Elon.io is an online learning platform
We have an entire course teaching Arabic grammar and vocabulary.
Questions & Answers about المسالة مهمة.
How do I pronounce المسالة مهمة in Egyptian Arabic?
A natural Egyptian-style pronunciation is:
el-mas'ala mohimma
A few notes:
- ال is usually pronounced el- in Egyptian, not al-.
- مسألة / مسالة is roughly mas'ala. The apostrophe here shows a small throat-stop sound called hamza.
- مهمة is commonly pronounced mohimma in Egyptian speech.
A rough stress pattern is:
el-MAS-'a-la mo-HIM-ma
Why is there no word for is in this sentence?
Because Arabic usually drops the verb to be in the present tense.
So Arabic says:
المسألة مهمة
literally: the issue important
But it means the issue is important.
If you want was, will be, and so on, Arabic does use a verb:
- المسألة كانت مهمة = the issue was important
This is very normal in both Standard Arabic and Egyptian.
What does ال mean here, and how is it pronounced?