bi l-la7'9ah

7aalyan

waayid

faj2ah

a9-9araa7ah

There's a saying in Arabic that a9-9araa7ah raa7ah. And while this may be true, sometimes speaking honestly is the equivalent of sprinkling rock salt into a lesion. I mean, how do you break up someone a9-9araa7ah? 

Girl: There's something I have to tell you.

Boy: Uff, sounds serious.

Girl: I want us to break up.

Boy: But why? I mean -

Girl: It's not you, it me.

Boy: Please. They exhausted that line in the nineties. Tell me a9-9araa7ah. Is there someone else?

Girl: No!

Boy: Then what?

Girl: a9-9araa7ah maa agdr.

Boy: You owe me at least the truth.

Girl: Are you sure about that?

Boy: Yes. 

Girl: rii7t-ik...

Boy: What about it?

Girl: rii7t-ik zift!

Arabic	Pronounced?	English
الصراحة ما اقدر	a9-9araa7ah maa agdr	I honestly can’t
ريحتك زفت	rii7t-ik zift	you smell awful
الصراحة راحة	a9-9araa7ah raa7ah	honest-to-goodness (lit. honesty is comfort)

bi l-3aks

When a person says something and you know the opposite to be true, you can raise a triumphant finger and say: bi l-3aks!

Or when you've completely changed your mind about something, you can explain that khadayt fawg ta7at ('lit. I did a U-turn'). And why? Because at first the new neighbours seemed annoying, but bi l-3aks, they're actually pretty nice.

Having a change of heart is the theme of today's short story, which goes as follows:

One day, ju7aa was walking alongside a donkey that was carrying his son on its back. When some people saw them, they mumbled: "6aal3aw everyone at this spoilt boy riding a donkey while his poor old father has to walk!"

When ju7aa got tired of walking, he and his son swapped places. Some other people saw them and muttered: "6aal3aw everyone at that cruel man riding the donkey while his poor little son has to walk!"

Eventually, ju7aa and his son were exhausted as so both of them got on the donkey's back. People saw them and shouted at them: "How dare you both break the back of this poor little donkey with your weight! wallah, how thankless you are, both of you!"

Arabic	Pronounced?	English
طالع!	6aali3!	Watch! (m)
طالعي!	6aal3ay!	Watch! (f)
طالعوا!	6aal3aw!	Watch! (pl)
فوق تحت	fawg ta7at	a U-turn
والله	wa aallah!	I swear!

7addah 7addah

Today's word is easy to say and fairly useful if you tend to live on the edge - of time that is.

When you're telling a story, and it so happens in this tale you turned up somewhere at the very last moment, you can use 7addah 7addah to express that. "It took forever for her to get ready, so wa9al-naa al-filim 7addah 7addah ('we arrived at the film at the very last minute')."

7add in general is a word that describes anything on one end of an extreme. Are you rushing to get your weekend flight to Dubai and your designated (male) driver is going too slowly? You can holler: 3a6-ah 7add ad-daws-ah!

If the driver is a female, the verb changes: 3a6ii-h 7add ad-daws-ah! 

Or if some overly-confident person rolls up to you in a mall and whispers 7add-ich kiyuut? If it happens to be unwanted attention, I prescribe a casual shrug and the retort: awaafiq.

Arabic	Pronounced?	English
حدك كيوت	7add-ik kiyuut	You’re really cute! (>m)
حدچ كيوت	7add-ich kiyuut	You’re really cute! (>f)
حدكم كيوت	7add-kum kiyuut	You’re really cute! (>pl)
عطه حد الدوسه	3a6-ah 7add ad-daws-ah	step on it!
أوافق	awaafiq	I agree

3aadatan

Audio with Theyab's pronunciation

3aadatan, in Ramadan, the dinners turn out to be among the most delicious of any month in the calendar year.

And 3aadatan, during this month, the nightly fu6uur won't include seafood. But, hadhii al-marrah ghayr because on the particular day that this story took place, the fast was broken with Kuwait's finest fish - haammuur.

But as the fish was placed before him, our host gaal:

"simach fii rama'6aan? laa yi7uush-ik!"

فطور	fu6uur	Meal to break fast
عادتاً	3aadatan	Usually
هذي المرة غير	hadhii al-marrah ghayr	This time it is different
هامور	haammuur	Hammour (Kuwaiti fish)
قال	gaal	Said
سمچ في رمظان	simach fii rama'6aan	In Ramadan
لا يحوشك	laa yi7uush-ik	No way, José

yawman maa

Audio with Theyab's pronunciation

Tarek Al Ghoussein, K-Files Series (2013)

I dream that fii l-mustaghbal, some of the epic architectural projects promised for Kuwait will be completed for all to enjoy. And that maybe hadhaak al-yawm there will be a new city in the Middle East with a mosque, a synagogue and a church standing shoulder to shoulder.

Coming back down to earth, the most immediate of my hopes is that fii yawman maa there might eventually be some water in this swimming pool.

في المستغبل	fii l-mustaghbal	In the future
هذاك اليوم	hadhaak al-yawm	One day
بخذلي	bakhidh-l-ii	I will get (lit. I will get to me)
بليستيشن ٤	blaystayshin 4	Playstation 4

b-suhuulah

Audio with Theyab's pronunciation

Hassan needs to do paperwork. He goes to the Ministry of Information
and approaches the reception desk.
"Excuse me, who do ana as'aal about filing these papers?
The receptionist looks carefully the cleanly-shaven Hassan.
"Please go to that desk over there," she says, pointing to the
other side of the room.
Hassan wanders over and approaches the clerk.
"May I ask you su'aal?" he begins, showing the clerk his papers. The clerk
takes one look at the papers, then steals a glance at Hassan's flip-flops,
his board shorts.
"Second floor."
Hassan sighs, grabs his folder and makes his way to the elevators.
The second floor is filled with people running around and a gaggle of women
showing each other their nail polish. Hassan approaches them.
"Excuse me, can you help?"
The women stop chatting and grimace at Hassan's t-shirt. Pink Floyd.
"No paperwork is done in this building. You have to travel across Kuwait
to another building."
"What other building?" Hasan exclaims.
The women shrug and turn back to their conversation.

Now Hassan goes home and does his homework. He puts on his dishdasha,
grows a beard and returns a week later to the Ministry of Information.
He approaches the ground floor reception desk.
"Excuse me," he says, "mit'akidiin this building isn't the right place to file
these papers?"
The receptionist gives him a big smile. "Yes, it's the correct building, sir -
you can do your paperwork here b-suhuulah. If you don't mind, I'll take
your papers and have them ready in five minutes. Please have a seat."
Hassan slaps his forehead in exasperation.

انا اسأل	ana as’aal	I ask
سؤال	su’aal	A question
متأكدين	mit’akidiin?	Are you sure? (to a group; asking the Ministry as a whole)
شلون	shlawn	How
الحكومة	al-Hukuumah	The government
تاخذ	taakhidh	Takes
فلوس	filuus	Money
من	min	From
الناس	an-naas	The people