Learn about a high-frequency phrase
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| INTRODUCTION |
| In the last lesson, we learned how to make a reservation in a restaurant. Now that you know how to get a table, you have another big issue to tackle. If you want to enjoy your meal, the smoking issue is very important. If you are a smoker in a non-smoking establishment, or a non-smoker in a smoking establishment, this could ruin your meal. |
| GRAMMAR POINT |
| In this lesson, we'll cover how to ask for a smoking or non-smoking table. |
| ・ |
| First, we will imagine that you are a smoker. Before entering a restaurant, you need to ask, “Excuse me, is smoking allowed here?”: |
| el tadḫeen masmooḥ hena? |
| Let’s break it down: |
| (slow) el tadḫeen masmooḥ hena? |
| Once more: |
| el tadḫeen masmooḥ hena? |
| التدخين مسموح هنا؟ |
| el tadḫeen means “smoking” |
| (slow) el tadḫeen |
| el tadḫeen |
| We follow this with masmooḥ, which means “allowed”. |
| (slow) masmooḥ |
| masmooḥ |
| And next is hena, which means “here”. |
| (slow) hena |
| hena. |
| Here’s the whole sentence: |
| el tadḫeen masmooḥ hena? |
| (slow) el tadḫeen masmooḥ hena? |
| ・ |
| The answer to this question is simple: aywa meaning “Yes” or la’a meaning “No”. |
| Let’s break those down: |
| aywa (natural speed) |
| (slow) aywa. |
| la’a (natural speed) |
| (slow) la’a. |
| أيوة |
| لأ |
| ・ |
| Now let’s imagine you don’t smoke. In this case, when you come to Egypt, you should ask: “Do you have tables for non-smokers?” |
| fi tarabezaat non smoking? |
| Let’s break it down: |
| (slow) fih tarabezaat non smoking? |
| Once more at natural speed: |
| fih tarabezaat non smoking? |
| في ترابيزات نان سموكينج؟ |
| fih means “is there..” |
| (slow) fih. |
| fih. |
| tarabezaat means “tables” |
| (slow) tarabezaat |
| tarabezaat |
| And non smoking is pronounced with a slight Egyptian Arabic accent. |
| (slow) non smoking |
| non smoking |
| The whole question is: |
| (slow) fih tarabezaat non smoking? |
| fih tarabezaat non smoking? |
| ・ |
| Now let’s go over the possible answers to this question. If it’s a positive answer, you might hear |
| aywa, fih, and if the answer is negative - la’a, mafish. |
| In these expressions: |
| aywa means “yes” |
| fih, as we said before, means “there is”. |
| (slow) fih. |
| fih. |
| la’a means “no” and mafish is the negative form of fih. It means “there isn’t”. |
| (slow) Mafish |
| Mafish |
| Let’s hear these expressions again: |
| aywa fih. |
| la’a mafish. |
| أيوة, فية |
| لأ, مفيش |
| When the answer is negative, you will also hear “we are sorry” attached to mafish. The phrase will sound like this: Sorry, mafish. |
| Let’s break it down: |
| (slow) Sorry, mafish. |
| Once more at natural speed: |
| Sorry, mafish. |
| سوري,مفيش |
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