Whether you are building furniture or fixing things around the house, knowing the names of basic tools is incredibly useful. This lesson introduces essential DIY vocabulary.
The Workshop and Basic Tools
Many DIY projects take place in the workshop (ورشة). The most common tools you will reach for first are a hammer (مطرقة) and a saw (منشار).
| The boys entered the workshop and took a hammer and a saw. | دخل الأولاد الورشة وأخذوا مطرقة ومنشارا.dakhala al-awlâdu al-warshata wa-akhadhû mitraqatan wa-minshâran. |
To describe the tool you used to perform an action, attach the preposition بـ (with / by means of) directly to the noun. For example, to say "with the hammer," write بالمطرقة.
Let's see this preposition in action alongside the words for nail (مسمار) and paint (طلاء).
| I hit the nail with the hammer before painting the wood. | ضربت المسمار بالمطرقة قبل طلاء الخشب.darabtu al-mismâra bil-mitraqati qabla tilâ'i al-khashab |
Screws and Drills
Not everything can be hammered. Often, you will need to place a screw (برغي) into a hole (ثقب) using a screwdriver (مفك).
| The engineer put the screw in the hole, then used the screwdriver. | وضع المهندس البرغي في الثقب، ثم استخدم المفك.wada'a al-muhandisu al-burghiyya fi ath-thaqbi, thumma istakhdama al-mifakka |
If you need to make a hole in a wall or a piece of wood, you will use a drill (مثقاب).
| I was going to use the drill to make a hole in the wall. | كنت سأستخدم المثقاب لصنع ثقب في الجدار.kuntu sa'astakhdimu al-mithqâba lisun'i thuqbin fil-jidâri |
Pliers and Making Lists
When dealing with old hardware, you might need pliers (كماشة) to grip or extract it.
| The nail was old, but she pulled it with the pliers. | كان المسمار قديما، لكنها سحبته بالكماشة.kâna al-mismâru qadîman, lâkinnahâ sahabat-hu bil-kammâshah |
Notice how easily these new vocabulary words integrate into standard sentence structures, such as listing options using the conjunction أو (or).
| Did the carpenters buy a saw, a hammer, or a drill? | هل اشترى النجارون منشارا، أو مطرقة، أو مثقابا؟hali ishtarâ an-najjârûna minshâran, aw mitraqatan, aw mithqâban? |
