Lebanese Brevet - Certificat d'Études Moyennes (الشهادة المتوسطة) key terms

The system of endings placed on the last letter of Arabic words to show grammatical function, such as subject, object or genitive for nouns, and indicative or subjunctive for verbs. Parsing exercises ask candidates to state each ending and its justification.

A figure of speech that compares two things sharing a quality by means of a linking word such as كـ, كأن or مثل. Candidates identify its four parts: the compared thing, the thing compared to, the shared quality and the linking word.

A text written to persuade the reader to accept a viewpoint, built from a thesis, ordered arguments, supporting evidence and sometimes an objection followed by a refutation. Questions ask candidates to find the writer's position and the strategies used to defend it.

The glottal stop written inside a word, whose seat (ا, و or ي) depends on the strength of the surrounding vowels and on the vowel marks. Spelling tasks require candidates to write it correctly and to justify the chosen seat.

The central idea that the whole text carries, expressible in one short sentence that is neither the title nor a copy of a single line. Comprehension questions ask candidates to state it and to support it with evidence from the passage.

Rewriting a text in far fewer words while preserving its main ideas and their order, using one's own wording and adding no personal opinion or example. The exercise shows whether a candidate has really understood the passage.

A verb form in which the doer is left unnamed, so the first vowel changes, as كَتَبَ becomes كُتِبَ, and the subject becomes the thing acted upon. Transformation drills also require adjusting the ending and any following complement.

An equation where the unknown appears only to the first power, such as 3x − 5 = 7. Solving means isolating the unknown by applying the same operation to both sides; word problems often end in such an equation.

In a triangle, a line parallel to one side cuts the other two sides into segments whose lengths are proportional. Candidates use it to compute an unknown length or, in reverse, to prove that two lines are parallel.

In a right-angled triangle, the square of the hypotenuse equals the sum of the squares of the two other sides. It computes a missing side, and its converse proves that a triangle has a right angle.

The cosine, sine and tangent of an acute angle in a right-angled triangle, defined as ratios between adjacent side, opposite side and hypotenuse. They let candidates find lengths and angles, using a calculator or a table of values.

The largest whole number that divides two or more given numbers exactly, found by listing divisors or by repeated division. It is used to simplify a fraction to its irreducible form and to share quantities equally.

A number between zero and one that measures how likely an event is, calculated as favourable outcomes divided by all equally likely outcomes. Exercises use dice, coins, cards and coloured balls, and often ask for the complementary event too.

The sum of all values in a series divided by how many values there are. It summarises the series with one number but is pulled up or down by extreme values, which is why it is compared with the median.

Words such as however, therefore, moreover or on the other hand that make the logical link between two ideas explicit. Recognising them helps candidates follow an argument, and using them earns marks in written production.

A sentence pattern in which the object of the action becomes the subject, as in the book was written by a student. Candidates transform active sentences, keep the original tense and decide whether the agent should be mentioned.

Pairs of words that look alike in two languages but carry different meanings, for example French librairie, a bookshop, and English library. Candidates must avoid translating them literally when reading or writing.

A tense built with have or has plus the past participle that links a past action to the present, used for experience, recent news and unfinished periods. Candidates contrast it with the simple past, especially after since, for, ever and never.

Short words such as in, on and at that locate an event in time, following patterns like in July, on Monday, at six o'clock. Exercises ask candidates to choose the right one and to correct the wrong one.

Words such as who, what, where, when, why and how that open an information question and indicate the kind of answer expected. Candidates choose the correct one and build the question with the proper word order.

The arrangement by which France governed Lebanon and Syria from 1920 to 1943 under a mandate entrusted by the League of Nations, shaping borders, administration and institutions. Lebanese history questions connect it to the creation of Greater Lebanon.

The 1989 agreement concluded by Lebanese deputies in Taif, Saudi Arabia, which ended the civil war and redistributed powers among the president, the council of ministers and parliament, while providing for Syrian withdrawal.

An unwritten 1943 understanding between Lebanon's first president and prime minister that shared the main offices among religious communities, declared the country Arab in identity while keeping it open to the West.

The state branch that debates, amends and votes laws, embodied in Lebanon by the Chamber of Deputies elected by citizens. Civics questions cover its composition, its term, its speaker, and its relationship with the executive.

The average number of inhabitants per square kilometre, obtained by dividing a population by the area it occupies. Comparing regions shows sharp contrasts between dense coastal cities and lightly settled mountain districts.

A climate with hot dry summers and mild rainy winters, typical of the eastern Mediterranean coast. Climate graphs are read to describe rainfall totals, temperature ranges, dry seasons and the vegetation these conditions support.

Development that satisfies present needs without destroying the resources future generations will need, balancing economic, social and environmental goals. It frames debates on water, waste, transport, energy and protected areas in Lebanon.

Cell division that produces two daughter cells with the same chromosome number as the parent cell, used for growth and repair. Candidates describe its stages and contrast it with meiosis, which halves the chromosome number.

The transmission of traits determined by genes existing in pairs of alleles, one inherited from each parent, where a dominant allele masks a recessive one. Punnett squares predict the proportions of genotypes and phenotypes among the offspring.

The body's coordinated defences that recognise and eliminate pathogens, combining physical barriers, white blood cells and antibodies. The topic is linked to vaccination, to AIDS and to the difference between specific and non-specific responses.

The process by which green plants capture light energy to turn water and carbon dioxide into glucose, releasing oxygen in chloroplasts. It is compared with cellular respiration and connected to food chains and the carbon cycle.

The relation U = R × I linking voltage, resistance and current in a resistor kept at constant temperature. Candidates calculate the missing quantity, check units, and interpret the straight line obtained when voltage is plotted against current.

Two ways of connecting a circuit. In series the components form one loop and share the voltage; in parallel they form branches and share the current. Candidates compare resistance and what happens when one lamp fails.

A table arranging elements by increasing atomic number, in which columns group atoms with the same number of outer electrons and therefore similar chemical behaviour. Candidates locate metals, non-metals and noble gases and read an element's symbol and atomic number.

Substances that release hydrogen ions or capture them in water, distinguished by pH: below seven for acids, above for bases, seven for neutral solutions. Candidates use indicators and write simple neutralisation equations.

Kinetic energy belongs to a moving body and grows with its mass and the square of its speed; potential energy is stored by height or deformation. Candidates compute both and follow their conversion in a fall or a swing.