ممكن سؤال صغير؟

Can I ask a quick question?

Breakdown of ممكن سؤال صغير؟

• صغير: small
• ممكن: possible
• سؤال: question

Questions & Answers about ممكن سؤال صغير؟

How would a Levantine speaker pronounce ممكن سؤال صغير؟?

A common Levantine pronunciation is:

mumkin su2āl zghīr?

You may also see it written informally as:

• mumkin su'al zghir?
• momken so2al zghir?

A few notes:

• ممكن = mumkin / momken
• سؤال = su2āl; the 2 represents the hamza sound, a little catch in the throat
• صغير is often pronounced zghīr in Levantine, not ṣaghīr as in careful Modern Standard Arabic

So in everyday speech, it often sounds something like momken so2al zghīr?

What does ممكن mean here?

ممكن literally means possible.

But in conversation, especially in Levantine, it is very often used to mean something like:

• Can I...?
• May I...?
• Would it be possible...?

So in this sentence, ممكن is not just a dictionary word meaning possible. It is functioning as a polite way to ask permission or open a request.

That is why ممكن سؤال صغير؟ feels like:

• Can I ask a quick question?
• Is a quick question okay?

Why is there no verb in this sentence?