الخزانة يلي بالغرفة كبيرة، وفيها كتب وشنط.

الخزانة is a general word for a piece of storage furniture. Depending on context, it can mean closet, cabinet, cupboard, or wardrobe.

In this sentence, the exact English word depends on the situation:

• if it holds clothes, wardrobe/closet
• if it is more like a storage unit or cupboard, cabinet/cupboard

So the Arabic word is broader than any single English word.

يلي means that, which, or the one that.

In الخزانة يلي بالغرفة, it links الخزانة to the description بالغرفة:

• الخزانة = the cabinet/closet
• يلي بالغرفة = that is in the room

So the whole phrase means the cabinet/closet that is in the room.

In Levantine, يلي is a very common relative word. You will also often see it written as اللي. They are basically the same in everyday usage.

Because it is really made of smaller parts:

• بـ = in / at
• الـ = the
• غرفة = room

So:

• بـ + الـ + غرفة
• becomes بالغرفة
• meaning in the room

This kind of joining is completely normal in Arabic. Prepositions like بـ often attach directly to the word after them.

In Arabic, especially in the present tense, you usually do not say a separate word for is/am/are.

So:

• الخزانة كبيرة literally: the closet big but naturally means: the closet is big

That is standard Arabic structure, not something special to this sentence.

Because الخزانة is a feminine singular noun, and the adjective has to agree with it.

• masculine singular: كبير = big
• feminine singular: كبيرة = big

So:

• خزانة كبيرة = a big closet/cabinet
• الخزانة كبيرة = the closet/cabinet is big

This is very common in Arabic: adjectives agree with the noun in gender and number.

وفيها breaks down like this:

• و = and
• في = in
• ها = it / her

So literally it means and in it.

In natural English, though, وفيها كتب وشنط is often best translated as:

• and it has books and bags or
• and there are books and bags in it

This is a very common Arabic way to talk about what something contains.

Yes, the suffix -ها can mean her or it for a feminine noun.

Since الخزانة is feminine, فيها here means in it, referring back to the closet/cabinet.

So Arabic uses the same feminine object suffix for:

• a female person: her
• a feminine noun: it

Context tells you which meaning is intended.

Because the sentence is talking about some books and bags, not specific ones already identified.

• كتب = books
• شنط = bags

If the speaker meant specific books and bags, they could say:

• الكتب
• والشنط

So the difference is similar to:

• books and bags = indefinite
• the books and the bags = definite

Their singular forms are:

• كتاب = book
• شنطة = bag

So:

• كتب = books
• شنط = bags

A learner should notice that كتب is not made by simply adding an ending the way English often does. It is an irregular plural, which is very common in Arabic.

No. In Levantine, يلي is very convenient because it usually stays the same whether the noun is:

• masculine or feminine
• singular or plural
• a person or a thing

So you can use يلي very broadly as that / which / who in everyday speech.

That is one reason it is much simpler than formal Arabic relative pronouns.

It is Levantine colloquial.

The biggest clue is يلي, which is a spoken Levantine relative word. In Modern Standard Arabic, you would normally use something like التي here.

A more MSA-style version would be:

الخزانة التي في الغرفة كبيرة، وفيها كتب وحقائب.

A few differences:

• يلي becomes التي
• شنط is a colloquial word; MSA often prefers حقائب

So the original sentence sounds natural in spoken Levantine, not in formal written Arabic.