gla3 قلع

Algerian Darja · verb

“gla3” (قلع) is a verb in Algerian Darja meaning to take off, remove.

Meanings

1. to take off, remove
2. to pull out, uproot

Usage

Qella3, or gella3, is the intensive form of qla3. It means "to take off, remove": a piece of clothing, shoes, a mask, a fixed object. It also means "to pull out": a tooth, a plant, a nail. The intensive stresses effort or repetition (pulling out several things). It is often found in the imperative: qella3 sabbatek, "take off your shoes". The English gloss "guess" found in one source seems wrong for Algerian usage. The opposite of "take off a garment" is lbes or dir.

Example

How to write it in Latin letters

In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “gla3” but also “qla3”, “gella3”, “9la3” and “kala3”. 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; 9 is qaf (ق), a k pronounced at the back of the throat.

Type “gla3” on the Arabic keyboard

In Moroccan Darija

Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Moroccan Darija, where it means “guess! (prompt)”; “to pull out, uproot”: 9elle3 in Moroccan.

In Tunisian Derja

Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Tunisian Derja, where it means “to pull out, extract”; “to take off, remove”: qla3 in Tunisian.