Breakdown of مرحبا بكم في بيتنا!
فيfî
in / about, regarding
بيتbayt
house
ناnâ
our / us (object) / we (subject suffix on past verb)
مرحبا بكمmarhaban bikum
Questions & Answers about مرحبا بكم في بيتنا!
Why does مرحبا end with a tanween fatha (-an)?
Even though it is a fixed greeting, مرحبا is grammatically an absolute object (maf'ul mutlaq) of an omitted verb. It literally means something like '[I offer you] a spacious place', which is why it takes the accusative case.
Why do we use the preposition بـ in بكم instead of لـ?
The greeting مرحبا is traditionally paired with the preposition بـ to indicate who is being welcomed. You can think of it as 'welcome with you'.
Should I always use the plural بكم even if I am welcoming one person?
You can adjust the pronoun suffix to match your guest (بك for a single person), but بكم is frequently used as a polite, formal default even for individuals, similar to the formal plural 'you' found in many languages.
Why does Arabic use في instead of إلى for 'welcome to'?
While English focuses on the direction of arrival ('welcome to'), Arabic focuses on the space where the guest is being hosted. You are welcomed 'in' the home, making في the grammatically correct choice here.