Questions & Answers about جواز السفر في الملف اللي بعتتهولي امبارح.
Why is there no word for is in this sentence?
Because Egyptian Arabic usually drops the present-tense to be.
So:
جواز السفر في الملف...
literally looks like the passport in the file..., but it naturally means the passport is in the file...
This is normal in both Egyptian Arabic and Standard Arabic for present-time statements.
Why is جواز السفر translated as the passport even though جواز does not have ال?
This is an idafa construction, a very common noun structure in Arabic.
جواز السفر literally means passport of the travel, but idiomatically it means passport.
Important point: in an idafa, the first noun often does not take ال, and the whole phrase becomes definite because the second noun is definite.
So:
- جواز سفر = a passport
- جواز السفر = the passport
This is similar to:
- باب البيت = the door of the house / the house door
What does في mean here? Is it in or there is?