A2Unit 6 · Hospitality · Lesson 51 of 100
Welcome! Visiting a home
ahla w sahla · tfaḍḍal · nawwart · il-bēt bētak
Goal: Welcome one guest or several guests at your door, and answer politely when you are the guest.
Dialogue
It is spring, and the Khalil family has invited Sam for a meal. You will learn what hosts say at the door, how the words change for a man, a woman or several people, and how to answer as a polite guest.
A sunny Friday in March. Sam stands at the Khalil family's door with flowers in his hand.
- Linafī ḥada biduʾʾ ʿal-bāb. akīd Sām!Someone is knocking at the door. It must be Sam!
- Abu Khalilahla w sahla, ya Sām! tfaḍḍal!Welcome, Sam! Come in!
- Samahlan fīk, ya Abu Khalīl. shukran ʿal-ʿazīme.Thank you, Abu Khalil. Thanks for the invitation.
- Imm Khalilya mīt ahla w sahla! nawwart il-bēt!A hundred welcomes! You have lit up our home!
- Samalla ynawwir ʿalēki. tfaḍḍali, hāda ward ilik.Thank you (literally: may God give you light). Here, these flowers are for you.
- Imm Khalilshukran, ḥabībi, ḥilu ktīr! tfaḍḍal stirīḥ.Thank you, dear, they are lovely! Please sit down and rest.
- Khalilahlan, Sām! nawwart!(He comes in and kisses Sam on both cheeks.) Hi, Sam! You've lit up the place!
- SamLīna, Khalīl bāsni!(Quietly.) Lina, Khalil kissed me!
- Linaʿādi! hēk ish-shabāb bisallmu hōn. ma tistḥīsh!That's normal! That's how guys say hello here. Don't be shy!
- Samya khālto, khallīni asāʿdik.(Imm Khalil comes back with a tray.) Let me help you, auntie.
- Imm Khalillaʾ, ʿēb! inte ḍēf. Rana, ʾaddmi l-ʿaṣīr la-Sām!No, that's not done! You are a guest. Rana, serve Sam the juice!
- Abu Khalilil-bēt bētak, ya Sām. ḥabbēna nitʿarraf ʿalēk.Make yourself at home, Sam. We wanted to get to know you.
New words
| Palestinian Arabic | English |
|---|---|
| ḍēf | guesta woman guest: ḍēfe; guests: ḍyūf |
| zyāra | visitplural: zyārāt |
| ʿazīme | invitation (to a meal at home)plural: ʿazāyem; shukran ʿal-ʿazīme thanks for the invitation |
| nawwart | you have lit up our home (to a guest who has just come in, a man)to a woman: nawwarti; to several people: nawwartu; often nawwart il-bēt |
| daʾʾ | to knock (at a door); to ring (a bell)daʾʾ / yduʾʾ, b-present baduʾʾ; also: to play (an instrument) |
| ʾaddam | to offer, serve (food, drink)ʾaddam / yʾaddem, b-present baʾaddem; also: to apply (for) |
| sallam | to greet, say hello (to: ʿala)sallam / ysallem, b-present basallem; sallem ʿala immak say hello to your mother (to a man) |
| bās | to kissbās / ybūs, b-present babūs |
| istaḥa | to be shy, feel embarrassedistaḥa / yistḥi, b-present bastḥi; ma tistḥīsh! don't be shy! |
| ʿēb | shame; it is not doneʿēb! that's not nice! (to a guest: no way, you are our guest!) |
| ward | flowers; rosescollective; one flower: warde |
| tʿarraf | to get to know, meet (someone: ʿala)tʿarraf / yitʿarraf, b-present batʿarraf |
| istarāḥ | to rest, relaxistarāḥ / yistarīḥ, b-present bastarīḥ; tfaḍḍal stirīḥ please sit down and rest |
Grammar
1. One man, one woman, several people
Many polite words change their ending with the people you speak to: no ending for a man, -i for a woman, -u for several people. You already know this from law samaḥt and tiṣbaḥ ʿala khēr.
| The host says | to a man | to a woman | to several people |
|---|---|---|---|
| Come in! Please sit down. | tfaḍḍal | tfaḍḍali | tfaḍḍalu |
| You have lit up our home! | nawwart | nawwarti | nawwartu |
The guest answers ahla w sahla with ahlan fīk (to a man), ahlan fīki (to a woman) or ahlan fīkom (to several people).
2. A good guest, a good host
The guest thanks the hosts: shukran ʿal-ʿazīme "thanks for the invitation". To nawwart Sam answers Imm Khalil, a woman, alla ynawwir ʿalēki "may God give you light": you will hear it often. The host says il-bēt bētak "make yourself at home" (literally: the house is your house).
3. One guest, many guests
ḍēf is a guest, ḍēfe a woman guest, ḍyūf several guests.
Practice
1Choose the right words
Nour comes to visit you alone. You open the door and say "Come in!"
Nour is a woman: tfaḍḍali.
Sam and Nour arrive together. You say "You have lit up our home!"
To several people the ending is -u.
Abu Khalil says ahla w sahla! to you. You answer him:
tfaḍḍal is what the host says. To a man the answer is ahlan fīk.
You want to thank your hosts for the invitation.
Sam stands up to help. Imm Khalil says: "No, that's not done! You are a guest."
Sam is one man: inte ḍēf.
2Complete the sentence
fī ḥada ___ ʿal-bāb. = Someone is knocking at the door.
ahlan ___, ya Imm Khalīl. = Thank you, Imm Khalil. (answer to ahla w sahla)
ma ___, ya Sām! = Don't be shy, Sam!
3Match the Arabic and the English
ḍēf
ward
zyāra
ʿazīme
il-bēt bētak
4Put the words in order
Welcome! You have lit up our home! (to a man)
Rana, serve Sam the juice!
5Say it in Palestinian Arabic, then check
Nour and Lina are at your door. Say: Welcome! Come in!
ahla w sahla! tfaḍḍalu!
Say to Sam: Say hello to your mother!
sallem ʿala immak!
6True or false?
Sam brings flowers for Imm Khalil.
Khalil kisses Sam, and Sam finds it normal.
Sam is surprised; Lina tells him ʿādi! "that's normal".
Imm Khalil lets Sam help her.
She says laʾ, ʿēb! inte ḍēf.
Summary
- You can welcome guests with ahla w sahla, tfaḍḍal and nawwart, to a man, a woman or several people.
- You can answer as a guest: ahlan fīk, shukran ʿal-ʿazīme.
- You can make a guest feel at home: il-bēt bētak, ma tistḥīsh!
- You can talk about guests and visits: ḍēf, ḍyūf, zyāra.