Hello in Lebanese: Greetings & Meeting People

Quick answer Hello in Lebanese is marhaba (مرحبا), answered with marhabtein; "how are you" is kifak? to a man and kifik? to a woman, answered with mnih, el-hamdella. Good morning is sabah el-kheir, reply sabah en-nur, and thank you is merci, shukran or yeslamo, answered with ʿafwan. The full greetings table is below; the PDF adds a Beirut café dialogue and exercises.

How do you say hello in Lebanese?

The everyday hello in Lebanon is marhaba (مرحبا), and the classic reply doubles it: marhabtein, "two hellos". To welcome someone you say ahla w sahla, answered with ahla fik to a man or ahla fiki to a woman. The religious greeting es-salamu ʿaleikon works everywhere too. And because Beirut mixes French and English into Arabic, you will hear people greet each other with hi, bonjour or the famous three-language hi, kifak, ça va?

Good morning in Lebanese, and the replies people expect

sabah el-kheir means "morning of goodness". The standard reply is sabah en-nur, "morning of light", and a warm, slightly playful one is sabah el-ward, "morning of roses". In the evening it is masa el-kheir, answered with masa en-nur. Many Lebanese simply say bonjour and bonsoir, especially in shops and offices in Beirut. In Lebanon the reply is half the greeting: answering marhaba with marhabtein, or ahla w sahla with ahla fik, is what makes you sound like you belong.

How do you say how are you in Lebanese, to a man or a woman?

Lebanese changes the ending of many phrases depending on who you talk to. kifak? is to a man, kifik? to a woman, kifkon? to a group. The answer is mnih, el-hamdella (good, thank God), or mniha if you are a woman, then w-enta? or w-ente? (and you?). The same -ak / -ik switch runs through the whole worksheet: shu esmak? / shu esmik? (what's your name?), bkhatrak / bkhatrik (bye). Exercise 3 on the sheet drills exactly this.

How do you say thank you and I love you in Lebanese?

Thank you is merci for most people in Beirut, shukran in Arabic, and yeslamo when you want to sound warm and local. The answer is ʿafwan, or tekram (to a man) and tekrame (to a woman). I love you is bhebbak to a man and bhebbik to a woman (بحبّك). Families also say taʾborne, "may you bury me", a dark-sounding phrase that means "I love you more than my own life".

How is Lebanese different from Standard Arabic and the other dialects?

Modern Standard Arabic says kayfa haluka and ma ismuka; Lebanese says kifak and shu esmak. Three sounds give Lebanese away: ج is soft like the s in "pleasure", ق is a glottal stop (ʾahwe, coffee), and many words end in -e (maʿ es-salame). Syrian Arabic is very close; Palestinian sounds similar but often keeps a clear -a, and Egyptian uses a hard g and different words (izzayyak for how are you). The PDF has all 28 phrases, a café dialogue in Beirut, five exercises and the answer key. For greetings across all dialects, read Arabic greetings and responses; next, learn to count and pay with Lebanese numbers, or see all Levantine Arabic worksheets.

What's inside the PDF

• 28 phrases in three groups: greetings and goodbyes, meeting someone, small words you use every hour. Arabic script, pronunciation and the (m)/(f) forms side by side
• Every greeting with its reply: marhaba / marhabtein, sabah el-kheir / sabah en-nur, tsharrafna / w-ana aktar
• Pronunciation box: the three sounds that make Lebanese sound Lebanese (soft j, ق as a glottal stop, final -a turning into -e) plus the French words Beirut mixes in
• A box with "I love you" (bhebbak / bhebbik) and other warm words, and a café dialogue in Beirut to read in pairs
• Five exercises: matching, gap fill, rewriting (m) to (f), comprehension questions, introduce yourself to a partner
• Speaking check, answer key and teacher notes on a separate page you can remove before handing out

How to use it on your own

Work through section A out loud, not silently, and tick a phrase only when you can say it from the English alone. Say every reply together with its greeting, because in Lebanon the reply is half the phrase. Read the dialogue twice, once as each speaker, then record your own introduction (Ex. 5) and listen back once.

How to use it in class

Fits a 45-minute lesson or a 20-minute warm-up (section A plus the dialogue). The dialogue works in pairs; swap roles on the second read and let students use their own names and countries. Ex. 3 (man or woman) is the key exercise, because the (m)/(f) ending is the one grammar point beginners need from day one. Act out bkhatrak and maʿ es-salame at the door: the one leaving and the one staying say different things. Points fields on every exercise, answer key on the last page.

Preview

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Frequently asked questions

How do you say hello in Lebanese?

The everyday hello is marhaba (مرحبا), and the classic reply is marhabtein, "two hellos". ahla w sahla means welcome and is answered with ahla fik (to a man) or ahla fiki (to a woman). Many people in Beirut simply say hi or bonjour, often in one breath: hi, kifak, ça va?

How do you say how are you in Lebanese?

kifak? to a man, kifik? to a woman and kifkon? to a group. The usual answer is mnih, el-hamdella (good, thank God), mniha if you are a woman, followed by w-enta? or w-ente? (and you?). You will also hear shu el-akhbar? (what's new?) and the French ça va?

How do you say thank you in Lebanese?

merci is the most common thank you in Beirut, used by everyone. shukran is the Arabic word, and yeslamo is a warm, very Lebanese thanks that literally means "may they be kept safe". The answer is ʿafwan (you're welcome) or tekram / tekrame, "you deserve it".

How do you say good morning in Lebanese Arabic?

sabah el-kheir (صباح الخير), "morning of goodness". The reply is sabah en-nur, "morning of light", or the playful sabah el-ward, "morning of roses". Good evening is masa el-kheir, answered with masa en-nur. Many people also say bonjour and bonsoir.

How do you say I love you in Lebanese?

bhebbak (بحبّك) to a man and bhebbik to a woman; the Arabic spelling is the same. Close friends and family also say taʾborne, literally "may you bury me", which means "I love you so much I want to go before you". habibi and habibti (my dear) are used all day long.

Is this worksheet free?

Yes. Download the PDF, print it and share it as often as you like for personal use and in class. Please keep the Yallah Speak credit in the footer.