Archive for May, 2007

30
May

Word 70 – mjli

   Posted by: SimplyMoroccan   in Adjectives, Darija Vocabulary

Mjli ???? is an adjective that means lost. Another synonym of it in Darija is mwddr ?????.

Mjli / Mwddr : Masculine singular.
Mjliyya / Mwddra : Feminine singular.
Mjliyyin / Mwddrin : Masculine plural.
Mjliyyât / Mwddrât : Feminine plural (although not frequently used).


Today’s word is dedicated to this little girl’s family, who are looking for her in
Morocco or North Africa. There is a blog about Madeleine here (All links about her are to be found in the first there), and other details about her story here.

This girl is missing since May 3rd, from Portugal, and is believed to be seen in Marrakech. Anyone who has any information about the little Madeleine is requested to contact her family.

Madeleine has a distinctive sign in her right eye: the pupil runs into the blue-green iris.

Help spread the word about Madeleine!

29
May

Word 69 – 7îT

   Posted by: SimplyMoroccan   in Darija Vocabulary, Misc

7îT ??? is a wall, it’s a simplified version of the classical Arabic word 7â2iT ????.

7îT: Undefined masculine singular.
l7îT: Defined masculine singular.
7yôT: Undefined masculine plural.
l7yôT: Defined masculine plural.

Here is a very well known tongue twister in the Arabic world:

??? ???? ??? ??? ????

You read it:
KhîT 7arîr 3alâ 7îT Khalîl.

And it’s translated as:
A silk fiber on Khalîl’s wall. (Khalil is a masculine name)

Try to repeat that as fast as possible, and let me know how it goes.

27
May

Word 68 – mshghôl

   Posted by: SimplyMoroccan   in Adjectives, Darija Vocabulary

Mshghôl ????? means busy. It’s the same word used in classical Arabic, with the vowel difference: mashghôl ?????.

The feminine form of mshghôl is mshghôla, and the plural is mshghôlîn.

Small conversation:

In Darija:

Omar: Wa finek? Sh7âl wana kan3yyT lik.
Samir: sm7 liyya, ma sm3tsh ttilifôn.
Omar: mlli ma jawbtish 3rftk mshghôl.
Samir: Ah, kant 3ndi khdma ktira khassni nkmmlha.

In English:

Omar: Where are you? I have been calling you for long.
Samir: I am sorry, I didn’t hear the phone.
Omar: When you didn’t reply, I knew you were busy.
Samir: Yes, I had loads of work to finish.

In Arabic letters:

???: ?? ????? ???? ???? ????? ???.

????: ??? ???? ?? ????? ????????.

???: ???? ?? ??????? ????? ?????.

????: ??? ???? ???? ???? ????? ????? ??????