The first words in Saudi Arabic
Everything here comes from the opening lessons of the self-paced course. Say each line out loud twice — that is the whole method.
The eight people
Arabic has no “am / is / are”. Put the person next to the description and the sentence is done: أَنا سارَة = I (am) Sara.
أَنا
ana
I
إِنْت
inta
you — one man
إِنْتِي
inti
you — one woman
هُوَّ
huwwa
he
هِيَّ
hiyya
she
إِحْنا
iḥna
we
إِنْتو
intu
you — a group
هُمَّا
humma
they
The two-sound trick
“You” for a man ends on a short a — inta. “You” for a woman ends on a short i — inti. The last sound is the only difference, so listen for it.
أَنا حَسْنا
ana Hasna
I am Hasna
إِنْت أَحْمَد؟
inta Aḥmad?
Are you Ahmad?
هِيَّ مُعَلِّمَة
hiyya muʿallima
She is a teacher
إِحْنا طُلَّاب
iḥna ṭullāb
We are students
Making anything yours
Arabic has no separate word for “my”. Keep the word and add the ending: بَيْت (house) becomes بَيْتِي (my house).
بَيْت
bēt
house
بَيْتِي
bēti
my house — the ـِي is “my”
بَيْتَك
bētak
your house — to a man
بَيْتِك
bētik
your house — to a woman
Greetings you will hear every day
حيّاك
ḥayyāk
welcome — literally “may God give you life”
مَرْحَبا
marḥaba
hello
يا هَلا
yā hala
welcome back
كَيْفَك؟
kīfak?
how are you? (to a woman)
مَشْكُور
mashkūr
thank you (to a man)
زَيْن
zēn
good / okay
إنْ شَاء الله
in shā Allāh
God willing
يَلا
yala
let's go
Where to go next
- · Try Lesson 1 free — the same eight words, taught step by step with practice: open Lesson 1
- · Want the whole course on your own time: see the sixteen stages
- · Want a person to correct you out loud: private coaching with Hasna
Pronunciation shown here is a reading guide. A coach's ear is what fixes the sounds — that is what lessons are for.