الأَخْبَار وَالمَعْلُومَات العَامَّةNews and Public Information
Chapter Overview
This chapter opens Unit II by turning your narration, explanation, and reporting tools from Unit I toward a new domain: news and public information. You will learn the vocabulary of headlines, reports, and official announcements, and you will meet a new grammar system — the Arabic passive voice — for the first time. The passive lets you describe an event, a decision, or a process without necessarily naming who performed it, which is exactly how public announcements, news reports, and official notices are usually phrased. You will also continue building the source-framing skills from Chapter 4, now applied to media language such as headlines and news agency reports. By the end of this chapter, you will be able to read a short news item, recognize and begin to use passive forms, and explain what an announcement says without needing to know or state who is responsible for the action.
Learning Objectives
By the end of this chapter, you will be able to:
- Recognize and use core news and public-information vocabulary: headline, report, source, news agency, official statement, announcement.
- Recognize the internal Arabic passive voice in news and public-information texts and explain what it communicates.
- Form a small set of high-frequency passive verbs (أُعْلِنَ، صَدَرَ، نُشِرَ، قِيلَ، أُفِيدَ) in simple controlled sentences.
- Explain when a speaker or writer chooses the passive voice instead of the active voice, and what effect that choice has.
- Continue applying source attribution (وَفْقًا لِـ، حَسَبَ، بِحَسَبِ) and reporting verbs to media contexts specifically.
- Read a short news item or public announcement and identify its headline, main event, and source.
- Listen to a brief news bulletin and identify what happened, according to whom, and whether the passive voice was used.
- Write a short public notice or news-style paragraph using at least one passive verb and one source attribution.
Opening Communication Scenario
Imagine you check the news on your phone or scan a public notice board. Headlines rarely say exactly who did something; instead they announce that a decision was made, a road was closed, or a statement was issued. This is the natural home of the passive voice: describing events, decisions, and processes as public facts rather than as someone's personal action. This chapter's task asks you to read, listen to, and eventually write short items in this style.
- You will meet a short set of news headlines and a public announcement.
- You will notice how the passive voice lets these texts focus on the event rather than the actor.
- You will produce your own short news-style item or public notice using the passive and a source attribution.
Core Vocabulary
This chapter introduces the media and public-information vocabulary domain. Institutional and civic vocabulary appears here in a limited, receptive way and becomes productive starting in Chapter 7.
| Arabic | Meaning | Gender / Plural | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| الخَبَر، الأَخْبَار | the news item / the news | masc., broken pl. أَخْبَار | core news vocabulary |
| صَحِيفَة، صُحُف | newspaper | fem., broken pl. صُحُف | written media |
| عُنْوَان رَئِيسِيّ، عَنَاوِين رَئِيسِيَّة | headline | masc. | news vocabulary |
| تَقْرِير، تَقَارِير | report | masc., broken pl. تَقَارِير | recycled from Ch. 4, now media-specific |
| مُرَاسِل، مُرَاسِلُون | correspondent, reporter | masc.; fem. مُرَاسِلَة | sound masc./fem. plurals |
| وَكَالَة أَنْبَاء، وَكَالَات أَنْبَاء | news agency | fem., sound fem. plural | iḍāfa construction |
| بَيَان (رَسْمِيّ)، بَيَانَات | (official) statement | masc., broken pl. بَيَانَات | media and institutional register |
| إِعْلَان، إِعْلَانَات | announcement | masc., broken pl. إِعْلَانَات | public-information register |
| مَصْدَر، مَصَادِر | source | masc., broken pl. مَصَادِر | recycled from Ch. 4 source attribution |
| حَدَث، أَحْدَاث | event | masc., broken pl. أَحْدَاث | media and general narration |
Institutional and civic vocabulary (وِزَارَة, هَيْئَة, مُؤَسَّسَة) appears receptively in this chapter's texts and becomes fully productive in Chapter 7.
Pronunciation Focus
This chapter introduces formal connected reading as a new target: reading short, unvocalized public texts — headlines and announcements — at a natural pace, with attention to phrase grouping around the passive verb and its subject. Practice keeping the passive verb and the noun it describes grouped as one prosodic unit, for example أُعْلِنَ القَرَار grouped together rather than paused between the two words.
News headlines are often only lightly vocalized or unvocalized; this chapter begins regular practice reading such texts, building on the selectively vocalized reading established in Chapter 4.
Grammar and Sentence Patterns
This chapter introduces the Arabic passive voice for the first time, in a small set of high-frequency verbs commonly used in news and public-information contexts. The passive is introduced for recognition and limited controlled production only; broader passive production continues to develop through Chapter 9.
The passive voice describes an event, decision, or process without stating who performed it — either because the agent is unknown, unimportant to the message, or intentionally left unstated for a more official or neutral tone. This is exactly the style of most headlines and public announcements: أُغْلِق الطَّرِيق ("the road was closed") focuses on the fact of the closure, not on who closed it.
- أُعْلِنَ القَرَار صَبَاح اليَوْم.The decision was announced this morning.passive: أُعْلِنَ (was announced) + subject
- صَدَرَ بَيَان رَسْمِيّ عَنِ الوِزَارَة.An official statement was issued by the ministry.صَدَرَ (was issued) + agent introduced with عَنْ
- نُشِرَ التَّقْرِير فِي الصَّحِيفَة اليَوْم.The report was published in the newspaper today.نُشِرَ (was published)
The five passive verbs practiced in this chapter — أُعْلِنَ (was announced), صَدَرَ (was issued), نُشِرَ (was published), قِيلَ (was said), أُفِيدَ (it was reported) — all describe public information events. Notice that the grammatical subject of a passive sentence is the thing that was announced, issued, or published, not the person who did the announcing. When the agent is stated at all, it is introduced with عَنْ ("from/by") or مِنْ قِبَل ("on the part of"), and this remains optional in the sentences practiced here.
Only these five high-frequency passive verbs are practiced for controlled production in this chapter. Broader passive morphology, passive participles, and impersonal process language expand through Chapters 7-9. Conditional sentences and productive spontaneous case-ending recitation remain outside this chapter's scope.
Model Dialogue
Context: two colleagues discuss a news item they both saw this morning.
Guided Practice
- Write one sentence using أُعْلِنَ to announce a decision, without naming who made it.
- Write one sentence using صَدَرَ or نُشِرَ describing a statement or report becoming public.
- Write one sentence using قِيلَ or أُفِيدَ to report a piece of public information, including a source attribution (وَفْقًا لِـ، حَسَبَ، or بِحَسَبِ).
- Underline the passive verb in each of your three sentences and identify its grammatical subject.
- Rewrite one of your sentences in the active voice, naming an agent, and compare the difference in focus.
Listening Practice
Ask your instructor, a partner, or a text-to-speech tool to read the following short news bulletin aloud twice at a moderate pace. Listen without reading along the first time, then answer the questions below.
أُعْلِنَ اليَوْم عَن قَرَار جَدِيد يَخُصّ النَّقْل العَامّ فِي المَدِينَة. وَصَدَرَ البَيَان الرَّسْمِيّ عَن هَيْئَة النَّقْل صَبَاح اليَوْم. وَنُشِرَ التَّقْرِير الكَامِل فِي أَكْثَر مِن صَحِيفَة مَحَلِّيَّة. وَقِيلَ إِنَّ خُطُوط الحَافِلَات سَتَتَغَيَّر بَعْد بِدَايَة الشَّهْر المُقْبِل، وَذَلِك بِسَبَب زِيَادَة عَدَد الرُّكَّاب. وَأُفِيدَ، وَفْقًا لِمُرَاسِل وَكَالَة الأَنْبَاء المَحَلِّيَّة، أَنَّ الهَيْئَة سَتَعْقِد اِجْتِمَاعًا عَامًّا لِلْإِجَابَة عَن أَسْئِلَة السُّكَّان.
مُهِمَّة الاسْتِمَاع — Listening task
- What decision was announced, and by which body?
- Where was the full report published?
- What will change, and why (find the cause)?
- According to the local news agency's correspondent, what will the transport authority do?
Speaking Practice
تَدْرِيب مُوَجَّه — Controlled practice: Turn a fact into a headline
With a partner, take turns turning a simple active-voice fact into a passive-voice headline. For example, turn "the ministry announced a decision" into "a decision was announced," using أُعْلِنَ.
مُهِمَّة تَوَاصُل — Communicative task: Report a local news item
In pairs, invent a short local news item (a road closure, a new service, an event). One partner reports it aloud, using at least one passive verb and a source attribution; the other partner asks one follow-up question using مَاذَا قِيلَ عَن...؟ or مَتَى سَيَحْدُث ذَلِك؟
لِلْمُتَعَلِّمِينَ المُسْتَقِلِّينَ — Solo alternative
Record yourself reading a short invented news bulletin aloud, in under two minutes, using at least two of the five passive verbs practiced in this chapter and one source attribution.
Reading Practice
Read the short news item below, then answer the questions that follow. Predictable short vowels on familiar words are left unmarked, consistent with this chapter's reading level.
A New Library Service — Sample News Item
أُعْلِنَ أَمْس عَن خِدْمَة جَدِيدَة فِي مَكْتَبَة المَدِينَة العَامَّة. وَصَدَرَ البَيَان عَن إِدَارَة المَكْتَبَة صَبَاح الخَمِيس. وَنُشِرَ الخَبَر فِي صَحِيفَتَيْن مَحَلِّيَّتَيْن. وَقِيلَ إِنَّ الخِدْمَة الجَدِيدَة سَتَسْمَح لِلطُّلَّاب بِاِسْتِعَارَة الكُتُب إِلِكْتُرُونِيًّا مِن دُون زِيَارَة المَكْتَبَة شَخْصِيًّا. وَأُفِيدَ، وَفْقًا لِمُدِيرَة المَكْتَبَة، أَنَّ الخِدْمَة سَتَبْدَأ رَسْمِيًّا فِي بِدَايَة الشَّهْر القَادِم.
أَسْئِلَة الفَهْم — Comprehension questions:
- What new service was announced, and where?
- Where was the news published?
- What will the new service allow students to do?
- According to the library director, when will the service officially begin?
Writing Workshop
In this workshop, you will write a short news-style item or public notice using the passive voice and a source attribution.
- Step 1 — Choose an event. Pick a real or invented public event: a decision, a new service, a closure, or an announcement.
- Step 2 — Announce it in the passive. Use أُعْلِنَ، صَدَرَ، or نُشِرَ to state that the event happened, without necessarily naming who caused it.
- Step 3 — Add a detail. Use قِيلَ or أُفِيدَ to add a further piece of public information about the event.
- Step 4 — Attribute your source. Add a source attribution (وَفْقًا لِـ، حَسَبَ، بِحَسَبِ) as practiced in Chapter 4.
- Step 5 — Add a cause or result if relevant. Recycle بِسَبَب، مِمَّا، or نَتِيجَةً لِـ from Chapter 3 if your item includes one.
- Review your draft against the checklist below.
قَائِمَة المُرَاجَعَة — Editing checklist:
- My item uses at least one of the five passive verbs correctly.
- I did not force a passive-agent phrase (عَنْ / مِنْ قِبَل) unless it was natural to include.
- I included a source attribution from Chapter 4.
- I recycled at least one cause/result connector or time clause from earlier chapters if relevant.
- My vocabulary, gender agreement, and plural forms are checked for accuracy.
- I did not introduce grammar beyond the five passive verbs, or any conditional sentence.
Culture and Communication
Official statements, government notices, and headlines across Arabic-language media commonly use the passive voice to emphasize the event or decision itself rather than a named actor, a stylistic tendency shared with many languages' public-information registers. This does not mean speakers avoid stating who did something in everyday conversation — the choice depends on genre, formality, and the writer's intent, and varies among outlets, institutions, and communities.
Major news agencies and broadcasters across North Africa, the Levant, the Gulf, and elsewhere generally use similar MSA patterns for headlines and reports, though individual outlets vary somewhat in style, formality, and preferred connectors. The passive constructions and source-attribution phrases practiced in this chapter are broadly recognizable across mainstream Arabic-language media.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
Error: writing أُعْلِنَ القَرَار مِنْ قِبَل شَخْص مَا ("the decision was announced by some person"), forcing an agent phrase when the point of the passive is that the agent does not need to be named.
Correction: simply state أُعْلِنَ القَرَار صَبَاح اليَوْم. Add an agent with عَنْ or مِنْ قِبَل only when a specific, relevant source is being named, such as a ministry or agency.
Error: writing أَعْلَنَ البَيَان (active: "the statement announced," which does not make sense, since a statement cannot announce itself) instead of the passive أُعْلِنَ البَيَان ("the statement was announced").
Correction: check that the logical subject of your sentence is the thing being announced, issued, published, said, or reported, and use the passive vowel pattern (فُعِلَ) rather than the active pattern (فَعَلَ).
Error: attempting conditional sentences, additional passive verbs beyond the five introduced here, or full academic register, none of which are active in this chapter.
Correction: stay within the five passive verbs (أُعْلِنَ، صَدَرَ، نُشِرَ، قِيلَ، أُفِيدَ) and the narration, cause/result, and source-attribution systems already authorized through Chapter 5. Conditionals begin in Chapter 9, and broader passive production expands through Chapters 7-9.
Chapter Summary
This chapter introduced the vocabulary of news and public information and the Arabic passive voice for the first time, through five high-frequency verbs: أُعْلِنَ، صَدَرَ، نُشِرَ، قِيلَ، and أُفِيدَ. You practiced recognizing why writers choose the passive voice for headlines and announcements, and you produced short controlled sentences using these five verbs together with the source-attribution phrases from Chapter 4. This introduction to the passive prepares you for Chapters 7 and 8, which expand passive and impersonal language into institutional correspondence and technology contexts.
Chapter Review
Section A — Identifying the Passive
1. In the Model Dialogue, find two passive verbs and identify their grammatical subjects.
2. Explain, in your own words, why a headline might prefer the passive voice over the active voice.
Section B — Self-Assessment
1. Which of the five passive verbs do you feel most confident using, and which still needs practice?
2. Compare your Writing Workshop draft with the checklist. Did you use the passive naturally, or did it feel forced anywhere?
مُرَاجَعَة تَرَاكُمِيَّة — Cumulative review
Before moving to Chapter 7, confirm that you can comfortably recycle: narration with كَانَ and time clauses (Chapter 2); cause, result, and purpose language (Chapter 3); reporting verbs, أَنَّ content clauses, and source attribution (Chapter 4); and the five passive verbs introduced in this chapter. These systems remain fully productive and will continue to appear throughout Unit II.
Practical Performance Task
مُهِمَّة عَمَلِيَّة — Practical Task
خَبَر عَامّ — A Public News Item
Complete both parts below. No system beyond this chapter's authorized status is required.
- Written: Submit the short news item or public notice drafted in the Writing Workshop, revised against the editing checklist, using at least one of the five passive verbs and one source attribution.
- Spoken: Present the same or a different short item aloud to a partner, instructor, or recording in under two minutes, using natural phrase grouping around the passive verb.
Assessment focus: accurate use of at least one passive verb from this chapter; a correctly formed source attribution; clear, comprehensible delivery; and consistent use of narration, cause/result, or reporting systems from Chapters 2-5 where relevant. No system beyond this chapter is assessed.
Answer Key
Guided Practice
Model expansion: أُعْلِنَ قَرَار جَدِيد بِخُصُوص النَّقْل الجَامِعِيّ. وَصَدَرَ البَيَان عَن إِدَارَة الجَامِعَة صَبَاح اليَوْم. وَقِيلَ، وَفْقًا لِمَصَادِر رَسْمِيَّة، إِنَّ الخِدْمَة الجَدِيدَة سَتَبْدَأ الأُسْبُوع المُقْبِل. Active-voice rewrite: أَعْلَنَت إِدَارَة الجَامِعَة قَرَارًا جَدِيدًا. Other well-formed sentences using the five passive verbs are equally acceptable.
Listening Practice
- A new decision about public transportation in the city was announced; the official statement was issued by the transport authority this morning.
- The full report was published in more than one local newspaper.
- Bus routes will change after the start of next month because of an increase in the number of passengers.
- According to the local news agency's correspondent, the authority will hold a public meeting to answer residents' questions.
Reading Practice — Comprehension
- A new service was announced at the city's public library.
- The news was published in two local newspapers.
- The new service will allow students to borrow books electronically without visiting the library in person.
- According to the library director, the service will officially begin at the start of next month.
Chapter Review — Model responses
Section A.1: Passive verbs in the dialogue include قِيلَ (subject: the road closure), نُشِرَ (subject: the report), صَدَرَ (subject: the official statement), and أُعْلِنَ (subject: the statement). Any two correctly identified examples are acceptable.
Section A.2: Any accurate response noting that headlines often focus on the event itself and treat the actor as unknown, unimportant, or already understood from context, giving the announcement a more neutral or official tone.
Section B: Open-ended self-assessment; any honest, specific response naming concrete choices made while using the passive voice is acceptable.
Other well-formed, accurate answers combining the required systems are equally acceptable throughout this section.
Looking Ahead
مَا الَّذِي تَسْتَطِيعُ فِعْلَهُ الآن — What you can do now
You can now recognize and use five high-frequency passive verbs to describe public announcements, decisions, and reports, and you can attribute this information to a named source. These skills open the way to Chapter 7, where you will apply passive and impersonal language to formal procedures and institutional correspondence.