khit خيط
Algerian Darja · noun
“khit” (خيط) is a noun in Algerian Darja meaning thread (for sewing).
Meanings
- thread (for sewing)
- string, cord
Usage
Khit means sewing thread and, more broadly, any thin string. It is commonly used with ibra, "needle": ibra w khit, "a needle and thread", when talking about sewing or small repair jobs. The verb from the same root, khayyet, means "to sew", and the tailor or seamstress is called khayyat or khayyata. The word appears in popular proverbs where thread stands for something fragile or of little value. It is used throughout Algeria, with a few variations in pronunciation.
Example
جيبلي الإبرة والخيط نخيط القميجة
jibli el ibra wel khit nkhayyet el qmija
“Bring me the needle and thread so I can sew the shirt.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “khit” but also “5it”, “khayt”, “khite” and “khiit”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.
Digits stand in for Arabic letters that have no Latin equivalent: 5 is kha (خ), like the ch in Scottish loch.
Type “khit” on the Arabic keyboard
In Moroccan Darija
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Moroccan Darija, where it means “thread (for sewing)”; “string, cord”: khit in Moroccan.
In Tunisian Derja
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Tunisian Derja, where it means “thread (sewing)”; “string, fishing line”: 5it in Tunisian.