Phone Calls, SIM Cards & Bureaucracy
Key Egyptian Arabic phrases for phone conversations, buying a SIM card, and handling visa paperwork.
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Questions Covered in This Set
10 cards to master
مين معايا؟ (mīn maʕāya?)
Who am I speaking with? (lit. who's with me) — asked when answering a call.
How do you say "I can't hear you" on the phone?
مش سامعك (mish sāmʕak) — used constantly in Cairo, never rude.
ممكن تتكلم بالراحة؟ (mumkin titkallim bir-rāḥa?)
Can you speak slowly?
استنى على الخط (istanna ʕal-khaṭṭ)
Hold on the line.
الرصيد خلص (ir-raṣīd khiliṣ)
My credit ran out.
What do you say to buy a new SIM card?
عايز أشتري شريحة جديدة (ʕāyiz ashtiri sharīḥa gidīda) — and bring your باسبور (passport).
باقة نت (bāʔit nit)
Data/internet bundle — sold per month (في الشهر, fish-shahr).
How do you ask "How do I top up?"
إزاي أشحن؟ (izzāy ashḥan?) — shaḥn/raṣīd = top-up/credit.
تجديد الإقامة (tagdīd il-iʔāma)
Residence renewal — done at the Mogamma or مصلحة الجوازات (passport office).
Name three bureaucracy items you'll always need.
استمارة (form), ختم (stamp), صورة شخصية / صورة من الباسبور (passport photo / photocopy).
