A2Unit 6 · Hospitality · Lesson 58 of 100
On the phone: to me, to you
alō, mīn maʿi? · ishtaʾtillik · rinnilli · sallmīli ʿalē
Goal: Make a short phone call and say "to me, to you, to him", as in "he sent me", "call me" and "I missed you".
Dialogue
It is Sunday evening in Ramallah and morning in Chicago, and Lina calls her mother. You will learn what people say on the phone, and the endings that mean "to me, for me, to you".
Sunday evening. Lina calls her parents in Chicago.
- Motheralō? mīn maʿi?Hello? Who's speaking?
- Linaalō! ana Līna!Hello! It's me, Lina!
- MotherLīna, ḥabībti! shtaʾtillik ktīr! lēsh ma raddētīsh ʿat-talafōn mbāreḥ?Lina, darling! I missed you so much! Why didn't you answer the phone yesterday?
- Linaāsfe, kunt ʿind sitti, w nsīt il-jawwāl fil-bēt.Sorry, I was at Grandma's, and I forgot my phone at home.
- Motherṭayyib, ṭammnīni ʿannik. kīf ḥālik? w kīf sittik?All right, tell me how you are. How are you? And Grandma?
- Linaana mnīḥa. w sitti mabsūṭa: ʿammi jabilha jawwāl jdīd!I'm fine. And Grandma is happy: my uncle brought her a new phone!
- Motherʿan jadd? ʾulīlha trinnilli!Really? Tell her to call me!
- Linaakīd. w babʿatlik ṣuwar min ʿind sitti ʿa-ṭūl.Sure. And I'll send you photos from Grandma's right away.
- MotherLīna? iṣ-ṣōt biʾṭaʿ... ṣōtik mish wāḍeḥ, mish fāhme kalāmik!Lina? The sound keeps cutting out... your voice isn't clear, I can't understand what you're saying!
- Linaw hallaʾ? btismaʿīni?And now? Can you hear me?
- Motherā, hallaʾ wāḍeḥ. bass ṣōtik ʿāli ktīr! iḥki bi-ṣōt wāṭi, abūki nāyem.Yes, now it's clear. But your voice is very loud! Speak quietly, your dad is asleep.
- Linaṭayyib! sallmīli ʿalē ktīr. yalla, bkhāṭrik!OK! Give him my love. Well then, bye!
New words
| Palestinian Arabic | English |
|---|---|
| alō | hello (when you answer or start a phone call) |
| baʿat | to sendbaʿat / yibʿat, b-present babʿat; baʿatli he sent me |
| rann | to ring; to call (someone) on the phonerann / yrinn, b-present barinn; rinnilli call me (to a man) |
| radd | to answer, reply (ʿala); to answer the phoneradd / yrudd, b-present barudd; radd also means "an answer", plural rudūd |
| talafōn | telephone; phone callplural: talafōnāt |
| ṣōt | voice; soundplural: aṣwāt |
| wāḍeḥ | clearf. wāḍḥa |
| ʿāli | high; loudf. ʿālye |
| wāṭi | low; quiet (of a voice, of music)f. wāṭye |
| ishtāʾ | to miss (someone: la-)ishtāʾ / yishtāʾ, b-present bashtāʾ; ishtaʾtillak I missed you (to a man) |
| ṭamman | to reassure; to let (someone) know all is wellṭamman / yṭammen, b-present baṭammen; ṭammnīni ʿannik let me know how you are (to a woman) |
| kalām | talk, words, what someone says |
| ʿa-ṭūl | right away, at oncealso ʿala ṭūl |
| ʾaṭaʿ | to cut off, cut out; to interrupt; to cross (a street)ʾaṭaʿ / yiʾṭaʿ, b-present baʾṭaʿ; iṣ-ṣōt biʾṭaʿ the sound keeps cutting out |
Grammar
1. To me, to you: endings with l
"To me, for me" is an ending on the verb, built on l. After a consonant, a small i comes in before -lha, -lna, -lkom, -lhom.
| Palestinian Arabic | English |
|---|---|
| baʿatli | he sent (it) to me |
| baʿatlak | he sent (it) to you (a man) |
| baʿatlik | he sent (it) to you (a woman) |
| baʿatlo | he sent (it) to him |
| baʿatilha | he sent (it) to her |
| baʿatilna | he sent (it) to us |
| baʿatilkom | he sent (it) to you (several people) |
| baʿatilhom | he sent (it) to them |
2. After two consonants, after a vowel
When the verb ends in two consonants or a doubled one, add i first: -illi, -illak, -illik, -illo. After a vowel, the vowel becomes long: sallmi → sallmīli "say hello for me" (to a woman). A long vowel inside the verb becomes short: ʾāl → ʾalli "he told me", jāb → jabilha "he brought (it) for her".
3. On the phone
| Palestinian Arabic | English |
|---|---|
| alō? mīn maʿi? | Hello? Who's speaking? |
| ṣōtak mish wāḍeḥ. | Your voice isn't clear. (to a man) |
| iḥki bi-ṣōt ʿāli. | Speak up. (to a man or a woman) |
| iḥki bi-ṣōt wāṭi. | Speak quietly. (to a man or a woman) |
| ma raddētish ʿat-talafōn. | You didn't answer the phone. (to a man) |
Practice
1Choose the right words
Your phone rings. You answer:
Abu Khalil sent Lina some photos. Lina says: "He sent me photos."
"To me" is -li.
Lina tells Sam: "Call me tomorrow!"
Sam is a man: rinn + -illi. rinnīli is said to a woman.
Your friend speaks too quietly on the phone. You tell him:
2Complete the sentence
___ ktīr, ya Līna! = I missed you so much, Lina!
Lina is a woman: -illik.
lēsh ma ___ ʿat-talafōn? = Why didn't you answer the phone? (to a woman)
ʾulilha ___! = Tell her to call me! (to a man)
"She" takes t-, and "me" is -illi.
babʿatlik iṣ-ṣuwar ___. = I'll send you the photos right away.
3Match the Arabic and the English
ṣōt
wāḍeḥ
ʿāli
wāṭi
kalām
4Put the words in order
Speak quietly, your dad is asleep. (to a woman)
I'll send you photos right away. (to a woman)
5Say it in Palestinian Arabic, then check
Tell Sam: Call me!
rinnilli!
Ask your mother on the phone: Can you hear me?
btismaʿīni?
6True or false?
Lina answered her mother's call yesterday.
She forgot her phone at home: nsīt il-jawwāl fil-bēt.
Lina's father is asleep during the call.
Lina's uncle brought Sitti Halime a new phone.
Summary
- You can answer and start a phone call: alō? mīn maʿi?
- You can say "to me, to you, to him": baʿatli, babʿatlik, ʾalli.
- You can add i after two consonants: ishtaʾtillik, rinnilli.
- You can talk about the line and the voice: ṣōtik mish wāḍeḥ, iḥki bi-ṣōt wāṭi.
- You can end a family call: sallmīli ʿalē, bkhāṭrik.