Giving Examples with مثلا and زي | Arabic (Egyptian) Grammar

Egyptian Arabic has two common ways to introduce an example. مثلا masalan is a discourse marker: the speaker selects one illustration from several possibilities. زي zayy is a preposition-like comparator: it links the preceding category or claim to a person, thing, or case that resembles or instantiates it.

English can translate both as “for example” or “such as,” but their syntax is different. مثلا can stand outside the clause and comment on the whole illustration. زي needs a complement and is integrated into the phrase or clause. This page focuses on their work in discourse; the wider similarity-versus-role contrast belongs to زي and كـ.

Rule 1: مثلا marks one possible illustration

مثلا tells the listener, “Take this as an example, not as the only case.” It may appear before the example, after the phrase it qualifies, or parenthetically inside a turn. A slight pause often separates it from the illustration.

ممكن نخرج مكان قريب، مثلا نتمشى على النيل

momkin nikhrog makān ʾarīb, masalan nitmashsha ʿala n-Nīl

We could go somewhere nearby—for example, take a walk along the Nile.

هات حاجة خفيفة، سلطة مثلا

hāt ḥāga khafīfa, salaṭa masalan

Bring something light—a salad, for example. (to a man)

In the second sentence, final مثلا has scope over سلطة. It leaves other light options open. Removing it makes the salad sound more like a direct request than an illustration.

💡

Because مثلا comments on the status of an example, it can move. Its position shows what material counts as the illustration, while the pause helps mark its scope.

Rule 2: زي introduces the example as a complement

زي + noun phrase means “like” and often supplies an example of a category already named. Unlike مثلا, it cannot normally stand alone with no comparison standard.

عايزين مكان هادي زي المكتبة أو قاعة صغيرة

ʿāyzīn makān hādi zayy il-maktaba ʾaw ʾāʿa ṣoghayyara

We want a quiet place, such as the library or a small hall.

في شغلانات بتحتاج تركيز عالي، زي الترجمة والمراجعة

fi shoghlānāt bitiḥtāg tarkīz ʿāli, zayy it-targama wi-l-morāgʿa

Some jobs require intense concentration, such as translation and editing.

Syntactically, زي الترجمة والمراجعة is a comparison/example phrase. Discourse-wise, it makes the broad claim concrete. English “such as” is often the natural translation even though زي is also the ordinary word for “like.”

Rule 3: مثلا and زي can co-occur

The combination زي مثلا is common when a speaker first opens an example slot with زي and then signals that the following member is only one selection. The two words are not redundant because they contribute different things.

ممكن نستخدم تطبيق بسيط، زي مثلا تطبيق الملاحظات

momkin nistikhdim taṭbīʾ basīṭ, zayy masalan taṭbīʾ il-molāḥaẓāt

We could use a simple app, for example the notes app.

اختاروا نشاط جماعي، زي مثلا طبخ حاجة مع بعض

ikhtāru nashāṭ gamāʿi, zayy masalan ṭabkh ḥāga maʿ baʿḍ

Choose a group activity, like cooking something together, for example.

In careful editing, one marker may be enough. In spontaneous speech, زي مثلا gives the speaker time to formulate the illustration and clearly marks it as non-exhaustive. It is ordinary (informal/neutral), not defective grammar.

The same English subtitle: “for example”

The following pair can both be subtitled “For example,” but the structure differs.

مثلا، ممكن نأجل الاجتماع ليوم الخميس

masalan, momkin niʾaggil il-igtimāʿ li-yom il-khamīs

For example, we could postpone the meeting until Thursday. (the whole proposal is an illustration)

ممكن نختار يوم فاضي، زي الخميس

momkin nikhtār yom fāḍi, zayy il-khamīs

We could choose a free day, for example Thursday. (Thursday fills the example slot after a category)

Use this diagnostic: if you can remove the marker and still have a complete clause that is merely being labeled an illustration, مثلا fits. If the marker links a category to its example as a complement, زي fits.

Rule 4: زي ما introduces an illustrative situation

When the example is a full situation rather than a noun phrase, زي ما + clause can mean “as in the case when...” or “like what happened when....” Here ما belongs to the linker and is not negation.

ساعات تفصيلة صغيرة بتغير القرار، زي ما حصل مع العقد القديم

sāʿāt tafṣīla ṣoghayyara bitghayyar il-ʾarār, zayy ma ḥaṣal maʿ il-ʿaʾd il-ʾadīm

Sometimes a small detail changes the decision, as happened with the old contract.

ممكن حد يفهم الرسالة غلط، زي ما إنت فهمتها في الأول

momkin ḥadd yifham ir-risāla ghalaṭ, zayy ma ʾinta fihimtha fi l-ʾawwil

Someone could misunderstand the message, like you did at first. (addressing a man)

This clause-level use still presents resemblance. مثلا could instead introduce an independent illustration: مثلا، إنت فهمتها غلط في الأول “For example, you misunderstood it at first.”

Topic management and stance

An example marker does more than add information. It temporarily narrows a broad topic to a manageable case and signals whether the speaker is committed to that case as the only solution.

أنا مش باقترح مطعم معين؛ قصدي مكان هادي، زي كافيه صغير في وسط البلد

ʾana mish baʾtariḥ maṭʿam moʿayyan; ʾaṣdi makān hādi, zayy kāfeh ṣoghayyar fi wasaṭ il-balad

I’m not proposing a particular restaurant; I mean somewhere quiet, such as a small café downtown.

The زي phrase guides the listener without turning the café into a fixed decision. This non-exhaustive stance is why deleting an example marker can make a suggestion sound unexpectedly categorical.

Paragraph-level argument

مش كل التأخير سببه الإهمال. مثلا، ممكن النظام يقع وقت تسجيل الطلب. وفي أسباب بشرية برضه، زي إن الموظف يستنى موافقة المدير. الأمثلة دي مهمة عشان نصلح السبب الحقيقي

mish koll it-taʾkhīr sababo l-ʾihmāl. masalan, momkin in-niẓām yiʾaʿ waʾt tasgīl iṭ-ṭalab. wi-fi ʾasbāb bashariyya barḍo, zayy ʾinn il-mowaẓẓaf yistanna mowāfaʾit il-modīr. il-ʾamthila di mohimma ʿashān niṣallaḥ is-sabab il-ḥaʾīʾi

Not every delay is caused by negligence. For example, the system may go down while an order is being entered. There are human causes too, such as an employee waiting for the manager’s approval. These examples matter because we need to fix the real cause.

Initial مثلا marks a whole proposition as evidence. Later زي إن... supplies a clausal member of أسباب بشرية. Alternating structures keeps the paragraph coherent without mechanically repeating one connector.

A three-turn exchange

ناخد معانا أكل إيه للرحلة؟

nākhod maʿāna ʾakl ʾeh lir-riḥla?

What food should we take on the trip?

حاجة ماتبوظش بسرعة، زي الفطير مثلا

ḥāga ma-tibūzsh bi-sorʿa, zayy il-faṭīr masalan

Something that won’t spoil quickly, like feteer, for example.

تمام، وممكن ناخد فاكهة برضه

tamām, wi-momkin nākhod fākha barḍo

Great, and we could take fruit too.

The second turn offers الفطير as one member of a broader category, leaving space for the third speaker to add another option.

Register and variation

مثلا and زي are central in everyday Cairo (informal/neutral). Formal MSA-oriented prose favors مثلا and على سبيل المثال for “for example,” and مثل for “such as” (formal). Educated professional speech often mixes an Egyptian clause with على سبيل المثال, especially in presentations; that is code-switching, not an error, but it is heavier than conversational مثلا.

على سبيل المثال، يمكننا مراجعة عينة أصغر

ʿala sabīl il-mithāl, yumkinuna murāgaʿit ʿayyina ʾaṣghar

For example, we can review a smaller sample. (formal MSA-oriented presentation)

مثلا، ممكن نراجع عدد أقل الأول

masalan, momkin nirāgiʿ ʿadad ʾaʾall il-ʾawwil

For example, we could review fewer items first. (ordinary Cairene)

Alexandrian, Delta, Upper Egyptian, Bedouin, age, class, and community varieties may differ in pronunciation and in preference for زي versus related comparison forms (regional/social). Storytellers and comedians may repeat مثلا while constructing an absurd example (performance language); neutral explanatory speech does not require that rhythm.

💡

A formal alternative is not “more correct.” Match على سبيل المثال to a formal presentation and مثلا / زي to ordinary Cairene interaction.

Common Mistakes

Removing the marker and accidentally making an example categorical

❌ لازم نجيب لابتوب جديد

Wrong for the intended meaning ‘we need some new equipment, for example a laptop’—this asserts that a laptop itself is required.

✅ محتاجين جهاز جديد، لابتوب مثلا

miḥtāgīn gihāz gidīd, lābtob masalan

We need a new device—a laptop, for example.

Using زي without a complement

❌ ممكن نعمل نشاط، زي

Incomplete—زي opens a comparison or example phrase and requires a following complement.

✅ ممكن نعمل نشاط بسيط، زي لعبة أسئلة

momkin niʿmil nashāṭ basīṭ, zayy loʿbit ʾasʾila

We could do a simple activity, such as a question game.

Copying English “as an example” word for word

❌ كمثال، ممكن نجرب يوم التلات

Mismatched for neutral Cairene—the calqued attached كـ makes the turn sound written and awkward here.

✅ مثلا، ممكن نجرب يوم التلات

masalan, momkin nigarrab yom it-talāt

For example, we could try Tuesday. (ordinary Cairene)

Repeating مثلا in every sentence

❌ عندنا مشاكل مثلا في الوقت، ومثلا في الميزانية، ومثلا في المكان

Not strictly ungrammatical, but monotonous and unclear as an organized list.

✅ عندنا كذا مشكلة، زي الوقت والميزانية والمكان

ʿandana kaza moshkila, zayy il-waʾt wi-l-mīzāniyya wi-l-makān

We have several problems, such as timing, budget, and location.

Key Takeaways

مثلا labels an item or proposition as one possible illustration and can move with its scope.
زي links a category or claim to a following example and requires a complement.
زي مثلا is natural in spontaneous speech because the two markers do different jobs.
Use زي ما + clause for an illustrative situation.
Do not mistake formal على سبيل المثال for the only correct option in ordinary Egyptian.

Now practice Arabic

Reading grammar gets you part of the way. The exercises are where it sticks — free, no signup needed.

Start learning Arabic →