3ziz عزيز
Algerian Darja · adjective
“3ziz” (عزيز) is an adjective in Algerian Darja meaning dear, beloved.
Meanings
- dear, beloved
- precious, much valued
Usage
3ziz is said of a person one is attached to. The typical construction is "3ziz 3liya" (he is dear to me). The feminine is 3ziza and the plural is a3izza or 3zaz. The word is widely used in affectionate phrases: "khouya l3ziz" (my dear brother). A pitfall for an English speaker: it never means "dear" in the sense of costly (as in British English), which is said "ghali". 3ziz is also a very common male first name. Context generally makes the difference clear.
Example
هاذ الصاحب عزيز عليا بزاف
had essa7eb 3ziz 3liya bezzaf
“This friend is very dear to me.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “3ziz” but also “aziz”, “3aziz”, “3zizi” and “3zize”. 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 “3ziz” on the Arabic keyboard
In Moroccan Darija
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Moroccan Darija, where it means “dear, precious (affectionately)”; “to be very fond of (3ziz 3la)”: 3ziz in Moroccan.
In Tunisian Derja
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Tunisian Derja, where it means “dear, precious”; “my dear (term of address)”: 3ziz in Tunisian.