Questions & Answers about مبارح ما كان في شمس، واليوم كمان ما في شمس.
What does مبارح mean, and is it used in all Arabic?
مبارح means yesterday.
It’s very common in Levantine Arabic. In Modern Standard Arabic, learners often know أمس for yesterday, but in everyday Levantine, مبارح is much more natural.
So:
- مبارح = yesterday
- اليوم = today
Why is ما كان في used for there wasn’t?
This is one of the most important Levantine patterns.
In Levantine, في often means there is / there are in an existential sense.
So:
- في شمس = there is sun / there is sunshine
- ما في شمس = there isn’t any sun
To put that into the past, Levantine commonly adds كان:
- كان في شمس = there was sun
- ما كان في شمس = there wasn’t any sun
So ما كان في is basically the everyday Levantine way to say there wasn’t.
What exactly is في doing here?
Here, في is not the preposition in. It’s the existential there is/there are.
That can be confusing, because في can also mean in depending on context.
Compare:
- في البيت = in the house
- في شمس = there is sun
In your sentence, it clearly means there is/there are, not in.