Skip to main content
DarijaGo
All lessons

Module 1 · Greetings and introductions

Lesson 5 · Beginner · 4 min

Wach kat3ref darija? Languages

Saying which languages you speak, asking people to slow down, and saying whether you understood.

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

In this lesson

  • Say which languages you speak
  • Ask someone to speak slowly
  • Say “I understood” / “I didn’t understand”

Morocco is multilingual: Darija, Tamazight, French, Spanish, English. A few words of Darija always go down well.

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. KarimWach kat3erfi darija?Do you speak Darija?
  2. LenaGhir chwiya. Kan3ref chi kelmat.Just a little. I know a few words.
  3. KarimWa3er! W chno mn lougha khra kat3erfi?Great! What other languages do you speak?
  4. LenaKanhder lingliziya w ssouwidiya.I speak English and Swedish.
  5. KarimAna kanhder darija, lfransawiya w chwiya d tamazight.I speak Darija, French and a bit of Tamazight.
  6. LenaSme7 lia, t9der thder b chwiya?Sorry, could you speak slowly?
  7. KarimWakha. Wach fhemti daba?Okay. Did you understand now?
  8. LenaIyyeh, fhemt. Chokran!Yes, I understood. Thanks!
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

kat3ref / kat3erfiكتعرف / كتعرفي
you know (to a man / to a woman)You “know” a language: “wach kat3ref darija?”.
kanhderكنهضر
I speak
darijaالدارجة
Moroccan Arabic
lfransawiyaالفرنساوية
French (language)
lingliziyaالإنجليزية
English (language)
tamazightتمازيغت
the Amazigh (Berber) languageAn official language of Morocco, spoken by millions.
kelma / kelmatكلمة / كلمات
word / words
b chwiyaبشوية
slowly, gently
fhemt / ma fhemtchفهمت / ما فهمتش
I understood / I didn’t understand
3awd 3afakعاود عافاك
say it again, please

Repeat after me

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

  • Wach kat3erfi darija?

    واش كتعرفي الدارجة؟

    Do you speak Darija?

  • Ghir chwiya. Kan3ref chi kelmat.

    غير شوية. كنعرف شي كلمات.

    Just a little. I know a few words.

  • Sme7 lia, t9der thder b chwiya?

    سمح ليا، تقدر تهضر بشوية؟

    Sorry, could you speak slowly?

  • Iyyeh, fhemt. Chokran!

    إيه، فهمت. شكرا!

    Yes, I understood. Thanks!

Quiz

  1. Question 1 of 7What does Lena ask Karim to do?
  2. Question 2 of 7Fill in the blankWach daba?Did you understand now?
  3. Question 3 of 7You didn’t understand. What do you say?
  4. Question 4 of 7Match each expression with its meaning.
  5. Question 5 of 7What does “kat3ref / kat3erfi” mean?
  6. Question 6 of 7How do you say “I understood / I didn’t understand” in Darija?
  7. Question 7 of 7 · Review from lesson 4Review (lesson 4): what does “fransawi / fransawiya” mean?

Your turn

Say which languages you speak, then politely ask someone to repeat slowly.

Show an example answer

Kanhder lfransawiya w chwiya d darija. 3awd b chwiya, 3afak.

كنهضر الفرنساوية وشوية د الدارجة. عاود بشوية، عافاك.

I speak French and a bit of Darija. Say it again slowly, please.

Summary

“Wach kat3ref darija?”, “kanhder…”, “b chwiya” to slow things down, and “ma fhemtch, 3awd 3afak” when you didn’t understand.

Finished?

Your progress is saved in this browser, on this device only. It is not synced to your other devices.

Review these lessons