ما الأخبار؟ كل شيء بخير. هل أنت متفرغ؟

It is often used more like What’s the news?, What’s new?, or even What’s up? depending on context.

Literally:

• ما = what
• الأخبار = the news / the pieces of news

So the phrase is asking for updates. In real use, it can sound like a natural way to ask how things are going, especially in a somewhat standard or formal register.

Arabic often uses the definite form in expressions where English does not.

Here, الأخبار means the news, but in Arabic that is the normal way to express the idea of news/updates in this kind of question. So ما الأخبار؟ is idiomatic.

Without الـ, the phrase would sound less natural here.

Here ما is an interrogative word, meaning what.

So in ما الأخبار؟, it introduces a question:

• ما = what
• الأخبار = the news

Do not confuse this ما with other uses of ما, such as negation or relative meanings. Arabic words often have multiple functions, and context tells you which one is intended.

Arabic often forms present-tense statements without an explicit verb to be.

So:

• كل شيء = everything
• بخير = well / fine / in a good state

Together, كل شيء بخير means Everything is fine.

This is called a nominal sentence. In the present tense, Arabic usually does not say a separate word for is.

The بـ is a preposition, often meaning in, with, or by, depending on context.

In بخير, the expression literally has the sense of in good condition / in well-being. But you should learn بخير as a set phrase meaning:

• fine
• well
• okay

You will see this pattern in other common expressions too, such as:

• أنا بخير = I am fine
• نحن بخير = We are fine

كل usually needs something after it, because it means all or every in relation to something.

So:

• كل شيء = everything
• كل يوم = every day
• كل الناس = all the people

In your sentence, كل شيء is the complete phrase meaning everything.

شيء means thing.

So:

• كل شيء = every thing = everything

It is an extremely common word in Arabic. One detail learners often notice is that it contains a hamza (ء), which affects pronunciation and spelling.

هل is a standard way to form a yes/no question in Modern Standard Arabic.

So:

• هل أنت متفرغ؟ = Are you free/available?

It does not itself mean are. It simply marks the sentence as a yes/no question.

You will see هل often in MSA, especially in writing and formal speech.

In this sentence, أنت is normally included.

That is because متفرغ is an adjective/participle meaning free, available, or unoccupied, and the sentence needs a clear subject:

• أنت = you
• متفرغ = free/available

So هل أنت متفرغ؟ is the natural full form.

Arabic can omit subject pronouns in many verbal sentences, but this is not the same kind of structure. Here the pronoun is important.

متفرغ means something like:

• free
• available
• not busy
• at leisure (depending on context)

It comes from a root connected with being empty or unoccupied in the sense of having time available.

So هل أنت متفرغ؟ usually asks whether someone has time, is available to talk, or is not occupied with something else.

Yes. It agrees with the person being described.

For a man:

• هل أنتَ متفرغ؟

For a woman:

• هل أنتِ متفرغة؟

So the adjective changes:

• masculine: متفرغ
• feminine: متفرغة

This kind of agreement is very common in Arabic.

Yes, both the pronoun and the adjective would change.

Examples:

• to two men: هل أنتما متفرغان؟
• to two women: هل أنتما متفرغتان؟
• to a group of men or a mixed group: هل أنتم متفرغون؟
• to a group of women: هل أنتن متفرغات؟

Arabic marks number and gender much more explicitly than English.

In fully vocalized, formal MSA, case endings can appear, but in everyday reading, teaching materials, and normal speech, they are often not pronounced.

For example, in careful grammatical form, you could analyze:

• ما الأخبارُ؟
• كلُّ شيءٍ بخيرٍ.
• هل أنتَ متفرغٌ؟

But many learners first meet them without the endings, and in pause those final short vowels are often dropped anyway.

So yes, they belong to formal grammar, but do not be surprised if you mostly hear:

• ما الأخبار؟
• كل شيء بخير.
• هل أنت متفرغ؟

It is natural in Modern Standard Arabic, but it sounds more standard/formal than many everyday spoken dialect expressions.

A native speaker might use it in:

• writing
• media
• formal conversation
• semi-formal messages

In daily dialect speech, many speakers would choose a dialect equivalent instead. So it is correct and useful, but it belongs more to the MSA register than to casual home conversation.

The two main sounds learners often notice are:

• خ in الأخبار: a rough sound from the back of the throat, like the ch in Scottish loch or German Bach
• غ in متفرغ: another back-of-the-throat sound, often compared loosely to a French or Parisian r, though not exactly the same

Also note:

• هل is short and simple: hal
• أنت is anta or anti depending on vowel marking and gender in careful pronunciation
• شيء ends with a hamza, so it is not just shay in careful MSA pronunciation, but closer to shay’

These sounds take practice, so it is normal if they feel unfamiliar at first.