makla ماكلة
Algerian Darja · noun
“makla” (ماكلة) is a noun in Algerian Darja meaning food.
Meanings
- food
- meal, prepared dish
- cuisine (of a place)
Usage
Makla is the most common word for food in general: what you buy, what you prepare, what you eat. It also refers to a specific meal or dish: "makla ta3 dar" (home cooking), "makla khfifa" (a light meal), "makla bnina" (good food). It is used to talk about the cuisine of a region or country: "makla dzayriya". It comes from the verb kla (to eat). Do not confuse it with mekla, which means "mouthful" or "portion" depending on the region. The register is neutral and it is used everywhere.
Example
الماكلة تاع يما ما كاش كيفها.
el makla ta3 yemma ma kach kifha.
“Nothing compares to my mother's cooking.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “makla” but also “mekla” and “maklaa”. No spelling is official: people write the sounds as they hear them.
Its Arabic spelling is not fixed either: you will find ماكلة and ماكله, all the same word.
Type “makla” on the Arabic keyboard
In Moroccan Darija
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Moroccan Darija, where it means “food, foodstuffs”; “meal”: makla in Moroccan.
In Tunisian Derja
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Tunisian Derja, where it means “food”; “meal, cooked dish”: makla in Tunisian.