Your heart’s beating fast, your mind is spinning. Mama told you “leiltak soda” and you just know you’re in trouble. Like every culture around the world, there are certain things that distinguish it from others. For example, the Indian culture is known for the importance of their spiritual identity, or the Germans, who are usually known for their need for order and expectation of promptness. Well, when it comes to Egyptians, there are many little twerks that make us who we are. One of them is the fear vs. love dynamic we have with our parents, one only an Egyptian child can relate to. For the sake of bringing the old days back, we have gathered for you 14 subtly frightening phrases solely an Egyptian parent would say to their child when sh*ts about to go way, way, down!
7essebak ma3eya ba3dein
“I have a score to settle with you later,” figuratively meaning “we will deal with this later,” usually indicates that you have pissed off your mum or dad, and you have to wait for that scary near future in which this “score” will indeed be dealt with. And all you can do is wait.
Etla3y ottek
This one means way more than just “go up to your room.” When we hear this, we are usually certain that we’re in deep trouble, but our parents just don’t have the patience to handle it now.
Lama abook yeegi
This one’s hilarious, because even though it lies in absurd, baseless logic, “wait until your dad arrives” usually means that the problem you’ve caused as a kid is so big that the “big boss” will have to take over it. When we hear this, we know for sure that we’re in some deep sh*t.
Ha2omlak
“I will get up for you” is pretty given. Once they threaten to get off their seats, you know you’ve tested their patience.
Esteb7y w oly ya sobh
“Get up and say good morning,” in other words, greet the day before the drama hits you. And, as it happens, there will be drama.
Eskoti dilwa2ty
“Shut up for now” is usually said in a gathering setting, and that drama will unveil itself once the guests leave. By this point, you know you’ve said or done something wrong.
Lama nerawa7
This one’s of the same concept. “Wait till we get home” also means we’ve screwed up, and no, we will not be able to wait to see just how much we did.
3andena beit y lemena
This one is so common, and only a true Egyptian would get it. “We have a house to put us in place” is usually said when a parent wants to emphasize to their kid that they have forgotten their roots, and “mesh matrebeyeen (you haven’t been disciplined).” And surely, we are later reminded of that very “tarbeya (discipline).”
Ana hawareek ma3na el tarbeya
“Ana hawareek (I’ll show you),” is scary enough on its own. This later “thing” we will “see” is a fearful uncertainty we just can’t tolerate. Again, our parents usually feel offended by a certain behavior, and feel the need to remind us of what a proper upbringing should look like.
Leiltek/wa23etak soda
Leletna soda fe3lan every time this is said. Meaning your night is full of darkness, we usually know we’ve caused a problem dark enough.
Estany 3aleya bas lama el nas temshy
Even reading this on its own will re-elicit skipped heart beats. When those people leave, you just know that things are going to spiral from here on then.
El kalam kheles
El kalam may be done, but it’s just for now. Later on it will open itself up again, and you won’t be the one doing the talking.
Ana ha3raf atsaraf ma3eki ezay
Yes, they do know how. But no, we don’t want to know. “I know exactly how to deal with you” is not something every child wants to hear. But we all have, and we’ve all gotten used to it, even though it will scare us each and every time.
Hattayen 3eshtek
“I will stain your life” is another absurdly hilarious Egyptian expression that really, just really, means we have gotten ourselves into deep sh*t. Even though we are frightened to death each and every time we hear expressions like these, we just know that what makes the love aspect of the relationship exist, is that nourishing fear that comes with it.