اختي ما بتحب الخس كتير، بس بتحب الفلفل مع الاكل.

In Arabic, possession is often shown by attaching a suffix directly to the noun.

• اخت = sister
• اختي = my sister

The -ي at the end means my.

So instead of saying something like my sister, Arabic combines them into one word. In Levantine pronunciation, اختي is often said as ikhti.

Because the verb already shows the subject.

• بتحب here means she likes or she loves
• The b- marks the present/habitual tense in Levantine
• The form of the verb tells you it is she or you depending on context

Since the sentence starts with اختي, we already know the subject is my sister, so there is no need to add هي (she). You could say اختي هي ما بتحب... for emphasis, but it is not necessary.

In Levantine Arabic, بـ usually marks the present or habitual tense.

So:

• بتحب = she likes / she loves
• without بـ, the meaning would change depending on context and dialect usage

In this sentence, بتحب describes a general preference, not something happening right this second. So ما بتحب الخس كتير means she doesn’t like lettuce very much in general.

A very common way to negate verbs in Levantine is with ما before the verb.

• بتحب = she likes
• ما بتحب = she does not like

So:

• اختي ما بتحب الخس كتير = My sister doesn’t like lettuce very much

In many Levantine contexts, ما by itself is enough for negation.

كتير often means a lot, very much, or very depending on context.

In this sentence:

• ما بتحب الخس كتير literally = she doesn’t like lettuce much
• natural English = she doesn’t like lettuce very much

Putting كتير after the object is very normal. It modifies the idea of liking, not the noun itself.

Here بس means but.

So:

• ما بتحب الخس كتير، بس بتحب الفلفل...
• She doesn’t like lettuce very much, but she likes peppers...

Be aware that بس can also mean only in other contexts. The meaning depends on the sentence.

Repeating the verb is very natural in Arabic, and often clearer.

So:

• بس بتحب الفلفل = but she likes peppers

You may sometimes hear shortened phrasing in conversation, but repeating the verb here is the normal and straightforward way to say it.

It also mirrors the contrast neatly:

• ما بتحب...
• بس بتحب...

الخس means lettuce.

In Levantine, the الـ is usually pronounced il- or l- depending on the word before it, so الخس is often pronounced something like il-khass.

A useful note:

• خ is a throaty sound, like the ch in German Bach or Scottish loch
• س is a normal s sound

So الخس is not a difficult grammar word, but the خ sound may take practice.

الفلفل generally means pepper or peppers, but the exact meaning depends on context.

In everyday Levantine, it can refer to:

• bell peppers / sweet peppers
• chili peppers
• sometimes pepper as an ingredient more generally

Because the sentence says بتحب الفلفل مع الاكل (she likes pepper/peppers with food), the intended meaning is probably peppers or pepper as part of meals/food. Context would tell you more.

Literally, مع الاكل means with the food.

But in natural English, it often means something like:

• with meals
• with food
• as part of a meal

So بتحب الفلفل مع الاكل means she likes pepper/peppers with her food or with meals.

Because الاكل is the definite form: the food.

• اكل = food / eating, depending on context
• الاكل = the food

In Arabic, the definite article الـ often works where English might still use a more general phrase. So مع الاكل is a very natural Arabic expression even though English might translate it simply as with food or with meals rather than strictly with the food.

A common pronunciation would be something close to:

ikhti ma btiḥibb il-khass ktīr, bas btiḥibb il-filfil maʿ l-akel

A few pronunciation notes:

• اختي → ikhti
• بتحب → btiḥibb
• الخس → il-khass
• الفلفل → often il-filfil or il-felfel, depending on local accent
• مع الاكل → often sounds like maʿ l-akel

Exact vowels vary across Levantine regions, but this is a good general guide.

Yes. The verb form matches a feminine singular subject.

• اختي = my sister
• بتحب here agrees with she

If you changed the subject to my brother:

• اخوي ما بيحب الخس كتير، بس بيحب الفلفل مع الاكل
• My brother doesn’t like lettuce very much, but he likes peppers with food

Notice that بتحب becomes بيحب for he.

Yes, the verb حبّ / يحب covers both like and love, depending on context.

In this sentence, the natural English translation is like, because we are talking about food preferences:

• ما بتحب الخس كتير = she doesn’t like lettuce very much
• بتحب الفلفل مع الاكل = she likes peppers with food

Using love in English would sound too strong in many cases, though context could sometimes support it.

This is colloquial Levantine-style Arabic.

Clues include:

• ما بتحب for negation in spoken Arabic
• the b- present tense marker
• everyday vocabulary and spoken-style structure

A more formal Modern Standard Arabic version would look different, for example with forms like لا تحب or more formal phrasing. This sentence is the kind of thing people would naturally say in conversation.