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Module 2 · Everyday life

Lesson 14 · Beginner · 4 min

Chhal f sa3a? Telling the time

Asking the time, quarter past, half past, quarter to, and opening hours.

  • Unreviewed: this lesson’s Darija and translations have not yet been checked by a native speaker.

In this lesson

  • Ask and tell the time
  • Use “w rbe3”, “w nss”, “9al rbe3”
  • Ask when a place opens or closes

To tell the time you use the numbers you know plus a few words: quarter, half, quarter to.

No audio for this lesson yet

This lesson hasn’t been recorded yet, and we won’t fake it with a made-up voice. Read the dialogue out loud with the help of the transliteration key.

Dialogue

  1. TravellerSme7 lia, chhal f sa3a?Excuse me, what time is it?
  2. Passer-byHadi l3achra w rbe3.It’s quarter past ten.
  3. TravellerChokran. Lmat7af kaysedd m3a chhal?Thanks. What time does the museum close?
  4. Passer-byKaysedd m3a stta d l3chiya.It closes at six in the evening.
  5. TravellerW kayt7ell m3a chhal?And what time does it open?
  6. Passer-byM3a ts3oud d sba7. 3ndek lwe9t.At nine in the morning. You have time.
  7. TravellerMzyan. Ghadi nmchi daba, 9bel ttnach.Good. I’ll go now, before noon.
  8. Passer-byMzyan. Ra chi rbe3 sa3a 3la rjlik.Good. It’s about a quarter of an hour on foot.
How to read the transliteration

Darija is written here in Latin letters, the way many Moroccans text. A few symbols stand for sounds English, French and Swedish don't have:

3
a tight sound from the throat (Arabic ع)
7
a breathy h, stronger than English h (ح)
9
a k made deep in the throat (ق)
gh
like a French r (غ)
kh
like the ch in Scottish loch or German Bach (خ)
ch
like English sh (ش)

Vocabulary

chhal f sa3a?شحال فالساعة؟
what time is it?
hadi…هادي…
it’s… (time)
w rbe3وربع
quarter past
w nssونص
half past“Sb3a w nss” = 7:30.
9al rbe3قل ربع
quarter to“Ttnach 9al rbe3” = 11:45.
m3a chhal?مع شحال؟
at what time?
kayseddكيسد
it closes
kayt7ellكيتحل
it opens
d sba7دالصباح
in the morning
ttnachالطناش
twelve o’clock, noon
9belقبل
before
3la rjlikعلى رجليك
on foot

Repeat after me

Read each phrase out loud, then cover it and say it from memory.

  • Sme7 lia, chhal f sa3a?

    سمح ليا، شحال فالساعة؟

    Excuse me, what time is it?

  • Hadi l3achra w rbe3.

    هادي العشرة وربع.

    It’s quarter past ten.

  • Chokran. Lmat7af kaysedd m3a chhal?

    شكرا. المتحف كيسد مع شحال؟

    Thanks. What time does the museum close?

  • W kayt7ell m3a chhal?

    وكيتحل مع شحال؟

    And what time does it open?

Quiz

  1. Question 1 of 7What time does the museum close?
  2. Question 2 of 7Fill in the blankHadi l3achra w .It’s quarter past ten.
  3. Question 3 of 7How do you say “half past seven”?
  4. Question 4 of 7Match each expression with its meaning.
  5. Question 5 of 7What does “3la rjlik” mean?
  6. Question 6 of 7How do you say “what time is it?” in Darija?
  7. Question 7 of 7 · Review from lesson 6Review (lesson 6): what does “3achra” mean?

Your turn

Ask the time, then ask what time the bank opens.

Show an example answer

Chhal f sa3a, 3afak? … Lbanka kat7ell m3a chhal?

شحال فالساعة، عافاك؟ … البانكا كتحل مع شحال؟

What time is it, please? … What time does the bank open?

Summary

“Chhal f sa3a?” – “Hadi … w rbe3 / w nss / 9al rbe3”. “Kayt7ell / kaysedd m3a chhal?” for opening hours.

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