Lebanese Arabic Phrases – Everyday Levantine Expressions

Lebanese Arabic is the dialect that Arabic pop culture travels on. Fairuz, Nancy Ajram, Mashrou Leila – the Arabic music that reaches listeners worldwide is predominantly in Lebanese dialect. Lebanese TV drama, comedy, and entertainment have given this variety a cultural reach that extends far beyond Lebanon’s borders. If you’ve ever heard Arabic music and found it unusually melodic and accessible, there’s a strong chance it was Lebanese.

What makes Lebanese Arabic linguistically distinctive is its trilingual character. French, Arabic, and English coexist in Lebanese speech with a fluidity that doesn’t exist in any other Arabic dialect. A single Lebanese sentence might start in Arabic, incorporate a French verb, and end with an English expression – and this isn’t considered unusual or mixed. It’s just how Lebanese people talk. The result is a dialect that feels surprisingly familiar to Western learners, with French and English vocabulary appearing where you might least expect it.

Lebanese Arabic is also the closest dialect to Syrian Arabic – the two are mutually intelligible at a very high level. If you learn Lebanese, you’ll understand Syrian speakers easily and vice versa. Jordan and Palestine are also close. One dialect, four countries covered.

A quick note on two phrases worth knowing immediately: mniːħ (good/fine – the Lebanese word for “okay”) and ktiːr (a lot/very) appear constantly in Lebanese speech and immediately mark you as someone who knows the dialect specifically. Both feature in the phrases below.

Lebanese Arabic phrases you should know

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Greet someone in Lebanese Arabic

Lebanese greetings blend warmth with speed – Beirut conversations move fast. Marhaba (hello) is the standard across the Levant, but notice how Lebanese adds ʔɛlek (to you) in phrases like ṣabāħ lxeːr ʔɛlek (good morning to you) – a personal touch that makes greetings feel more direct. Mniːħ šeftak (good to see you – lit. “good [that] I saw you”) uses mniːħ, one of the most characteristic Lebanese words.

If you are greeted in Lebanese Arabic, the best way to respond is as follows:

How are you? in Lebanese Arabic

Kiːfak? (how are you? – masculine) / kiːfik? (feminine) is the signature Levantine greeting – identical to Syrian Arabic and instantly recognizable as belonging to the region. The Lebanese answer mniːħ (fine/good) is worth noting: it’s the Lebanese-specific form that you won’t hear in Egypt or the Gulf. It comes from the Arabic root for “beneficial” but has evolved a purely colloquial meaning in Levantine speech.

If you are asked how you feel, you can answer with the following phrases:

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More information about the Lebanese Arabic online course.

How to say goodbye in Lebanese Arabic

Lebanese goodbyes have the Levantine future marker b- (I will) built into everyday phrases: bʃuːfak bukra (I’ll see you tomorrow), baħkiːk baʕdeːn (I’ll talk to you later). This b- prefix before present-tense verbs to express near-future intention is a characteristic Levantine feature shared with Syrian Arabic.

How to introduce yourself in Lebanese Arabic

Šuː ismak? (what’s your name?) uses šuː (what), the Levantine question word that immediately marks the dialect. Notice also kinneːtak (your surname) – the word kinye for family name/nickname is specifically Lebanese and not used in other Arabic dialects.

If you want to tell people where you come from:

If you have language difficulties:

Essential Lebanese phrases: thank you, please, sorry

Three phrases that come up in almost every search about Lebanese Arabic: šukran (thank you), āsef (sorry), and yā ʕēl tʕabak (bless you for your effort / thank you for your hard work) – the last one is a distinctly Lebanese/Levantine expression of gratitude that goes deeper than a simple thank you. Mīt maħsūb (lit. “a hundred [thanks] counted”) is another Lebanese way to say thank you sincerely.

Useful sentences with ‘I am…’

Hōn (here) instead of MSA hunā – this single vowel shift is one of the clearest Levantine markers. Baddi (I want/need) is purely Lebanese/Levantine and doesn’t exist in other dialects with this form – using it immediately signals dialect knowledge. Mʕasˤsˤeb (angry) literally means “nerved” and is a Lebanese-specific emotion word.

Apologising in Lebanese Arabic – sorry in Lebanese

Bʕetˤzer (I apologise) uses the Lebanese present-tense marker b- on a formal verb. For everyday sorry, āsef is direct and universally understood. Maʕleːʃ (never mind / it’s okay / sorry) is the softer option – it both apologises and simultaneously absolves, making it useful for small mishaps where you want to move on quickly.

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Useful signs and notices in Lebanese Arabic

Lebanon is officially bilingual in Arabic and French, and Beirut in particular is heavily trilingual with English too. Public signage often appears in all three languages. Twaːleːt (toilet – from French toilette) is the everyday Lebanese word; the formal Arabic mirḥāḍ appears on official signs but sounds formal in conversation.

Numbers 1–25 in Lebanese Arabic

Lebanese numbers share the Levantine compressed forms for 11–19, but have their own distinct character. Like Egyptian, Lebanese drops the MSA th sound — so ithnān (2) becomes tneːn, thalātha (3) becomes tleːte, and thamāniya (8) becomes tmaːnje. Unlike Syrian, which retains the th, Lebanese consistently softens these consonant clusters throughout. The teen forms (11–19) also use a shorter ending (-ʕaʃ) rather than the Syrian and Egyptian -aːʃer — a small but reliable marker of the Lebanese dialect.

For the broader context — how Eastern Arabic numerals (١ ٢ ٣) work, compound number logic, and a dialect comparison across MSA, Egyptian, Levantine and Moroccan — see the Arabic numbers guide.

Colours in Lebanese Arabic

Days, months and seasons in Lebanese Arabic

Lebanese month names use the same ancient Syriac-origin calendar as Syrian Arabic – January is kānūn ettāni (the second Kanun), February is šbāṭ, March is āzār. This is one of the strongest markers of the shared Levantine tradition, and stands in complete contrast to Egypt or Morocco which use Arabicized international month names. If you know Lebanese months, you know Syrian months too.

OUR TIP: If you want to learn these Lebanese Arabic phrases interactively, we recommend the free language course demo from 17-Minute-Language, where you can learn Lebanese Arabic phrases and dialogues.

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Additional links

• Lebanese Arabic online course
• Learn Arabic – dialect guide and course overview
• Syrian Arabic phrases – the closest related dialect
• Jordanian Arabic phrases
• The different ways of learning languages
• Learning vocabulary successfully
• Motivated language learning
• Learning languages quickly? – Is it possible?
• The different types of learners when learning languages