Sixteen micro-lessons from the first sound to your first dialogue line. Already read Arabic? Go straight to the scenes below.

1. Lesson 1Alphabet9 minReady

   Hear it first: ا ب ت ن

   اسمع أولًا: ا ب ت ن

   6 stepsا ب ت ن

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2. Lesson 2Alphabet9 minReady

   Fatha and long ā — م ل

   الفتحة والمدّ بالألف — م ل

   7 stepsم ل

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3. Lesson 3Alphabet9 minReady

   Sukun: stop the sound — ر د

   السكون: قِفْ على الحرف — ر د

   7 stepsر د

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4. Lesson 4Alphabet9 minReady

   Kasra, long ī and ي

   الكسرة ومدّ الياء — ي

   7 stepsي

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5. Lesson 5Alphabet10 minReady

   Damma, long ū — و ه

   الضمة ومدّ الواو — و ه

   7 stepsو ه

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6. Lesson 6Alphabet9 minReady

   Hissing letters س ش, then ك

   حروف الصفير س ش، ثم الكاف

   7 stepsس ش ك

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7. Lesson 7Alphabet9 minReady

   ق, the deep k — and shadda

   القاف العميقة والشدة

   7 stepsق

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8. Lesson 8Alphabet9 minReady

   ح from the throat, ج, and ة

   الحاء الحلقية والجيم والتاء المربوطة

   7 stepsح ج

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9. Lesson 9Alphabet10 minReady

   ع and hamza: two throat sounds

   العين والهمزة: صوتان من الحلق

   7 stepsع ء

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10. Lesson 10Alphabet10 minReady

    خ the rough sound, ف and tanween

    الخاء والفاء والتنوين

    7 stepsخ ف

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11. Lesson 11Alphabet9 minReady

    غ the gargle, ز and madda

    الغين والزاي والمدّة

    7 stepsغ ز

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12. Lesson 12Alphabet9 minReady

    Heavy letters: ص ط

    الحروف المفخّمة: ص ط

    7 stepsص ط

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13. Lesson 13Alphabet9 minReady

    Tongue between the teeth: ث ذ

    طرف اللسان بين الأسنان: ث ذ

    7 stepsث ذ

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14. Lesson 14Alphabet9 minReady

    The heaviest pair: ض ظ

    أثقل حرفين: ض ظ

    7 stepsض ظ

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15. Lesson 15Alphabet8 minReady

    al- with sun and moon letters

    أل الشمسية والقمرية

    7 steps

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16. Lesson 16Alphabet8 minReady

    Read your first dialogue line

    اقرأ أول جملة في حوارك

    7 steps

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1. Stop 1Airport12 minReady

   Arrival at the airport

   الْوُصُولُ إِلَى الْمَطَارِ

   Omar, a student from Indonesia, has just landed in Riyadh. At passport control he hears his first Arabic: a greeting, a request for his passport, and three questions about who he is. He answers with his name, his country and one sentence he will use every day this year: I am a student.

   9 steps5 roots

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2. Stop 2Taxi12 minReady

   The taxi

   سَيَّارَةُ الْأُجْرَةِ

   Outside the terminal Omar takes a taxi to the university. He has to say where he is going, ask what it costs, understand the answer in riyals, and guide the driver the last two hundred metres: right, then straight ahead, then stop here. On the way he learns to count to twenty.

   9 steps7 roots

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3. Stop 3Housing12 minReady

   The apartment and the neighbourhood

   الشَّقَّةُ وَالْحَيُّ

   Abu Saad, the landlord, shows Omar his new apartment: bedroom, kitchen, bathroom. Then Omar crosses the street to the بَقَّالَة, the corner shop that every Saudi neighbourhood has, and buys his first water, bread and dates. He learns to point at things, to ask how much they cost and to understand the answer.

   9 steps8 roots

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4. Stop 4University12 minReady

   Registering at the university

   التَّسْجِيلُ فِي الْجَامِعَةِ

   First morning on campus. Omar finds the registration office, hands over his passport and two photos, fills in a form with a word he does not know yet (nationality), and asks the clerk the two questions every student asks: when do classes start, and when do they finish? The answer teaches him the days of the Saudi week and his first clock times.

   9 steps8 roots

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5. Stop 5Coffee and friends12 minReady

   Coffee and friends

   الْقَهْوَةُ وَالْأَصْدِقَاءُ

   Khalid, a classmate, invites Omar home for coffee. His father welcomes the guest the Saudi way: Arabic coffee in a small cup, a plate of dates, and questions about the family. Omar learns how to accept, how to thank, how to say what he likes and does not like, and the words for father, mother, brother and sister.

   9 steps8 roots

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6. Stop 6Clinic and pharmacy12 minReady

   At the clinic and the pharmacy

   فِي الْعِيَادَةِ وَالصَّيْدَلِيَّةِ

   Omar wakes up with a headache and a slight fever. At the university clinic he tells the doctor what is wrong, answers her questions, and leaves with a prescription. At the pharmacy he learns how to take the medicine: one tablet after food, twice a day, for three days. The scene closes with the phrase and the number he hopes never to need: help me, call an ambulance.

   9 steps8 roots

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