maslha مصلحة
Algerian Darja · noun
“maslha” (مصلحة) is a noun in Algerian Darja meaning self-interest, ulterior motive.
Meanings
- self-interest, ulterior motive
- errand, business to attend to
- administrative department
Usage
Maslha first means interest, often with a pejorative nuance: "wahed ta3 maslha" is someone who acts only out of calculation, and "3la jal maslha" means "out of self-interest". The word is also used for a matter to be dealt with: "3andi maslha f la mairie" means "I have an errand to do at the town hall". In administration, it names a department or an office. The plural is masalih. Note: the financial sense of "interest", as in a bank rate, is not expressed by maslha but by fayda.
Example
هو ما يجيك غير كي تكون عندو مصلحة
howa ma yjik ghir ki tkoun 3andou maslha
“He only comes to see you when there's something in it for him.”
How to write it in Latin letters
In Arabizi, Darija written in Latin letters, you will find “maslha” but also “maslaha”, “masla7a”, “masl7a” and “meslha”. 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 “maslha” on the Arabic keyboard
In Moroccan Darija
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Moroccan Darija, where it means “interest, personal advantage”; “errand, matter to deal with”: msla7a in Moroccan.
In Tunisian Derja
Spelt the same way in Arabic, the word also exists in Tunisian Derja, where it means “interest, advantage”; “errand, business to settle”: masl7a in Tunisian.