MALTESE GRAMMAR

1- MALTESE ALPHABET

A -> ah

B -> b

Ċ ċ -> ch

D -> d

E -> eh

F -> f

Ġ ġ -> j

G -> hard g

H -> h

Ħ ħ -> strong h

I -> ee

IE ie -> long ee

J -> y

K -> k

L -> l

Lj -> ly

M -> m

N -> n

Nj -> ny

O -> o

P -> p

Q q -> glottal stop (makes the sound of someone TRYING to throw up [does not actually throw up but tries to])

R -> rolled r (Place the tip of your tongue just behind your upper front teeth [The same place where you make the T sound and the D sound], relax your tongue [don't push hard on it] and pronounce the letter R when you are doing that)

S -> s

T -> t

U -> oo

V -> v

W w -> w

X x -> sh

Ż ż -> z

Z z -> ts

2- WORD ORDER

1 Basic S + V Jien norqod. I sleep.

2 Direct object S + V + DO Jien naqra dak il-ktieb. I read that book.

3 Indirect object S + V + DO + IO Jien nagħti l-ktieb lit-tifel. I give the boy the book.

4 Beneficiary S + V + DO + għal + beneficiary Jien nixtri ktieb għalih. I buy a book for him.

5 IO pronoun S + V + DO + IO pronoun Jien nagħti l-ktieb lilu. I give him the book.

6 Adjective S + Adj Il-ktieb kbir. The book is big.

7 Adverb S + V + Adv Huwa jaqra malajr. He reads quickly.

8 Direct object + adverb S + Adv + V + DO Jien naqra dak il-ktieb malajr. I read that book quickly.

9 Time adverb S + V + Adv(time) Jien naħdem illum. I work today.

10 Place adverb S + V + Adv(place) Huwa jgħix hemm. He lives there.

11 Prepositional phrase S + Prep + Place Il-ktieb qiegħed fuq il-mejda. The book is on the table.

12 DO + preposition S + V + DO + Prep + N Jien inpoġġi l-ktieb fuq il-mejda. I put the book on the table.

13 Determiner + noun Det + N Dan il-ktieb huwa ġdid. This book is new.

14 Determiner + adjective + noun Det + N + Adj Dan il-ktieb il-kbir huwa ġdid. This big book is new.

15 Numeral + noun Num + Adj + N Hemm żewġ kotba ġodda hemmhekk. There are two new books there.

16 Conjunction Clause + Conj + Clause Jien naqra, u hu jikteb. I read, and he writes.

17 Conjunction + objects S + V + DO + Conj + S + V + DO Jien naqra l-ktieb, u hu jikteb ittra. I read the book, and he writes a letter.

18 Present passive S + passive verb Il-ktieb jinqara. The book is read.

19 Passive + agent S + passive verb + minn + Agent Il-ktieb jinqara mill-għalliem. The book is read by the teacher.

20 Passive + IO S + passive verb + lil + IO Il-ktieb jingħata lit-tifel. The book is given to the boy.

21 Passive + IO + agent S + passive verb + lil + IO + minn + Agent Il-ktieb jingħata lit-tifel mill-għalliem. The book is given to the boy by the teacher.

22 Passive + adverb S + Adv + passive verb Il-ktieb illum jinqara. The book is read today.

23 Passive + preposition S + passive verb + Prep + N Il-ktieb jitqiegħed fuq il-mejda. The book is put on the table.

24 Passive + agent + adverb S + Adv + passive verb + minn + Agent Il-ktieb illum jinqara minn Mark. The book is read today by Mark.

25 Passive + agent + IO + adverb S + Adv + passive verb + lil + IO + minn + Agent Il-ktieb illum jingħata lill-istudent mill-għalliem. The book is given to the student today by the teacher.

26 Perfect passive S + past passive verb Il-ktieb nqara. The book has been read / was read.

27 Perfect passive + agent S + past passive verb + minn + Agent Il-ktieb nqara minn Mark. The book has been read by Mark.

28 Future passive S + se + passive verb Il-ktieb se jinqara. The book will be read.

29 Future passive + agent S + se + passive verb + minn + Agent Il-ktieb se jinqara minn Mark. The book will be read by Mark.

30 Modal passive S + għandu/jrid + passive verb Il-ktieb irid jinqara. The book must be read.

31 Negative S + ma...x + V + DO Jien ma naqrax dak il-ktieb. I do not read that book.

32 Negative passive S + ma...x + passive verb + minn + Agent Il-ktieb ma jinqarax minn Mark. The book is not read by Mark.

33 Yes/no question S + V + DO? Int taqra dak il-ktieb? Do you read that book?

34 Passive question S + passive verb? Il-ktieb jinqara? Is the book read?

35 Agent question Min + V + DO? Min jaqra dak il-ktieb? Who reads that book?

36 IO question Lil min + S + V + DO? Lil min tagħti l-ktieb? To whom do you give the book?

37 Imperative Verb + DO Aqra l-ktieb! Read the book!

38 Imperative + IO Verb + DO + IO Agħti l-ktieb lit-tifel! Give the boy the book!

39 Passive imperative Ħalli + S + passive verb Ħalli l-ktieb jinqara! Let the book be read!

40 Infinitive / gerund Infinitive taqra to read / reading

41 Infinitive + DO Infinitive + DO taqra l-ktieb to read the book

42 Passive infinitive biex + passive verb biex jinqara to be read

43 Purpose S + V + biex + V Jien niekol biex nilgħab. I eat to play / in order to play.

44 Relative clause N + li + clause Il-ktieb li naqra huwa interessanti. The book that I read is interesting.

45 Passive relative N + li + passive clause Il-ktieb li jinqara minn Mark huwa interessanti. The book that is read by Mark is interesting.

46 Conditional / if Jekk + clause, clause Jekk għandi ħin, naqra. If I have time, I read.

47 Conditional + passive Jekk + passive clause, clause Jekk jinqara l-ktieb, jistgħu jitgħallmu ħafna affarijiet. If the book is read, many things can be learned.

48 Reported speech S + speech verb + li + clause Huwa qal li kien qed jaqra. He said that he was reading.

49 Reported question S + speech verb + jekk + clause Huwa staqsa jekk kontx qed naqra. He asked if I was reading.

50 Reported command/request S + talab + lil + person + biex + clause Huwa talabni biex naqra dak il-ktieb. He asked me to read that book.

ADVERBS:

1 Manner Manner adverb + Verb / usually before or after the verb Jiena naqra l-ktieb malajr. I read the book quickly.

2 Place Place adverb/expression + Verb / usually before or after the verb Jiena naqra ktieb id-dar. I read a book at home.

3 Time Time adverb + Sentence / beginning, middle, or end Ilbieraħ, qrajt ktieb. I read a book yesterday.

4 Frequency Frequency adverb + Verb / usually before the verb Jiena spiss naqra l-kotba. I often read books.

5 Frequency + be Subject + Frequency adverb + hu/hi + Predicate Hu dejjem kuntent. He is always happy.

6 Frequency + auxiliary Frequency adverb + auxiliary + participle Jiena qatt ma rajtu. I have never seen it.

7 Degree Degree adverb + Adjective Dan huwa ħafna tajjeb. This is very good.

8 Degree + verb Degree/intensity adverb + Verb Jiena ħafna nħobb dan. I really like this.

9 Sentence adverb Sentence adverb + Clause / usually beginning Fortunatament, irbaħt. Fortunately, I won.

10 Comment adverb Comment expression + Clause / usually beginning Onestament, ma nafx. Honestly, I don't know.

11 Linking adverb Linking adverb + Clause / beginning or between clauses Kont għajjien. Madankollu, komplejt naħdem. I was tired; however, I continued working.

12 Direction Directional adverb + Verb / usually before or after the verb Hu mar barra. He went outside.

13 Definite frequency kull + Time noun + Verb Jiena mmur l-iskola kuljum. I go to school every day.

14 Duration għal + Time expression + Verb Studjajt għal sagħtejn. I studied for two hours.

15 Purpose biex + Verb Qed immur hemm biex nistudja. I am going there to study.

INDIRECT OBJECT:

IO noun S + V + DO + lil + IO Nagħti l-ktieb lit-tifel. I give the book to the boy.

IO name S + V + DO + lil + Name Nagħti l-ktieb lil Mark. I give the book to Mark.

IO pronoun S + V + DO + lilu/lilha... Nagħti l-ktieb lilu. I give him the book.

Attached IO V + IO pronoun + DO Nagħtih il-ktieb. I give him the book.

Beneficiary S + V + DO + għal + person Nixtri ktieb għalih. I buy a book for him.

GENITIVE:

Basic genitive N + ta' + N il-ktieb ta' student a student's book

Definite possessor N + ta' + il-N il-ktieb tal-għalliem the teacher's book

Proper name N + ta' + Name il-ktieb ta' Mark Mark's book

Possessive pronoun N + possessive il-ktieb tiegħi my book

Genitive chain N + ta' + N + ta' + N il-bieb tad-dar tal-għalliem the teacher's house's door / the door of the teacher's house

"of him" N + tiegħu il-ktieb tiegħu his book

"of her" N + tagħha il-ktieb tagħha her book

"of them" N + tagħhom il-ktieb tagħhom their book

INDEPENDENT:

mine tiegħi Dan il-ktieb huwa tiegħi. This book is mine. (The independent possessive is often used with huwa / hija / huma:)

yours (sg.) tiegħek Dan il-ktieb huwa tiegħek. This book is yours.

his tiegħu Dan il-ktieb huwa tiegħu. This book is his.

hers tagħha Dan il-ktieb huwa tagħha. This book is hers.

ours tagħna Dan il-ktieb huwa tagħna. This book is ours.

yours (pl.) tagħkom Dan il-ktieb huwa tagħkom. This book is yours.

theirs tagħhom Dan il-ktieb huwa tagħhom. This book is theirs.

WAS GOING TO:

I was going to kont se...

you (sg.) were going to kont se...

he was going to kien se...

she was going to kienet se...

we were going to konna se...

you (pl.) were going to kontu se...

they were going to kienu se...

Kont se niekol.

= I was going to eat.

I wasn't going to go Ma kontx se mmur.

He wasn't going to go Ma kienx se jmur.

She wasn't going to go Ma kinitx se tmur.

We weren't going to go Ma konniex se mmorru.

They weren't going to go Ma kinux se jmorru.

PAST KUN + SE + VERB

2- NOUNS

PLURAL:

1- NOUNS ENDING IN -A OR -U TURN INTO -I:

karozza -> karozzi

2- NOUNS ENDING IN A CONSONANT OR -UR HAVE THE SUFFIX -I ADDED:

bank -> banki

passaport -> passaporti

3- NOUNS ENDING IN -TÀ TURN INTO -TAJIET:

università -> universitajiet

4- NOUNS ENDING IN -JONI TURN INTO -JONIJIET:

nazzjoni -> nazzjonijiet

DEFINITE:

il-

Meaning:

the

Examples

il-ktieb

the book

il-mara

the woman

INDIRECT OBJECT AND GENITIVE:

Indirect object:

to someone lil lit-tifel

to me -li qalli

to him -lu kitbitlu

to them -lhom bgħattilhom

Verb + Direct Object + lil + Person OR: Verb + Indirect Object Suffix

Genitive:

of (indefinite) ta' ktieb ta' raġel a book of a man

of the tal-, tar-, tat- il-ktieb tar-raġel the book of the man

possessive pronouns tiegħi, tiegħu... il-ktieb tiegħi

I give a book to the boy. Nagħti ktieb lit-tifel. Verb + direct object + lil + indirect object

She wrote to him. Kitbitlu. Verb + indirect object suffix

The man's book Il-ktieb tar-raġel. Noun + ta' + possessor

A woman's house Dar ta' mara. Noun + ta' + indefinite possessor

My book Il-ktieb tiegħi. Noun + possessive pronoun

3- ADJECTIVES:

Masculine singular raġel kbir a big man

Feminine singular mara kbira a big woman

Masculine plural irġiel kbar big men

Feminine plural nisa kbar big women

Attributive dar kbira a big house

Predicate Id-dar kbira. The house is big.

Attributive raġel twil a tall man

Predicate Ir-raġel twil. The man is tall.

Attributive mara sabiħa a beautiful woman

Predicate Hi sabiħa. She is beautiful.

Attributive kotba ġodda new books

Predicate Il-kotba ġodda. The books are new.

Masculine Feminine Plural

kbir kbira kbar

twil twila twal

sabiħ sabiħa sbieħ

żgħir żgħira żgħar

ġdid ġdida ġodda

TO BE VERB (ONLY USED FOR EMPHASIS):

1. Present Tense

One important feature of Maltese is that the verb "to be" is often omitted in the present tense, especially before nouns and adjectives.

With pronouns

Person Maltese English

jien jien jien I am

inti inti int you are

hu hu he is

hi hi she is

aħna aħna we are

intom intom you are

huma huma they are

In everyday speech, you usually do not say a separate verb:

Examples

Jien student.

I am a student.

Hi tabiba.

She is a doctor.

Hu kuntent.

He is happy.

Aħna għajjenin.

We are tired.

Notice that there is no separate word meaning "am/is/are".

2. Past Tense

The past forms correspond to was/were.

Person Maltese English

jien kont I was

inti kont you were

hu kien he was

hi kienet she was

aħna konna we were

intom kontu you were

huma kienu they were

Examples

Kont għajjien.

I was tired.

Kien tabib.

He was a doctor.

Kienet id-dar.

It was the house.

Konna kuntenti.

We were happy.

3. Future Tense

Future forms are made with se + present/subjunctive forms of kun.

Person Maltese English

jien se nkun I will be

inti se tkun you will be

hu se jkun he will be

hi se tkun she will be

aħna se nkunu we will be

intom se tkunu you will be

huma se jkunu they will be

Examples

Se nkun hemm.

I will be there.

Se jkun kuntent.

He will be happy.

Se jkunu lesti.

They will be ready.

4. Imperative

Person Maltese English

singular kun be!

plural kunu be!

Examples:

Kun attent!

Be careful!

Kunu paċenzjużi!

Be patient!

7. Continuous Tenses

The verb kun combines with qed.

Present Continuous

Qed ikun (rare in ordinary speech)

Past Continuous

Kien qed jaħdem. He was working.

Future Continuous

Se jkun qed jaħdem. He will be working.

9. Conditional

Maltese English

kieku nkun if I were

kieku tkun if you were

kieku jkun if he were

kieku tkun if she were

kieku nkunu if we were

kieku tkunu if you were

kieku jkunu if they were

Kieku kont sinjur, nixtri dar. If I were rich, I would buy a house.

1. Present — “am / are / is”

In ordinary present-tense sentences, kun is normally omitted. The pronoun or predicate stands on its own.

Person Maltese English

jien jien student I am a student

inti inti student you are a student

hu hu student he is a student

hi hi studenta she is a student

aħna aħna studenti we are students

intom intom studenti you are students

huma huma studenti they are students

So there isn't normally a separate am/is/are here.

2. Past — “was / were”

The past forms of kun are:

Person Maltese English

jien kont I was

inti kont you were

hu kien he was

hi kienet she was

aħna konna we were

intom kontu you were

huma kienu they were

Examples:

Kont kuntent. — I was happy.

Kien għajjien. — He was tired.

Kienet sabiħa. — She was beautiful.

Konna lesti. — We were ready.

Kienu hawn. — They were here.

3. Future — “will be”

The future uses se + form of kun.

Person Maltese English

jien se nkun I will be

inti se tkun you will be

hu se jkun he will be

hi se tkun she will be

aħna se nkunu we will be

intom se tkunu you will be

huma se jkunu they will be

Examples:

Se nkun hemm. — I will be there.

Se tkun kuntenta. — You will be happy.

Se jkun tabib. — He will be a doctor.

Se jkunu lesti. — They will be ready.

4. Imperfect / Past Habitual — “used to be / was being”

The past forms of kun can also introduce a past progressive construction.

kien + qed + verb

Person Formation

I kont qed...

you kont qed...

he kien qed...

she kienet qed...

we konna qed...

you pl. kontu qed...

they kienu qed...

Example:

Kien qed jaħdem.

He was working.

5. Present Continuous

Maltese normally uses qed + present-tense verb, rather than kun.

Qed naħdem.

I am working.

Qed jaħdem.

He is working.

Qed jaħdmu.

They are working.

So English “am/is/are + -ing” is normally:

qed + verb

not a form of kun.

6. Past Continuous

Use:

past form of kun + qed + verb

Kont qed naħdem.

I was working.

Kien qed jaħdem.

He was working.

Kienet qed taħdem.

She was working.

Konna qed naħdmu.

We were working.

7. Future Continuous

Use:

se + kun + qed + verb

Se nkun qed naħdem.

I will be working.

Se jkun qed jaħdem.

He will be working.

Se jkunu qed jaħdmu.

They will be working.

8. Conditional — “would be”

A common conditional construction uses kieku + past form of kun.

Person Maltese English

jien kieku kont I would be / if I were

inti kieku kont you would be

hu kieku kien he would be

hi kieku kienet she would be

aħna kieku konna we would be

intom kieku kontu you would be

huma kieku kienu they would be

Example:

Kieku kont sinjur, kont nixtri dar.

If I were rich, I would buy a house.

9. Subjunctive

The subjunctive forms are:

Person Maltese

jien inkun

inti tkun

hu jkun

hi tkun

aħna nkunu

intom tkunu

huma jkunu

Examples:

Nixtieq li tkun hawn.

I want you to be here.

Nixtieq li jkun kuntent.

I want him to be happy.

Huwa importanti li nkunu lesti.

It is important that we be ready.

10. Imperative

Person Maltese English

singular kun! be!

plural kunu! be!

Examples:

Kun attent!

Be careful!

Kunu kwieti!

Be quiet!

11. Negative Present

The present negative has special forms:

Person Maltese English

I m'iniex I am not

you sg. m'intix you are not

he mhuwiex / mhux he is not

she mhijiex she is not

we m'aħniex we are not

you pl. m'intomx you are not

they mhumiex they are not

Examples:

M'iniex għajjien.

I am not tired.

Mhuwiex kuntent.

He isn't happy.

Mhumiex lesti.

They aren't ready.

12. Negative Past

Use ma + past form + x.

Person Maltese

I ma kontx

you sg. ma kontx

he ma kienx

she ma kinitx

we ma konniex

you pl. ma kontux

they ma kinux

Examples:

Ma kontx hemm.

I wasn't there.

Ma kienx kuntent.

He wasn't happy.

Ma kinux lesti.

They weren't ready.

13. Negative Future

Person Maltese English

I ma nkunx I won't be

you sg. ma tkunx you won't be

he ma jkunx he won't be

she ma tkunx she won't be

we ma nkunux we won't be

you pl. ma tkunu x → ma tkunux you won't be

they ma jkunux they won't be

With se, you can say:

Mhux se nkun hemm.

I won't be there.

14. Negative Subjunctive

The negative subjunctive uses ma ... x.

Positive Negative

inkun ma nkunx

tkun ma tkunx

jkun ma jkunx

tkun ma tkunx

nkunu ma nkunux

tkunu ma tkunux

jkunu ma jkunux

Example:

Ma rridx li jkun hawn.

I don't want him to be here.

15. "To Be" + Passive Participle

kun is also used with participles/adjectives in passive or resultative constructions.

Present

Il-bieb huwa magħluq.

The door is closed.

Past

Il-bieb kien magħluq.

The door was closed.

Future

Il-bieb se jkun magħluq.

The door will be closed.

4- PRONOUNS:

1. Subject Pronouns

These are the pronouns used as the subject of a sentence.

English Maltese

I jien

you (singular) inti

he hu

she hi

we aħna

you (plural) intom

they huma

Examples

Jien student.

I am a student.

Hi tabiba.

She is a doctor.

Aħna Maltin.

We are Maltese.

Note: Subject pronouns are often omitted because the verb ending already shows the subject.

Nikteb. = I write.

Jikteb. = He writes.

2. Direct Object Pronouns

These replace the direct object ("me", "him", "it", etc.).

English Maltese

me -ni

you -ek / -k

him -u / -h

her -ha

us -na

you (pl.) -kom

them -hom

These are usually attached to the verb.

Examples

Ra-ni.

He saw me.

Rajtek.

I saw you.

Rajtu.

I saw him.

Rajtha.

I saw her.

Rajnihom.

We saw them.

3. Indirect Object Pronouns

These mean "to me", "to him", etc.

English Maltese

to me -li

to you -lek

to him -lu

to her -lha

to us -lna

to you (pl.) -lkom

to them -lhom

Examples

Qalli.

He told me.

Kitbitlu.

She wrote to him.

Agħtihom il-ktieb.

Give them the book.

4. Reflexive Pronouns

Unlike English, Maltese usually uses:

lilek innifsek, lili nnifsi, etc.

English Maltese

myself lili nnifsi

yourself lilek innifsek

himself lilu nnifsu

herself lilha nnifisha

ourselves lilna nfusna

yourselves lilkom infuskom

themselves lilhom infushom

Examples

Nara lili nnifsi fil-mera.

I see myself in the mirror.

Ħares lejk innifsek!

Look at yourself!

5. Possessive Adjectives

These come before the possessed noun.

English Maltese

my tiegħi*

your tiegħek*

his tiegħu*

her tagħha*

our tagħna*

your (pl.) tagħkom*

their tagħhom*

*Unlike English, Maltese commonly expresses possession after the noun:

Il-ktieb tiegħi.

My book.

Examples

Id-dar tagħna.

Our house.

Il-karozza tagħha.

Her car.

6. Possessive Pronouns

These stand alone.

English Maltese

mine tiegħi

yours tiegħek

his tiegħu

hers tagħha

ours tagħna

yours (pl.) tagħkom

theirs tagħhom

Examples

Dan il-ktieb huwa tiegħi.

This book is mine.

Din hija tagħhom.

This is theirs.

7. Demonstrative Pronouns

English Maltese

this dan (m.), din (f.)

these dawn

that dak (m.), dik (f.)

those dawk

Examples

Dan ktieb.

This is a book.

Dik dar.

That is a house.

Dawn huma tfal.

These are children.

5- VERB TENSES:

Jien nikteb I write

Inti tikteb You write

Hu jikteb He writes

Hi tikteb She writes

Aħna niktbu We write

Intom tiktbu You write

Huma jiktbu They write

Jien qed nikteb I am writing

Inti qed tikteb You are writing

Hu qed jikteb He is writing

Hi qed tikteb She is writing

Aħna qed niktbu We are writing

Intom qed tiktbu You are writing

Huma qed jiktbu They are writing

Jien ktibt I wrote

Inti ktibt You wrote

Hu kiteb He wrote

Hi kitbet She wrote

Aħna ktibna We wrote

Intom ktibtu You wrote

Huma kitbu They wrote

Jien kont qed nikteb I was writing

Inti kont qed tikteb You were writing

Hu kien qed jikteb He was writing

Hi kienet qed tikteb She was writing

Aħna konna qed niktbu We were writing

Intom kontu qed tiktbu You were writing

Huma kienu qed jiktbu They were writing

Jien kont ktibt I had written

Inti kont ktibt You had written

Hu kien kiteb He had written

Hi kienet kitbet She had written

Aħna konna ktibna We had written

Intom kontu ktibtu You had written

Huma kienu kitbu They had written

Jien se nikteb I will write

Inti se tikteb You will write

Hu se jikteb He will write

Hi se tikteb She will write

Aħna se niktbu We will write

Intom se tiktbu You will write

Huma se jiktbu They will write

Jien se nkun qed nikteb I will be writing

Inti se tkun qed tikteb You will be writing

Hu se jkun qed jikteb He will be writing

Hi se tkun qed tikteb She will be writing

Aħna se nkunu qed niktbu We will be writing

Intom se tkunu qed tiktbu You will be writing

Huma se jkunu qed jiktbu They will be writing

Jien se nkun ktibt I will have written

Inti se tkun ktibt You will have written

Hu se jkun kiteb He will have written

Hi se tkun kitbet She will have written

Aħna se nkunu ktibna We will have written

Intom se tkunu ktibtu You will have written

Huma se jkunu kitbu They will have written

Jien ili nikteb I have been writing

Inti ilek tikteb You have been writing

Hu ilu jikteb He has been writing

Hi ilha tikteb She has been writing

Aħna ilna niktbu We have been writing

Intom ilkom tiktbu You have been writing

Huma ilhom jiktbu They have been writing

Jien kont ili nikteb I had been writing

Inti kont ilek tikteb You had been writing

Hu kien ilu jikteb He had been writing

Hi kienet ilha tikteb She had been writing

Aħna konna ilna niktbu We had been writing

Intom kontu ilkom tiktbu You had been writing

Huma kienu ilhom jiktbu They had been writing

Jien se nkun ili nikteb I will have been writing

Inti se tkun ilek tikteb You will have been writing

Hu se jkun ilu jikteb He will have been writing

Hi se tkun ilha tikteb She will have been writing

Aħna se nkunu ilna niktbu We will have been writing

Intom se tkunu ilkom tiktbu You will have been writing

Huma se jkunu ilhom jiktbu They will have been writing

(inti) ikteb! write!

(intom) iktbu! write!

6- PASSIVE TENSES:

Jien jien miktub I am written

Inti inti miktub you are written

Hu hu miktub he is written

Hi hi miktuba she is written

Aħna aħna miktubin we are written

Intom intom miktubin you are written

Huma huma miktubin they are written

Jien qed inkun miktub I am being written

Inti qed tkun miktub you are being written

Hu qed ikun miktub he is being written

Hi qed tkun miktuba she is being written

Aħna qed inkunu miktubin we are being written

Intom qed tkunu miktubin you are being written

Huma qed ikunu miktubin they are being written

Jien kont miktub I was written

Inti kont miktub you were written

Hu kien miktub he was written

Hi kienet miktuba she was written

Aħna konna miktubin we were written

Intom kontu miktubin you were written

Huma kienu miktubin they were written

Jien kont qed niġi miktub I was being written

Inti kont qed tiġi miktub you were being written

Hu kien qed jiġi miktub he was being written

Hi kienet qed tiġi miktuba she was being written

Aħna konna qed niġu miktubin we were being written

Intom kontu qed tiġu miktubin you were being written

Huma kienu qed jiġu miktubin they were being written

Jien se nkun miktub I will be written

Inti se tkun miktub you will be written

Hu se jkun miktub he will be written

Hi se tkun miktuba she will be written

Aħna se nkunu miktubin we will be written

Intom se tkunu miktubin you will be written

Huma se jkunu miktubin they will be written

Jien se nkun qed niġi miktub I will be being written

Inti se tkun qed tiġi miktub you will be being written

Hu se jkun qed jiġi miktub he will be being written

Hi se tkun qed tiġi miktuba she will be being written

Aħna se nkunu qed niġu miktubin we will be being written

Huma se jkunu qed jiġu miktubin they will be being written

Jien ġejt miktub I have been written

Inti ġejt miktub you have been written

Hu ġie miktub he has been written

Hi ġiet miktuba she has been written

Aħna ġejna miktubin we have been written

Intom ġejtu miktubin you have been written

Huma ġew miktubin they have been written

Jien kont ġejt miktub I had been written

Inti kont ġejt miktub you had been written

Hu kien ġie miktub he had been written

Hi kienet ġiet miktuba she had been written

Aħna konna ġejna miktubin we had been written

Intom kontu ġejtu miktubin you had been written

Huma kienu ġew miktubin they had been written

Jien se nkun ġejt miktub I will have been written

Hu se jkun ġie miktub he will have been written

Hi se tkun ġiet miktuba she will have been written

Aħna se nkunu ġejna miktubin we will have been written

Huma se jkunu ġew miktubin they will have been written

Ħalli jkun miktub. Let it be written.

7- NEGATION:

m'iniex I am not

m'intix you are not

mhuwiex he is not

mhijiex she is not

m'aħniex we are not

mhumiex they are not

Present: ma niktebx

Present Continuous: m'iniex qed nikteb

Past: ma ktibtx

Past Continuous: ma kontx qed nikteb

Future: mhux se nikteb

Present Perfect: ma ktibtx

Past Perfect: ma kontx ktibt

Future Perfect: mhux se nkun ktibt

Imperative: tiktebx!

8- QUESTIONS:

Everything stays the same if it is a yes/no question, except we add a question mark.

Inti titkellem bil-Malti. (You speak Maltese.)

Inti titkellem bil-Malti? (Do you speak Maltese.)

If it is WH question:

min -> who

x' / x'inhu -> what

fejn -> where

meta -> when

għaliex / għala -> why

kif -> how

kemm -> how much / how many

liema -> which

kemm-il -> how many (counting)

MIN (WHO):

Min ġie? (Who came?) (If you are questioning about the noun that does the action)

Lil min rajt? (Who did you see?) (If you are questioning about the noun that the action is done to)

9- ADVERBS:

ADVERBS OF TIME:

Maltese Transliteration English Example

hekk hekk so; thus; like this Agħmel hekk. — Do it like this.

b’hekk b'hekk thus; in this way B’hekk nistgħu nibdew. — Thus we can begin.

b’dan il-mod b'dan il-mod in this way Agħmilha b’dan il-mod. — Do it in this way.

b’dak il-mod b'dak il-mod in that way Ma tistax taħdem b’dak il-mod. — You cannot work that way.

sew sew well; properly Huwa jaħdem sew. — He works well.

ħażin ħażin badly Huwa kiteb ħażin. — He wrote badly.

bil-mod bil-mod slowly Imxi bil-mod. — Walk slowly.

malajr malajr quickly Ġie malajr. — He came quickly.

bir-reqqa bir-reqqa carefully Aqra bir-reqqa. — Read carefully.

b’attenzjoni b'attenzjoni attentively Isma’ b’attenzjoni. — Listen carefully.

bil-kwiet bil-kwiet quietly Daħal bil-kwiet. — He entered quietly.

flimkien flimkien together Morru flimkien. — Go together.

waħdu waħdu alone Huwa mar waħdu. — He went alone.

apposta apposta deliberately; on purpose Għamilha apposta. — He did it deliberately.

aċċidentalment aċċidentalment accidentally Ġara aċċidentalment. — It happened accidentally.

b’mod ċar b'mod ċar clearly Spjegaha b’mod ċar. — Explain it clearly.

b’mod differenti b'mod differenti differently Huma jaħsbu b’mod differenti. — They think differently.

2. Time — When?

Maltese Transliteration English Example

illum illum today Illum qiegħed naħdem. — Today I am working.

ilbieraħ ilbieraħ yesterday Ilbieraħ mort id-dar. — Yesterday I went home.

għada għada tomorrow Għada se mmur. — Tomorrow I will go.

issa issa now Qiegħed naħdem issa. — I am working now.

bħalissa bħalissa currently; right now Bħalissa qed nistudja. — I am studying right now.

dalwaqt dalwaqt soon Se jiġi dalwaqt. — He will come soon.

aktar tard aktar tard later Niġi aktar tard. — I will come later.

aktar kmieni aktar kmieni earlier Ġie aktar kmieni. — He came earlier.

qabel qabel before; previously Ġejt qabel. — I came before.

wara wara afterwards; later Se nitkellmu wara. — We will talk later.

diġà diġà already Hu diġà mar. — He has already left.

għad għad still; yet Hu għad qiegħed hawn. — He is still here.

għadu għadu still Hu għadu jaħdem. — He is still working.

qatt qatt ever; never Ma mortx qatt hemm. — I never went there.

qabelxejn qabelxejn first of all Qabelxejn, irridu nibdew. — First of all, we must begin.

immedjatament immedjatament immediately Ġie immedjatament. — He came immediately.

f’daqqa f'daqqa suddenly; at once F’daqqa waqa’. — Suddenly he fell.

reċentement reċentement recently Reċentement żort Malta. — Recently I visited Malta.

darba darba once Mort hemm darba. — I went there once.

darbtejn darbtejn twice Qrajtha darbtejn. — I read it twice.

3. Frequency — How often?

Maltese Transliteration English

dejjem dejjem always

spiss spiss often

ħafna drabi ħafna drabi often; many times

kultant kultant sometimes

xi kultant xi kultant sometimes

rarament rarament rarely

kważi qatt kważi qatt almost never

qatt qatt ever; never

normalment normalment normally

ġeneralment ġeneralment generally

regolarment regolarment regularly

ta’ spiss ta' spiss frequently

ta’ kultant ta' kultant occasionally

kuljum kuljum daily

kull ġimgħa kull ġimgħa weekly

kull xahar kull xahar monthly

kull sena kull sena yearly

Example

Huwa dejjem jaħdem.

He always works.

Kultant immur hemm.

Sometimes I go there.

4. Place — Where?

Maltese Transliteration English

hawn hawn here

hemm hemm there

hemmhekk hemmhekk over there

hawnhekk hawnhekk right here

kullimkien kullimkien everywhere

imkien imkien nowhere

x’imkien x'imkien somewhere

barra barra outside

ġewwa ġewwa inside

fuq fuq above; on

taħt taħt below; underneath

quddiem quddiem in front

wara wara behind

ħdejn ħdejn beside; near

madwar madwar around

’il bogħod 'il bogħod far away

qrib qrib nearby

fil-qrib fil-qrib nearby

’il ġewwa 'il ġewwa inward

’il barra 'il barra outward

5. Direction and movement

Maltese Transliteration English

'il fuq 'il fuq upward

'l isfel 'l isfel downward

'il quddiem 'il quddiem forward

'il barra 'il barra outward

'il ġewwa 'il ġewwa inward

lura lura back; backwards

’il bogħod 'il bogħod away

qrib qrib close

lejn lejn toward

madwar madwar around

Example:

Mur ’il quddiem.

Go forward.

Ġie lura.

He came back.

6. Degree — How much?

Maltese Transliteration English

ħafna ħafna very; much; a lot

ftit ftit little; slightly

wisq wisq too much; too

aktar aktar more

inqas inqas less

l-aktar l-aktar most

l-inqas l-inqas least

kemxejn kemxejn somewhat

pjuttost pjuttost rather; quite

tassew tassew really; truly

verament verament really; truly

assolutament assolutament absolutely

kompletament kompletament completely

għal kollox għal kollox completely

kważi kważi almost

wisq aktar wisq aktar much more

ħafna aktar ħafna aktar much more

ħafna inqas ħafna inqas much less

daqshekk daqshekk that much

tant tant so much; so

kemm kemm how much/how

biżżejjed biżżejjed enough

7. Comparison

Maltese Transliteration English

aktar aktar more

inqas inqas less

l-aktar l-aktar most

l-inqas l-inqas least

daqs daqs as much/as

daqshekk daqshekk that much

daqs kemm daqs kemm as much as

aktar minn aktar minn more than

inqas minn inqas minn less than

daqs daqs as much/as many as

Example:

Huwa jaħdem aktar minni.

He works more than I do.

8. Affirmation — Yes / indeed

Maltese Transliteration English

iva iva yes

żgur żgur certainly; surely

ċertament ċertament certainly

tabilħaqq tabilħaqq indeed

tassew tassew truly; really

verament verament really

proprju proprju precisely; exactly

eżattament eżattament exactly

bla dubju bla dubju without doubt

żgur li żgur li surely that

9. Negation

The main negative particle is:

Maltese Transliteration English

ma ma not

qatt qatt never

xejn xejn nothing; at all

imkien imkien nowhere

qatt aktar qatt aktar never again

xejn affattu xejn affattu not at all

bl-ebda mod bl-ebda mod in no way

Important

ma is primarily a negative particle, not an ordinary adverb.

Ma nafx.

I don't know.

10. Probability and possibility

Maltese Transliteration English

forsi forsi perhaps; maybe

forsi wkoll forsi wkoll perhaps also

probabbilment probabbilment probably

x’aktarx x'aktarx probably; most likely

possibbilment possibbilment possibly

possibilment possibilment possibly

aktarx aktarx probably

żgur żgur surely

bla dubju bla dubju undoubtedly

jidher jidher it seems

donnu donnu apparently; seemingly

donnhom donnhom apparently they...

forsi jkun forsi jkun perhaps it is

Example:

Forsi jiġi għada.

Perhaps he will come tomorrow.

X’aktarx li jiġi.

He will probably come.

11. Certainty

Maltese Transliteration English

żgur żgur certainly

ċertament ċertament certainly

bla dubju bla dubju undoubtedly

bla ebda dubju bla ebda dubju without any doubt

tabilħaqq tabilħaqq indeed

tassew tassew truly

verament verament really

ċertament ċertament certainly

assolutament assolutament absolutely

definittivament definittivament definitely

ovvjament ovvjament obviously

naturalment naturalment naturally; of course

12. Uncertainty

Maltese Transliteration English

forsi forsi perhaps

forsi wkoll forsi wkoll perhaps

probabbilment probabbilment probably

x’aktarx x'aktarx probably

aktarx aktarx probably

donnu donnu seemingly

jidher jidher apparently

apparentement apparentement apparently

possibilment possibilment possibly

possibbilment possibbilment possibly

13. Question adverbs

Maltese Transliteration English

fejn fejn where

meta meta when

kif kif how

għaliex għaliex why

għala għala why

kemm kemm how much/how many

kemm-il darba kemm-il darba how many times

minn fejn minn fejn from where

fejn lejn fejn lejn where to

sa fejn sa fejn how far

Examples:

Fejn sejjer?

Where are you going?

Meta ġej?

When is he coming?

Kif għamilt dan?

How did you do this?

Għaliex mort?

Why did you go?

14. Addition

Maltese Transliteration English

ukoll ukoll also; too

ukoll ukoll ukoll ukoll also as well

barra minn hekk barra minn hekk besides; moreover

aktar minn hekk aktar minn hekk furthermore

ukoll ukoll additionally

saħansitra saħansitra even

anki anki also; even

inkella inkella otherwise / else

Example:

Jien ukoll immur.

I am going too.

15. Restriction — only

Maltese Transliteration English

biss biss only

biss jekk biss jekk only if

biss meta biss meta only when

biss hekk biss hekk only this way

sempliċement sempliċement simply; merely

biss kemm biss kemm only as much as

Example:

Niġi biss għada.

I will come only tomorrow.

16. Emphasis

Maltese Transliteration English

tassew tassew really

verament verament really

proprju proprju exactly; precisely

saħansitra saħansitra even

assolutament assolutament absolutely

kompletament kompletament completely

għal kollox għal kollox completely

speċjalment speċjalment especially

partikolarment partikolarment particularly

eżattament eżattament exactly

sempliċement sempliċement simply

17. Especially / particularly

Maltese Transliteration English

speċjalment speċjalment especially

partikolarment partikolarment particularly

b’mod speċjali b'mod speċjali especially

fuq kollox fuq kollox above all

l-aktar l-aktar especially; most

18. Approximately

Maltese Transliteration English

madwar madwar about; approximately

bejn wieħed u ieħor bejn wieħed u ieħor approximately

kważi kważi almost

xi xi some/about

bejn wieħed u ieħor bejn wieħed u ieħor roughly

aktar jew inqas aktar jew inqas more or less

bejn wieħed u ieħor bejn wieħed u ieħor approximately

Example:

Madwar għaxar persuni ġew.

About ten people came.

19. Sequence

Maltese Transliteration English

l-ewwel l-ewwel first

imbagħad imbagħad then

wara wara afterwards

sussegwentement sussegwentement subsequently

fl-aħħar fl-aħħar finally

finalment finalment finally

qabel qabel before

wara wara after

minn hemm 'il quddiem minn hemm 'il quddiem from then on

qabelxejn qabelxejn first of all

Example:

L-ewwel naqra, imbagħad nikteb.

First I read, then I write.

20. Result / consequence

Maltese Transliteration English

għalhekk għalhekk therefore

b’hekk b'hekk thus

konsegwentement konsegwentement consequently

għal din ir-raġuni għal din ir-raġuni for this reason

minħabba f’hekk minħabba f'hekk because of this

allura allura then; therefore

mela mela then; so

b’konsegwenza b'konsegwenza consequently

21. Contrast / concession

Maltese Transliteration English

madankollu madankollu however

iżda iżda but; however

xorta xorta nevertheless; still

xorta waħda xorta waħda nevertheless

minkejja dan minkejja dan despite this

għall-kuntrarju għall-kuntrarju on the contrary

min-naħa l-oħra min-naħa l-oħra on the other hand

anzi anzi rather; on the contrary

inkella inkella otherwise

22. Purpose

Maltese Transliteration English

apposta apposta deliberately; intentionally

għalhekk għalhekk for this reason

sabiex sabiex so that / in order that

biex biex in order to / so that

biex b’hekk biex b'hekk so that; thereby

Some of these are conjunctions rather than pure adverbs.

23. Continuation — still / yet

Maltese Transliteration English

għadu għadu still

għadha għadha still

għad għad still; yet

għadhom għadhom still

s’issa s'issa so far; until now

sal-lum sal-lum until today

għadu kif għadu kif has just

Example:

Għadu qiegħed jaħdem.

He is still working.

24. Already

Maltese Transliteration English

diġà diġà already

diġà issa diġà issa already now

sa issa sa issa by now

s’issa s'issa by now / so far

25. Again / repetition

Maltese Transliteration English

mill-ġdid mill-ġdid again

għal darb’oħra għal darb'oħra again

darb’oħra darb'oħra another time

mill-ġdid mill-ġdid anew

mill-ġdid u mill-ġdid mill-ġdid u mill-ġdid again and again

ripetutament ripetutament repeatedly

26. Suddenly

Maltese Transliteration English

f’daqqa f'daqqa suddenly

f’daqqa waħda f'daqqa waħda all of a sudden

għal għarrieda għal għarrieda unexpectedly; suddenly

bla mistenni bla mistenni unexpectedly

27. Gradually

Maltese Transliteration English

bil-mod il-mod bil-mod il-mod gradually

ftit ftit ftit ftit little by little

gradwalment gradwalment gradually

bil-mod bil-mod slowly/gradually

pass pass pass pass step by step

28. Directly / indirectly

Maltese Transliteration English

direttament direttament directly

indirettament indirettament indirectly

dirett dirett directly

personalment personalment personally

direttament direttament straight/directly

29. Intentionally / accidentally

Maltese Transliteration English

apposta apposta intentionally

deliberatament deliberatament deliberately

intenzjonalment intenzjonalment intentionally

aċċidentalment aċċidentalment accidentally

bi żball bi żball by mistake

mingħajr intenzjoni mingħajr intenzjoni unintentionally

30. Carefully / carelessly

Maltese Transliteration English

bir-reqqa bir-reqqa carefully

b’attenzjoni b'attenzjoni attentively

bil-galbu bil-galbu carefully

bi traskuraġni bi traskuraġni carelessly

traskuratament traskuratament carelessly

31. Together / separately

Maltese Transliteration English

flimkien flimkien together

separatament separatament separately

waħedhom waħedhom by themselves

waħdu waħdu alone

waħedha waħedha alone

flimkien flimkien jointly

32. Secretly / openly

Maltese Transliteration English

bil-moħbi bil-moħbi secretly

bil-moħbi bil-moħbi covertly

bil-miftuħ bil-miftuħ openly

pubblikament pubblikament publicly

privatament privatament privately

33. Fortunately / unfortunately

Maltese Transliteration English

fortunatament fortunatament fortunately

sfortunatament sfortunatament unfortunately

b’xorti tajba b'xorti tajba fortunately

b’xorti ħażina b'xorti ħażina unfortunately

grazzi għal Alla grazzi għal Alla thankfully

34. Generally / normally

Maltese Transliteration English

ġeneralment ġeneralment generally

normalment normalment normally

tipikament tipikament typically

ġeneralment ġeneralment generally

fil-biċċa l-kbira fil-biċċa l-kbira for the most part

l-aktar l-aktar mostly

prinċipalment prinċipalment mainly

partikolarment partikolarment particularly

35. Anyway / anyhow

Maltese Transliteration English

xorta waħda xorta waħda anyway / nevertheless

fi kwalunkwe każ fi kwalunkwe każ in any case

b’xi mod b'xi mod somehow

kif ukoll kif kif ukoll kif somehow

xorta xorta anyway/still

hekk jew hekk hekk jew hekk anyway

36. Somehow

Maltese Transliteration English

b’xi mod b'xi mod somehow

b’xi mezz b'xi mezz by some means

b’xi mod ieħor b'xi mod ieħor somehow/another way

kif ġie ġie kif ġie ġie somehow; whatever way

37. At least / at most

Maltese Transliteration English

mill-inqas mill-inqas at least

għallinqas għallinqas at least

tal-inqas tal-inqas at least

l-aktar l-aktar at most

mhux aktar minn mhux aktar minn no more than

mhux inqas minn mhux inqas minn no less than

38. Distribution

Maltese Transliteration English

kull wieħed kull wieħed each one

wieħed wieħed wieħed wieħed one by one

wieħed wara l-ieħor wieħed wara l-ieħor one after another

separatament separatament separately

individwalment individwalment individually

kollettivament kollettivament collectively

39. Linking / discourse adverbs

These connect ideas rather than simply describing a verb.

Maltese Transliteration English

għalhekk għalhekk therefore

madankollu madankollu however

barra minn hekk barra minn hekk moreover

għalhekk ukoll għalhekk ukoll therefore also

imbagħad imbagħad then

allura allura then / so

mela mela so / then

anzi anzi rather

inkella inkella otherwise

xorta waħda xorta waħda nevertheless

min-naħa l-oħra min-naħa l-oħra on the other hand

fil-fatt fil-fatt in fact

tabilħaqq tabilħaqq indeed

b’hekk b'hekk thus

konsegwentement konsegwentement consequently

40. “In fact” / actually

Maltese Transliteration English

fil-fatt fil-fatt in fact

fil-verità fil-verità in truth

attwalment attwalment actually/currently

tassew tassew really

verament verament really

tabilħaqq tabilħaqq indeed

proprju proprju actually/exactly

41. Adverbs formed from adjectives

Maltese frequently uses adverbial expressions with b’/bil- rather than having a separate one-word adverb corresponding to every English -ly adverb.

Examples:

Adjective Adverbial expression English

ċar b’mod ċar clearly

tajjeb sew / b’mod tajjeb well

ħażin ħażin / b’mod ħażin badly

attent b’attenzjoni attentively

rapidu malajr quickly

bil-mod bil-mod slowly

prudenti bil-galbu prudently

deliberat apposta deliberately

This is an important feature of Maltese: English “-ly” adverbs do not always correspond to a simple Maltese adverb ending.

42. Interrogative → indefinite → negative adverb patterns

Maltese also has productive question/indefinite/negative patterns.

Function Maltese English

where? fejn where?

somewhere x’imkien somewhere

nowhere imkien nowhere

everywhere kullimkien everywhere

when? meta when?

ever qatt ever

never qatt never

how? kif how?

somehow b’xi mod somehow

why? għaliex why?

for some reason għal xi raġuni for some reason

how much? kemm how much?

so much tant so much

that much daqshekk that much

43. Common productive adverbial patterns

Maltese can create adverbial expressions through several constructions:

b’ + noun

b’attenzjoni — carefully

bil-mod — slowly

bir-reqqa — carefully

bil-galbu — cautiously

b’mod + adjective

b’mod ċar — clearly

b’mod differenti — differently

b’mod normali — normally

b’mod speċjali — especially

f’ + noun

f’daqqa — suddenly

fil-fatt — in fact

fl-aħħar — finally

għal + noun/expression

għal kollox — completely

għal darb’oħra — again

għallinqas — at least

mill- + noun

mill-ġdid — again

mill-inqas — at least

mill-ewwel — immediately / right away

10- CONJUNCTIONS:

Maltese Transliteration English Example

u u and Jien naqra u nikteb. — I read and write.

jew jew or Trid tè jew kafè? — Do you want tea or coffee?

imma imma but Irrid immur, imma ma nistax. — I want to go, but I can't.

iżda iżda but / however Huwa żgħir, iżda b'saħħtu. — He is small, but strong.

però però but / however Irrid immur, però ma nistax. — I want to go, but I can't.

lanqas lanqas neither / nor Ma kielx u lanqas ma xorob. — He neither ate nor drank.

jew inkella jew inkella or else Ġejja magħna jew inkella tibqa' hawn. — She is coming with us or else staying here.

inkella inkella otherwise / or else Mur issa, inkella tkun tard. — Go now, otherwise you will be late.

anzi anzi rather / instead Mhux diffiċli, anzi faċli. — It isn't difficult; rather, it's easy.

Core coordinating conjunctions

u, jew, imma, iżda, però, lanqas

2. Additive conjunctions

And

Maltese English

u and

kif ukoll as well as

kif ukoll... and also...

flimkien ma' together with

barra minn hekk besides / moreover

minbarra besides / in addition to

Example:

Jien u oħti morna d-dar.

My sister and I went home.

3. “Also / as well as”

Maltese Transliteration English

kif ukoll kif ukoll as well as

ukoll ukoll also / too

anki anki also / even

saħansitra saħansitra even

barra minn hekk barra minn hekk moreover / besides

minbarra minbarra besides

Note: ukoll, anki, and saħansitra are normally adverbs/particles rather than strict conjunctions.

4. Alternative conjunctions — OR

Maltese English

jew or

jew...jew either...or

jew inkella or else

inkella otherwise / or else

kemm...kif ukoll both...and

jew...jew inkella either...or else

Examples:

Jew tiġi magħna jew tibqa' hawn.

Either you come with us or you stay here.

Trid tè jew kafè?

Do you want tea or coffee?

5. Correlative conjunctions

Maltese uses several paired constructions.

Either...or

jew...jew

Jew tiġi jew tibqa'.

Either you come or you stay.

Neither...nor

la...la / la...lanqas

La kiel u lanqas xorob.

He neither ate nor drank.

More commonly, negation is expressed with ma...lanqas.

Ma kielx u lanqas xorob.

He neither ate nor drank.

Both...and

kemm...kif ukoll

Kemm John kif ukoll Mary ġew.

Both John and Mary came.

Not only...but also

mhux biss...iżda wkoll

Mhux biss qara, iżda wkoll kiteb.

He not only read, but also wrote.

Also:

mhux biss...imma wkoll

Mhux biss huwa għaqli, imma wkoll ġentili.

He is not only intelligent, but also kind.

Whether...or

jekk...jew

Ma nafx jekk jiġi jew le.

I don't know whether he will come or not.

6. Subordinating conjunctions

These introduce subordinate clauses.

That

Maltese English

li that

This is one of the most important Maltese subordinators.

Naf li huwa hawn.

I know that he is here.

7. Because / cause

Maltese Transliteration English

għax għax because

għaliex għaliex because / why

peress li peress li since / because

billi billi because / since / by

minħabba li minħabba li because of the fact that

ladarba ladarba since / given that

hekk kif hekk kif as soon as / as

minħabba minħabba because of

Core causal conjunction

għax = because

Ma mortx għax kont marid.

I didn't go because I was sick.

8. Since — because / from the time that

Maltese uses different constructions depending on the meaning.

Maltese English

peress li since / because

billi since / because

ladarba since / given that

minn meta since / from when

minn mindu since

sa minn meta ever since

Example:

Peress li huwa marid, jibqa' d-dar.

Since he is sick, he stays home.

9. Purpose — so that / in order that

Maltese English

biex in order to / so that

sabiex so that / in order that

ħalli so that / in order that

sabiex b'hekk so that thereby

biex b'hekk so that / thereby

Examples:

Ġejt biex ngħinek.

I came to help you.

Tkellem bil-mod biex kulħadd jifhem.

Speak slowly so that everyone understands.

Important

biex is extremely common in Maltese and can introduce either:

an infinitive-like purpose construction

a finite subordinate clause

10. Condition — if

Maltese Transliteration English

jekk jekk if

kieku kieku if / if only

kieku... kieku if...

f'każ li f'każ li in case / if

sakemm sakemm provided that / as long as

basta basta provided that / as long as

dment li dment li provided that

bil-kundizzjoni li bil-kundizzjoni li on condition that

Example:

Jekk tiġi, immorru flimkien.

If you come, we will go together.

11. Unless

Maltese English

sakemm ma...x unless

jekk mhux if not / unless

jekk ma...x if...not / unless

ħlief jekk unless / except if

barra jekk except if

Example:

Ma mmurx sakemm ma tiġix int.

I won't go unless you come.

12. Provided that / as long as

Maltese English

basta provided that / as long as

sakemm as long as / provided that

dment li provided that

bil-kundizzjoni li on condition that

taħt il-kundizzjoni li on the condition that

jekk... if...

Example:

Tista' tmur basta tiġi lura kmieni.

You can go as long as you come back early.

13. Although / even though

Maltese English

għalkemm although

minkejja li despite the fact that

minkejja despite

avolja although / even though

għad li although / even though

minkejja li although / despite the fact that

anki jekk even if

anki meta even when

Example:

Għalkemm kien għajjien, kompla jaħdem.

Although he was tired, he continued working.

14. Even if

Maltese English

anki jekk even if

anke jekk even if

jekk ukoll even if

minkejja li even though / despite the fact that

għalkemm although

Example:

Anki jekk ikun għajjien, se jiġi.

Even if he is tired, he will come.

15. Even though

Maltese English

għalkemm although

avolja although / even though

minkejja li despite the fact that

għad li although

anki jekk even if / even though

16. Time — when

Maltese English

meta when

meta... when...

kif when / as soon as

hekk kif as soon as / as

malli as soon as

ladarba once / since

qabel ma before

wara li after

sakemm until / while / as long as

minn meta since

minn mindu since

waqt li while

filwaqt li while / whereas

dakinhar li on the day that

Example:

Meta jasal, ċempilli.

When he arrives, call me.

17. Before

Maltese English

qabel ma before

qabel before

qabel ma... before...

sakemm ma...x before/until unless

Example:

Aħsel idejk qabel ma tiekol.

Wash your hands before you eat.

18. After

Maltese English

wara li after

wara after

ladarba once / after

malli as soon as

Example:

Wara li kiel, mar jorqod.

After he ate, he went to sleep.

19. As soon as

Maltese English

malli as soon as

hekk kif as soon as

kif as soon as / when

appena as soon as

Example:

Malli jasal, se nitkellmu.

As soon as he arrives, we will talk.

20. While

Maltese English

waqt li while

filwaqt li while / whereas

sakemm while / as long as

meta when

hekk kif as

Example:

Hu qara waqt li jien ktibt.

He read while I wrote.

21. Whereas

Maltese English

filwaqt li whereas / while

waqt li while / whereas

filwaqt li... whereas...

min-naħa l-oħra on the other hand

Filwaqt li is the main construction.

22. Until

Maltese English

sakemm until

sa ma until

sal-mument li until the moment that

sakemm ma...x until/unless

Example:

Stenna sakemm niġi.

Wait until I come.

23. Since — time

Maltese English

minn meta since

minn mindu since

sa minn meta ever since

sa minn mindu ever since

Example:

Ma rajtux minn meta telaq.

I haven't seen him since he left.

24. Whenever

Maltese English

kull meta whenever

kull darba li every time that

meta jkun whenever it is

kull meta... whenever...

Example:

Kull meta jiġi, jitkellem miegħi.

Whenever he comes, he talks to me.

25. Wherever

Maltese English

kull fejn wherever

fejn ikun wherever he is

kullimkien fejn everywhere that

Example:

Se nsibek kull fejn tkun.

I will find you wherever you are.

26. Whoever

Maltese English

min ikun whoever

min hu whoever is

kull min whoever / everyone who

min... whoever

Example:

Kull min irid jista' jiġi.

Whoever wants to can come.

27. Whatever

Maltese English

kull ma whatever / everything that

dak kollu li whatever / all that

x'ikun whatever it may be

kwalunkwe ħaġa li whatever thing that

Example:

Agħmel kull ma trid.

Do whatever you want.

28. However / no matter how

Maltese English

madankollu however

għalkemm although

tkun xi tkun whatever it may be

kemm tkun kemm tkun however much

b'kull mod however / in any way

xorta waħda nevertheless

29. As if

Maltese English

qisu as if / as though

qisha as if she

qisu li as if

bħallikieku as if / as though

donnu seemingly / as if

donnhom as if they

Example:

Jitkellem bħallikieku jaf kollox.

He speaks as if he knows everything.

30. Comparison — than

Maltese English

minn than

milli than / rather than

daqs as...as

daqs kemm as much as

aktar minn more than

inqas minn less than

Example:

Huwa akbar minni.

He is bigger than me.

31. Rather than / instead of

Maltese English

minflok instead of

minflok ma instead of

milli rather than

aħjar milli rather than / better than

Example:

Minflok ma tmur, ibqa' hawn.

Instead of going, stay here.

32. Result — so / so that

Maltese English

b'hekk thus / thereby

għalhekk therefore

b'tali mod li in such a way that

tant li so much that

hekk li so that

sabiex so that

biex so that

“So...that”

tant...li

Kien tant għajjien li raqad immedjatament.

He was so tired that he immediately fell asleep.

33. “The more...the more”

Maltese normally uses comparative constructions.

Maltese English

aktar ma...aktar... the more...the more...

aktar ma...aktar ma... the more...the more...

inqas ma...inqas... the less...the less...

aktar ma...inqas... the more...the less...

Example:

Aktar ma taqra, aktar titgħallem.

The more you read, the more you learn.

34. “Not only...but also”

Maltese English

mhux biss...iżda wkoll not only...but also

mhux biss...imma wkoll not only...but also

mhux biss...iżda anki not only...but even

mhux biss...imma anki not only...but even

Example:

Mhux biss qara, iżda wkoll kiteb.

He not only read, but also wrote.

35. “Both...and”

Maltese English

kemm...kif ukoll both...and

kemm...u wkoll both...and

kemm A kif ukoll B both A and B

Example:

Kemm John kif ukoll Mary ġew.

Both John and Mary came.

36. “Neither...nor”

Maltese English

la...lanqas neither...nor

ma...u lanqas neither...nor

la...u lanqas neither...nor

Example:

Ma kielx u lanqas ma xorob.

He neither ate nor drank.

37. “Either...or”

Maltese English

jew...jew either...or

jew...jew inkella either...or else

jew inkella or else

38. “Whether...or”

Maltese English

jekk...jew whether...or

jekk...jew le whether...or not

jekk...jew jekk whether...or whether

jekk...jew le whether...or not

Example:

Ma nafx jekk hux se jiġi jew le.

I don't know whether he will come or not.

39. Indirect-question linkers

Maltese English

jekk whether / if

jekk...jew le whether...or not

min who

x' what

fejn where

meta when

kif how

għaliex why

kemm how much/how many

Example:

Ma nafx jekk hux hawn.

I don't know whether he is here.

Ma nafx fejn mar.

I don't know where he went.

40. “That” clause linker

The main conjunction is:

li = that

Naf li ġie.

I know that he came.

It also introduces many subordinate clauses:

għax — because

jekk — if/whether

għalkemm — although

meta — when

wara li — after

qabel ma — before

peress li — since/because

minħabba li — because

sakemm — until/as long as

41. “So that / in order to”

Maltese English

biex in order to / so that

sabiex so that / in order that

ħalli so that

biex b'hekk thereby / so that

sabiex b'hekk thereby

42. “For fear that / lest”

Maltese English

biex ma...x so as not to / lest

sabiex ma...x so that...not

ħalli ma...x so that...not

minħabba l-biża' li for fear that

Example:

Tkellem bil-mod biex ma tfixkilx lit-tfal.

Speak quietly so that you don't disturb the children.

43. Exception — except / unless

Maltese English

ħlief except

ħlief jekk except if / unless

minbarra besides / except

barra minn except / besides

apparti apart from

sakemm ma...x unless

44. Addition / besides

Maltese English

barra minn hekk besides / moreover

minbarra besides

apparti apart from

kif ukoll as well as

ukoll also

anki also/even

45. Contrastive connectors

These are often conjunctive adverbs rather than strict conjunctions, but they are important for Maltese grammar.

Maltese English

madankollu however

għalhekk therefore

anzi rather

xorta waħda nevertheless

min-naħa l-oħra on the other hand

għall-kuntrarju on the contrary

fil-fatt in fact

barra minn hekk furthermore

konsegwentement consequently

allura therefore/then

mela so/then

11- PREPOSITIONS:

Maltese Transliteration English Example

ta' ta' of; belonging to Il-ktieb ta' John. — John's book.

ta' ta' about / concerning Tkellimna ta' dan. — We talked about this.

għal għal for Dan huwa għalik. — This is for you.

f' f' in; at Huwa **f'**Malta. — He is in Malta.

fi fi in; at Huwa fi skola. — He is at a school.

fuq fuq on; on top of Il-ktieb qiegħed fuq il-mejda. — The book is on the table.

ma' ma' with Mort ma' ħija. — I went with my brother.

minn minn from; by Ġej minn Malta. — He comes from Malta.

għal għal to; for Dan huwa għal Maria. — This is for Maria.

lil lil to Tajt il-ktieb lil John. — I gave the book to John.

bi bi with; by means of Kiteb bi lapes. — He wrote with a pencil.

b' b' with; by **B'**mod tajjeb. — In a good way.

sa sa until; up to Sa għada. — Until tomorrow.

sal- sal- until the **Sal-**għaxija. — Until the evening.

bejn bejn between; among Bejn iż-żewġt idjar. — Between the two houses.

kontra kontra against Huwa kontra dan. — He is against this.

lejn lejn toward Qed jimxi lejn id-dar. — He is walking toward the house.

madwar madwar around; about Madwar id-dar. — Around the house.

quddiem quddiem in front of Huwa quddiem id-dar. — He is in front of the house.

wara wara behind; after Huwa wara l-bieb. — He is behind the door.

taħt taħt under; below Il-qattus qiegħed taħt il-mejda. — The cat is under the table.

ħdejn ħdejn beside; near Qiegħed ħdejn ommi. — He is beside my mother.

ġewwa ġewwa inside Huwa ġewwa d-dar. — He is inside the house.

barra barra outside; beyond Huwa barra d-dar. — He is outside the house.

wara wara after Wara l-ikel. — After the food/meal.

qabel qabel before Qabel l-ikel. — Before the meal.

minkejja minkejja despite Minkejja d-diffikultà. — Despite the difficulty.

minħabba minħabba because of Minħabba x-xita. — Because of the rain.

permezz ta' permezz ta' through; by means of Permezz ta' dan il-metodu. — Through this method.

skont skont according to Skont il-liġi. — According to the law.

dwar dwar about; concerning Tkellimna dwar il-problema. — We talked about the problem.

bħal bħal like; as Huwa bħal missieru. — He is like his father.

mingħajr mingħajr without Mingħajr ilma. — Without water.

minbarra minbarra besides; apart from Minbarra John. — Besides John.

ħlief ħlief except Ħlief għal dan. — Except for this.

2. The most important prepositions

The basic set you should learn first is:

ta', għal, f', fi, fuq, ma', minn, lil, bi, sa, bejn, kontra, lejn, madwar, dwar, bħal, mingħajr, minħabba, minkejja, skont, quddiem, wara, taħt, ħdejn, ġewwa, barra, qabel, minbarra, ħlief.

3. The preposition ta' — of / belonging to

ta' is one of the most important Maltese prepositions.

Maltese English

ta' John John's / of John

il-ktieb ta' John John's book

dar ta' familja a family house

biċċa ta' ħobż a piece of bread

Example:

Il-karozza ta' Maria hija ġdida.

Maria's car is new.

It can also introduce a topic:

Tkellimna ta' dan.

We talked about this.

4. għal — for / to

Construction English

għalija for me

għalik for you

għalih for him

għaliha for her

għalina for us

għalikom for you plural

għalihom for them

Example:

Dan ir-rigal huwa għalik.

This gift is for you.

5. f' / fi — in / at

These are variants of the same preposition.

Maltese English

f'Malta in Malta

f'dar in a house

fi skola at a school

fil-belt in the city

fid-dar in the house

fl-uffiċċju in the office

Examples:

Jgħix f'Malta.

He lives in Malta.

Huwa fl-uffiċċju.

He is in the office.

6. fuq — on / on top of

Maltese English

fuq il-mejda on the table

fuq is-siġġu on the chair

fuq id-dar on the house

fuq kollox above all

Example:

Il-ktieb qiegħed fuq il-mejda.

The book is on the table.

7. ma' — with

Maltese English

miegħi with me

miegħek with you

miegħu with him

magħha with her

magħna with us

magħkom with you plural

magħhom with them

Examples:

Mort miegħu.

I went with him.

Qed nitkellem magħha.

I am talking with her.

8. minn — from / by

Maltese English

minn Malta from Malta

minn hawn from here

minn hemm from there

minn John by John / from John

minn filgħodu from the morning

Example:

Ġej minn Malta.

He comes from Malta.

It can also mark an agent in some passive constructions:

Il-ktieb inkiteb minn John.

The book was written by John.

9. lil — to

lil is especially important before personal names and pronouns.

Maltese English

lil John to John

lil Maria to Maria

lilu to him

lilha to her

lilna to us

lilhom to them

Example:

Tajt il-ktieb lil John.

I gave the book to John.

10. bi / b' — with / by means of

Maltese English

biż-żmien with time

b'lapes with a pencil

b'attenzjoni carefully / with attention

b'mod tajjeb in a good way

b'karozza by car

Example:

Ktibt b'lapes.

I wrote with a pencil.

11. sa — until / up to

Maltese English

sa għada until tomorrow

sa issa until now

sa tmiem il-ġimgħa until the end of the week

sa Malta as far as Malta

Contracted:

sal- = sa + il-

sal-għaxija — until the evening

12. bejn — between / among

Maltese English

bejn iż-żewġt idjar between the two houses

bejn il-ħbieb among the friends

bejnietna between us

bejnietkom between you

bejniethom between them

Example:

Hemm differenza bejn dawn it-tnejn.

There is a difference between these two.

13. kontra — against

Kontra can mean physical opposition or disagreement.

Huwa kontra l-gwerra.

He is against war.

Il-karozza marret kontra l-ħajt.

The car went against the wall.

14. lejn — toward

Maltese English

lejn id-dar toward the house

lejn Malta toward Malta

lejn it-tramuntana toward the north

lejn in-nies toward the people

Example:

Qiegħed jimxi lejn id-dar.

He is walking toward the house.

15. dwar — about / concerning

Tkellimna dwar il-problema.

We talked about the problem.

Ktieb dwar l-istorja.

A book about history.

16. bħal — like / as

Huwa bħal missieru.

He is like his father.

Aġixxa bħal professjonist.

He acted like a professional.

17. mingħajr — without

Mingħajr ilma, ma nistgħux ngħixu.

Without water, we cannot live.

Ġie mingħajr ħabibu.

He came without his friend.

18. minħabba — because of

Ma mortx minħabba x-xita.

I didn't go because of the rain.

Minħabba l-problema, tlaqna.

Because of the problem, we left.

19. minkejja — despite

Minkejja d-diffikultajiet, kompla.

Despite the difficulties, he continued.

And with a clause:

minkejja li = despite the fact that

Minkejja li kien għajjien, kompla.

Despite being tired, he continued.

20. skont — according to

Skont il-liġi, dan huwa permess.

According to the law, this is permitted.

Skont John, kollox huwa tajjeb.

According to John, everything is fine.

21. madwar — around / approximately

Spatial:

Madwar id-dar.

Around the house.

Approximation:

Madwar għaxar persuni ġew.

About ten people came.

So madwar can be both a spatial preposition and an approximating expression.

22. quddiem — in front of

Il-karozza tinsab quddiem id-dar.

The car is in front of the house.

23. wara — behind / after

Spatial:

Il-qattus qiegħed wara l-bieb.

The cat is behind the door.

Temporal:

Wara l-ikel, mort id-dar.

After the meal, I went home.

24. taħt — under / below

Il-qattus qiegħed taħt il-mejda.

The cat is under the table.

25. ħdejn — beside / near

Huwa qiegħed ħdejn il-bieb.

He is beside the door.

Jgħix ħdejn l-iskola.

He lives near the school.

26. ġewwa — inside

Huwa ġewwa d-dar.

He is inside the house.

It can also function as an adverb:

Huwa ġewwa.

He is inside.

27. barra — outside

It-tfal qegħdin barra d-dar.

The children are outside the house.

It can also be an adverb:

It-tfal qegħdin barra.

The children are outside.

28. qabel — before

Qabel l-ikel, aħsel idejk.

Before the meal, wash your hands.

With a clause:

qabel ma = before

Qabel ma tiekol, aħsel idejk.

Before you eat, wash your hands.

29. wara li — after

Wara li kiel, mar jorqod.

After he ate, he went to sleep.

This is a prepositional/conjunctional phrase, not a simple preposition.

30. Compound spatial prepositions

Maltese frequently combines spatial words with basic prepositions.

Maltese Transliteration English

fuq fuq on / above

taħt taħt under

quddiem quddiem in front of

wara wara behind

ħdejn ħdejn beside

ġewwa ġewwa inside

barra barra outside

madwar madwar around

bejn bejn between

fin-nofs ta' fin-nofs ta' in the middle of

fuq in-naħa ta' fuq in-naħa ta' on the side of

fuq quddiem ta' fuq quddiem ta' in front of

fuq wara ta' fuq wara ta' behind

ħdejn ħdejn next to

biswit biswit beside / opposite

faċċata ta' faċċata ta' opposite / across from

fil-qrib ta' fil-qrib ta' near

'il bogħod minn 'il bogħod minn far from

31. biswit — beside / opposite

Il-bank jinsab biswit l-iskola.

The bank is beside/opposite the school.

32. faċċata ta' — opposite / across from

Il-ħanut jinsab faċċata tal-iskola.

The shop is opposite the school.

33. fil-qrib ta' — near

Hemm lukanda fil-qrib tal-baħar.

There is a hotel near the sea.

34. 'il bogħod minn — far from

Jgħix 'il bogħod minn hawn.

He lives far from here.

35. fin-nofs ta' — in the middle of

Huwa qiegħed fin-nofs tal-kamra.

He is in the middle of the room.

36. permezz ta' — through / by means of

Għamilna dan permezz ta' programm ġdid.

We did this through a new program.

37. minħabba f' — because of

Minħabba f'dan, kellna nitilqu.

Because of this, we had to leave.

38. għall-finijiet ta' — for the purposes of

Għall-finijiet tal-liġi, dan huwa importanti.

For the purposes of the law, this is important.

39. favur — in favor of / for

Huwa favur il-proposta.

He is in favor of the proposal.

favur is particularly useful for expressing support.

40. f'isem — on behalf of / in the name of

Qed nitkellem f'isem il-grupp.

I am speaking on behalf of the group.

41. minflok — instead of / in place of

Ħu t-te minflok il-kafè.

Have tea instead of coffee.

With a clause:

minflok ma

Minflok ma mar, baqa' hawn.

Instead of going, he stayed here.

42. apparti minn / apparti

Maltese English

apparti apart from

apparti minn apart from

apparti li apart from the fact that

Example:

Apparti minn John, kulħadd ġie.

Apart from John, everyone came.

43. minbarra — besides / apart from

Minbarra Maria, kulħadd ġie.

Apart from Maria, everyone came.

44. ħlief għal — except for

Kulħadd ġie ħlief għal John.

Everyone came except John.

45. skont — according to

Skont il-kuntratt, dan mhux permess.

According to the contract, this is not permitted.

Related:

Maltese English

skont according to

skont kif according to how

skont ma according to what/as

skont il-liġi according to the law

46. rigward / fir-rigward ta' — regarding

Maltese English

rigward regarding

fir-rigward ta' with regard to

rigward ta' regarding

dwar about

f'dak li għandu x'jaqsam ma' as regards / concerning

Example:

Fir-rigward tal-problema, għandna nistennew.

Regarding the problem, we have to wait.

47. f'dak li għandu x'jaqsam ma' — as regards

This is a long but common formal construction.

F'dak li għandu x'jaqsam mal-proġett, kollox lest.

As far as the project is concerned, everything is ready.

48. relattivament għal — with regard to / relative to

Relattivament għall-prezz, dan huwa tajjeb.

Regarding the price, this is good.

49. fir-rigward ta' — regarding

Fir-rigward ta' din il-kwistjoni, ma nafx.

Regarding this issue, I don't know.

50. b'rabta ma' — in connection with

B'rabta mal-problema, se nagħmlu laqgħa.

In connection with the problem, we will hold a meeting.

51. flimkien ma' — together with

Ġie flimkien ma' ħuh.

He came together with his brother.

52. flimkien ma' vs ma'

Both mean with, but:

ma' = basic “with”

flimkien ma' = together with

53. f'konformità ma' — in accordance with

F'konformità mal-liġi, dan huwa meħtieġ.

In accordance with the law, this is required.

54. skont / skont ma' — according to

skont is the normal form.

Skont il-professur...

According to the professor...

55. b'konformità ma' — in conformity with

B'konformità mar-regoli...

In conformity with the rules...

56. b'kuntrast ma' — in contrast with

B'kuntrast mal-oħrajn, huwa kwiet.

In contrast with the others, he is quiet.

57. b'paragun ma' — compared with

B'paragun mal-passat, is-sitwazzjoni tjiebet.

Compared with the past, the situation has improved.

58. relatat ma' — related to

Problema relatata mal-ilma.

A problem related to water.

59. marbut ma' — connected/bound to

Dan huwa marbut mal-proġett.

This is connected to the project.

60. differenti minn — different from

Dan huwa differenti minn dak.

This is different from that.

61. simili għal — similar to

Dan huwa simili għal dak.

This is similar to that.

62. eqreb lejn — closer to

Huwa eqreb lejn id-dar.

He is closer to the house.

63. 'il bogħod minn — far from

L-iskola hija 'l bogħod minn hawn.

The school is far from here.

64. Time prepositional expressions

Maltese English

qabel before

wara after

minn from/since

sa until

matul during

waqt during

fil-ħin ta' at the time of

fi żmien during/in the period of

minn meta since

minn mindu since

sal- until the

sa meta until when

qabel ma before

wara li after

waqt li while

matul il-ġurnata during the day

matul il-lejl during the night

sa tmiem until the end of

matul — during / throughout

Matul is-sena, ħafna nies jivvjaġġaw.

During the year, many people travel.

waqt — during

Waqt il-laqgħa, ma tkellimtx.

During the meeting, I didn't speak.

65. Cause / reason

Maltese English

minħabba because of

minħabba f' because of

bis-saħħa ta' thanks to

grazzi għal thanks to

kawża ta' because of / due to

bħala riżultat ta' as a result of

bħala konsegwenza ta' as a consequence of

minħabba f'hekk because of this

66. bis-saħħa ta' — thanks to

Bis-saħħa ta' dan il-metodu, irnexxielna.

Thanks to this method, we succeeded.

67. grazzi għal — thanks to

Grazzi għalik, irnexxielna.

Thanks to you, we succeeded.

68. Purpose / function

Maltese English

għal for

għall-finijiet ta' for the purposes of

sabiex for the purpose that

biex in order to

għall-iskop ta' for the purpose of

bl-għan ta' with the aim of

bil-għan li with the aim that

69. Comparison

Maltese English

bħal like

daqs as much/as many as

minn than

milli than/rather than

meta mqabbel ma' compared with

b'paragun ma' compared with

differenti minn different from

simili għal similar to

70. Compound preposition master list

Here are the major prepositional expressions worth learning:

Maltese English

barra minn apart from / outside

ġewwa inside

'il barra minn outside of

'il ġewwa minn inside of

fuq on / above

taħt under

quddiem in front of

wara behind / after

ħdejn beside

madwar around

bejn between

biswit beside

faċċata ta' opposite

fil-qrib ta' near

'il bogħod minn far from

fin-nofs ta' in the middle of

fuq in-naħa ta' on the side of

permezz ta' through / by means of

minħabba f' because of

għall-finijiet ta' for the purposes of

f'isem on behalf of

minflok instead of

minflok ma instead of

minbarra besides / apart from

apparti minn apart from

ħlief għal except for

fir-rigward ta' regarding

b'rabta ma' in connection with

relatat ma' related to

marbut ma' connected to

f'konformità ma' in accordance with

b'kuntrast ma' in contrast with

b'paragun ma' compared with

meta mqabbel ma' compared with

skont according to

skont kif according to how

bis-saħħa ta' thanks to

grazzi għal thanks to

kawża ta' because of

bħala riżultat ta' as a result of

bħala konsegwenza ta' as a consequence of

matul during

waqt during

minn meta since

minn mindu since

qabel ma before

wara li after

waqt li while

flimkien ma' together with

simili għal similar to

differenti minn different from

eqreb lejn closer to

71. Contracted prepositions

This is very important in Maltese. Prepositions frequently combine with the definite article.

f' + il-

Basic Contracted English

f' + il- fil- in the

f' + l- fl- in the

Examples:

fil-belt — in the city

fl-iskola — in the school

b' + il-

Basic Contracted

b' + il- bil-

b' + l- bl-

Examples:

bil-karozza — by car

bl-ilma — with the water

m' / ma' + il-

Form English

mal- with the

max- with the

Examples:

mal-ħabib — with the friend

magħha — with her

ta' + il-

Form English

tal- of the

Examples:

tal-iskola — of the school

tal-familja — of the family

għal + il-

Form English

għall- for the

Examples:

għall-bniedem — for the person

għall-iskola — for the school

sa + il-

Form English

sal- until the

Example:

sal-għada — until the next day

72. Preposition + pronoun forms

Some Maltese prepositions combine with pronouns.

għal + pronoun

Maltese English

għalija for me

għalik for you

għalih for him

għaliha for her

għalina for us

għalikom for you

għalihom for them

ma' + pronoun

Maltese English

miegħi with me

miegħek with you

miegħu with him

magħha with her

magħna with us

magħkom with you

magħhom with them

minn + pronoun

Maltese English

minni from me / than me

minnek from you

minnu from him

minnha from her

minna from us

minnkom from you

minnhom from them

lil + pronoun

Maltese English

lili to me

lilek to you

lilu to him

lilha to her

lilna to us

lilkom to you

lilhom to them

12- DETERMINERS

Maltese Transliteration English

il- il- the

l- l- the

The form changes according to the following sound.

Examples

Maltese Transliteration English

il-ktieb il-ktieb the book

il-bniedem il-bniedem the person

l-iskola l-iskola the school

l-ilma l-ilma the water

The article is attached to the noun:

il-ktieb = the book

l-iskola = the school

2. Indefinite article / indefinite reference

Maltese does not have a direct equivalent of English a/an that is obligatorily used before every singular count noun.

An indefinite noun can simply appear without the definite article.

Maltese English

ktieb a book / book

dar a house / house

raġel a man / man

mara a woman / woman

tifel a boy / boy

karozza a car / car

For example:

Għandi ktieb.

I have a book.

The noun ktieb is indefinite because it lacks the definite article.

3. Demonstrative determiners

Maltese demonstratives distinguish near and far reference.

Near — this / these

Maltese Transliteration English

dan dan this

din din this

dawn dawn these

Examples:

dan il-ktieb

this book

din id-dar

this house

dawn il-kotba

these books

4. Far — that / those

Maltese Transliteration English

dak dak that

dik dik that

dawk dawk those

Examples:

dak il-ktieb

that book

dik id-dar

that house

dawk il-kotba

those books

5. Demonstrative master table

Distance Masculine singular Feminine singular Plural

Near dan din dawn

Far dak dik dawk

Examples

Maltese English

dan il-ktieb this book

din id-dar this house

dawn il-kotba these books

dak il-ktieb that book

dik id-dar that house

dawk il-kotba those books

6. Possessive determiners

Maltese normally expresses possession using possessive pronouns/suffixes, often following the noun.

First person singular — my

-i / tiegħi

Maltese English

il-ktieb tiegħi my book

id-dar tiegħi my house

il-karozza tiegħi my car

7. Second person singular — your

Maltese English

il-ktieb tiegħek your book

id-dar tiegħek your house

il-karozza tiegħek your car

8. Third person masculine — his

Maltese English

il-ktieb tiegħu his book

id-dar tiegħu his house

il-karozza tiegħu his car

9. Third person feminine — her

Maltese English

il-ktieb tagħha her book

id-dar tagħha her house

il-karozza tagħha her car

10. First person plural — our

Maltese English

il-ktieb tagħna our book

id-dar tagħna our house

il-karozza tagħna our car

11. Second person plural — your

Maltese English

il-ktieb tagħkom your book

id-dar tagħkom your house

il-karozza tagħkom your car

12. Third person plural — their

Maltese English

il-ktieb tagħhom their book

id-dar tagħhom their house

il-karozza tagħhom their car

13. Complete possessive determiner table

Person Maltese Transliteration English

1sg tiegħi tiegħi my

2sg tiegħek tiegħek your

3sg.m tiegħu tiegħu his

3sg.f tagħha tagħha her

1pl tagħna tagħna our

2pl tagħkom tagħkom your

3pl tagħhom tagħhom their

Example:

il-ktieb tiegħi = my book

il-ktieb tiegħek = your book

il-ktieb tiegħu = his book

il-ktieb tagħha = her book

il-ktieb tagħna = our book

il-ktieb tagħkom = your book

il-ktieb tagħhom = their book

14. Possessive suffixes

Maltese also has possessive suffixes attached directly to nouns.

Suffix English Example

-i my ktieb-i

-ek your ktieb-ek

-u his ktieb-u

-ha her ktieb-ha

-na our ktieb-na

-kom your ktieb-kom

-hom their ktieb-hom

The exact spelling and phonological form can vary with the noun, so the tiegħi, tiegħek, tiegħu... constructions are often easier for learners.

15. Interrogative determiners

Which?

Maltese English

liema which

Examples:

Liema ktieb trid?

Which book do you want?

Liema dar hija tiegħek?

Which house is yours?

16. What kind of / what

Maltese English

x'tip ta' what kind of

liema tip ta' which type of

x'tip ta' what sort of

liema which

Examples:

X'tip ta' ktieb trid?

What kind of book do you want?

Liema tip ta' karozza għandek?

Which type of car do you have?

17. How many / how much

Maltese English

kemm how many / how much

Examples:

Kemm kotba għandek?

How many books do you have?

Kemm ilma trid?

How much water do you want?

18. Indefinite determiners

Maltese uses several indefinite pronoun/determiner-like forms.

Maltese English

xi some / a certain

xi ħadd someone

xi ħaġa something

xi some / any, depending on context

ċertu a certain

ċerta a certain

ċerti certain / some

ċerti... certain...

xi

xi ktieb

some book / a certain book

xi nies

some people

xi ħaġa

something

19. ċertu / ċerta / ċerti

These express a certain / certain.

Maltese English

ċertu raġel a certain man

ċerta mara a certain woman

ċerti nies certain people

20. Universal determiners

All / every

Maltese English

kull every / each

kollox everything

kollha all

kollha kemm huma all of them

kulħadd everyone

kull wieħed each one

kull waħda each one

kull

kull jum

every day

kull persuna

every person

kull ktieb

every book

21. kollu / kollha

These express all / whole / entire, depending on construction.

Maltese English

kollu all / whole, masculine

kollha all / whole, feminine/plural

kollha kemm huma all of them

kollu kemm hu all of it / the whole of it

Examples:

Il-jum kollu.

The whole day.

Il-ġurnata kollha.

The whole day.

Il-flus kollha.

All the money.

22. kulħadd — everyone

kulħadd is technically an indefinite/universal pronoun rather than a strict determiner.

Kulħadd ġie.

Everyone came.

With a noun, kull is used:

Kull student ġie.

Every student came.

23. kollox — everything

Again, this is primarily a pronoun.

Rajna kollox.

We saw everything.

24. Distributive determiners

Maltese English

kull every / each

kull wieħed each one

kull waħda each one

wieħed wieħed one by one

waħda waħda one by one

wieħed kull wieħed one each

wieħed kull wieħed one each

Example:

Kull student għandu ktieb.

Every student has a book.

25. Quantifying determiners

Many / much

Maltese English

ħafna many / much / a lot of

tant so much / so many

kemm as much/many / how much/many

Examples:

ħafna kotba

many books

ħafna ilma

much water

26. Few / little

Maltese English

ftit few / little

ftit ħafna very few / very little

daqsxejn a little / a bit

Examples:

ftit kotba

few books

ftit ilma

little water

daqsxejn ilma

a little water

27. Some

Maltese English

xi some

ftit some / a little

xi ftit a little / some

Examples:

xi kotba

some books

xi nies

some people

xi ftit ilma

a little water

28. Several / various

Maltese English

diversi several / various

bosta many / numerous

għadd ta' a number of

numru ta' a number of

għadd kbir ta' a large number of

għadd żgħir ta' a small number of

Examples:

diversi nies

several people

bosta kotba

many books

numru ta' studenti

a number of students

29. Enough

Maltese English

biżżejjed enough

daqs biżżejjed sufficiently enough

Example:

Għandna biżżejjed ħin.

We have enough time.

30. Too much / too many

Maltese English

wisq too much / too many

wisq ħafna far too much/many

tant so much/so many

Example:

Hemm wisq nies.

There are too many people.

31. More / less

Maltese English

aktar more

iżjed more

inqas less / fewer

aktar minn more than

inqas minn less than

Examples:

aktar kotba

more books

inqas nies

fewer people

32. Most / least

Maltese English

l-aktar the most

l-inqas the least

l-aktar nies the most people

l-inqas nies the fewest people

33. Numeral determiners

Cardinal numbers can determine a noun.

Maltese English

wieħed one

tnejn two

tlieta three

erbgħa four

ħamsa five

sitta six

sebgħa seven

tmienja eight

disgħa nine

għaxra ten

Then:

Maltese English

ħdax eleven

tnax twelve

tlettax thirteen

erbatax fourteen

ħmistax fifteen

sittax sixteen

sbatax seventeen

tmintax eighteen

dsatax nineteen

għoxrin twenty

mitt one hundred

elf one thousand

miljun million

biljun billion

Examples:

żewġt itfal

two children

tliet kotba

three books

ħames studenti

five students

34. Ordinal determiners

Maltese English

l-ewwel first

it-tieni second

it-tielet third

ir-raba' fourth

il-ħames fifth

is-sitt sixth

is-seba' seventh

it-tmien eighth

id-disa' ninth

l-għaxar tenth

il-ħdax-il eleventh

it-tnax-il twelfth

l-aħħar last

Examples:

l-ewwel ktieb

the first book

it-tieni jum

the second day

l-aħħar kapitlu

the last chapter

35. Both

Maltese English

it-tnejn both

it-tnejn li huma both of them

iż-żewġ both / the two

Examples:

iż-żewġt itfal

both children / the two children

It-tnejn ġew.

Both came.

36. Each / every one

Maltese English

kull every

kull wieħed each one

kull waħda each one

kull wieħed minnhom each one of them

kull waħda minnhom each one of them

Example:

Kull wieħed għandu ktieb.

Each one has a book.

37. Any / whichever

Maltese has several ways to express any, depending on context.

Maltese English

xi some / any

kwalunkwe any / any whatsoever

kull any/every

liema...liema whichever

min ikun whoever

x'ikun whatever

kwalunkwe

kwalunkwe ktieb

any book

kwalunkwe persuna

any person

38. No / no one / nothing

These are mainly negative pronoun/determiner-like forms.

Maltese English

ebda no / not any

ħadd nobody / no one

xejn nothing / anything

mkien nowhere

qatt never / ever

ebda

ebda problema

no problem

ebda persuna

no person / nobody

Example:

Ma rajt ebda persuna.

I didn't see anyone.

39. ebda — no / not any

This is one of the most important negative determiner-like words.

Maltese English

ebda ktieb no book

ebda persuna no person

ebda problema no problem

ebda dar no house

Usually it occurs with negation:

Ma għandi ebda ktieb.

I don't have any book / I have no book.

40. Free-choice / indefinite forms

Maltese English

kwalunkwe any

kull any/every

min ikun whoever

x'ikun whatever

fejn ikun wherever

meta jkun whenever

These are generally indefinite pronoun/determiner-like constructions, rather than a single strict determiner class.

41. Restrictive determiners / “only”

These aren't strict determiners, but they can restrict a noun phrase.

Maltese English

biss only

biss il- only the

wieħed biss only one

l-uniku the only

l-unika the only

Examples:

l-uniku student

the only student

l-unika persuna

the only person

42. Same

Maltese English

l-istess the same

l-istess wieħed the same one

l-istess waħda the same one

Examples:

l-istess ktieb

the same book

l-istess persuna

the same person

43. Such / this kind of

Maltese English

tali such

ta' dan it-tip of this kind

ta' dak it-tip of that kind

bħal dan like this

bħal dak like that

Example:

tali problema

such a problem

44. Other / another

Maltese English

ieħor another / other, masculine

oħra another / other, feminine

oħrajn others

wieħed ieħor another one

waħda oħra another one

xi ħadd ieħor someone else

xi ħaġa oħra something else

Examples:

ktieb ieħor

another book

persuna oħra

another person

kotba oħra

other books

45. Certain / particular

Maltese English

ċertu a certain

ċerta a certain

ċerti certain

partikolari particular

Examples:

ċertu raġel

a certain man

ċerta persuna

a certain person

ċerti każijiet

certain cases

46. Whole / entire

Maltese English

kollu whole/all

kollha whole/all

sħiħ whole/entire

sħiħa whole/entire

sħaħ whole/entire plural

kollu kemm hu the whole of it

kollha kemm hi the whole of it

Examples:

il-jum kollu

the whole day

il-ġurnata kollha

the whole day

il-ktieb sħiħ

the entire book

47. Partitive / portion expressions

Maltese English

parti minn part of

xi wħud minn some of

ħafna minn many of

ftit minn few/some of

kollha minn all of

kull wieħed minn each of

nofs half

nofs ta' half of

kwart quarter

kwart ta' quarter of

Examples:

xi wħud minnhom

some of them

ħafna minnhom

many of them

nofs il-ħobż

half the bread

48. Fractional determiners

Maltese English

nofs half

kwart quarter

terz third

żewġ terzi two thirds

tliet kwarti three quarters

parti part

nofs ta' half of

kwart ta' quarter of

Examples:

nofs il-kejk

half the cake

żewġ terzi tal-popolazzjoni

two thirds of the population

49. Approximate quantity

Maltese English

madwar about / approximately

kważi almost

xi some/about

madwar għaxar about ten

bejn wieħed u ieħor approximately

Examples:

madwar għaxar persuni

about ten people

xi għaxar persuni

some/about ten people

50. Classifier-like expressions

Maltese does not have a classifier system comparable to Mandarin, but certain measure/count expressions occur with nouns.

Maltese English

biċċa piece

tazza cup

flixkun bottle

par pair

grupp group

numru number

għadd number/quantity

ħafna a lot

ftit a little/few

Examples:

biċċa ħobż

a piece of bread

flixkun ilma

a bottle of water

par żraben

a pair of shoes

51. Determiner word order

Definite article

Article + noun

il-ktieb

the book

Demonstrative + definite article + noun

dan il-ktieb

this book

dik id-dar

that house

Possessive

il-ktieb tiegħi

my book

Quantifier + noun

ħafna kotba

many books

ftit ilma

little water

Numeral + noun

żewġ kotba

two books

tliet persuni

three people

Universal

kull student

every student

Negative

ebda problema

no problem

13- IF CONDITIONAL

Zero jekk + present, present Jekk tiekol, tixba'

First jekk + present, se + verb Jekk tiġi, se mmur

Second kieku + past, kont + imperfect Kieku kelli flus, kont nixtri

Third kieku + past perfect, kont + past Kieku kont naf, kont ngħid

Mixed kieku + past, kont inkun Kieku studjajt, kont inkun tabib

Jien kont nikteb I would write

Inti kont tikteb you would write

Hu kien jikteb he would write

Hi kienet tikteb she would write

Aħna konna niktbu we would write

Intom kontu tiktbu you would write

Huma kienu jiktbu they would write

Jien kont qed nikteb I would be writing

Inti kont qed tikteb you would be writing

Hu kien qed jikteb he would be writing

Hi kienet qed tikteb she would be writing

Aħna konna qed niktbu we would be writing

Intom kontu qed tiktbu you would be writing

Huma kienu qed jiktbu they would be writing

Jien kont ktibt I would have written

Inti kont ktibt you would have written

Hu kien kiteb he would have written

Hi kienet kitbet she would have written

Aħna konna ktibna we would have written

Intom kontu ktibtu you would have written

Huma kienu kitbu they would have written

Jien kont inkun qed nikteb I would have been writing

Inti kont tkun qed tikteb you would have been writing

Hu kien ikun qed jikteb he would have been writing

Hi kienet tkun qed tikteb she would have been writing

Aħna konna nkunu qed niktbu we would have been writing

Intom kontu tkunu qed tiktbu you would have been writing

Huma kienu jkunu qed jiktbu they would have been writing

would have done by a certain time:

Jien kont inkun ktibt I would have written

Inti kont tkun ktibt you would have written

Hu kien ikun kiteb he would have written

Hi kienet tkun kitbet she would have written

Aħna konna nkunu ktibna we would have written

Huma kienu jkunu kitbu they would have written

I would be kont inkun

you would be kont tkun

he would be kien ikun

she would be kienet tkun

we would be konna nkunu

they would be kienu jkunu

Jien ma kontx nikteb I would not write

Inti ma kontx tikteb You would not write

Hu ma kienx jikteb He would not write

Hi ma kinitx tikteb She would not write

Aħna ma konniex niktbu We would not write

Intom ma kontux tiktbu You would not write

Huma ma kinux jiktbu They would not write

Jien ma kontx qed nikteb I would not be writing

Inti ma kontx qed tikteb You would not be writing

Hu ma kienx qed jikteb He would not be writing

Hi ma kinitx qed tikteb She would not be writing

Aħna ma konniex qed niktbu We would not be writing

Intom ma kontux qed tiktbu You would not be writing

Huma ma kinux qed jiktbu They would not be writing

Jien ma kontx ktibt I would not have written

Inti ma kontx ktibt You would not have written

Hu ma kienx kiteb He would not have written

Hi ma kinitx kitbet She would not have written

Aħna ma konniex ktibna We would not have written

Intom ma kontux ktibtu You would not have written

Huma ma kinux kitbu They would not have written

Jien ma kontx inkun qed nikteb I would not have been writing

Inti ma kontx tkun qed tikteb You would not have been writing

Hu ma kienx ikun qed jikteb He would not have been writing

Hi ma kinitx tkun qed tikteb She would not have been writing

Aħna ma konniex inkunu qed niktbu We would not have been writing

Intom ma kontux tkunu qed tiktbu You would not have been writing

Huma ma kinux ikunu qed jiktbu They would not have been writing

would have done by a certain time:

Jien ma kontx inkun ktibt I would not have written

Inti ma kontx tkun ktibt You would not have written

Hu ma kienx ikun kiteb He would not have written

Hi ma kinitx tkun kitbet She would not have written

Aħna ma konniex nkunu ktibna We would not have written

Huma ma kinux ikunu kitbu They would not have written

I would not be ma kontx inkun

You would not be ma kontx tkun

He would not be ma kienx ikun

She would not be ma kinitx tkun

We would not be ma konniex inkunu

They would not be ma kinux ikunu

Jien kont inkun miktub I would be written

Inti kont tkun miktub You would be written

Hu kien ikun miktub He would be written

Hi kienet tkun miktuba She would be written

Aħna konna nkunu miktubin We would be written

Intom kontu tkunu miktubin You would be written

Huma kienu jkunu miktubin They would be written

Jien kont inkun qed niġi miktub I would be being written

Inti kont tkun qed tiġi miktub You would be being written

Hu kien ikun qed jiġi miktub He would be being written

Hi kienet tkun qed tiġi miktuba She would be being written

Aħna konna nkunu qed niġu miktubin We would be being written

Intom kontu tkunu qed tiġu miktubin You would be being written

Huma kienu jkunu qed jiġu miktubin They would be being written

Jien kont inkun ġejt miktub I would have been written

Inti kont tkun ġejt miktub You would have been written

Hu kien ikun ġie miktub He would have been written

Hi kienet tkun ġiet miktuba She would have been written

Aħna konna nkunu ġejna miktubin We would have been written

Intom kontu tkunu ġejtu miktubin You would have been written

Huma kienu jkunu ġew miktubin They would have been written

Jien kont inkun qed niġi miktub I would have been being written

Inti kont tkun qed tiġi miktub You would have been being written

Hu kien ikun qed jiġi miktub He would have been being written

Hi kienet tkun qed tiġi miktuba She would have been being written

Aħna konna nkunu qed niġu miktubin We would have been being written

Huma kienu jkunu qed jiġu miktubin They would have been being written

I would be written kont inkun miktub

You would be written kont tkun miktub

He would be written kien ikun miktub

She would be written kienet tkun miktuba

We would be written konna nkunu miktubin

They would be written kienu jkunu miktubin

Jien ma kontx inkun miktub I would not be written

Inti ma kontx tkun miktub You would not be written

Hu ma kienx ikun miktub He would not be written

Hi ma kinitx tkun miktuba She would not be written

Aħna ma konniex nkunu miktubin We would not be written

Intom ma kontux tkunu miktubin You would not be written

Huma ma kinux ikunu miktubin They would not be written

Jien ma kontx inkun qed niġi miktub I would not be being written

Inti ma kontx tkun qed tiġi miktub You would not be being written

Hu ma kienx ikun qed jiġi miktub He would not be being written

Hi ma kinitx tkun qed tiġi miktuba She would not be being written

Aħna ma konniex nkunu qed niġu miktubin We would not be being written

Intom ma kontux tkunu qed tiġu miktubin You would not be being written

Huma ma kinux ikunu qed jiġu miktubin They would not be being written

Jien ma kontx inkun ġejt miktub I would not have been written

Inti ma kontx tkun ġejt miktub You would not have been written

Hu ma kienx ikun ġie miktub He would not have been written

Hi ma kinitx tkun ġiet miktuba She would not have been written

Aħna ma konniex nkunu ġejna miktubin We would not have been written

Intom ma kontux tkunu ġejtu miktubin You would not have been written

Huma ma kinux ikunu ġew miktubin They would not have been written

Jien ma kontx inkun qed niġi miktub I would not have been being written

Inti ma kontx tkun qed tiġi miktub You would not have been being written

Hu ma kienx ikun qed jiġi miktub He would not have been being written

Hi ma kinitx tkun qed tiġi miktuba She would not have been being written

Aħna ma konniex nkunu qed niġu miktubin We would not have been being written

Intom ma kontux tkunu qed tiġu miktubin You would not have been being written

Huma ma kinux ikunu qed jiġu miktubin They would not have been being written

jekk if normal condition

jekk ... mela if ... then cause and result

kieku if unreal/hypothetical condition

meta when time condition

meta jkun when it is / when it happens future/general

sakemm as long as / unless condition

sakemm ma unless negative condition

ħlief jekk unless / except if exception

jekk mhux if not negative condition

kieku mhux if it were not unreal negative

basta provided that / as long as

bil-kundizzjoni li on the condition that

f'każ li in case

jekk jiġri li if it happens that

anke jekk even if

anke meta even when

irrispettivament minn jekk regardless of whether

14- COMPARATIVE AND SUPERLATIVE

More aktar + adj. + minn aktar sabiħ minn more beautiful than

Less inqas + adj. + minn inqas sabiħ minn less beautiful than

Equal adj. + daqs sabiħ daqs as beautiful as

Not equal mhux daqs mhux daqs not as ... as

Most l-aktar + adj. l-aktar sabiħ most beautiful

Least l-inqas + adj. l-inqas sabiħ least beautiful

Much more ħafna aktar ħafna aktar sabiħ much more beautiful

Much less ħafna inqas ħafna inqas sabiħ much less beautiful

A little more ftit aktar ftit aktar sabiħ a little more beautiful

A little less ftit inqas ftit inqas sabiħ a little less beautiful

More quantity aktar + noun aktar kotba more books

Less quantity inqas + noun inqas kotba fewer books

More action aktar + verb jaħdem aktar works more

Less action inqas + verb jaħdem inqas works less

More and more aktar u aktar aktar u aktar diffiċli more and more difficult

Less and less inqas u inqas inqas u inqas importanti less and less important

He is taller Hu aktar għoli

He is the tallest Hu l-aktar għoli

She has more money Għandha aktar flus

She has the most money Għandha l-aktar flus

He works more Jaħdem aktar

He works the most Jaħdem l-aktar

This is better Dan huwa aħjar

This is the best Dan huwa l-aħjar

Ġwanni huwa akbar minni. John is older than me.

FORMATION:

akbar = bigger/older

minn = than

minni = than me

15- RELATIVE CLAUSES

who li / min

which li

that li

whose li + possessive

where fejn

when meta

whoever min

those who dawk li

Ir-raġel li jaħdem The man who works

Il-ktieb li qrajt The book that I read

Id-dar fejn noqgħod The house where I live

Il-jum meta wasalt The day when I arrived

We can make a relative clause by getting rid of the relative pronoun and putting the verb before the noun. HOWEVER, this works for object relative clauses and adjective relative clauses only.

Il-persuna magħrufa "The known person"

16- REPORTED SPEECH AND DIRECT SPEECH

Direct Speech: Subject + verb of saying + "exact words"

Reported Speech:

statement qal li + clause

told someone qal lil + person + li

yes/no question staqsa jekk + clause

information question staqsa + question word

command qal biex + verb

negative command qal biex ma + verb + x

request talab biex + verb

suggestion issuġġerixxa li + verb

17- INFINITIVES AND VERBAL NOUNS

to + verb li + imperfect verb

want to do irrid + imperfect

try to do nipprova + imperfect

begin to do beda + imperfect

in order to do biex + imperfect

doing (activity) verbal noun

before doing qabel ma + verb

after doing wara li + verb

without doing mingħajr ma + verb

being done qed jiġi + passive participle

I am happy seeing you Jien kuntent narak adjective + verb

FORMATION:

Jien I

kuntent happy (male)

kuntenta happy (female)

nara I see

-k you (object suffix)

I am happy to see you Jien kuntent li narak adjective + li-clause

FORMATION:

Jien I

kuntent happy

li that / to

nara I see

-k you

I plan to eat Nippjana li niekol verb + li + verb

FORMATION:

nippjana I plan

li to / that

niekol I eat

I plan eating Nippjana l-ikel verb + verbal noun

FORMATION:

nippjana I plan

l- the

ikel eating / food

I see him run Narah jiġri perception + object + verb

FORMATION:

Maltese Meaning

nara I see

-h him

narah I see him

jiġri he runs

I see him running Narah qed jiġri perception + object + continuous

FORMATION:

nara I see

-h him

qed currently / in the process of

jiġri he runs

I eat to play Niekol biex nilgħab purpose (biex)

FORMATION:

niekol I eat

biex to / in order to

nilgħab I play

I eat in order to play Niekol biex nilgħab purpose (biex)

FORMATION:

niekol I eat

biex in order to

nilgħab I play

18- SUBJUNCTIVE

irrid li I want that Irrid li tmur

nixtieq li I would like that Nixtieq li tiġi

nittama li I hope that Nittama li tirbaħ

nibża' li I fear that Nibża' li jaqa'

kuntent li happy that Kuntent li ġejt

importanti li important that Huwa importanti li titgħallem

meħtieġ li necessary that Meħtieġ li taħdem

biex so that Naħdem biex ngħix

jalla may Jalla tirnexxi

19- TAG QUESTIONS

You are happy, aren't you? Int kuntent, hux?

He is here, isn't he? Hu hawn, hux?

They came, didn't they? Ġew, hux?

She doesn't know, does she? Ma tafx, hux?

It is good, isn't it? Huwa tajjeb, hux?

Don't you work? Ma taħdimx?

Aren't you coming? Ma tiġix?

Didn't you go? Ma mortx?

Won't you come? Ma tiġix? / Ma se tiġix?

Can't you do it? Ma tistax tagħmlu?

Don't you want it? Ma tridx?

Don't you have it? M'għandekx?

Aren't you ready? M'intix lest?

20- MODAL WORDS

Maltese Transliteration English

nista' nista' I can

tista' tista' you can

jista' jista' he can

tista' tista' she can

nistgħu nistgħu we can

tistgħu tistgħu you can

jistgħu jistgħu they can

Formation

nista' / tista' / jista' + verb

Nista' naqra.

I can read.

Jista' jiġi.

He can come.

2. Negative ability — cannot / can't

Use ma ... x around the modal verb.

Maltese English

ma nistax I cannot

ma tistax you cannot

ma jistax he cannot

ma tistax she cannot

ma nistgħux we cannot

ma tistgħux you cannot

ma jistgħux they cannot

Example:

Ma nistax niġi.

I cannot come.

3. Possibility — may / might / can

Maltese commonly uses jista' and jista' jkun.

Maltese English

jista' may / can

tista' may / can

jista' jkun it may be / it might be

jista' jkun li it may be that

jista' jiġri it may happen

forsi maybe

forsi jista' perhaps can/may

Examples:

Jista' jiġi għada.

He may come tomorrow.

Jista' jkun li jiġi.

He might come.

Forsi jiġi.

Maybe he will come.

4. Probability — probably

Maltese English

probabbilment probably

aktarx probably / more likely

x'aktarx probably / most likely

wisq probabbli very likely

aktarx li probably

x'aktarx li most likely that

Example:

X'aktarx li jiġi għada.

He will probably come tomorrow.

5. Possibility — possibly

Maltese English

possibbilment possibly

possibilment possibly

jista' jkun it may be

jista' jkun li it may be that

possibbli possible

huwa possibbli it is possible

huwa possibbli li it is possible that

Example:

Huwa possibbli li jiġi.

It is possible that he will come.

6. Necessity — must / have to

The most important construction is:

jeħtieġ + infinitive/clause

għandu + infinitive

irid + infinitive

depending on the intended meaning.

Maltese English

jeħtieġ it is necessary / one needs to

jeħtieġ li it is necessary that

għandu has to / is supposed to

trid you must / have to

irid he must / has to

irridu we must / have to

tridu you must / have to

iridu they must / have to

Examples:

Jeħtieġ li mmorru.

We need to go.

Għandek tmur.

You have to go.

Irid imur.

He has to go.

7. Obligation — must / be obliged to

Maltese English

għandu has to / should

trid must / have to

irid must / has to

jeħtieġ must / need to

obbligat obliged

obbligata obliged

obbligati obliged

obbligatorju obligatory

obbligatorja obligatory

bilfors necessarily / inevitably / must

Example:

Trid tagħmel dan.

You must do this.

Huwa obbligat jagħmel dan.

He is obliged to do this.

8. għandu — should / ought to / have to

This is an especially useful Maltese modal construction.

Maltese English

għandi I should / have to

għandek you should / have to

għandu he should / has to

għandha she should / has to

għandna we should / have to

għandkom you should / have to

għandhom they should / have to

Formation:

għandi / għandek / għandu... + verb

Examples:

Għandi mmur.

I have to go.

Għandek tistudja.

You should study / You have to study.

9. Advice — should

Maltese English

għandu should

għandek you should

għandha she should

għandna we should

ikun aħjar li it would be better to

aħjar better / it is better

ikun tajjeb li it would be good to

jixraq li it is appropriate that

ta' min it is worth / one should

Examples:

Għandek tistrieħ.

You should rest.

Ikun aħjar li tmur.

It would be better for you to go.

Ta' min jipprova.

It is worth trying.

10. Prohibition — must not / may not

Maltese English

ma jistax cannot / may not

ma tistax cannot / may not

ma jistgħux cannot / may not

ma għandux must not / should not

ma għandhiex must not / should not

ipprojbit prohibited

ipprojbita prohibited

ipprojbit li prohibited to

m'għandux permess is not permitted

Examples:

Ma tistax tidħol.

You may not enter.

M'għandekx tagħmel dan.

You must not do this.

Huwa pprojbit li tpejjep.

Smoking is prohibited.

11. Permission — may / be allowed to

Maltese English

jista' may / can

tista' may / can

jistgħu may / can

permess permitted

permessa permitted

permess li permission to

għandu permess has permission

għandha permess has permission

għandu d-dritt has the right

għandha d-dritt has the right

Examples:

Tista' tidħol.

You may enter.

Għandek permess tidħol.

You have permission to enter.

12. No permission — may not / not allowed

Maltese English

ma jistax may not / cannot

ma tistax may not / cannot

m'għandux permess does not have permission

m'għandhiex permess does not have permission

mhux permess not permitted

mhuwiex permess it is not permitted

ipprojbit prohibited

13. Desire — want

The main verb is irid.

Maltese English

irrid I want

trid you want

irid he wants

trid she wants

irridu we want

tridu you want

iridu they want

Formation:

irrid/trid/irid... + verb

Example:

Irrid immur.

I want to go.

14. Negative desire — don't want

Maltese English

ma rridx I don't want

ma tridx you don't want

ma jridx he doesn't want

ma tridx she doesn't want

ma rridux we don't want

ma tridux you don't want

ma jridux they don't want

Example:

Ma rridx immur.

I don't want to go.

15. Would like

Maltese commonly uses nixtieq.

Maltese English

nixtieq I would like

tixtieq you would like

jixtieq he would like

tixtieq she would like

nixtiequ we would like

tixtiequ you would like

jixtiequ they would like

Example:

Nixtieq immur Malta.

I would like to go to Malta.

16. Wish — wish / desire

Maltese English

nixtieq I would like / wish

jixtieq he wishes

tixtieq she wishes

nixtieq li I wish that

nixtieq kieku I wish / if only

nixtieq li kieku I wish that

Example:

Nixtieq li kollox imur tajjeb.

I wish that everything goes well.

17. Willingness

Maltese English

lest ready / willing

lesta ready / willing

lesti ready / willing

lest li ready/willing to

lest jagħmel willing to do

għandu r-rieda li is willing to

irid wants/is willing to

Example:

Jien lest ngħinek.

I am willing/ready to help you.

18. Intention — intend to

Maltese English

bi ħsieb intending

bi ħsiebi I intend

bi ħsiebu he intends

bi ħsiebha she intends

għandi l-ħsieb li I intend to

għandu l-ħsieb li he intends to

beħsiebni I intend / am planning to

Example:

Għandi l-ħsieb li mmur għada.

I intend to go tomorrow.

19. Plan to

Maltese English

nippjana li I plan to

tippjana li you plan to

jippjana li he plans to

tippjana li she plans to

nippjanaw li we plan to

jippjanaw li they plan to

Example:

Nippjana li nivvjaġġa.

I plan to travel.

20. Future — will

Maltese does not have a direct English-style modal verb will. Future meaning is normally expressed by the future verb forms.

Examples:

Se mmur.

I will go.

Se jiġi.

He will come.

Se nagħmlu dan.

We will do this.

se is therefore important for future modality, although it is more accurately treated as a future particle/marker, not a modal verb.

21. Conditional — would

Maltese uses the conditional form of the verb.

A common marker is:

kien / kienet / kienu + ...

and conditional constructions can also use kieku.

Maltese English

kieku if / would that

kieku kont if I were / if I had been

kieku kelli if I had

kieku stajt if I could

kien jagħmel he would do

kienet tagħmel she would do

Example:

Kieku kelli l-ħin, kont immur.

If I had the time, I would go.

22. kieku — if / if only / would

kieku is extremely important in counterfactual modality.

Kieku kont naf.

If I had known.

Kieku nista'.

If only I could.

Kieku kellek il-ħin, kont tiġi.

If you had the time, you would come.

23. Could

Maltese English

seta' could / was able to

stajt I could

stajt you could

seta' he could

setgħet she could

stajna we could

stajtu you could

setgħu they could

Examples:

Stajt immur.

I could go / I was able to go.

Seta' jiġi.

He could come.

24. Could — hypothetical

For hypothetical could, Maltese can use conditional structures:

kieku stajt...

Kieku stajt, kont ngħinek.

If I could, I would help you.

25. Might

Maltese English

jista' jkun might

jista' jkun li might be that

forsi maybe

forsi jista' might possibly

possibilment possibly

possibbilment possibly

x'aktarx likely / probably

Example:

Jista' jkun li jiġi.

He might come.

26. Must — strong necessity

Maltese English

irid must / has to

trid must / have to

irrid must / have to

jeħtieġ must / need to

bilfors necessarily / must

obbligat obliged

obbligatorju obligatory

Example:

Trid tmur issa.

You must go now.

27. Must — strong inference

Maltese can also express strong inference through:

Maltese English

żgur surely

żgur li surely / certainly

bilfors necessarily

għandu jkun must be

trid tkun must be

x'aktarx probably

Example:

Għandu jkun id-dar.

He must be at home.

28. Need

Maltese English

jeħtieġ need / require

għandu bżonn needs

għandi bżonn I need

għandek bżonn you need

għandu bżonn he needs

għandha bżonn she needs

għandna bżonn we need

għandhom bżonn they need

Example:

Għandi bżonn immur.

I need to go.

29. Need not / don't have to

Maltese English

m'għandux għalfejn doesn't have to

m'għandhiex għalfejn doesn't have to

m'għandekx għalfejn you don't have to

m'għandix għalfejn I don't have to

m'għandniex għalfejn we don't have to

mhux meħtieġ it is not necessary

m'hemmx bżonn there is no need

Example:

M'għandekx għalfejn tiġi.

You don't have to come.

M'hemmx bżonn tmur.

There is no need to go.

30. Dare

Maltese can express dare with azzarda.

Maltese English

nazzarda I dare

tazzarda you dare

jazzarda he dares

tazzarda she dares

nazzardaw we dare

jissugraw they risk/dare

Example:

Ma nazzardax nagħmel dan.

I don't dare to do this.

31. Be able to

Maltese English

jista' can / is able to

kapaċi capable / able

kapaċi jagħmel able to do

għandu l-kapaċità li has the ability to

Example:

Huwa kapaċi jagħmel dan.

He is able to do this.

32. Capability

Maltese English

kapaċi capable

kapaċità ability/capacity

għandu l-kapaċità li has the ability to

għandu l-ħila li has the ability to

għandu l-ħila is capable

Example:

Għandu l-ħila jitkellem b'ħeffa.

He is able to speak quickly.

33. Probability and certainty

Maltese English

żgur surely / certainly

żgur li certainly

ċert certain

ċerta certain

ċertament certainly

bla dubju without doubt

bla dubju ta' xejn without any doubt

żgurament surely

ovvjament obviously

evidentement evidently

naturalment naturally / of course

naturalment li naturally

bla dubju undoubtedly

żgur definitely

Examples:

Żgur li jiġi.

He will surely come.

Bla dubju, dan huwa minnu.

Without doubt, this is true.

34. Uncertainty

Maltese English

forsi maybe

possibilment possibly

possibbilment possibly

forsi le perhaps not

mhux ċert not certain

ma nafx jekk I don't know whether

jista' jkun it may be

jista' jkun li it might be that

x'aktarx probably

35. Evidential / inferential modality

These indicate how certain the speaker is or how the information was inferred.

Maltese English

jidher it seems / appears

jidher li it seems that

jidher ċar li it clearly appears that

milli jidher apparently

milli jidher, apparently

skont ma jidher apparently

jidher li it appears that

jidher probabbli it seems probable

Example:

Milli jidher, mhux se jiġi.

Apparently, he isn't going to come.

36. Apparently

milli jidher is especially useful:

Milli jidher, kollox sejjer tajjeb.

Apparently, everything is going well.

37. Obviously

Maltese English

ovvjament obviously

b'mod ovvju obviously

jidher ċar it is clear / obviously

Example:

Ovvjament, għandna nistennew.

Obviously, we should wait.

38. Certainly / definitely

Maltese English

żgur surely

żgur li certainly

ċertament certainly

bla dubju undoubtedly

definittivament definitely

assolutament absolutely

bla dubju ta' xejn without any doubt

39. Hopefully

Maltese English

nisperaw li hopefully / we hope that

nittamaw li we hope that

bit-tama li with the hope that

nispera li I hope that

nittama li I hope that

Example:

Nispera li jiġi.

I hope he comes.

40. Regret / unreal possibility

Maltese English

kieku if only

kieku ma if only not

sfortunatament unfortunately

ħasra li unfortunately / it's a pity that

kieku stajt if only I could

kieku kelli if only I had

Example:

Kieku stajt ngħinek!

If only I could help you!

41. Habitual modality

These express habitual ability or tendency.

Maltese English

soltu usually

normalment normally

għandu t-tendenza li tends to

għandu drawwa li has a habit of

mdorri accustomed

imdorri accustomed

mdorrijin accustomed/plural

Example:

Soltu jqum kmieni.

He usually gets up early.

Għandu t-tendenza li jitkellem ħafna.

He tends to talk a lot.

42. Tendency

Maltese English

għandu t-tendenza li tends to

għandha t-tendenza li tends to

għandu drawwa li has a habit of

għandu ħabta li tends to / has a habit of

43. Obligation from circumstances

Maltese English

bilfors necessarily / inevitably

ikollu bżonn has to need

għandu bżonn needs to

jeħtieġ needs to

irid has to

Example:

Bilfors irridu mmorru.

We necessarily have to go.

44. Volition

Maltese English

irid wants

irrid I want

trid you want

iridu they want

jixtieq wishes/would like

nixtieq I would like

lesta willing/ready

lest willing/ready

45. Modal adverbs

These are not modal verbs, but they are extremely important modal words.

Maltese Transliteration English

forsi forsi perhaps / maybe

aktarx aktarx probably

x'aktarx x'aktarx most likely

probabbilment probabbilment probably

possibilment possibilment possibly

possibbilment possibbilment possibly

żgur żgur surely

ċertament ċertament certainly

ovvjament ovvjament obviously

evidentement evidentement evidently

naturalment naturalment naturally / of course

definittivament definittivament definitely

assolutament assolutament absolutely

apparentement apparentement apparently

milli jidher milli jidher apparently

sfortunatament sfortunatament unfortunately

fortunatament fortunatament fortunately

nisperaw nisperaw hopefully

forsi le forsi le perhaps not

kważi kważi almost

bilfors bilfors necessarily

biss biss only

żgurament żgurament surely

21- THERE IS / HAVE / BE

There is hemm

There are hemm

There isn't m'hemmx

There aren't m'hemmx

Is there? Hemm...?

Are there? Hemm...?

There was kien hemm

There were kien hemm

There wasn't ma kienx hemm

There will be se jkun hemm

There would be ikun hemm / kien ikun hemm

There may be jista' jkun hemm

There must be għandu jkun hemm

Hemm ktieb. There is a book.

jien għandi I have

inti għandek you have

hu għandu he has

hi għandha she has

aħna għandna we have

intom għandkom you have

huma għandhom they have

I have għandi

you have għandek

he has għandu

she has għandha

we have għandna

they have għandhom

I don't have m'għandix

I had kelli

I will have se jkolli

I have to go għandi mmur

IMPERATIVES:

command (you) Mur! Go!

command (plural) Morru! Go!

let's Ħa mmorru Let's go

let me Ħallini mmur Let me go

don't Tmurx! Don't go

please jekk jogħġbok please

be Kun! Be!

don't be Tkunx! Don't be

Let it be done ħalli + passive verb

Let it be written ħalli jkun miktub

It must be done għandu jkun + passive participle

Be prepared kun ippreparat

Don't let it be done tħallix li + passive