السَّفَر وَالرِّحْلَاتTravel Experiences
Chapter Objectives
By the end of this chapter, you will be able to:
- Recognize that some Arabic verb roots contain و or ي as a middle radical and behave differently from the sound verbs you have used since Chapter 14.
- Conjugate the perfect tense of the hollow verb زَارَ (يَزُور) "to visit" for singular and plural subjects.
- Use the hollow verbs كَانَ, زَارَ, and سَافَرَ's weak counterpart pattern to talk about a trip.
- Sequence a narrative using أَوَّلًا, ثُمَّ, بَعْدَ ذَلِك, and أَخِيرًا.
- Mark where a trip began and ended using مِن and إِلَى with place names.
- Negate a hollow verb in the past using لَمْ plus the jussive, recycled from Chapter 16.
- Read a short travel account that combines sequence connectors, source/destination phrases, and hollow verbs.
- Write a connected travel narrative of five to seven sentences describing a trip from start to finish.
- Recycle plural perfect-tense narration, negative commands, and group vocabulary from Chapter 16 inside a new travel context.
Communication Scenario
Layla has just returned from a short trip and is telling Tom, Nadia, and Karim about it over coffee. To tell the story clearly, she needs to say where she went, what she did first, next, and last, and what did not happen along the way. This chapter continues Unit IV, التَّجَارِب وَالقِصَص (Experiences and Stories), moving from the group narration of Chapter 16 into a single connected travel story.
- You already know how to say what happened using the perfect tense. This chapter adds a small group of very common verbs — hollow verbs — whose perfect and imperfect stems look a little different from the sound verbs you have used so far.
- You already know how to state single facts about the past. This chapter adds the connecting words that turn separate facts into one organized story, and the tools for saying exactly where a journey started and where it ended.
Core Vocabulary
The items below are new for this chapter. Hollow verbs are marked so you can see the weak middle radical.
| Arabic | Meaning | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| زَارَ (يَزُور) | to visit | hollow verb, root ز-و-ر; verbal noun زِيَارَة |
| طَارَ (يَطِير) | to fly | hollow verb, root ط-ي-ر; receptive this chapter, glossed for reading |
| رَكِبَ (يَرْكَب) | to ride, to board | Form I, sound root; used with طَائِرَة or قِطَار |
| نَزَلَ (يَنْزِل) | to get off, to stay (at a hotel) | Form I, sound root; recycled preposition فِي |
| رِحْلَة / رِحَلَات | trip, journey | fem. noun; broken plural |
| طَائِرَة / طَائِرَات | airplane | fem. noun; sound fem. plural |
| قِطَار / قِطَارَات | train | masc. noun; sound masc.-pattern plural |
| فُنْدُق / فَنَادِق | hotel | masc. noun; broken plural |
| مِن ... إِلَى | from ... to | marks source and destination; recycles مِن and إِلَى from Ch. 3 and Ch. 11 |
| أَوَّلًا | first | sequence adverb, new this chapter |
| ثُمَّ | then, next | sequence connector, new this chapter |
| بَعْدَ ذَلِك | after that | sequence phrase, new this chapter |
| أَخِيرًا | finally | sequence adverb, new this chapter |
Directions, plural perfect-tense forms, لَمْ plus the jussive, and negative commands from Chapter 16 are recycled throughout this chapter and are not reintroduced here.
Hollow Weak Verbs
Every verb you have used so far — وَصَلَ, رَجَعَ, تَأَخَّرَ, ذَهَبَ — has three strong consonants and is called a "sound" verb. A small but very common group of Arabic verbs has و or ي as the middle radical. These are called hollow verbs, and their vowel pattern shifts in a regular way.
| Subject | Sound verb (Ch. 14–16) | Hollow verb زَارَ |
|---|---|---|
| أَنَا (I) | وَصَلْتُ | زُرْتُ |
| أَنْتَ / أَنْتِ (you m./f.) | وَصَلْتَ / وَصَلْتِ | زُرْتَ / زُرْتِ |
| هُوَ / هِيَ (he / she) | وَصَلَ / وَصَلَتْ | زَارَ / زَارَتْ |
| نَحْنُ (we) | وَصَلْنَا | زُرْنَا |
| هُم (they, m.) | وَصَلُوا | زَارُوا |
Notice the pattern: when the ending begins with a consonant (as in -تُ or -نَا), the middle radical shortens to ُ. When the ending begins with nothing or with a vowel-friendly suffix (as with هُوَ, هِيَ, or هُم), the long middle vowel ا stays. This same pattern governs other common hollow verbs such as كَانَ, which you will study closely in Chapter 18.
- زُرْتُ مَدِينَة القَاهِرَة الأُسْبُوع المَاضِي.I visited the city of Cairo last week.hollow verb, 1st sg. perfect, new this chapter
- زَارَت لَيْلَى أُخْتَهَا فِي عَمَّان.Layla visited her sister in Amman.hollow verb, 3rd sg. fem. perfect
- زُرْنَا مَتْحَفًا جَمِيلًا فِي أَوَّل يَوم.We visited a beautiful museum on the first day.hollow verb, 1st pl. perfect, recycled from Ch. 16
You can negate a hollow verb in the past the same way you negated sound verbs in Chapter 16: with لَمْ plus the jussive imperfect. لَمْ أَزُر المَتْحَف means "I did not visit the museum." The jussive of a hollow verb typically shortens the long vowel, which you will see modeled in this chapter's reading and dialogue; full jussive formation for hollow and other weak verbs is developed further across Unit IV.
تَدْرِيب — Practice: Complete each sentence with the correct form of زَارَ.
- أَنَا ______ صَدِيقِي فِي دُبَي. (I visited)
- هُم ______ جَدَّتَهُم فِي الصَّيف. (they visited)
Sequencing a Story
A list of separate perfect-tense sentences is not yet a story. To narrate a trip clearly, connect the events in order using sequence words.
| Arabic | Meaning | Typical position |
|---|---|---|
| أَوَّلًا | first | opens the narrative |
| ثُمَّ | then, next | begins a following sentence or clause |
| بَعْدَ ذَلِك | after that | begins a following sentence or clause |
| أَخِيرًا | finally | closes the narrative |
- أَوَّلًا، رَكِبْنَا الطَّائِرَة مِن نِيُويُورك.First, we boarded the plane from New York.sequence connector + hollow-adjacent travel vocabulary
- ثُمَّ نَزَلْنَا فِي فُنْدُق قَرِيب مِن المَطَار.Then we stayed at a hotel near the airport.sequence connector, sound verb نَزَلَ
- بَعْدَ ذَلِك، زُرْنَا المَدِينَة القَدِيمَة.After that, we visited the old city.sequence phrase + hollow verb
- أَخِيرًا، رَجَعْنَا إِلَى البَيْت مُتْعَبِين لَكِن سُعَدَاء.Finally, we returned home tired but happy.sequence connector + recycled perfect verb, Ch. 14
تَدْرِيب — Practice: Put the four sentences above into a single connected paragraph, keeping the sequence words in order.
Source and Destination
You met مِن ("from") in Chapter 3 for talking about origin, and إِلَى ("to") in Chapter 11 for talking about direction. Travel narration regularly uses them together to frame a journey from its starting point to its ending point.
- هَل سَافَرْتُم مِن هُنَا إِلَى دُبَي مُبَاشَرَة؟Did you all travel from here to Dubai directly?مِن ... إِلَى with plural perfect verb, recycled Ch. 16
- رَكِبْنَا القِطَار مِن المَحَطَّة الأُولَى إِلَى المَحَطَّة الأَخِيرَة.We rode the train from the first station to the last station.مِن ... إِلَى with a defined route
مِن ... إِلَى sets the outer frame of a trip; the sequence connectors from the previous section fill in what happened inside that frame. A well-formed travel narrative in this chapter typically states the route once with مِن ... إِلَى and then narrates the events with أَوَّلًا, ثُمَّ, بَعْدَ ذَلِك, and أَخِيرًا.
تَدْرِيب — Practice: Complete the sentence with a route of your choice: سَافَرْتُ مِن ______ إِلَى ______.
Model Dialogue
Setting: Layla tells Tom, Nadia, and Karim about her recent trip.
السِّيَاق: تُخْبِر لَيْلَى تُوم وَنَادِيَة وَكَرِيم عَن رِحْلَتِهَا الأَخِيرَة.
أَسْئِلَة الفَهْم — Comprehension questions:
- Identify the route Layla describes using مِن ... إِلَى.
- List the four events of Layla's trip in the order the sequence words introduce them.
- What did Layla not do, and why? Find the لَمْ + jussive phrase.
Listening Practice
Ask your instructor, a partner, or a text-to-speech tool to read the following short account aloud twice at a moderate pace. Listen without reading along the first time, then answer the questions below.
سَافَرَ كَرِيم مِن هُنَا إِلَى دُبَي فِي الصَّيف. أَوَّلًا، رَكِبَ الطَّائِرَة وَوَصَلَ بَعْد سَاعَات طَوِيلَة. ثُمَّ نَزَلَ فِي فُنْدُق كَبِير قَرِيب مِن البَحْر. بَعْد ذَلِك، زَارَ أَصْدِقَاءَهُ القُدَامَى هُنَاك. لَمْ يَزُر كُلّ الأَمَاكِن الَّتِي أَرَادَ، لَكِنَّهُ اِسْتَمْتَع كَثِيرًا. أَخِيرًا، رَجَعَ إِلَى هُنَا سَعِيدًا جِدًّا.
مُهِمَّة الاسْتِمَاع — Listening task
List the four stages of Karim's trip in order, along with the sequence word that introduces each one. Then answer:
- What route did Karim travel, and how do you know?
- What did Karim not manage to do?
Speaking Practice
تَدْرِيب مُوَجَّه — Controlled practice: Route and sequence chain
With a partner, take turns completing this frame with a real or invented trip: سَافَرْتُ مِن ______ إِلَى ______. أَوَّلًا، ______. ثُمَّ ______.
مُهِمَّة تَوَاصُل — Communicative task: Tell your trip
With a partner or small group, narrate a real or imagined trip using مِن ... إِلَى, at least two hollow-verb sentences with زَارَ, all four sequence connectors, and one لَمْ + jussive sentence about something you did not do.
لِلْمُتَعَلِّمِينَ المُسْتَقِلِّينَ — Solo alternative
Record yourself narrating a trip you have taken or would like to take, from departure to return, using the full sequence-connector set and at least two forms of زَارَ. Listen back and check your hollow-verb endings against the building block above.
Reading Practice
Read the short travel journal entry below, then answer the questions that follow.
A travel journal entry
اليَوم الأَوَّل مِن رِحْلَتِي: سَافَرْتُ مِن هُنَا إِلَى القَاهِرَة صَبَاحًا. أَوَّلًا، رَكِبْتُ الطَّائِرَة وَنِمْتُ مُعْظَم الرِّحْلَة. ثُمَّ وَصَلْتُ وَنَزَلْتُ فِي فُنْدُق صَغِير وَسَط المَدِينَة. بَعْد ذَلِك، خَرَجْتُ لِلْمَشْي وَزُرْتُ سُوقًا قَدِيمًا قَرِيبًا. لَمْ أَزُر الأَهْرَامَات فِي اليَوم الأَوَّل لِأَنِّي كُنْتُ مُتْعَبَة جِدًّا. أَخِيرًا، رَجَعْتُ إِلَى الفُنْدُق وَنِمْتُ مُبَكِّرًا اسْتِعْدَادًا لِلْيَوم الثَّانِي.
أَسْئِلَة الفَهْم — Comprehension questions:
- What route does the writer describe with مِن ... إِلَى?
- List the four stages of the first day using the sequence words that introduce them.
- What did the writer not do on the first day, and why?
- Find one example of the hollow verb زَارَ in the passage.
The verb نِمْتُ ("I slept," from the hollow root ن-و-م) and the phrase اسْتِعْدَادًا لِـ ("in preparation for") are glossed here for recognition; they are not productive targets of this chapter.
Writing Workshop
In this chapter's writing task, you will write a connected narrative describing a trip from start to finish.
- Choose your trip. Decide on a real or imagined trip with a clear starting point and ending point.
- State the route. Write one sentence using مِن ... إِلَى.
- Narrate the events in order. Write four sentences, one for each sequence connector: أَوَّلًا, ثُمَّ, بَعْدَ ذَلِك, and أَخِيرًا.
- Include at least one hollow verb. Use زَارَ at least once in your narrative.
- Add one thing that did not happen. Write one sentence using لَمْ plus the jussive.
- Draft the paragraph. Write five to seven connected sentences in total.
- Revise. Check your draft against the editing checklist below.
قَائِمَة المُرَاجَعَة — Editing checklist:
- I stated the route with مِن ... إِلَى.
- I used all four sequence connectors in a logical order.
- I used the hollow verb زَارَ at least once with a correct ending.
- I used at least one example of لَمْ plus the jussive.
- My paragraph is connected, not a list of unrelated sentences.
- I wrote all letters and endings with correct right-to-left joining.
Culture and Communication
Recounting a trip in careful sequence — first this, then that, finally this — is a common storytelling pattern across many Arabic-speaking communities, much as it is in many parts of the world. Travelers commonly mention visiting family, as Layla does in the dialogue, since travel and family visits are often closely connected across the Arabic-speaking world, from the Levant to the Gulf to North Africa and beyond.
The words طَائِرَة and قِطَار are standard MSA and are broadly understood, but everyday regional speech sometimes uses different or additional terms for transportation and travel arrangements. Treat any such comparison your instructor introduces as receptive and comparative information at this stage, not a substitute for the MSA vocabulary practiced here.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
Error: Saying *زَارْتُ, keeping the long vowel before a consonant-initial ending.
Correction: Before an ending that begins with a consonant, the middle radical shortens: زُرْتُ, not *زَارْتُ.
Error: Writing four separate, disconnected sentences that each happen to start with a sequence word but do not build on each other.
Correction: Each sequence word should introduce the next stage of the same trip, so that the four sentences read as one story, as in the model dialogue and reading passage above.
Error: Saying *سَافَرْنَا إِلَى عَمَّان مِن هُنَا when the intended meaning still puts the starting point first in English word order but confuses which preposition marks which place.
Correction: مِن always marks the starting point and إِلَى always marks the destination: سَافَرْنَا مِن هُنَا إِلَى عَمَّان.
Chapter Review
Section A — الأَفْعَال الجَوْفَاء (Hollow Verbs)
1. Give the correct form: (أَنَا) ______ (زَارَ) مَتْحَفًا جَدِيدًا.
2. Rewrite in the هُم form: زَارَ صَدِيقَهُ فِي الشِّتَاء.
Section B — تَرْتِيب القِصَّة (Sequencing)
1. Put these four events into a connected sentence using أَوَّلًا, ثُمَّ, بَعْدَ ذَلِك, and أَخِيرًا: (a) rode the train (b) arrived in the city (c) visited a friend (d) returned home.
Section C — المَصْدَر وَالوِجْهَة (Source and Destination)
1. Complete: سَافَرَ تُوم ______ نِيُويُورك ______ لَنْدَن.
Section D — الكِتَابَة وَالتَّعْبِير الشَّفَهِيّ (Writing and Speaking)
1. Write and then say aloud a five-sentence account of a trip that includes a مِن ... إِلَى route, all four sequence connectors, one hollow verb, and one لَمْ + jussive sentence.
مُرَاجَعَة تَرَاكُمِيَّة — Cumulative review
Complete the short exchange below, combining travel narration with plural perfect narration and negative commands from Chapter 16.
أ: إِلَى أَيْن سَافَرْتُم فِي الصَّيف؟
ب: ______________________________________ (state a route using مِن ... إِلَى)
أ: مَاذَا فَعَلْتُم هُنَاك؟
ب: ______________________________________ (narrate two events using sequence connectors)
أ: هَل زُرْتُم كُلّ الأَمَاكِن الَّتِي أَرَدْتُم؟
ب: ______________________________________ (say what you did not do, using لَمْ + jussive)
Practical Performance Task
مُهِمَّة الأَدَاء العَمَلِيَّة
رِحْلَتِي — My Trip
Complete the following, combining the systems introduced in this chapter with recycled material from Unit III and Chapter 16:
- Written: Write a connected paragraph of five to seven sentences about a real or imagined trip. Include a مِن ... إِلَى route, all four sequence connectors, at least one hollow verb, and at least one لَمْ + jussive sentence.
- Reading: Read a short, unfamiliar travel account provided by your instructor and identify the route, the sequence of events, and one thing that did not happen.
- Spoken: Tell a partner about a trip using the full sequence-connector set and at least one hollow verb.
- Listening: Listen to a partner or instructor account of a different trip and note the route and the order of events.
- Reflection: Write one sentence in English identifying which of this chapter's systems — hollow verbs, sequence connectors, or source/destination phrasing — still needs more practice, and why.
Assessment focus: accurate hollow-verb endings, correctly ordered sequence connectors, correct use of مِن ... إِلَى, and continued accuracy with لَمْ plus the jussive, inside a connected, natural travel narrative.
Answer Key
Hollow Weak Verbs, Practice
- زُرْتُ صَدِيقِي فِي دُبَي.
- زَارُوا جَدَّتَهُم فِي الصَّيف.
Model Dialogue — Comprehension
- Layla traveled مِن هُنَا إِلَى عَمَّان ("from here to Amman").
- (1) boarded the plane in the morning, (2) stayed at a hotel near her sister's house, (3) visited her grandmother the next day, (4) returned home yesterday evening.
- She did not visit Petra this time: لَمْ أَزُر البَتْرَاء, because there wasn't enough time.
Listening Practice
- Stages, in order: أَوَّلًا rode the plane and arrived; ثُمَّ stayed at a hotel near the sea; بَعْد ذَلِك visited old friends; أَخِيرًا returned home happy.
- Karim traveled from here to Dubai in the summer. He did not visit all the places he wanted to.
Reading Practice — Comprehension
- The route is from here to Cairo, stated at the beginning of the entry.
- (1) boarded the plane and slept most of the trip, (2) arrived and stayed at a small hotel downtown, (3) went out walking and visited a nearby old market, (4) returned to the hotel and slept early.
- The writer did not visit the Pyramids on the first day because she was very tired.
- زُرْتُ سُوقًا قَدِيمًا قَرِيبًا is one example of the hollow verb زَارَ.
Chapter Review — Section A
- زُرْتُ
- زَارُوا صَدِيقَهُم فِي الشِّتَاء.
Chapter Review — Section B, model answer
أَوَّلًا، رَكِبْنَا القِطَار. ثُمَّ وَصَلْنَا إِلَى المَدِينَة. بَعْد ذَلِك، زُرْنَا صَدِيقًا. أَخِيرًا، رَجَعْنَا إِلَى البَيْت.
Chapter Review — Section C
سَافَرَ تُوم مِن نِيُويُورك إِلَى لَنْدَن.
Chapter Review — Section D, model answer
سَافَرْتُ مِن هُنَا إِلَى بَيْرُوت. أَوَّلًا، رَكِبْتُ الطَّائِرَة. ثُمَّ نَزَلْتُ فِي فُنْدُق قَرِيب مِن البَحْر. بَعْد ذَلِك، زُرْتُ أَقَارِبِي. لَمْ أَزُر كُلّ الأَمَاكِن الَّتِي أَرَدْتُ. أَخِيرًا، رَجَعْتُ إِلَى هُنَا سَعِيدًا. Other well-formed, accurate answers are equally acceptable.
Cumulative Review — Model responses for Speaker B
ب: سَافَرْنَا مِن هُنَا إِلَى القَاهِرَة.
ب: أَوَّلًا زُرْنَا الأَهْرَامَات، ثُمَّ زُرْنَا مَتْحَفًا كَبِيرًا.
ب: لَمْ نَزُر كُلّ الأَمَاكِن، لَكِنَّنَا اسْتَمْتَعْنَا كَثِيرًا.
Exact wording will vary. Check that the route, sequence connectors, hollow-verb forms, and لَمْ + jussive are used correctly and consistently.
Looking Ahead
مَا الَّذِي تَسْتَطِيعُ فِعْلَهُ الآن — What you can do now
You can narrate a trip from start to finish, using the hollow verb زَارَ, sequencing events with أَوَّلًا, ثُمَّ, بَعْدَ ذَلِك, and أَخِيرًا, and framing the journey with مِن ... إِلَى. You have extended your narration skills from a single completed action to a connected story with a clear beginning, middle, and end.