Arabic · Unit 4 · Dialogue Reader

Unit 4 Dialogues

Three dialogues, line by line: a school morning, the family's day off, and a holiday morning. Read each line aloud before 🔊, reveal the meaning only when you need it.

Reproduced from the class textbook, Unit 4 pp.1–3 (photos in your library) · translations match Lesson 4

1. طارِق وطاهِر — when do you wake up?

• طارقمَتى تَسْتَيْقِظُ؟🔊
  meaning

  When do you wake up? مَتى — when; the unit's new question word.

• طاهرأَسْتَيْقِظُ عِنْدَ الفَجْرِ.🔊
  meaning

  I wake up at dawn. عِنْدَ + a moment = at (the time of); hear the -i on الفَجْرِ.

• طارقأَيْنَ تُصَلّي الفَجْرَ؟🔊
  meaning

  Where do you pray fajr? تُصَلّي — you (m.) pray; the same word was “she prays” in Unit 2.

• طاهرأُصَلّي الفَجْرَ في المَسْجِدِ.🔊
  meaning

  I pray fajr in the mosque.

• طارقهَلْ تَنامُ بَعْدَ الصَّلاةِ؟🔊
  meaning

  Do you sleep after the prayer? بَعْدَ — after.

• طاهرلا، لا أَنامُ بَعْدَ الصَّلاةِ.🔊
  meaning

  No, I don't sleep after the prayer. Two لا: the first is “no”, the second in front of the verb is “don't”.

• طارقماذا تَفْعَلُ بَعْدَ الصَّلاةِ؟🔊
  meaning

  What do you do after the prayer?

• طاهرأَقْرَأُ القُرْآنَ.🔊
  meaning

  I read the Qur'an. The thing read ends in -a: القُرْآنَ.

• طارقومَتى تَذْهَبُ إِلى المَدْرَسَةِ؟🔊
  meaning

  And when do you go to school? إِلى + destination. مَدْرَسَة is “school” — not مُدَرِّسَة, the female teacher, though they are spelt the same without vowels.

• طاهرأَذْهَبُ السّاعَةَ السّابِعَةَ.🔊
  meaning

  I go at seven o'clock. No word for “at” — السّاعَةَ ends in -a and that is the whole preposition.

• طارقهَلْ تَذْهَبُ بِالسَّيّارَةِ؟🔊
  meaning

  Do you go by car? بِـ = by, for how you travel. The final -i is too faint to read in the photo; the next line prints it.

• طاهرلا، أَذْهَبُ بِالحافِلَةِ.🔊
  meaning

  No, I go by bus.

2. The family — the day off

The parents are roles (الأُمّ the mother, الأَب the father, الجَدَّة / الجَدّ the grandparents); the children have names.

• الأمهَذا يَوْمُ العُطْلَةِ.🔊
  meaning

  This is the day off. يَوْمُ العُطْلَةِ — “day of the holiday”, a two-word name like غُرْفَةُ النَّوْمِ.

• الأبهَذا يَوْمُ العَمَلِ.🔊
  meaning

  This is a work day. The father's joke: a day off for the family is a day of chores.

• الأمماذا سَتَفْعَلُ يا طارِقُ؟🔊
  meaning

  What will you do, Tariq? سَـ in front of the verb = will. After يا the name ends in -u.

• طارقسَأَكْنُسُ غُرْفَةَ الجُلوسِ.🔊
  meaning

  I'll sweep the living room.

• الأموماذا سَتَفْعَلينَ يا فاطِمَةُ؟🔊
  meaning

  And what will you do, Fatima? سَتَفْعَلينَ — the you-form to a woman: the ـينَ ending. First time in the course.

• فاطمةسَأَكْنُسُ غُرْفَةَ النَّوْمِ.🔊
  meaning

  I'll sweep the bedroom.

• الأموماذا سَتَفْعَلُ يا أَحْمَدُ؟🔊
  meaning

  And what will you do, Ahmad?

• أحمدسَأَغْسِلُ المَلابِسَ.🔊
  meaning

  I'll wash the clothes.

• الأموماذا سَتَفْعَلينَ يا لَطيفَةُ؟🔊
  meaning

  And what will you do, Latifa?

• لطيفةسَأَكْوي المَلابِسَ.🔊
  meaning

  I'll iron the clothes. أَكْوي ends in ي — no -u to hear.

• الجدةأَنا سَأَغْسِلُ الأَطْباقَ.🔊
  meaning

  I'll wash the dishes.

• الجدوأَنا سَأَقْرَأُ القُرْآنَ.🔊
  meaning

  And I'll read the Qur'an.

3. عادِل وفَيْصَل — the holiday morning

• عادلمَتى تَسْتَيْقِظُ يَوْمَ العُطْلَةِ؟🔊
  meaning

  When do you wake up on the day off? يَوْمَ with -a = “on the day of” — no preposition needed.

• فيصلأَسْتَيْقِظُ مُبَكِّراً. ومَتى تَسْتَيْقِظُ أَنْتَ؟🔊
  meaning

  I wake up early. And when do you wake up? مُبَكِّراً — early; the ـًا ending makes it a “how”.

• عادلأَسْتَيْقِظُ مُتَأَخِّراً.🔊
  meaning

  I wake up late.

• فيصلماذا تَفْعَلُ في الصَّباحِ؟🔊
  meaning

  What do you do in the morning? في الصَّباحِ — في for a part of the day.

• عادلأُشاهِدُ التِّلْفازَ. وماذا تَفْعَلُ أَنْتَ؟🔊
  meaning

  I watch television. And what do you do?

• فيصلأَقْرَأُ صَحيفَةً أَو كِتاباً.🔊
  meaning

  I read a newspaper or a book. أَو — or.

• عادلأَيْنَ تُصَلّي الجُمُعَةَ؟🔊
  meaning

  Where do you pray Friday (prayer)? Printed الجُمُعَة (ḍamma on م) where Unit 3's strip printed الجُمْعَة; both readings are in the dictionary. Here it names the prayer, not the day.

• فيصلأُصَلّي الجُمُعَةَ في المَسْجِدِ الكَبيرِ. وأَيْنَ تُصَلّي أَنْتَ؟🔊
  meaning

  I pray Friday prayer in the big mosque. And where do you pray? المَسْجِدِ الكَبيرِ — noun and adjective both with الـ, both ending in -i after في.

• عادلأُصَلّي في المَسْجِدِ الكَبيرِ أَيْضاً.🔊
  meaning

  I pray in the big mosque too. أَيْضاً — also, at the end.

Done speaking? Test yourself in Lesson 4, drill the Unit 4 flashcards, or see what the time words in these lines are doing in the prepositions chapter. Anything unclear? Bring it to your teacher — in class.