The Saturday market
A short text in Arabic at level A2. The translation sits next to it: reading with a dictionary is still too early at this level, and without support it will not happen at all. On Saturday morning we go to the market. The market is close to the house. At the market there are fruits, vegetables…
Text
- في صباح السبت نذهب إلى السوق. السوق قريب من البيت. في السوق فواكه وخضروات وجبنة وسمك. كل شيء طازج ورخيص. نأخذ كيلوغرام تفاح ونصف كيلوغرام جبنة.фи сабаах ас-сабт назхабу иля ас-суук. ас-суук кариб мин аль-бейт. фи ас-суук фаваких ва-худрават ва-джибна ва-самак. куль шайʾ тазиж ва-рахис. наахуз килограам туффаах ва-нисф килограам джибна.On Saturday morning we go to the market. The market is close to the house. At the market there are fruits, vegetables, cheese and fish. Everything is fresh and inexpensive. We take a kilogram of apples and half a kilo of cheese.
Comprehension questions
The questions are asked in Russian on purpose: we test your understanding of the text, not your ability to read the question.
- When do they go to the market?
- Is the market far from the house?
- What is sold at the market?
- How many apples do they take?
Frequently asked
What level do you need to read this text in Arabic?
A2. That means: you know the letters and have a stock of everyday words — about two or three hundred.
How to read a text in an unfamiliar language usefully?
First all the way through without peeking at the translation — just to catch the familiar words. Then with the translation. Then all the way through again: the second pass brings noticeably more, and that feeling matters more than any rule.