صديقي لا يزال في المكتب، وسوف يعود الى البيت بعد ساعة.

my

Breakdown of صديقي لا يزال في المكتب، وسوف يعود الى البيت بعد ساعة.

• و: and
• الى: to
• صديق: friend

Questions & Answers about صديقي لا يزال في المكتب، وسوف يعود الى البيت بعد ساعة.

Why is there no Arabic word for is in صديقي لا يزال في المكتب?

In the present tense, Arabic usually does not use a separate word for is / am / are.

So instead of saying something like My friend is in the office, Arabic simply says:

• صديقي في المكتب = My friend is in the office

In your sentence, the first clause is a little richer:

• صديقي لا يزال في المكتب

This means My friend is still in the office.

Here, لا يزال gives the idea of still / continues to be, so you do not need a separate present-tense is.

---

What does لا يزال mean exactly?

لا يزال means still or continues to be.

So:

• لا يزال في المكتب = he is still in the office

A helpful way to think of it is:

• يزال comes from a verb related to ceasing/disappearing
• لا يزال literally gives the sense of has not ceased
• idiomatically, it means still or is still

This is a very common MSA expression.

Examples:

• لا يزال نائمًا = He is still asleep
• لا تزال المدرسة مغلقة = The school is still closed

---