One of those translation curiosities you come across when you’re first learning Arabic is just how many different words for ‘mind’ there are. On the general theme of common idioms, one of the most common in colloquial is the word بال, which we’ll cover in this post.
خطر على بالي khaTar/yikhTor 3ala baali
‘To occur to’, ‘to think of’, ‘to come to mind’ [= it occurred onto my mind]:
اول شي خطر ع بالي هو هادا السؤال
2awwal shi khaTar 3a baali huwwe haada ssu2aal
The first thing that occurred to me was this question
خطر ع بالي اعمللي مشروع
khaTar 3a baali 2a3milli mashruu3
It occurred to me to/that I could do a project
A more-or-less synonym is simple خطرلي khaTarli.
اجى ع بالي ija 3a baali
‘To feel like (doing)’. Literally ‘it came onto my mind’:
اجى ع بالي ابعتلك
2ija 3a baali 2ab3atlak
I felt like sending [it] to you
The most common usage with this expression by far is with a present participle:
جايه ع بالي اكل ملوخية
jaaye 3a baali 2aakol @mluukhiyye
I feel like eating mluukhiyye [not a linguistic note but try this stuff, it’s amazing]
مو جايه ع بالي
muu jaaye 3a baali
I don’t feel like it
حط ببالو 7aTT bbaalo
‘To set your mind on (something)’, ‘to get it into your head that’ [= put it in your mind]:
يعني في حدا كان حاطط ببالو انو يحل محل المدير
ya3ni fii 7ada kaan 7aaTet bbaalo 2inno y7ell ma7all ilmudiir
There was someone who’d got it into his head that he was going to take the boss’s place
لازم يكون بحبني متل ما انا ومش حاطط ببالو يغيرني على كيفو
laazem ykuun bi7ibbni mitel ma 2ana w mish 7aaTeT bbaalo yghayyirni 3ala keefo
He’d have to love me as I am and not have this idea that he’ll change me however he wants [= on his mood]
عندي عادة سيئة انو بس حط شخص ببالي بنكشلو كل حساباتو وحسابات العيلة كمان
3indi 3aade sayy2a 2inno bass 7eTT shakh@S bbaali binkishlo kill 7isaabaato w 7isaabaat il3eele kamaan
I have this bad habit that as soon as I get someone in my head I dig through all their accounts and the[ir] families’ accounts too
Although it’s usually your own mind you’re putting things into, it can be someone else’s too:
انا من كتر ما مجتمعنا حط ببالي انو العيب للبنت بس لما اشوف هيك تويتة رزيلة كاتبتها بنت بكرهها بس لما يكتبها ولد بضحك
2ana min kiter ma mujtama3na 7aTT bbaali 2inno l3eeb lalbinet bass lamma 2ashuuf twiite raziile kaatibiitha binet bakrahha bass lamma yiktibha walad baD7ak
Our society has put the idea that only girls should have shame into my head so deeply [= from the amount that our society has…] when I see a rude tweet written by a girl I hate her but if it’s a guy who writes it I laugh
ببالو bbaalo
‘On his mind’ [= in his mind]:
بضلن ببالك ع طول
biDallon bbaalak 3aTool
They’re always on your mind
خليني ببالك
khalliini bbaalak
Keep me on your mind
Very commonly co-occurs with اللي in the sense of ‘what’s on your mind’, ‘what you’re thinking of’, or ‘what you want’:
آه نفس يللي ببالك
2aa nafs yalli bbaalak
Yeah, [I’m thinking] what you’re thinking
انشاءالله بتحقق كل اللي ببالك
nshaLLa bit7a22a2 kull illi bbaalak
I hope you get everything you’re dreaming of!
There is a set expression, من اللي ببالي بالك or اللي ببالك بالك illi bbaali baalak which means something like ‘you-know-who’ or ‘you-know-what’, i.e. the person or thing both you and me are thinking of:
كل ما أتذكر الي ببالي بالك بتقرف
kull ma 2atzakkar illi bbaali baalak bat2arraf
Every time I remember you-know-what/you-know-who [= what/who is on my mind your mind] I feel sick!
طول بالك Tawwal baalak
‘Calm down’, ‘be patient’. Literally ‘lengthen your mind’. Possibly the literal intention is something like ‘think in the long term’.
لك طول بالك خيو القصة ما بدها كل هلقد
lak Tawwel baalak khayyo il2eSSa maa bidda kill hal2add
Calm down, man, you’re overreacting!
الشغلة بدها طولة بال
ishsheghle bidda Toolet baal
It needs some patience
You can say that بالو طويل baalo Tawiil ‘his mind is long’, i.e. he’s patient or calm, but it’s not very common to say the opposite (بالو قصير), i.e. he’s impatient.
دار بالو daar baalo
This means ‘take care’, ‘be careful’. Literally, ‘turn your mind’.
On its own diir baalak can be a warning/caution. With min it means ‘be careful of’:
دير بالك من السيارات
diir baalak min issiyyaaraat
Be careful of the cars/watch out for the cars
With على it means ‘look after’ (though in some dialects min is used for this meaning too):
دير بالك على حالك
diir baalak 3ala 7aalak
Look after yourself
بدير بالو على ابنو
bidiir baalo 3ala 2ibno
He looks after his son, keeps an eye on his son