Vocabulary Cards — Session 26: Weather

Print this page. Cut along the dotted lines. Each card is index-card sized. Carry them in your pocket. Look at one card when you walk outside, when you peek out the window, before you grab a jacket.

Card 1

Say it: TA-ʔs (the "q" is deep in the throat — like a tiny cough) Means: Weather

🎨 Picture: A child looking out an apartment window at the sky — half sunny, half cloudy.

Use it when: You wake up and check the sky. Someone asks how it is outside. You're deciding what to wear.

This word starts with our Letter of the Day: ط (Ta) — the big, strong T.

Card 2

Say it: HARR (hold the R — harrrr) Means: Hot

🎨 Picture: A kid on a Beirut balcony in summer, fanning their face. A cold glass of water sweating on the table.

Use it when: It's a hot day. You step outside in July. You drink something cold and say "oof, fee harr!" (oof, it's hot!).

Card 3

Say it: BARD Means: Cold

🎨 Picture: A child in a puffy jacket and scarf, breath visible in the air, mountains behind them.

Use it when: You walk outside and shiver. You touch ice. You ask teta for a sweater because fee bard (it's cold).

Card 4

Say it: SHI-ta Means: Rain (Levantine — also means "winter")

🎨 Picture: Rain falling on a village street. A kid jumping in a puddle with rain boots.

Use it when: You see rain on the window. You hear thunder. You grab an umbrella. In Lebanon, shatwiyye means "a rainy day" — and people LOVE a good rainy day with tea.

Card 5

Say it: THALJ (the "th" like in think) Means: Snow

🎨 Picture: Snow on the cedar trees in the Lebanese mountains. A child making a tiny snowman on a balcony railing.

Use it when: Snow falls. You see snow on a mountain. You put ice in a drink (yes — thalj also means ice cubes!).

Card 6

Say it: HA-wa Means: Wind / Air (Levantine)

🎨 Picture: A kid's hair blowing sideways, a kite high in the sky over the sea.

Use it when: The wind blows. You open a window for fresh air. A breeze cools you down on a hot day. "Fee hawa hilo" = "There's a nice breeze."

A bonus card — for the family

Card 7 (bonus)

Say it: SHAMS Means: Sun

🎨 Picture: The bright Mediterranean sun over the sea. A child squinting and smiling.

Use it when: The sun comes out. You sit in a sunny spot. You point at the sky in the morning. Many Arab girls are named Shams — because the sun is that beloved.

How to use these cards

1. Make them part of the morning. Every day, pick the card that matches the weather. Hold it up. Say it. "Al-yawm fee shams!" (Today there's sun!)
2. Play "weather reporter." Let your kid stand by the window and announce the weather in Arabic. Even one word counts.
3. Layer the cards. A rainy + cold day? Hold up شَتا AND بَرد. Weather is rarely just one thing.
4. Don't drill. Just notice. When you walk to the car and feel wind, say hawa. When you sip cold water, say bard. The words stick when they live in real moments.

On the Letter of the Day: ط (Ta)

You see it at the start of طَقس (weather). It's a big, strong T — fuller in the mouth than the regular ت (Ta) we met before. Say it deep. Say it heavy. It's the T you'd use if you were stomping your foot.

You'll also hear it in words coming soon: طَيّارة (airplane), بَطّيخ (watermelon), قِطّة (cat).

For now: just notice the shape. ط — like a little pot with a tall stick.

A note for grown-ups

In the Levant, weather is a whole conversation. Neighbors talk about it on the stairs. Tetas predict rain by their knees. A first snowfall in the mountains is a phone-call event — "ija al-thalj!" (the snow came!).

When you use these words with your kid, you're not just teaching vocabulary. You're teaching them how Arab families talk — small, daily, warm. Weather is the easiest doorway in.

Yalla Arabic · Vocabulary Cards · Session 26