Book excerpt: Colloquial Arabic of Egypt provides a step-by-step course in spoken Egyptian Arabic – the most widely understood dialect in the Arab world. Combining a user-friendly approach with a thorough treatment of the language, it equips learners with the essential skills needed to communicate confidently and effectively in Egyptian Arabic in a broad range of situations. No prior knowledge of the language is required. Key features include: Arabic in romanization form throughout, with optional Arabic script supplements emphasis on modern conversational language with clear pronunciation guidance progressive introduction to the Arabic alphabet to aid familiarity with simple labels and signs grammar section and bilingual glossaries for easy reference stimulating exercises with lively illustrations new e-resources at www.routledge.com/cw/colloquialsoffering supplementary materials for teachers and learners, including extra activities (and answers), vocabulary lists and cultural information, ideas for group activities linked to each unit in the course, listing of the complete Arabic alphabet, notes comparing Egyptian and Standard Arabic and downloadable additional audio tracks. Balanced, comprehensive and rewarding, this new and revised edition of Colloquial Arabic of Egypt offers an indispensable resource both for independent learners and for students taking courses in Egyptian Arabic. By the end of this course, you will be at Level B1 of the Common European Framework for Languages and at the Intermediate-Mid on the ACTFL proficiency scales. Audio material to accompany the course is available to download free in MP3 format from www.routledge.com/cw/colloquials. Recorded by native speakers, the audio material features the dialogues and texts from the book and will help develop your listening and pronunciation skills.