How are you in Arabic
So you’ve mastered “hello” but what do you say next? How do you ask "How are you?" in Arabic – and how do you reply? Whether you’re feeling well, a little tired, or not so good, you’ll know how to explain after this free Rocket Arabic audio lesson.
Whether you’re traveling to an Arabic-speaking country or getting to know people closer to home, these words and phrases are essential for your Arabic language survival kit. By the end of this lesson you’ll know the formal and informal ways to ask people how they are to ensure you make a good first impression. And just in case you need to apologize… you’ll learn how to say sorry in Arabic as well!
Feeling confident with these basic Arabic words and phrases will make such a positive difference to your experiences with Arabic-speaking people. Remember, a stranger is just a friend you haven’t met yet!
Resources for further reading:
Pronunciation help for asking "how are you?" in Arabic
For friends and family:
Practice Your Pronunciation With Rocket Record
Rocket Record lets you perfect your Arabic pronunciation. Just listen to the native speaker audio and then use the microphone icon to record yourself. Once you’re done, you’ll get a score out of 100 on your pronunciation and can listen to your own audio playback. (Use a headset mic for best results.) Problems? Click here!
ازيك؟
Ezayak?
How are you?
عامل ايه؟
3amel a?
How are you doing?
For strangers or more senior persons:
ازي حضرتك؟
Ezay 7adretak?
How are you?
What do you say if someone asks you one of these questions?
الحمد لله كويس.
El 7amdolela kowayes.
Well, thanks.
كويس اوي.
Kowayes awy.
Very well.
كالمعتاد.
Kalmo3tad.
As always.
تعبان شوية.
Ta3ban shewaya.
A little tired.
انا عيان.
Ana 3yan.
I'm sick.
يعني.
Ya3ni.
So-so.
مش وحش.
Mesh we7esh.
Not bad.
وحش.
We7esh.
Bad.
كله تمام.
Kolo tamam.
All good.
A common follow-up question is, “*And you?*”, “**wenta?” or more formal, “w7adretak?**”
و حضرتك؟
W7adretak?
And you? (formal)
وانت؟
Wenta?
And you?
If someone tells you that he or she is not feeling well you could say the following…
الف سلامة.
Alf salama.
Get well.
الله يسلمك
Allah yesalemak.
Thanks
Allah yesalemak is the response of alf salama. If someone is feeling great you might want to say the following…
كويس!
Kowayes!
Nice to hear.
The above words are extremely important. From experience, I know that the most important phrase in any language is how to say you’re sorry!
Others disagree. They say that there are THREE important phrases that you absolutely must know in any language. They are:
انا اسف
Ana asef.
I'm sorry.
انا بحبك
Ana ba7ebak.
I love you.
انا محتاج مساعدة
Ana me7tag mosa3da.
I need help.
Hmm, I can’t think of a situation in which I’d need to use all three, but I’ll leave it to your imagination! That’s it for today’s lesson.
For more on the use of Arabic questions check out these lessons...
- Asking questions in Arabic. Get the correct sentence structure and more!
- Learn the correct use of When? in Arabic.
!مع السلامة (Ma3a essalama!) Goodbye!
Amira Zaki: Rocket Arabic
Make It Stick With Rocket Reinforcement
Reinforce your learning from this lesson with the Rocket Reinforcement activities!