3djib عجيب

Algerian Darja · adjective

“3djib” (عجيب) is an adjective in Algerian Darja meaning surprising, amazing.

Meanings

1. surprising, amazing
2. strange, weird
3. unbelievable (indignation)

Usage

3djib describes something that surprises, for better or worse. It is often used on its own, as an exclamation, to express astonishment or indignation at someone's behavior: "3djib!" is equivalent to "that's unbelievable!" or "that's crazy!". It can also follow a noun: "wahed 3djib", "a strange character". The feminine is 3djiba and the plural is 3djayeb, which also means "surprising things". Intonation indicates the nuance: admiring, mocking or disapproving. The register is everyday, understood everywhere and used in speech as well as in writing on social media.

Example

How to write it in Latin letters

In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “3djib” but also “3jib”, “3ajib”, “aajib” and “3adjib”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.

Digits stand in for Arabic letters that have no Latin equivalent: 3 is ayn (ع), a voiced sound from deep in the throat with no English equivalent.

Type “3djib” on the Arabic keyboard

In Moroccan Darija

Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Moroccan Darija, where it means “strange, weird”; “amazing, incredible”: 3jib in Moroccan.

In Tunisian Derja

Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Tunisian Derja, where it means “astonishing, strange”; “amazing, extraordinary”: 3jib in Tunisian.