Beginner Arabic vocabulary
All 149 words taught in Levels 0–1, grouped by the lesson that introduces them. Open a lesson to see how each word is used.
Letters I
| Arabic | Transliteration | English |
|---|---|---|
| ا | alif | long 'aa', or a seat for other sounds |
| ب | bāʾ | b as in 'bed' |
| ت | tāʾ | t as in 'tea' |
| ث | thāʾ | th as in 'think' |
| ج | jīm | j as in 'jam' |
| ح | ḥāʾ | breathy throat h |
| خ | khāʾ | kh as in 'loch' |
Letters II
| Arabic | Transliteration | English |
|---|---|---|
| د | dāl | d as in 'day' |
| ذ | dhāl | th as in 'this' |
| ر | rāʾ | tapped/rolled r |
| ز | zāy | z as in 'zoo' |
| س | sīn | s as in 'sun' |
| ش | shīn | sh as in 'ship' |
| ص | ṣād | heavy, deep s |
Letters III
| Arabic | Transliteration | English |
|---|---|---|
| ض | ḍād | heavy d |
| ط | ṭāʾ | heavy t |
| ظ | ẓāʾ | heavy th (as in 'this') |
| ع | ʿayn | throat squeeze — no English equivalent |
| غ | ghayn | gargled gh |
| ف | fāʾ | f as in 'far' |
| ق | qāf | deep k from the back of the throat |
Letters IV
| Arabic | Transliteration | English |
|---|---|---|
| ك | kāf | k as in 'kite' |
| ل | lām | l as in 'lamp' |
| م | mīm | m as in 'moon' |
| ن | nūn | n as in 'noon' |
| ه | hāʾ | h as in 'hat' |
| و | wāw | w, or long ū |
| ي | yāʾ | y, or long ī |
Short vowels
| Arabic | Transliteration | English |
|---|---|---|
| بَ | ba | b with fatḥa |
| بِ | bi | b with kasra |
| بُ | bu | b with ḍamma |
| كَتَبَ | kataba | he wrote |
| قَلَم | qalam | pen |
| وَلَد | walad | boy |
Long vowels
| Arabic | Transliteration | English |
|---|---|---|
| بَاب | bāb | door |
| كَبِير | kabīr | big |
| نُور | nūr | light |
| كِتَاب | kitāb | book |
| صَغِير | ṣaghīr | small |
Joining letters
| Arabic | Transliteration | English |
|---|---|---|
| بَيْت | bayt | house |
| دَار | dār | home |
| مَدْرَسَة | madrasa | school |
| وَرْد | ward | roses |
| شَمْس | shams | sun |
Greetings
| Arabic | Transliteration | English |
|---|---|---|
| مَرْحَبًا | marḥaban | hello |
| السَّلامُ عَلَيْكُم | as-salāmu ʿalaykum | peace be upon you |
| وَعَلَيْكُمُ السَّلام | wa ʿalaykumu s-salām | and upon you peace (reply) |
| صَباحُ الخَيْر | ṣabāḥ al-khayr | good morning |
| صَباحُ النّور | ṣabāḥ an-nūr | good morning (reply) |
| مَساءُ الخَيْر | masāʾ al-khayr | good evening |
| شُكْرًا | shukran | thank you |
| عَفْوًا | ʿafwan | you're welcome |
| مَعَ السَّلامة | maʿa s-salāma | goodbye |
Introducing yourself
| Arabic | Transliteration | English |
|---|---|---|
| اِسْمي | ismī | my name (is) |
| أَنا | anā | I |
| مِنْ | min | from |
| ما اسْمُكَ؟ | mā smuka? | what's your name? (to a man) |
| ما اسْمُكِ؟ | mā smuki? | what's your name? (to a woman) |
| مِنْ أَيْنَ أَنْتَ؟ | min ayna anta? | where are you from? (to a man) |
| تَشَرَّفْنا | tasharrafnā | nice to meet you |
Numbers 1–10
| Arabic | Transliteration | English |
|---|---|---|
| واحِد | wāḥid | one (١) |
| اِثْنان | ithnān | two (٢) |
| ثَلاثة | thalātha | three (٣) |
| أَرْبَعة | arbaʿa | four (٤) |
| خَمْسة | khamsa | five (٥) |
| سِتّة | sitta | six (٦) |
| سَبْعة | sabʿa | seven (٧) |
| ثَمانِيَة | thamāniya | eight (٨) |
| تِسْعة | tisʿa | nine (٩) |
| عَشَرة | ʿashara | ten (١٠) |
Classroom language
| Arabic | Transliteration | English |
|---|---|---|
| أَعِدْ مِنْ فَضْلِك | aʿid min faḍlik | repeat, please |
| لا أَفْهَم | lā afham | I don't understand |
| ماذا يَعْني؟ | mādhā yaʿnī? | what does it mean? |
| اِسْمَعْ | ismaʿ | listen! |
| اُكْتُبْ | uktub | write! |
| اِقْرَأْ | iqraʾ | read! |
| دَفْتَر | daftar | notebook |
Personal pronouns
| Arabic | Transliteration | English |
|---|---|---|
| أَنا | anā | I |
| أَنْتَ | anta | you (m) |
| أَنْتِ | anti | you (f) |
| هُوَ | huwa | he |
| هِيَ | hiya | she |
| نَحْنُ | naḥnu | we |
| هُمْ | hum | they (m) |
Masculine & feminine
| Arabic | Transliteration | English |
|---|---|---|
| طالِب | ṭālib | student (m) |
| طالِبة | ṭāliba | student (f) |
| مُعَلِّم | muʿallim | teacher (m) |
| مُعَلِّمة | muʿallima | teacher (f) |
| جَدِيد | jadīd | new (m) |
| جَدِيدة | jadīda | new (f) |
| جَمِيل | jamīl | beautiful (m) |
This & that
| Arabic | Transliteration | English |
|---|---|---|
| هذا | hādhā | this (m) |
| هذه | hādhihi | this (f) |
| ذلِكَ | dhālika | that (m) |
| تِلْكَ | tilka | that (f) |
| سَيّارة | sayyāra | car |
| ما هذا؟ | mā hādhā? | what is this? |
Asking questions
| Arabic | Transliteration | English |
|---|---|---|
| مَنْ | man | who |
| أَيْنَ | ayna | where |
| مَتى | matā | when |
| كَيْفَ | kayfa | how |
| لِماذا | limādhā | why |
| هَلْ | hal | (yes/no question marker) |
| نَعَم | naʿam | yes |
Present-tense verbs
| Arabic | Transliteration | English |
|---|---|---|
| أَكْتُبُ | aktubu | I write |
| يَكْتُبُ | yaktubu | he writes |
| تَكْتُبُ | taktubu | you (m) / she write(s) |
| أَقْرَأُ | aqraʾu | I read |
| أَدْرُسُ | adrusu | I study |
| أَشْرَبُ | ashrabu | I drink |
| قَهْوة | qahwa | coffee |
Negation
| Arabic | Transliteration | English |
|---|---|---|
| لا | lā | not (before verbs) / no |
| لَيْسَ | laysa | is not (m) |
| لَيْسَتْ | laysat | is not (f) |
| لا أَعْرِفُ | lā aʿrifu | I don't know |
| هُنا | hunā | here |
Talking about yesterday
| Arabic | Transliteration | English |
|---|---|---|
| أَمْسِ | amsi | yesterday |
| ذَهَبْتُ | dhahabtu | I went |
| دَرَسْتُ | darastu | I studied |
| كَتَبْتُ | katabtu | I wrote |
| قَرَأْتُ | qaraʾtu | I read |
| بَعْدَ | baʿda | after |
Future plans
| Arabic | Transliteration | English |
|---|---|---|
| غَدًا | ghadan | tomorrow |
| سَأَذْهَبُ | sa-adhhabu | I will go |
| سَأَقْرَأُ | sa-aqraʾu | I will read |
| سَأَدْرُسُ | sa-adrusu | I will study |
| سَنَكْتُبُ | sa-naktubu | we will write |
| خُطَّة | khuṭṭa | plan |
My, your, our
| Arabic | Transliteration | English |
|---|---|---|
| كِتابي | kitābī | my book |
| كِتابُكَ | kitābuka | your book (m) |
| كِتابُكِ | kitābuki | your book (f) |
| كِتابُنا | kitābunā | our book |
| لِمَنْ | liman | whose / belonging to whom |
| حَقِيبَة | ḥaqība | bag |
Shopping politely
| Arabic | Transliteration | English |
|---|---|---|
| كَمْ هَذا؟ | kam hādhā? | how much is this? |
| أُرِيدُ | urīdu | I want |
| هَلْ عِنْدَكَ؟ | hal ʿindaka? | do you have? (to a man) |
| ثَمَن | thaman | price |
| رَخِيص | rakhīṣ | cheap / inexpensive |
| غَالٍ | ghālin | expensive |
| مِنْ فَضْلِكَ | min faḍlika | please (to a man) |
Getting around
| Arabic | Transliteration | English |
|---|---|---|
| مَحَطَّة | maḥaṭṭa | station |
| مَتْحَف | matḥaf | museum |
| يَمِين | yamīn | right |
| يَسَار | yasār | left |
| قَرِيب | qarīb | near |
| بَعِيد | baʿīd | far |
| أَيْنَ | ayna | where |
| شُكْرًا | shukran | thank you |
Practise these words with spaced review and speaking practice.
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