A2Unit 5 · Out and about · Lesson 44 of 100
Taking a service taxi
wēn rāyeḥ? · ana rāyḥa ʿa-Bīrzēt · nazzelni hōn
Goal: Take a shared taxi, say where you are going and that you are coming, pay the fare and ask to get off.
Dialogue
Lina takes a sirvīs, a shared yellow taxi, from Ramallah to Birzeit University to see Rana. You will learn to say "I'm going" and "I'm coming" with rāyeḥ and jāy, and the few sentences you need in a service taxi.
Monday morning at the service stop in Ramallah.
- Linalaw samaḥt, hāda sirvīs Bīrzēt?Excuse me, is this the service to Birzeit?
- Driverā, irkabi. bass stanni shwayy, is-sirvīs mish malyān.Yes, get in. But wait a little: the service isn't full.
- Womaninti rāyḥa ʿal-jāmʿa?Are you going to the university?
- Linaā, rāyḥa ʿind bint ʿammi. hiyye ṭālbe hunāk.Yes, I'm going to see my cousin. She's a student there.
- Driveryalla, is-sirvīs malyān!(Five minutes later.) Right, the service is full!
- Linalaw samaḥti, il-ujra lash-shufēr.(Passing money forward.) Excuse me, the fare, for the driver.
- Driverʿishrīn shēkel? maʿik frāṭa?Twenty shekels? Do you have small change?
- Linalaʾ, āsfe, ma maʿi.No, sorry, I don't.
- Drivermaʿlēsh, khudi.Never mind, here you are. (He passes back her change.)
- Ranainti jāye, ya Līna?(On the phone.) Are you coming, Lina?
- Linaā, jāye! ana fis-sirvīs.Yes, I'm coming! I'm in the service.
- Linalaw samaḥt, nazzelni ʿind bāb il-jāmʿa.(To the driver.) Excuse me, drop me at the university gate.
New words
| Palestinian Arabic | English |
|---|---|
| sirvīs | shared taxi, "service" (a yellow van on a fixed route) |
| taksi | taxiplural taksiyyāt |
| bāṣ | busplural bāṣāt |
| mawʾef | stop; taxi rank; parking placeplural mawāʾef |
| shufēr | driverplural shufēriyye |
| ujra | fare; rent |
| frāṭa | small change |
| rikib | to get on, riderikib / yirkab; b-present barkab; imperative irkab, irkabi |
| nizil | to get off; to go downnizil / yinzil; b-present banzil |
| nazzal | to drop off, let off; to lowernazzal / ynazzel; b-present banazzel; nazzelni hōn = drop me here |
| rāyeḥ | goingfeminine rāyḥa, plural rāyḥīn; wēn rāyeḥ? = where are you going? |
| jāy | coming; nextfeminine jāye, plural jāyīn; il-usbūʿ il-jāy = next week |
| malyān | fullfeminine malyāne, plural malyānīn |
Grammar
1. Going and coming: rāyeḥ and jāy
For "I'm going" and "I'm coming" right now, Palestinians use an active participle, a word that works like an adjective. It agrees with the person, like mabsūṭ / mabsūṭa, and needs no "am, is, are".
| Meaning | A man | A woman | Several people |
|---|---|---|---|
| going | rāyeḥ | rāyḥa | rāyḥīn |
| coming | jāy | jāye | jāyīn |
With "the", jāy means "next": is-sirvīs il-jāy "the next service", il-usbūʿ il-jāy "next week".
2. In the service taxi
rikib "to get on" and nizil "to get off" make their imperatives like iftaḥ (lesson 43): irkab! "get in!", inzil! "get off!"; to a woman irkabi!, inzili!
Practice
1Match the Arabic and the English
sirvīs
shufēr
mawʾef
ujra
frāṭa
bāṣ
2Choose the right answer
Lina says "I'm going to Birzeit."
A woman says rāyḥa.
You ask Sam "Where are you going?"
The driver says is-sirvīs malyān. What does it mean?
You want to get off here. You say to the driver:
3Complete the sentence
iḥna ___! = We're coming!
inti ___, ya Rana? = Are you coming, Rana?
ʾaddēsh ___? = How much is the fare?
is-sirvīs ___ baʿd rubʿ sāʿa. = The next service is in a quarter of an hour.
4Put the words in order
Excuse me, is this the service to Birzeit?
Yes, I'm coming! I'm in the service. (a woman speaking)
5True or false?
The service leaves when it is full.
Lina has small change.
She says laʾ, āsfe, ma maʿi.
Lina gets off at the university gate.
Summary
- You can say where you are going: ana rāyeḥ / rāyḥa ʿa-Bīrzēt.
- You can say you are coming: jāy, jāye, jāyīn, and use il-jāy for "next".
- You can ask the fare and pass it on: ʾaddēsh il-ujra?
- You can ask the driver to stop: nazzelni hōn, law samaḥt.