Nadia compares jobs at a clothes shop and a café. The pay, journey and finishing times help her choose work that fits around her university classes.
01Read the Arabic story
اِخْتِيَارُ وَظِيفَةٍ بِدَوَامٍ جُزْئِيٍّ
كَانَتْ نَادِيَةُ تَدْرُسُ فِي الْجَامِعَةِ وَتَبْحَثُ عَنْ عَمَلٍ بِدَوَامٍ جُزْئِيٍّ. وَجَدَتْ وَظِيفَتَيْنِ: وَاحِدَةً فِي مَحَلٍّ لِلْمَلَابِسِ، وَأُخْرَى فِي مَقْهًى. كَانَتْ كُلُّ وَظِيفَةٍ لِثَلَاثَةِ أَيَّامٍ فِي الْأُسْبُوعِ. قَبْلَ أَنْ تَخْتَارَ، زَارَتِ الْمَكَانَيْنِ وَسَأَلَتْ عَنِ الْأُجْرَةِ وَسَاعَاتِ الْعَمَلِ وَالْمَهَامِّ الْيَوْمِيَّةِ.
كَانَ مَحَلُّ الْمَلَابِسِ يَبْعُدُ عَنْ بَيْتِهَا رُبْعَ سَاعَةٍ مَشْيًا. قَالَتِ الْمُدِيرَةُ: «سَتُرَتِّبِينَ الْمَلَابِسَ وَتُسَاعِدِينَ الزَّبَائِنَ مِنَ الْخَامِسَةِ إِلَى الثَّامِنَةِ مَسَاءً». أَمَّا الْمَقْهَى، فَكَانَ يَحْتَاجُ إِلَى مُوَظَّفَةٍ مِنَ السَّادِسَةِ إِلَى الْعَاشِرَةِ. وَكَانَتِ الرِّحْلَةُ إِلَيْهِ بِالْحَافِلَةِ تَسْتَغْرِقُ خَمْسًا وَأَرْبَعِينَ دَقِيقَةً.
فِي الْبَيْتِ، كَتَبَتْ نَادِيَةُ الْمَعْلُومَاتِ فِي جَدْوَلٍ صَغِيرٍ. كَانَتْ أُجْرَةُ الْمَقْهَى أَعْلَى، لَكِنَّ الْعَمَلَ فِيهِ يَنْتَهِي مُتَأَخِّرًا. قَالَتْ لِأُخْتِهَا: «تَنْتَهِي دُرُوسِي فِي الرَّابِعَةِ، وَأَحْتَاجُ إِلَى وَقْتٍ لِلْوَاجِبَاتِ مَسَاءً. الْمَحَلُّ أَقْرَبُ مِنَ الْمَقْهَى، وَسَأَعُودُ مِنْهُ أَبْكَرَ». ثُمَّ وَضَعَتْ دَائِرَةً حَوْلَ اِسْمِ الْمَحَلِّ.
فِي الصَّبَاحِ التَّالِي، اِتَّصَلَتْ بِمُدِيرَةِ الْمَحَلِّ وَقَالَتْ: «أُرِيدُ أَنْ أَقْبَلَ الْوَظِيفَةَ». اِتَّفَقَتَا عَلَى أَنْ تَبْدَأَ نَادِيَةُ يَوْمَ الِاثْنَيْنِ فِي الْخَامِسَةِ. ثُمَّ شَكَرَتْ مُدِيرَ الْمَقْهَى وَأَخْبَرَتْهُ أَنَّهَا اِخْتَارَتْ عَمَلًا آخَرَ. كَانَتْ سَعِيدَةً بِقَرَارِهَا؛ فَالْأُجْرَةُ أَقَلُّ، لَكِنَّ الْوَقْتَ وَالْمَكَانَ يُنَاسِبَانِ دِرَاسَتَهَا.
Show English translationHide English translation
Nadia was studying at university and looking for a part-time job. She found two jobs: one in a clothes shop and another in a café. Each job was for three days a week. Before choosing, she visited both places and asked about the pay, working hours and daily tasks.
The clothes shop was a fifteen-minute walk from her home. The manager said, “You will arrange the clothes and help customers from five to eight in the evening.” The café, however, needed an employee from six to ten. The bus journey there took forty-five minutes.
At home, Nadia wrote the information in a small table. The café paid more, but work there finished late. She said to her sister, “My classes finish at four, and I need time for homework in the evening. The shop is nearer than the café, and I will return from it earlier.” Then she drew a circle around the shop’s name.
The next morning, she called the shop manager and said, “I would like to accept the job.” They agreed that Nadia would start on Monday at five. Then she thanked the café manager and told him she had chosen another job. She was happy with her decision: the pay was lower, but the hours and location suited her studies.
02Useful words from the story
| Arabic in the story | Meaning here |
|---|---|
| بِدَوَامٍ جُزْئِيٍّ | part-time |
| الْأُجْرَةِ | the pay |
| سَاعَاتِ الْعَمَلِ | the working hours |
| الْمَهَامِّ الْيَوْمِيَّةِ | the daily tasks |
| رُبْعَ سَاعَةٍ مَشْيًا | a quarter of an hour on foot |
| أَعْلَى | higher |
| أَقْرَبُ مِنَ الْمَقْهَى | nearer than the café |
| بِقَرَارِهَا | with her decision |
03Check your understanding
Choose one answer for each question. Look back at the Arabic story when you need a clue. Open the English support if you need help understanding a question.
What to remember
- The café pays more, while the clothes shop offers a shorter journey and an earlier finish.
- Nadia chooses the shop because its hours and location leave more time for her studies.
Explore the Arabic in this story
Related grammar and vocabularyOpen Araqick guides connected to this story.
Arabic Comparatives: Bigger Than and Better Than
الْمَحَلُّ أَقْرَبُ مِنَ الْمَقْهَى
Read how Nadia compares the distances and pay before deciding.
Telling the Time in Arabic: Hours, Half Past and Quarter Past
مِنَ الْخَامِسَةِ إِلَى الثَّامِنَةِ مَسَاءً
Compare the two shifts with Nadia’s class schedule.
How to Say “I Want To” in Arabic: Uridu An
أُرِيدُ أَنْ أَقْبَلَ الْوَظِيفَةَ
Notice how Nadia states that she wants to accept the shop job.
