ch3er شعر
Algerian Darja · noun
“ch3er” (شعر) is a noun in Algerian Darja meaning hair, body hair.
Meanings
- hair, body hair
- poetry
Usage
Ch3er refers above all to the hair on one's head, and more broadly to body hair. It is a collective noun, taking singular agreement: ch3ri twil (my hair is long), qess ch3rek (cut your hair). A single hair is ch3ra. The sense "poetry" also exists, often pronounced chi3r, close to Standard Arabic. In the popular register, people rather speak of chi3r melhoun or gsid for sung poetry. Pronunciation and context distinguish the two senses. For hair, the short form ch3er clearly dominates.
Example
روحت عند الحفاف نقص شعري
rouht 3and el haffaf nqos ch3ri
“I went to the barber to get my hair cut.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “ch3er” but also “cha3r”, “chaar”, “ch3ar” and “sh3er”. 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 “ch3er” on the Arabic keyboard
In Moroccan Darija
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Moroccan Darija, where it means “hair, body hair”; “poetry”: ch3er in Moroccan.
In Tunisian Derja
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Tunisian Derja, where it means “hair, head of hair”; “poetry”: cha3r in Tunisian.