تقريبا ta2riiban
The most useful and all-purpose word for ‘almost’. This works for quantities:
وتميتني هنيك شي اربع سنين تقريبا
w tammeetni hniik shi 2arba3 @sniin ta2riiban
and I stayed there for about four years…
Vaguer things:
تقريبا نفس اللي اشتريتو المرة الماضية
ta2riiban nafs élli shtareeto lmarra lmaaDye
Almost the same as the one [= the same of the one that] I bought last time
It can also be used for expressions of time like the following:
البيبي غفل تقريبا
élbeebe ghafal ta2riiban
The baby’s almost asleep [= has gone to sleep almost]
حاخلص تقريبا
7a2ékhloS ta2riiban
I’m almost done [= I’ll finish, almost]
It can also be used as a vague filler word.
قرّب
Although it looks like (and can be) a causative, 2arrab (like its opposite ba33ad, or wa22af) can also be an intransitive verb meaning ‘get nearer’ or ‘come nearer’. On its own it can often translate ‘it’s nearly’ in examples like the following – straightforwardly given its literal meaning:
قربت المباراة الاولى
2arrabet élmubaaraat él2uula
The first match is nearly here [= has got close]
رمضان قرب ما حدا يبعتلي رسائل اعتذار وهـيك إللي بدو أسامحه يعملي ورق عنب و اكل زاكي غير هـيك ما بقبل
ramaDaan garrab – maa 7ada yib3atli rasaayel i3tidhaar w heek, illi biddo 2asaam7o yi3melli warag 3enab w 2akel zaaki gheer heek maa bagbal!
Ramadan’s nearly here – nobody send me apology messages or anything. If you want me to forgive you for something make me [= he who wants me to forgive him let him make me] stuffed vine leaves or some tasty food – I’ll accept nothing else!
2arrab can also be used as an auxiliary verb followed by a subjunctive, with a similar effect:
خلاص قربت تنحل
khalaS 2arrabet ten7all
Forget it, it’s almost solved
المسلسل قرب يخلص
elmusalsal 2arrab yekhloS
The series is nearly over
حطيت راسي عا المكتب في الشغل لإني كنت تعبانه و كنت قربت اغفل
7aTTeet raasi 3almaktab bishshegh@l la2enni kent ta3baane w kent 2arrab@t 2eghfol
I put my head on the desk in work because I was tired and I’d almost fallen asleep
For some people this can be replaced with قريب:
الاكل قريب يخلص
él2ak@l 2ariib yékhloS
The food’s almost finished
كنت…
In one specific context you can use ként plus a past verb to mean ‘nearly’ (or alternatively ‘could have’): when somebody narrowly avoided doing something (usually bad). This is a counterfactual situation and similar to the result clause in a law conditional.
كنت موتتني!
kén@t mawwattni!
You nearly killed me [= you would have killed me]!
شوي تاني كان ضربني كف
shwayy taani kaan Darabni kaff
He almost slapped me [= a bit more he would have hit me a slap]