After the examination in Arabic
A doctor's office; a person has come for the examination results in Arabic. 8 phrases that the conversation is made of: «السلام عليكم، هذه نتائج الفحص؟» — Hello, are these the examination results?; «التقييم الطبي واضح: التهاب في المفاصل.» — The diagnosis is clear: an inflammation in the joints.
How the whole thing sounds
The situation: a doctor's office; a person has come for the examination results. First the whole conversation, then each line on its own, with a translation.
- السلام عليكم، هذه نتائج الفحص؟ас-саляму ʿалайкум, хаазихи натааʾидж аль-фахс؟Hello, are these the examination results?
- التقييم الطبي واضح: التهاب في المفاصل.ат-такйим ат-табий ваадих: ильтихааб фи аль-мафаасиль.The diagnosis is clear: an inflammation in the joints.
- هل هو فيروس أم عدوى أخرى؟халь хува фйрус ам ʿадва ухра؟Is it a virus or another infection?
- ليس فيروسا. ستعالج بالمسكّن، وتنام كثيرا.ляйса фйрусан. са-туʿааладж би-ль-мусакккин, ва-танаам кясиран.It is not a virus. We will treat it with a painkiller, and sleep a lot.
- للمسكّن أثر جانبي؟ли-ль-мусакккин асар джянибий؟Does the painkiller have a side effect?
- نعم، نعاس في الليل. لا تشاهد الشاشة كثيرا.наам, ниʿаас фи аль-лайль. ля ташаахид аш-шаашя кясиран.Yes, drowsiness at night. Do not look at the screen much.
- ومتى أشعر بتحسن؟ва-мата ашʿур би-тахассун؟And when will I feel better?
- في كل الأحوال بعد أسبوع. كحد أدنى عشر دقائق مشي في اليوم.фи куль аль-ахвааль баʿд усбууʿ. ка-хадд аль-адна ʿашар дагаاʿик маший фи аль-йаум.In any case, in a week. At least ten minutes of walking a day.
Lines one by one
| Arabic | Reading | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| السلام عليكم، هذه نتائج الفحص؟ | ас-саляму ʿалайкум, хаазихи натааʾидж аль-фахс؟ | Hello, are these the examination results? |
| التقييم الطبي واضح: التهاب في المفاصل. | ат-такйим ат-табий ваадих: ильтихааб фи аль-мафаасиль. | The diagnosis is clear: an inflammation in the joints. |
| هل هو فيروس أم عدوى أخرى؟ | халь хува фйрус ам ʿадва ухра؟ | Is it a virus or another infection? |
| ليس فيروسا. ستعالج بالمسكّن، وتنام كثيرا. | ляйса фйрусан. са-туʿааладж би-ль-мусакккин, ва-танаам кясиран. | It is not a virus. We will treat it with a painkiller, and sleep a lot. |
| للمسكّن أثر جانبي؟ | ли-ль-мусакккин асар джянибий؟ | Does the painkiller have a side effect? |
| نعم، نعاس في الليل. لا تشاهد الشاشة كثيرا. | наам, ниʿаас фи аль-лайль. ля ташаахид аш-шаашя кясиран. | Yes, drowsiness at night. Do not look at the screen much. |
| ومتى أشعر بتحسن؟ | ва-мата ашʿур би-тахассун؟ | And when will I feel better? |
| في كل الأحوال بعد أسبوع. كحد أدنى عشر دقائق مشي في اليوم. | фи куль аль-ахвааль баʿд усбууʿ. ка-хадд аль-адна ʿашар дагаاʿик маший фи аль-йаум. | In any case, in a week. At least ten minutes of walking a day. |
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?
“السلام عليكم، هذه نتائج الفحص؟” (ас-саляму ʿалайкум, хаазихи натааʾидж аль-фахс؟) — Hello, are these the examination results? 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.