بطارية هاتفي ضعيفة الآن، ولذلك لا أستعمل الكاميرا.

بطارية is a feminine noun in Arabic. In Arabic, adjectives must agree with the noun they describe in:

• gender
• number
• definiteness

Since بطارية is feminine singular, the adjective must also be feminine singular, so we get:

• بطارية ... ضعيفة
• not بطارية ... ضعيف

The ـة at the end of بطارية and ضعيفة is a common sign of feminine singular forms.

هاتفي means my phone.

It is made of:

• هاتف = phone
• ـي = my

So:

• هاتف → phone
• هاتفي → my phone

This ـي is a possessive suffix. Arabic often expresses possession by attaching a suffix directly to the noun instead of using a separate word like my.

Arabic often expresses X of Y using a structure called iḍāfa (the construct phrase).

So:

• بطارية هاتفي literally = battery of my phone
• natural English = my phone’s battery or the battery of my phone

In an iḍāfa structure:

1. the first noun usually does not take ال
2. the second noun defines the whole phrase

That is why we say:

• بطارية هاتفي

and not usually:

• البطارية هاتفي

Here the whole phrase is already definite because هاتفي is definite.

Because it is the first part of an iḍāfa construction.

In Arabic, when a noun is the first term in an iḍāfa phrase, it normally does not take ال. Its definiteness comes from the second term.

Compare:

• بطارية = a battery
• بطارية هاتف = a phone battery
• بطارية هاتفي = my phone’s battery / the battery of my phone

Even without ال, بطارية here is understood as definite because هاتفي is definite.

Because predicate adjectives in sentences like this are usually indefinite.

This sentence is a nominal sentence:

• بطارية هاتفي = the subject
• ضعيفة = the predicate

So Arabic says:

• بطارية هاتفي ضعيفة
• literally: my phone’s battery [is] weak

Using الضعيفة would usually change the structure and make it sound more like the weak battery of my phone, which is a different idea.

In the present tense, Arabic usually does not use an explicit word for is / are.

So:

• بطارية هاتفي ضعيفة الآن
• literally: my phone’s battery weak now
• natural English: My phone’s battery is weak now

This is very normal in Arabic. The verb to be is usually omitted in the present tense.

الآن means now.

In this sentence it tells us the time of the situation:

• بطارية هاتفي ضعيفة الآن = My phone’s battery is weak now

Arabic word order is somewhat flexible, so الآن can sometimes appear in different positions depending on style and emphasis. But the placement here is very natural and clear.

ولذلك means and therefore, so, or for that reason.

It is built from:

• و = and
• لذلك = therefore / for that reason

And لذلك itself comes from:

• لـ = for
• ذلك = that

So the overall sense is:

• and for that reason
• therefore
• so

It links the first idea to the second:

• the battery is weak
• therefore I do not use the camera

أستعمل is the present-tense form meaning I use or I am using, depending on context.

Arabic present tense often covers both:

• simple present: I use
• present progressive: I am using

In this sentence, with الآن and the context, the meaning is something like:

• I am not using the camera or
• I don’t use the camera right now

The exact English translation depends on context, but the Arabic form is normal.

In Modern Standard Arabic, لا is commonly used to negate a present-tense verb.

So:

• أستعمل = I use / I am using
• لا أستعمل = I do not use / I am not using

This is one of the most basic ways to make a present-tense negative sentence in Arabic.

الكاميرا means the camera.

The definite article ال is used because the speaker means a specific camera, probably the one on the phone or the relevant camera in the situation.

So:

• كاميرا = a camera
• الكاميرا = the camera

In context, the camera makes good sense because both speaker and listener can identify which camera is meant.

كاميرا is a borrowed word, originally from European languages. Arabic uses many loanwords, especially for modern objects and technology.

Even though it is borrowed, it behaves like a normal Arabic noun in many ways. For example, it can take the definite article:

• كاميرا = a camera
• الكاميرا = the camera

So learners should not be surprised to see familiar international words written in Arabic script.

Yes. أستخدم and أستعمل can both mean I use.

So both are possible:

• لا أستعمل الكاميرا
• لا أستخدم الكاميرا

There can be slight differences in preference, style, or context, but for most learners both are acceptable and understandable in MSA.

Arabic has both:

• nominal sentences: begin with a noun
• verbal sentences: begin with a verb

The first part here is a nominal sentence:

• بطارية هاتفي ضعيفة الآن

This structure is very common for describing states or conditions, such as:

• the battery is weak
• the weather is nice
• the room is big

It sounds natural because the speaker is stating a condition first, then giving the result:

• بطارية هاتفي ضعيفة الآن، ولذلك لا أستعمل الكاميرا.

A close word-for-word breakdown is:

• بطارية = battery
• هاتفي = my phone
• ضعيفة = weak
• الآن = now
• ولذلك = and therefore / so
• لا = not
• أستعمل = I use / I am using
• الكاميرا = the camera

So the literal structure is roughly:

• Battery of-my-phone weak now, and therefore not I-use the-camera

Natural English:

• My phone’s battery is weak now, so I’m not using the camera.