chajra شجرة
Algerian Darja · noun
“chajra” (شجرة) is a noun in Algerian Darja meaning tree.
Meanings
- tree
- family tree (with context)
Usage
Šejra is the usual word for "tree", and it is feminine. The collective chjer or chejr refers to trees in general or a group of trees. The plural is chejrat or chjour depending on the region. The word appears in phrases like chejrat zitoun, "olive tree", or chejrat lḥlib, a popular name for certain latex-bearing plants. Figuratively, a person who is motionless or passive is said to be "like a tree". Mind the agreement: one says chejra kbira, in the feminine. For a forest, ghaba is used instead.
Example
قعدنا تحت الشجرة باش نهربو من الشمس.
9a3adna ta7t chejra bach nahrbou mel chems.
“We sat under the tree to escape the sun.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “chajra” but also “chejra”, “shajra”, “chadjra” and “chjra”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.
Type “chajra” on the Arabic keyboard
In Moroccan Darija
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Moroccan Darija, where it means “tree”; “plant, shrub”: chejra in Moroccan.
In Tunisian Derja
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Tunisian Derja, where it means “tree”; “family tree (chajrat el-3ayla)”: chajra in Tunisian.