Lesson 79 · Lower intermediate · 4 min
Working hours and leave
Understanding your working hours, Saturdays, the Friday break and leave.
- Unreviewed: this lesson’s Darija and translations have not yet been checked by a native speaker.
In this lesson
- Ask about and understand a schedule
- Use “mn … l…” (from … to …)
- Talk about leave
Many companies work Monday to Friday, sometimes Saturday mornings. On Fridays the midday break is often longer, for prayer.
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
- IngridChno homa sswaye3 dyal lkhedma?What are the working hours?
- AbdelkrimMn tmnya w nss l stta, mn letnin l jjem3a.From half past eight to six, Monday to Friday.
- IngridW nhar ssebt?And Saturday?
- AbdelkrimSsebt ghir f sba7, kol juj d ssimanat.Saturday mornings only, every other week.
- IngridW jjem3a? Sme3t belli kayna pause twila.And Friday? I heard there’s a long break.
- AbdelkrimIyyeh, mn ttnach l ttlata, 3la 7sab ssla.Yes, from twelve to three, because of the prayer.
- IngridW l3otla f sseif?And summer holidays?
- Abdelkrim3ndek tlatin yom f l3am. Khassek tgoulha 9bel b chhar.You get thirty days a year. You have to give a month’s notice.
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
- sswaye3 dyal lkhedmaالسوايع ديال الخدمة
- working hours
- mn … l…من … ل…
- from … to …
- kol juj d ssimanatكل جوج د السيمانات
- every other week
- sme3t belliسمعت بلي
- I heard that
- pauseپوز
- break
- twil / twilaطويل / طويلة
- long (m. / f.)
- 3la 7sabعلى حساب
- because of, depending on
- yom / iyyamيوم / ايام
- day / days
- chharشهر
- a month
- l3amالعام
- the year
- 9bel b…قبل ب…
- … in advance
Repeat after me
Read each phrase out loud, then cover it and say it from memory.
Chno homa sswaye3 dyal lkhedma?
شنو هوما السوايع ديال الخدمة؟
What are the working hours?
Mn tmnya w nss l stta, mn letnin l jjem3a.
من التمنية ونص للستة، من التنين للجمعة.
From half past eight to six, Monday to Friday.
Ssebt ghir f sba7, kol juj d ssimanat.
السبت غير فالصباح، كل جوج د السيمانات.
Saturday mornings only, every other week.
3ndek tlatin yom f l3am. Khassek tgoulha 9bel b chhar.
عندك تلاتين يوم فالعام. خاصك تقولها قبل بشهر.
You get thirty days a year. You have to give a month’s notice.
Quiz
Your turn
Describe your working hours and how many days of leave you have.
Show an example answer
Kankhdem mn ts3oud l khamsa, mn letnin l jjem3a. 3ndi khmsa w 3echrin yom d l3otla.
كنخدم من التسعود للخمسة، من التنين للجمعة. عندي خمسة وعشرين يوم د العطلة.
I work from nine to five, Monday to Friday. I have twenty-five days of leave.
Summary
“Mn … l…”, “kol juj d ssimanat”, “pause”, “tlatin yom f l3am” and “9bel b chhar”.
Finished?
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