mahatta محطة
Algerian Darja · noun
“mahatta” (محطة) is a noun in Algerian Darja meaning station, bus station.
Meanings
- station, bus station
- stop, stage
- petrol station
Usage
Mahatta refers to a transport station, in particular the bus station from which buses and shared taxis depart. It is also used for the bus stop and the petrol station (mahattet l'essence). Figuratively, the word means "stage" or "moment". In speech, it coexists with French loanwords such as la station or la gare. For the train, la gare is preferred. The plural is mahattat.
Example
نتلاقاو في المحطة على الثمنية
ntla9aw fel mahatta 3la tmenya
“Let's meet at the bus station at eight o'clock.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “mahatta” but also “ma7atta”, “mahata”, “m7atta” and “ma7ata”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.
Digits stand in for Arabic letters that have no Latin equivalent: 7 is ha (ح), a breathy h from the throat.
Type “mahatta” on the Arabic keyboard
In Moroccan Darija
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Moroccan Darija, where it means “bus station”; “train station”: m7atta in Moroccan.
In Tunisian Derja
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Tunisian Derja, where it means “station, stop (transport)”; “bus or train station”: mhatta in Tunisian.