عايز ʿāyiz is the ordinary Cairene way to say “want” or “would like,” but it is not an everyday finite verb. It is historically an active participle and still behaves like an agreeing predicate: masculine عايز, feminine عايزة, plural عايزين. Present time has no copula, negation uses مش, and past or projected wanting is located with كان / بقى.
This analysis explains several facts at once. A woman changes the form to عايزة; the action wanted follows in the bare imperfect; and there is no ordinary command or b-imperfect paradigm of عايز itself. English want is a conjugated verb, so copying its structure is a major source of learner errors.
The Practical Agreement-and-Time Paradigm
For present desire, agreement identifies the wanter. Subject pronouns may be omitted when the context makes the person clear, but keeping them is often helpful for learners.
| Wanter | Present | Past | Projected future state |
|---|---|---|---|
| أنا (male) | عَايِزْ ʿāyiz | كُنْتْ عَايِزْ kunt ʿāyiz | حَبْقَى عَايِزْ ḥabʾa ʿāyiz |
| أنا (female) | عَايْزَةْ ʿāyza | كُنْتْ عَايْزَةْ kunt ʿāyza | حَبْقَى عَايْزَةْ ḥabʾa ʿāyza |
| إنت (male) | عَايِزْ ʿāyiz | كُنْتْ عَايِزْ kunt ʿāyiz | حَتِبْقَى عَايِزْ ḥatibʾa ʿāyiz |
| إنتي | عَايْزَةْ ʿāyza | كُنْتِي عَايْزَةْ kunti ʿāyza | حَتِبْقِي عَايْزَةْ ḥatibʾi ʿāyza |
| هو | عَايِزْ ʿāyiz | كَانْ عَايِزْ kān ʿāyiz | حَيِبْقَى عَايِزْ ḥayibʾa ʿāyiz |
| هي | عَايْزَةْ ʿāyza | كَانِتْ عَايْزَةْ kānit ʿāyza | حَتِبْقَى عَايْزَةْ ḥatibʾa ʿāyza |
| إحنا / إنتوا / هم | عَايْزِينْ ʿāyzīn | كُنَّا / كُنْتُوا / كَانُوا عَايْزِينْ | حَنِبْقَى / حَتِبْقُوا / حَيِبْقُوا عَايْزِينْ |
Past كان عايز can mean either a past desire or a softened present request: كنت عايز أسأل سؤال “I wanted to ask a question” often politely introduces the question now. Context determines whether the desire is genuinely past.
كنت عايز أسأل حضرتك عن مواعيد العيادة.
kunt ʿāyiz ʾasʾal ḥaḍritak ʿan mawāʿīd il-ʿiyāda
I wanted to ask you about the clinic's hours. (male speaker; polite opening)
Why There Is No Ordinary Finite عايز Paradigm
Historically عايز belongs to a family related to عاز / يعوز, and the variant عاوز preserves a different glide. In present-day mainstream Cairo, however, ordinary “want” is overwhelmingly expressed by the participial predicate. Learners should not invent forms such as بعايز or an imperative عايز!.
The finite verb يعوز survives in restricted and often older, lexical, or formal-leaning uses meaning “need, require” (marked/less common). It is not a productive substitute for every form of English want. For the practical lexeme عايز, the finite categories requested on ordinary verb pages are supplied instead by:
- كان + عايز for past desire;
- بقى / حيبقى + عايز when a future state of wanting must be explicit;
- مش عايز for present negation;
- no positive imperative, because a desire is not commanded by conjugating عايز.
Rule 1: With a Noun, عايز Means “Want / Would Like X”
The desired noun follows directly. It can be definite or indefinite, and a pronominal object attaches to عايز.
عايزة قهوة مظبوط وكوباية مية، لو سمحت.
ʿāyza ʾahwa maẓbūṭ wi-kobāyit mayya, law samaḥt
I'd like a medium-sweet coffee and a glass of water, please. (female speaker)
أنا عايزها باللون الكحلي، مش الأسود.
ʾana ʿāyizha bil-lōn il-kuḥli, mish il-ʾaswad
I want it in navy blue, not black. (male speaker)
In عايزها, ـها is the desired feminine item or woman. The attachment does not change عايز into a finite verb.
Rule 2: A Wanted Action Uses the Bare Imperfect
When the wanter will perform the action, follow عايز directly with a person-marked bare imperfect. Do not add بـ, حـ, or a word corresponding to English to.
إحنا عايزين نراجع الأرقام مرة أخيرة قبل الطباعة.
ʾiḥna ʿāyzīn nirāgiʿ il-ʾarʾām marra ʾakhīra ʾabl iṭ-ṭibāʿa
We want to review the figures one last time before printing.
هي عايزة تسيب الشغل بدري عشان عندها كشف.
hiyya ʿāyza tisīb ish-shoghl badri ʿashān ʿandaha kashf
She wants to leave work early because she has a medical appointment.
The second verb agrees with the performer: عايز أروح، عايزة تروح، عايزين نروح. This is the bare imperfect after عايز, not an infinitive.
Rule 3: To Want Someone Else to Act, Mark That Person on عايز
The common frame is عايز + object suffix + bare imperfect. The suffix identifies the wanted actor; the following verb agrees with that actor.
عايزك تيجي قبل الزباين عشان نرتب المكان.
ʿāyzak tīgi ʾabl iz-zabāyin ʿashān nirattib il-makān
I want you to come before the customers so we can arrange the place. (male speaker to a man)
المديرة عايزاهم يخلصوا الجرد النهارده.
il-modīra ʿāyzāhom yikhallaṣu l-gard in-naharda
The manager wants them to finish the inventory today.
This frame can sound directive, because it states the speaker's desire about another person's action. Tone, hierarchy, لو سمحت, and question forms determine whether it is a request, instruction, or demand.
Rule 4: Negate the Predicate with مش
Present عايز takes مش, because it is a nonfinite agreeing predicate. Past negation wraps كان: ماكنتش عايز. If a pronominal desired object is present, it stays attached to عايز.
مش عايزين نلغي الرحلة؛ عايزين نأجلها أسبوع بس.
mish ʿāyzīn nilghi r-riḥla; ʿāyzīn niʾaggilha ʾusbūʿ bass
We don't want to cancel the trip; we just want to postpone it for a week.
ماكنتش عايزها تعرف الخبر من حد غريب.
ma-kuntish ʿāyizha tiʿraf il-khabar min ḥadd gharīb
I didn't want her to hear the news from a stranger. (male speaker)
The last example contains both the feminine actor suffix ـها and feminine تعرف. English reveals the controller with a free pronoun; Egyptian does so twice, through the suffix and verb agreement.
Requests and Social Force
A bare عايز + noun is ordinary and not inherently rude, especially when answering a service question. As an unsolicited demand, however, it can sound blunt. Use لو سمحت, ممكن, a question contour, or past كنت عايز to soften the request.
ممكن لو سمحت تخلينا نقعد جوه؟ إحنا عايزين مكان هادي.
momken law samaḥt tikhallīna niʾʿod guwwa? ʾiḥna ʿāyzīn makān hādi
Could you please let us sit inside? We'd like somewhere quiet.
A Short Dialogue
ـ عايزة تطلبي إيه؟ ـ عايزة الشوربة الأول، وبعدها حشوف لو عايزة حاجة تانية.
— ʿāyza tiṭlobi ʾēh? — ʿāyza sh-shorba l-ʾawwil, wi-baʿdaha ḥashūf law ʿāyza ḥāga tānya
‘What would you like to order?’ ‘I'd like the soup first, and then I'll see if I want anything else.’ (two women)
Variation and Register
عايز is mainstream urban Cairo (informal/neutral). عاوز، عاوزة، عاوزين with /w/ are genuine common variants whose distribution depends on speaker, generation, community, and style; do not label them universally rural or incorrect. This page keeps عايز as its house form. Formal MSA أريد belongs to formal speech and writing (formal) and can appear in deliberate code-switching, but it is not the neutral conversational baseline.
Common Mistakes
1. Treating عايز as invariant
❌ هي عايز تغير الحجز.
Incorrect: the participial predicate agrees with a feminine subject.
✅ هي عايزة تغير الحجز قبل السفر.
hiyya ʿāyza tighayyar il-ḥagz ʾabl is-safar
She wants to change the booking before the trip.
2. Adding بـ to the wanted action
❌ أنا عايز باروح دلوقتي.
Incorrect: the action after عايز uses the bare imperfect.
✅ أنا عايز أروح قبل الزحمة ماتزيد.
ʾana ʿāyiz ʾarūḥ ʾabl iz-zaḥma ma-tizīd
I want to leave before the traffic gets worse. (male speaker)
3. Using verbal ما...ش on the participle
❌ أنا ماعايزش أتكلم دلوقتي.
Avoid this as the neutral teaching baseline: present participial عايز normally takes independent مش.
✅ أنا مش عايز أتكلم في الموضوع دلوقتي.
ʾana mish ʿāyiz ʾatkallim fi l-mawḍūʿ dilwaʾti
I don't want to talk about the matter now. (male speaker)
4. Leaving the different actor unmarked
❌ عايز تيجي بدري.
Ambiguous or mismatched if the intended meaning is ‘I want you to come’; the wanted actor needs an object suffix.
✅ عايزك تيجي بدري عشان نلحق نتكلم.
ʿāyzak tīgi badri ʿashān nilḥaʾ nitkallim
I want you to come early so we have time to talk. (male speaker to a man)
5. Importing formal أريد into a casual exchange
❌ أريد كوباية شاي لو سمحت.
Register mismatch: أريد is formal MSA in an ordinary café request.
✅ عايز كوباية شاي من غير سكر، لو سمحت.
ʿāyiz kobāyit shāy min ghēr sokkar, law samaḥt
I'd like a cup of tea without sugar, please. (male speaker)
Key Takeaways
- عايز، عايزة، عايزين agree with the wanter and behave as participial predicates.
- A desired noun follows directly; a desired action uses the person-marked bare imperfect.
- In عايزك تيجي, the suffix marks the person expected to perform the following action.
- Negate present desire with مش; use كان for past wanting and بقى when future wanting must be explicit.
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Start learning Arabic →Related Topics
- Bare Imperfect after عايزA2 — Use agreeing عايز with a bare imperfect for wants, intentions, different-subject complements, negation, and everyday requests.
- Active Participles as Current StatesA2 — Use active participles such as واقف، قاعد، نايم، and عارف as agreeing current, persistent, and result-oriented predicates.
- Wanting and NeedingB1 — Choose among عايز, محتاج, and نفسي في for intentions, requirements, wishes, and socially appropriate requests.
- Requests and SofteningB1 — Shape Cairo Egyptian requests through grammar, tone, timing, relationship, and conventional response sequences.
- Direct-Object Suffixes on VerbsB1 — Attach Egyptian direct-object pronouns to past, imperfect, and negative verb hosts while preserving gender, clitic order, and discourse reference.