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Module 10 · Moroccan culture and real conversations

Lesson 92 · Lower intermediate · 4 min

Friday couscous with a family

Eating from a shared dish: your section, hand or spoon, and sharing the meat.

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

In this lesson

  • Know the customs of the shared dish
  • Say “bismillah” before eating
  • Thank your hosts at the table

In many families everyone eats from one big shared dish. Each person eats from the part in front of them, and the host shares out the meat in the middle.

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. LeilaTfeddel, gles m3ana 3la ttabla.Please, sit with us at the table.
  2. TomKolchi kayakol mn nefs ttbsil?Does everyone eat from the same dish?
  3. LeilaIyyeh. Kol mn jjiha dyalek, 9oddamek.Yes. Eat from your side, in front of you.
  4. TomW b lyed wla b lm3el9a?With your hand or with a spoon?
  5. LeilaLkeskes b lm3el9a, walakin ttajine b lkhobz.Couscous with a spoon, but tajine with bread.
  6. TomWakha. Bismillah!Okay. Bismillah!
  7. LeilaL7em f lwest, lwalida ghadi t9essmou 3likom.The meat is in the middle, my mother will share it out.
  8. TomLah ykhlef 3likom, hadchi bzzaf!Thank you so much, this is too much!
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

ttbsilالطبسيل
the dish, plate
jjiha dyalekالجيهة ديالك
your side
9oddamekقدامك
in front of you
lm3el9aالمعلقة
the spoon
b lkhobzبالخبز
with bread
bismillahبسم الله
in God’s name (before eating)
f lwestفالوسط
in the middle
t9essemتقسم
to share out, divide
lah ykhlef 3likomالله يخلف عليكم
thank you (to hosts)
ttablaالطبلة
the table
lkeskesالكسكس
couscous

Repeat after me

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

  • Kolchi kayakol mn nefs ttbsil?

    كلشي كياكل من نفس الطبسيل؟

    Does everyone eat from the same dish?

  • Iyyeh. Kol mn jjiha dyalek, 9oddamek.

    إيه. كول من الجيهة ديالك، قدامك.

    Yes. Eat from your side, in front of you.

  • Lkeskes b lm3el9a, walakin ttajine b lkhobz.

    الكسكس بالمعلقة، ولكن الطاجين بالخبز.

    Couscous with a spoon, but tajine with bread.

  • Wakha. Bismillah!

    واخا. بسم الله!

    Okay. Bismillah!

Quiz

  1. Question 1 of 7How do you eat tajine?
  2. Question 2 of 7Fill in the blankKol mn jjiha dyalek, .Eat from your side, in front of you.
  3. Question 3 of 7What do people say before they start eating?
  4. Question 4 of 7Match each expression with its meaning.
  5. Question 5 of 7What does “lah ykhlef 3likom” mean?
  6. Question 6 of 7How do you say “couscous” in Darija?
  7. Question 7 of 7 · Review from lesson 15Review (lesson 15): what does “letnin” mean?

Your turn

You’re at the table: ask how to eat, say “bismillah”, then thank your hosts.

Show an example answer

Nakol b lyed wla b lm3el9a? … Bismillah! … Lah ykhlef 3likom!

ناكل باليد ولا بالمعلقة؟ … بسم الله! … الله يخلف عليكم!

Do I eat with my hand or a spoon? … Bismillah! … Thank you so much!

Summary

Shared dish (“ttbsil”), “kol 9oddamek”, couscous “b lm3el9a”, tajine “b lkhobz”, “bismillah” and “lah ykhlef 3likom”.

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