى ما فتحنا الراديو الصبح نلاقيهن حاطين فيروز عكل القنوات kénna eemta ma fata7na rraadyo éSSéb@7 nlaa2iyyon 7aaTTiin feeruuz 3a-kéll élqanawaat – whenever we turned on the radio in the morning we’d find they’d put Feyrouz on all the channels

وين ما ween ma ‘wherever’

الله يسعد صباحكن وين ما كنتوا يا سوريين  aLLa yis3ed Sabaa7kon ween ma kéntu tkuunu yaa suuriyyiin – God make your morning happy wherever you might be, o Syrians!

شو ما shu ma ايش ما eesh ma ‘whatever’

شو ما صار عليكي انا حدك موجود  shu ma Saar 3aleeki 2ana 7addek mawjuud – whatever happens to you, I’ll be there

قد ما ‪2add ma ‘however much’, ‘as much as’, ‘as long as’

قد ما احكي عن ريال مدريد ما بوفي حقك 2add ma é7ki 3an reyaal madriid maa bwaffi 7aqqak – however much I talk about RM I won’t be doing you justice

شلون ما shloon ma كيف ما kiif ma ‘however’

This ~bonus post~ is for common prepositions that are (etymologically) nouns. This is a much more distinct category in fuSHa than it is in 3aammiyye, but to keep the lists manageably short I decided to do it this way.

قدام 2éddaam

Literally ‘in front of’:

قدام البيت ‭2éddaam élbeet – in front of the house

لا تفضحونا قدام الاجانب laa téfDa7uuna 2éddaam él2ajaaneb – don’t make us look bad in front of the foreigners!

Can be used with la- indicating motion:

لقدام شوي la2éddaam shwayy – a bit further on (keep going)

Can be used independently meaning approximately ‘in front’:

انا قاعد قدام وهي قاعدة ورا ana 2aa3ed 2éddaam w-hiyye 2aa3de wara – I’m sitting in the front and she’s sitting in the back [of a car]

قد ‭2add

2add essentially means ‘the size of’ or ‘the extent of’, and has a number of idiomatic uses:

مين بحبك قدي؟ miin bi7ébbak 2addi? – who loves you as much as me?

ما في كرسي قدي maa fii kérsi 2addi – there’s no chair big enough for me

انت قدها؟ énte 2addha? – are you up to the task?

انا قد كلامي ana 2add kalaami – I keep my word

بحبك قد الدنيا b7ébbak 2add éddinye – I love you to the moon and back [= as much as the world]

على قد or ع قد has its own idiomatic uses:

الكراسي على قدنا؟  élkaraasi 3ala 2addna – there are enough chairs for us [the chairs are on our number]

احلامنا على قدنا a7laamna 3ala 2addna – our dreams are appropriate to our standing

بيت صغير على قدي وقدك beet @zghiir 3ala 2addi w-2addek – a little house just right for me and you

قبل ‭2ab@l ‘before’

قبل الحرب ‭2abl él7arb – before the war

Can be used independently in the meaning ‘the time before’:

كل هادا كان قبل kéll haada kaan 2ab@l – all that was before

برا barra

برا البيت barra lbeet – outside the house

barra has an iDaafe form, barraat, which is used with pronouns and optionally with nouns:

برات البيت barraat élbeet – not at home [= outside the house]

It can be used with la- indicating motion:

طلاع لبرا! Tlaa3 la-barra! – get out!

It can be used independently meaning ‘outside’:

القعدة احلى برا él2a3de 2a7la barra – the atmosphere’s nicer outside [= the sitting]

بقلب b2alb ‘inside’

Generally used for confined spaces:

بقلب الظرف b2alb éZZar@f – in the envelope

Literally ‘in the heart of’, and sometimes can translate that way in English too:

نحنا بقلب السفارة هلق né7na b2alb éssafaara halla2 – we’re in the heart of the embassy now! (or perhaps, ‘we’re well inside the embassy!’)

بعد ba3@d ‘after’

بعد الحادث ba3d él7aades – after the accident

بين been ‘among, between’

بين البيوت been lébyuut – among the houses, between the houses

When pronouns are added, been usually takes the form beenaat:

ولله يا معلم انا بيناتون waLLa yaa m3allem 2ana beenaaton – and I swear, boss, I’m one of them! [= among them]

 

بنص bnéSS ‘in the middle of’

Perhaps not really worth analysing as a preposition per se since néSS in itself means ‘middle’ (ركز بالنص rakkez bé-nnéSS ‘concentrate on the middle’) but worth considering for completeness’ sake:

بنص الطريق bnéSS éTTarii2 – in the middle of the road

Has an independent form بالنص bé-nnéSS ‘in the middle’:

انا بالنص ana bé-nnéSS – I’m [the one] in the middle (of the picture)

داير ‭daayer

Used in the sense of ‘around the border of’ and also ‘around’ a defined mass (a pole, tree etc):

بنو حيط داير لجنينة banu 7eeT daayer léjneene – they built a wall around the garden

ربطو داير حوالي الشجرة rabaTu 7ab@l daayer shshajara – they tied a rope around the tree

رح تشوف اضاءة مشعشعة ع داير مندارك ليل نهار ra7 @tshuuf 2iDaa2a msha3@sh3a 3a-daayer méndaarak leel @nhaar – you’ll see shining lights all around you day and night

These two forms of ‘around’ are used markedly less than their English equivalent however since the sense is often included in the meaning of specific verbs:

لف الدوار léff édduwaar – go around the roundabout

لفو الحبل على رقبتو laffu l7abel 3ala ra2ebto – they put the rope around his neck

ضد Dédd ‘against’

انا اكيد ضد هالفكرة ana akiid Dédd hal-fukra – of course, I’m against this idea

فوق foo2 ‘above’

Usually means above, but can also mean ‘up in’ or ‘on top of’:

اللي ساكن فوقنا élli saaken foo2na – the guy living above us

الطناجر معلقة فوق الشجرة éTTanaajer m3alla2a foo2 éshshajara – the pots are hanging up in the tree

لا تستحي حط المعلقة فوق السكر laa tésté7i 7étt élma3la2a foo2 éssékkar – don’t worry, leave the spoon in the sugar [after using it to put sugar in your tea]

Can be used with la- to indicate motion:

طلع لفوق Talle3 la-foo2 – look up

Can be used independently, usually meaning ‘upstairs’ (or ‘further up’, ‘above’ etc depending on context):

الاستاذ فوق él2éstaaz foo2 – the gentleman is upstairs

 

 

جنب janb, jamb ‘next to’

تعال عود جنبي ta3aal 3ood jambi – come and sit next to me

جوا juwwa ‘inside’

جوا البيت juwwa lbeet – inside the house

juwwa has an iDaafe form, juwwaat, which is used with pronouns and optionally with nouns:

جوات البلد juwwaat élbalad – inside the country

جواتو juwwaato – inside it

Can be used with la- indicating motion:

فوت لجوا fuut la-juwwa – go inwards, further in

Can be used independently meaning ‘inside’:

مرتي جوا marti juwwa – my wife’s inside

مواجه, مواجيه mwaajeh, mwaajiih ‘opposite’

These are synonymous variants and mean ‘opposite’:

ساكن مواجيه بيتون بنفس الحارة saaken mwaajiih beeton bnafs él7aara – he lived opposite their house in the same neighbourhood

تحت ta7@t

Usually means ‘below’ or ‘underneath’:

تحت الطاولة ta7t éTTaawle – under the table

Can be used with la- to indicate motion:

نزيل لتحت nzeel la-ta7@t – go downstairs

Can be used independently, usually meaning ‘downstairs’ (but also ‘further down’ etc depending on context):

انا تحت ana ta7@t – I’m downstairs

طول Tool

Clearly derived from ‘length’, this is used for both physical description in the meaning of ‘along the length of, all along’ and time in the meaning of ‘throughout, all… long’.

وضلوا يلحقوني طول الليل w-Dallu yél7a2uuni Tool élleel – they kept chasing me all night long

It often appears with 3ala:

قاعد يفلح فينا على طول الجمعة ‭‭2aa3ed yéfla7 fiina 3ala Tool éjjém3a – they sit there going on at us, all week long [= sitting ploughing in us]

مش بس هاي الرسمة. في غيرها على طول الشارع mish bass haay irrasme. fii gheerha 3ala Tool ishshaare3 – not just this painting, there are others all along the street

With على as you are probably aware it has an adverbial meaning ‘straight on’:

روح على طول ruu7 3ala Tool – go straight on

وسط wasT بوسط bwasT ‘in the middle of’

بوسط البلد bwasT élbalad – downtown [= in the city centre]

وسط هالتخاذل كلو wasT ha-ttakhaazul kéllo – in the midst of all this disappointment

ورا wara 

Literally ‘behind’ or ‘beyond’:

ورا البيت wara lbeet – behind, beyond the house

Can be used with la- to indicate motion:

رجاع لورا rjaa3 la-wara – go backwards

Can be used independently with the approximate meaning ‘behind’:

انا قاعد قدام وهي قاعدة ورا ana 2aa3ed 2éddaam w-hiyye 2aa3de wara – I’m sitting in the front and she’s sitting in the back [of a car]

حوالي ‭7awaali, 7awaalee- ‘around’

Used in all the senses of English ‘around’ and the fuSHa sense of ‘approximately [a number]’:

صرت شوف كل يلي حواليي بوضوح وعلى حقيقتهم Sér@t shuuf kéll yalli 7awaaleyyi b-wuDuu7 w-3ala 7aqiiqathum – I started to see all those around me clearly and as they were [= on their truth]

بنو حيط حوالي لجنينة banu 7eeT 7awaali léjneene – they built a wall around the garden

ربطو حبل حوالي الشجرة rabaTu 7ab@l 7awaali shshajara – they tied a rope around the tree

The fuSHa form حول ‭7awl is occasionally used in the sense of ‘on the subject of’ (e.g. ktaab 7awl élmawDuu3).