Skip to content
Learning Darijaالدارجة

Lesson 38 · A2

Before I go out

First, then, finally. Before leaving, after eating, when we arrived. Telling things in order takes few words and has one trap for English speakers: the verb after “before”.

  • Tell something step by step, from start to finish.
  • Use before, after, when and until with a verb.
  • Know which verb form each connector wants.
  • Follow the account of a wedding.
1

Twenty-one words

Connectors for ordering events, and the vocabulary of a Moroccan wedding, which is always told in order because it has one.

Ordering

  • اللّْوّْلْ lluwwel first

    “The first”, as an adverb. Also f l-luwwel.

  • مَنْ بَعْدْ men be3d then; afterwards
  • عَادْ 3ad only then; not until

    3ad fhemt, only then did I understand. Lesson 22's 3ad in a new use.

  • فْالْأَخِيرْ f l-akhir finally; in the end
  • فْنَفْسْ الْوَقْتْ f nefs l-weqt at the same time
  • دْغْيَا degya right away

With a verb after

  • قْبَلْ مَا qbel ma before

    Followed by a verb without ka-, even about the past.

  • مُورَا مَا mura ma after

    Followed by the past. Also men be3d ma.

  • مْلِّي mlli when

    Lesson 24's word, with the past.

  • حْتَّى 7tta until

    With the past: 7tta jat, until she came.

The wedding

  • الْعُرْسْ l-3ors wedding
  • الْعْرُوسَة l-3rusa bride
  • الْعْرِيسْ l-3ris groom
  • النّْكَّافَة n-nekkafa the nekkafa

    The woman who dresses the bride and runs her changes of outfit. No English word.

  • الْحْنَّة l-7enna henna

    The ceremony where the bride's hands are painted.

  • الْعَمَّارِيَّة l-3emmariya palanquin

    The chair on which the bride is carried shoulder-high.

  • الضّْيَافْ d-dyaf guests

    Plural of dif.

Verbs of the day

  • بْدَا bda to begin

    Defective.

  • سَالَى sala to finish

    Defective.

  • بَدّْلْ beddel to change (something)

    beddel l-keswa, change outfit.

  • زَغْرَتْ zeghret to ululate

    The high trilling cry of joy women give.

2

Before, after, when

Four sentences with two actions in order. Look at the verb after each connector.

  1. اللّْوّْلْ غْسْلْتْ، مَنْ بَعْدْ لْبْسْتْlluwwel ghselt, men be3d lbest
  2. قْبَلْ مَا نْخْرُجْ، شْرَبْتْ أَتَايْqbel ma nkhruj, shrebt atay
  3. مُورَا مَا كْلِينَا، بْدَاتْ الْمُوسِيقَىmura ma klina, bdat l-musiqa
  4. بْقِينَا نْتْسْنَّاوْ حْتَّى جَاتْ الْعْرُوسَةbqina ntsennaw 7tta jat l-3rusa

After qbel ma, is the verb past or not? And after mura ma?

The rule

Adverbs order whole sentences: lluwwel, first; men be3d, then; f l-akhir, finally. They go in front and don't touch the verb.

Connectors take a conjugated verb, and each one wants a particular form:

qbel ma + verb without ka-: qbel ma nkhruj, before I go out. Even when talking about yesterday: the action hadn't happened yet.

mura ma, men be3d ma, mlli, 7tta + past: mura ma klina, after we ate; mlli wselna, when we arrived.

3ad before the verb means “only then”: 3ad bdaw, they didn't start until then.

Ordering connectors

FormSay itMeans
اللّْوّْلْ ... مَنْ بَعْدْ ... فْالْأَخِيرْlluwwel ... men be3d ... f l-akhirfirst ... then ... finally
قْبَلْ مَا نْخْرُجْqbel ma nkhrujbefore I go out
قْبَلْ مَا يْجِيوْ الضّْيَافْqbel ma yjiw d-dyafbefore the guests come
مُورَا مَا خْرَجْتْmura ma khrejtafter I went out
مْلِّي وْصَلْنَاmlli wselnawhen we arrived
حْتَّى جَاتْ الْعْرُوسَة7tta jat l-3rusauntil the bride came
عَادْ بْدَاوْ3ad bdawonly then did they begin
مَنْ بَعْدْ مَا كْلِينَاmen be3d ma klinaafter we ate

English “before leaving”, “after eating” drop the person. Darija never does: qbel ma nkhruj, qbel ma tkhruj.

What English gives you, and what it costs

Free: the adverbs. First, then, finally: one to one.

Free: “until” and “when” + past. “Until she came”, “when we arrived”: same tense in both languages.

Costly: “before” + past. “Before I left” is past in English. In Darija, qbel ma always takes the unmarked form: qbel ma nkhruj.

Your mistake, not someone else's

You're telling a story about yesterday, everything is past, and English says “before I went out”. So the past goes after qbel ma too. Darija doesn't allow it.

×قْبَلْ مَا خْرَجْتْ، شْرَبْتْ أَتَايْ“Before I went out”. Past where it can't go.

✓قْبَلْ مَا نْخْرُجْ، شْرَبْتْ أَتَايْ“Before going out, I had tea”.

And “-ing” after “before” or “after”: there's no such form. Always a conjugated verb.

3

The wedding day

An account of a home wedding, from noon to dawn. Written for this lesson; the steps are those of many Moroccan weddings, though every region has its own.

نْهَارْ الْعُرْسْ

اللّْوّْلْ، فْالصّْبَاحْ، الْعْيَالَاتْ دَارُو الْحْنَّة لْلْعْرُوسَة.

قْبَلْ مَا يْجِيوْ الضّْيَافْ، النّْكَّافَة لْبّْسَاتْهَا التّْكْشِيطَة الْأُولَى.

مْلِّي وْصْلُو الضّْيَافْ، الْعْيَالَاتْ زَغْرْتُو وْ بْدَاتْ الْمُوسِيقَى.

مَنْ بَعْدْ، الْعْرُوسَة طْلْعَاتْ فْالْعَمَّارِيَّة، وْ الْعْرِيسْ حْدَاهَا.

بَدّْلَاتْ الْكْسْوَة سْبَعْ مَرَّاتْ. فْنَفْسْ الْوَقْتْ، الضّْيَافْ كَانُو كَيَاكْلُو وْ يْشَطْحُو.

مُورَا مَا سَالَاتْ الْمَاكْلَة، جَا الْحْلْوَة وْ أَتَايْ.

فْالْأَخِيرْ، مَعَ الْفَجْرْ، عَادْ مْشَاوْ النَّاسْ لْدْيُورْهُمْ.

The wedding day

Did you follow?

  1. What happens first?

    Show answers

    The women put henna on the bride.

  2. What does the nekkafa do before the guests arrive?

    Show answers

    Dresses the bride in her first outfit.

  3. How many times does the bride change?

    Show answers

    Seven.

  4. When do people go home?

    Show answers

    Finally, at dawn.

4

Check

Two here, three more in the A2 book.

Exercises 1 and 2 are here, with answers. Exercises 3 to 5 are in the A2 book, the PDF this site lives on: you can see the first item of each below.

1Put in order

Build each sentence. The connector goes first.

  1. سَدِّيتْمَاالشَّرْجَمْقْبَلْنْخْرُجْ

  2. أَتَايْكْلِينَامُورَاشْرَبْنَامَا

  3. لِيكْوْصَلْتْعَيّْطْتْمْلِّي

2Fill in

One connector from the box in each gap, to tell a morning in order.

اللّْوّْلْمَنْ بَعْدْقْبَلْ مَامْلِّيفْالْأَخِيرْ

  1. ___ غْسْلْتْ وْجْهِي
  2. ___ فْطَرْتْ
  3. ___ نْخْرُجْ، شْدِّيتْ السَّارُوتْ
  4. ___ وْصَلْتْ لْلْخْدْمَة، كَانْ الْبَابْ مْسْدُودْ
  5. ___، جَا الْمُدِيرْ بْالسَّارُوتْ

3True or false?

According to the wedding account.

  1. The henna is in the morning.

The rest is in the A2 book

3 more items, with the answers.

The A2 book

4Pick the right one

The verb form the connector wants.

    1. قْبَلْ مَا نْمْشِي
    2. قْبَلْ مَا مْشِيتْ
    3. قْبَلْ مَا كَنْمْشِي

The rest is in the A2 book

3 more items, with the answers.

The A2 book

5Tell it in order

Tell a difficult day in six sentences, with six different connectors.

اللّْوّْلْمَنْ بَعْدْقْبَلْ مَامُورَا مَامْلِّيفْالْأَخِيرْ

The rest is in the A2 book

The A2 book
Show answers
1. Put in orderقْبَلْ مَا نْخْرُجْ سَدِّيتْ الشَّرْجَمْ · مُورَا مَا كْلِينَا شْرَبْنَا أَتَايْ · مْلِّي وْصَلْتْ عَيّْطْتْ لِيكْ
2. Fill inاللّْوّْلْ · مَنْ بَعْدْ · قْبَلْ مَا · مْلِّي · فْالْأَخِيرْ

The A2 book: In preparation

Write and I will tell you the day it is out. One email, no list.

Tell me when it is out

I can now

  • Tell things in order with lluwwel, men be3d, f l-akhir.
  • Use qbel ma with a verb without ka-.
  • Use mura ma, mlli and 7tta with the past.
  • Follow the account of a wedding.