chab3an شبعان
Algerian Darja · adjective
“chab3an” (شبعان) is an adjective in Algerian Darja meaning full, having eaten enough.
Meanings
- full, having eaten enough
- well-off, lacking nothing
Usage
Chab3an means having eaten enough: "rani chab3an, ma nzidch" (I'm full, I won't have more). The feminine is chab3ana and the plural chab3anin. Its opposite is ji3an (hungry). Figuratively, the word describes a well-off person who has no needs and therefore poorly understands the hardships of the poor (zawali). This is the sense in many proverbs and social remarks that contrast chab3an and ji3an. The related verb is chba3 (to be full), with expressions like "chba3t" (I've eaten enough) or, figuratively, "I've had enough."
Example
يعيشك، راني شبعان، كليت بزاف
y3ichek, rani chab3an, klit bezzaf
“Thank you, I'm full, I ate a lot.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “chab3an” but also “chab3ane”, “shab3an” and “cheb3an”. 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 “chab3an” on the Arabic keyboard
In Moroccan Darija
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Moroccan Darija, where it means “full, having eaten enough”; “well-off, lacking nothing”: chab3an in Moroccan.
In Tunisian Derja
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Tunisian Derja, where it means “full, having eaten enough”; “sated, lacking nothing”: chab3an in Tunisian.