Arabic uses specific words for different parts of the day:

Example Sentences

Here are sentences from your textbook showing how these words are used:

1. هُوَ يَسْتَيْقِظُ لَيْلاً — He wakes up at night.
2. هُوَ يَذْهَبُ إِلَى المَدْرَسَةِ صَباحاً — He goes to school in the morning.
3. هُوَ يَعْمَلُ نَهاراً — He works during the day.
4. هُوَ يَرْجِعُ مِنَ المَدْرَسَةِ مَساءً — He returns from school in the evening.

Notice how the time word comes after the verb in each sentence.

Learn the seven days of the week in Arabic:

Use these words to talk about time relative to today:

Example

If today is Monday, then:

• أُمْسِ was Sunday.
• قَبْلَ أُمْسِ was Saturday.
• غَداً will be Tuesday.
• بَعْدَ غَدٍ will be Wednesday.

The textbook also shows these additional time expressions. Practice matching them:

• نهارا — during the day
• ليلا — at night
• فجرا — at dawn/morning
• مساء — in the evening
• صباحا — in the morning

Parts of the day:

• صَباحاً (morning) — نَهاراً (daytime) — مَساءً (evening) — لَيْلاً (night)

Days of the week (in order):

• السَّبْتِ → الأحَد → الإثْنَيْنِ → الثُّلاَثَاءِ → الأرْبِعَاءِ → الخَمِيسِ → الجُمُعَةِ

Relative time:

• قَبْلَ أُمْسِ → أُمْسِ → اليَوْمَ → غَداً → بَعْدَ غَدٍ

In Tanzania, you will use these time expressions every day. For example, when arranging to meet a friend at the duka (shop), you might say: "Naingia dukani kesho asubuhi" (I will go to the shop tomorrow morning) or "Tukutane jioni" (Let us meet in the evening). Knowing these Arabic time words helps you communicate clearly about schedules with your family, teachers, and friends.