A1Unit 4 · Numbers, time and the market · Lesson 35 of 100
Colors
aḥmar · ḥamra · shu lōnha? · il-bēḍa
Goal: Name colors and describe things by their color.
Dialogue
Winter evenings in Ramallah are cold, and Lina needs a scarf. Rana helps her choose. You will learn the colors and how they change with the noun they describe.
A clothes shop in the center of Ramallah. Lina wants a warm scarf for the winter; Rana helps her choose.
- LinaRana, hal-lafḥa ḥilwe ktīr!Rana, this scarf is really pretty!
- Ranail-ḥamra? ā, bass jākētik akhḍar!The red one? Yes, but your jacket is green!
- Linaṣḥīḥ. w shu ḥilu maʿ il-akhḍar?True. And what goes nicely with green?
- Ranaabyaḍ aw ramādi. hādi bēḍa, w hādi ramādiyye.White or gray. This one is white, and this one is gray.
- Linail-bēḍa ḥilwe. fī kamān zarʾa?The white one is nice. Is there a blue one too?
- Womanā, fī zarʾa fātḥa w zarʾa ghāmʾa.Yes, there's a light blue one and a dark blue one.
- Linalaʾ, bass il-bēḍa. ʾaddēsh siʿrha?No, just the white one. How much is it?
- Womankhamse w talātīn shēkel.Thirty-five shekels.
- Linaṭayyib, bashtri. w inti, ya Rana?OK, I'll buy it. And you, Rana?
- Ranaana? biddi l-ḥamra!Me? I want the red one!
New words
| Palestinian Arabic | English |
|---|---|
| lōn | colorpl. alwān; shu lōno? what color is it? (a masculine thing) |
| aḥmar | redf. ḥamra, pl. ḥumr |
| abyaḍ | whitef. bēḍa, pl. bīḍ |
| aswad | blackf. sōda, pl. sūd |
| akhḍar | greenf. khaḍra, pl. khuḍr |
| azraʾ | bluef. zarʾa, pl. zurʾ |
| aṣfar | yellowf. ṣafra, pl. ṣufr |
| binni | brownf. binniyye |
| ramādi | grayf. ramādiyye |
| fāteḥ | light (of a color)f. fātḥa; azraʾ fāteḥ light blue |
| ghāmeʾ | dark (of a color)f. ghāmʾa; akhḍar ghāmeʾ dark green |
| lafḥa | scarf |
Grammar
1. Three forms for each color
The basic colors have a masculine form, a feminine form and a plural.
| English | masculine | feminine | plural |
|---|---|---|---|
| red | aḥmar | ḥamra | ḥumr |
| white | abyaḍ | bēḍa | bīḍ |
| black | aswad | sōda | sūd |
| green | akhḍar | khaḍra | khuḍr |
| blue | azraʾ | zarʾa | zurʾ |
| yellow | aṣfar | ṣafra | ṣufr |
binni "brown" and ramādi "gray" work like falasṭīni: the feminine is binniyye, ramādiyye.
2. The color agrees with the noun
The color comes after the noun, like any adjective. With several things, use the feminine form: kutub ḥamra "red books". The plural forms are mostly for people.
3. Light, dark, and "the red one"
fāteḥ "light" and ghāmeʾ "dark" come after the color and agree too: azraʾ fāteḥ, zarʾa ghāmʾa. With the article, a color alone means "the … one": il-ḥamra "the red one". To ask the color: shu lōno? (m) or shu lōnha? (f).
Sound: ḥumr and khuḍr are said [ḥumur] and [khuḍur].
Practice
1Choose the right words
a red scarf (lafḥa is feminine)
lafḥa is feminine, and the color comes after the noun.
a black jacket
Which word means "green"?
You ask what color a bag (shanṭa) is.
shanṭa is feminine: lōnha.
2Complete the sentence
hādi zarʾa ___. = This one is light blue.
zarʾa is feminine, so fātḥa.
is-sayyāra ___. = The car is white.
sayyāra is feminine: bēḍa.
jākētik ___. = Your jacket is green. (to a woman)
jākēt is masculine: akhḍar.
3Match the Arabic and the English
aṣfar
azraʾ
binni
ramādi
abyaḍ
lōn
4Put the words in order
The white scarf is nice.
I want a blue scarf.
5Say it in Palestinian Arabic, then check
a dark green bag (shanṭa)
shanṭa khaḍra ghāmʾa
a gray car
sayyāra ramādiyye
6True or false?
Lina's jacket is green.
Lina buys the red scarf.
Lina buys il-bēḍa, the white one. Rana wants the red one.
Summary
- You can name the colors: aḥmar, abyaḍ, aswad, akhḍar, azraʾ, aṣfar, binni, ramādi.
- You can make a color agree with the noun: jākēt aswad, lafḥa sōda.
- You can say light and dark: azraʾ fāteḥ, zarʾa ghāmʾa.
- You can ask shu lōno? and choose il-ḥamra, "the red one".