fatoura فاطورة
Algerian Darja · noun
“fatoura” (فاطورة) is a noun in Algerian Darja meaning bill, invoice.
Meanings
- bill, invoice
- utility bill (electricity, water, gas)
Usage
Fatoura is the common word for a bill or invoice. It is used mostly for electricity and gas bills (Sonelgaz), water or phone bills, but also for the invoice given by a shopkeeper. Typical phrases are khlas el-fatoura ("pay the bill") and jatni fatoura ghalya ("I got a hefty bill"). The plural is fatourat. The word is neutral in register and is used both in speech and in informal administrative exchanges. You sometimes also hear the French word "facture" as is, but fatoura remains more natural in darja.
Example
جات الفاطورة تاع الضو، غالية بزاف.
jat el fatoura ta3 eddo, ghalya bezzaf.
“The electricity bill came, it's very expensive.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “fatoura” but also “fatora”, “fa6ora” and “fatura”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.
Digits stand in for Arabic letters that have no Latin equivalent: 6 is emphatic ta (ط).