Dialogue

Vocabulary

Learn New Words FAST with this Lesson’s Vocab Review List

Get this lesson’s key vocab, their translations and pronunciations. Sign up for your Free Lifetime Account Now and get 7 Days of Premium Access including this feature.

Or sign up using Facebook
Already a Member?

Lesson Notes

Unlock In-Depth Explanations & Exclusive Takeaways with Printable Lesson Notes

Unlock Lesson Notes and Transcripts for every single lesson. Sign Up for a Free Lifetime Account and Get 7 Days of Premium Access.

Or sign up using Facebook
Already a Member?

Lesson Transcript

INTRODUCTION
ArabicPod101.com presents Arabic Survival Phrases. This course is designed to equip you with the language skills and knowledge to enable you to get the most out of your visit to Arabic speaking countries, with particular focus on Morocco. So join us for Arabic Survival phrases. You will be surprised at how far a little Arabic will go.
Now before we jump in, remember to stop by ArabicPod101.com, there you’ll find an accompanying PDF, additional learning tools in the premium learning center, and other great Arabic language learning materials. In addition, you’ll find more information in the post. And if you stop by, be sure to leave us a comment.

Lesson focus

In today's lesson, we'll cover an extremely important phrase: "Where is the bathroom?"
In Arabic, "Where is the bathroom?" is ʾaīna al-mirḥāḍ? (أين المرحاض؟)
ʾaīna al-mirḥāḍ?
Let’s break it down by syllable: ʾaīna al-mirḥāḍ?
Now let's hear it again: ʾaīna al-mirḥāḍ?
Let's take a look at the components. The first word, ʾaīna, means “where”
Let's break down this word and hear it one more time: ʾaīna
And, ʾaīna
This is followed by al-mirḥāḍ?, which in Arabic is "bathroom."
Al-mirḥāḍ?
al-mirḥāḍ?
So to recap here, we have ʾaīna al-mirḥāḍ?
Literally, this means "Where the bathroom?" or "Where is the bathroom?"
Here is the thing though. While أين ʾaīna is the Standard word for “where” in Arabic, it is unlikely to be used in a conversation in Morocco. This is because, often, Standard and Spoken Arabic are different. If you say أين ʾaīna, you will be understood, but if you want to sound more natural, use the word فين fiīn instead, which means “where” in spoken Arabic.
Let's hear it one more time: fiīn
fiīn
So “where is the bathroom” simply becomes fiīn al-mirḥāḍ? (فين المرحاض؟)
With this expression, you’ll be sure to blend in!
Now when you finally get to the bathroom there may be one last hurdle. In some instances, only the Arabic words are written on the doors! What to do? What to do? Well, you can stop by the website and find the words for “man” and “woman,” find them inside the PDF.
The word for “men” is الرجال ar-rijaal
One more time slowly:
The word for “women” is النساء an-nisaa'
nisaa’

Outro

Okay, to close out today's lesson, we'd like for you to practice what you've just learned. I'll provide you with the English equivalent of the phrase and you're responsible for saying it aloud. You'll have a few seconds before I give you the answer, so حظ سعيد, that means "good luck" in Arabic.
Ok, here we go!
"Where is the bathroom?" - ʾaīna al-mirḥāḍ?
ʾaīna al-mirḥāḍ?
ʾaīna al-mirḥāḍ?
“Where is the bathroom?” (Moroccan Arabic) - fiīn al-mirḥāḍ?
fiīn al-mirḥāḍ?
fiīn al-mirḥāḍ?
All right. This is going to do it for this lesson of Arabic Survival Phrases. Remember to stop by ArabicPod101.com. There you’ll find an accompanying PDF, additional learning tools in the premium learning center, and other great Arabic language learning materials. See you soon, which in Arabic is - ilā al-liqāʾ.

Review Track

Comments

Hide