MATSEC IM Maltese flashcards

32 cards. Read the term and the definition here. The deck at the top of this page is optional.

Letter q in Maltese

Q is a glottal stop [ʔ], produced by blocking the throat, not the English k sound. It distinguishes qalb ('heart') from kalb ('dog').

Maltese letter x

X is pronounced [ʃ], like English 'sh' in 'ship': xemx ('sun'), xahar ('month'), ix-xitwa ('winter'). It never sounds like ks.

Maltese letters ż and z

Ż is the voiced [z] of 'zebra' (żmien, 'time'), while z is the voiceless affricate [ts] (ziju, 'uncle'). Swapping them changes the word.

Sun letters and the article

The article l- assimilates before ċ, d, n, r, s, t, x, z and ż: ix-xemx, id-dar, in-nar, ir-ras, is-sena, it-triq, iż-żmien.

Silent għ and h

Għ and h carry no consonant sound in standard Maltese; they lengthen or colour the neighbouring vowel, so words like għandi, għax and għada are recognised from context.

Repair phrases in spoken Maltese

Fillers that buy time and paraphrase: 'Jiġifieri…' ('that is'), 'Ejja ngħidu…' ('let's say'), 'Mela…' ('so'), 'Kif ngħidha…' ('how shall I put it').

Telling the time in Maltese

Use is-siegħa for the hour: it-tlieta u nofs (3:30), it-tlieta u kwart (3:15), it-tlieta neqqes kwart (2:45); neqqes literally means 'minus'.

Informal and polite address

Int addresses one person informally; intom serves as plural and as polite singular. Titles precede the surname: Sur (Mr), Sinjura (Mrs), Sinjorina (Miss).

Negation with ma … -x

Verbs take ma before and -x after: ma ktibtx ('I did not write'), ma jmorrux ('they do not go'). Nouns, adjectives and pronouns instead use mhux or mhijiex.

Maltese perfect conjugation

Suffixes mark completed actions: ktibt, ktibt, kiteb, kitbet, ktibna, ktibtu, kitbu ('I wrote … they wrote'). It covers both the past simple and the present perfect.

Maltese imperfect conjugation

Prefixes plus suffixes mark unfinished action: nikteb, tikteb, jikteb, tikteb, niktbu, tiktebu, jiktbu. Alone it is present or habitual; after se it becomes future.

Future with se and ħa

Se plus the imperfect forms the ordinary future (se nikteb, 'I will write'). Ħa plus the imperfect marks an imminent or intended action (ħa jikteb, 'he is about to write').

Object pronoun suffixes

Verbs take enclitic object pronouns: -ni, -ek/-ok, -u, -ha, -na, -kom, -hom. Rajtni ('you saw me'), rajtuh ('you saw him'), rajthom ('you saw them').

Possessive suffixes on nouns

Ownership is suffixed to the noun: ktiebi, ktiebek, ktiebu, ktiebha, ktiebna, ktiebkom, ktiebhom. Feminine nouns insert -t- first: kelma → kelmti ('my word').

Relative particle li

Li is invariable and introduces relative clauses; a resumptive pronoun keeps the link to the head noun: ir-raġel li rajt-u ('the man whom I saw').

Comparative and superlative in Maltese

Short adjectives use the pattern -aħar/-ħar: kbir → ikbar, żgħir → iżgħar, tajjeb → aħjar. The superlative adds the article (l-ikbar); longer adjectives use aktar … minn.

Numbers three to ten

Numbers 3–10 take a singular counted noun: tliet kotba ('three books'), ħames snin ('five years'). Pairs use the dual -ejn: jumejn, sentejn, ġimagħtejn.

Cohesive device: għalhekk

Għalhekk means 'therefore, so'. It introduces a result or consequence, linking a cause stated in one sentence to its outcome in the next.

Cohesive device: madankollu

Madankollu means 'however, nevertheless'. It opens a sentence that contrasts with or qualifies the previous claim, and is common in argumentative compositions.

Maltese formal letter frames

Open with 'Għażiż Sur [surname],' or 'Sinjura [surname],'; close with 'Dejjem tiegħek,' and your name. Avoid contractions, slang and informal int where intom is expected.

Narrative opener: Darba waħda

'Darba waħda' ('once upon a time') opens traditional Maltese narratives. The perfett carries the plot forward, while imperfect forms set scenes and background.

False friend: attwalment

Attwalment means 'at present, currently', not 'actually'. For 'actually' Maltese uses fil-fatt or tabilħaqq, which introduce a correction or a surprising fact.

Rules for writing a summary

Keep only the main points, restate them in your own words, stay in the third person, and omit examples, repetition and personal opinion. Do not copy whole sentences from the passage.

Composition marking criteria

Examiners weigh task coverage and relevance, paragraphing and cohesion, range of vocabulary and structures, and accuracy of grammar, spelling and punctuation. Register must suit the text type.

Argumentative composition structure

State a clear thesis in the introduction, develop one argument per paragraph with evidence, refute a counter-argument, and close by restating the position without adding new material.

Dun Karm Psaila

Malta's national poet (1871–1961), a priest who wrote the anthem's lyrics and the long philosophical poem Il-Jien u Lil hinn Minnu, shaping modern Maltese poetry.

L-Innu Malti

Malta's national anthem, with lyrics by Dun Karm Psaila and music by Robert Samut; it was adopted officially when Malta became independent in 1964.

Status of Maltese

Maltese is a Semitic language written in the Latin alphabet and an official language of Malta alongside English; since 2004 it has been an official EU language, the only Semitic one.

Akkademja tal-Malti

Founded in 1921 as the Għaqda tal-Kittieba tal-Malti, it issued the 1924 orthography rules (Tagħrif fuq il-Kitba Maltija) that standardised written Maltese.

Kunsill Nazzjonali tal-Ilsien Malti

A statutory body set up in 2005 to regulate and promote Maltese, advise on terminology and orthography, and oversee the language's use in education and the media.

L-għana

Maltese folk singing in which a singer delivers rhymed quatrains, often improvised, to guitar accompaniment; variants include il-parlant and l-għana tas-sitta.

Literary term: tixbiha

A simile: an explicit comparison introduced by bħal ('like') or daqs ('as … as'). It differs from the metafora, which states the comparison without such markers.