ay wahed اي واحد
Algerian Darja · pronoun
“ay wahed” (اي واحد) is a pronoun in Algerian Darja meaning anyone, anybody.
Meanings
- anyone, anybody
- whoever
Usage
The expression ay wahed means "anyone", not "everyone". For "everyone", say ga3 ennas or koulech. It is often found in general statements: ay wahed yeqder yedirha, "anyone can do it". The negative form machi ay wahed, "not just anyone", is very common as a way of praising someone. The feminine is ay wahda. In questions, kach wahed, "someone", is used instead.
Example
هادي الخدمة ماشي أي واحد يقدر يديرها.
hadi lkhedma machi ay wahed yeqder ydirha.
“This job, not just anyone can do it.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “ay wahed” but also “ay wa7ed”, “ai wahed” and “ay wahd”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.
Digits stand in for Arabic letters that have no Latin equivalent: 7 is ha (ح), a breathy h from the throat.
Type “ay wahed” on the Arabic keyboard
In Moroccan Darija
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Moroccan Darija, where it means “anyone, whoever”; “everyone, everybody”: ay wa7d in Moroccan.
In Tunisian Derja
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Tunisian Derja, where it means “anyone, anybody”; “anyone (in questions)”: ay wa7ed in Tunisian.