كم يكلف هذا؟
kam yukallifu hadha?
The English phrase "how much does this cost?" is translated into Arabic as كم يكلف هذا؟ (kam yukallifu hadha?).
This phrase is used to ask for the price of an item.
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase is composed of كم, meaning "how much" or "how many". يكلف, which is the third-person singular masculine present tense form of the verb "to cost". And هذا, meaning "this" (masculine).
Is it said differently in some regions?
In Egyptian Arabic, you can informally ask بكم الحاجة دي؟ to mean "How much does this thing cost?" In Levantine Arabic, the informal phrase بكم هاي؟ can be used to ask "How much is this?"
How does it change in a sentence?
The phrase كم يكلف هذا؟ uses the masculine demonstrative هذا. If you are pointing to a feminine object, you should use هذه instead.
How do you pronounce it?
kam yukallifu hadha?
Did you know?
- In many Arabic-speaking markets, asking كم يكلف هذا؟ is only the start of a social ritual called 'bargaining', where paying the first price mentioned is often seen as an error.
- The verb يكلف is related to the concept of 'burden' or 'responsibility' in its linguistic roots, implying that a price is something that weighs upon the person paying.
- In many Arabic-speaking markets, you might not even use a verb like 'to cost' to ask for a price. Instead, you can simply point and say بكم؟, which literally means 'By how much?'
Examples in context
- بكم يكلف هذا؟How much does this cost?
- كم سعره؟How much is it?
- أريد هذا، كم يكلف هذا؟uridu hadha, kam yukallifu hadha?I want this, how much does this cost?
Example conversation
Ziad and Maryam are looking at a souvenir in a shop.
- زياد Ziadكم يكلف هذا؟kam yukallifu hadha?How much does this cost?
- مريم Maryamيكلف عشرين درهماً.yukallifu 'ishrina dirhaman.It costs twenty dirhams.
- زياد Ziadهل هذا غالي يا مريم؟hal hadha ghali ya Maryam?Is this expensive, Maryam?
- مريم Maryamلا، إنه سعر جيد.la, innahu si'r jayyid.No, it is a good price.
