Lesson 64 · B1
Six days without water
The last B1 lesson. A single local news story pulls together almost everything from twenty-four lessons: water that “was cut off”, how long it's “been” off, what the company said, what would have happened if…
- Read a full news story with no simplified grammar.
- Spot each B1 structure in context.
- Report a problem with public services.
- Close B1 with a long text of your own.
Twenty-four words
Public services and news language: state, confirm, promise, demand. Several are formal, newspaper words.
Water
- الْمَا الشّْرُوبْ l-ma sh-shrub drinking water
- الْقَنْوَاتْ l-qanawat pipes; mains
-
الرُّوبِينِي
r-robini
tap; faucet
French robinet.
-
الْكُونْطُورْ
l-kuntur
meter
French compteur.
- الْإِصْلَاحْ l-islah repair
What happens
-
تّْقْطْعْ
ttqte3
to be cut off
tt-: no one does it; it happens.
- تّْصْلَحْ ttsle7 to be repaired
-
مْقْطُوعْ
mqtu3
cut off (adj.)
Passive participle.
- رْجَعْ rje3 to come back
-
وْزّْعْ
wezze3
to distribute
Form II.
Who
- السّْكَّانْ s-sukkan residents
- الْجَّمْعِيَّة j-jam3iyya association
- الشّْرِكَة sh-sharika company
-
الْمُتَحَدّْثْ
l-muta7addith
spokesperson
Newspaper word.
-
رَئِيسْ الْجَّمَاعَة
ra'is j-jama3a
mayor
“Head of the commune”. An iḍāfa.
What they say
- صَرّْحْ sarre7 to state; declare
- أَكّْدْ akked to confirm
- وْعَدْ w3ed to promise
- طَالْبْ بْ taleb b to demand
- حْتَجّْ 7tejj to protest
News connectors
- حَسَبْ 7asab according to
- فْ الْمُقَابِلْ f l-muqabil on the other hand
- فْ انْتِظَارْ f intizar pending; while waiting for
-
ابْتِدَاءً مْنْ
ibtida'an men
starting from
Pure Standard Arabic, inside news Darija.
B1 in one news story
Four lines from the story. Each one reviews a lesson. Which?
- هَادِي سْتّْ أَيَّامْ وْ الْمَا مْقْطُوعْ فْالْحَيّْhadi sett iyyam u l-ma mqtu3 f l-7ayy
- الْمُتَحَدّْثْ قَالْ بْلِّي الْقَنْوَاتْ قْدَامْ بْزَّافْl-muta7addith qal blli l-qanawat qdam bzzaf
- إِلَا مَا تّْصْلْحَاتْشْ الْقَنْوَاتْ، غَادِي يْعَاوْدْ يْتّْقْطْعْila ma-ttsel7atsh l-qanawat, ghadi y3awed yttqte3
- جَابُو الْكَامْيُونَاتْ بَاشْ يْوَزّْعُو الْمَا عْلَى السّْكَّانْjabu l-kamyunat bash ywezz3u l-ma 3la s-sukkan
Where's a verb with no subject? A duration? Something someone said? A purpose?
What you're reviewing
tt-, no agent (lesson 44): ttqte3 l-ma, “the water was cut off”. And its participle: mqtu3.
hadi + duration + u (58): hadi sett iyyam u l-ma mqtu3.
Reported speech (50): qal blli…, sarre7 blli….
Real ila (48) and unreal kun… kun (49).
bash + bare verb (51).
Iḍāfa (57): sharikat tawzi3 l-ma.
yemken + bare verb (60).
One structure per row
| Form | Say it | Means |
|---|---|---|
| تّْقْطْعْ الْمَا ← الْمَا مْقْطُوعْ | ttqte3 l-ma → l-ma mqtu3 | the water was cut off → the water is off |
| هَادِي جُمْعَة وْ الْمَا مْقْطُوعْ | hadi jum3a u l-ma mqtu3 | the water's been off for a week |
| قَالْ بْلِّي الْإِصْلَاحْ غَادِي يْسَالِي | qal blli l-islah ghadi ysali | he said the repair will be finished |
| إِلَا مَا رْجَعْشْ الْمَا، غَادِي نْحْتَجُّو | ila ma-rje3sh l-ma, ghadi n7tejju | if the water doesn't come back, we'll protest |
| كُونْ صْلْحُو الْقَنْوَاتْ، كُونْ مَا وْقَعْ وَالُو | kun sel7u l-qanawat, kun ma-wqe3 walu | if they'd fixed the pipes, nothing would have happened |
| جَاوْ بَاشْ يْوَزّْعُو الْمَا | jaw bash ywezz3u l-ma | they came to hand out water |
| يْمْكْنْ يْرْجَعْ الْمَا غْدَّا | yemken yrje3 l-ma ghedda | the water might come back tomorrow |
| شَرِكَة تَوْزِيعْ الْمَا | sharikat tawzi3 l-ma | the water distribution company |
Row 4: “doesn't come back”, present in English; past in Darija.
What English gives you, and what it costs
Free: “if they'd fixed…, nothing would have happened”. Unreal marked twice, in both languages: kun… kun.
Costly: the passive. English “was cut off” has a hidden agent you could add (“by the company”). Darija tt- has no room for one.
Costly: “if it doesn't come back”. Present in English, past in Darija: ila ma-rje3sh.
Your mistake, not someone else's
The old one, now inside a long text: “they came to hand out” — “to” feels like it wants an ordinary verb.
×جَاوْ بَاشْ كَيْوَزّْعُو الْمَاka- after bash.
✓جَاوْ بَاشْ يْوَزّْعُو الْمَا“They came to hand out water”.
After bash, khass, bgha, khelli and yemken: never ka-.
A local news story
A story written for this lesson in news-agency style. The neighbourhood and people are invented. Read it all before the questions.
حَيّْ النّْخِيلْ: هَادِي سْتّْ أَيَّامْ وْ الْمَا مْقْطُوعْ
هَادِي سْتّْ أَيَّامْ وْ السّْكَّانْ دْيَالْ حَيّْ النّْخِيلْ بْلَا مَا. الْمَا تّْقْطْعْ نْهَارْ الْخْمِيسْ اللِّي فَاتْ، مْلِّي تْهَرّْسَاتْ وَحْدَة مْنْ الْقَنْوَاتْ الْكْبَارْ.
الْمُتَحَدّْثْ بْاسْمْ شَرِكَة تَوْزِيعْ الْمَا صَرّْحْ بْلِّي الْقَنْوَاتْ قْدَامْ بْزَّافْ، وْ بْلِّي الْإِصْلَاحْ غَادِي يْسَالِي قْبَلْ نْهَارْ الِاثْنِينْ.
فْ انْتِظَارْ الْإِصْلَاحْ، الْجَّمَاعَة جَابْتْ جُوجْ كَامْيُونَاتْ دْ الْمَا بَاشْ يْوَزّْعُوهْ عْلَى السّْكَّانْ كُلّْ صْبَاحْ.
وَلَكِنْ جَمْعِيَّة السّْكَّانْ مَا مْقْتَنْعَاشْ. رَئِيسْتْهَا، فَاطْمَة، قَالْتْ: «كُونْ صْلْحُو الْقَنْوَاتْ هَادِي عْشْرْ سْنِينْ، كُونْ مَا وْقَعْ وَالُو.»
وْ زَادْتْ بْلِّي إِلَا مَا رْجَعْشْ الْمَا قْبَلْ الِاثْنِينْ، السّْكَّانْ غَادِي يْحْتَجُّو قُدَّامْ الْجَّمَاعَة.
رَئِيسْ الْجَّمَاعَة وْعَدْ بْلِّي غَادِي يْتّْبْدّْلُو الْقَنْوَاتْ الْقْدَامْ كُلّْهُمْ ابْتِدَاءً مْنْ الْعَامْ الْجَّايْ. يْمْكْنْ يْرْجَعْ الْمَا قْبَلْ، حَسَبْ الشّْرِكَة، إِلَا مْشَى الْخْدْمَة مْزْيَانْ.
Did you follow?
Why was the water cut off?
Show answers
One of the large pipes burst.
What does the company spokesperson say?
Show answers
The pipes are very old and the repair will be done before Monday.
What has the council done in the meantime?
Show answers
Brought two water lorries to hand out water every morning.
What does the residents' association threaten?
Show answers
To protest outside the council if the water isn't back before Monday.
Check
Two here, three more in the B1 book.
Exercises 1 and 2 are here, with answers. Exercises 3 to 5 are in the B1 book, the PDF this site lives on: you can see the first item of each below.
1Fill the gap
Each gap reviews a B1 lesson.
تقطعهاديبليباشيمكن
- الما ___ نهار الخميس
- ___ ست أيام و حنا بلا ما
- المتحدث قال ___ الإصلاح غادي يسالي
- جابو الكاميونات ___ يوزعو الما
- ___ يرجع الما قبل الاثنين
2Pick the right one
The well-formed sentence.
- إِلَا مَا رْجَعْشْ الْمَا، غَادِي نْحْتَجُّو
- إِلَا مَا كَيْرْجَعْشْ الْمَا، غَادِي نْحْتَجُّو
- إِلَا مَا رْجَعْشْ الْمَا، نْحْتَجِّينَا
- كُونْ صْلْحُو الْقَنْوَاتْ، كُونْ مَا وْقَعْ وَالُو
- إِلَا صْلْحُو الْقَنْوَاتْ، كُونْ مَا وْقَعْ وَالُو
- كُونْ صْلْحُو الْقَنْوَاتْ، غَادِي مَا يْوْقَعْ وَالُو
- هَادِي جُمْعَة وْ مَا جَاوْبُوشْ
- جُمْعَة وْ مَا جَاوْبُوشْ هَادِي
- هَادِي جُمْعَة مَا كَيْجَاوْبُوشْ
- شَرِكَة تَوْزِيعْ الْمَا
- الشَّرِكَة التَّوْزِيعْ الْمَا
- شَرِكَة تَوْزِيعْ مَا الْ
3True or false?
According to the story.
- The water was cut off on a Thursday.
4Transform
Using the structure in brackets.
- «الْإِصْلَاحْ غَادِي يْسَالِي» (قَالْ)
5Your story
Write an eight-sentence news story about a problem on your street. Use at least five B1 structures.
تّْقْطْعْهَادِيصَرّْحْ بْلِّيإِلَاكُونْبَاشْيْمْكْنْ
The rest is in the B1 book
The B1 bookShow answers
| 1. Fill the gap | تقطع · هادي · بلي · باش · يمكن |
|---|---|
| 2. Pick the right one | 1-a, 2-a, 3-a, 4-a |
The B1 book: In preparation
Write and I will tell you the day it is out. One email, no list.
I can now
- Read a whole news story in Darija.
- Spot the B1 structures.
- Report what each side said.
- Write a long text using those structures.