Question 1

What does إذا ما mean in this sentence?

Accepted Answer

إذا means if, and ما negates the verb. So إذا ما لقيت means if you don’t find or if you can’t find. This is a very common way to make a negative condition in Levantine Arabic.

Question 2

Why does the sentence use لقيت even though the meaning is not past?

Accepted Answer

In Levantine Arabic, after إذا, speakers often use the perfect form for a future or hypothetical condition. So إذا ما لقيت is not really if you found here; it means if you don’t find. This is one of those places where the verb form does not match English tense in a simple word-for-word way.

Question 3

How do I know لقيت means you found here and not I found?

Accepted Answer

In colloquial Levantine, لقيت can mean I found or you found for masculine singular. The context tells you which one it is. Here, the speaker immediately says روح — a command meaning go — so it is clearly addressed to you, not me.

Question 4

Why is it الدوا and not الدواء?

Accepted Answer

الدوا is the normal colloquial Levantine word for the medicine. In Modern Standard Arabic, you would more often see الدواء. Colloquial Arabic often shortens or simplifies words compared with Standard Arabic, and دوا is the everyday spoken form.

Question 5

What does بالصيدلية mean exactly, and what is the بـ doing?

Accepted Answer

The prefix بـ is a preposition that often means in, at, or sometimes with, depending on context. So بالصيدلية means in the pharmacy or at the pharmacy. In this sentence, English would most naturally say at the nearby pharmacy.

Question 6

Why is the adjective القريبة feminine?

Accepted Answer

Because الصيدلية is a feminine singular noun, the adjective has to match it. So you get:

- الصيدلية القريبة = the nearby pharmacy

If the noun were masculine, you would use القريب instead.

Question 7

Why does the sentence use روح?

Accepted Answer

روح is the imperative form of راح / يروح, meaning to go. Here it means go and is directed to one male person.

Some related forms are:

- روح = go, said to one man
- روحي = go, said to one woman
- روحوا = go, said to more than one person

Question 8

What does عالصيدلية mean, and why is it not إلى الصيدلية?

Accepted Answer

عالصيدلية is a colloquial contraction of على الصيدلية. In Levantine Arabic, على often gets used with motion verbs to mean something like to when talking about destinations. So:

- روح عالصيدلية = go to the pharmacy

Using إلى would sound much more formal or Standard Arabic-like.

Question 9

What does يلي mean?

Accepted Answer

يلي is the Levantine relative word meaning that, which, or who. It introduces extra information about a noun.

So:

- الصيدلية يلي جنب المستشفى = the pharmacy that is next to the hospital

A nice thing for learners is that يلي does not change for gender or number. In Standard Arabic, you would need different forms such as الذي and التي.

Question 10

Why is there no word for is in يلي جنب المستشفى?

Accepted Answer

In Arabic, the verb to be is usually left out in the present tense. So جنب المستشفى literally looks like next to the hospital, but it means is next to the hospital.

That is why:

- الصيدلية يلي جنب المستشفى  
means  
- the pharmacy that is next to the hospital

Question 11

What does جنب mean?

Accepted Answer

جنب means next to, beside, or by the side of. It is very common in everyday speech for location.

So:

- جنب المستشفى = next to the hospital

It is a very useful word to remember for giving directions.

اذا ما لقيت الدوا بالصيدلية القريبة، روح عالصيدلية يلي جنب المستشفى.

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