A shipment with defects in Arabic
The storekeeper and the driver sort out a shipment that came with defects in Arabic. 8 phrases that the conversation is made of: «بوليصة الشحن معي، لكن الشحنة كلها فيها عطل.» — The waybill is with me, but the whole shipment has a defect; «أين بالضبط؟ أرني منتجا واحدا.» — Where exactly? Show me one product.
How the whole thing sounds
The situation: the storekeeper and the driver sort out a shipment that came with defects. First the whole conversation, then each line on its own, with a translation.
- بوليصة الشحن معي، لكن الشحنة كلها فيها عطل.булыйсат аш-шахн маʿий, лякинн аш-шахна кульха фийха ʿаталь.The waybill is with me, but the whole shipment has a defect.
- أين بالضبط؟ أرني منتجا واحدا.айна би-з-забт? арини мунтаджан ваахидан.Where exactly? Show me one product.
- هنا، هذا الجانب. هذا عطل من المصنع.хуна, хаза аль-джааниб. хаза ʿаталь мин аль-маʿмаль.Here, this side. It is a defect from the factory.
- إذن لا يناسب المعيار، ولن أستلمه.изан ля йянасиб аль-муʿйар, ва-лян астилямаху.So it does not match the standard, and I will not accept it.
- الزبون ينتظر، ومدة التوريد تنتهي الأسبوع.аз-забуун йянтазир, ва-муддат ат-таурийд тантахи аль-усбууʿ.The customer is waiting, and the delivery term ends this week.
- شحنوا شحنة جديدة، وهذه تعود إلى المصنع.шаххануу шахна джадида, ва-хазихи таʿууд иля аль-маʿмаль.Ship a new batch, and this one goes back to the factory.
- سأكتب على البوليصة أن الاستلام لم يكن.са-актуб ʿаля аль-булыйса анн аль-истиляам лям йякун.I will write on the waybill that there was no acceptance.
- وأنا أخبر المصنع عن العطل.ва-ана ахбар аль-маʿмаль ʿан аль-ʿаталь.And I will report the defect to the factory.
Lines one by one
| Arabic | Reading | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| بوليصة الشحن معي، لكن الشحنة كلها فيها عطل. | булыйсат аш-шахн маʿий, лякинн аш-шахна кульха фийха ʿаталь. | The waybill is with me, but the whole shipment has a defect. |
| أين بالضبط؟ أرني منتجا واحدا. | айна би-з-забт? арини мунтаджан ваахидан. | Where exactly? Show me one product. |
| هنا، هذا الجانب. هذا عطل من المصنع. | хуна, хаза аль-джааниб. хаза ʿаталь мин аль-маʿмаль. | Here, this side. It is a defect from the factory. |
| إذن لا يناسب المعيار، ولن أستلمه. | изан ля йянасиб аль-муʿйар, ва-лян астилямаху. | So it does not match the standard, and I will not accept it. |
| الزبون ينتظر، ومدة التوريد تنتهي الأسبوع. | аз-забуун йянтазир, ва-муддат ат-таурийд тантахи аль-усбууʿ. | The customer is waiting, and the delivery term ends this week. |
| شحنوا شحنة جديدة، وهذه تعود إلى المصنع. | шаххануу шахна джадида, ва-хазихи таʿууд иля аль-маʿмаль. | Ship a new batch, and this one goes back to the factory. |
| سأكتب على البوليصة أن الاستلام لم يكن. | са-актуб ʿаля аль-булыйса анн аль-истиляам лям йякун. | I will write on the waybill that there was no acceptance. |
| وأنا أخبر المصنع عن العطل. | ва-ана ахбар аль-маʿмаль ʿан аль-ʿаталь. | And I will report the defect to the factory. |
How to prepare for a conversation like this
Memorizing the lines is not enough: the other person will say their own thing, not what is written. What helps more is catching the key words by ear and keeping three rescue phrases ready: “I don't understand”, “repeat, please”, “slower”.
And one more thing phrasebooks do not mention: awkwardness gets in the way more than not knowing the words.
- Fear of making mistakes gets in the way of learning a language, and noticeably so. The link turns up study after study, and together those studies cover almost twenty thousand people.checked many timesTeimouri, Goetze & Plonsky, 2019, Studies in Second Language Acquisition 41(2) · 19,933 participants from 23 countries; correlation with results r = −0.36.
- That fear can be dealt with — the methods have been tested and they work.checked many timesXiong et al., 2024, Journal of Language and Social Psychology · 37 studies, anxiety reduced by −0.61. Of the seven conditions examined, only age turned out to matter.
Frequently asked
How do you start a conversation in Arabic in this situation?
“بوليصة الشحن معي، لكن الشحنة كلها فيها عطل.” (булыйсат аш-шахн маʿий, лякинн аш-шахна кульха фийха ʿаталь.) — The waybill is with me, but the whole shipment has a defect. The first line in such a conversation is almost always the same, and that is the one worth learning: the other person will carry it from there.
What if you did not understand the reply?
Say “I don't understand” and “repeat, please” — both are in the rescue set. Admitting your language is still shaky almost always makes the other person more patient.
Should you memorize the dialogue?
No. It is more useful to catch the key words by ear: the other person will say their own thing, and a memorized line will not always fit their reply.