I like, I want
Two small words are very useful: أُحِبّ (ʾuḥibb, “I like”) and أُرِيد (ʾurīd, “I want”). Put the thing after them. When you like something in general, use الْ: أُحِبّ الشَّاي is “I like tea”. When you ask for something, leave out الْ; a word without ة then gets the ending -an, written with an extra ا as in شُكْرًا: أُرِيد عَصِيرًا is “I want juice”, but أُرِيد قَهْوَة. To say no, put لَا before: لَا أُحِبّ الْقَهْوَة, لَا أُرِيد سَلَطَة. To ask a man “do you like…?” say هَل تُحِبّ … ؟. For now learn these as set phrases; in unit 16 you will see how verbs like these change.
| Arabic | Meaning |
|---|---|
| أُحِبّ الشَّاي | I like tea. |
| لَا أُحِبّ الْقَهْوَة | I do not like coffee. |
| أُرِيد عَصِيرًا | I want juice. |
| لَا أُرِيد سَلَطَة | I do not want salad. |
هَل تُحِبّ الْقَهْوَة؟
لَا، أُحِبّ الشَّاي.
هَل تُرِيد شَايًا الْآن؟
نَعَم، مِن فَضْلِك.
My likes. Write five things you like with أُحِبّ and three things you do not like with لَا أُحِبّ. Say each sentence aloud. Then ask a friend هَل تُحِبّ … ؟ about four foods or drinks, and write the answers: نَعَم، أُحِبّ … or لَا، لَا أُحِبّ ….
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