المنحوتة بتشبه شجرة.

الـ is the Arabic definite article, so it means the.

So:

• منحوتة = a sculpture / a carving
• المنحوتة = the sculpture / the carving

In Levantine, الـ is often pronounced el- or il- depending on region.

منحوتة comes from the root ن ح ت, which has to do with carving or sculpting.

In this sentence, منحوتة most naturally means sculpture or carved piece. Depending on context, it could also suggest something like carving.

Because منحوتة is a grammatically feminine noun. The ending ـة is a very common sign of feminine nouns in Arabic.

This does not necessarily mean the object is biologically female. It just means the noun belongs to the feminine grammatical category, and that affects agreement in the sentence.

Because the subject المنحوتة is feminine singular.

In Levantine present tense:

• بيشبه = he / it resembles, for a masculine subject
• بتشبه = she / it resembles, for a feminine subject

Since المنحوتة is feminine, the correct form is بتشبه.

In Levantine Arabic, بـ on the verb usually marks the ordinary present tense.

So بتشبه means something like:

• it resembles
• it looks like
• it is resembling in the normal present-time sense

This b- is a very common feature of Levantine speech and is one of the differences from Formal Arabic.

No. شبه / بيشبه normally takes a direct object.

So:

• المنحوتة بتشبه شجرة = The sculpture resembles a tree

You do not need a word equivalent to English to or like after بتشبه in this structure.

Arabic does not have an indefinite article like English a / an.

So a bare noun can be indefinite by itself:

• شجرة = a tree

That is why شجرة does not need an extra word before it.

Because here it means a tree, not the tree.

Compare:

• شجرة = a tree
• الشجرة = the tree

So المنحوتة بتشبه شجرة means the sculpture resembles a tree in general, not one specific tree.

That is very normal in Levantine Arabic. Everyday Levantine often uses subject + verb order, especially in simple present-tense sentences.

So المنحوتة بتشبه شجرة feels natural and conversational:

• the sculpture
  • resembles
    • a tree

A learner who knows more Formal Arabic may expect verb-first structures more often, but Levantine commonly prefers this subject-first pattern in speech.

Yes, that is possible, and it would mean something like The sculpture is like a tree.

The difference is small:

• بتشبه شجرة = resembles a tree
• متل شجرة = is like a tree

Both are understandable. بتشبه sounds a bit more like a true verb meaning resembles, while متل is a very common everyday way to say like.

A common pronunciation would be roughly:

el-manḥuute btišbah shajra

A few helpful notes:

• الـ is often el- or il-
• ح in منحوتة is a stronger, throatier h sound than English h
• بتشبه is roughly btišbah
• شجرة is often pronounced shajra in Levantine, with the middle vowel reduced

So the whole sentence flows something like:

el-manḥuute btišbah shajra