كَيْف (kayf) · howكَيْف الْحَال (kayf al-ḥāl) · how are you?كَيْف حَالُك (kayf ḥāluk) · how are you? (how is your state)بِخَيْر (bi-khayr) · fine, wellمُمْتَاز (mumtāz) · excellentلَا بَأْس (lā baʾs) · not badوَأَنْتَ (wa ʾanta) · and you? (to a man)وَأَنْتِ (wa ʾanti) · and you? (to a woman)
Explanation
Two common questions mean “how are you?”: kayf al-ḥāl and kayf ḥāluk, which is “how is your state?”. The answer is bi-khayr, “with goodness”, and you can add ʾanā: ʾanā bi-khayr, “I am fine”. Mumtāz means “excellent” and lā baʾs means “not bad”. To ask back, say wa ʾanta to a man and wa ʾanti to a woman; these small words are explained in unit 8. Full MSA says ḥāluka to a man and ḥāluki to a woman; in this course the ending of a noun is left off, so you say ḥāluk to both. Small words like ʾanta and ʾanti keep their last vowel, because it is part of the word.
Worked examples
Layla
كَيْف حَالُك؟
Karim
بِخَيْر، وَأَنْتِ؟
Layla
مُمْتَاز
Layla asks Karim how he is. He answers and asks back; she is excellent. Read: kayf ḥāluk? bi-khayr, wa ʾanti? mumtāz.
لَاlā+بَأْسbaʾs
Lā baʾs is two words: lā “no” and baʾs “harm”. So it means “no harm”, that is, “not bad”.
Three answers, from very good to just fine. Press each card.
Class activity
Mood cards. On three small papers draw a happy face, a calm face and a tired face. Under each write an answer: mumtāz, bi-khayr, lā baʾs. Shuffle the cards. A friend asks you kayf al-ḥāl; you pick a card and answer with it. Then swap roles.
Practice
1
Press Listen. At what time of day would you say this?
…
In the morning. The greeting is صَبَاح الْخَيْر (ṣabāḥ al-khayr), “good morning”.
2
Write in Arabic: “I am fine.”
أَنَا بِخَيْر
3
Layla asks كَيْف الْحَال؟ Which answer fits: مُمْتَاز or مَعَ السَّلَامَة?
مُمْتَاز (excellent). مَعَ السَّلَامَة means goodbye.
4
Which two words ask “how are you?” using the word for “your state”?
كَيْف حَالُك (kayf ḥāluk).
5
You ask a woman how she is, and she answers. How do you ask back: وَأَنْتَ or وَأَنْتِ?
