Vocabulary Cards — Session 33: At My Friend's House

Print this page. Cut along the dotted lines. Each card is index-card sized. Carry them in your pocket. Pull one out before you visit a friend, or before a friend comes to you.

Card 1

Say it: tfad-DAL (to a boy) / tfad-DA-li (to a girl) Means: Please — go ahead, come in, take this, sit here.

🎨 Picture: A child at an open door, one hand extended, gesturing a friend inside.

Use it when: You open the door for a guest. You hand someone a plate of fruit. You offer someone the seat next to you on the couch.

This one word does so much work. It means please come in, please take it, please sit, please go first — all of it. You'll hear it a hundred times in any Lebanese living room.

Card 2

Say it: IJ-lis (to a boy) / IJ-li-si (to a girl) Means: Sit down. [m/f]

🎨 Picture: A child patting the cushion next to them on a balcony couch, smiling at a friend.

Use it when: A friend comes over and is standing awkwardly. You want someone to join you at the table. Teta walks in carrying groceries — pull out a chair: ijlisi, teta!

Card 3

Say it: bit-HIBB? (to a boy) / bit-HIB-bi? (to a girl) Means: Would you like? / Do you want?

🎨 Picture: A child holding out a small plate of cut watermelon, eyebrows up, asking.

Use it when: You're offering juice to a friend: bithibb 'aseer? You're sharing chips: bithibbi? You want to know if your cousin wants to play outside: bithibb nil'ab barra?

Card 4

Say it: B-JIB Means: I'll bring (it).

🎨 Picture: A child walking from the kitchen toward the living room with two glasses of water.

Use it when: Your friend says they're thirsty — bjib mayy! (I'll bring water!). Mama asks for the remote — bjib-ha! Your guest forgot a fork — bjib-lak wahad. (I'll bring you one.)

Card 5

Say it: DAYF Means: Guest.

🎨 Picture: A child ringing a doorbell, holding a small box of cookies as a gift.

Use it when: Someone is visiting your house — fi 'andna dayf! (We have a guest!). You're talking about being polite to visitors. You're the guest today at your friend's apartment.

In Levantine homes, a dayf is treated like the most important person in the room. The best chair, the first piece of cake, the freshest juice. El-dayf 'aziz — the guest is precious.

Card 6

Say it: HA-la Means: Welcome! / Hi there!

🎨 Picture: A child throwing open an apartment door, face bright, arms wide.

Use it when: A friend arrives at your door. Your cousin walks in. You answer the phone and hear someone you love: hala, hala, hala! (yes — Lebanese people say it three times in a row when they're really happy to see you.)

A bonus card — for the family

Card 7 (bonus)

Say it: SHU bit-HIBB TISH-rab? Means: What would you like to drink?

🎨 Picture: A child opening the fridge, looking back at a friend on the couch.

Use it when: A friend just sat down. A relative arrived. Anyone walks into your home — this is the second thing you say, right after hala. Juice, water, tea — something is always offered.

In a Lebanese home, no one sits for more than two minutes before being offered a drink. This is the rule. Your kid will hear it their whole life.

How to use these cards

1. Practice them before a real visit. The next time a friend is coming over — or your kid is going to a friend's house — pull out these cards in the car.
2. Play "host" at home. One kid is the dayf. The other opens the door, says hala, says tfaddal, ijlis, brings water. Then switch.
3. Use one word, not the whole sentence. Just tfaddal when handing over a snack. Just hala when someone walks in. Real life, small doses.
4. Heritage kids: you've heard these. You probably know tfaddal and hala already, even if you've never said them. This week — say them. Out loud. To a real person.

A note on m/f endings

You'll notice tfaddal / tfaddali and ijlis / ijlisi. Arabic changes the word a tiny bit depending on whether you're talking to a boy or a girl. The girl version usually adds an -i sound at the end.

Don't stress about getting it perfect. Even Lebanese kids mix them up sometimes. Just notice the pattern — it shows up everywhere in Arabic.

Yalla Arabic · Vocabulary Cards · Session 33