ليس كثيرا
laysa kathiran
The English phrase 'not much' can be translated into Arabic as ليس كثيرا (laysa kathiran).
This phrase is used to indicate that a quantity or degree of something is small.
Is it said differently in some regions?
In Levantine Arabic, the informal phrase مش كتير is used to say 'not much'.
How do you pronounce it?
laysa kathiran
Did you know?
- The word ليس may be a very old loanword from Neo-Assyrian laššu or Taymanitic lys, meaning 'not existing or being'.
- Depending on the region, مش كتير can be used as a sarcastic way to describe something that is actually quite a lot.
- While ليس كثيرا is grammatically correct, an Arabic speaker might express 'not much' by saying قليل, which means 'a little'.
Examples in context
- كم عدد الضيوف الذين سيحضرون؟ – ليس كثيرًا، حوالي عشرة أشخاص.How many guests will be attending? – Not many, around ten people.
Example conversation
Ahmed and Sarah are talking about their weekend activities.
- أحمد Ahmedهل درست كثيراً لعطلة نهاية الأسبوع يا سارة؟hal darasti kathiran li-utlat nihayat al-usbu' ya Sarah?Did you study much over the weekend, Sarah?
- سارة Saraلا، ليس كثيراً، فقد كنت متعبة.la, laysa kathiran, faqad kuntu mut'abaNo, not much, as I was tired.
- أحمد Ahmedأنا أيضاً لم أدرس كثيراً.ana aydan lam adrus kathiranI didn't study much either.
- سارة Saraربما يجب أن نبدأ الآن يا أحمد.rubbama yajib an nabda' al-an ya AhmedMaybe we should start now, Ahmed.
Sources
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries كثيرا, ليس, CC BY-SA 4.0.
