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Module 9 · Grammar and communication

Lesson 87 · Lower intermediate · 4 min

The present tense: every person

Conjugating a verb in the present for I, you, he, she, we, you all, they.

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

In this lesson

  • Conjugate “mcha” (go) in the present
  • Spot the prefixes kan-, kat-, kay- and the plural -w
  • Say where everyone is going

The present follows a regular pattern: kan- (I), kat- (you, she), kay- (he), and -w in the plural: kanmchiw (we go), katmchiw (you all go), kaymchiw (they go).

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. BbaNhar ssebt, fin kaymchi kolla wa7d?On Saturday, where is everyone going?
  2. AyaAna kanmchi l lmadrasa d lmousi9a.I go to music school.
  3. BbaW khouk?And your brother?
  4. AyaHowa kaymchi l lmatch m3a s7abo.He goes to the match with his friends.
  5. BbaW mamak?And your mum?
  6. AyaHiya katmchi l souq. W nta, a bba?She goes to the market. And you, Dad?
  7. BbaAna w mamak kanmchiw l souq m3a ba3d. W ntouma katmchiw l jeddkom f l3chiya.Your mum and I go to the market together. And you two go to your grandpa’s in the afternoon.
  8. AyaIwa kolchi kaymchi chi blassa!So everyone’s going somewhere!
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

kanmchiكنمشي
I go
katmchiكتمشي
you go; she goes
kaymchiكيمشي
he goes
kanmchiwكنمشيو
we go
katmchiwكتمشيو
you (all) go
kaymchiwكيمشيو
they go
kolla wa7dكلا واحد
each one, everyone
kolchiكلشي
everyone, everything
lmousi9aالموسيقى
music
s7aboصحابو
his friends
chi blassaشي بلاصة
somewhere

Repeat after me

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

  • Ana kanmchi l lmadrasa d lmousi9a.

    أنا كنمشي للمدرسة د الموسيقى.

    I go to music school.

  • Howa kaymchi l lmatch m3a s7abo.

    هو كيمشي للماتش مع صحابو.

    He goes to the match with his friends.

  • Hiya katmchi l souq. W nta, a bba?

    هي كتمشي للسوق. ونتا، آ بّا؟

    She goes to the market. And you, Dad?

  • Ana w mamak kanmchiw l souq m3a ba3d. W ntouma katmchiw l jeddkom f l3chiya.

    أنا وماماك كنمشيو للسوق مع بعض. وانتوما كتمشيو لجدكم فالعشية.

    Your mum and I go to the market together. And you two go to your grandpa’s in the afternoon.

Quiz

  1. Question 1 of 7Where does Mum go on Saturday?
  2. Question 2 of 7Fill in the blankHiya l souq.She goes to the market.
  3. Question 3 of 7How do you say “we go”?
  4. Question 4 of 7Match each expression with its meaning.
  5. Question 5 of 7What does “kolchi” mean?
  6. Question 6 of 7How do you say “we go” in Darija?
  7. Question 7 of 7 · Review from lesson 81Review (lesson 81): what does “homa” mean?

Your turn

Say where four people are going this weekend, using four different forms of “mcha”.

Show an example answer

Ana kanmchi l b7er. Khti katmchi l Fas. 7na kanmchiw l cinema. Homa kaymchiw l jbel.

أنا كنمشي للبحر. ختي كتمشي لفاس. حنا كنمشيو للسينما. هوما كيمشيو للجبل.

I go to the beach. My sister goes to Fez. We go to the cinema. They go to the mountains.

Summary

kan-mchi, kat-mchi, kay-mchi, kat-mchi (she); plural: kan-mchi-w, kat-mchi-w, kay-mchi-w.

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