الطفل تعبان.

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Breakdown of الطفل تعبان.

• طفل: child

Questions & Answers about الطفل تعبان.

How do I pronounce الطفل تعبان in Levantine?

A common Levantine pronunciation is roughly eṭ-ṭefel taʿbān.

A few notes:

• الطفل is often pronounced more like eṭ-ṭefel or et-tefel, depending on the region.
• تعبان is taʿbān.
• The aa in -bān is a long vowel.

So an English-friendly approximation is et-TE-fel taʕ-BAAN.

What does ال mean in الطفل?

ال is the Arabic definite article, meaning the.

So:

• طفل = child
• الطفل = the child

In this sentence, the noun is definite: the child.

Why isn’t the l in ال clearly pronounced here?

Because ط is a sun letter. In Arabic, when ال comes before a sun letter, the l sound assimilates to the next consonant.

So:

• It is written الطفل
• But pronounced more like اṭ-ṭفل / eṭ-ṭefel

The spelling does not change, only the pronunciation does.