Lesson 19 · A2
Going, running, buying
The verbs in lesson 16 had three solid consonants. Many of the most common ones do not: they end in a vowel. Go, run, buy. One rule covers them all, and it has an i that never leaves.
- Say how you get somewhere: on foot, by bus, by taxi.
- Put verbs that end in a vowel into the present.
- Spot the two real irregulars: eat and come.
- Follow a short traffic report.
Twenty-one words
Getting around town. Verbs are listed in dictionary form, which is the “he did” past. The ones in the first column that end in a vowel are the stars of this lesson.
Moving
-
مْشَى
msha
to go; to leave
The verb of the lesson. Present: kanmshi, I go. The final vowel becomes i.
-
جَا
ja
to come
Irregular: kanji, I come. The dictionary a disappears.
-
جْرَى
jra
to run
Same pattern as msha: kanjri.
-
طْلَعْ
tla3
to go up; to get on
Stairs, a hill, a bus.
-
هْبَطْ
hbet
to go down; to get off
kanhbet hna, I'm getting off here. Useful in a taxi.
- وْصَلْ wsel to arrive
-
رْكَبْ
rkeb
to ride; to take (transport)
You “ride” everything: the bus, a taxi, a bike. kanrkeb t-tobis, I take the bus.
-
سَافَرْ
safer
to travel
Four letters, long a in the middle. Its full pattern comes in lesson 42; the present is kansafer.
By what
-
الطُّوبِيسْ
t-tobis
the bus
French autobus with the Arabic article stuck on front. Much of Moroccan transport talk is French underneath.
-
الطَّاكْسِي
t-taksi
the taxi
Big ones run between towns, small ones inside a town.
-
الطُّومُوبِيلْ
t-tomobil
the car
French automobile. Feminine: t-tomobil jdida, a new car.
-
الْبِشْكْلِيطْ
l-bishklit
the bicycle
French bicyclette, reshaped by Moroccan mouths.
-
عْلَى رْجْلِيهْ
3la rejlih
on foot
Literally “on his feet”. It changes with the person: 3la rejliyya, on foot (me).
The street
- الطّْرِيقْ t-triq the road; the way
-
الزّْحَامْ
z-z7am
traffic jam; crowd
From a root meaning “push”. Works for cars and for the souk at noon.
-
الضَّوْ
d-daw
traffic light; light
First it means “light”, and from there the traffic light.
-
الْكَارْفُورْ
l-karfur
crossroads; roundabout
French carrefour.
How and where
-
بْالزّْرْبَة
b z-zerba
quickly
b- + “the hurry”: “in a hurry”.
-
بْشْوِيَّة
b shwiya
slowly
shwiya from lesson 16 with b- in front. You will hear b shwiya! as advice: take it easy.
-
قْرِيبْ
qrib
near
Takes men: qrib men d-dar, near the house. Like “near from”, not “near to”.
-
بْعِيدْ
b3id
far
Also with men: far from.
The ones that end in a vowel
Four sentences with verbs whose dictionary form ends in a: msha, jra, shra. Watch how they end in the present.
- كَنْمْشِي لْلْخْدْمَة عْلَى رْجْلِيَّkanmshi l l-khedma 3la rejliyya
- نْتِ كَتْمْشِي فْالطُّوبِيسْ؟nti katmshi f t-tobis?
- هُومَا كَيْجْرِيوْ بْالزّْرْبَةhuma kayjriw b z-zerba
- حْنَا كَنْشْرِيوْ الْخُبْزْ بْكْرِي7na kanshriw l-khobz bekri
Which vowel shows up at the end every time? What happens to it in the plural?
The rule
Verbs whose dictionary form ends in a vowel —msha, jra, shra, nsa (forget)— are called defective: they lack a solid third consonant.
In the present, that final vowel becomes -i and stays in every person: kanmshi, katmshi, kaymshi.
The plural does not add -u as in lesson 16. It adds a -w after the i: kanmshiw, katmshiw, kaymshiw.
Because “you, to a woman” already ends in i, nothing changes: nta katmshi, nti katmshi. With these verbs “you” is the same for both.
Two verbs break ranks: kla, eat, which becomes kanakul, kayakul, kanaklu; and ja, come, which becomes kanji, kayji, kanjiw.
The whole of msha
| Person | Say it | Means |
|---|---|---|
| أَنَا كَنْمْشِي | ana kanmshi | I go |
| نْتَ / نْتِ كَتْمْشِي | nta / nti katmshi | you go (man or woman) |
| هُوَ كَيْمْشِي | huwa kaymshi | he goes |
| هِيَ كَتْمْشِي | hiya katmshi | she goes |
| حْنَا كَنْمْشِيوْ | 7na kanmshiw | we go |
| نْتُومَا كَتْمْشِيوْ | ntuma katmshiw | you go (plural) |
| هُومَا كَيْمْشِيوْ | huma kaymshiw | they go |
| كَنَاكُلْ · كَنْجِي | kanakul · kanji | I eat · I come |
Seven forms instead of eight: with these verbs, “you” does not split by gender. The last row is the two irregulars, so they do not ambush you.
What English gives you, and what it costs
Free: the loanwords. tobis, taksi, tomobil, bishklit: say bus, taxi, automobile, bicycle with a French accent and you are most of the way there.
Costly: the final i. English turns a final i into “ee” and stretches it. In kanmshi it is short and clipped.
Costly: -iw. It is not “you”. It is the i of the verb plus a quick w, one syllable: kan-mshiw, rhyming roughly with the end of “preview” said fast.
Your mistake, not someone else's
Lesson 16 taught you that the plural adds -u: kanketbu. You apply it faithfully, and with these verbs you swallow the i. The result sounds like kanmshu, which is not a word.
×حْنَا كَنْمْشُو لْلدَّارْWith -u, like kanketbu. The i is gone.
✓حْنَا كَنْمْشِيوْ لْلدَّارْ“We are going home”. The i stays and w closes it.
And with “eat”, the opposite: regularity tempts you into kankli. It is kanakul, “I eat”, with a long a that the dictionary form does not show.
The morning traffic
A radio-style traffic report, written for this lesson. The town and the crossroads have no name: they are invented.
الطّْرِيقْ دْيَالْ الصّْبَاحْ
الزّْحَامْ كْبِيرْ فْالْكَارْفُورْ دْيَالْ الْمْدِينَة.
الطُّومُوبِيلَاتْ كَيْمْشِيوْ بْشْوِيَّة.
الضَّوْ الْأَحْمَرْ مَا خْدَّامْشْ، الْبُولِيسْ كَايْنْ.
الطُّوبِيسْ كَيْوْصَلْ مْعَ التّْمْنْيَة وْنُصّْ.
الْمَحَطَّة قْرِيبَة: الطَّاكْسِي وْلَّا عْلَى رْجْلِيكْ.
Did you follow?
Where is the jam?
Show answers
At the town crossroads: f l-karfur dyal l-mdina.
Why is there a policeman?
Show answers
Because the red light is not working: ma khddamsh.
When does the bus arrive?
Show answers
At half past eight.
What two ways to the station does it suggest?
Show answers
By taxi or on foot.
Check
First lesson of A2: all five are open. Say each verb aloud before you look at the answer.
All five exercises of this lesson are open. It is the sample of the level: from lesson 20 on, three of the five are in the A2 book.
1Match
Join each pronoun to the verb that goes with it.
| 1 | أَنَا | a | كَتْشْرِي |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | هُومَا | b | كَنْجْرِي |
| 3 | نْتِ | c | كَنَاكْلُو |
| 4 | حْنَا | d | كَيْمْشِيوْ |
2Fill in
Use each verb in the box once.
كَنْمْشِيكَيْجِيوْكَتْجْرِيكَيَاكُلْ
- أَنَا ___ لْلْخْدْمَة فْالطُّوبِيسْ
- صْحَابِي ___ لْلدَّارْ فْاللِّيلْ
- هِيَ ___ بْالزّْرْبَة
- هُوَ ___ الْخُبْزْ مْعَ أَتَايْ
3Make it plural
I to we, you to you all, he and she to they. Mind the i.
- أَنَا كَنْمْشِي بْشْوِيَّة
- هُوَ كَيْشْرِي الطُّومُوبِيلْ
- نْتَ كَتْجْرِي بْزَّافْ
- هِيَ كَتْجِي بْكْرِي
4True or false?
According to the traffic report.
- There is heavy traffic at the crossroads.
- The cars are moving fast.
- There is a policeman at the crossroads.
- The bus arrives at half past nine.
5Write
In four sentences, say how you get to work or class and how you get home. Use at least two words from the box.
كَنْمْشِيكَنْرْكَبْالطُّوبِيسْقْرِيبْبْعِيدْ
A model
الْخْدْمَة دْيَالِي بْعِيدَة شْوِيَّة. فْالصّْبَاحْ كَنْرْكَبْ الطُّوبِيسْ. فْالْعْشِيَّة كَنْمْشِي عْلَى رْجْلِيَّ، الزّْحَامْ كْبِيرْ. الدَّارْ دْيَالْ مّي قْرِيبَة، كَنْجِي لِيهَا نْهَارْ الْحَدّْ.
Show answers
| 1. Match | 1-b, 2-d, 3-a, 4-c |
|---|---|
| 2. Fill in | كَنْمْشِي · كَيْجِيوْ · كَتْجْرِي · كَيَاكُلْ |
| 3. Make it plural | حْنَا كَنْمْشِيوْ بْشْوِيَّة · هُومَا كَيْشْرِيوْ الطُّومُوبِيلْ · نْتُومَا كَتْجْرِيوْ بْزَّافْ · هُومَا كَيْجِيوْ بْكْرِي |
| 4. True or false? | 1-True, 2-False, 3-True, 4-False |
I can now
- Say how I get somewhere and whether it is near or far.
- Put msha, jra and shra into the present.
- Make the -iw plural without losing the i.
- Use kanakul and kanji, the two irregulars.