الأبواب تغلق
al-abwāb tuġlaq
In Arabic, "doors closing" is expressed as الأبواب تغلق (al-abwāb tuġlaq).
This phrase is used as an announcement or notification to indicate that the doors of a vehicle or a building are in the process of shutting.
Which one should you use?
The phrase الأبواب تغلق is a formal announcement that the doors are closing. In contrast, the phrase رجاءً أغلقوا الأبواب is a formal request meaning "please close the doors". For informal settings, you might use الأبواب هتقفل to say "the doors will close" or the full phrase جهز حالك، الأبواب هتقفل to say "get ready, the doors will close".
Is it said differently in some regions?
In Egyptian Arabic, you can say باب القطار هيقفل to mean "the train doors will close".
How do you pronounce it?
al-abwāb tuġlaq
Did you know?
- In Arabic, the word باب ('door') is used as a technical term for a 'chapter' or 'section' of a book. Therefore, saying the 'doors are closing' can be a poetic way to signal the conclusion of a specific topic.
- In Egyptian Arabic, the verb يقفل is used much more broadly than its counterparts in Modern Standard Arabic. It can be used interchangeably to mean 'to shut' a door or 'to lock' a door.
- The term باب is so broad that the phrase الأبواب تغلق can describe anything from the sliding doors of a modern metro to the massive historical gates of an ancient city.
Examples in context
- انتبه، الأبواب تغلق الآن.intabih, al-abwab tughlaq al-an.Watch out, the doors are closing now.
- تحذير: الأبواب تغلق بسرعة.tahzir: al-abwab tughlaq bi-sur'a.Warning: the doors are closing quickly.
Example conversation
Yousef and Sara are boarding a train.
- يوسف Youssefسارة، أسرعي في الدخول!Sara, asri'i fi al-dukhul!Sara, hurry up and get in!
- سارة Saraأنا قادمة، انتظرني يا يوسف.Ana qadima, intazirni ya Yousef.I'm coming, wait for me Yousef.
- يوسف Youssefاسمعي، الأبواب تغلق!Isma'i, al-abwab tughlaq!Listen, the doors are closing!
- سارة Saraلقد لحقت بالقطار في النهاية.Laqad lahiqtu bil-qitar fi al-nihaya.I finally made it onto the train.
